Ye Qin returned to the East Sea. Both he and Huangfu Bing'er had reached the peak of the Ninth Layer of the Golden Core, meeting the minimum prerequisite for challenging the Nascent Soul bottleneck, and they began preparations across the board with full focus.

Years ago, when Ye Qin, Huangfu Bing'er, and Bai Xiu'er traveled to the Sea of Blood to refine the Spirit Root Potential Pill, they had already procured numerous magical artifacts and array flags needed for tribulation transcendence. However, due to a string of unforeseen events—the pill tribulation, the encounter with the Silver Jiao demon cultivators, and the outbreak of the Immortal-Demon War—their transcendence was greatly delayed. Now that he was back, Ye Qin needed to re-prepare and ensure his arrangements were more comprehensive.

In recent years, the Azure Pill Workshop had flourished rapidly. The fellow disciples had opened several small-scale apothecary shops in Baifu City, even extending their reach to Linhai City, a hub of commerce.

Shen Bao came to Linhai City to report the progress of various crucial affairs in the Azure Pill Workshop to Huangfu Bing'er. Afterward, he met Ye Qin, who appeared relatively unburdened, and delivered some rare spirit herb seeds Ye Qin had entrusted him to collect before his expedition.

Ye Qin inquired about the recent condition of the Azure Pill Workshop and whether they had encountered any insurmountable troubles.

"Senior Brother Ye, although the Azure Pill Workshop is still small in scale, it has already gained considerable renown. Following the Immortal-Demon War, your rank soared from the Golden Core Demon Slaying List all the way to eleventh place, making your name famous throughout the East Sea cultivation world. Not a single cultivator in Baifu City is unaware of you; ordinary cultivators simply do not dare to provoke us. Now, when our Azure Pill Workshop disciples operate outside, merely mentioning your name garners respect, even from the great Immortal Palaces. No one dares cause trouble for the Azure Pill Workshop."

Shen Bao shook his head emphatically, presenting the storage bag containing the herb seeds, his expression a mixture of profound admiration and envy. To achieve such fame in the East Sea cultivation world within a mere few decades was no small feat for an ordinary cultivator.

Although Bing'er was the official mistress of the Azure Pill Workshop, Ye Qin and Huangfu Bing'er were inseparable as a couple; to outsiders, it made no difference whether Ye Qin or Bing'er was seen as the head. Disciples of the Azure Pill Workshop conducted business under Ye Qin's banner, and every Immortal Palace honored their transactions. Especially those Palaces closely aligned with the Violet Sword Palace afforded them extra courtesy, which facilitated smoother business dealings for the Azure Pill Workshop due to these good relations with the major powers.

Ye Qin was naturally pleased to hear this. He smiled faintly and took the storage bag to inspect the spirit herb seeds within.

He had long since prepared the Nascent Soul Pill and numerous auxiliary elixirs required for transcending the Great Heavenly Tribulation.

The rare and precious seeds in Shen Bao’s storage bag were actually for a portion of the ingredients needed to refine the Earth Clan’s "Innate Sacred Pill." Shen Bao had spent years traveling extensively, devoting considerable effort to finding these seeds; some were truly once-in-a-lifetime treasures, making their complete collection quite difficult.

During his expeditions to the Sea of Blood in recent years, Ye Qin had not forgotten that Bai Xiu'er had been stuck at the peak of the High-Grade Strength Cultivator stage for a long time, her divine power having reached its zenith. Most of Bai Xiu'er's time was necessarily dedicated to cultivating Earth Clan secret arts, preventing further advancement in divine power.

If the "Innate Sacred Pill" could be refined soon, elevating Bai Xiu'er’s strength to the Earth Clan's so-called "Sacred Strength Cultivator" stage, it would prevent further stagnation.

With the herbs Shen Bao collected, the ingredients for the Innate Sacred Pill were now nearly all assembled.

