Qin Sang concealed his form and searched the valley for a long time before finding a spot with a broad view that was sufficiently hidden. He then raised the Yan Luo Banner.

As he channeled spiritual power into it, the Yan Luo Banner began to sway without wind. The demonic eye on the banner came to life again, surfacing on the banner’s surface. It blinked a few times and cast a strange smile as it swept over Qin Sang, emitting a cloud of black qi that cloaked his figure.

Finally, the demonic eye widened, facing the easternmost part of the starry sky. The eye was filled with chaos, and strange lights flickered within.

After less than an hour, Qin Sang’s face turned pale, and he was drenched in sweat. His spiritual power was completely drained. Retrieving the demonic eye into his body, he returned to his cave dwelling, holding a Soul Pill in hand to meditate and cultivate.

Throughout the night, Qin Sang activated the demonic eye twice. It remained fixed on the east, unmoving, as if trying to fully comprehend the changes in the array protecting Huiyang Valley—a task that clearly couldn’t be accomplished in just a day or two.

Qin Sang nodded to himself. At least for now, he was safe.

He could also now guess that the Kuiyin Sect was likely planning a major assault on the Yuanzhao Sect.

The demonic eye wasn’t just spying on the changes in Huiyang Valley’s array; its true target was likely the sect’s protective array near the valley.

Qin Sang had no idea why the two sects had become enemies, nor did he care.

Kuiyin Sect had three Golden Core Realm cultivators, while Yuanzhao Sect only had two. Yuanzhao Sect’s sole reliance was the legendary protective array established by two Primordial Infant elders, whom the sect’s grandmaster had invited long ago.

If the protective array were to fail, the Yuanzhao Sect would undoubtedly fall to the Kuiyin Sect.

Should that happen, Qin Sang actually felt he might be safer.

In a war between the two sects, the main battles would be fought by Foundation Building and Core Formation experts. Weaker cultivators like him, still in the Qi Refining Realm, would simply be swept along by the tide.

Once the chaos ensued, no one would pay attention to him. As long as he stayed away from the battlefield's center, escaping in the midst of the turmoil shouldn't be too difficult.

Moreover, with dual allegiances to both sects, he had ample room to maneuver and adapt as the situation unfolded.

…

Twelve days later.

Late at night, inside his cave dwelling.

Qin Sang sat cross-legged on a Waterheart Bamboo mat, slowly exhaling. Suddenly, his eyes snapped open, a flash of light in his gaze, and a joyful expression appeared on his face. He then yawned and lay down on the floor, still fully clothed, falling into a deep sleep. R

Tending to the herb garden, controlling the demonic eye, and refining the medicinal energy of the Qi-Gathering Pill—all without a moment of rest for twelve days straight—had left him exhausted. While immortal cultivators could substitute meditation for sleep, deep down, he still felt the weariness.

Now that he had finally refined the medicinal energy of the Qi-Gathering Pill, and his cultivation level had smoothly advanced to the late sixth stage, Qin Sang naturally decided to indulge in a proper rest.

He slept soundly, and when he awoke, he felt refreshed. Noticing that it was already daylight outside, he hurriedly left his cave dwelling and resumed his busy routine.

After refining the Qi-Gathering Pill’s effects, Qin Sang took out the Stone Milk.

Yang Yuanzang had already refined most of the impurities from the Stone Milk. It didn’t take Qin Sang much effort to extract five drops of pure Stone Milk. After swallowing them and refining the substance, he easily advanced to the seventh stage, as if it were a natural progression.

A few days passed like this. One day, Qin Sang sensed that the barrier at the entrance of the valley had been triggered. Upon opening it, he saw Meng Ruhui standing there with another senior brother who appeared just as elderly. The two were chatting and laughing, clearly very familiar with one another.

Qin Sang straightened his robes and approached them with a broad smile.

When Meng Ruhui saw Qin Sang, the smile on his face faded a bit. He pointed at Qin Sang and introduced him to the other person, "Senior Brother Jiang, the herb garden in Huiyang Valley is now being tended by Junior Brother Qin Sang. This is Senior Brother Jiang, who works in the Longevity Hall and is highly skilled in alchemy, responsible for harvesting spiritual herbs. Junior Brother Qin, take us to the herb garden—Huh, have you already broken through to the seventh stage?"

