The evening breeze from the wilderness carried an increasingly dense fragrance of blossoms, fine mist weaving into the deep emerald of the mountain forest.

Though the sky had noticeably darkened, it made little difference to He Yiming and Xie Nuanyi. Given their strength, even if the sky turned completely black, they could still discern their surroundings by the faint starlight.

An hour later, Xie Nuanyi, who was leading the way, finally stopped. He pointed to a colossal tree and announced, "We've arrived."

He Yiming grumbled inwardly. When the man briefed Xie Mingjin and the others, he only said they would return shortly. Yet, rushing the entire way still took an hour to reach the Long-Armed Badger's lair. Including the return trip, it simply wouldn't align with the phrase "very soon."

He shook his head slightly, but since they were already here, there was no point in complaining.

"Mr. Xie, why did you bring us here? Is there some treasure hidden in this place?" He Yiming asked casually with a chuckle.

Xie Nuanyi grew serious. "Whether there's treasure is hard to say, but my coming here was prompted by a passage I recalled from the medical texts at home, so I came to verify it."

He Yiming was curious, but since the other man mentioned medical lineage, he felt it inappropriate to press further.

Xie Nuanyi reached the base of the great tree and leaped lightly, immediately scrambling upward like an ape. A moment later, his surprised voice drifted down, "Brother He, hurry up and climb! We've found something good."

He Yiming paused briefly, tightening the rattan strips securing the massive Guan Dao to his back.

These rattan strips were specially made and were perfect for binding the heavy weapon, but carrying such weight up a tree made him quite vexed.

He instantly channeled Neijin (Internal Energy) throughout his body, and the intense feeling of being pulled down gradually receded. Only then did He Yiming follow the path Xie Nuanyi had taken to ascend.

Reaching the dense canopy above, He Yiming suddenly spotted a treehouse built among the branches.

The treehouse's only notable feature was its size, containing two thick branches that spanned its entire structure. However, the dwelling was utterly crude; even the thatched huts of commoners on the ground looked nicer than this small house.

Xie Nuanyi stood behind the treehouse, his face flushed with excitement.

He Yiming immediately understood: he truly had found something valuable. Otherwise, given the man's usual composure, he would never have lost his composure like this.

With a few agile movements, He Yiming reached his side. Following Xie Nuanyi's gaze, he saw ten bluish-green fruits growing not far from the top of the great tree. The fruits weren't very large, only about the size of an adult's fist. Yet, these unripe fruits inexplicably stirred in He Yiming a sudden desire to pluck and taste them.

"Mr. Xie, what kind of fruit is this?" He Yiming asked earnestly.

"This is the Wujiang Fruit. According to the pharmacopoeia, such fruits only grow on ancient trees over three thousand years old," Xie Nuanyi suppressed his excitement forcefully. "Besides that condition, this specific ancient tree must also have been inhabited by a spiritual beast for a hundred years for these fruits to possibly manifest."

He Yiming glanced at the nearby treehouse and immediately understood—this was the home of the two Long-Armed Badgers. He hadn't expected these two spiritual beasts to be so intelligent as to build a dwelling.

"What use does this fruit have?"

"This thing is immensely useful," Xie Nuanyi sighed. "The two Long-Armed Badgers possess considerable wisdom; they wouldn't normally attack us humans, especially when we are in a large group. As long as they aren't provoked or their territory invaded, they are certainly safe."

He Yiming nodded solemnly. If it weren't safe, Xie Nuanyi wouldn't have brought his son and several attendants into the dense forest.

"Brother He, the sudden appearance of those two Long-Armed Badgers today, encircling and intending to kill every one of us, was highly abnormal. Do you know why?"

He Yiming's heart stirred. "Is it related to the Wujiang Fruit?"

"Indeed. The Wujiang Fruit grows from the ancient tree and absorbs the essence of spiritual beasts for a hundred years, thus possessing remarkable utility. If a spiritual beast consumes it directly, it can certainly enhance its strength and internal Lingqi (Spiritual Energy). However, upon immediate consumption, the beast's blood surges, its temper becomes violent, and it easily harms the innocent."

