Trying to scheme against me? I'll seize your Dao Seed and advance to the Golden Core stage!

Situ Piaomiao's heart sank, and her expression turned ugly.

Lin Yuan ignored her expression and continued his analysis, "The records about the dao seed in your Master's notes are incomplete. She probably wanted to use this dao seed to break through to the Nascent Soul Stage and enter the Deity Transformation Realm back then, but she ultimately failed and perished!"

"Otherwise... with her talent, you wouldn't be alive right now, and the Misty Immortal Sect wouldn't be yours to command!"

As Lin Yuan spoke, his eyes were fixed on Situ Piaomiao's reaction.

Seeing her stiff expression and uncontrollable trembling, Lin Yuan knew he had guessed correctly.

"An Early Nascent Soul Stage Clone... is indeed incredibly difficult to cultivate and immensely precious. But at a critical moment of life and death, you'd rather expose the secret of the dao seed than let this Clone be destroyed!"

"I'll make a bold guess... is this Clone of yours the 'container' you mentioned, used to plant the dao seed?"

As soon as these words were uttered, Situ Piaomiao's pupils constricted violently, and all color drained from her face!

"It seems I guessed right again!" Lin Yuan smiled, a dazzling smile.

"You..." Situ Piaomiao trembled with rage, unable to utter a single word.

"Now... the problem is simple." Lin Yuan stroked his chin, circling her, his gaze freely appraising her exquisite, undulating curves. "Do I just need to figure out how to seize the dao seed within this Clone of yours, and then I can... hmm?"

"You're dreaming!"

Situ Piaomiao was both ashamed and furious under his aggressive gaze. Her magic power was sealed, preventing her from breaking free, but she suddenly opened her cherry-like mouth and forcefully exhaled.

Strands of colorless and odorless faint fragrance spewed from her mouth, instantly filling the entire Quiet Room.

"Not good..." Lin Yuan's heart jolted, feeling a strong sense of drowsiness rush into his mind.

In his ears, Situ Piaomiao's faint voice, imbued with a strange demonic power, resonated.

"Look into my eyes... relax... you're very tired... go to sleep..."

This was the Misty Immortal Sect's unique Secret Technique, the 'Charm Heart Profound Sound,' combined with the Illusionary God Incense she refined, which could plunge people into an illusion.

Seeing Lin Yuan's movements stiffen and his expression begin to turn hazy, Situ Piaomiao slowly let out a breath of relief.

Within this illusion, the affected individual would temporarily lose themselves and obey the caster's every command.

"Untie this rope... for me!" Situ Piaomiao commanded in a low, seductive tone.

Lin Yuan indeed obeyed, walking with stiff steps to her front and reaching out his hand.

An irrepressible joy flashed in Situ Piaomiao's eyes.

However, the next moment, the joy on her face froze.

Lin Yuan's hand did not go to untie the essence binding rope; instead, he directly grabbed the sash at her waist and gently tugged.

"Untie the rope... not my clothes!" Situ Piaomiao cried out in shock and anger.

Lin Yuan raised his head, his face devoid of any confusion, replaced by a playful, mischievous grin.

"You tell me to untie it, and I untie it? Do you take me for a fool?"

"Su Qinghan tried this trick on me before; I won't fall for the same trap twice!"

Lin Yuan leaned down and whispered in her ear, in a voice only they could hear: "But I still have to thank Fairy for the reminder. This dao seed you cultivated is so vibrant and plump, it's just enough to compensate me for the mental damage from your sneak attack, and incidentally... help me break through my Golden Core Bottleneck!"

Before his words finished, he gave Situ Piaomiao no more chances, directly pressing her down... In the Quiet Room, a captivating aura and abundant Spiritual Qi began to intertwine.

Lin Yuan felt a pure and peculiar energy, never before experienced, being forcibly drawn from Situ Piaomiao's body into his own, continuously flowing in through Dual Cultivation Secret Technique.