Meng Ruhui was utterly surprised. He clearly remembered that a month ago, when Qin Sang had just arrived in the valley, his spiritual power fluctuations were still weak, as if he had just recently broken through to the sixth stage of the Qi Refining Realm.

When Qin Sang flew over on his artifact, Meng Ruhui had felt something was off and quickly realized Qin Sang had advanced by an entire major realm.

"Greetings to Senior Brother Meng, and Senior Brother Jiang."

Qin Sang took the lead and spoke calmly, "It was pure luck. During the ascension conference, I discovered an underground demonic beast nest in the Eight Trigrams Forbidden Ground, where I found over a dozen drops of hundred-year-old Stone Milk. After consuming it, I unexpectedly broke through."

Upon hearing this, Senior Brother Jiang said enviously, "Hundred-year-old Stone Milk is a divine medicine with long-lasting effects. After consuming it, the medicinal energy nourishes the meridians for up to a year or two. I didn’t expect Junior Brother Qin to have such fortune. At this rate, you might surpass us in cultivation within a few years."

Hearing this, Qin Sang’s heart stirred. No wonder he had felt his cultivation speed increasing slightly after his breakthrough. He had thought it was due to his higher stage, but it turned out to be the lingering effects of the Stone Milk.

Qin Sang also understood that Senior Brother Jiang’s latter words were just politeness. Both Senior Brother Jiang and Meng Ruhui had already reached the peak thirteenth stage of the Qi Refining Realm. Since they couldn't break through the Foundation Building bottleneck, they had stagnated at that stage. For Qin Sang, it would take at least ten years to catch up, barring any unexpected developments.

Without delay, Qin Sang began asking Senior Brother Jiang for advice.

It turned out that Meng Ruhui wasn’t exaggerating—Senior Brother Jiang was indeed highly knowledgeable in alchemy. After a few pointers, Qin Sang quickly gained a better understanding of the properties of hundred-year-old Stone Milk and learned how to maximize its effects without wasting any of its medicinal energy.

"I didn’t expect there to be a hundred-year-old Stone Milk in the Eight Trigrams Forbidden Ground," Senior Brother Jiang remarked, "It might be time to petition the sect leader to conduct a thorough search, but such spiritual herbs are rare and elusive…"

After confirming the location, Senior Brother Jiang lamented, "It’s a pity you were too hasty, Junior Brother Qin. Consuming the Stone Milk directly wasted a good portion of its medicinal energy. With that much Stone Milk, if you had taken it to Longevity Hall for refining into pills, it might have helped you reach the late seventh stage."

Qin Sang smiled calmly.

Who can say whether I’d still get my share of the Stone Milk if I handed it over?

Moreover, with his pitifully small number of spirit stones, he couldn’t afford to hire someone to refine the pills. Considering the results he had now, he was already more than satisfied.

As they walked and talked, Meng Ruhui remained silent, following behind them. Watching Qin Sang’s back and thinking about his young age, Meng Ruhui couldn’t help but feel a twinge of bitterness in his heart. A flash of jealousy appeared in his eyes, but he quickly shook his head and returned to his usual composure.

When they arrived at the herb garden, Senior Brother Jiang, who had been enthusiastically offering guidance to Qin Sang, suddenly fell silent, his expression displeased.

Qin Sang stood aside, offering an apologetic smile.

After all, cultivation was the foundation of everything. Qin Sang had focused so much on his own cultivation that he hadn’t had the energy to properly care for the herb garden. Sometimes he would just scatter some Nine-Spirit Sand and leave it at that. Though the spiritual herbs in the garden weren’t in dire straits, they still fell short of the standards required by Longevity Hall.

Meng Ruhui frowned in thought and then spoke up, "Senior Brother Jiang, Junior Brother Qin just took over the responsibilities of Huiyang Valley and might not be familiar with everything yet. Besides, managing Huiyang Valley is indeed more demanding than other places. Perhaps we can give him a bit more time."

Surprised by Meng Ruhui’s willingness to help ease the situation, Qin Sang clasped his hands in thanks.