"I have no use for these two Primordial Spirit artifacts. Take them; consider it a reward for your hard work!" Ye Qin mused for a moment, retrieving two Primordial Spirit artifacts—a great hammer and golden shears—which he had casually picked up after slaying an evil cultivator in the Sea of Blood years ago, and handed them to Shen Bao.

"We have accumulated some wealth over the years, but most of it went into purchasing elixirs and cultivation resources. We were reluctant to spend a fortune on high-grade Primordial Spirit artifacts, so we’ve been using some cheaper high-tier artifacts until now. Obtaining two Primordial Spirit artifacts at once saves us a significant expense. Thank you, Senior Brother!"

Shen Bao accepted the two artifacts without a hint of ceremony, utterly delighted by his unexpected windfall.

"Your Eldest Senior Sister will soon challenge the Nascent Soul bottleneck. With her current cultivation, her chances of success should exceed sixty or seventy percent. She intends to establish the Azure Pill Palace in the East Sea; you already know about this. When you return to the Azure Pill Workshop, coordinate with the main managing Senior Brothers and all the Azure Pill disciples to make preparations for establishing the Palace—things like selecting a site, procuring materials, and setting everything in order to avoid being rushed later," Ye Qin instructed after some thought.

"Eldest Senior Sister is establishing her own Immortal Palace?"

A look of astonishment mixed with joy flashed across Shen Bao’s face; he instantly became excited. "Senior Brother, rest assured, I will handle this immediately upon my return. Once the Azure Pill Palace is founded, the Azure Pill cultivators of the East Sea will no longer be rootless duckweed. Such a momentous undertaking will certainly receive my utmost effort. If Senior Brother has no other pressing matters, I shall take my leave and return to Baifu City now."

"Good, be on your way!"

Ye Qin nodded with a smile. After Shen Bao departed, Ye Qin turned, hands behind his back, and walked back toward the inner courtyard.

Ye Qin took some time to study the formulation for the Earth Clan Witch Division's Innate Sacred Pill. The recipe was somewhat crude, far inferior to the heaven-and-earth-creating Spirit Root Potential Pill.

However, it was also true that this Sacred Pill used the Ziyou Lotus as its principal ingredient and required numerous high-grade auxiliary spiritual medicines, suggesting its efficacy would be considerable. Even if this recipe failed to propel Bai Xiu'er to the Sacred Strength Cultivator level, it was unlikely to cause any harm.

Ye Qin decided to give it a try.

That day, Huangfu Bing'er and Bai Xiu'er were sparring in the courtyard, practicing their combat techniques.

Bai Xiu'er had learned Witch Clan battle arts over the years but lacked opponents for real combat practice, so Huangfu Bing'er often sparred with her.

Two graceful and beautiful figures darted swiftly within the confined space of the courtyard, scarcely a few mu across. The sharp clang of colliding Ice-Fire Twin Swords and the Azure Ancient Halberd rang out incessantly.

Huangfu Bing'er’s combat power was already at the extremely high standard of the late Golden Core stage. Her terrifying power with the Ice-Fire Twin Swords, coupled with the instant killing capability of the Void-Breaking Flash, made her formidable—even Ye Qin would not find it easy to defeat her.

Bai Xiu'er’s combat strength had improved rapidly since learning the Witch Clan battle arts.

In this cramped courtyard, Huangfu Bing'er could not fully deploy her ice-fire flying swords and did not use the Void-Breaking Flash, meaning she could only exert a fraction of her true strength. At full power, Bai Xiu'er could hold her own against Huangfu Bing'er.

Ye Qin watched from the side with a faint smile, not interrupting.

They sparred for a good half an hour until Huangfu Bing'er’s magical power was depleted while Bai Xiu'er’s divine power remained robust. Only then did they stop to rest, and Bai Xiu'er retreated to her room to change.

Seeing that Ye Qin seemed to have something to say, Huangfu Bing'er joined him at a small pavilion on one side of the courtyard to sit down.

