"Ugh!"
Seeing Zhang Ergou in a daze, Lin Yueru frowned, and shot him a glare that, to Zhang Ergou, looked like a flirtatious glance.
Zhang Ergou quickly snapped back to reality and glanced at Lin Yueru sheepishly. Seeing she said nothing, he rubbed his nose to hide his embarrassment.
"Actually, for this Outer Sect Grand Competition, as long as you don't run into any of the top ten outer sect disciples at the start, it's perfectly possible for you to enter the Inner Sect with your strength. However, bad luck is another matter entirely."
Lin Yueru continued to explain to Zhang Ergou, then gave him a general description of the strength and preferred magical skills of each of the top ten outer sect disciples.
"Thank you, Senior Sister, for clarifying!" Zhang Ergou stood up and cupped his hands in a salute to Lin Yueru.
"You, just try not to be so reckless in your future battles!" Lin Yueru waved her hand, her words clearly referring to how Zhang Ergou had risked injury to defeat himself the previous night.
"Heh heh, I won't next time." Zhang Ergou chuckled.
Lin Yueru rolled her eyes, clearly hearing the perfunctory nature of Zhang Ergou's words.
However, Zhang Ergou didn't mind. He then bid farewell to Lin Yueru and left the Precious Elixir Pavilion.
Lin Yueru watched Zhang Ergou's receding figure and murmured to herself, "What a strange little fellow."
Zhang Ergou returned to Spring Sun Peak and found everyone had gone out. His courtyard was silent, so he quickly headed to the back mountain.
He returned to that hidden cave, sat in meditation to cultivate, and once his body's energy was fully restored, Zhang Ergou stood up and scanned his surroundings. The website of Sudan Novels.
He realized the sky had already darkened.
When Zhang Ergou returned to the Precious Elixir Pavilion again, he happened to overhear Qiao Yanyun and Lin Yueru discussing him.
"Yueru, what do you think of your junior brother?"
"Master, are you referring to Zhang Ergou?" Lin Yueru's melodious voice came from the inner hall.
"Who else could it be? Do you have any other junior brothers?" Qiao Yanyun said irritably.
"Master, should I tell you the truth or a lie?"
"Ugh!"
Zhang Ergou, who was eavesdropping, hadn't expected the seemingly cold Lin Yueru to have such a mischievous side.
"Nonsense, if I wanted to hear a lie, I wouldn't need you to tell me," Qiao Yanyun exploded with profanity in her frustration.
"I can't quite figure Zhang Ergou out. This kid has surprised me," Lin Yueru said after some thought.
"Ahem, I'm asking you, what do you think of Zhang Ergou as a person?" Qiao Yanyun emphasized.
"Master, what do you mean? I'm a bit unclear," Lin Yueru asked with a frown.
"I mean, do you think Zhang Ergou is someone you can get along with?" With such direct words, Qiao Yanyun didn't believe Lin Yueru still wouldn't understand.
As expected, Lin Yueru's pretty face flushed, and she shot Qiao Yanyun an annoyed glance. "Oh, Master, I've already said, I'm not considering romantic matters right now."
"Master, I'm back!" Zhang Ergou entered the inner hall and quickly bowed to Qiao Yanyun.
Lin Yueru glanced at him, her face red, and quickly entered the side hall.
Clearly, Qiao Yanyun's words had had some effect on her. Seeing Lin Yueru's change, Qiao Yanyun chuckled, stroked her beard, and slowly looked at Zhang Ergou.
"While your master was away, you disappeared. How is the refining of the Soul Nurturing Elixir coming along?" As she turned to Zhang Ergou, Qiao Yanyun had already regained her serious demeanor.
The speed of her change in expression amazed even Zhang Ergou.
"Master, you forget who taught your disciple. Of course, your disciple only dared to go out after successfully refining it!" As he spoke, Zhang Ergou, as if presenting a treasure, produced a bottle of elixirs and handed it to Qiao Yanyun.
