Hunyuan Immortal Sect

Chapter 517 Breakthrough of the Golden Pill
Time flies, and several years have passed in the blink of an eye. In the brightly lit hall of the Beast Taming Sect in Xijiang County, Song Xian sat below, chatting idly with Xu Hao.

Before long, Jiang Feng appeared around the corner, walking towards them. The two stood up, bowed, and waited.

"Senior Jiang, I apologize for disturbing you. Please don't take offense."

Jiang Feng went straight to the main seat and sat down. He waved his hand, indicating that the two of them should sit down, and looked at Song Xian: "It's been many years since we last met. Your cultivation has indeed improved a lot. You're not far from reaching the Core Formation stage!"

"This is precisely why I have come here. I wish to borrow the original Murong family's spiritual energy to strike the Golden Core Realm. I hope your esteemed sect can grant my request. I humbly request that you and Senior Wang Xuan put in a good word for me and that we complete the procedures as soon as possible."

Jiang Feng remained calm: "It seems you're ready."

“Yes. I have heard that the rebels in Nanhan County recently intend to invade Xishu County. I wish to form my core as soon as possible in order to deal with the possible crisis in the future,” Song Xian replied.

In the past six months or so, rumors have been rampant that the Southern Han Commandery is going to invade the Western Shu Commandery. This is not unfounded, and many signs indicate that the Southern Han Commandery may be about to make a big move.

First, a large number of troops from the State of Chu are entering the Southern Han Commandery.

Secondly, Nanhan Commandery has been making frequent disturbances, constantly sending small groups of troops to harass the border area between Xishu Commandery and Xianyang Commandery.

Furthermore, a beast tide broke out in Dongchuan County.

The combination of these three factors led most people to believe that the Southern Han Commandery was about to launch a war.

Several decades have passed since the last time the Qianqing Sect summoned cultivators from three prefectures to attack the rebels and suffered a defeat.

At that time, due to the heavy casualties on both sides, a temporary ceasefire was necessary. Now, after so many years of recuperation, Nanhan County has recovered its strength quickly thanks to the support of the Chu Kingdom.

With Dongchuan County currently preoccupied with its own problems, there is no better time for Nanhan County to have any ambitions.

Although there had been rumors that Dongchuan County and Bei'an County were secretly in contact with the rebels to remain neutral, these were just hearsay and there was no concrete evidence that they had reached such an agreement.

"Since you've thought it all through, then fine, I'll arrange it for you as soon as possible!" Jiang Feng naturally wouldn't refuse such a favor and readily agreed.

Whether for public or private reasons, he hoped that Song Xian could successfully form his golden core.

From a public perspective, having one more obedient Golden Core cultivator in Xijiang County is a good thing for the Beast Taming Sect, especially now that Nanhan County is making moves.

Personally speaking, Hunyuanzong was someone he had personally promoted.

If the Hunyuan Sect's strength can reach another level, his influence within the sect will increase.

"Thank you, senior."

The two chatted for a few more minutes about the current situation before Song Xian took his leave.

...............................

The past ten days or so have passed in the blink of an eye; the sky is clear and cloudless.

At the Murong family's mountain gate, amidst the majestic Taoist temple, the rich spiritual energy had already transformed into a tangible mist that lingered within.

Song Xian sat upright in the central Bagua formation, his eyes closed. He didn't know how much time had passed until his mind was completely still and free of any distracting thoughts, before he slowly opened his eyes.

Without any hesitation, he flipped his hand and held out a golden pill the size of an egg, which he swallowed in one gulp.

The pill melted in the mouth and went down the throat and intestines into the stomach.

In an instant, powerful and surging spiritual energy filled his entire body, rampaging through him as if it were about to burst out of his body.

As if a giant hammer was constantly striking his internal organs, Song Xian endured the pain and, following the cultivation method, controlled the raging spiritual energy of heaven and earth within his body, causing it to flow along his meridians and refine it.

As the spiritual energy within the body was slowly refined and integrated into the Linghai acupoint, a warm feeling quickly enveloped the entire body.

At this moment, the spiritual energy of the entire mountain range was attracted by something and surged wildly from all directions. A large amount of spiritual power surged and converged, forming visible spiritual energy vortexes that rushed towards him like tigers pouncing on their prey.

In an instant, it felt as if countless ants were gnawing at his flesh and blood. Song Xian gritted his teeth and continued to refine the spiritual energy.

As time went by, more and more spiritual energy poured in, and Song Xian felt as if his body was about to explode. He quickly activated the Profound Heaven Fusion Fire Technique, and various flames immediately appeared on his body.

Flames of varying colors—black, gold, and green—enveloped his body, forming a protective shield around him.

A large amount of spiritual energy from heaven and earth surged in, but was blocked by the strange fire, which slowed down the speed at which it invaded his body, giving him time to refine the spiritual energy.

Outside the training ground, Su Zhirou, Jiang Zichen, and Yu Lian watched nervously.

Su Zhirou clenched her fists, her face pale, as if she were suffocating.

Jiang Zichen frowned, and Yu Lian also looked tense and worried.

Jiang Feng, who was protecting Song Xian, remained expressionless until he saw flames of various colors surging around Song Xian's body. Only then did his emotions change, and his eyes became noticeably sharper.

From midday to sunset, the vortexes of spiritual energy that surged above the dojo devoured and merged with each other, until only one largest vortex remained lingering.

As a massive amount of spiritual energy from heaven and earth continued to pour in, the protective shield formed by the strange fire gradually became unable to hold up, and the flames gradually weakened.

