Previously, Qin Hanchu was no match for the Azure Moon Goddess, which was why he concealed this matter. Now, however, he no longer paid her any mind.
After a moment's thought, Qin Hanchu said, "I'm sorry, I'm not used to acting with too many people."
"Junior Brother Baili, what do you mean by that? Why can you go with Junior Sister Kuang but not with us?" the Azure Moon Goddess asked, puzzled.
"There's no 'why.' You all be careful."
Qin Hanchu did not want to conflict with Lu Kehan, so he did not mention the matter of the Azure Cold Divine Venerable.
"Still acting aloof at a time like this, are you trying to court death?"
Standing to the right of the Azure Moon Goddess was a young man, one of her most devoted pursuers.
Seeing Qin Hanchu refuse the Azure Moon Goddess's invitation, his eyes blazed with intense anger.
"Watch your words, or I'll let you die first," Qin Hanchu said coldly, staring at the man.
"Do you have the strength for that?"
Qin Hanchu only had four people, while they had five.
Under these circumstances, why would the young man back down before Qin Hanchu?
"What? Getting arrogant because you outnumber us?" Qin Hanchu chuckled. "I advise you not to seek your own demise."
The young man clenched his fists. "What? You think the four of you can beat us?"
Seeing that Qin Hanchu and his people were about to erupt into conflict, the Azure Moon Goddess stepped forward. "We shouldn't have infighting at a time like this. Any conflict between us will only benefit others."
"Hmph!" Seeing that the Azure Moon Goddess had spoken, the young man ceased his retorts.
With the young man silenced, the Azure Moon Goddess turned to Qin Hanchu. "The upcoming battles will be even more perilous. I believe we'll be safer if we stick together."
"We don't need your concern for our safety. Just protect yourselves," Qin Hanchu replied.
With that, Qin Hanchu led Axiang and the other two away into the distance.
Watching the backs of Qin Hanchu's group of four, the young man who had just clashed with Qin Hanchu angrily exclaimed, "Is this Baili Hansu a lunatic? With only four people, he still refuses to team up with us? Now that residual members of various factions are starting to unite, these four are courting death."
The Azure Moon Goddess remained silent for a moment. "They must have some secret they don't want us to know."
"What secret could they possibly have?" another person inquired.
The Azure Moon Goddess shook her head. "Since Baili Hansu dares to leave so decisively, he must be confident in his ability to ensure his own safety."
"What should we do next? Should we join forces with our fellow disciples?" Lu Kehan asked.
The Azure Moon Goddess nodded. "Yes, be careful along the way. Make sure you don't get entangled."
"According to the timeline, the countdown should begin in another thousand years."
...
After leaving the Ancient Dao Academy, Qin Hanchu would need to thoroughly investigate the whereabouts of the Pangu clan.
Pangu the Progenitor had already merged with the Dao. If he did not uphold his promise, he might be influenced in some way.
Now that he possessed considerable strength, gathering the Pangu clan would be a worthwhile endeavor.
The most important thing now was to elevate the Sky-Opening Divine Axe and its companions to the Progenitor level. Once these three possessed Progenitor-level combat power, Qin Hanchu would effectively have three Progenitor-level bodyguards.
With these three powerful allies, his development would proceed even more smoothly.
In the following period, Qin Hanchu redoubled his efforts to find the Desolate Domain Divine Crystals.
A thousand years passed in the blink of an eye. Red mist began to appear in the distant sky.
According to the Sky-Opening Divine Axe, this red mist was extremely terrifying.
Even Progenitor-level powerhouses dared not enter the Desolate Domain when the mist was dense.
Once enveloped by the red mist, they would turn to dust within an hour.
Even their top-tier divine artifacts would not escape this fate.
Strangely, the things that grew in the Desolate Domain were unaffected by this red mist.
"Qitian, your clone originated from this place. Doesn't that mean it can ignore this red mist?" Qin Hanchu asked curiously.
Qitian shook his head. "After being refined into my clone, it lost a certain special power. My body's resistance to the red mist is only slightly higher."
"Let's search a bit more, then we should head back."
After a thousand years of searching, Qin Hanchu had found over nine thousand Desolate Domain Divine Crystals.
With the help of these divine crystals, the strength of the Sky-Opening Divine Axe and its companions had increased significantly.
Another ten years passed, and the teleportation channel appeared.
Qin Hanchu and the others departed immediately.
Upon returning to the sect, the Sect Master of the Ancient Dao Academy personally came to collect everyone's spoils.
Qin Hanchu's group of four submitted a total of two thousand five hundred Desolate Domain Divine Crystals.
This quantity was considered relatively small among the participants.
The Azure Moon Goddess's team submitted over four thousand.
"With so many Desolate Domain Divine Crystals, is it enough to turn the Ancient Dao Progenitor's top-tier divine artifact into a Postnatal Primordial Supreme Treasure?" Qin Hanchu asked on his way back to his cave abode.
Qitian replied, "It's not that easy. The transformation has a chance of success. If you're unlucky, you might not succeed even after more than ten attempts."
"Each attempt requires one hundred thousand Desolate Domain Divine Crystals, so you can imagine how difficult it is," the Seven Kills Prison Tower added.
"As far as I know, there have been fewer than ten Postnatal Primordial Supreme Treasures in history," Qitian said.
Axiang asked curiously, "What is the power difference between a Postnatal Primordial Supreme Treasure and a Prenatal Primordial Supreme Treasure?"
"There is a slight difference, but there are exceptions," the Seven Kills Prison Tower stated solemnly. "There is a Postnatal Primordial Supreme Treasure called the God-Slaying Spear, whose power is even greater than mine."
"Why?" Axiang asked, surprised.
"It received some origin opportunity during its transformation."
Chatting along the way, Qin Hanchu returned to his cave abode.
"Mom, Dad, you're back!"
Sensing Qin Hanchu's return, Baili Caixia rushed to greet him.
After more than two thousand years of cultivation, Baili Caixia had successfully broken through with the help of the Divine Replenishing Fruit and God Emperor pills.
At this moment, the entire family of three had become God Emperor powerhouses.
Unfortunately, Yunmiao Divine Venerable and the other had failed their breakthroughs.
However, it didn't matter. Qin Hanchu had brought back many divine medicines.
As long as Zhou Chuanqiong continued to refine pills, Yunmiao Divine Venerable and the other still had a chance to attempt it again.
The next day, Zhou Chuanqiong voluntarily visited.
He first gave the pills to Qin Hanchu, then asked, "Do you have any Progenitor-level divine medicines?"
Qin Hanchu nodded. "Yes, but before that, I'd like to discuss something with you."
Zhou Chuanqiong frowned. "What is it?"
Qin Hanchu said, "In a while, we will withdraw from the Ancient Dao Academy and find a place to establish our own force. I wonder if you're interested in leaving with me?"
"Sure," Zhou Chuanqiong replied without hesitation.
Qin Hanchu was surprised. "Don't you need to consider it?"
Zhou Chuanqiong shook his head. "You are my patron. Naturally, wherever the patron goes, I will follow."
"Haha... Good!" Qin Hanchu said with a smile. "I can promise you that I will do my best to cultivate you into a nine-star alchemist."