He Yiming nodded slowly, but he secretly mused: Even if the Long-Armed Badgers, after consuming the Wujiang Fruit, wanted to kill them, it wasn't necessarily about harming the innocent. The Xie family had long eyed those two spiritual beasts. If not for insufficient strength and an unwillingness to let outside forces profit, those beasts would likely have died long ago.

He vaguely felt that perhaps the Long-Armed Badgers recognized Xie Nuanyi and his party, which is why they specifically sought them out after eating the fruit. His appearance, however, was an accident—an accident that resulted in the immediate slaying of the two beasts.

Xie Nuanyi didn't notice He Yiming's expression and continued, "Besides boosting the strength of spiritual beasts, the Wujiang Fruit has another crucial function: it can be used to significantly increase the success rate when refining the Golden Core."

He Yiming was greatly moved and asked, "Mr. Xie, what was your success rate when extracting the Neijin from the Long-Armed Badgers?"

Xie Nuanyi considered for a moment and confirmed, "It was around eighty percent previously. But now, with these rare Wujiang Fruits, the success rate should rise to ninety percent."

He Yiming felt greatly relieved but marveled inwardly. A ninety percent success rate—he couldn't imagine his grandfather's reaction if he knew. Even without the fruit's aid, an eighty percent success rate was exceedingly high. Xie Nuanyi’s readiness to refine the Golden Core showed great confidence in his family's millennium of accumulated knowledge.

With a slight exertion, Xie Nuanyi floated up as lightly as a catkin. He reached out and plucked the dozens of fruits one by one.

Then, he retrieved two blue, square cloth strips from his robes, dividing the ten Wujiang Fruits evenly into two portions, five fruits each.

After wrapping the two cloth bundles neatly, Xie Nuanyi handed one over. "Brother He, there's enough for both of us; let's split them equally."

He Yiming hesitated and declined, "Mr. Xie, this item is useless to me. Since your esteemed family passes down medicine, you should keep it for your own use."

Xie Nuanyi laughed heartily. "Brother He, you underestimate the value of this thing too much." He composed his expression and stated gravely, "The value of this item is absolutely not inferior to the inner core of a spiritual beast."

He Yiming was secretly shocked, a hint of disbelief flickering in his eyes.

Xie Nuanyi, skilled at reading people, understood his doubt and chuckled, "Brother He, the greatest use of the Wujiang Fruit is not actually to raise the success rate when refining the Neijin of a Long-Armed Badger into a Golden Core."

He Yiming suddenly realized something and asked in surprise, "Can this item also be used to increase the success rate when refining the inner cores of other spiritual beasts into Golden Cores?"

"Precisely," Xie Nuanyi was very pleased with He Yiming's reaction. "Refining the inner core of a spiritual beast into a Golden Core that cultivators can ingest is not an easy task. Extracting the inner core of beasts under five hundred years old is not terribly difficult; even after a thousand years of exploration, our family achieves an eighty percent success rate. But for beasts over five hundred years old, their inner cores are exceptionally precious, and the extraction success rate is pathetically low. Even if a Xiantian (Innate Realm) expert were to refine it, the success rate wouldn't be very high. However, if Wujiang Fruit is added, the success rate can be directly boosted to over seventy percent."

He Yiming sucked in a sharp breath. "Mr. Xie, didn't you just say this item only increases the chance by one tenth?"

Xie Nuanyi laughed loudly. "Brother He, refining a Golden Core is something no one can guarantee a hundred percent success for. We already had an eighty percent certainty; adding the Wujiang Fruit just makes it a bit safer. But for those Golden Core refinements with lower initial success rates, the effect of the Wujiang Fruit is unimaginable."

He Yiming finally understood. This time, he did not refuse, carefully placing the Wujiang Fruits into his robes.

