Core Condensing Pills were made especially for Golden Core cultivators. It was much more expensive than the Essence Cleansing Pill. The Essence Cleansing Pill could be purchased for a few thousand silvers, but the Core Condensing Pill could not be bought with silver alone.
Each pill was extremely valuable.
But since Lin Jiufeng could repeatedly Sign-In to this location, he would never lack Core Condensing Pills in the future.
'I just broke through the Innate cultivator realm and entered the Golden Core cultivator realm. I thought my cultivation would slow down a bit, but it seems that I can still continue to improve rapidly.' Lin Jiufeng thought happily.
Lin Jiufeng swallowed the Core Condensing Pill and let its energy explode in his body.
The energy rushed into his dantian, increasing his strength.
In his dantian was a powerful sword energy formed from the Ultimate Heaven Slashing Sword Skill and the Sword Twenty-Two which Lin Jiufeng cultivated.
These two techniques were both very powerful sword skills. Together with the Glorious Dream of Spring and Autumn technique that he received from signing in, Lin Jiufeng's current combat power had reached its peak.
Even the original owner of this body of his, which was the crown prince, only managed to reach the pinnacle of the Innate Cultivator Realm. There was even an entire country supporting him, yet it still took him more than 20 years to achieve such a realm.
Lin Jiufeng who spent all his time quietly signing in within the Cold Palace, had surpassed the realm of the original owner of his body in just three years.
Getting his cultivation wiped out back then didn't feel that bad anymore.
It was Lin Jiufeng's first time venturing into the interior of the Cold Palace. Passing through the inner wall, he saw a vast garden, a rockery, and a stream of water. There was a pavilion and a bamboo forest in the far distance.
The scenery here was once pleasant. There once existed a group of exquisite palaces, built according to the First Prince's specifications. But then the First Prince failed to seize the throne and was banished here. He ultimately died of depression.
Since then, it was gradually left to deteriorate and became the infamous Cold Palace within the palace.
The once lush garden was now completely overgrown. Weeds and trees grew disorderly and vines entangled the house. It looked more like a gloomy haunted house in the wild mountains than a palace.
Lin Jiufeng put his hands behind his back and looked at all of these with a calm expression. This was the Cold Palace that everyone was afraid of, but it was also the place where he could repeatedly sign in.
What once was a road was overgrown with weeds.
Lin Jiufeng narrowed his eyes and lifted a finger. Using it as a sword, he slashed at the weeds.
The first stance of Sword Twenty-Two!
Boom!
The entire garden was instantly filled with dancing sword energies.
It exterminated all the surrounding weeds, revealing a path.
Lin Jiufeng wandered around.
He then accidentally discovered that there was also a large well that was tightly covered by a well cap within this place.
Although it wasn't that of a big well that there was a well in this place, the important detail was that the well was exactly the same as the one in Lin Jiufeng's courtyard.
The colors and design were exactly the same.
'The well in my yard is an ominous well, is this one the same?' Lin Jiufeng wondered.
However, he had already signed in for today, so he had to wait for the Sign-In the next day.
After strolling around in the garden, Lin Jiufeng left in the evening.
The sky had dimmed, and he returned to his yard.
Then, he meditated and started cultivating.
Before cultivating, Lin Jiufeng looked at the old well in the courtyard.
In the past three years, he had not opened that well again.
But tonight, for some reason, Lin Jiufeng suddenly wanted to open the well.
Upon opening the well cap, the water inside was as clear and as clean as always.
…
In the wee hours of the night, Lin Jiufeng meditated cross-legged.
The Demon Slaying Sword hovered, spinning in circles around him.
He was done cultivating the Ultimate Heaven Slashing Sword Skill, as well as the Sword Twenty-Two. At this moment, Lin Jiufeng was trying to get to know the Demon Slaying Sword.
The moon was dim that night.
Dark clouds filled the sky and gusts of cold wind blew in the quiet cold palace.
A cloud of black smoke was floating up out of the uncovered well at this moment.
It morphed into a woman.
"Why did you imprison me in the Cold Palace?!" With a mournful wail, the woman rushed directly into the room and began attacking Lin Jiufeng.
