Zhang Ergou felt a wave of exhaustion and hurriedly took a few Qi Condensing Pills from his storage ring to alleviate his physical fatigue.
The strike of Xuan Long Jue had completely depleted the spiritual energy within him.
It seemed that such powerful offensive skills required substantial spiritual energy replenishment. Even though Xuan Long Jue was incredibly potent, it wasn't something Zhang Ergou could casually unleash at his current level.
Unless facing a life-or-death tribulation, this powerful skill should never be used.
As the pills entered his body, the depleted spiritual energy within Zhang Ergou recovered somewhat, but the physical pain was not so easily relieved.
"It is indeed potent, managing to inflict damage on my physical body," Zhang Ergou said with lingering fear.
"Next time, I must not recklessly use such a formidable skill."
With Zhang Ergou's current cultivation and strength, he could barely execute Xuan Long Jue once.
...
The east was gradually turning white. Another night had passed in cultivation, and Zhang Ergou stuffed another handful of Qi Condensing Pills into his mouth.
Then, he darted towards Baodan Pavilion, not even returning to Chunsun Peak to bid farewell to Chunyang Sansan and the others.
By the time he reached Baodan Pavilion, it was already broad daylight.
Zhang Ergou stepped into the inner hall of Baodan Pavilion and saw Qiao Yunyun already seated at the head, waiting for him.
"Master, good morning." Zhang Ergou bowed respectfully.
"Ergou is here, come over quickly!" Qiao Yunyun beckoned Zhang Ergou to his side mysteriously, "Did you see your second elder sister, Yueru, last night?"
Zhang Ergou recalled the cold woman from the previous night.
Assuming Qiao Yunyun was referring to her, he nodded.
"How do you find your sister Yueru? Is she pretty?" Qiao Yunyun, usually stern, now looked almost lecherous.
"Master, what do you mean?" Zhang Ergou was slightly taken aback, not understanding Qiao Yunyun's intent.
"Ah, I mean, do you like someone like Yueru?"
Zhang Ergou looked at Qiao Yunyun in disbelief. Was this unreliable old man trying to play matchmaker?
"Master!" A cold female voice echoed from the side hall.
Then, Lin Yueru, clad in a white dress, emerged from the side hall into the inner hall, her face a mask of frost.
"Yueru, weren't you in seclusion?" Qiao Yunyun stroked his beard, masking his embarrassment.
Lin Yueru shot Qiao Yunyun a glare, then turned her gaze to Zhang Ergou, her eyes emanating a gaze that could freeze someone to death.
"Master, your disciple's sole focus is cultivation, aiming to break through to higher realms as soon as possible. I have no desire for romantic entanglements."
She then pointed at Zhang Ergou, "Moreover, Master, if you're going to introduce someone, at least introduce someone handsome with higher cultivation than me."
"What is he? His cultivation isn't as high as mine, and he's not handsome. What would I gain by marrying him? For his dark complexion? For the fact that he doesn't bathe?"
After cleaning the alchemy furnace last night, Zhang Ergou had rushed to the back mountain and hadn't even had time to wash up.
He still looked quite disheveled now.
Qiao Yunyun hadn't expected Lin Yueru's reaction to be so intense, causing Zhang Ergou's face to flush and pale.
What a mess this was!
"Yueru, this master is doing this for your own good. Listen to me, let me explain." Perhaps feeling in the wrong, Qiao Yunyun dared not adopt a stern tone with Lin Yueru.
"I don't want to hear your explanation. I need to go cultivate." With that, Lin Yueru turned and left, giving Qiao Yunyun no chance to explain, casting a fierce glare at Zhang Ergou as she departed.
After Lin Yueru left, Zhang Ergou finally came back to his senses.
"I say, Master, isn't Second Elder Sister's temper a bit too much?"
Qiao Yunyun helplessly patted his forehead, "It's all my fault, I've spoiled her too much. You, boy, must not learn from them in the future."
So far, Qiao Yunyun had taken in three disciples. Zi Lin was an absolute troublemaker.
Fortunately, she never invoked his name when causing trouble, saving him a lot of hassle.
Then there was Lin Yueru, who was solely focused on cultivation but had a cold disposition, always treating people with indifference.
"Master, who usually cleans the alchemy furnace?" Zhang Ergou suddenly remembered his discovery from last night and changed the subject.
"Of course, it's just me and your second elder sister Yueru. No one else is allowed near it," Qiao Yunyun replied casually.
"If you hadn't shown some talent, boy, it wouldn't be your turn to clean it."
"Then, Master, did you discover anything while you were cleaning it?" Zhang Ergou still asked to confirm matters regarding Xuan Long Jue.
"Discover what? Isn't it just an alchemy furnace?" Qiao Yunyun looked at Zhang Ergou with utter confusion.
Seeing Qiao Yunyun's expression, Zhang Ergou knew that the master knew nothing about Xuan Long Jue. It seemed his guess was correct.
Thinking this, Zhang Ergou felt a sense of relief.
"Discover what?" Seeing Zhang Ergou's lack of response, Qiao Yunyun asked again.
"Oh, oh, it's nothing, just some residual medicinal herbs..." Zhang Ergou mumbled vaguely.
"Are you looking for a beating, boy?" Qiao Yunyun cursed with annoyance, "Get going and start refining pills for me."
It seemed he was taking out his frustration from Lin Yueru on Zhang Ergou.
"Your disciple will go now." Zhang Ergou quickly agreed.
"You're wise, boy."
Sitting before the alchemy furnace once more, Zhang Ergou did not rush into refining this time.
He first meditated to adjust his breathing and bring his physical condition to its optimal state before summoning his spiritual fire and channeling it into the alchemy furnace.
Qiao Yunyun observed Zhang Ergou's movements and nodded slightly, relatively pleased with his performance.
As herbs were placed into the alchemy furnace in order, their essence was quickly condensed. Zhang Ergou did not dare to slacken.
He continued to carefully control the flames.
A rich medicinal aroma wafted through the air. Today, he was lucky. Zhang Ergou successfully refined four Qi Replenishing Pills in his first batch.
Qiao Yunyun beside him nodded silently.
Zhang Ergou did not stop refining and picked up another batch of medicinal herbs to continue.
Throughout the day of refining, Zhang Ergou consumed nearly dozens of batches of herbs. There were successes and failures during this period.
However, the number of successful attempts was significantly fewer than the failures. After a whole day, including the first batch, Zhang Ergou had only managed to refine six batches of Qi Replenishing Pills.
Although this success rate was relatively low,
Qiao Yunyun was quite satisfied, as Zhang Ergou's progress was very evident.
Back then, when he first refined Qi Replenishing Pills, he could only succeed in five batches out of a hundred batches of herbs. Zhang Ergou was far superior to him in comparison.
After a full day of exertion, Zhang Ergou was exhausted. Without caring about the cleanliness of the area beneath the alchemy furnace, he lay down and panted.
"Have you noticed any changes?" Qiao Yunyun approached from behind. "I mean in terms of spiritual power."
Zhang Ergou sensed it slightly, and a hint of joy appeared on his face.