Ding Fan knew this estate was indeed out of the ordinary. At this moment, he discovered dozens of formations, a truly grand display, including many defensive formations and stabilization formations, clearly showing they weren't simple at all. Ding Fan understood these formations were incredibly complex.

Obviously, it wasn't something an average person could set up. Ding Fan estimated that even with his knowledge of formations, he couldn't arrange such a complex array. This was understandable, given Elder Wang's prestigious status.

It's certainly not surprising for him to hire formation experts. The valuable estate must mean a lot to Elder Wang. Even before entering the estate, Ding Fan could sense that the spiritual materials within were anything but ordinary!

Following Elder Wang, Ding Fan entered the estate, and he was immediately struck by the rich spiritual energy there. He hadn't anticipated this; the estate, seemingly enclosed by mere walls, held an entirely different world within. The spiritual energy inside was several times richer than outside, making it an excellent place for cultivation.

Ding Fan calculated that cultivating within this estate would be several times faster than outside, yielding great results. He began to understand why so many respected alchemists, and even aspired to become one themselves.

Ding Fan witnessed the foundation of a top-level alchemist—truly extraordinary! It's well known that an alchemist can, even after focusing on pill refinement until forty, still catch up on cultivation afterward due to the achievements in pill refinement.

After all, cultivating in such an estate would be many times faster than outside. More importantly, the abundance of spiritual materials was overwhelming, seemingly infinite. Clearly, for an alchemist, these materials could all transform into medicine pills.

The quantity of these pills is unimaginable; evidently, for a cultivator, pills are the most essential cultivation resources. If an ordinary cultivator took months to advance a rank, Elder Wang, an alchemist of his level, could achieve it in just weeks.

Thus, the gap becomes evident.

That's why so many wish to become alchemists. Being an alchemist means not only creating pills vital for others but also having a solid cultivation base in the late stages due to the abundance of cultivation resources, making it difficult for one to have weak cultivation.

"Brother Ding Lin, all the spiritual materials I've collected over half my lifetime are here for you to take as you please without hesitation!"

Elder Wang spoke sincerely to Ding Fan, clearly grateful. Without Ding Fan's insights into ancient methods, Elder Wang knew he might never solve certain issues, even with decades more of study. Ding Lin had indeed rendered him a great service.

Although these spiritual materials were Elder Wang's treasures, he understood that the problems Ding Lin helped solve were priceless. Compared to Ding Lin's assistance, the materials seemed trivial.

Elder Wang willingly and happily offered his gratitude, even feeling that the spiritual materials were insufficient repayment for Ding Lin's help. With Ding Lin's methods, Elder Wang hoped to advance beyond his current post as a Grade Eight Alchemist, aiming for Grade Nine, which would fulfill his lifelong dream.

For Ding Fan, what he shared with Elder Wang was of little personal importance, seemingly trivial knowledge from ancient texts.

But Ding Fan understood that even these basic pieces of knowledge were incredibly valuable to other alchemists, as much had been lost over time. For instance, when he shared an alchemy cauldron preservation method, it caused a stir throughout the Alchemist Guild, a reaction Ding Fan hadn't anticipated.

This event showed Ding Fan the distinction between his alchemical skills and those of ordinary alchemists. His methods, learned from ancient texts, were based largely on these old recipes.

Ancient alchemical methods were exceptionally powerful. Many current Cultivation World techniques have lost quality over generations, simplifying considerably, leading to a decline in pill quality.

This is natural, as alchemy relies on verbal transmission, and some loss during this process is unavoidable. Ding Fan's ancient methods thus appeared exceptional and powerful, clearly producing superior results compared to modern alchemists.

However, Ding Fan felt unaffected, as his initial alchemy learning was solely from that ancient book. He hadn't considered his methods special until the cauldron preservation incident, realizing just how extraordinary his alchemical knowledge truly was!

However, Ding Fan wasn't particularly concerned about sharing certain things with Elder Wang. Importantly, Ding Fan had a great impression of Elder Wang. Given his status and position, it's reasonable for him to be highly esteemed, and any ordinary cultivator would undoubtedly respect him, even if Elder Wang displayed certain airs, it would be understandable.

