Eternal Life by Daily Divination

When will you reach Core Formation?

Li Chang’an was a little surprised to hear this.

Ye Hao truly had faith in him, asking such a question despite knowing he possessed a Low Grade Spirit Root.

He shook his head slightly, not answering directly.

“Core Formation is incredibly difficult. I’m still a long way off, so I can only take it one step at a time.”

“Big Brother, once the Huanghe Alliance is stable, I’ll do everything in my power to find you a Core Formation Treasure.”

Ye Hao vowed, making a solemn promise.

Li Chang’an had saved his life on the Immortal Path years ago.

“Big Brother, if it weren’t for you, I’d be nothing but a pile of dry bones by now!”

Ye Hao stated solemnly that a Core Formation Treasure was nothing compared to the debt of having his life saved.

Li Chang’an didn’t refuse.

He did, in fact, want a better Core Formation Treasure.

Nearby, Black Crow Master looked like he wanted to say something but held his tongue.

Even with Ye Hao as a precedent for someone with a Low Grade Spirit Root reaching Core Formation, he still wasn’t optimistic about Li Chang’an’s chances.

With Li Chang’an’s aptitude, it was questionable whether he could even cultivate to the Foundation Establishment Peak.

Black Crow Master hoped Ye Hao would focus more of his energy on dealing with Yellow Crane Immortal City instead of wasting it on Li Chang’an.

After a moment, he finally steered the conversation back to the Huanghe Alliance.

“Daoist Ye, do you plan to establish the Huanghe Alliance’s base inside the Secret Realm?”

“That’s right!”

Ye Hao nodded.

“The Tier Three Spirit Veins in the Southern Domain are limited and have already been claimed by the major Sects and clans. If we were to hire Feng Shui Masters and Spirit Vein Masters to nurture a new one, the cost would be far too great.”

As he spoke, he took out a map and spread it across the stone table.

It was a rough map of the Ancient Wood Secret Realm.

He pointed to a spot and said, “There’s a Tier Two Spirit Vein here. It’s where I reached Foundation Establishment.”

Li Chang’an was familiar with the location.

He had stood guard for Ye Hao during his Foundation Establishment, slaying the many Demon Beasts that had come to attack.

Ye Hao pointed to another spot.

This spot was in a deeper region of the Ancient Wood Secret Realm.

“Later, I discovered a Tier Three Spirit Vein here and successfully reached Core Formation while using it.”

Ye Hao explained that during the time he was missing, he had led the members of the Huanghe Alliance to hide out at this Spirit Vein.

He and the others had already scouted out the dangers surrounding the Spirit Vein.

That was why he planned to establish their base here.

“Though the Secret Realm is dangerous, it’s also full of opportunities.”

“Furthermore, the war between the Two Domains is imminent. If the Southern Domain is defeated, the various powers might all have to retreat into the Secret Realm, relying on its treacherous terrain to hold off the Western Cultivators…”

Ye Hao went on to list the various benefits of establishing their base in the Secret Realm.

Of course, this was also a move born of desperation.

If the Southern Domain had any spare Tier Three Spirit Veins, he would naturally prefer to establish their base outside the Secret Realm.

Black Crow Master sighed. “The Southern Domain originally had more Tier Three Spirit Veins, but they were all drained by the Three Great Sects and clans like the Xiao and the Jin.”

In its golden age, the Southern Domain Cultivation Realm once had over a dozen Golden Core Clans.

And there were far more Sects than just the three that exist today.

Back then, every Golden Core power possessed a Tier Three Spirit Vein.

But later, some Golden Core powers declined. Unable to defend their clan lands, their Spirit Veins were drained away by the Feng Shui Masters and Spirit Vein Masters of rival powers.

The reason the Spirit Veins of the Three Great Sects and the Xiao Family were able to reach the Tier Three Peak, and even faintly approach Tier Four, was precisely because they drained the Spirit Veins of other clans to nurture their own.

The process of extracting a Spirit Vein causes it extremely severe damage.

Even if the drained Spirit Vein were to be replenished, it would be nearly impossible for it to recover to Tier Three unless a vast number of treasures for nurturing Spirit Veins were used.

“I once considered draining the Tier Three Spirit Vein from the Secret Realm and finding an auspicious location in the Southern Domain to nurture it, but the cost of doing so is simply too high.”

Ye Hao shook his head and sighed, feeling rather helpless himself.

However, there was some truth to what he had said earlier.

If the Southern Domain were to lose the war, many powers would certainly flee into the Secret Realm.

Anyone who didn’t flee and fell into the hands of the Western Cultivators would meet a miserable end.

Ye Hao said to Li Chang’an, “Big Brother, if we lose this war, your Changqing Mountain won’t be safe either. You should come to the Secret Realm sooner rather than later and cultivate with me on the Tier Three Spirit Vein.”

“It’s too early to say. The outcome of the war between the Two Domains is still uncertain.”

Li Chang’an tactfully refused.

There were too many uncertainties within the Secret Realm.

Even if the Southern Domain truly fell, he would head for the more stable Eastern or Northern Domains, or simply disguise himself as a Western Cultivator.

With his skills in disguise, it wouldn’t be difficult to infiltrate one of the Western Domain’s powers.

After a few more moments of conversation, Li Chang’an asked about the quality of Ye Hao’s Golden Core.

Ye Hao didn’t hide anything and answered frankly, “Big Brother, I originally wanted to form an Immortal Golden Core, but that step is truly difficult. I had to settle for second best and form a Half-step Immortal Golden Core.”

“Half-Step Immortal?”

Li Chang’an’s interest was piqued, though this was within his expectations.

“How big is the gap between a Half-step Immortal Golden Core and a true Immortal Golden Core? What makes it so difficult?”

Li Chang’an asked, as his goal was also to form an Immortal Golden Core.

Conveniently, Ye Hao had already attempted to form an Immortal Golden Core. Though he had failed, he had gained valuable insight from the experience.

Hearing this, Ye Hao fell into deep thought for a long moment before letting out a heavy sigh.

“Big Brother, that ’half-step’ is a greater distance than most people can imagine.”

“My preparations before Core Formation were extremely thorough. My Cultivation Technique was a Celestial Grade Technique, and I had accumulated over three hundred and fifty drops of Liquid Magical Power. I was only a dozen or so drops short of the legendary perfect state.”

The so-called perfect state, of course, referred to three hundred and sixty-five drops of Liquid Magical Power.

The Ancient Wood Evergreen Technique that Li Chang’an cultivated could achieve this state.

Ye Hao continued, “In addition to my Magical Power accumulation, my physique and Divine Sense also far surpassed those of an ordinary Foundation Establishment Peak Cultivator. Although they hadn’t reached Tier Three, it meant I didn’t need to waste too much energy on the physical and Divine Sense barriers during Core Formation…”

Furthermore, he had also prepared a great number of Core Formation Treasures.