You looked at He Youshan's excited face and nearly thought you'd misheard. Why would she be so thrilled about her own uncle being imprisoned? You even suspected it was this couple who had reported him.

Seeing their excitement, you didn't want to ruin their mood. You could only respond: "Good, good. Getting locked up is great - the sooner he goes in, the sooner he'll be reincarnated."

"Senior brother, he wasn't sentenced to execution, just exile," He Youshan earnestly explained.

You gave her a speechless look. Ah yes, "just" exiled. Your suspicion that this couple had reported him grew stronger.

That night, you invited Bai Chen over. The three junior brothers drank merrily in your courtyard, freely consuming alcohol and feasting on meat.

Jiao Mingxu recounted his life over the past few years away, occasionally revealing a blissful smile. Bai Chen described the special talents of the courtesans in nearby towns, occasionally showing a lecherous grin. They all had bright futures ahead.

The next day, you visited Xie Huide's courtyard. He informed you that he and Deng Rusong would begin refining the Reviving Yang Pill in eight months. Currently, he needed to travel to acquire an important ingredient, and told you to consult Deng Rusong about any pill refining questions.

"Master, go and return quickly - try not to die out there," you said.

Xie Huide's face darkened. "You rebellious disciple! Always wishing for my death so you can inherit my pill furnace, is that it?"

"This is my sincere blessing," you replied.

Xie Huide snorted coldly and turned to leave, but suddenly paused in astonishment. "You've reached Organ Fortifying?!"

Having stopped using the Art of Hidden Breath to conceal your cultivation, Xie Huide detected your early-stage Organ Fortifying realm.

You chuckled lightly. "Just got lucky."

"This isn't something luck can achieve," he said, sighing repeatedly. "You rebellious disciple's martial talent far surpasses mine!" Xie Huide seemed somewhat discouraged.

You quickly comforted him: "Master, while my talent may be better, you're much older than me!"

Suppressing the urge to strike you, Xie Huide departed the Danxia Sect.

After Xie Huide left, you devoted yourself entirely to cultivation and pill refining. Within two months, you completed your first true qi condensation in the Organ Fortifying realm. The Nine Condensations Profound Skill was a crucial pillar of your strength, so cultivation took priority.

Subsequently, you spent another two months advancing your pill refining skills. Your fifth-grade pill refining had stabilized at producing three pills, occasionally managing four. Your fifth-grade pill refining had reached initial proficiency.

The remaining time was spent attempting to enter the Divine Micro-Vision state, hoping to examine that Earth Source again. Despite having successfully entered this state once before, replicating it proved difficult. After over a month of attempts, you barely sensed anything. Persisting for another ten-plus days, you finally re-entered the Divine Micro-Vision state.

You immediately projected your consciousness into the simulation space. The Earth Source still manifested as an ethereal sword. As you tried approaching with your consciousness, the razor-sharp sword energy surrounding it once again made your brain feel like it was being churned. Dizzy and disoriented, you were forced to exit the Divine Micro-Vision state.

"How am I supposed to comprehend this thing? I'll turn into an idiot from this Earth Source before I make any progress!" Frustrated, you felt like you were sitting on a gold mine you couldn't excavate.

Two days later, Xie Huide returned to Danxia Sect. With two months remaining before he and Deng Rusong would begin refining the Reviving Yang Pill, Deng Rusong gradually transferred sect affairs to Grand Elder You Yun. Xie Huide likewise avoided expending energy on other matters.

Xie Huide meticulously explained all aspects of Deng Wanshu's care to you, and you began tending to her. With one month remaining before the pill refinement, both men completely withdrew from all affairs, shutting themselves away to focus on mental preparation. You could sense their tension.

However, this matter hardly affected you. You continued cultivating as usual. One day, unwilling to give up, you attempted another Divine Micro-Vision exercise. Whether by coincidence or not, you entered the state smoothly, but frustratingly, your Earth Source examination still yielded nothing. You even began doubting whether this was truly an Earth Source - perhaps you'd made a mistake.

You recalled an acquaintance from your hometown who had mistaken someone's discarded girlfriend for a rare medicinal mushroom and steeped her in water for days. Could you have similarly mistaken this object for an Earth Source?

While maintaining the Divine Micro-Vision state and pondering this, you suddenly sensed inexplicable scrutiny. In this heightened state of awareness, you couldn't be mistaken. You immediately exited the state, eyes darting around wildly.

"Who's there? I fucking see you! Show yourself!!" you shouted. That someone would dare spy on you within Danxia Sect was audacious. You guessed it must be an outsider who knew Deng Rusong, the sect's only Grandmaster, was in seclusion, thus daring to infiltrate.

Though the sect still had Dragon Transformation elders, this intruder showed no fear. Could they be a Grandmaster? Frowning, you slowly retreated two steps, mentally shielding yourself behind nonexistent allies. Just as you prepared to flee, a voice sounded.

"Hahaha, nephew's perception is remarkable - you detected me immediately upon my arrival." Grand Elder You Yun of Danxia Sect appeared smiling at your courtyard gate. At late-stage Dragon Transformation and a seventh-grade pill refiner, You Yun was quite capable.

Instantly, ten thousand suspicions arose in your mind. "So it's you, you old bastard - scared the hell out of me," you thought silently, while smiling and saying, "Ah, Grand Elder! Please, come in!"

You Yun chuckled as he entered. "Nephew, I just finished handling sect affairs and thought to visit, chat with you." Previously, You Yun had little interaction with you and had never visited your courtyard. Why now, when temporarily managing sect affairs, would he suddenly come to chat?

Humoring him, you wondered what scheme You Yun was really cooking up. But after some idle talk, you realized he genuinely seemed to be making casual conversation - mostly about sect matters. He mentioned who didn't get along with whom, which members had shared interests, and recent affairs he'd handled - a disjointed ramble without clear purpose.

After this, You Yun departed, leaving you utterly baffled. "What the hell was that old codger's angle?"