We should keep the good stuff within the family!

The courtyard of the Xuan Yin Old Ancestor was located at the core node of the Black Stone City's Spiritual Vein.

The courtyard was not large, but it was laid out with extreme elegance; artificial hills, flowing water, rare flowers, and spiritual herbs—nothing was common.

Most importantly, the concentration of Spiritual Qi here was more than three times that of the outside world. Taking a single breath made one feel refreshed, and the circulation of mana accelerated by a few notches.

"Fellow Daoist Lin, this place is your residence, 'Tingfeng Courtyard'. Next door is the Old Ancestor's Xuan Yin Palace. In ordinary times, no one dares to come and disturb you."

Su Meiniang's voice was so soft and sweet it could almost drip water. When her alluring phoenix eyes looked at Lin Yuan, they were filled with undisguised awe and fervor.

She personally led the two inside, introducing every arrangement in the courtyard in detail.

"The Spirit Gathering Formation here was set up by the Old Ancestor himself. It can continuously draw in the Spiritual Qi of the earth vein. Cultivating here will yield twice the result with half the effort."

"The meditation cushion in the Quiet Room is made from thousand-year-old Heart-Clearing Wood. It can help clear your mind and focus your spirit while meditating."

"And this hot spring is a geothermal spirit spring transplanted by the Old Ancestor. It not only washes away the dust of the Mortal World but also has great benefits for the Physical Body..."

Hearing the words "hot spring," Lin Yuan's eyes lit up.

Having battled the madwoman Yue Qingyao for a month and a half, facing her one hundred times in bitter Cultivation, even with his current Late Foundation Establishment Stage physique, he felt soreness in his waist and exhaustion in his Divine Soul. This spirit spring came at just the right time.

He remained calm on the surface and nodded with satisfaction: "Very good!"

Gu Zheng stepped forward and naturally helped him straighten his slightly disheveled collar. A rare tinge of softness appeared on her cold, stern face: "Rest assured, if anything happens, just call me. My courtyard is right next door."

Lin Yuan nodded.

Gu Zheng then took Su Meiniang's arm, and the two left together, leaving this quiet world to Lin Yuan.

Lin Yuan was indeed exhausted in body and mind. He couldn't be bothered to go to the Quiet Room, stripped off his outer robe in a few quick motions, and leaped into the hot spring shrouded in white mist.

The warm spring water submerged his body, and a wave of warmth instantly spread through his limbs and bones. He let out a long sigh of relief, leaned against the warm jade pool wall, and unexpectedly fell into a deep sleep just like that.

...

In the neighboring courtyard, in an elegant tea room.

Su Meiniang and Gu Zheng sat opposite each other.

To the side, Xue Linglong stood respectfully. She took out a set of exquisite purple clay tea sets and skillfully brewed tea for the two. The tea fragrance curled in the air, refreshing the heart.

After a moment of silence, Su Meiniang picked up her teacup, gently blew away the foam, and looked at Gu Zheng with her phoenix eyes, her voice carrying solemnity: "I want to ask you for a favor, Sister."

Gu Zheng put down her teacup, her phoenix eyes clear and bright, having already seen through everything: "Sister, you want Lin Yuan to help you refine Medicinal Pills?"

"You are as clever as ice and snow, Sister. I knew I couldn't hide this from you."

Su Meiniang stopped hiding it, sighed with a bitter smile, and an undisguisable longing appeared on her stunningly beautiful face.

"I cannot make decisions for him."

Gu Zheng shook her head gently, her tone carrying a sense of pride: "However... I can mention it for you. As for whether he is willing, that is entirely up to him."

"A Third-Rank Alchemist, tsk tsk..."

A strong sense of envy flashed in Su Meiniang's eyes. "In our entire Eastern Region, on the surface, there is only that old Medicine King from the Medicine King Valley. Trying to get him to act once is harder than ascending to heaven. Little Sister, you must hold onto such a man tightly."

Mentioning this, a trace of helplessness that no one noticed flashed in the depths of Gu Zheng's eyes: "Senior Sister, you know... he also has... others."

"Pfft..."

Su Meiniang couldn't help but laugh out loud.

"My good sister, we are a Sect of the Demonic Path. We believe in the strong being respected and doing as one pleases. Which capable man doesn't have multiple wives and concubines? Among the Core Formation male Cultivators in the Sect, who doesn't keep a bunch of cauldrons and concubines? A figure like Fellow Daoist Lin having only a few beloved women by his side is already considered self-disciplined."

Xue Linglong, who was quietly brewing tea on the side, felt her hand holding the teapot tremble imperceptibly when she heard the words "Third-Rank Alchemist."

A stormy sea churned in her mind.

Lin Yuan? A Third-Rank Alchemist?

When she captured Lin Yuan to marry Su Qinghan, he was merely a Ninth-Rank! How is this possible!

From Ninth-Rank to Third-Rank, there is a chasm between them. Even for a genius in the Dao of Alchemy, without a hundred years of bitter Cultivation and immense Opportunity, it would be absolutely impossible to cross!

Xue Linglong's breathing became rapid.

An incredible yet extremely reasonable thought sprouted wildly in her heart.

There was only one answer!

