I'm in Yellow Maple Valley, and I have one equipment slot!

Three months passed in the blink of an eye.

Zhou Yuan pushed open the door of the alchemy room that Yu Huan Residence had specially prepared for him, his face showing just the right amount of fatigue.

He handed a storage bag to Ouyang Gong, who was already waiting outside.

Inside were twenty batches of freshly refined, high-quality pills commonly used in the Foundation Establishment stage.

This batch of pills is not the Dust-Reducing Pill, but rather several types of cultivation-enhancing pills that are in high demand at Yu Huan Residence.

Although he could "rest" while waiting for the materials for the Dust-Reducing Pill, Zhou Yuan couldn't stay idle, so he took the initiative to ask for some tasks to lighten the burden later.

After checking the items, Ouyang Gong smiled broadly and thanked him repeatedly. Zhou Yuan's "dedicated" attitude made him feel even more at ease.

After the transaction was completed, Ouyang Gong did not leave immediately. Instead, an undisguised joy appeared on his face as he lowered his voice and said, "Alchemist Zhou, good news! Headquarters has sent someone to deliver the formula for the Dust-Clearing Pill, as well as... nine sets of refining materials, all at once!"

As he spoke, he carefully took out a specially made storage bag and handed it to Zhou Yuan with both hands.

Zhou Yuan took it and probed it with his divine sense.

Inside the bag lay a pale purple jade slip and nine carefully sealed, spiritually potent material pouches.

Each material pack contains five level-five demon beast inner cores with different attributes, as well as a level-six demon beast inner core as the core! In addition, there are a large number of rare auxiliary spiritual herbs, all of excellent age and quality.

Zhou Yuan quickly estimated in his mind that the cost of this one piece of material alone was probably no less than 20,000 low-grade spirit stones!

If a batch of Dust-Clearing Pills yields ten pills, at a market price of eight or nine thousand spirit stones each, the total value would be no more than eighty or ninety thousand spirit stones.

No wonder the Dust-Clearing Pill is so expensive and rare—the materials are costly, the refining process is extremely difficult, and the success rate is not high.

Based on the average success rate of 40-50% among alchemists within the Six Palaces, the profit margin is not as exaggerated as one might imagine.

More importantly, it was to maintain the supply of high-end elixirs and the reputation of the stores.

Ouyang Gong looked at Zhou Yuan, his tone carrying both expectation and a hint of barely perceptible pressure:

"Master Zhou, the raw materials for the Dust-Clearing Pill are indeed incredibly precious. Headquarters has allocated nine portions at once, which is a significant investment and reflects their high hopes. However, with Master Zhou's superb alchemy skills, I'm sure... you'll succeed immediately!"

Zhou Yuan put away his storage bag, his expression calm: "Don't worry, Manager Ouyang, I will do my best. However, for the next two or three years, I need to focus on researching the formula for the Dust-Clearing Pill and trying to refine it, so I'm afraid I won't be able to take on any other alchemy tasks."

"It's alright! It's alright!"

Ouyang Gong quickly waved his hand, "The pills that Alchemist Zhou has refined for our Jade Ring Residence over the past two years are in ample stock, enough to support sales for several years. Alchemist only needs to focus on researching the Dust-Reducing Pill! If Alchemist can successfully refine this batch of Dust-Reducing Pills... hehe, then our Jade Ring Residence on Kui Xing Island will have a great show of face in front of headquarters, and our status will rise accordingly!"

His eyes were full of longing.

After exchanging a few more pleasantries, Zhou Yuan took his leave and returned to his cave at Yuqi Peak.

With the perfect excuse of researching and refining the Dust-Reducing Pill, he could at least legitimately "seclude himself" for two or three years without being disturbed.

This is exactly the precious time he needs to break through to the Core Formation stage!

However, he did not intend to form his core within his own cave.

When the core is formed, the spiritual energy of heaven and earth gathers together, and there will be obvious changes in the celestial phenomena, which will cause quite a stir.

Jade Peak is located in Qingyun Mountain, close to Kuixing City and numerous cultivators' caves, making it too conspicuous.

He didn't want to expose himself to countless eyes at his most vulnerable and critical moment, adding unnecessary uncertainty.

Back in his cave, Zhou Yuan habitually scanned the area outside with his divine sense through the barrier.

Then, a slight smile appeared on his lips.

This time, the cave was empty. The two Six-Hall cultivators who were responsible for "watching" (monitoring) were nowhere to be seen.