"Bing'er, it seems Xiu'er's divine power has hit a ceiling?" Ye Qin asked.

"Yes, Xiu'er has been taking Blood Spirit Pills these past few years, but her divine power has clearly reached its peak bottleneck and is stagnant. Now she can only focus on improving through battle techniques and witchcraft," Huangfu Bing'er nodded, then asked, "Can you really refine the Witch Clan's Innate Sacred Pill?"

"With my current late-stage Grandmaster level in Pill Subtlety Art, very few elixirs can stump me. The grade of the Innate Sacred Pill will certainly not surpass the Spirit Root Potential Pill or the Nascent Soul Pill. I happen to have several seeds from the Ziyou Lotus left over, which I can use. I plan to spend a few months refining this Innate Sacred Pill and let her take it before we depart," Ye Qin chuckled.

"That sounds good!"

Huangfu Bing'er naturally supported the decision. Although Xiu'er followed her as a handmaiden, she had always treated her like a younger sister.

"By the way, Bing'er, when can you attempt to break through to the Nascent Soul stage?"

"I currently have about a sixty percent chance and can attempt the breakthrough within half a year. Husband, what about you?"

"I am not in a hurry; you go first. And Xiu'er must first become a Sacred Strength Cultivator. Only after you both succeed will I attempt the Nascent Soul stage without delay. Furthermore, we must select a location for the tribulation transcendence now and make arrangements in advance."

Ye Qin stated calmly.

He had his reasons for this arrangement. The risk of the Great Heavenly Tribulation for him was greater than for Huangfu Bing'er. Due to the existence of the Purple Mansion, unforeseen events might even occur—such accidents had happened when he previously broke through the Foundation Establishment and Golden Core bottlenecks.

Therefore, only when Huangfu Bing'er and Bai Xiu'er had both reached the Nascent Soul stage, combined with the fully transformed Skeleton Demon and the Great Wing Warship, would he possess sufficient strength to face his Great Heavenly Tribulation with peace of mind.

Time flowed like water, and half a year passed in a blink.

Outside Linhai City, several thousand li away, lay an unnamed island spanning nearly a hundred li in circumference.

This island was characterized by rolling hills, strange peaks, steep valleys, streams, and waterfalls. The main peak towered five hundred zhang, while the secondary peaks were mostly three to four hundred zhang high—rugged and secluded. The spiritual energy on this island was sparse, so no cultivators had taken a liking to it. Such desolate islands were common in the East Sea.

Half a year prior, Ye Qin had chosen this island to set up preparations for his and Bing'er’s Great Heavenly Tribulation.

Huangfu Bing'er carved out a cavern dwelling on the main peak and entered seclusion to challenge the Nascent Soul bottleneck. She had already laid out various powerful flying sword arrays and cave-protecting grand formations inside and outside the main peak dwelling in anticipation of the Great Heavenly Tribulation.

Ye Qin established a temporary seclusion in a cave dwelling on a secondary peak about ten li away, serving as a guard for Huangfu Bing'er at close range. Being too close to the main peak risked being affected by the lightning tribulation’s power; being too far made protection inconvenient. Ten li was a distance a late-stage Golden Core cultivator could traverse in an instant.

As for Bai Xiu'er, she was also in a cave dwelling on the island, secluded, taking the Innate Sacred Pill, and striving with all her might to become a Sacred Strength Cultivator.

Huangfu Bing'er and Bai Xiu'er remained in seclusion for nearly a month.

Since Ye Qin had to guard them, he could not enter his own secluded cultivation or go refine pills for the time being, leaving him somewhat idle. He sat cross-legged in his quiet and spacious cave dwelling, passing the time by examining the various magical artifacts in his storage bag.

When his gaze fell upon two palm-sized bone fragments radiating a dark luster, he paused and casually took them out.

