After finishing his business with Gu Qinghe, Li Hao immediately took to the air and left without a single glance back.
His figure vanished into the white mist and eternal snow shrouding the mountain peak, as if his brief appearance had been nothing more than a passing gust of wind.
Gu Qinghe remained where he stood. He slowly turned around. Not far from him, Ya Fei was still helping Li Xiaoman stabilize her injuries.
The young woman sat cross-legged, the qi within her body circulating unevenly.
Her face was pale, her breathing strained. It was clear that the defeat she had just suffered was more than a simple physical wound.
Li Xiaoman's gaze was sharp and icy. One hand clutched at her chest, as though suppressing something turbulent within. Her eyes never left Gu Qinghe, filled with undisguised hatred.
That defeat had carved something far deeper than humiliation alone—resentment had taken root in her heart.
Gu Qinghe didn't care.
He paid that stare no attention at all. Without a word, he stepped into the wooden house behind him.
The building was simple, constructed from cold-resistant hardwood, with basic Yin-suppressing formations faintly carved into each corner. Gu Qinghe swept his gaze around briefly.
Not bad. Livable.
Soon, footsteps sounded behind him.
Li Xiaoman stood up and walked past Gu Qinghe without even looking at him, her attitude cold and indifferent.
That defeat had already proven one thing—at least for now, she was no match for Gu Qinghe.
"Junior Gu Qinghe."
Ya Fei's voice came from behind. She stepped closer, patted the bag of holding at her waist, and took out a fairly large wooden box.
The box looked plain, but the aura of the sect still lingered on its surface.
Ya Fei handed it to Gu Qinghe. "This is your allocation."
Gu Qinghe accepted it. When he opened the box, the contents were neatly arranged—a set of black-and-white sect robes, a ceramic bottle containing early-stage pills, and a cultivation technique scroll.
"Begin your training," Ya Fei said flatly. "In three months, you and Junior Li Xiaoman will participate in the talent trials. Show your capabilities."
Gu Qinghe gave a short nod. Without hesitation, he raised both hands.
The qi in his body trembled lightly, and in an instant, the clothes he wore transformed into the black-and-white robes of the Yin-Yang Sect, fitting his body as naturally as if they had always belonged to him.
"Thank you, Senior Ya Fei."
Ya Fei merely nodded faintly. She said nothing more. Her body lifted into the air, then flew away from the snowy hill, leaving Gu Qinghe and Li Xiaoman alone in the wooden house.
Silence settled in.
"I admit defeat," Li Xiaoman's voice finally sounded—soft, yet cold. Her face still showed traces of pain.
"But I don't acknowledge you."
Gu Qinghe glanced at her briefly.
"I don't care," he replied indifferently. "You're not the reason I came to this sect."
Li Xiaoman frowned. She snorted softly, then turned away and walked toward the wide altar in the center of the wooden house.
Without another word, she sat cross-legged and began to meditate, drawing in natural qi to recover her body and soul.
Gu Qinghe no longer paid her any attention.
He sat down and opened the technique scroll from the wooden box. Written clearly on its surface were the words—Natural Qi Refinement Technique, the basic cultivation method of the Yin-Yang Sect, intended for novice cultivators.
Gu Qinghe skimmed through it.
Not very effective for me.
Without hesitation, he clenched his hand. Qi surged from his body into the scroll—and shattered it.
The technique scroll broke apart into fragments of light, followed by a small qi explosion that shook the wooden house.
The energy wave spread in all directions, enough to disrupt Li Xiaoman's meditation.
She was startled. Her eyes flew open as she turned to stare at Gu Qinghe in disbelief.
She saw it clearly—Gu Qinghe had just destroyed the technique given to him by the sect.
There were five rooms inside the wooden house. One of them was already occupied by Li Xiaoman.
Outside the rooms lay a wide altar, usually used for cultivation, designed to reduce the influence of the surrounding Yin element.
But that was precisely the problem.
For the sect, Yin was something to be suppressed and controlled, believed to interfere with the flow of qi. But to Gu Qinghe, this place felt different.
He could clearly sense it—the Yin element here was far more dominant than ordinary natural qi.