That energy was precisely the power of the dao seed she had painstakingly cultivated for decades!

This pure energy, like an indestructible divine hammer, fiercely struck Lin Yuan's unyielding Foundation Establishment Bottleneck!

"Boom!"

A muffled sound, as if the barrier between heaven and earth had been forcibly shattered!

Lin Yuan's aura suddenly soared, climbing madly!

It was precisely in the instant he was fully focused on breaking through, with his mind highly concentrated, that his control over the outside world dropped to its lowest point.

Taking advantage of the moment Lin Yuan was fully focused on breaking through and his mind was agitated, she used every last bit of her strength and actually broke free from the essence binding rope, whose power had greatly diminished due to Lin Yuan's Divided Soul!

Hatred surged in her eyes; she wanted to launch a final attack on Lin Yuan.

However, the surrounding dark blue flames surged up again, firmly protecting Lin Yuan's figure within them.

At this moment, most of Lin Yuan's attention was focused on the Breakthrough, only able to spare a wisp of his mind to barely control the Formation for defense.

"Whoosh, whoosh..."

The blue flames rolled, forming a huge cocoon of fire.

Situ Piaomiao had little magic power left; breaking through the Earth Core Nether Fire's defense to kill Lin Yuan would take a considerable amount of time.

If Lin Yuan completed his Breakthrough, then she would be the one to die.

This time, she dared not delay any further. She looked inwards and discovered that the dao seed Lin Yuan had taken... was only a part of it, with some Foundation remaining. A look of determination flashed across her face, and she transformed into a desperate Escape Light, forcefully bursting through the roof of Tingfeng Courtyard and speeding away without looking back.

"Boom!"

The moment she fled, above Tingfeng Courtyard, the Spiritual Qi completely rioted!

A Spiritual Qi vortex, far grander than any before, reappeared, engulfing half of Black Stone City!

Endless Spiritual Qi was forcibly plundered, transforming into a brilliant pillar of Spiritual Qi that surged madly into Lin Yuan's body.

His aura was still climbing steadily!

Once the Bottleneck brought by Divine Path Foundation Establishment was broken, the benefits gained were far beyond imagination!

Within his Dantian and Qi Sea, all his magic power condensed and compressed, and finally, a Golden Core radiating brilliant golden light slowly formed!

The Golden Core was complete!

Although he was only at the Early Golden Core Stage, the richness of his internal magic power far surpassed that of an ordinary Mid Golden Core Stage Cultivator, and was even only slightly inferior to a Late Golden Core Stage Cultivator!

However, the anomaly did not stop there.

"Rumble..."

Above Black Stone City, the sky, which had been clear due to the gathering Spiritual Qi, was instantly enveloped by thick dark clouds.

Silver snake-like lightning bolts weaved through the clouds, and the dull roar of thunder echoed through heaven and earth, pressing heavily on the hearts of all Cultivators.

"This... this is... a Lightning Tribulation?" In the city, a Yin Corpse Sect Disciple exclaimed in horror.

"That can't be right! Although the celestial phenomenon just now was as grand as forming a Nascent Soul, it was clearly a sign of forming a Golden Core. How could there be a Lightning Tribulation!"

"Even when forming a Nascent Soul... besides the Heart Demon Tribulation, it wouldn't attract a Heavenly Dao Lightning Tribulation!"

An Elder of the Yin Corpse Sect, who had read many ancient texts, said with a trembling voice, "This old man once saw in a fragmented ancient text... only those... those Prodigies with such profound Foundation that they are Heaven-Defying, will attract the Heavenly Dao's jealousy and bring down a Lightning Tribulation, intending to obliterate them, when breaking through a major Realm!"

Before his words finished.

"Boom!"

A silver bolt of lightning tore through the sky, carrying the majestic might of heaven that could destroy everything, and violently struck directly towards Tingfeng Courtyard!