Chapter 452

After chatting with Song Qingyu for a while, Song Qingming walked down the mountaintop with her and arrived in front of Huang Siyuan's cave dwelling at the foot of the mountain.

"Seventh Brother, Sister-in-law has been in seclusion for nearly half a month now and should be coming out soon. You can go in and find her yourself; I'm going to see Xintong now, so I won't stay and disturb you two."

Song Qingming nodded slightly without saying anything more. After Song Qingyu left with a smile, he took out a sound-transmission talisman and shot it into Huang Siyuan's cave dwelling.

A moment later, once the restrictive barrier at the entrance of Huang Siyuan's cave dwelling slowly dissipated, Song Qingming smiled and strode inside.

Huang Siyuan, who was tidying up her attire, hurried to the side to brew a cup of fragrant spirit tea for him as soon as she saw Song Qingming.

"Siyuan, how is your cultivation of the Soul-Devouring Art coming along? I noticed your spiritual sense seemed to have changed just now; have you made some progress recently?" As soon as he entered, Song Qingming sensed a change in Huang Siyuan's spiritual sense compared to when they last met, so he immediately asked.

Seeing this, Huang Siyuan smiled and nodded, replying: "Before this seclusion, Sister Qingyu sent me some more demon beast souls. After refining them, the Soul-Devouring Art broke through without me realizing it, and my spiritual sense has increased quite a bit all at once.

Husband, this cultivation technique you gave us is truly wondrous; it doesn't feel like an ordinary spiritual sense technique. Where exactly did you obtain this Soul-Devouring Art?"

"I obtained this technique by chance in an ancient cultivator's cave dwelling while I was on the front lines in Lu Guo years ago. Because the initial cultivation conditions were somewhat harsh, I didn't take it seriously at first, but after practicing it for a period of time, I slowly discovered its merits.

Siyuan, apart from you and Qingyu, I haven't passed this Soul-Devouring Art on to anyone else. People's hearts are unpredictable; aside from the three of us, you must never reveal this technique in front of others, lest it attract covetous eyes."

Hearing Song Qingming's soft warning, Huang Siyuan hurriedly nodded.

Ever since Song Qingyu and Huang Siyuan returned to Qinghe County, Song Qingming had passed on the "Soul-Devouring Art" he had practiced for many years to them. Although the technique Feng He gave him years ago was extremely harsh to cultivate in the early stages, once it reached a certain level and strengthened one's own soul, the improvement to a cultivator's strength was very significant.

Moreover, after experiencing the process of Core Formation once, Song Qingming discovered that having a strong soul was also useful for ordinary cultivators when forming their cores, so he took precautions and passed the "Soul-Devouring Art" to Song Qingyu and Huang Siyuan in advance.

Both of them had been at the Foundation Establishment stage for many years, so the difficulty of practicing the "Soul-Devouring Art" was much lower than for Song Yuanli, who had just established his foundation. After more than a decade, Song Qingyu had already reached the first peak of the "Soul-Devouring Art" a few years ago, and her speed was not a bit slower than Song Qingming's had been back then.

Huang Siyuan was slightly slower, but she had now almost caught up to Song Qingyu's progress; if given another few years, they should both have a chance to break through to the second level of the "Soul-Devouring Art."

After finishing the cup of spirit tea, Song Qingming looked at Huang Siyuan and said, "A few months ago, Xinyu sent news from the sect that Elder Chu of the Carefree Sect has refined a new batch of Jade Dust Pills. I plan to go and see if I can exchange for one tomorrow. If all goes well, I will find a place to attempt the Golden Core bottleneck again. I might be away for a very long time this time."

Hearing Song Qingming say this, Huang Siyuan's expression changed slightly, but she then nodded gently and said, "Go ahead, Husband. With Qingyu and me at home, there will certainly be no issues."

"If... I mean if, I am unable to return before the demon beast unrest, no matter what happens, you, Qingyu, and Yuanli must take care to preserve yourselves.

Whether it is the family's cultivators or the spirit veins, even if they are lost temporarily, they can be slowly restored in the future. When it truly comes to a critical moment, the safety of the three of you is the most important thing for the entire family. You must remember this; never lose the big picture for the sake of small gains." After Song Qingming finished speaking, his gaze toward Huang Siyuan became increasingly serious.

"I understand what you mean, Husband, rest assured!" Huang Siyuan replied with a calm expression.

Having spent decades honing herself in a dangerous place like Zheng Guo, Huang Siyuan's personality was more stable than Song Qingyu's, so a slight reminder from Song Qingming was enough for her.

After Song Qingming nodded with a smile, he took out a small jade box and placed it in Huang Siyuan's hand.

"This Barrier-Breaking Pill is prepared for you to break through to the late Foundation Establishment stage. Your cultivation has already reached the sixth level of Foundation Establishment, and you are not far from the late stage, so I will leave this pill with you for now."

Hearing the words "Barrier-Breaking Pill," a look of surprise immediately appeared on Huang Siyuan's face. She had not expected Song Qingming to have prepared the spiritual item for her late Foundation Establishment breakthrough so early, and she was deeply moved.