These two bone fragments inscribed with the Netherworld Great Law felt chillingly cold in his hands, even with Ye Qin's current cultivation at the Ninth Layer of the Golden Core.

One fragment he obtained from the ancient treasury on Desolate Spirit Ghost Island, which recorded over ten types of Nascent Soul and Deity Transformation stage Ghost Pills. He had initially considered refining some ghost pills for the Skeleton Demon, but remembering that the transformed Skeleton Demon possessed several spiritual roots, such pills were unnecessary.

The other fragment was found in the ancient Kui Cave and recorded the core text of the top-tier ghost cultivation technique, the Netherworld Great Law. Though brief, spanning less than a thousand characters, it detailed cultivation from the lowest-level specters and ghosts up to the Deity Transformation stage of ghost reapers. The originator of this ghost cultivation method proclaimed it the foremost technique for ghost cultivators. This system was exceedingly domineering and completely different from the cultivation methods of the East Sea cultivation world.

Ye Qin could not help but find it amusing. Ghost cultivators were rare, and transformed ghost cultivators even rarer. While it claimed to be the supreme technique, few would dispute that title.

Having nothing better to do, Ye Qin closely examined this great technique, hoping to discern any profound mysteries or points of reference within this Deity Transformation stage method.

He reread it several times over several hours, frowning frequently, filled with many doubts. Ghost cultivation truly differed vastly from the orthodox cultivation methods of the East Sea cultivators.

The orthodox East Sea cultivation methods emphasized internal refinement, supplemented by elixirs, focusing on solidifying one's foundation and nurturing one's essence, gradually strengthening the vital energy of one's Primordial Spirit year after year.

The cultivation path of the Netherworld Great Law, however, involved forcibly devouring the vital energy of other ghost cultivators to rapidly bolster one's own. This technique, if placed in any current orthodox cultivation manual, would undoubtedly be labeled as an evil cultivation method, subject to extermination by the entire East Sea cultivation world. Yet, among the Ghost Clan, it became the orthodox path.

He suddenly recalled the Death Spirit Lake on the Desolate Spirit Ghost Island in the Sea of Blood. That lake nurtured tens of thousands of specters and fierce souls—the remnant souls from the Sea of Blood gathered together. Initially, he hadn't understood the lake's purpose. Now, having read the Netherworld Great Law, he began to grasp a potential profound meaning.

A cold chill washed over Ye Qin. "Could it be that the Desolate Spirit Ghost Lord built this Death Spirit Lake on the island specifically to devour the vital energy of these lower-level spirits? Is the ghost art he cultivates somehow related to the Netherworld Great Law?"

Ye Qin could not confirm this conjecture.

Suddenly, sensing something, Ye Qin raised his eyebrows, put away the two fragments of the Netherworld Great Law, rose, and walked out of the cave dwelling on foot. He looked up, staring intently at the sky.

"Rumble!"

The sky was churning with dark clouds, densely packed and unmoving. Occasionally, bolts of lightning flashed, and thunder boomed. The sea surrounding the island churned violently, with towering waves. In reality, these ominous clouds had gathered for nearly a month without any heavenly lightning striking. But today, the clouds were churning and roaring with increasing agitation, and the lightning seemed poised to strike at any moment.

"The lightning tribulation should be coming soon. It seems Bing'er has reached the critical moment for challenging the Nascent Soul realm! I wonder if she can pass this hurdle."

Ye Qin stood before his cave dwelling, hands clasped behind his back, murmuring softly. Although Bing'er had an estimated seven to eight-tenths chance of success and possessed several Nascent Soul Pills in hand, failure remained a possibility. To say he felt no apprehension would be self-deception. If she failed this time, they would have to postpone her attempt for another half a year.

Despite his worry, Ye Qin understood clearly that this trial of the Great Heavenly Tribulation was unavoidable. He and Bing'er needed to both become Nascent Soul cultivators, gaining longevity stretching over a thousand years, if they were to venture further in the cultivation world.