What does my ancestor's pregnancy have to do with me, a mere servant?

Wen Yuci paused, her gaze shifting from Lin Yuan to a point in the void in front of the stone bed, as if she were organizing her thoughts or recalling a long-forgotten record.

"Moreover, the master's foundation is too solid."

"The master's foundation in the Heavenly Dao is based on the purity of his magical power, the strength of his divine soul, and the resilience of his physical body, far surpassing that of his peers. When he breaks through each major realm, the resistance he encounters from the Heavenly Dao is several times that of ordinary geniuses."

"The master's cultivation methods are complex and profound, combining immortal cultivation and body cultivation, and paving the way with the heaven-defying method of Yin-Yang Limitless Creation. The golden core formed with such cultivation methods and such a foundation will surely be the best of the best once it is formed."

"It might even surpass the highest grade and give birth to the legendary... extraordinary golden elixir."

"It is only natural that Heaven, out of jealousy, imposed an invisible shackle during the condensation of the core. This is not the master's fault, but rather that the master is too outstanding, so outstanding that even Heaven felt the need to add another test."

Lin Yuan sat on the stone bed, listening to Wen Yuci finish recounting this long passage in one breath.

He remained expressionless.

He raised an eyebrow, somewhat surprised.

This female devil knows quite a lot.

Ancient secrets, the foundation of the Heavenly Dao, and extraordinary golden pills—these are things that even most of the inner sect probably don't know about, let alone the outer disciples.

What she said did indeed align with his own experience. At the final moment of condensing the core, he clearly felt that resistance. It wasn't due to insufficient magical power, impure spiritual roots, or a deviation in the potency of the pill. Rather, it was a suppression from a higher, unseen force.

"Do you know of any other methods that could significantly increase the success rate of condensing a Golden Core?"

Lin Yuan asked calmly.

Wen Yuci pondered for a moment.

"Master, have you ever heard of... the Great Void Secret Realm?"

Lin Yuan raised an eyebrow slightly.

shook his head.

His previous life was just a menial disciple who barely survived in the outer sect of the Xuan Yin Sect.

Later, he plunged headlong into Black Crow Mountain, a remote and desolate place, ignoring everything else and focusing solely on his career.

I haven't really paid much attention to information about the Taixu Secret Realm.

Wen Yuci wasn't surprised to see him shake his head.

She stood up from the futon, walked to the opposite side of the stone bed, and stood three steps away from Lin Yuan.

With her hands behind her back and her back straight, her tone carried a seriousness and solemnity that she rarely showed.

"The Taixu Secret Realm is the remnant of an ancient sect. It is located deep within the cultivation world of the Chu Kingdom and is jointly controlled by five top forces, opening only once every hundred years."

"It contains countless opportunities. Ancient elixir formulas, lost cultivation techniques, and rare and precious materials are everywhere. But these are not the most important."

Wen Yuci's voice dropped half a octave.

"Most importantly, at the very core of the secret realm is a super spirit-gathering array left behind by an ancient powerful being."

"The scale of that formation far surpasses all known spirit-gathering formations of the world. According to records, the spiritual energy of heaven and earth in the core area of ​​the formation is so dense that it is almost liquefied."

"But the abundance of spiritual energy is only a superficial phenomenon. In such an extreme spiritual energy environment, the resonance between cultivators and the Great Dao of Heaven and Earth can reach an unbelievable level."

Wen Yuci paused for a moment.

"Breaking through the bottleneck at the core of the formation will greatly increase the chances of success."

"Let alone condensing the Golden Core—even cultivators at the late stage of the Golden Core realm can increase their chances of breaking through to the Nascent Soul realm by more than 30% out of thin air there."

%.

Lin Yuan's heart skipped a beat.

The difficulty of condensing a Nascent Soul is more than a hundred times greater than that of forming a Golden Core. It is a qualitative change from mortal to immortal, an insurmountable chasm that countless Golden Core cultivators may not be able to cross even after a lifetime of effort.

Even Nascent Soul cultivators can increase their chances by 30%.

In that kind of environment, wouldn't it be easy to overcome the bottleneck of Core Formation?

A subtle hint of interest finally appeared on Lin Yuan's usually placid face.

"Tell me, how can I enter this secret realm?"

"In the cultivation world of Chu, there are five top-tier forces on the surface. These are our Xuan Yin Sect, Tai Xuan Immortal Sect, Medicine King Valley, Wan Fa Sect, and the Chu royal family. These five families jointly control the entrance to the Tai Xu Secret Realm."

"The secret realm opens once every hundred years, and each sect can send two or three hundred disciples in to try their luck, but that's just the outer area. What's truly valuable is the spirit-gathering array at the core of the secret realm."

