Chapter 301: Locking the Location

Qin Ming's spiritual sense barely brushed against it, and he knew this was a False Core cultivator.

He immediately pulled out the Elder Token and handed it to the other.

The old man guarding the Technique Pavilion took the token, deducted one hundred contribution points, returned it to Qin Ming, then said indifferently, "All right, go in."

Qin Ming tucked away the token and stepped inside.

After entering the Transmission Pavilion, he realized the interior was vast, filled with row upon row of technique jade slips, as well as other secret arts and books on the hundred arts of cultivation.

Most of those in the first floor were Qi Refining disciples of the Xuanyi Valley; upon seeing Qin Ming, the Foundation Establishment guest Elder, they all bowed and greeted him.

Qin Ming gave a slight nod in response, then walked straight up to the third floor. Here, the number of people dropped sharply—only a handful of Foundation Establishment cultivators were poring over texts.

He wandered around casually and found no shortage of top-tier techniques and secret arts, but compared to what he carried in his storage bag, they were far inferior.

After a moment's thought, Qin Ming ascended to the fifth floor, where the space began to grow sparse.

Technique texts became scarce, and nearly all who came up were Qin Ming alone.

An hour passed.

Seeing no one around, he secretly sent a mental message to the Devouring Sky Rat:

"Can you get into the floors beyond the fifth?"

"Must be completely undetected."

"If you're caught, you'll end up as dried rat meat in the Xuanyi Valley."

"Hehe! Master, the restrictions here are weak—I can come and go freely without being noticed." The Devouring Sky Rat's voice echoed in Qin Ming's mind.

Qin Ming immediately said, "Good. Sneak in and if you find the Golden Core Elixir formula, copy it for me."

"Uh… I don't know what the Golden Core Elixir formula looks like," the Devouring Sky Rat replied awkwardly.

Qin Ming told it, "Usually the formula's name is written on it. Or if you see any formula with Fire-Bathing Golden Lotus and Return-Yin True Yin Flower as main ingredients, copy them both."

"Got it, Master. Don't worry—I'll be back in a flash."

Qin Ming immediately released the Devouring Sky Rat, which vanished into the void the moment it emerged.

A ripple stirred in the void as the Devouring Sky Rat slipped toward the staircase to the sixth floor and disappeared inside.

Qin Ming pretended to browse texts on the fifth floor, waiting for the Devouring Sky Rat's return.

He had full confidence in the creature's abilities.

When it had fled to Wangyue Island, it had slipped undetected through his third-rank mid-grade array and evaded Qin Ming's spiritual sense, nearly matching that of a Golden Core cultivator—proof enough of its extraordinary power.

Time slowly passed.

Another hour and a half later, the Devouring Sky Rat returned, darting into Qin Ming's storage bag.

"Well? Any luck?" Qin Ming asked, hopeful.

The Devouring Sky Rat transmitted back, "Master, I've been to floors six through eight—none of them had the Golden Core Elixir formula."

"But there are plenty of high-rank human techniques there—all top-tier secret arts exclusive to the Xuanyi Valley. Want me to steal some for you? Hehe!"

Qin Ming shook his head, slightly disappointed. "Then it must be somewhere else."

Qin Ming then walked out of the Transmission Pavilion with calm composure.

The False Core old man at the gate glanced at Qin Ming, found nothing unusual, and resumed his nap.

…

On the Qianyuan Peak's mission square, crowds bustled.

Yan Ruyan, as usual, prepared to claim a mission for cultivation resources.

She had nearly spent all her accumulated savings recently to break through to late Qi Refining and was now penniless, surviving only on her monthly stipend from the sect.

Two Yunling Pills and twenty spirit stones per month.

But for her, these resources were far from enough.

At that moment,

she noticed a large crowd gathered around a mission board and walked over.

"Wow! Which Elder is so generous?"

"A planting mission actually offers sect contribution points!"

"This reward rivals a Class-B mission."

"It's Elder Yu from Jade Bamboo Grove!"

"Let's go, hurry up—planting will need lots of hands, and if we're late, there won't be any slots left!"

Many cultivators rushed toward the Mission Office to claim the task.

Yan Ruyan read the notice on the mission board and was struck with existential doubt.

"Is this really that stingy old man?"

After standing there in thought for a long while, she gritted her teeth and ran toward the Mission Office.

…

Jade Bamboo Grove.

After returning, Qin Ming lay on a reclining chair amid the bamboo, silently pondering the most likely locations for the Elixir formula.

Suddenly, a large group of Xuanyi Valley Qi Refining disciples rushed toward him.

"Elder Yu, I'm here to claim the mission—I'm Qi Refining sixth layer and have one year's experience planting spirit rice."

"Me too—I'm a Rank-One mid-grade Spirit Planter with abundant experience!"

"Elder Yu, what about me?"

Yan Ruyan hadn't expected such fierce competition; she could only muster a timid voice: "I'm late Qi Refining seventh layer, have experience planting low-grade spirit herbs, and can endure hardship." Qin Ming hadn't expected his casual mission to draw so many disciples. "Is this the power of sect contribution points?" he mentally scoffed.

