He fell off a cliff but unexpectedly gained a cultivation inheritance.

Gazing at the eight top-grade Core Formation pills gleaming with golden light within the alchemy furnace, Zhang Bufan dared not delay. He immediately took out a warm jade bottle he had prepared beforehand—this jade bottle was carved from thousand-year-old warm jade, capable of locking in the pills' spiritual energy to the greatest extent and preventing the loss of their efficacy. With a flick of his fingertip, the eight pills flew into the jade bottle simultaneously. The moment the cap was tightened, the rich medicinal fragrance gradually subsided. After three consecutive days of high-intensity alchemy, with his divine sense constantly highly concentrated and his spiritual energy greatly depleted, he felt utterly exhausted and somewhat listless. He decided to reward himself first, replenishing his spirit and strength before going into seclusion to break through the Core Formation bottleneck.

Zhang Bufan put away the jade bottle, dispelled the array in the alchemy room, and stepped out. The afterglow of the setting sun bathed the courtyard of Qinglan Peak in warmth. With a wave of his hand, he retrieved a silver fish weighing over eighty pounds from the Xuanqing Secret Realm in his storage ring. Its scales gleamed with a cold silver light, and it was still struggling slightly. He then took out a few plump, bright red peaches and casually placed them on the stone table. Afterward, he set up a fire of spirit wood and skillfully processed the silver fish, scaling it, removing its gills, and applying spirit herb powder—all in one fluid motion.

"Husband, is the alchemy finished?" A clear voice rang out, and Yue Ling'er and Ye Qingxue followed the sound out of their respective rooms. Seeing the silver fish and immortal peaches on the stone table, they knew that Zhang Bufan wanted to have a special meal. The two quickly stepped forward and offered to help prepare the ingredients. Ye Qingxue washed the immortal peaches, while Yue Ling'er added spirit wood to the fire, her eyes full of anticipation.

"Yes, it's done." Zhang Bufan nodded with a smile, his tone filled with undisguised joy. "I've refined eight top-grade Xuan-level Core Formation Pills. Once I've rested enough, I'll go into seclusion to attempt to break through to Core Formation."

"That's wonderful!" Yue Ling'er cheered immediately, clapping her hands. "I knew my husband would succeed! I wish him a smooth Core Formation; from now on, we'll be fellow Core Formation cultivators!" Ye Qingxue also smiled gently, "My husband has a profound foundation, and with the support of top-grade pills, he'll definitely succeed." As they spoke, Liu Yan'er also arrived on her sword, clearly attracted by the aura of the burning spirit wood. Upon hearing that Zhang Bufan had refined a top-grade Core Formation pill, a look of joy flashed in her charming eyes, and she teased, "Our junior brother is indeed amazing; is he going to catch up with his senior sister?"

The four sat around the fire, the silver fish roasted until golden and crispy, the flesh inside tender and juicy, rich in spiritual energy. Zhang Bufan swallowed a whole silver fish, a warm current surging in his stomach, his tired body gradually regaining strength, his stamina already more than half recovered. As for his depleted mental energy, he had his own plans—compared to the tedious meditation and breathing exercises, tender interaction with his wife was the most pleasant way to recover.

After the meal, Zhang Bufan took Ye Qingxue's hand and gestured with his eyes. Ye Qingxue's cheeks flushed slightly, and she nodded obediently, following him into the room. Seeing this, Yue Ling'er smiled and winked at Liu Yan'er, "My husband must have chosen Qingxue because he was afraid of getting entangled with me and disrupting his seclusion in a short time." Liu Yan'er covered her mouth and chuckled, her eyes full of mockery, "Wait until he forms his core, then see how I 'deal with' him."

The next morning, just as dawn broke, Zhang Bufan emerged from Ye Qingxue's room refreshed and invigorated. The fatigue between his brows had vanished, and his spiritual sense had returned to its peak, even becoming more refined due to his joyful state of mind. He headed straight for the secluded cultivation room on Qinglan Peak. Yue Ling'er was already sitting cross-legged at the entrance, her early-stage Core Formation aura emanating from her. Her spiritual domain was at its maximum, forming a spherical barrier with a diameter of thirty kilometers, meticulously protecting the surroundings and preventing any potential interference.

"Thank you for your hard work, Ling'er," Zhang Bufan said softly, pushing open the door to enter the secluded cultivation room. The room was filled with rich spiritual energy, and a futon was placed in the center. He sat cross-legged and first closed his eyes to regulate his breathing for two hours, adjusting his physical condition to its best—his meridians were full of spiritual energy, his divine sense was stable and restrained, and his physical body was at its peak due to the nourishment of spiritual objects. Once everything was ready, he took out a top-grade Core Formation Pill and a fifty-jin bottle of spiritual spring water. Without the slightest hesitation, he tilted his head back and swallowed the pill, followed by gulping down most of the bottle of spiritual spring water. Then he closed his eyes and focused inward, fully circulating the Profound Clarity Dao Inquiry Technique.