Protected by the strange fire, Song Xian was able to focus on refining the incoming spiritual energy while still having the capacity to observe his surroundings.

Seeing that the power of the strange fire was getting weaker and weaker, he was afraid that the strange fire would be destroyed under the invasion of the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, so he put away all the strange fires and left only the most powerful Taiyin Netherfire to guard himself.

As the moon rose, the Yin Netherfire became extremely weak under the onslaught of spiritual energy. Song Xian then put away the Yin Netherfire, as he felt he was in excellent condition. Protected by the strange fire, he had been able to refine the spiritual energy of heaven and earth with ease for some time, and the vortex of spiritual energy above the Daoist temple had shrunk considerably.

He should be able to withstand the remaining spiritual energy invasion on his own.

Without the protection of the strange fire, his pressure immediately increased, and he could no longer pay attention to the changes in the external situation.

He didn't know how much time had passed, but he felt that the spiritual energy surging between heaven and earth was becoming less and less, and weaker and weaker.

He absorbed and refined all that spiritual energy into his body, and at the same time, the spiritual energy in his spiritual sea acupoint underwent an astonishing change.

The originally liquid spiritual energy quietly changed during the continuous refining process, turning into a solid state.

The lake in the Linghai Cave had dried up and transformed into a huge, round, solid object.

This is the sublimation of spiritual power.

Song Xian slowly opened his eyes, and the spiritual energy in his Linghai acupoint surged out like a flood, completely beyond his control. It first flowed through his limbs and bones, and then rushed out of his body.

The unique spiritual pressure aura of a Golden Core cultivator soared into the sky, like the clear moonlight overhead, enveloping the entire mountain range.

At that moment, all the cultivators in the mountains felt a sense of connection and looked towards the direction of the training ground.

Outside the training ground, Su Zhirou, Jiang Zichen, and Yu Lian were overjoyed to feel the rippling spiritual energy fluctuations.

"It's done! It's done! Sect Leader, it's done! That's wonderful!" Yu Lian couldn't help but shout loudly.

The group rose into the air one after another and arrived at the training ground.

"Congratulations, Sect Leader."

"Congratulations to the Sect Leader on achieving the Golden Elixir."

Jiang Zichen and Yu Lian both bowed in greeting.

"Husband." Su Zhirou's eyes were filled with joy. Before they could continue speaking, Jiang Feng arrived.

"Congratulations, Fellow Daoist Song."

“Thank you for protecting me, senior.” Song Xian passed the three men, walked up to him, and bowed to him.

"No need to be so polite. Senior Brother Wang instructed me to have you visit him after you successfully form your core. Let's go and pay him a visit first! You can talk about it when we get back."

"Yes," Song Xian replied, greeting the three of them. They rose into the air together, leaving the area and arriving at the gates of the Beast Taming Sect.

The two waited in Wang Xuan's office for a short while before he walked in with a smile on his face.

"Senior Brother Wang."

"Greetings, Senior Wang."

Wang Xuan looked at Song Xian and nodded: "I knew you could do it."

"It is all thanks to the great fortune of your clan. Without your clan's support and care, I would not be where I am today."

"Alright, there's no need for you to be modest. Everyone in Xijiang County knows your abilities and strength. Therefore, I'm certain that you will succeed in forming your core. If even you can't, then who can?"

The three took their seats and exchanged a few more pleasantries. Wang Xuan then changed the subject: "After those people from Huayuan Sect ran off to Bianxi City, have they been behaving themselves all these years?"

Song Xian was puzzled as to why he had suddenly brought this up, and could only answer truthfully, not knowing his intentions.

"They are all quite well-behaved. May I ask what instructions you have for them, senior?"

"I heard they still claim to be from the Huayuan Sect? Are they still thinking of taking back Yongning City one day?"

Song Xian noticed something unusual about his tone and wondered why he was acting this way, since Huo Youming and his group shouldn't have offended him.

"Since you have asked, senior, I dare not hide the truth. They do indeed wish to return to Yongning City."

"The Huayuan Sect no longer exists, so let them give up their illusions! Yongning City is now under the jurisdiction of the Mingyue Sect. If you want to take in those people from the Huayuan Sect, then take them under your wing. If they are unwilling, then let them fend for themselves! Don't cause trouble for yourself later."

"Senior means that Xu Zhuoxuan and the Mingyue Sect want to cause them trouble."

Wang Xuan gave him a meaningful look: "To tell you the truth, a few days ago, when you applied to go to the original Murong family's spiritual vein to form your core, I reported to the sect leader and he inquired about the matter. I covered it up for you. However, the sect leader made it clear that the Huayuan Sect no longer exists. The situation is tense now, and internal strife cannot occur in Xijiang County any further."

Song Xian remained silent. Huo Youming had been bringing Hua Yuanzong disciples with him for quite some time now, and the Beast Taming Sect hadn't bothered with it all these years. Now that Hong Haoran had suddenly asked about it, something must have happened behind the scenes.

Of course, he could understand that the current situation was unstable, and the Beast Taming Sect certainly did not want the Western Frontier County to engage in internal strife and deplete its strength.

But the fact that this matter was brought up just before he formed his core suggests that the Bright Moon Sect had received news that he was about to form his core and was afraid that it would threaten their rule over Yongning City. After all, he had Huo Youming as a trump card, so Xu Zhuoxuan said something to Hong Haoran in private.

Otherwise, Hong Haoran would never have brought this up for no reason.

Whatever the reason, Hong Haoran's words were the highest directive, effectively extinguishing Huo Youming and the others' hopes of returning to Yongning City.

(End of this chapter)