Chapter 138 Qingyin: Oh no, should I interrupt them?

Qingyin was momentarily distracted, and Cao Xuan had already formed his Golden Core before she could stop him.

Once the Golden Core was formed, it began nurturing its patterns. Qingyin’s eyes were filled with confusion. “His essence, energy, and spirit are so perfectly unified that he condensed a Golden Core this quickly. That means this boy’s foundation is exceptionally solid.”

“Perhaps when the patterns are inscribed, he may even form a Golden Core with more than four patterns.”

“But once a single pattern is engraved and the soul merges into it, the Golden Core can no longer be shattered. What should I do then?”

The formation of a Golden Core did not yet mean entering the Golden Core Realm. Only after the soul merged with it would the patterns begin to appear.

At that point, even the lowest-grade, one-pattern Golden Core would signify that its owner had become a Golden Core cultivator—and it would also become that cultivator’s lifeline.

If the Golden Core were shattered now, it would merely destroy the foundation of Cao Xuan’s cultivation. With time and proper treatment, he could still recover.

But once the patterns were formed, if Fairy Qingyin shattered the Golden Core, she would be taking Cao Xuan’s life.

She had assumed that Cao Xuan would not break through so quickly. Now, caught completely off guard, Fairy Qingyin had no idea what to do.

Cao Xuan had no idea that danger was lurking beside him in the form of Fairy Qingyin, who could shatter his Golden Core at any moment.

At this moment, he had already been captivated by the cultivation method known as “system-assisted cultivation.”

“So this is how true essence can circulate through this route? Wait—where is this essence coming from?”

“So it isn’t just from the kidneys. It is formed from the combined vitality of all five viscera and six bowels, together with the body’s overall vigor!”

“But is my spirit a little too weak? My spiritual root aptitude is still far too poor. I can’t nurture much spiritual power. Ah!”

“Now it all depends on the medicinal power of the Ten-Pattern Golden Core!”

Even now, Cao Xuan still believed that the reward listed on the system panel, the Ten-Pattern Golden Core, was an actual pill that had yet to be taken out and used.

Still, he could not help admiring the power of the system-assisted cultivation method.

Its cultivation process was like a precisely designed program. Every step was perfectly measured: how much true essence and spiritual energy to incorporate, how much vitality to add, and how much spiritual sense to merge. Everything followed an exact proportion.

“Never mind. I can’t take the risk!”

Fairy Qingyin suddenly drew her sword. She had made up her mind.

“I came here without any preparation, and the pills I have were not specifically prepared for forming a Golden Core. They are only meant to replenish a little essence, energy, and spirit. There is no way for him to form a perfect Golden Core under these conditions!”

“After shattering it, he can cultivate more slowly. Better to bloom late than to have no path forward at all!”

As she persuaded herself, she raised her sword and prepared to stab it into Cao Xuan’s dantian.

At that moment, a flash of light appeared within Cao Xuan’s dantian. His essence, energy, and spirit had completed their first fusion. Through the glow of spiritual energy, a pattern appeared upon the Golden Core.

Clang!

The flying sword fell to the ground. As a cultivator in the Void Refinement Realm, Fairy Qingyin naturally sensed what had happened.

She murmured, “How could it be this fast? The first pattern has already appeared?”

Qingyin felt even more heartbroken. Such speed proved that Cao Xuan’s foundation was extremely stable. With proper preparations for forming a Golden Core, he could have formed at least two or three additional patterns.

“All I can do is pray that you form at least four patterns. With your cultivation talent, combined with a sword spirit root comparable to a Heavenly Spirit Root, even a four-pattern Golden Core might not limit your future achievements.”

She silently added, “It will simply be a more arduous path.”

Qingyin did not know how much of Cao Xuan’s mind remained conscious, so all she could do was offer him appropriate encouragement.

A prodigy with cultivation aptitude of at least the fourth grade, and with a sword spirit root that had undergone at least one tempering, yet forced to cultivate slowly—what a painful fate that would be.

