Ten years later, in the Purple Rosy Clouds Mountains.
The hall of the Temporary Cave Abode.
The sunlight was lovely that day, and the breeze was gentle. Bright sunshine streamed through several windows, adding a touch of warmth to the hall.
Tap, tap.
A series of measured footsteps drew closer, and a slender female cultivator gradually came into view.
She wore a fitted, luxurious yellow dress and carried a tray bearing several exquisite pastries brimming with spiritual energy, all made from spirit fruits and spirit herbs.
It was Zhuo Mengzhen!
She walked to the other side of the table, set down the tray, and silently watched Liu Yu.
Ten years had passed, but the aura emanating from Zhuo Mengzhen remained at the golden core middle stage.
Her previous attempt to reach late golden core had clearly ended in failure.
Unfortunately, she had encountered a bottleneck when attempting to advance. Her last seclusion had lasted four years, yet she had ultimately failed to break through.
Cultivation in the golden core realm was a hundred times more difficult than in the previous two realms. They could not be mentioned in the same breath.
Even dual spiritual roots offered no clear advantage.
Whether while advancing to the middle stage or the late stage, cultivators would eventually encounter a bottleneck. Even those with dual spiritual roots or mutated spiritual roots were no exception.
The advantages of spiritual roots were already considerably diminished in the golden core realm.
Only those with heavenly spiritual roots, a high-grade golden core, or an exceptionally outstanding spirit body, divine body, or dao body could enjoy smooth sailing through the golden core realm.
Otherwise, even those with dual spiritual roots, mutated spiritual roots, or more ordinary spirit bodies would encounter a bottleneck sooner or later.
However, those with excellent spiritual