Feeling the aura emanating from Mo Yang, the Grand Elder's figure paused slightly.
He then spoke, clearly displeased, "Earth Profound Realm Second Stage, why didn't you keep hiding? You look defiant. Today, I'll beat you until you submit!"
"Old man, don't push me!" Mo Yang roared, fully activating the True Qi within him.
"I'm pushing you!"
...Subsequently, a sudden gust of wind erupted in the small courtyard. Two figures moved at extreme speed, and sounds of clashing continuously rang out. After the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, Mo Yang's body was sent flying.
After Mo Yang stabilized himself, his chest heaved violently, and he gasped for breath. Although the exchange was brief, constantly using the Ethereal Step to dodge consumed a great deal of his True Qi.
He stared coldly at the Grand Elder. Although the old man struck heavily, his control of force was just right; he wasn't truly trying to harm him.
"Kid, is that all?"
"I thought you were going to conquer the heavens! Look at how capable you were in the training grounds!"
The Grand Elder stood with his hands behind his back, sneering at Mo Yang with a sidelong glance.
Although he spoke like this, his heart was far from calm. In all these years, it was his first time seeing such a Prodigy Cultivator as Mo Yang.
When Mo Yang was brought back to the Sect by the Fourth Elder years ago, he had already marveled at Mo Yang's extraordinary Comprehension Ability. This was also why he cared so much about Mo Yang after discovering he could Cultivate.
So much so that he was determined to bring Su Fei'er and Mo Yang together!
Because he knew very well that to keep Mo Yang, he had to give Mo Yang something to care about.
The Fourth Elder had already fallen, and besides that, the only one he could think of was Su Fei'er.
He knew a little about Mo Yang's personality over the years, especially Mo Yang's various behaviors after the Fourth Elder's fall. Once Mo Yang had something to care about, even if he would eventually leave, he would definitely maintain contact with the Ethereal Sect.
Before Mo Yang could speak, the Grand Elder waved his hand, and a palm-sized box flew towards Mo Yang. At the same time, he said, "This is a Spiritual Plant I obtained during my travels a few years ago. Your Cultivation Breakthrough is too fast; taking it will help stabilize your Dao foundation. Young man, the path of Cultivation is long, do not be impatient!"
Mo Yang took it and opened it. Inside the wooden box lay a shriveled spiritual ginseng. He was inwardly astonished; such spiritual ginseng was extremely rare and greatly beneficial to Cultivators. He hadn't expected the Grand Elder to just give it to him.
"Old man, what exactly do you want to do?" Mo Yang frowned, looking at the Grand Elder.
As the saying goes, 'no good deed goes unpunished,' he had to be wary.
"This is my compensation to you. The Sect has indeed owed you over the years, but you must also understand that not just our Ethereal Sect, but the entire Xuan Tian Continent, only the strong have dignity and a future. The weak will only be eliminated. So you must become strong, and don't let down the Fourth Elder's expectations for you!"
The Grand Elder finished speaking without lingering, turning and walking out of the small courtyard.
Mo Yang looked at the spiritual ginseng and pondered for a long time, then frowned, "This old fox is cunning. He wouldn't be intentionally provoking me to 'eat' Su Fei'er, so he can keep me in the Ethereal Sect..."
He looked up at the courtyard entrance and spoke speechlessly, "Old geezer, you really had ill intentions... You even want to provoke this young master into 'eating meat.' Keep dreaming!"
Then he looked at the spiritual ginseng in his hand and hurriedly turned and walked into the house. He had to quickly refine this free treasure; who knew when the old man might come back to snatch it away.
After the challenge ended, the news had already spread like wildfire throughout the Ethereal Sect. Many Disciples still couldn't believe that even Senior Brother Qi Heng had been defeated by Mo Yang.
Numerous speculations about Mo Yang emerged endlessly. Of course, the matter between Mo Yang and Su Fei'er was also frequently brought up, leading to many conjectures.