He was never a Ninth-Rank Alchemist from the beginning!

He had been disguising himself all along!

His true level was Third-Rank, or perhaps... even higher!

Heavens...

Xue Linglong felt her cognition completely overturned.

She had once heard that above the Nascent Soul, there were legendary Soul Transformation powerhouses. Such beings had long Lifespans, world-shaking Divine Abilities, and had long since transcended the mundane.

Brother Yuan... could he be an old monster at the Soul Transformation Stage who, having encountered a Bottleneck in his Cultivation or simply feeling bored, disguised himself as a low-level Cultivator to play in the world and experience the Mortal World?

The more she thought about it, the more Xue Linglong felt this possibility was extremely high!

Only in this way could his alchemy attainments, which far exceeded common sense, be explained!

On this side, Gu Zheng listened to Su Meiniang's words and shook her head with a bitter smile: "I understand the logic of what you say, but... in my heart, I still feel a bit uncomfortable."

She paused, changed the subject, and her cunning phoenix eyes scanned Su Meiniang up and down. That look made Su Meiniang feel a chill down her spine.

"However... what you say also makes sense. He can't possibly belong only to me. Since I want to keep him by my side, relying on myself alone might not be enough..."

Gu Zheng dragged out her tone, implying something.

Su Meiniang's heart skipped a beat for no reason.

Gu Zheng leaned closer, lowered her voice, and added a touch of playfulness: "Sister, you were born with a charming physique and are full of allure. Why don't... you put in some effort too? By then, let alone asking for Medicinal Pills, I'm afraid Lin Yuan himself would eagerly send them to you..."

"You... what nonsense are you spouting!"

Su Meiniang's pretty face flushed red, like a cat whose tail had been stepped on. She glared at her reproachfully, "We are like sisters, how could I..."

"Why let fertile water flow into outsider's fields." Gu Zheng smiled like a little fox that had stolen a fish. "Rather than letting those wild flowers that popped up from nowhere benefit, it's better to let you benefit, Sister. If we sisters join forces, are we still afraid of not being able to lock his heart?"

...

Three days later.

"Hum —"

A dull boom resonated throughout the city.

The dilapidated City Protecting Grand Array of Black Stone City was completely activated. A huge black light curtain rose from the ground, like an inverted giant bowl, shrouding the entire city and isolating all prying eyes from inside and out.

Xuan Yin Old Ancestor sat in command personally.

He sat cross-legged in his courtyard, eyes tightly closed, but his vast Divine Sense was like an invisible giant net, covering every corner of Black Stone City. Any movement could not be hidden from him.

Beside him, that Black Armored Corpse with an aura comparable to the Middle Nascent Soul Stage stood quietly like a silent Demon God.

Gu Zheng and Su Meiniang stood on the left and right, like two of the most beautiful Protectors, guarding both sides of the courtyard gate.

Within a radius of a hundred zhang, it was listed as a restricted area, and no one was allowed to approach.

In the Quiet Room within the courtyard, Lin Yuan sat cross-legged.

In his hand, he was holding the Jade Slip that recorded the breaking nascent soul returning origin pill.

The small golden characters at the bottom of his eyes refreshed quietly.

【 Third-Rank Alchemist: 0 / 700 (addable points) 】

"Not enough."

Lin Yuan whispered in his heart.

The breaking nascent soul returning origin pill was an ancient miracle pill. The difficulty of refining it was extremely high; one slight carelessness, and it would fail.

A Third-Rank Alchemist's level might be able to refine it, but the success rate would definitely not be high.

To ensure nothing went wrong, he had to push his alchemy attainments to an unprecedented height!

With a shift of his consciousness, the available attribute points surged out like a broken dam.

【 Second-Rank Alchemist: 0 / 800 (addable points) 】

Lin Yuan's eyes were as calm as an ancient well; there was only one thought in his heart.

"Continue, fill it up for me! Thank you!"

【 Cultivation: Late Foundation Establishment Stage: 0 / 500000 (addable points) 】

【 First-Grade Alchemist: 900 / 900 (Perfection); Sixth-Grade Artifact Refiner: 1 / 400 (addable points); Third-Rank Formation Master: 0 / 700 (addable points) 】

【 Fifth-Level Fire Control Art: 0 / 500; Illusion Transformation Art (Perfection) 】

【 Available attribute points: 23468 】

【 Special attribute points: 101 】

"Boom!"

The moment he was promoted to First-Grade Alchemist, a vast and boundless true understanding of the Dao of Alchemy was not poured in as memories, but transformed into endless Law imprints, directly carved onto his Divine Soul Origin!

That was not learning, but Epiphany! It was mastery!

In this instant, Lin Yuan's Divine Soul seemed to be dragged out by an invisible giant hand and thrown into a long river of the Dao of Alchemy that spanned through eternity.

He saw how the most ancient ancestors identified the first ray of medicinal properties from herbs and plants, and saw how the founder of the Dao of Alchemy ignited the first cluster of civilization's alchemy fire.

His heart and spirit were immersed in it, personally refining one furnace after another of long-lost ancient miracle pills, experiencing billions of failures and successes. That endless experience and insight finally merged completely with his Divine Soul, turning into the most primitive instinct.