"Get lost!" Qiao Yanyun scolded with a laugh, genuinely surprised that Zhang Ergou had refined the Soul Nurturing Elixir so quickly.
Taking the elixir from Zhang Ergou, she examined it. Both its quality and roundness showed significant improvement compared to the Qi Replenishing Elixir he had refined before.
Although she affirmed Zhang Ergou's progress in her heart, Qiao Yanyun was not outwardly complimentary.
"What kind of garbage is this? Look, the elixir patterns aren't even clear. How dare you call this an elixir? Get back to practicing!" Saying this, she kicked Zhang Ergou in the backside.
Zhang Ergou, who had been expecting praise, was instead met with a scolding, and his expression turned a little wronged, though he managed to hide it.
He walked briskly to the alchemy furnace, took out the medicinal ingredients, and prepared to refine the elixir.
As expected, the first three furnaces Zhang Ergou refined ended in failure due to his impetuousness.
After failing, he remembered what Qiao Yanyun had said yesterday: impatience was the greatest taboo in alchemy. Slowly, Zhang Ergou calmed down, his gaze becoming clear.
He skillfully placed the medicinal ingredients into the alchemy furnace, then controlled the flames to carefully extract the medicinal liquid.
Then, he added a few more herbs.
This time, Zhang Ergou was extremely cautious with every step.
After all the ingredients were extracted, everything proceeded smoothly.
Next was the fusion of the various medicinal liquids, which was the most difficult and accident-prone stage. Zhang Ergou meticulously controlled the spirit fire.
He dared not relax for even a moment.
If he failed again now, all his previous efforts would be in vain.
He stared intently at the medicinal liquid in the alchemy furnace, watching it slowly converge, begin to touch, and fuse. Sweat beaded on Zhang Ergou's forehead.
Fortunately, everything went relatively smoothly. The medicinal liquids extracted from dozens of ingredients did not repel each other when they came into contact.
As Zhang Ergou breathed a sigh of relief, his hands did not relax.
*Sizzle!*
A strange sound emerged. Zhang Ergou quickly controlled the intensity of the flame, preventing the batch of ingredients, which had almost failed again, from being destroyed.
"Condense!"
Zhang Ergou let out a low shout. The various medicinal liquids completely fused together, swirling rapidly at the bottom of the alchemy furnace.
As Zhang Ergou increased the intensity of the flame, the medicinal liquid slowly began to solidify, and the rotation accelerated.
"Output elixir!"
Zhang Ergou shouted loudly, and several perfectly round pills flew out of the alchemy furnace, releasing a rich medicinal aroma.
"Not bad, this kid's comprehension ability is indeed strong!" Qiao Yanyun, who was watching from the side, nodded secretly.
He reached out and grabbed a few pills. Zhang Ergou had yet to experience the potency of the Soul Nurturing Elixir.
At this moment, feeling exhausted, Zhang Ergou directly popped a Soul Nurturing Elixir into his mouth without a word.
The Soul Nurturing Elixir dissolved instantly upon entering his mouth, and its immense medicinal power spread throughout his body. All fatigue vanished, and even his drowsy mind regained clarity.
As expected, it was a divine elixir for restoring soul power.
Zhang Ergou marveled inwardly. At this moment, he heard a strange sound from within his body.
*Pop!*
The barrier to the early stage of Foundation Establishment was broken, an unexpected delight.
Zhang Ergou hadn't anticipated that a single Soul Nurturing Elixir would bring him such great benefits.
"You brat, your luck is truly remarkable!" Qiao Yanyun couldn't help but exclaim in admiration at Zhang Ergou's transformation.
Lin Yueru, who had just stepped out, also showed a look of surprise.
Zhang Ergou had no time to speak. He quickly sat cross-legged on the ground, and the spiritual energy from heaven and earth rushed towards him as if there were no tomorrow.
Soon, the entire inner hall of the Precious Elixir Pavilion was bathed in a milky white glow...
However, Lin Yueru and Qiao Yanyun looked at the dense concentration of spiritual energy with expressions of astonishment.