Presumably, after Master Mulong bestowed the token and made his stance clear, Liuliandian felt the pressure and worried that continuing this surveillance would displease him or even push him completely to the side of the Island Lord's Mansion. Therefore, he wisely canceled this "rule".

This saved him a lot of trouble.

"Since that's the case, this is a golden opportunity. Why don't I go out and find a secluded place to form my core?" Zhou Yuan made up his mind and no longer hesitated.

He did not intend to never return.

The cave dwelling on Kuixing Island has a superior environment, and with the connection between the Six-Connected Hall and the Wooden Dragon Immortal, it is a good place for him to stay at present.

Therefore, he only packed the essential items and some resources needed for breaking through to the Core Formation stage, leaving behind a lot of daily necessities and some less important miscellaneous items in the cave, creating the illusion that the owner had only gone out briefly.

It is night, the moon is bright and the stars are sparse.

Zhou Yuan quietly pushed open an extremely hidden side door of the cave, used the "Nameless Concealing Breath Technique" to conceal his aura to the extreme, and like a ghost blending into the night, he silently left Yuqi Peak and Qingyun Mountain.

He flew low to avoid potential patrols and being seen.

With his current cultivation level at the peak of the late Foundation Establishment stage and his powerful divine sense, and with his deliberate concealment, no one on the entire Kui Xing Island noticed his departure.

After leaving the area of ​​Kui Xing Island, Zhou Yuan summoned the Divine Wind Boat and flew towards the vast ocean, far from the main shipping routes.

He sped along, deliberately avoiding the islands marked on the map that might be inhabited by cultivators or mortals.

After flying for about 1,400 miles, he finally found a small, sparsely vegetated, and almost nonexistent island in a desolate sea.

This island, with its jagged rocks and only some salt-tolerant shrubs and moss, is utterly worthless, making it an ideal secluded place.

Zhou Yuan landed in a sheltered rocky hollow in the center of the deserted island.

He first carefully explored the entire island, confirming that there were no signs of any living beings or previous inhabitants.

Then, he got busy.

He took out the array flags and array plates. "I'm in Huangfeng Valley, and I have an equipment slot!": The word-of-mouth was explosive and the reviews were overwhelming! He first set up a set of concealment and illusion arrays around the stone hollow, completely concealing the place. From the outside, it was just an ordinary pile of rocks.

Next, he set up a set of early warning and defense formations. Although the power was not too strong, it was enough to resist the detection and harassment of Foundation Establishment cultivators and to buy him time to react.

Finally, he carved out a simple cave dwelling inside the rocky hollow, just big enough for one person to sit cross-legged, and sealed the entrance with rocks.

Everything is ready.

Zhou Yuan sat cross-legged in the center of the simple cave dwelling, took a deep breath, and began to adjust his state.

He switched the equipment slot configuration to the optimal mode for Core Formation:

【Equipment Slot 1: Miniature Spirit Eye Spring】(Effect: Continuously and rapidly restores mana, increases cultivation speed, and increases the concentration of spiritual energy in the cultivation environment.)

【Equipment Slot 2: Golden Core (Early Stage of Core Formation)】(Effect: Slightly increases cultivation speed during the Core Formation stage and slightly increases the success rate of Core Formation.)

[Equipment Slot 3: Snow Spirit Water] (Effect: Increases the success rate of Core Formation! Harmonizes the Yang Fire within the body and purifies mana.)

[Equipment Slot 4: Heavenly Fire Liquid] (Effect: Increases the success rate of Core Formation! Tempers the internal coldness and condenses true essence.)

[Equipment Slot 5: Dust Reduction Pill]

(Effect: Increases the success rate of Core Formation!)

Of the five pieces of equipment, four are directly designed to increase the success rate of Core Formation! Coupled with the sustain provided by the Spirit Eye Spring, this is practically the strongest Core Formation configuration he can currently build.

After adjusting his equipment, Zhou Yuan did not immediately begin his attack.

He first took out another set of pre-prepared Core Formation spiritual items from his storage bag: a jade bottle containing Heavenly Fire Liquid, a jade bottle containing Snow Spirit Water, and a separately stored Dust-Subduing Pill.

He first took the Heavenly Fire Liquid.

A warm current, hot but not violent, surged into his dantian, slowly refining and purifying his liquid true essence.

After the medicine had fully taken effect and he had adapted, he drank the Snow Spirit Water.