The two searched the great tree again but found no more Wujiang Fruits. Even these ten fruits were an unexpected bounty; the hour-long journey had proven well worth their effort.

After descending the tree, Xie Nuanyi glanced at the sky. He seemed much more familiar with everything in the forest than He Yiming, the novice.

"Brother He, let's go back," Xie Nuanyi patted the bundle held carefully against his chest, deeply satisfied. "If we don't return soon, that boy Mingjin will likely be searching the entire forest for us."

He Yiming naturally had no objection. With a flicker of movement, the two started walking back along the path side-by-side.

A while later, He Yiming calculated something in his mind and asked, "Mr. Xie, has your esteemed family ever refined the Golden Core of a spiritual beast over five hundred years old?"

Xie Nuanyi smiled wryly. "Brother He is joking. If we had managed to refine such a Golden Core, my family would already possess experts in the Xiantian Realm; how could we have been unable to deal with two Long-Armed Badgers?"

He Yiming wasn't surprised; that was the reality, and he had only asked casually.

"Mr. Xie, do you know where to find spiritual beasts over five hundred years old?"

Xie Nuanyi pondered for a long time. "Generally, spiritual beasts dwell in places untouched by humans. I have only heard rumors about beasts over five hundred years old, but I have never seen one. However, it is rumored that within several forbidden zones of the Great Shen Kingdom, there should be quite a few beasts of that level."

"The Great Shen Kingdom?" He Yiming also gave a bitter smile; the statement was as good as saying nothing. For them, dwelling in the small nations of the northwest continent, the Great Shen Kingdom, situated far to the east and occupying nearly one-fifth of the continent, seemed utterly unattainable. At least, He Yiming had never imagined his current journey would take him there. The short three years agreed upon with his grandfather would likely not even be enough for a round trip.

Xie Nuanyi understood his thoughts and smiled. "Brother He, whether one encounters a spiritual beast over five hundred years old really depends on individual luck. If luck is poor, even traveling ten thousand li to reach Great Shen won't yield an inner core. But if luck is good, you might find the beast you seek right here in this forest."

He Yiming was greatly surprised. "There are spiritual beasts over five hundred years old in this mountain range?"

Xie Nuanyi drew a large circle with his hand. "This mountain range stretches endlessly, running through the entire northwest corridor of the continent. From our Huowu to your Tianluo is just a tiny fraction. No one has ever traversed this entire range throughout history. What the source of the mountains looks like is still unknown. That place is truly untouched by humanity. It wouldn't be strange if a five-hundred-year-old spiritual beast appeared there."

He Yiming slowly nodded, a bright gleam in his eyes.

Xie Nuanyi glanced toward He Yiming as they walked and suddenly sighed deeply. "Actually, even if one encounters a spiritual beast over five hundred years old, it's hard to say whether it's a good thing or a bad thing."

"Mr. Xie, why do you say that?" He Yiming asked, confused.

"The longer a spiritual beast lives, the higher its intelligence, and naturally, its power grows commensurately. The Long-Armed Badger is near the bottom of the spiritual beast hierarchy; having only survived about two hundred years, it already possesses such formidable strength. If you encountered other powerful spiritual beasts, or those that have lived for five hundred years or more, forget hunting them—even escaping would likely be extremely difficult," Xie Nuanyi spoke without rushing, his tone carrying a flavor of persuasion, clearly advising He Yiming to abandon such a terrifying notion.

Seeing the sincerity in Xie Nuanyi's eyes, He Yiming smiled faintly. The battle they just concluded had unexpectedly brought him to consider another path for advancement. During the life-and-death struggle with a powerful opponent, his mind had opened completely, and his attacks were unrestrained. Only in such moments did he vaguely sense that connection with the mysterious energy of the outside world. This was something impossible to achieve through secluded cultivation alone.