"It's a pity Senior Sister Xu from the main Peak is still in seclusion, otherwise, with Senior Sister Xu's personality, she would definitely go to Wood Peak!"
"Senior Sister Xu's Cultivation has not yet reached the Earth Profound Realm. Even if she goes to Wood Peak, she probably won't be Mo Yang's opponent!"
"Did this guy secretly get some Opportunity? How did he become so strong!"
...On Wood Peak, inside the stone pagoda, Mo Yang directly consumed and refined the spiritual ginseng. The immense spiritual power transformed into golden True Qi, surging through his Meridians.
Originally, the first two Realms he needed to re-Cultivate would have taken several more days to complete, but now they were thoroughly completed in just two hours.
When Mo Yang sensed it, he was surprised to find that his Cultivation Realm had actually progressed from the Early Stage of the Earth Profound Realm Second Stage to the Middle Stage, and it was still slowly climbing, finally gradually approaching the Peak of the Second Stage before completely stopping.
The medicinal power of the spiritual ginseng was too immense. In Mo Yang's estimation, this spiritual ginseng had an age of at least five hundred years, otherwise, it could never have contained such vast spiritual power.
"This time, I really owe it to that old geezer!" Mo Yang muttered, then continued to sit and Cultivate.
He didn't know how much time had passed, but as the Star Emperor Mind-Cultivation Technique circulated continuously within him, he seemed to form a certain connection with the stone pagoda. Light flowed from the surrounding pagoda walls, as if shrouded in a mysterious veil.
At this moment, Mo Yang's cross-legged body suddenly trembled. Strands of sound waves actually began to resonate within the stone pagoda, and then the sound grew increasingly grand, echoing continuously throughout the pagoda, like ancient clear tones, giving him a sense of sudden enlightenment.
"Is this perhaps a true meaning of the Dao!"
Mo Yang's heart rippled. Those strands of sound waves echoed in his mind, as if guiding him to comprehend the profound Mind-Cultivation Technique of the Star Emperor Scripture. Moreover, light now flowed on the surrounding pagoda walls, and the mysterious runes engraved on the pagoda walls seemed to have been lit up, emitting streaks of divine radiance.
At the steps leading to the second floor of the stone pagoda, the barrier trembled, then dispersed like a mist.
"This... the barrier has dissipated!"
While Mo Yang was surprised, a sense of joy also rose in his heart. He had originally thought he would only be able to open the second floor after his Cultivation reached the Heavenly Profound Realm, but he hadn't expected it to open early now.
He hurriedly got up and walked towards the stone steps, looking at the winding steps with a strong sense of anticipation.
He didn't hesitate, stepping onto the stone steps and ascending without obstruction. A moment later, he smoothly arrived at the second floor.
However, the second floor was completely different from the first. The first thing that caught his eye was a dark Pill Furnace.
The flames within the Pill Furnace seemed not to have extinguished yet.
Because with a glance, one could clearly see flickering firelight.
"How is this possible...?"
"Has the fire in this Pill Furnace been burning continuously without extinguishing?"
Mo Yang's heart surged. In the Xuan Tian Continent, Alchemy was a distinct lineage. The unique Alchemy techniques and mysterious Pill Formulas were like profound Cultivation Techniques, rarely passed down. Few ordinary Cultivators could ever access them.
He tried to calm his emotions, then stepped forward, one step at a time.
The area around the Pill Furnace was very messy, with scattered, long-decayed medicinal herbs and several ancient scrolls covered in dust.
At a glance, it was clear that no one had set foot there for countless years; one could feel an extremely ancient aura.
Mo Yang had already connected some dots in his mind. He cautiously approached the Pill Furnace, bent down, and picked up a tattered ancient scroll. Brushing off the dust, the ancient script, sealed for who knew how many years, was revealed.
Although the script was ancient, it shared some commonalities with modern script, and could still be deciphered with careful examination.
"Dao of Divine Pills!" Mo Yang read aloud softly.