Refining pills was an exceedingly monotonous task. Fortunately, Fang Chen had a high tolerance for tedium. As the years rolled by, ten years swiftly passed.
Fang Chen took out another 500 mid-grade spirit stones to trade for the next decade. Four years later, with the final Little Feather Spirit Pill resting in his hand, he had nearly exhausted all his spiritual materials, leaving only some leftover scraps.
After 14 years, Fang Chen had amassed 100 Little Feather Spirit Pills. However, his gains were far from limited to just that.
During these 14 years, with each instance of spiritual energy hitting its limit and then rebounding, his spiritual energy had increased by over thirty to forty percent. It had ceased to grow since the last month, indicating he had hit a bottleneck.
“Mid-grade spirit stones are more effective for breaking through; the Little Feather Spirit Pills don’t help much with the breakthrough,” Fang Chen thought, taking out two mid-grade spirit stones.
He held one in each hand as he began attempting to break through.
The difficulty of advancing from the mid stage of the Golden Core to the late stage was far greater than moving from the early to mid stage. As he consumed the mid-grade spirit stones one by one, the growth of his spiritual energy remained slow, with each increase forced and minimal.
Five more years passed.
During this period, Fang Chen had consumed over 90 mid-grade spirit stones. Just when he thought the expenditure might exceed 100 stones, his internal spiritual energy finally broke through the bottleneck, surging like a torrent flooding through his limbs.
After a moment of contemplation, Fang Chen left his cave. On the way, he encountered a disciple of the Extreme Sword Peak and inquired about the location where Jing Yuehan was being held.
Jing Yuehan was imprisoned in the Cold Ice Cave at the foot of Extreme Sword Peak. The disciple’s face reflected a hint of fear as he mentioned the cave, indicating it was an unusual place that could instill dread even in a cultivator.
The closer he got to his destination, the colder the air around him felt, and frost began to appear on the ground.
Eventually, Fang Chen arrived at a cave covered in deep snow. Just as he approached, a patrol of cultivators passed by, and upon noticing Fang Chen, they immediately approached him.
A cultivator at the Nascent Soul Realm, clearly the patrol’s leader, fixed his gaze on Fang Chen, assessing him. “Junior Brother Fang?”
“May I ask how to address you, Fellow Cultivator?” Fang Chen cupped his fists in greeting.
“My surname is Jing,” the patrol leader said, his expression neutral. “What brings you here, Junior Brother Fang? The Cold Ice Cave holds prisoners of serious crimes. If there’s nothing urgent, please don’t approach this place.”
“I heard that Sister Jing Yuehan is imprisoned inside. May I go in and see her?” Fang Chen replied.
The others exchanged glances.
The leader furrowed his brow. “While there is no rule against visiting the Cold Ice Cave, the cold air inside can severely damage your foundation if you’re not careful. It would be best for you to turn back.”
Fang Chen chuckled, cupping his fist respectfully before walking directly toward the Cold Ice Cave.
“Senior Jing, it seems this fellow has a good relationship with your sister; at least he remembers to visit her,” one of the cultivators remarked, watching Fang Chen’s retreating figure.
The leader remained silent for a moment before letting out a soft sigh. “My sister went to Grand Qian together with Junior Sister Yu, and it was during that mission that she first collaborated with Junior Brother Fang to disrupt the Spirit Blood Sect’s plans.
“After returning to the sect, she would often mention him. I didn’t think much of it at the time, but after witnessing the events at the Immortal Dynasty Manor, I understand now why she is so fixated on him.”
“But… I heard Junior Brother Fang has a white core,” another cultivator murmured.
“What about it?” The leader chuckled softly. “For ordinary cultivators, a white core might indeed spell the end of their path to immortality. But for him, it’s different. Considering how he acted when he burst forth with his extreme might, I doubt a mere white core will hinder his progress.”
The others nodded in agreement, recognizing the truth in his words. Their Junior Brother Fang had many hidden depths; one could never tell what extraordinary methods he might possess, transforming even decay to wonder.
As Fang Chen entered the Cold Ice Cave, he felt the bone-chilling cold despite using a protective spiritual energy barrier and having a fourth-rank Sword Body. “The Cold Ice Cave… Ordinary cultivators trapped here would have to rely on their physical bodies to endure when their spiritual energy runs dry….”
Fang Chen made his way deeper inside.
He noticed that the Cold Ice Cave resembled a prison, passing by several cells where cultivators were held captive. Inside, some were using their spiritual power to fend off the cold, while others, drained of their energy, were completely encased in ice and snow, struggling to recover their strength.