?. Tian and Lei Feng, in a mutual glance, knew that in their dictionary, refining a fangou's inner essence meant swallowing it whole. Besides swallowing, were there any other methods? The inner essence of a fangou encapsulates decades, even centuries of its cultivation—thus surpassing any elixir or medicinal pill in value. Yet, it carries the fangou's inherent, fierce qi. Swallowing a small amount was understandable; however, when consumed in large quantities, it fundamentally affected the body, capable of transforming a gentle, well-mannered gentleman into a turbulent, unruly outcast. Thus, upon hearing that he refined twenty inner essences daily, both Tian and Lei Feng expressed disappointment. Tian tapped his temple, puzzled, asking, "Exactly how do you refine them? Isn't it simply by swallowing?" Qin Shao shook his head. "Of course not. You never mentioned the inner essences to me. I was deeply afraid of poisoning myself by swallowing them, so I've adopted an alternative method." Then he gave a detailed account of the process to the two of them. They were utterly stunned. As a seasoned deity from the Heavenly Realm, even the Emperor of Heaven had never heard of such a method—let alone the venerable Master Lei Feng. "Anyway, I only absorb the refined spiritual energy from the inner essence of the inner dharma pearl. As for the rest, all the impurities are simply treated as waste and discarded," he said, moving his body slightly. "So far, I haven't noticed any abnormalities at all." Only then did the Emperor feel reassured. "Your fortune truly is exceptional—you've managed to refine the inner dharma pearl through a completely different method. By the way, do you still have one? I'd like to try it myself." Qin Shao shook his head. "No, I don't. Why don't you go to the wild frontier and bring back a few yourself? After all, you're one of the most accomplished deities in our Heavenly Realm—securing a few fierce beasts shouldn't be a problem, right? You're glaring at me—what's wrong with that? I didn't say anything, did I?" *Shh—* The Emperor of He was taken aback: "Uncle, has the Master been upset with me?" "Indeed, it's rare for a disciple to speak to the Master like you do." The uncle spoke with earnestness: "In truth, I also hope to try this myself. I'd like the Emperor to bring back several more inner essences. If your method proves effective, it could revolutionize the celestial realm." Qi Shao, however, was unconvinced. "It's not that I'm particularly clever—it's just that you all are so rigidly conventional! No one has even tried methods other than swallowing the essences. Is that normal?" "He smiled happily, delighted simply to have obtained a true inner elixir—enough to make him truly joyful. He placed the elixir on his palm, then sent a stream of spiritual energy into it, guiding the inner energy out continuously and flowing steadily into his meridians. The expressions of both the Heavenly Emperor Hao Tian and the old Master Lei Feng were identical—they were utterly stunned. Even having witnessed it firsthand, they found it hard to believe. How could it be so simple? Was this young man truly a prodigy? Methods similar to this had been tried by nearly everyone in the heavenly court, yet no one had ever succeeded. How had this young man managed to achieve it? When the elixir absorbed two-thirds of its original strength, Qin Shao successfully advanced to the rank of lower-grade spiritual immortal—only two levels below the giant spirit god who was about to face him in the arena. Finally, the elixir transformed into a gray-white bead. He opened his eyes and smiled, saying, 'Please take a good look, both of you. Would either of you like to give it a try?'” "Master Lei Feng knows he's definitely not going to make it. He waves his hand and says, 'I'm not going to try—because I simply can't. Qin Feng, you've truly earned everyone's respect. Since your ascension, in just two months, you've reached the rank of Lower Elysian Immortal, surpassing me significantly. From now on, you must keep pushing forward—China's face now depends on you.' 'Thank you, Director,' he replies, turning to the Heavenly Emperor. 'Master, would you like to give it a try?' The Emperor blushing says, 'Of course I'd like to—though not right now. I'll study it thoroughly on my own. By the way, Director Lei Feng, you mentioned you've gathered information about Ju Ling Shen. Please share it with us. As the saying goes, 'knowing both yourself and your opponent ensures victory in every battle.' Understanding your opponent is crucial." The elder nodded and said, "The Ju Ling God was punished by Marshal Li Jing for offending the Haotian Palace, receiving three hundred military lashes—thus avoiding further penalties from the Heavenly Court. He's been lying on his bed for over two months, and reportedly only recovered ten days ago. Recently, he's been feasting and drinking constantly, and his strength has now fully returned." Qin junior frowned slightly, "So, in the past three months, he's made no progress at all." The elder replied, "That's correct. In fact, for a being of his current rank, achieving a breakthrough is extremely difficult. As far as I know, he has remained at the upper-tier Ling Xian level for over a thousand years." He took a deep breath, "Now I'm confident. Though I myself am still only at the lower-tier Ling Xian level, the Haotian Hammer isn't someone to be taken lightly—it will surely drive him to beg for mercy." Hearing his disciple's confident and grand words, the Emperor smiled and said, "It's good to have such confidence, but never underestimate your opponent. Ju Ling Shen is a well-established general of the heavenly court and surely has several masterstroke tactics reserved for critical moments. To defeat him, you must be cautious—careful, careful, and even more careful." Qin Shao bowed respectfully and replied, "Disciple understands." The Emperor then stood up and said, "You two go talk over your plans. I have a few matters to attend to at the back end. Don't be shy, Lei Feng." With that, he dashed off, moving faster than a rabbit. Lei Feng, slightly puzzled, asked, "Qin Feng, doesn't the Emperor usually get very busy?" "Not really. In my memory, he's always quite relaxed and idle." "He offered a fairly reasonable assessment, saying, 'The only advantage is that he can lounge around at home without embarrassing himself. I suspect he's eager to find out whether he can, like me, refine his inner essence—should he fail in front of you and me, wouldn't that be a real shame?' 'That's not quite fair,' the elder blustered, his face turning as red as the bottom of a pot. You young upstart—those remarks you just made were nothing short of humiliating to me. I simply can't understand why the Heavenly Emperor places such emphasis on you. Have I missed something? A short while later, the rear pavilion echoed with the Emperor's growing frustration: 'Why, why can't Qin Feng achieve this while I, his master, fail to?' At his feet lay four discarded inner essences."