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

Huangfeng Valley Market, Miaodan Pavilion.

Since Zhou Yuan joined Huangfeng Valley, he has been in seclusion on Xuankun Mountain for six whole months, during which time he has not stepped out of his residence even once.

Half a month ago, Manager Wang sent a communication talisman to the outside of his cave's protective barrier, earnestly urging him to hand over his share of Golden Source Pills for the next two quarters.

Zhou Yuan thought that he had borrowed 500 spirit stones from the other party in advance, and it was indeed unreasonable to delay like this.

With his current strength, he cannot ignore the identity of the Lin family's guest elder.

After all, the Lin family still has Lin Xu, a Foundation Establishment cultivator.

After finishing his seclusion in magical cultivation, he went directly to the market.

After receiving enough alchemy materials for half a year, Zhou Yuan did not linger in the market and returned directly to his cave dwelling on Xuankun Mountain.

In the quiet room, he had a thought and removed all three pieces of equipment from his equipment inventory that he used for practicing magic.

Then the three-piece alchemy set was installed.

【Equipment 1: Crimson Gold Furnace (Tier 1, Superior)】

【Equipment 2: Alchemy Insights (Tier 1, High Grade)】

【Equipment 3: Golden Source Pill (Tier 1 Excellent)】

As the three pieces of equipment were put back in place, Zhou Yuan instantly felt that familiar sense of control over the ultimate alchemy return to him once again.

The "Dan Dao Insights" and "Golden Source Pill" provide a total of 50% bonus to the base pill-forming rate.

The [Crimson Gold Furnace] will receive an additional 20% boost.

The effects of the equipment alone ensured that his success rate in refining first-tier pills reached at least 70%.

Not to mention that he himself was already very skilled at refining the Golden Source Pill.

The fire was reignited.

For the next month, Zhou Yuan completely transformed into a pill-refining machine.

With his terrifying alchemy skills and the support of his equipment, the refining of each batch of Golden Source Pills was a foregone conclusion.

100% success rate!

Moreover, every batch yields a full set of pills, with not a single wasted pill.

This means that for every two sets of materials provided by Miaodan Pavilion, he can rightfully add one of the finished products to his own storage bag.

A month later, he handed over the agreed-upon supply of pills for several months to Manager Wang, thus settling the matter.

As for the other half that he embezzled, it became his "ammunition" reserve for his subsequent cultivation.

After dealing with these trivial matters, Zhou Yuan once again entered a state of seclusion.

This time, he devoted all his attention to practicing magic.

Since we are preparing to participate in the Crimson Trial.

Then he must do everything in his power to improve his strength.

……

Two months have passed in the blink of an eye.

In the dimly lit, quiet room, Zhou Yuan sat cross-legged, his body completely still.

Suddenly, he opened his eyes.

hum!

A sharp tearing sound rang out in the air.

Twelve golden sword blades appeared out of thin air, swirling and dancing around him, forming a mysterious sword formation, each blade radiating a chilling sharpness.

Zhou Yuan's Golden Sword Technique has clearly reached perfection!

Immediately afterwards, Zhou Yuan formed hand seals.

A thick, solid layer of golden armor instantly covered his entire body. The surface of the armor shimmered with spiritual light, and runes appeared and disappeared. Its defensive power was more than one level stronger than when he was at the Great Perfection realm.

The Golden Armor Technique is also perfected!

More than that.

With a slight thought, his body swayed and transformed into a blur, silently merging into the shadows of the stone wall. His aura and spiritual pressure plummeted to freezing point in an instant, making it impossible for divine sense to detect unless one witnessed it firsthand.

Concealment technique, perfected!

Immediately, a faint green light appeared beneath his feet, and he seemed to lose all weight, as if he could escape at any moment using the energy of the plants.

Wood Release Technique, perfected!

Zhou Yuan slowly exhaled a breath of turbid air, and with a thought, opened the attribute panel that only he could see.

Name: Zhou Yuan

Age: 25

[Cultivation Level: Perfected Qi Refining Stage]

[Technique: Fiery Cloud Technique (Thirteenth Level, Perfected)]

[Alchemy: Tier 1]

[Spells: Golden Sword Technique (Perfected), Golden Armor Technique (Perfected), Concealment Technique (Perfected), Wood Release Technique (Perfected)...]

This spell setup was the result of his careful selection after much deliberation.

The Golden Sword Technique is primarily offensive, unleashing twelve sword blades simultaneously, with power comparable to a single strike from a top-tier magical artifact.

The Golden Armor Technique is primarily defensive; at its perfected stage, its defensive power is sufficient to withstand a full-force attack from a top-tier magical artifact.

Wood Release: Wood Release is used for escape, greatly increasing one's ability to survive.

Concealment techniques are used to hide one's presence and can play a crucial role in certain situations.

It can attack or defend, and if things go wrong, it can escape.

After this series of moves, his overall strength is vastly different from what it was two months ago.

What surprised Zhou Yuan even more was that when magic was cultivated to the perfect level, the changes it brought were far more than just becoming proficient.

Instant cast!

These two words signify a qualitative change.

In the past, even those at the highest level of mastery needed to briefly perform hand seals and chant incantations to cast spells, and the circulation of magical power in the meridians also required a very short process.

In the midst of a life-or-death struggle, that fleeting delay can be the deciding factor between life and death.

At the level of perfection, the spellcasting process has been completely imprinted into the body's instinct.

With a single thought, the spell is cast.

Moreover, spells at the Perfected Realm consume less mana.

Take the Golden Armor Technique for example. When he reaches the Great Perfection stage, with his perfected Qi cultivation, he can probably maintain it for about 15 minutes.

Now, the Golden Armor Technique at its perfect level can be maintained for a full quarter of an hour, and its defensive power has been significantly enhanced.

In just a few months, he mastered several basic and advanced spells to perfection.

If this were to spread, it would cause a huge uproar in Huangfeng Valley.

After all, even the simplest fireball technique is by no means easy to master to perfection.

Most cultivators only master their spells to a minor level, and stop once they can use them proficiently.

No one would spend a lot of precious training time perfecting a basic spell.

Because it's not worth it at all.

A cultivator in the Qi Refining stage has a lifespan of no more than a hundred years. Anyone with a bit of ambition will devote all their energy to the arduous cultivation of techniques, pursuing that faint hope of Foundation Establishment.

Who would waste time perfecting these low-level, mid-level, and high-level spells, which have limited power and take longer to cast?

This process takes too long and greatly delays cultivation.

Perhaps because of this, they will lose the opportunity to establish their foundation.

In their view, battles at the Qi Refining stage rely more on powerful talismans and indestructible magical artifacts.

Magic is merely a supplementary means.

Zhou Yuan, on the other hand, was a rogue cultivator with shallow foundations. He couldn't afford high-level talismans or top-tier magical artifacts.

To survive the perilous and bloody trials, and even to get a share of the spoils.

Mastering his spells to the point of instantaneous casting is currently the only way he can protect himself.

P.S.: Are any readers here? If so, please let me know and give this humble author some support. At least let me know I'm not playing alone, sob sob…