The next day, when Senior Sister Zhao came to visit Li Fan again, she was astonished to find that he had already mastered the "Taiyuan One Qi Technique", needing only some final polishing to perfect it.

While she was genuinely happy for Li Fan, she couldn’t help but feel a strange sense of loss in her heart.

"Senior Sister, let’s spar!" Li Fan suddenly suggested.

“Huh?” Senior Sister Zhao was momentarily taken aback.

“What’s your current cultivation level?” Li Fan asked again.

“Late-stage Foundation Establishment. Why?” She hesitated for a moment but answered truthfully.

Li Fan wasn’t shocked by her rapid progress in cultivation. Instead, he applauded and praised her, "It seems Senior Brother Zhang was right. Your cultivation talent is truly rare in this world."

Hearing Li Fan’s praise, her face flushed slightly.

But then she heard him continue, "However, you can’t use your superior cultivation to bully me. When we spar, you can only use late-stage Qi Condensation strength at most!"

"Senior Sister, be careful!"

Before she could even react, Li Fan rushed toward her.

Caught off guard, Senior Sister Zhao fumbled a bit. However, being an entire major realm higher in cultivation than Li Fan, her control over spiritual energy and combat reflexes were far superior to his.

After just over ten exchanges, Li Fan was soundly defeated.

Climbing up from the ground and coughing lightly, Li Fan complimented, "Senior Sister, you’re really amazing!"

"Are you alright?" Her face was full of concern and a bit of regret. She hurried forward to check on Li Fan’s injuries.

After a thorough examination, she finally breathed a sigh of relief.

"Let’s go again!" After resting for a bit, Li Fan said in a deep voice, and the two resumed their sparring.

With the help of Senior Sister Zhao, who was a patient sparring partner, Li Fan’s combat skills improved rapidly.

Senior Sister Zhao even taught him some techniques like "Void-Splitting Blade" and "Wind Flash", which greatly enhanced his combat capabilities.

Unfortunately, this peaceful time didn’t last long. Senior Sister Zhao, who had been spending almost all her time with Li Fan at Qingning Peak of the outer sect, was eventually discovered by her master, Zhang Wangshuang.

After a scolding, she was placed under house arrest.

Luckily, after much pleading, she was granted one last chance to see Li Fan.

Seeing the beautiful woman in front of him on the verge of tears, heartbroken, Li Fan felt a pang of regret.

Stepping forward, he embraced her, gently stroking her back to comfort her. "Senior Sister, don’t be sad. Since your master won’t allow you to visit me in the outer sect anymore, I’ll come to the inner sect to see you."

"No matter what, I won’t abandon you," Li Fan promised with unwavering determination. "Senior Sister, focus on your cultivation. I’ll come to you soon!"

Senior Sister Zhao gazed at Li Fan with misty eyes, her heart racing.

Li Fan then kissed her deeply, not parting for a long time.

Only when the time granted by her master was nearly up did Li Fan reluctantly let her go.

She lay in his arms, whispering sweet words before finally leaving, full of reluctance.

After regaining his composure, Li Fan sealed the room and used the magical artifact gifted by Senior Sister Zhao as a protective barrier. Then, he began his attempt at Foundation Establishment.

Unfortunately, his cultivation talent was far from ideal.

After three consecutive failures, he realized that further attempts might damage his spiritual foundation. Left with no choice, Li Fan reluctantly consumed the Foundation Establishment Pill given to him by Senior Sister Zhao.

This time, with the aid of external power, he finally succeeded in establishing his foundation.

At last, he officially became a disciple of the Grand Dao Sect.

However, because he relied on external help for Foundation Establishment, his future potential would be limited. His cultivation aptitude was also quite mediocre, unlike Senior Sister Zhao, who was noticed by the sect elders.

Following the standard process, he was taken as a disciple by Nascent Soul stage cultivator Zhuang Yunxuan.

As a fifth-generation disciple of the Grand Dao Sect, he was technically one generation junior to Senior Sister Zhao.

But she was overjoyed when she saw him and didn’t mind the generational difference. She just told him to continue calling her Senior Sister when no one else was around.

Now that they were both in the inner sect, their interactions became much more convenient.

Even though Senior Sister Zhao had already broken through to the Golden Core stage, it didn’t stop Li Fan from visiting her frequently.

Although his cultivation was weaker, Li Fan never lost his manners. He was always polite and greeted everyone with a smile.

Even when faced with ridicule and mockery, he calmly accepted it and humbly nodded in agreement.

Over time, this won over even those who initially sneered at him.

Moreover, Senior Sister Zhao’s master, Zhang Wangshuang, didn’t object to their relationship, so gradually, everyone in the sect tacitly accepted Li Fan’s presence.

Seeing how Li Fan resolved a potentially difficult situation without causing her any trouble, Senior Sister Zhao was pleasantly surprised.

Her worries dissipated, and she looked at Li Fan with increasing warmth.

Time flew by, and in the blink of an eye, three years had passed.

With no lingering concerns in her heart, Senior Sister Zhao’s cultivation advanced rapidly. She had already reached the late Golden Core stage and was preparing for Formation of the Nascent Soul.

With Senior Sister Zhao’s assistance, Li Fan lacked nothing in terms of cultivation techniques or elixirs, so his progress wasn’t slow either.

He had perfected his Foundation Establishment and was now on the verge of forming his Golden Core.

As the saying goes, "Swallowing a single Golden Core can change one’s fate; my destiny is in my own hands, not the heavens." The gap between the Golden Core and Foundation Establishment stages was immense. Once crossed, it was like defying the heavens, forever altering one’s life.

Knowing that his own aptitude was limited, Li Fan anticipated that forming his Golden Core might not be easy. To be fully prepared, he decided to enter seclusion, solidifying his foundation and waiting for the right moment.

Two months later, when he finally sensed the right opportunity to form his Golden Core, a piece of news forced him to leave seclusion early.

Senior Sister Zhao’s junior apprentice brother, Jiang Ningjun, the youngest disciple of Zhang Wangshuang, secretly sent him a message.

Recently, Senior Brother Qin Shou from the 'Lianshan Lineage' had been aggressively pursuing Senior Sister Zhao.

At a young age, Qin Shou had already reached the Nascent Soul stage, and his master, Qu Hanfeng, had a close relationship with Zhang Wangshuang.

Zhang Wangshuang was also happy to see Qin Shou and Senior Sister Zhao form a Dao companion relationship.

Qin Shou was handsome and dashing, seemingly a perfect match for Senior Sister Zhao.

In just a few months of Li Fan’s absence, Qin Shou’s popularity and support within the 'Yuehua Lineage' had far surpassed Li Fan’s.

Only Jiang Ningjun, who had always had a good relationship with Li Fan, was displeased with Qin Shou’s pretentious demeanor.

That’s why, at this critical moment, he sent Li Fan a warning, informing him of the situation.

Upon hearing the news, Li Fan immediately decided to postpone forming his Golden Core.

The Golden Core could be formed at any time.

But if Senior Sister Zhao were to be stolen away, she’d be gone forever!

Even though Li Fan had great faith in Senior Sister Zhao, he knew life was unpredictable.

And he was well aware that his smooth journey in cultivation thus far was thanks to her help.

"Anyone who dares to take away my soft meal is blocking my path to the Dao!" [1]

"I don’t care who you are, we will fight to the death!" A cold glint flashed in Li Fan’s eyes.

1. Soft meal/rice (chī ruǎn fàn) also has another meaning of, man who lives off a woman.