With the Eight Immortals' magical treasures in hand, even a mortal like myself! Ha!

Thinking of this, Han Li couldn't help but ask, "I wonder what Master's reason is?"

"Hehehe, let's talk about it after you reach Foundation Establishment. You should go and cultivate now. Your master needs to go into seclusion to refine pills." Gu Qing didn't explain the reason before dismissing Han Li.

This made Han Li somewhat depressed, as if something was stuck in his mind, neither here nor there. He probably thought about this even when he was cultivating.

Seeing that Gu Qing was unwilling to say anything more, Han Li wisely refrained from asking further and instead bowed and withdrew.

Seeing Han Li leave dejectedly, Gu Qing couldn't help but smile. The valley was so boring, Han Li's arrival brought some fun, making the path of cultivation less tedious.

However, I still need to cultivate more quickly, otherwise my disciple will surpass my cultivation level, and I, as the master, will lose face.

Thinking it over, Gu Qing didn't spend too much time on Han Li. After collecting all the medicinal materials, she began to refine pills to improve her Foundation Establishment cultivation.

The two prescriptions given by Hong Fu were both for Foundation Establishment and cultivation advancement pills; one was called the Golden Essence Pill, and the other was called the Nourishing Essence Pill.

The two pills have similar effects, only the ingredients used are different.

Hong Fu gave two pill formulas at once, which clearly shows that she knew about the resistance to the pills; otherwise, she would have only given one formula.

Aside from being a little cold towards Gu Qing, Hong Fu usually handled everything very well. She was quite considerate in every way.

With so many medicinal herbs at his disposal, Gu Qing must be proficient in alchemy, and his skills are quite good.

In Gu Qing's understanding, pill refining is a process of separating and recombining medicinal power. The first step is to refine the nine spiritual herbs into nine clumps of liquid.

Once the first step is completed, the second step is to blend the other auxiliary medicinal materials into the three main ingredients in a certain proportion. During this process, some strange reactions may occur, and if you are not careful, the furnace may explode.

When the second step is completed, the alchemy is more than half finished. Gu Qing will obtain a large mass of spiritual medicine liquid. He will divide the spiritual medicine liquid according to a certain ratio, and finally, under the scorching heat of the alchemical fire, the liquid will slowly condense into pellets.

Time passed without anyone knowing how much time had gone by. Gu Qing gently patted the alchemy furnace, and five round, glossy pills emerged from it.

Upon seeing the pills ready, Gu Qing swallowed all five pills in one gulp. Then, with his divine soul power, he activated the gourd inside the Eight Immortals Diagram, and all the pills that had entered his dantian disappeared, disappearing into the gourd.

All of this was done inside Gu Qing's stomach. To outsiders, it appeared as if Gu Qing had swallowed five pills at once.

You should know that each pill for advancing your Foundation Establishment cultivation is not cheap. Swallowing five at once is equivalent to consuming tens of thousands of spirit stones.

After swallowing the pill, Gu Qing focused his mind for a moment and quickly learned what Tieguai Li's gourd was for.

The gourd contains a magical elixir that can cure all diseases and bring the dead back to life.

It contains a universe within, capable of holding rivers, lakes, and seas, and encompassing all things.

It can transform into a boat to cross the sea, and it can suppress demons and ward off evil spirits.

Simply put, the first function allows the pills to be imbued with immortal energy, thus eliminating the possibility of drug resistance.

While there's no such thing as "elixir poisoning" from taking too many pills, there is a risk of developing drug resistance. This means that the effects of a particular pill will decrease over time, something Han Li personally tested and discovered.

However, once one is tainted by immortal energy, there will be no such thing as drug resistance. Moreover, the effects of the pills will be better and gentler. In fact, pills for advancing one's cultivation level can be given directly to mortals, and it is easy to increase the lifespan of mortals.

In that case, Gu Qing could definitely refine pills for Core Formation cultivators, which might speed up their cultivation. However, pill formulas for Foundation Establishment cultivation are already quite rare, and Core Formation pill formulas are probably even rarer.

If only spirit stones could solve this problem.

The second function is that it can store everything. It's as simple as the name suggests. Presumably, even demonic beasts can be stored inside the gourd. The internal space is very large. Anyway, Gu Qing's divine sense cannot detect the boundary. Otherwise, it wouldn't be able to hold rivers, lakes, and seas. In this way, it saves him from preparing so many storage bags.

The third function is the ability to change size; this is a common function of this magical item.

These are the three effects of the gourd. Gu Qing felt they were quite good and just right for his current use.

"The pills need to be nurtured for another eight days, so let's refine another batch of pills." Gu Qing thought to himself, and then started refining pills again. As he became more skilled, he was able to refine six pills at a time instead of five.

A month passed, and Gu Qing refined twenty-four pills.

If one pill costs 20 mid-grade spirit stones, then 24 pills would cost 480 mid-grade spirit stones, meaning Gu Qing earned 48,000 spirit stones in a month.

It should be noted that a Qi Refining disciple in Huangfeng Valley only receives one ordinary spirit stone per month, a Foundation Establishment cultivator receives only one hundred spirit stones per year, and a Core Formation cultivator receives only one thousand spirit stones per year.

As for Nascent Soul cultivators, when Han Li was in the Falling Cloud Sect, he only received one high-grade spirit stone a year, which was only ten thousand spirit stones.

"Wealth should not be flaunted, wealth should not be flaunted," Gu Qing silently recited to himself. It seemed that carrying so many spirit stones was of no use, after all, he had already left home, and the thought made him feel somewhat disheartened.

"Sigh! I'll have to take a pill to calm my nerves."

Gu Qing swallowed a pill and began to refine it. He immediately felt a pure spiritual energy flowing through his body, eventually gathering in his dantian. With each cycle of the cultivation technique, the spiritual energy in his body became more refined.

Seemingly feeling that absorbing one pill was not his limit, Gu Qing simultaneously activated two pills and swallowed them, instantly unleashing a surge of medicinal power that coursed through his limbs and bones.

The medicinal power of this Foundation Establishment pill is almost as good as that of the Foundation Establishment Pill.

I feel that taking two pills at the same time is not my limit. It may also be because the pills are imbued with immortal energy, making their medicinal effects more mellow.

That's why Gu Qing had the idea that he could swallow several pills at the same time and refine them without any problems.

Just as Gu Qing had imagined, he was able to absorb the emitted medicinal power smoothly without it harming his limbs, bones, or meridians.

This also increased the speed at which he absorbed the pills.

At this point, Gu Qing was immersed in the joy of cultivation, and seeing his own strength improve visibly was indeed a very happy thing.

Two years passed in the blink of an eye. Gu Qing absorbed the pills thoroughly, and his cultivation broke through to the mid-Foundation Establishment stage on its own.

Gu Qing broke through to the mid-Foundation Establishment stage in just two years, three times faster than Han Li's six years. This might be because Gu Qing has dual spiritual roots, allowing him to absorb pills much faster than Han Li.

Secondly, the pills are imbued with immortal energy, making them easier to absorb.

Gu Qing was preparing to break through to the late Foundation Establishment stage in one go and gain the right to go out, but his cultivation was interrupted by a sound transmission talisman.

It was the communication talisman that Gu Qing had given to Han Li. He wondered what had happened to his disciple that made him need to contact him.