But Elder Wang not only showed no airs to Ding Fan, he even treated Ding Fan with utmost respect. Ding Fan could see that Elder Wang was indeed a very humble elder, and Ding Fan was very certain that his own alchemy level surely surpassed that of Elder Wang. Clearly, Elder Wang was also well aware of this fact.

Thus, Elder Wang had no airs with Ding Fan at all, and even referred to Ding Fan as a brother. Ding Fan found this form of address a bit odd, but he said nothing about it. Since the other party was willing, there was no need for him to mind. Besides, Ding Fan could tell that Elder Wang had a straightforward nature, and referring to Ding Fan in such a manner not only didn't make him feel embarrassed, but it even made him quite happy.

Ding Fan's observation was precise. Elder Wang was indeed an elder with a hint of an adventurer's spirit. Knowing that Ding Lin's alchemy level surpassed his own, Elder Wang was genuinely delighted to call such a talented cultivator his brother.

Subsequently, Ding Fan nodded upon hearing Elder Wang's words. Since they were already there, it was inevitable that he would take a few spiritual materials; otherwise, the visit would be in vain. Ding Fan didn't stand on ceremony and directly chose some spiritual materials to inform Elder Wang.

Elder Wang, seeing the spiritual materials Ding Lin selected, immediately called over a young disciple beside him and instructed the disciple seriously:

"Note down carefully, remember every single one of the spiritual materials that Brother Ding Lin chose without omitting any, and prepare ten of each to give to Brother Ding Lin when he leaves!"

"Yes, Master!"

The young disciple was somewhat shocked upon hearing Elder Wang's words, but he promptly agreed. Evidently, this disciple had never seen his master be so "generous" before. Naturally, the disciple knew that his master wasn't stingy.

But these spiritual materials in the manor were as precious as life to his master. Usually, he was instructed to care for them meticulously, and sometimes, the disciple even knew that his master himself was reluctant to use them. Yet now, he was being so generous with a young man! Not only allowing him to pick spiritual materials at will but also giving ten of each! It was simply unbelievable!

For a moment, the disciple's mind couldn't keep up. Wasn't his master supposed to be the chief judge in the Great Alchemy Competition now? Why was he back, bringing along a young cultivator? The disciple was filled with confusion, unable to understand what had happened to his master today!

Moreover, what exactly was the situation with this young cultivator? A series of questions swirled in the disciple's mind. Nevertheless, the disciple clearly obeyed Elder Wang's instructions, earnestly memorizing all the spiritual materials Ding Fan had pointed out.

In no time, Ding Fan had already selected more than ten types of spiritual materials, and apparently had no intention to stop. To Ding Fan, the spiritual materials here were truly excellent, some so rare that he believed even spending months outside wouldn't necessarily yield a single one.

Ding Fan estimated that although the manor of Elder Wang was much larger than that of Master Nanyang, it was evident that the varieties here weren't as precious and rare as those from Master Nanyang. Furthermore, Ding Fan realized that Master Nanyang was no ordinary character, and his status and position were likely even higher than Elder Wang's.

Ding Fan didn't believe that the spiritual materials he saw at Master Nanyang's manor were all of Master Nanyang's collection. He was sure there were materials he hadn't seen yet. It was understandable, given that Master Nanyang wasn't a trivial figure, so even his spiritual materials wouldn't be commonplace.

After all, the spiritual materials Master Nanyang gave him were all exceptionally precious. Of course, the ones Ding Fan was choosing now were also quite good. Ding Fan was evidently very happy, as he had been lacking in resources like these.

Not only did he receive some spiritual materials from Master Nanyang previously, but now he was obtaining so many precious materials as well. It was apparent that refining any medicine pill today would be much more convenient.

At this moment, the disciple beside Elder Wang saw that, in no time, Ding Fan had already selected over ten kinds of spiritual materials, ten of each amounting to over a hundred. It should be noted these weren't ordinary materials, and any randomly selected one was worth a fortune. This had already become a significant sum.

However, the disciple now watched Ding Fan show no signs of stopping, naturally feeling a bit anxious for his master. If this continued, his master's loss of spiritual materials would be substantial!