The pill dissolved instantly upon entering his stomach, unleashing an immense surge of spiritual energy from his abdomen. Like a rushing river, it gushed into his meridians, carrying a gentle yet powerful force that cleansed every inch of his veins. Zhang Bufan dared not be negligent, guiding this spiritual energy with his divine sense, causing it to circulate rapidly within his meridians, compressing and purifying it bit by bit, before finally converging it all into his dantian. Upon internal inspection, his three-meter-diameter dantian was already filled with a mixture of five elemental spiritual liquids, thick as paste. As new spiritual energy continued to pour in, the pressure within the dantian rapidly increased, the spiritual liquids being constantly compressed, their density growing ever greater.

A noticeable swelling and pain came from his meridians and dantian, but it was within Zhang Bufan's tolerance. Over the years, he had nourished his body with silver fish, immortal peaches, and spiritual spring water, and his dantian and meridians had long since been expanded and strengthened to a degree far exceeding that of other cultivators of the same level. This swelling and pain was simply a normal phenomenon before a breakthrough. He gritted his teeth and activated his cultivation technique to accelerate the compression of spiritual energy. The pressure within his dantian continued to increase, and the color of the spiritual liquid gradually deepened, turning towards a solid state.

Finally, when the compression of spiritual energy reached its critical point, the quantitative change triggered a qualitative change. The three-meter-diameter sphere of spiritual liquid within his dantian suddenly collapsed inward, like stars returning to their place, transforming into a golden solid sphere thirty centimeters in diameter—the initial formation of the Golden Core! The surface of the sphere shimmered with brilliant golden light, its patterns mysterious, radiating a powerful pressure befitting a Core Formation stage cultivator. The next second, the golden light erupted violently, piercing through the dantian wall, spreading to every cell in his body, and gushing out from every pore, enveloping Zhang Bufan in dazzling golden light, as if a god had descended to earth.

At the same time, the spiritual energy of the entire Huashan Secret Realm was drawn by this power, surging wildly towards the secluded cultivation chamber on Qinglan Peak. In the sky, the spiritual energy gathered into a huge vortex with a diameter of tens of feet. The suction force at the center of the vortex was immense, and the spiritual energy turned into a torrent, flowing into Zhang Bufan's body along with the golden light. It intertwined with the light of the golden core, reshaping his physical cells, tempering his meridians and bones, and making his physical body perfectly integrated with the golden core.

This earth-shattering phenomenon instantly alarmed everyone in the secret realm. Disciples from all the peaks of the Immortal Sword Sect stopped their cultivation and looked up in the direction of Qinglan Peak, their eyes filled with shock; even Zhang Bufan's parents, who lived in Anhe City on the edge of the secret realm, noticed the abnormal movement of the clouds in the sky.

Yue Buwei, along with several Supreme Elders, Yue Shouren, and other high-ranking members of the sect, immediately broke through their cultivation barriers and flew into the sky on their swords. When they saw the enormous spiritual energy vortex at the top of Qinglan Peak, which was over thirty feet in diameter, everyone was astonished, their mouths agape, their faces filled with disbelief—a spiritual energy vortex of this scale far surpassed the breakthrough phenomena of ordinary Core Formation cultivators. When Yue Buwei broke through to Core Formation, his spiritual energy vortex was only a dozen feet in diameter, a far cry from the sight before him.

"No one but that kid could have such a foundation!" Yue Buwei was the first to react, his eyes flashing with joy and excitement. "It must be Zhang Bufan breaking through to the Core Formation stage! This kid's accumulated knowledge far exceeds our imagination; his future is limitless!" Several Supreme Elders also nodded in agreement, their expressions invigorated: "Our Immortal Sword Sect has struck gold! With this kid, the sect's rise is just around the corner!"

Yue Buwei immediately activated his late-stage Nascent Soul spiritual domain, instantly covering the entire Huashan Secret Realm. He transmitted his voice to every disciple: "No one is allowed to approach within a hundred miles of Qinglan Peak. Anyone who disturbs it without authorization will have their cultivation abolished and be expelled from the sect!" After giving the order, he kept his spiritual domain open and floated in the sky with several Supreme Elders, personally protecting Zhang Bufan and guarding against any emergencies to ensure that he could successfully complete the Core Formation.

The golden light continued to shine, and the vortex of spiritual energy grew ever more powerful, so dense on Qinglan Peak that it was almost liquid. Zhang Bufan was immersed in the transformation of forming his Golden Core. His physical body and Golden Core were constantly sublimating under the nourishment of the spiritual energy, and his aura steadily rose, stabilizing towards the early stage of Golden Core formation. He knew that after forming his Golden Core, he would not only be able to escape the predicament of being suppressed by Liu Yan'er, but also truly gain a foothold in the Pangu Immortal Cultivation World, protect those around him, and contribute to the rise of the Immortal Sword Sect.