"Each sect has only ten slots for entering the core formation to cultivate. After all, the spiritual energy there is almost liquefied. If too many people go in, it will damage the foundation of the formation and greatly reduce its effectiveness."

Lin Yuan's gaze shifted. The five major powers each had ten slots, totaling only fifty.

"Our Xuan Yin Sect has five Nascent Soul Ancestors," Wen Yuci continued, lowering her voice even further. "These ten spots will be allocated among the five Ancestors, with each of them receiving exactly two, no more and no less."

She stopped there.

But the meaning couldn't be clearer.

Trying to get a spot from a Nascent Soul stage monster is as difficult as pulling teeth from a tiger's mouth.

Lin Yuan pondered for a moment, then asked, "How much time is left before the secret realm opens?"

"I'm not entirely sure of the exact date, but rumors have been circulating within the sect, so it should be within the next few months," Wen Yuci replied. "When I get back, I can ask my master for details."

Just then.

"Buzz..."

A jade pendant with a sound transmission function hanging from Wen Yuci's waist suddenly flickered with a faint spiritual light. A slightly languid yet undeniably authoritative female voice resounded directly in her mind's eye.

"Come to my cave immediately, I have something to report."

Wen Yuci frowned slightly, and a trace of reluctance flashed in her eyes.

Today is the first day of the Lunar New Year.

According to the bizarre rules set by that woman Jiang Huaiyue, it will be three days before it's my turn next.

What a waste of a whole day's opportunity.

Lin Yuan saw through her thoughts and calmly said, "I'll make it up to you next time."

Wen Yuci's eyes lit up instantly. She immediately composed herself and bowed gracefully to Lin Yuan.

"Thank you, Master."

As soon as she finished speaking, she turned and left, her steps decisive and without the slightest hesitation.

Lin Yuan slowly closed his eyes only after Wen Yuci's aura had completely disappeared outside the cave.

The frustration of failing to form his core did not linger in his mind for long.

The Great Void Secret Realm...

He silently calculated the possibility of obtaining a spot, and at the same time, a thought suddenly occurred to him.

"laugh--"

The pitch-black Netherfire surged from his body like a tide, instantly enveloping his entire body.

The extreme cold seeped into his bones and muscles, and the tempering process began.

The path to immortality is temporarily blocked, but there is still hope for physical cultivation.

If one's physical body can reach the Transcendent Realm first, it's equivalent to having an extra trump card comparable to a Foundation Establishment cultivator. At that time, whether competing for opportunities in secret realms or dealing with other variables, the margin for error will be greatly increased.

However, he had only circulated his mortal bone technique for less than half a cycle.

The Six Yin Soul-Locking Array outside the cave once again emitted a slight fluctuation of magical power.

Another person has arrived?

Lin Yuan frowned slightly, stopped his cultivation, and quietly withdrew the Netherfire into his body. He raised his hand and cast a spell, causing the gray mist at the entrance of the cave to disperse to both sides.

Accompanied by a faint, rich fragrance, a voluptuous and alluring red figure gracefully stepped into the stone chamber.

The person who arrived was none other than Li Yang.

After more than three months apart, her entire aura had undergone a dramatic change.

It was still that mature and alluring face, but the lingering gloom between her brows had completely vanished, replaced by a confident and composed air of complete control. Her late-stage Golden Core cultivation remained undiminished; her spiritual pressure, like mercury spilling onto the ground, naturally filled the entire stone chamber.

She wore a bright red cloud-patterned ruqun (a type of traditional Chinese dress), the hem of which swayed gracefully as she walked.

But what truly alarmed Lin Yuan was her gaze.

Those bright, almond-shaped eyes were staring straight at him, without a trace of shyness or pretense, only a naked, undisguised...hunger.

Like a mother wolf that has been starving for three days and three nights, finally spotting her prey.

Lin Yuan felt a chill run down his spine just looking at it.

Something's off about this woman.

"It's been three months since I last saw you, Junior Brother, and the fire in your cave is burning even brighter."

Li Yang stopped in front of Lin Yuan, a half-smile playing on her lips, her gaze sweeping over him without restraint, finally settling on his fair and handsome face.

This pun made Lin Yuan's eye twitch.

He remained outwardly calm, but inwardly he was thinking: This woman, this demeanor, is even more frightening than Jiang Huaiyue.

Li Yang chuckled lightly, and without beating around the bush, sat down directly on the edge of the stone bed opposite him in a casual posture.

"Let's begin!" she said, getting straight to the point.

Lin Yuan: ...

……