As for who would ultimately claim those remaining plots of land, Yang Kai was confident that Wu Yi and Yang Yan would handle it all properly. None of it required his personal attention. His most pressing task right now was to break through to the Return Void Realm.
After giving Yang Yan a few brief instructions, Yang Kai immediately returned to the Heavenly One Palace and began seclusion.
Judging by the size of the protective barrier formed by the Imperial Jades, the Imperial Garden would likely take another half year to open. Half a year to advance to the Return Void Realm — the timeline was somewhat tight, but not unmanageable.
This would be the first time Yang Kai pushed for a breakthrough purely for the sake of breaking through.
In the past, his advancements had always come naturally, as a matter of course — he had never forced the issue. But this time, the Imperial Garden excursion was far too important. He just happened to be stuck at the critical threshold of the third stage of the Saint King Realm, so naturally he intended to make the attempt and push into the next major realm.
Advancing for the sake of advancing ran somewhat counter to the true spirit of Cultivation, but it hardly mattered. Yang Kai had lingered at the third stage of the Saint King Realm for a considerable time, fought in numerous battles, and had thoroughly comprehended this level long ago. His Sacred Yuan was both abundant and refined, more than meeting the threshold for advancement. All he lacked now was a catalyst — a breakthrough point.
Inside the Heavenly One Palace, Yang Kai sat cross-legged with a calm expression. He was in no hurry to meditate or accumulate power. Instead, he unhurriedly retrieved a large quantity of medicinal herbs from his Space Ring and summoned his pill furnace.
He was preparing to refine pills.
Alchemy was an integral part of his Cultivation. Through pill-refining, one could settle the mind, temper one's Sacred Yuan, and strengthen one's Divine Sense — all of which provided tremendous benefit for future breakthroughs.
Very few people knew he was an alchemist. Apart from Dai Yuan, who had once asked for his help, and Yang Yan, who was aware of his abilities, no one else knew the truth. Even Wu Yi remained in the dark. Yang Kai had mentioned it to her once before, but Wu Yi hadn't believed him.
After all, for a warrior to reach the third stage of the Saint King Realm at Yang Kai's age was already extraordinary enough. How could he possibly have had the spare energy to also study alchemy?
She had simply assumed he was joking.
But Yang Kai really was an alchemist — and a mid-grade Void Grade alchemist at that, capable of effortlessly producing mid-grade Void Grade pills and, with a bit of luck, even the occasional high-grade Void Grade pill.
If this identity were ever leaked, Yang Kai's standing would skyrocket overnight. Countless factions would scramble to win his favor.
A mid-grade Void Grade alchemist was an extraordinary find even in other corners of the Star Domain, let alone in a place as unique as the Dark Star. However, with such status came equally great danger — it would inevitably attract the covetous eyes of countless powerful experts.
Yang Kai practiced alchemy solely as a means of supporting his Cultivation. He had no intention of devoting all his energy to the art, so why would he broadcast such sensitive information and invite trouble?
Divine Sense Fire erupted from his body and wrapped around the pill furnace. One by one, Yang Kai fed the medicinal herbs into the flames, refining them with his pure and potent Divine Sense Fire.
Time trickled past. In the blink of an eye, a full month had gone by.
Now, inside the Heavenly One Palace, jars and bottles of every shape and size stood before Yang Kai, each one filled with spirit pills of varying grades. Many of the pills bore visible patterns on their surfaces — intricate, mysterious lines that resembled the meridian pathways of the human body.
Pill Patterns!
These special markings could multiply a pill's value several times over. Beyond simply preserving the pill's efficacy indefinitely against the erosion of time, Pill Patterns also signified that the pill's potency was twice that of an ordinary counterpart.
Pill Patterns were a matter of luck and fortune. Countless alchemists spent their entire lives trying to discover how to consistently produce them, yet none had found the key. Yang Kai, however, had taken a different approach — by inscribing unique Spirit Formations directly into the pills during the refining process, he had raised the probability of Pill Patterns appearing in his creations to a staggering thirty to forty percent.
Back on Rainstorm Star, Grandmaster Zong Ao had been utterly astonished by Yang Kai's alchemy.
At the time, Yang Kai had been nothing more than a Saint King Grade alchemist, while Zong Ao was already a high-grade Void Grade Pill Master. Something that even Zong Ao could not achieve had been effortlessly accomplished by Yang Kai — how could the Grandmaster not be shocked?
Though the two had eventually reached an agreement and Yang Kai passed on his method, Zong Ao could only sigh with admiration. Without Yang Kai's Divine Sense Fire, he could not so freely refine pills with his spiritual sense or inscribe Spirit Formations. Still, borrowing ideas from another's approach was not without merit. After all these years, who knew whether Zong Ao had managed to advance to the rank of Void King Grade Pill Grandmaster?
If he had, then he would stand at the absolute pinnacle of the entire Star Domain, a figure revered and worshipped by all.
Pushing those stray thoughts aside, Yang Kai let his gaze sweep over the fruits of his month-long labor.
Three Purities Pills, Jade Spirit Pills, Saint King Pills, Yuan Recovery Pills…
Every variety imaginable, covering the full spectrum of pill types. Nearly all of the spirit herbs in his possession had been consumed.
With a flick of his wrist, a single pale-green pill appeared between Yang Kai's index and middle fingers. Its fragrance was fresh and invigorating, a pleasant aroma that seeped into one's very soul. The pill was roughly the size of a longan fruit, its surface densely covered with fine lines — another pill that had manifested Pill Patterns.
Void Condensing Pill!
An auxiliary elixir designed to increase the probability of breaking through from the Saint King Realm to the Return Void Realm! When Dai Yuan had last visited Dragon Cave Mountain, she had wanted Yang Kai to refine one for her, but he had done so casually at the time, and that particular Void Condensing Pill had not developed any Pill Patterns. It was incomparable in value to the one he now held.
Staring at the pill, Yang Kai fell into contemplation. After a long moment, he tucked it away once more.