Rising from Small Cloud Rain Technique

Chapter 259: Chapter 242: Gradual Enlightenment

Wei Songnian quickly checked the pills in the storage bag and took out twenty-four middle-grade Spirit Stones, saying:

“These are the Spirit Stones for the eight hundred pills.”

Ji An accepted twenty of them and pushed the rest back.

“Why are you giving me so many Spirit Stones for pills priced at three Spirit Stones each? You should take your deserved profit.”

Currently, his talisman-making volume had reduced significantly. The main business between them was mostly Spirit Wine trade, with occasional consignment sales of Tier Two Spirit Fruit.

Wei Songnian displayed a simple and honest smile:

“In our collaborations with other alchemists, our initial transactions are always at this price.”

The family had always aimed to expand its influence in the pill market and had contacted many alchemists but had not agreed on any terms.

Now that Senior Brother Ji had started alchemy, he felt it was an opportunity.

Ji An waved his hand, saying:

“For me, learning alchemy was just to kill some time since I’ve been idle recently. Without the support of the Sect’s Medicinal Garden and other channels, I will surely reduce my alchemy sessions significantly in the future.”

A Cultivator is not a puppet; they can’t endlessly repeat the same task without fatigue, nor can they cultivate tirelessly for a double hour each day.

So whether it’s body refining or alchemy, it’s just an adjustment in the process of cultivation.

“If Senior Brother wants to refine pills, just order, and I will send someone to collect the pills.”

Wei Songnian immediately made a promise. The Wei Clan had accumulated a bit in Mingfeng Mountain over the years.

If they found a trustworthy high-tier Alchemist to cooperate with, they were willing to spend resources to gather medicinal materials.

“My goal in refining pills is to produce late-stage Foundation Establishment pills for my own cultivation, which might conflict with your approach.”

Alchemy was just a means to an end; the faster improvement of cultivation was Ji An’s primary goal, which destined him not to spend vast amounts of time and consume Divine Sense in alchemy daily.

After refining the Flaming Sun Pill, his next target was the Cyan Lotus Pill.

Currently, he still had over two hundred Cyan Lotus Pills, just enough to exchange for a batch of medicinal materials to improve his alchemy experience.

After that, Ji An would attempt to refine the Purple Ganoderma Yuan Pill for Ninth-Layer Foundation Establishment cultivators.

“Senior Brother has a promising future, naturally different from ours.

If you wish to gather medicinal materials, please feel free to ask.”

Wei Songnian smiled. Even if the other party was unwilling to refine pills for sale, this relationship must be frequently maintained.

…

After sending off Wei Songnian, Ji An controlled his Flying Shuttle and headed to Lingxiao Mountain.

Unlike in the past, there were Cultivators coming and going in the Diligence Hall.

He walked in and found two unfamiliar brothers busy at the front, while Senior Brother Ye was flipping through account books at the warehouse door.

Ji An condensed his voice into a line and transmitted sound:

’Senior Brother Ye.’

The alchemy task had strict requirements for alchemists. Senior Brother’s willingness to help should not be publicized.

Ye Changqing snapped out of it, looked over, then stood and beckoned.

Ji An quickly approached, and the two sat in the loft of the main hall.

“Senior Brother, I bought five hundred genuine grade Flaming Sun Pills, specifically to exchange for medicinal materials. Please verify.”

He took out the storage bag and handed it over.

“Junior Brother’s actions are quite swift.”

Ye Changqing smiled, took out the pills, and examined them one by one.

Every pill entering the warehouse had to be carefully checked, without any negligence.

Ji An responded:

“After all, these are early-stage Foundation Establishment pills, purchasable with Spirit Stones.”

Problems that Spirit Stones could solve were not truly problems.

The two chatted intermittently. Ye Changqing inspected very meticulously, and after completing an inspection, half an hour had passed.

“The quality of the pills is good. It’s the refining technique from Luofeng Valley; I can offer Junior Brother materials for one hundred and forty furnaces.”

“How can you tell the refining technique?”

Ji An was astonished. Could Luofeng Valley mark their pills somehow?

“The fire control techniques and Dan Separation Techniques in alchemy vary, leading to slight differences in Pill Patterns.