After leaving Huang Siyuan's place, Song Qingming went to Song Qingyu's cave dwelling on the other side of the mountaintop.

Upon learning that Song Qingming was preparing to go out to attempt Core Formation again, Song Qingyu was also full of surprise. With the northern demon beast unrest drawing ever closer, Song Qingming, the backbone of the family, leaving at this time was certainly not good news for the entire Song family.

For a cultivator to go into seclusion for Core Formation, it generally takes at least several to over a dozen years. With the northern demon beast unrest potentially erupting within ten years at the earliest, Song Qingming choosing to go out for Core Formation now meant there was a high probability he would not make it back in time for this unrest.

However, Song Qingming had his own concerns. The reason he chose to do this was to try his best to succeed in Core Formation before the demon beast unrest.

Facing the once-a-century northern demon beast unrest, even Song Qingming, who had reached the peak of Foundation Establishment, still found it difficult to control his own fate and that of his clansmen. For Song Qingming, the only way to change this status quo was to break through to the Golden Core realm as soon as possible.

Looking at Song Qingming, who had already made up his mind, Song Qingyu was silent for a moment before asking directly, "Seventh Brother, if you don't manage to exchange for a Jade Dust Pill at the Carefree Sect this time, will you still go ahead with the Core Formation?"

Facing Song Qingyu's inquiry, Song Qingming did not hesitate at all and nodded with a smile.

This trip for Core Formation had been planned by Song Qingming long ago. After re-cultivating the Concealed Origin Art to perfection, even without the Jade Dust Pill, Song Qingming now had considerable confidence in succeeding in Core Formation.

Although Song Qingming had a lot of confidence in this Core Formation attempt, he still chose not to tell Huang Siyuan and Song Qingyu his true thoughts; there were many things Song Qingming could not explain clearly to them for the time being.

"Seventh Brother, go with peace of mind. I will help you look after Sister-in-law and the family. My cultivation has reached the late Foundation Establishment stage, and with me here, there will definitely be no issues. Just focus on your Core Formation; I will wait for your early return."

In Song Qingyu's heart, she naturally did not want Song Qingming to leave the Song family at this time, but since Song Qingming had made his decision, she would not oppose it. Having been a Foundation Establishment Elder of the family for so many years, Song Qingyu had never opposed any decision made by Song Qingming, the Clan Head.

"Qingyu, take this puppet beast for self-defense. Remember, if you truly encounter a situation where a difficult choice must be made, do not hesitate; preserving yourself is the most important thing."

After repeating the words he had said to Huang Siyuan to Song Qingyu, Song Qingming took out a very exquisite white crane puppet beast from his storage bag and handed it to her.

This white crane puppet beast was a very rare Tier 2 high-grade puppet. Puppet beasts of this level could not be seen even in large markets like Yangshan Market, and there were likely not many in the entire Wei Guo, making it a very precious spiritual item.

The reason Song Qingming was able to obtain this item was that Feng He had left it to him before leaving Qinghe Market years ago. Song Qingming hadn't used it much over the years, keeping it in his storage bag as a trump card. He would not have easily taken it out this time if he weren't worried about the safety of Song Qingyu and the others.

"Qingyu, this puppet beast is exceptionally precious. I spent quite a few spirit stones to obtain it at an underground auction. Unless it is an absolute last resort, never use it in front of others; otherwise, if other cultivators see it, I fear it will bring you some trouble."

Seeing the white crane puppet beast in Song Qingming's hand, Song Qingyu was also very surprised. She had not expected Song Qingming to have such a rare item, let alone that he would hand over such an important spiritual item to her, and a sense of being moved flashed through her heart.

As a Foundation Establishment cultivator, Song Qingyu naturally knew the value of this white crane puppet beast. She had wanted to refuse, but ultimately accepted it due to Song Qingming's insistence. Now that Song Qingming needed to go out for Core Formation, the heavy burden of guarding the family had fallen entirely on her shoulders, and Song Qingyu could not just consider herself.

Song Qingyu nodded and carefully took the white crane puppet beast from Song Qingming's hand. With her cultivation already at the late Foundation Establishment stage, plus the assistance of this high-grade puppet, she felt a bit more confident in guarding the family.

Leaving the family for Core Formation this time, Song Qingming did not know what his future would hold. As the Clan Head, he had to arrange the family affairs properly before leaving.

After settling everything, Song Qingming bid farewell to Huang Siyuan early the next morning and quietly left Mount Funiu, heading straight for the Carefree Sect.

On a barren mountain a dozen miles away from Mount Funiu, Song Qingming looked back at Mount Funiu behind him. His heart gradually calmed down, and he turned to step onto his flying sword.

At this moment, a look of incomparable determination appeared in Song Qingming's eyes. Since his failure at Core Formation last time, he had been honing his heart and sword for over a decade. Song Qingming's Dao heart was now incomparably firm; no matter what difficulties he encountered on this trip, he would find a way to strike at the Golden Core realm again.

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