Situ Mingyue handed over two thousand mid-grade spirit stones to Zhang Yang, huffing, "Are you satisfied now?"

Zhang Yang happily pocketed the two thousand mid-grade spirit stones. These were different from the last batch. The previous spirit stones belonged to the sect, but these were from selling his house, so they were rightfully his.

His Golden Core was giving Qingyunzi a headache. Without more resources, progressing in cultivation would be difficult.

With these spirit stones, he should make some progress.

"Sister, the house is yours now," Zhang Yang said with a smile. "Let me explain how to use it. Don't worry, since you paid, I'll ensure the after-sales service is guaranteed."

The courtyard was indeed filled with rune patterns.

However, as you know, these rune patterns are exposed to the elements and require maintenance. If they fall into disrepair and cause chaos, it could be disastrous.

Conservatively speaking, if these rune patterns go haywire, they could tear a Golden Core cultivator to pieces.

So, living here, you must be very careful. Always maintain the rune patterns and never neglect them."

Situ Mingyue's face froze.

Wasn't she living on the edge of a cliff, not knowing when it might crumble?

"Living in such a dangerous place, aren't you afraid?" Situ Mingyue asked through gritted teeth.

Zhang Yang blinked, "Because I know rune patterns. Didn't I just tell you? I drew these patterns, so of course, I know when they'll go awry!"

"You sold me the house, so you're responsible for fixing it!" Situ Mingyue realized. "You mentioned after-sales service, so you must ensure it's done well."

Being the daughter of a major business association, she quickly understood these commercial terms.

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Zhang Yang grinned, "Since I promised after-sales service, I'll take responsibility. I estimate it needs maintenance every three months. I'll come to repair it then. However, you'll need to provide the materials for drawing the patterns, like cinnabar and beast spirit blood. Also, drawing rune patterns consumes a lot of spiritual power and mental energy, so you'll need to offer some compensation."

Situ Mingyue said fiercely, "How many spirit stones?"

He really wouldn't let go of her spirit stones. She had never been this annoyed before.

"Not much, just a hundred spirit stones," Zhang Yang replied with a smile.

"Oh?" Situ Mingyue was surprised, thinking Zhang Yang would demand a hefty sum!

A hundred spirit stones every three months, what's that?

Zhang Yang said seriously, "I'm an upright person. Drawing rune patterns is very labor-intensive. You'll see, charging you a hundred spirit stones is not excessive. Alright, sister, rest well. Tomorrow morning, gather at the main hall, and I'll take you to choose a cultivation method."

Situ Mingyue watched Zhang Yang fly away, unsure of what kind of person he really was.

Meanwhile, Zhang Yang flew to the Brushstroke Peak.

Seeing Zhang Yang, Hualingzi thought of the Primal Chaos Golden Core and asked curiously, "Why are you here?"

"Uncle, I need to stay here for a few days. My courtyard was taken by my junior sister," Zhang Yang said with a smile. "Also, I need to cultivate here. Could you arrange a cultivation room for me? I need to use spirit stones."

"No problem!"

Hualingzi produced a brush, quickly filling the room with restriction formations, then said to Zhang Yang, "Feel free to use the spirit stones; the spiritual qi won't escape."

"Thank you, Uncle!"

Zhang Yang threw out fifty mid-grade spirit stones, and a large amount of spiritual qi dispersed from them, making the room's qi several times denser than outside, and it continued to increase.

He sat in his Spirit Sea, fully absorbing the spiritual qi, repeatedly washing and refining his Golden Core.

However, in his inner vision, the center of the Golden Core was empty, like a black hole, unmoved by the abundant spiritual qi.

Zhang Yang ignored it, continuously absorbing qi to refine the Golden Core.

Gradually, Zhang Yang noticed something unusual.

Although the inside of the Golden Core remained empty, its "shell" was thickening! Moreover, the size of the Golden Core hadn't changed.

Does this mean that by continuously filling from the outside, the inside of the Golden Core could eventually be filled?

In one night, fifty mid-grade spirit stones were completely consumed.

In his inner vision, the shell of the Golden Core hadn't thickened much.

Zhang Yang took a deep breath. How many spirit stones would it take to fill it?

Zhang Yang emerged from the cultivation room, seeing Hualingzi guarding outside, and remarked, "Uncle, cultivation is really tough!"

Hualingzi's eyebrows twitched. He wanted to say, how could someone who formed a core in a year claim cultivation is tough?

He said meaningfully, "Encountering setbacks on the cultivation path is nothing; they can always be solved."

Zhang Yang scratched his head, "Uncle, what's wrong with my Golden Core?"

Hualingzi paused, then said meaningfully, "Zhang Yang, Golden Cores are divided into three grades. The best is the Hunyuan Golden Core; your master has a Hunyuan Golden Core. Next is the second-grade Great Path Golden Core. When I formed my core, there was a brush inside, so I chose to study runes. The worst is the third-grade Whiteboard Golden Core, which has nothing inside."

He deliberately didn't tell Zhang Yang about the Primal Chaos Golden Core and even misled him about the Whiteboard Golden Core.

Because the Primal Chaos Golden Core involved too many issues, Zhang Yang needed to keep it hidden.

"So I'm the worst Whiteboard Golden Core!" Zhang Yang muttered, "That explains why it's so hard to break through!"

Hualingzi patted Zhang Yang's shoulder, comforting him, "It's okay. No matter what kind of Golden Core you have, you're still my nephew, and I'll always look after you. On the cultivation path, don't be discouraged. It's just a matter of consuming more resources. If you ever need your uncle's help, just ask."

"Thank you, Uncle!" Zhang Yang said gratefully.

After a pause, he smiled and said, "Uncle, I actually need your help now."

Hualingzi looked at Zhang Yang curiously, wondering what he needed help with.

Besides, this kid found out he's a "Whiteboard Golden Core" and didn't react at all?

He didn't know that Zhang Yang had experienced the highs and lows of life and only wanted to cultivate immortality.

Even with a "Whiteboard Golden Core," he could still cultivate immortality, right?

Moreover, he had already found a solution, so why be discouraged?

So, making money was the priority.

And making money meant revitalizing Azurecloud, which involved those eighty-seven geniuses.

"I'd like to ask Uncle to give a lecture to the newcomers, covering Foundation Establishment content," Zhang Yang said seriously to Hualingzi. "Actually, not just you, Uncle, but other uncles and even Master might need to give public lectures. Once they truly establish their foundation and determine their future paths, they can decide whether to join your ranks."

Since they were recruited, they had to be nurtured, regardless of the intentions of those eighty-seven geniuses.

He also wanted to change their mindset during the nurturing process.

"No problem!" Hualingzi agreed.