Great Qing Dynasty

At the bottom of the Pill Immortal Pool.

Lin Chen sat cross-legged. After swallowing a Yin Yang Pearl in one gulp, streams of Origin Energy visible to the naked eye immediately swirled around his body like mist.

Lin Chen appeared exceptionally calm on the outside, but within his body, the situation was completely different.

Inside his dantian, the Origin Energy cluster that had continuously grown since reaching the Earthly Origin Realm now occupied most of the space. Within the cluster, two utterly different attributes, one yin and one yang, slowly began to merge.

The Yin Yang Energy, which should have repelled each other, showed no resistance upon contact. Instead, under the entwining control of Lin Chen's threads of Origin Energy, they continued to fuse together.

Lin Chen focused his mind on the slowly merging Origin Energy cluster in his dantian. Knowing what this signified, a flicker of excitement rose in his heart. But he quickly calmed down. With a thought, he urged the Origin Energy cluster within his dantian to slowly rotate.

"Whoosh, whoosh..."

As the Origin Energy cluster began to spin, the abundant Origin Energy within it gave off a clear sound like flowing water. Strands of damp energy mist continuously drifted out from it.

The Origin Energy cluster spun faster and faster. Eventually, it even began to emit a humming sound. Under that rotation, even his entire dantian trembled.

As the speed of the Origin Energy cluster gradually reached its limit, the Yin Yang Energy within the cluster also fused faster and faster.

Yin and yang united, condense the Origin Core!

This step was precisely the most crucial stage of condensing an Origin Core!

At this moment, Lin Chen did not dare slack off in the slightest. All of his focus was concentrated within his dantian.

As the Origin Energy cluster spun frantically, the originally abundant and swollen Origin Energy within it began to diminish at a visible rate. Yet as the Origin Energy decreased, more and more damp energy mist spread out.

This damp energy mist differed from ordinary Origin Energy. It perfectly contained Yin Yang Energy. The Yin Yang Energy, which had once violently repelled each other the instant they came into contact, had now perfectly fused into a new and more powerful substance.

"The Lesser Core Formation Realm truly is a whole new world."

Lin Family Back Mountain.

Lin Chen returned once more, yet no one in Qingyang Town knew of it. This was partly because he had not deliberately revealed himself, but more importantly, his overall strength had advanced another step, making it impossible for ordinary people to detect his whereabouts.

"Kid, Master Diao really can't understand it. You've already condensed a Nine-Star Core, so why have you come back to this godforsaken place?"

Inside the room, Lin Chen sat cross-legged on the bed. Looking at the still-indignant Little Marten before him, he smiled and shook his head.

"I've answered that question many times along the way."

"It is precisely because I condensed a Nine-Star Core that I need to find a place where I can cultivate in peace and focus on my training."

"Although, with your help, we can go anywhere in the Great Yan Dynasty and its neighboring dynasties, if anything unexpected happens, our current strength will likely make it difficult for us to resist. It would be better to wait until my strength improves somewhat..."

Lin Chen explained it to Little Marten once again. Though he too wished to travel elsewhere and gain experience, he understood that the time was not yet right.

It was true that a Low-level Spirit Talisman Master could go anywhere in the Great Yan Dynasty, but the risks remained. His Origin Energy cultivation was still weak, and he did not possess any trump card that would allow him to fight above his realm. It was more reliable to honestly cultivate and improve his strength first than to impatiently head out in search of opportunities.

"Fine. Since you're such a patient kid, Master Diao can't be bothered to lecture you. You have enough Pure Yuan Pills anyway. Staying here really will let your strength improve much faster than going out to gain experience. Going out later isn't impossible."

"But that means Master Diao's strength won't be able to recover either."

Little Marten scratched his head with his claw and spoke listlessly.

Hearing this, Lin Chen smiled. "You needn't be in such a hurry to recover your strength. The Pure Yuan Pills on me are enough for me to cultivate to Lesser Accomplishment of the Qi Creation Realm."