Gu Qinghe closed the wooden box, stored it away, then stepped outside.
The moment he crossed the threshold, icy air pierced his body. Qi automatically flowed from him, forming a thin protective layer.
But Gu Qinghe knew—passive defense like this was inefficient if maintained for too long.
Snow continued to fall, piling atop his head and shoulders. Gu Qinghe lifted his gaze, staring at the gray sky covered by thick white clouds.
This wasn't ordinary snow.
He activated his cultivation eyes and summoned Heavenly Path Insight.
[Heavenly Path Insight]
[Detecting Yin-Gathering Formation in the sky]
[Formation: Yin Element Convergence || Grade: Earth]
[Description: Absorbs natural qi and refines it into Yin element, creating eternal snowfall and lowering regional temperature]
[Conclusion:]
[Combat Mode: Rely on powerful techniques and end battles quickly]
[Cultivation Mode: Use Silent Yin Extraction Technique]
[Pill Refinement Mode: Suitable for refining Yin-based soul-calming pills]
Silent Yin Extraction…
Gu Qinghe narrowed his eyes. The name felt familiar.
He raised two fingers and touched his forehead. His eyes closed. Gu Qinghe's soul stirred, scanning the vast sea of memories, searching for records of that technique.
It didn't take long.
Among the countless techniques he had once comprehended, Silent Yin Extraction emerged clearly.
With his comprehension already at its maximum level, that old memory instantly synchronized with his current understanding.
Gu Qinghe grasped it rapidly. One of the core requirements of this technique was a location with extreme Yin.
This snowy hill possessed dominant Yin, but it hadn't yet reached the extreme threshold.
Gu Qinghe rose into the air and surveyed the surroundings carefully.
The sect deliberately maintained Yin balance. No area with extreme Yin was left exposed.
His gaze shifted downward. He saw streams of natural qi being drawn toward the wooden house—precisely where Li Xiaoman was cultivating.
Clearly, he had no intention of using that place.
Gu Qinghe turned and flew away from the wooden house. Before long, he arrived at a rocky hill not far away—the highest point in the area.
The higher the altitude, the denser the gathered Yin.
Without hesitation, he sat cross-legged, formed hand seals, and activated the Silent Yin Extraction Technique.
A pale blue aura enveloped his body. The surrounding Yin element surged, flowing like invisible currents, entering Gu Qinghe's activated meridians.
The cold pierced deep—but it didn't freeze.
His meridians adapted. Instead, the Yang-element heat within his body strengthened, balancing the incoming Yin.
The Yin here was merely qi modified by a formation. Once absorbed, it reverted to its original form.
This was the true advantage of the technique.
Gu Qinghe's qi absorption speed doubled—absorbing natural qi while simultaneously extracting Yin into pure qi.
If this condition could be maintained, then within three months…
His cultivation could reach Peak Foundation Establishment.
Days passed.
Gu Qinghe remained seated there, unmoving.
Li Xiaoman often looked toward the rocky hill, watching Gu Qinghe cultivate recklessly under the dominant Yin. To her, it was nothing short of suicide.
"What is he even thinking…?" she muttered.
Elder Li came again. For the second time since Gu Qinghe began meditating on that hill, he saw that the young man still hadn't stopped.
"Do you know Gu Qinghe's reputation in the Gu Clan?" he said quietly. "Useless, lazy, untalented, and arrogant."
"A typical failed cultivator," he continued.
Li Xiaoman shook her head slightly. "I fought him, Father. That was the first time my soul was injured."
Li Hao narrowed his eyes, staring at Gu Qinghe for a long moment.
"He's hiding many things."
He turned to Li Xiaoman. "Control your temper. Befriending him could be beneficial."
"I don't want to," Li Xiaoman snorted.
Li Hao sighed. He handed her a technique scroll and a bottle of pills. "Only the top three can become Direct Disciples of the Sect Master."
Li Xiaoman clenched them tightly and lowered her head. "I won't disappoint you."
After Li Hao left, Li Xiaoman looked at Gu Qinghe once more.
"You're only cultivating without training techniques," she muttered.
"When the talent trials come… I'll be the one to defeat you."