The moment Han Yue stepped outside the protective spiritual boundary of the Mortal Estate, she felt the difference. It wasn't just the noise or the crowds of the Outer Sect; it was the spiritual scrutiny. Even with Lin Feng's Hidden Soul Amulet pressed firmly against her sternum, she felt the hairs on her arms prickle. She knew Yan Xia's net was already spreading.
Han Yue maintained her composure, adopting the bored, officious air of a high-status administrator on a mandatory errand. She held Guang Li's ornate storage pouch conspicuously, ensuring every passing spiritual sense registered the signature of the Elder's son, not the servant's accomplice.
Her mission was dangerous: purchase three volatile, high-grade ingredients that screamed "Core Formation Breakthrough," but do it in a way that offered Yan Xia no proof of the buyer's true identity.
The first item, Thunder Lotus Petals, had to be purchased at the Azure Alchemist Hall, the most public and monitored market.
As she entered the hall, the cacophony of commerce and spiritual energy washed over her. She focused on the exercise Lin Feng had given her: listen with your core.
Where does the Qi feel thin? Where does it feel heavy?
Near a pillar, the Qi felt unnaturally thin. She passed it by, knowing a Foundation Master was likely using a low-grade stealth technique there. But she couldn't afford to be seen noticing it.
She approached the counter and, with casual dismissal, presented Guang Li's list.
"One portion of Thunder Lotus Petals. Top grade, harvested within the last month," she instructed the vendor. "It's for Young Master Guang Li's new array research. He insists on freshness."
The vendor, intimidated by the implied status of Guang Li, hurried to comply. As Han Yue waited, she spotted her target.
Near the thinning Qi, a young disciple named Qian Li—one of Yan Xia's known agents—was pretending to examine a shelf of low-grade talismans. Qian Li wasn't looking at Han Yue, but Han Yue felt the disciple's spiritual sense slide off her, like water rolling off oiled silk, deflected by the Hidden Soul Amulet.
Qian Li immediately looked up, a flicker of confusion crossing his face. Why is the Administrator's spiritual presence so… weak and muffled?
The distraction was perfect. Han Yue paid, received the first ingredient, and departed, leaving Qian Li analyzing the mysterious lack of information he could gather from her.
Meanwhile, back in the darkness of the Mortal Estate, Lin Feng was undergoing a far more violent transformation in his newly dug Core Chamber.
He had achieved a perfect, circular rhythm in his cultivation. The raw Earth and Wood Qi drawn from the spiritual land was purified by the Primordial Chaos Art in the black ring, then converted into compressed Foundation energy, strengthening his meridians.
His goal was not just Level Ten; his goal was Limitless Foundation. The Primordial Chaos Art allowed him to exceed the normal threshold of the realm, refining his core spiritual structure until it was the hardiest, most stable core possible—a true foundation for the colossal power of the higher realms.
Lin Feng sat cross-legged, the air around him shimmering with visible pressure. The moment he attempted to force the breakthrough, his body convulsed.
RUMBLE!
The internal spiritual pressure was immense. It felt like trying to compress a mountain range into a marble. Normal cultivators used pills to ease this process; Lin Feng was relying purely on the brutal purification power of the black ring and his sheer, chaotic will.
The Core Chamber groaned. A fine dust of spiritual energy was violently ejected from his body, creating a momentary, miniature sandstorm inside the pit.
"The nine thresholds are too fragile for the Primordial Chaos Qi!" a deep, guttural voice echoed in his mind—the protective consciousness of the black ring. "Stop! You will tear your meridians and die!"
Lin Feng ignored it. "The stronger the foundation, the higher I climb! If my meridians break, they will be refined! If my core shatters, it will be remade! Ascend!"
He forced the energy onward. His veins bulged, glowing faintly with the dark, compressed power. Blood trickled from his nose, and a fierce, sharp pain flared in his lower abdomen—the location of his spiritual core.
