The Fang family, having exhausted their reserves, borrowed an additional 500,000 spirit stones from the Qian family, barely managing to gather 2 million spirit stones to purchase one pill.
Xu Qianyang, on the other hand, had to liquidate nearly everything he owned. Though he had accumulated 300 years' worth of wealth, he had little to show for it, having invested much in his cultivation.
With barely 100,000 spirit stones to his name, he was forced to sell all his low-to-mid-grade third-tier magical artifacts, ultimately raising around 300,000 spirit stones.
The Xu family poured in significant resources to help Xu Qianyang. Every one of their 6,000 members contributed a substantial portion of their wealth. Their family treasury, containing 500,000 spirit stones, was entirely emptied.
Additionally, they sold over a dozen third-tier artifacts from their inventory. Even so, they only managed to raise about 1.4 million spirit stones.
To make up the shortfall, Xu Qianyang refrained from selling family assets or their ancestral treasure. Instead, he approached the Chen family, offering a stake in the mineral vein of Cangkun Mountain as collateral for a loan of 600,000 spirit stones.
According to the agreement, the Xu family's profits from the vein over the next 50 years would go to the Chen family. The Xu family owned a 55% share in the vein, which generated over 15,000 spirit stones annually from first- and second-tier materials. This alone promised substantial profit for the Chen family.
Additionally, the vein produced one Earth Crystal every 30 years and various third-tier earth-attribute treasures. These rare resources held immense value, often requiring premiums to purchase. Elian estimated their worth at about 300,000 spirit stones, which essentially served as interest for the loan.
With the loan secured, the Xu family purchased the Golden Core Pill and began amassing supplementary resources for Xu Qianyang. They appeared determined to ensure his breakthrough to the Golden Core stage before the next beast tide.
The Chen family, meanwhile, had emptied much of its accumulated reserves to fund the loan of 600,000 spirit stones. However, the family's strong financial standing, with annual surpluses in the tens of thousands of spirit stones, meant they were not left destitute.
Currently, the Chen family's industries were among the most prosperous in all of the Purple Mansion families within Chu Kingdom. For example, the third-tier superior spiritual vein and subterranean fire vein of Lingyuan Mountain alone generated 30,000 spirit stones annually.
When combined with the income from multiple spiritual mountains and veins, the family was flourishing.
Upon returning from Qingyuan Mountain, Elian brought the Fire Crystal to Chen Xianling and then entered seclusion to cultivate. Having reached the fifth level of the Purple Mansion for several years, he was nearing the sixth-level threshold.
After three months in seclusion, he finally achieved a breakthrough to the sixth level of the Purple Mansion. His spiritual energy now rivaled that of a cultivator at the peak of the Purple Mansion, marking another significant leap in his power.
"At this rate, breaking through to the late stage of the Purple Mansion before the beast tide is nearly guaranteed," Elian thought with a smile. Once he reached the late stage, his strength would grow exponentially.
Despite his breakthrough, Elian did not ease his cultivation efforts. Instead, he began practicing the Azure Void Body Refinement Technique.
This technique, passed down from Azure Void Sect, was not its specialty, but as a legacy of a Nascent Soul sect, it was one of the top body refinement techniques in Chu Kingdom.
While spiritual energy naturally tempered the body, its effect was slow and mild. Elian's body, already strengthened by the Primordial Purple Qi, was no weaker than a cultivator's at the peak of the Purple Mansion.
However, this process was time-consuming. Practicing the Azure Void Body Refinement Technique was a way to accelerate it.
"With the Blood Essence Pill refined from the pseudo-golden core demon king's blood, my physical cultivation should advance greatly," Elian murmured. Taking the pill, he activated the technique and began the process.
Time passed like water.
One day, after 16 years in seclusion, Elian awoke, calculating the time that had elapsed. During this period, he had rarely stepped out of his secluded chamber, focusing solely on cultivation.
His physical body had now reached the pinnacle of the Purple Mansion stage, and his cultivation level was on the verge of breaking into the late stage.
"Just one or two more years of preparation, and I'll be ready to advance," he thought, his confidence evident.
While Elian had been in seclusion, much had changed in Chu Kingdom and the Chen family.
Three months after he began his retreat, Chen Xianling made his second attempt at the Purple Mansion stage. With the help of the Fire Crystal, he succeeded, becoming the family's sixth Purple Mansion cultivator.
Reaching this milestone at the age of 117 was considered exceptional. Though he relied on external assistance, his ample remaining lifespan meant he might still have a chance to reach the Golden Core stage.
Five years later, the patriarch of the Chen family advanced to the late Purple Mansion stage, using two Purple Qi Cloud Pattern Pills to solidify his cultivation.
Ten years later, Lin Qianshu, Xu Qianyang, and Fang patriarch all attempted breakthroughs to the Golden Core stage. Though unsuccessful, each achieved the pseudo-golden core stage.
Reaching this stage brought them closer to the Golden Core, giving them a roughly 30% chance of success in subsequent attempts.
Lin Qianshu, in particular, had the advantage of a unique spirit root, which granted her a 20% chance of success even without external aids. With the pseudo-golden core stage achieved, her chances with another Golden Core Pill were quite promising.
Although the result would be a lower-grade Golden Core, achieving the Golden Core stage sooner would grant her more time to aim for the Nascent Soul stage.
Lin Qianshu could attempt the breakthrough without aids, but doing so would lower her odds considerably. Furthermore, the Golden Core Pill stabilized the pseudo-core, ensuring a 100% chance of remaining at that stage if the breakthrough failed.
Without the pill, the chance of retaining the pseudo-core after failure was only 50%, making the risk significantly greater.
Additionally, relying on the Golden Core Pill allowed for recovery within 30 years after a failed attempt, while an unaided failure would result in severe injuries.
...
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I need POWAAA! Gimme Power Stones :D