He scanned the crowd, his gaze landing on a familiar figure, then spoke:

"You. Everyone else, disperse."

Qin Ming pointed at Yan Ruyan.

Compared to the others, Yan Ruyan had no clear advantage—she'd given up hope entirely, yet this Elder Yu had chosen her.

She pointed uncertainly at her own nose and asked weakly, "Me?"

"Yes, you." Qin Ming nodded.

"Elder Yu, I can endure hardship too—please consider me!"

"I have my reasons. Everyone else, leave."

Soon, only Yan Ruyan remained standing in the Jade Bamboo Grove.

She was dazed, glanced around, then asked uncertainly, "Just me… to plant?"

"What? Didn't you say you could endure hardship?"

"If you've changed your mind, you still have time." Qin Ming said coolly.

Yan Ruyan nodded frantically. "No no no—I'm willing!"

Qin Ming then tossed her a spirit hoe and the Purple Crystal Rice spirit seeds he'd bought from the Spirit Herb Garden, then returned indoors.

He left her to her own devices outside.

Yan Ruyan stared at the dozens of mu of barren land in the Jade Bamboo Grove, hoe in hand, overwhelmed by a deep sense of helplessness.

"No wonder there are sect contribution points—this reward isn't easy to earn."

But under pressure of reality, she picked up the hoe and began digging.

Qin Ming watched Yan Ruyan sweat profusely outside, feeling no pity whatsoever.

Three days later,

he went beside his house, casually tilled half a mu of land, and planted a dozen Rank-Two low-grade spirit herbs and a few Rank-Two mid-grade ones to fulfill his guest Elder duties for the Xuanyi Valley.

Yan Ruyan, watching from afar, froze in place, murmuring, "No way… planting Rank-Two spirit plants is this simple?!"

…

Another half-year passed.

During this time, Yan Ruyan labored tirelessly in the fields every day, finally cultivating the Rank-One Purple Crystal Rice.

Of course, Qin Ming had offered occasional guidance, but barely—she'd completed nearly everything herself.

Over these six months, Yan Ruyan's once delicate skin had darkened to a wheat tone.

Most astonishing to her was that the Rank-Two spirit plants Qin Ming had casually planted had all survived and grown to two inches tall.

She'd never seen him tend to them—he'd essentially left them to grow wild—and their growth was even better than those in the sect's own Spirit Herb Garden.

With Qin Ming's current expertise in spirit planting, combined with the Gumu Changqing Body's natural affinity for plants and the enhancement of the Four Seasons Light, cultivating these Rank-Two spirit herbs was effortless.

Inside the house,

Qin Ming had spent the past half-year pretending to farm while secretly searching for the Golden Core Elixir formula.

Recently, he had finally confirmed its location.

It was in the Scripture Pavilion of Luoyun Peak—one of the three forbidden zones of the Xuanyi Valley!

But the Scripture Pavilion was guarded by the Xuanyi Valley's Golden Core elder, Old Wan.

This made things difficult for Qin Ming—if the Devouring Sky Rat had regained its peak as a Rank-Three Demon King, he'd gladly risk everything.

But now, with the Devouring Sky Rat at Rank-Two peak, facing a Golden Core elder—especially one as seasoned and deeply rooted as Old Wan—even with its extraordinary abilities, exposure remained highly likely.

"I must get the formula—but I need the right moment to act."

Qin Ming pondered, then pulled out an elixir formula.

This one was called the "Zhu Rong Elixir," a Rank-Three spirit pill that greatly enhances the restoration of a spirit pet's primordial essence.

According to the formula's description, it was developed by a spirit beast sect within the Great Jin Immortal Dynasty.

Later, it fell into the hands of the Li Huo Palace, and was brought back to Liang State by the Xuanyi Valley's founding ancestor.

This elixir formula was obtained by Qin Ming from a fake Nascent Soul ancestor on Danxia Peak in Xuanxi Valley, during his search for a Core Formation formula.

To do so, he even expended his essence to cast the "Heavenly Demon Entering Dream Great Art" from the "True Scripture of the Devouring Heaven Demon Seed."

This demonic secret art, once activated, forcibly drags a person into a dream and alters their memories.

However, casting this art has a strict requirement: the caster's spiritual soul must be several times stronger than the target's.

Otherwise, if counterattacked, the caster will either die or go mad.

After pondering for a long while, Qin Ming sent a mental message to the Devouring Heaven Rat: "If you regained your peak strength, could you replicate the Core Formation formula under the watch of that Ten-Thousand Ancestor?"

"Hehe! Master, of course I can! When I was at my strongest, my ancestral blood ability could shatter top-grade third-rank barriers, and my Void-Walking ability could completely evade detection even from a late-stage Golden Core ancestor."

"Good. I'll help you restore your cultivation first," Qin Ming said, his heart settling at this reply.

"Really? That's amazing! I vow eternal loyalty!"

"Enough, enough! To refine the Zhu Rong Elixir, you need third-rank spiritual materials—you'll have to buy them in Moyuan Xiancheng."

With that, Qin Ming opened the door and stepped out.

(End of Chapter)