...

By now, Cao Xuan had completely stopped paying attention to the outside world.

The system was using his own body to show him how to cultivate.

The system made no mistakes. Every step contained the principles of the Heavenly Dao. In truth, Qingyin was simply too concerned and therefore too confused. Otherwise, she would have noticed that every step of “Cao Xuan’s” cultivation was flawless.

Even the pills she had thrown to him were consumed according to an impeccable method.

Unlike Foundation Dao Pills, which directly contained all three attributes of essence, energy, and spirit, pills for refining the spirit, gathering qi, and nurturing vitality were treated like alchemical ingredients in “Cao Xuan’s” hands.

Not a bit too much, not a bit too little—whatever was lacking was replenished.

With the assistance of the Nameless Dao Scripture, Cao Xuan’s Golden Core formed at an astonishing speed, and the patterns spread just as rapidly.

Cao Xuan might not have known that the Azure Cloud Radiance Grotto would remain open for only one month.

That did not mean forming a Golden Core required only one month. Rather, the three types of energy accumulated within the grotto over a century were enough to sustain its opening for just that long.

In practice, certain pills could indeed save a great deal of time.

Within the top sects and the six great sacred lands, people judged only by results.

Although taking longer might mean forming more core patterns, it could also indicate poor aptitude. In the end, everything depended on the patterns formed in the Golden Core.

Setting aside the prodigies of the six great sacred lands, even Xian Xiangqiu had spent only half a month in the Azure Cloud Radiance Grotto before forming a nine-pattern Golden Core.

Among the six great sacred lands, many prodigies possessed seven-pattern Golden Cores.

That was already considered a supreme-grade Golden Core. Eight patterns were exceedingly rare, while the foundation of a nine-pattern Golden Core rivaled that of a Dao Child.

It was precisely because Xian Xiangqiu had advanced rapidly yet solidly through every realm, all the way to the peak of the Soul Formation Realm, that the various sacred lands had taken such an interest in him.

While Cao Xuan’s mind was immersed in learning, he could not help sighing inwardly. “So the finest teacher has been right beside me all along!”

He suddenly understood something. Compared with merely passing down teachings, instruction through personal example was the clearest method of all.

As far as Cao Xuan was concerned, he had cultivated for so long mostly by figuring things out on his own.

If not for the insights he had gained from mastering various techniques, his cultivation would actually have been far from solid.

Now, as the system cultivated on his behalf, it was helping him identify and correct every weakness. For the difficult problems he had encountered in cultivation, it was teaching him how to resolve them through direct practice.

On the other side, Qingyin was gradually beginning to sense that something was wrong.

“What is this boy doing...? It feels as though... there is some method to his cultivation...”

Because she was uncertain, she decided to keep watching.

She paid no attention when the second pattern appeared.

But when the third and fourth patterns emerged, she suddenly realized that something was amiss.

“Wait. Even with the assistance of a secret realm or sacred ground, together with spiritual medicines, no one could form a four-pattern Golden Core this quickly!”

Fairy Qingyin discovered that something was wrong. From the moment Cao Xuan entered his state of enlightenment and began cultivating, it had appeared to take a long time—but in reality, only one hour had passed.

Under normal circumstances, within the Azure Cloud Sect, he would perhaps have only just adapted to the radiant spiritual energy within the Azure Cloud Radiance Grotto, organized his essence, energy, and spirit, and begun preparing to nurture a Golden Core from his Dao foundation.

If Cao Xuan’s rapid initial condensation of the Golden Core could be attributed to his solid foundation, then the appearance of four patterns in such a short time was simply outrageous.

To use a phrase from his previous life: I didn’t even blink!

Fairy Qingyin’s lips parted slightly. It was as though she had just witnessed a monster.

Then she suddenly saw “Cao Xuan” take a pill from among the many bottles. She focused her gaze, and her expression changed.

“Oh no!”

“Don’t eat that! That pill is for the Golden Core Realm—”

Boom!

The fifth core pattern was born!