"Besides, the Spirit Grinding Mill within the Stone Talisman is still effective. I can make use of it to raise my Spiritual Power to the level of an advanced Spirit Talisman Master. Once that happens, when we head out again, your strength will certainly recover faster."

"The Spirit Grinding Mill..."

"Master Diao had forgotten that you're a freak..."

Two years later.

Time drifted by. Two years seemed long, but to Lin Chen, they had passed in the blink of an eye.

The past remained vivid in his mind, as though everything had happened yesterday.

"Little Marten, it's time for us to set off..."

At the edge of a steep cliff in the Lin Family Back Mountain, Lin Chen turned slightly and let out a long sigh toward Little Marten, who floated in the air.

Two years had passed, and Lin Chen's once-delicate face had become sharply defined, shedding much of its youthful immaturity.

In the two and a half years since arriving in Qingyang Town, Lin Chen's strength had undergone earth-shaking changes.

Over those two and a half years, not only had his Origin Energy cultivation risen from the initial stage of the Heavenly Origin Realm to the major completion of the Form Creation Realm, but his Spiritual Power cultivation was also just one step away from reaching the level of a Heavenly Symbol Master.

A Heavenly Symbol Master was equivalent to a Nirvana Realm expert. In other words, he had now entered the ranks of the top experts in the Great Yan Dynasty and its surrounding regions. Aside from the few Nirvana Realm experts, few others could pose much of a threat to him.

Unlike two years ago, when he had needed to be so cautious and even a Qi Creation Realm cultivator could threaten him, he now only needed to remain careful to ensure his own safety throughout the Great Yan Dynasty and its neighboring dynasties.

At nearly eighteen years old, achieving this much did not make him an extraordinary genius among the countless living beings of the Tianxuan Continent, but he could barely be considered above average.

"Are you sure you don't want to visit Great Desolation Commandery first, and instead want to go to that Great Qing Dynasty?"

Sensing the powerful force now hidden within Lin Chen's body, Little Marten gave him an admiring look before asking in confusion.

"Believe me, compared to Great Desolation Commandery in the Great Yan Dynasty, going to the unknown Great Qing Dynasty will be better."

"As for the opportunities in Great Desolation Commandery that I told you about, it won't be too late to claim them five or six years from now."

A confident smile appeared on Lin Chen's handsome face as he replied to Little Marten with certainty, then explained.

"Although you were quite strong before being injured, you came from the Demon Region. You may have heard of the super sects in the Eastern Profound Region, but you don't know much about the many dynasties under their rule."

"The Great Yan Dynasty is poorly informed. Although improving my strength is important right now, I can no longer simply wait. I did not act two years ago because my strength was too weak, and leaving the Great Yan Dynasty was far too dangerous."

"But things are different now. If I want to join a super sect as soon as possible, I can only obtain useful information by heading to higher-level dynasties. Otherwise, even if my Spiritual Power breaks through again and reaches the Heavenly Symbol Master level, I can only wait idly in the Great Yan Dynasty for the Hundred Dynasties War and waste my time."

Upon hearing this, Little Marten lowered the claw he had just raised and chuckled. "It seems that going to the Great Qing Dynasty isn't your real objective..."

"Of course. As far as I know, the closest super dynasty to the Great Yan Dynasty is called the Immortal Dynasty. This super dynasty is one of the Ten Great Super Dynasties of the Eastern Profound Region and falls directly under the Nine Heavens Taiqing Palace, one of the Eight Great Super Sects of the Eastern Profound Region."

"In the Eastern Profound Region, people from super dynasties like the Immortal Dynasty do not necessarily need to participate in the Hundred Dynasties War to join a super sect. As long as their talent is outstanding enough to meet the standards for recruitment set by those super sects, they can join."

"Although the Great Qing Dynasty is merely a mid-level dynasty, it is far stronger than the Great Yan Dynasty. There should be a way there to reach the Immortal Dynasty, one of the Ten Great Super Dynasties."

"And even if there isn't, passing through the Great Qing Dynasty is an unavoidable route to the Immortal Dynasty. When I was young, I specifically asked Lin Mu about this..."

(It's the beginning of the month. If you have votes, send them over...)