Lin Jiufeng opened his eyes at that instant, grabbed the Demon Slaying Sword, and immediately activated the Ultimate Heaven Slashing Sword Skill.
Slash!
An extremely terrifying sword light exploded, directly lighting up the yard, and instantly nailing the woman who had morphed out of the black smoke to the wall.
The surging sword aura of the extremely powerful Ultimate Heaven Slashing Sword Skill firmly suppressed the black smoke. The woman's expression looked malicious and she struggled hard, but it was useless and futile.
Lin Jiufeng walked out of the room and saw the woman's face.
He said in surprise, "Imperial Consort Jia?"
This woman was none other than the former master of the Cold Palace. She was Imperial Consort Jia, who had been banished to the Cold Palace three years ago.
She was banished on charges of political activity within the palace and causing trouble to the court.
Thinking that she was favored by the king, she disregarded the queen and disrespected her position. She helped push her younger brother up in the ranks with pillow talk, which offended a lot of people.
Then, she was banished to the Cold Palace.
Only about three months after being imprisoned, she could no longer tolerate the conditions and died.
Lin Jiufeng looked at her non-substantial body and repulsive appearance.
No reason existed within her, only hatred.
"Imperial Consort Jia wasn't a powerful person, how could her soul still remain three years after her death without dissipating?" Lin Jiufeng asked in surprise.
He looked at the well.
It was uncovered.
Lin Jiufeng looked at Imperial Consort Jia Gui who had already lost her intelligence and reason.
She was merely struggling numbly, her face filled with hatred.
Lin Jiufeng contemplated silently.
[Do you want to Sign-In before the Vengeful Soul?]
A line of words suddenly appeared before Lin Jiufeng's eyes.
He couldn't help but look up. "Seems like it's already the dawn of the next day."
"Sign in!" Lin Jiufeng said decisively.
[Signed-in successfully. Received the Eye of Judgment. It can read the memory of a soul and exorcise it.]
Lin Jiufeng's eyes suddenly became inundated with intense pain and itch. Something seemed to be coming out of it.
He gritted his teeth and braced himself.
Fortunately, after a minute, the sensations disappeared.
He opened his eyes and looked at Imperial Consort Jia.
Imperial Consort Jia's soul was immediately seen through by Lin Jiufeng.
Boom!
All of Imperial Consort Jia's memories from when she was alive, as well as how she became a wandering soul were all made known to Lin Jiufeng.
"The area deep underground beneath the Cold Palace is actually an area with extremely strong negative energy. It's easy for evil spirits to form at places like this."
Lin Jiufeng finally understood why no one paid any interest in such a big palace after the First Prince's fall from grace.
It turned out that it was because of the bad geomancy here.
This palace was probably built after the First Prince had been deceived. Otherwise, who would build a palace in a place where there was extreme negative energy?
"Those that came here after the palace was abandoned were all tortured to death by the land itself. A prime example of this was Imperial Consort Jia, she only managed to persist for three months before dying. Her soul was then absorbed by this land of extreme negative energies…"
"Her soul didn't dissipate, but since she was not versed in the ways of soul cultivation. She ended up in her current situation. In addition, she was muddled, and her entire being was filled with thoughts of revenge."
"She hid in this well, and as long as it wasn't covered, she would be able to come out." Lin Jiufeng murmured.
He suddenly smiled. He just learned from the memory of Imperial Consort Jia that she had wanted to come out three years ago. But that night after Lin Jiufeng washed up, he sealed the well once more. Hence, she didn't manage to come out.
After that, Lin Jiufeng did not open the well for three years.
She had waited for three painful years.
If Lin Jiufeng didn't notice the well whom he had forgotten for three whole years, he wouldn't have opened it, and she would've had to continue her wait.
But Lin Jiufeng unsealed the well once more, so she took advantage of that opportunity to take her revenge for what the former had done three years ago.
Unfortunately, the current Lin Jiufeng was vastly different from who he was back then.
She was nailed to the wall of the courtyard by a beam of sword energy.
The powerful force even made the wall expand outward with her at the center of it.
The wall was then covered with scars from the crisscrossing sword energies.