A cool and pure chill neutralized the previous heat, harmonized yin and yang, and further purified the magical power, making the true essence, which was already exceptionally condensed due to the "Three Revolutions Rejuvenation Technique," even clearer and purer, with a faint tendency to transform into a solid state.

Finally, he took a deep breath and put the Dust-Clearing Pill, which emitted a faint fragrance, into his mouth.

The pill melted instantly upon entering his mouth, and a cool sensation rushed straight to his sea of ​​consciousness, instantly soothing the slight agitation caused by consuming the first two spiritual items. This allowed his mind to enter an unprecedented state of clarity, tranquility, and stability, free from external demonic influences and distracting thoughts.

With both internal and external support in place, everything is ready.

Zhou Yuan closed his eyes and began to circulate the Core Formation secret technique of the Azure Origin Sword Manual.

Within his dantian, the liquid true essence, which had undergone extreme compression and purification through the "First Rebirth," was already several times thicker and purer than that of cultivators of the same level. Now, under the stimulation of internal and external spiritual objects and the impetus of his cultivation technique, it began to slowly rotate, contract, and condense...

Time slipped away silently in the quiet seclusion. Beyond the deserted island, the tides rose and fell, the sun rose and set, seemingly unchanging through the ages.

Inside the cave, Zhou Yuan was as if he had turned into a stubborn rock, his aura completely contained.

Only the increasingly intense and solidified energy fluctuations within the dantian indicate that some kind of transformation is taking place.

One year... two years...

On this day, the sky above the deserted island, which was originally clear, suddenly turned gloomy without any warning!

Thick, dark clouds gathered wildly from all directions, instantly blocking out the sunlight and looming over the deserted island as if the sky itself were about to collapse.

Within the dark clouds, silver snakes danced wildly, and blinding bolts of lightning silently streaked across the sky, bringing a chilling pressure.

At the same time, the spiritual energy of heaven and earth within a radius of more than a hundred miles seemed to be stirred by an invisible giant hand, and began to frantically converge towards the stone hollow in the center of the deserted island where Zhou Yuan was in seclusion!

A massive amount of spiritual energy formed a visible pale white stream of air, swirling and roaring as it surged in, creating a huge, slowly rotating vortex of spiritual energy above the stone hollow!

At the center of the vortex, the faint sounds of wind and thunder could be heard, echoing the dark clouds and lightning in the sky.

"This...this is?!" A Foundation Establishment cultivator who happened to be passing by the nearby sea on a magical artifact abruptly stopped his escape, staring in astonishment at the astonishing phenomenon above the distant deserted island, and exclaimed, "A Core Formation celestial phenomenon?!"

His face was filled with disbelief. This sea area was far from the main islands, with sparse spiritual energy, and had always been a desolate place. How could someone choose to form their core here?

Moreover, judging from the scale of the gathering of spiritual energy and the intensity of the celestial phenomena, the foundation of the Core Formation cultivator seems to be extremely solid!

"I wonder which reclusive, wandering cultivator has such an opportunity to break through to the Golden Core stage here!"

The Foundation Establishment cultivator watched from afar, not daring to approach, his eyes filled with shock and deep envy. Core Formation—that was a realm countless Foundation Establishment cultivators dreamed of but could never reach!

He was certain that the person was a rogue cultivator because the environment here was harsh and there were no spiritual veins to speak of.

Any cultivator with a background or belonging to a sect would choose a safe place with abundant spiritual energy, protective formations, and the protection of teachers and fellow disciples when attempting to break through to the Core Formation stage. They would never choose to venture onto such a desolate, godforsaken island.

Soon, other passing cultivators within a radius of one or two hundred miles, or low-level cultivators cultivating on nearby islands, also noticed the astonishing commotion and turned their surprised and uncertain gazes toward the deserted island.

But no one dared to approach and investigate rashly. The process of forming the core was extremely dangerous and protected by the laws of heaven and earth. To interfere rashly would not only create a deadly feud but could also trigger a celestial backlash, harming oneself.

The crowd simply watched from afar, feeling the immense power of heaven and earth and the tide of spiritual energy. Each person had their own thoughts, but more than anything, they felt awe and envy for the unknown Core Formation cultivator.

Inside a simple cave dwelling in a rocky hollow on a deserted island.

Zhou Yuan seemed completely oblivious to the changing winds and the surge of spiritual energy in the outside world. His entire focus was concentrated within his dantian.

There, a solid sphere, radiating brilliant golden light and containing unimaginable energy, is slowly taking shape and stabilizing...