The process was agonizingly slow. For a full hour, he held the pressure, walking the razor's edge between breakthrough and self-destruction.
Finally, with a sound like a wet clay pot cracking, the pressure released. Instead of pain, a rush of unimaginable power flooded his being. His spiritual core, instead of simply thickening, changed color. It went from a compressed, clear energy to a deep, resonant emerald green, pulsating with ancient, life-giving Wood Qi.
Foundation Establishment: Level Ten—Achieved!
But the black ring wasn't finished. It continued to draw the cosmic, chaotic energy into his core, solidifying the new emerald structure until it was impossibly dense. It had surpassed the limitations of the Mortal Realm.
Limitless Foundation: The Verdant Core Structure—Achieved!
Lin Feng slowly opened his eyes. He didn't feel powerful; he felt solid. His senses were hyper-focused, his mind clearer than a glacier stream. He could hear the low thrum of the sect's protective formations miles away, and he could taste the subtle iron content in the damp earth beneath him.
He quickly dressed, his old robes feeling like tissue paper over his new, hardened frame. He had exactly two hours before Han Yue was due back. He needed to use his new power to prepare the final defenses.
Han Yue, unaware of the spiritual cataclysm her partner had just experienced, was completing the second and most secretive purchase: Dragon's Breath Dust at a shifty, back-alley stall known as the Shadow Merchant.
This was the domain of criminals, rogue cultivators, and those desperate for quick deals. She felt the Qi here was heavy—thick with suspicion and hidden blades.
She located the stall and gave the Shadow Merchant—a man whose face was hidden beneath a wide hood—the list.
"Dragon's Breath Dust? That's for Core Formation," the merchant rasped, his voice full of avarice. "That will be twenty top-grade stones. Cash only."
Han Yue, now highly practiced in the art of the bluff, gave him a superior look. "Young Master Guang Li does not deal in 'cash.' He deals in trust. You will take five top-grade stones now, and the remainder upon delivery of the entire order. Failure to comply, and the Young Master will have your operation shut down by dawn."
The merchant hesitated. Threatening a lone, low-level cultivator was one thing; threatening a known Inner Sect Elder's son was another.
"Fine," the merchant spat, taking the five stones and shoving the small vial of dust toward her.
As she sealed the dust in Guang Li's pouch, Han Yue noticed something crucial: the merchant's hood slipped slightly, revealing a small, faint scar shaped like a crescent moon near his ear.
Suddenly, a massive burst of spiritual energy slammed into the Shadow Merchant's stall.
BOOM!
Yan Xia had executed her strategic move. She hadn't attacked Han Yue; she had attacked the logistics.
From the main street, a squad of Enforcement Disciples descended, led by Yan Xia's brother, Yan Qiu, the Level Nine Foundation Master.
"This vendor is under suspicion of distributing counterfeit and poisoned materials!" Yan Qiu roared. "Seize all inventory! Arrest the merchant!"
The stall was instantly surrounded. The Shadow Merchant, a Foundation Level Five rogue, cursed and activated a smoke talisman. Chaos erupted.
Han Yue, trapped, immediately implemented Lin Feng's instruction: don't engage, drop the pouch, and run.
No. Lin Feng had only said to drop the pouch if she felt unusual spiritual energy near her. This was an attack on the merchant, not the Administrator. She had to stay and watch.
The merchant attempted to escape, but Yan Qiu, a true Level Nine Foundation Master, was too fast. A brilliant blue spiritual barrier slammed down, trapping the merchant.
Yan Qiu stared directly at Han Yue. He knew she was the keyhole. He couldn't attack her, but he could watch her react to the disruption.
"Administrator Han Yue," Yan Qiu said, his voice cold and commanding. "Why are you consorting with known criminals?"
Han Yue stood tall, her fear masked by indignation. "I was doing my duty, Young Master Yan Qiu. I was retrieving materials ordered by Young Master Guang Li for his array research. I was simply unaware this merchant was under suspicion. I will be sure to inform Young Master Guang Li of this disruption to his schedule."