Therefore, he had made up his mind to continue searching for spiritual beasts in the dense forest. If he did encounter a beast over five hundred years old, even if he couldn't win, he was confident in his ability to escape using his two Xiantian battle techniques. Moreover, after such intense combat, he might grasp some key insight and break through to the Xiantian Realm without needing to ingest a Golden Core. However, this idea did not require sharing with others.

"Mr. Xie, if I am fortunate enough to find the inner core of a five-hundred-year spiritual beast, could your esteemed family refine it for me?"

Xie Nuanyi felt a wry bitterness that his heartfelt advice had not been heeded. However, upon hearing He Yiming’s request, he pondered for a long time before finally shaking his head. "I am sorry, the value of the inner core of a five-hundred-year spiritual beast is too great. Even if you plan to hire someone else, you should seek out a Xiantian Realm alchemist at the very least to have a chance of successful condensation."

"A Xiantian Realm alchemist? Such people exist?" He Yiming asked doubtfully.

"They do," Xie Nuanyi affirmed. "Both within the Great Shen territory and among the three most powerful nations of our Northwest region, there are Xiantian Realm alchemists. However, inviting them to refine something for you is bound to be immensely difficult—unless you manage to procure two inner cores and can refine at least two Golden Cores, only then might you have a chance of securing the service of one of them."

He Yiming let out a soft sigh, but he wasn't surprised by the staggering cost. Rather, he marveled at the vast world existing outside of Taicang County. Now, he finally understood the true meaning behind his grandfather's constant refrain that he did not belong in Taicang County.

In all of Taicang County, counting even his uncle He Quanxin, who had just advanced to the tenth layer of Neijin after consuming a Golden Core, there were only three Houtian (Post-Heaven Realm) cultivators at the tenth layer of Neijin. Yet, one prominent family in the Huowu Kingdom, renowned for medicine rather than martial arts, possessed three experts at the tenth layer of Neijin. How many such masters were there in the entire Huowu Kingdom? And how many Houtian peak masters at the tenth layer existed in the Tianluo Kingdom? Above these Houtian experts were those who had stepped into the Xiantian Realm—true masters capable of comprehending the energy of heaven and earth.

With his current cultivation speed, he would eventually enter the Xiantian Realm. Once he knew of such a magnificent world outside, how could he be content staying confined to a small corner? His grandfather had foreseen long ago that while his elder brother might contentedly take over the He Family Estate, that certainly wouldn't be the life He Yiming aspired to.

An indescribable emotion surfaced in He Yiming's heart, his blood seemingly boiling. He yearned to venture out, to see, hear, and feel the entire world with his own eyes, ears, and senses.

As they walked side-by-side, heading back the way they came, Xie Nuanyi’s pace suddenly faltered for a beat, though he quickly caught up. Yet, he felt a strange, inexplicable shift within himself.

This change originated from the young master beside him. For some inexplicable reason, Xie Nuanyi sensed that a marvelous transformation had occurred within He Yiming. It was a change beyond description, seemingly a shift in his spiritual journey, causing him to exude a trace of surging, mysterious aura. This change was so potent that even those near him were strongly affected.

Xie Nuanyi reviewed their recent conversation and actions. Apart from each receiving five Wujiang Fruits, nothing seemed out of the ordinary or particularly stirring. Yet, only now did he perceive the change in aura emanating from He Yiming.

He inwardly offered a wry smile. This young man was truly inscrutable, but perhaps precisely because of this inscrutability, he was capable of achieving near-impossible miracles and possessing such formidable strength!

Ps: Today only has two chapters totaling ten thousand words, ahem, but ten thousand isn't that little, is it? White Crane labored furiously for five full hours...

Also, while sorting out appreciations today, I suddenly noticed a comment from a brother, followed by a large group leaving their emotional tributes. White Crane read them all and burst out laughing on the spot. I must say, brothers, you are too talented. I've already stickied the post—friends interested can go take a look. It’s the thread about White Crane supposedly having 300,000 words in reserve. It made me laugh till I choked...