She knew she had played the Guang Li card perfectly. Yan Qiu's eyes narrowed. He couldn't risk offending an Elder over a vague suspicion about a servant's purchasing habits.
"Be gone," Yan Qiu commanded, his eyes burning with frustration. "And inform Guang Li that his material is safe for now. The Yan Clan will ensure its integrity."
Han Yue gave a perfect, submissive bow and rushed away, clutching the pouch, her heart hammering. She was playing a lethal game of chess with a Core Formation chessmaster's younger brother.
She realized what Yan Xia had done: by seizing the merchant, she had choked the supply chain. She couldn't touch Guang Li's materials directly, but she could intimidate every vendor he used.
Han Yue now knew the final ingredient, the Essence Condensation Herb, would be impossible to obtain.
Han Yue arrived back at the Mortal Estate in the late afternoon, visibly shaken. She found Lin Feng sitting next to the freshly dug Core Chamber, calmly polishing his shovel. He looked… different. His presence was heavier, sharper, like a newly forged blade.
"Yan Qiu attacked the market," she gasped, dropping the pouch onto the ground. "He seized the Shadow Merchant. He didn't touch me, but he made it clear: he is choking the supply. We can't get the Essence Condensation Herb. I failed."
Lin Feng picked up the pouch and smiled, a rare, chillingly confident look.
"You didn't fail, Han Yue. You succeeded perfectly. You got the first two ingredients, and you forced Yan Qiu to show his hand. His move was crude, but effective."
He then reached into his robes and pulled out a small, dried piece of root, no bigger than his thumb. It looked utterly worthless.
"The Essence Condensation Herb is volatile, yes?" Lin Feng said, a triumphant note entering his voice. "But the Root of Ten Thousand Weeds, which grows in abundance around the stable manure piles, has a stable Earth Qi foundation."
Han Yue stared at him. "That's just the stuff we scrape off the bottom of the feed trough."
Lin Feng's eyes flashed with his new Limitless Foundation power. "Not anymore."
He placed the dry root piece on his palm and activated the black ring. The ring's chaotic power flowed out, enveloping the root. Instead of incinerating it, the power meticulously broke down the root's base structure, separating the Earth Qi from the toxic elements, and then—using Lin Feng's Verdant Core—re-infused it with pure, compressed Wood Qi.
The worthless scrap of wood did not glow or change color. It simply became dense. Impossibly dense, shimmering with a contained, potent power that exceeded the original herb's strength tenfold.
"The Primordial Chaos Art doesn't just purify, Han Yue," Lin Feng whispered. "It replaces. It turns the common into the cosmic. We no longer need the Inner Sect to break through."
He placed the three ingredients—the Thunder Lotus, the Dragon Dust, and his newly forged Root of Endless Essence—into the Core Chamber.
Lin Feng looked at Han Yue, his eyes burning with ambition. "You handled the marketplace. I handled the breakthrough. Now for the final stage: Core Formation."
He paused, leaning in until their noses were almost touching. "Yan Xia thinks she's choking the supply. She has no idea I've just finished digging her grave. Now, I need you to guard this spot with your life, Administrator. No matter what sounds you hear, no matter what disciples arrive, you tell them Lin Feng is cleaning the deep end of the stables and cannot be disturbed."
"You're going to be a Core Formation Master by dawn," she whispered, utterly captivated by the intensity of his presence.
"I am going to become the greatest Core Formation Master this sect has ever seen," Lin Feng corrected, his hand gently settling on her waist. The touch, now backed by the raw power of the Verdant Core, sent a profound shiver through her. It was a promise, a threat, and a delicious secret all in one.
"Wish me luck, Han Yue."
He did not wait for her answer. He stepped into the pit, sat cross-legged, and, without a moment's hesitation, consumed the three high-grade, volatile ingredients. His cultivation reached its pinnacle, and the Primordial Chaos Art began its furious, world-shaking work.