For instance, pills refined with the Three Yang Pill Fire Technique from the Ningcui Cliff lineage have similar characteristics…”

Ye Changqing explained, sharing many techniques for distinguishing pills.

Though he wasn’t an alchemist himself, his knowledge of pills surpassed many pill masters.

Ji An listened in amazement, his knowledge expanding greatly.

Ye Changqing stood, “Junior Brother, please wait a moment. I will fetch the medicinal materials.”

…

Small groups of demon beasts were continually launching attacks on Mingfeng Mountain Immortal City, prompting the Three Sects to unite with other families, setting numerous bounties.

Various pills and magical artifacts, rarely seen on ordinary days, all appeared among the bounties.

That night, in a certain grotto mansion within the Immortal City.

Two Loose Cultivators sat together, their auras deep and boundless like the sea.

An oil lamp burning with demon beast oil as fuel was on the table, its green flame flickering like a serpent’s tongue.

In front of each person was a cup of clear tea, with golden-patterned white tea leaves floating and sinking, exuding a light fragrance.

A Cultivator with a ferocious scar on his forehead said:

“These sects have really put in a lot of resources, various pills for Breaking Realm, Healing Secret Medicines, Foundation Establishment Pill, and Nourishing Yuan Pill all appear in the rewards.

Heh, I wonder if there will be a cultivator who survives to claim them.”

His words were filled with sighs, with a faint ruthlessness.

The cultivator beside him, with a fair complexion and a few strands of beard, chuckled lightly and said leisurely:

“Naturally, there is danger; without danger, it wouldn’t be our turn.

By risking such great danger, what we earn is merely an opportunity.

Looking at it from this point, compared to those Qi Refining, Foundation Establishment juniors, essentially we are no different, just hounds attracted by the meat bones thrown by several sects.”

His gaze was profound, his tone calm, yet carried a hint of slaughter.

The scar-faced cultivator gritted his teeth and said bitterly:

“These sects control the key resources for breakthroughs, forcing us loose cultivators to risk our lives to gain fat and riches from us, detestable!

Brother Chen Sheng, do you think they will really bring out a Gold Core Pill?

Such Treasure Medicines should rather be used to cultivate their own cultivators!

Even taking a step back, if a Golden Core Cultivator emerges among loose cultivators, the power dynamics of the Western Continent would have to be reshuffled.

This surely isn’t something those sects are willing to see.”

A cultivator of the Fifth Transformation of Chao Origin, after consuming various external medicines, captures the Five Qi within his great medicine chest, then takes the Gold Core Pill, stimulating the Primordial Life Fire within the dantian to merge with the breath, forging a Golden Core.

External medicines need to be found by the cultivator, the Gold Core Pill, such a pill, cannot be bought on ordinary days.

Even if a loose cultivator wants to sell themselves to enter a sect, they wouldn’t be trusted enough to be granted a Gold Core Pill.

“Without offering great rewards, how could there be cultivators willing to risk their lives.

When the demon calamity erupts, the first targets for attack are surely the places of the families and sects.”

The wick of the oil lamp made a “crackling” sound, the light flickering as Chen Sheng’s somewhat handsome face twisted, like an evil ghost.

“As I said earlier, precisely because of danger, we get this opportunity.

Regardless of truth or falsity, we must try.”

The scar-faced cultivator said solemnly:

“Brother Chen Sheng, you’ve known each other for years, countless times risking life and death.

You’re now at the Fifth Transformation of Chao Origin, I’m willing to assist you in making merit to seize the Gold Core Pill.

Once brother condenses a Golden Core, we can establish a sect, making the fourth sect in the Western Continent!”

“Brother Wu Long, with your help, success is assured!

If I’m fortunate enough to achieve a Golden Core, I’ll be qualified to make contact with the upper echelons of the Central Continent’s traveling merchants and will spare no effort to help you obtain a Gold Core Pill.

My thought is not to establish a sect, but rather to build an Immortal City belonging to loose cultivators…”

“Wonderful,” Wu Long clapped his hands together, “this way, although having no name of a sect, it would have the reality of a sect, uniting many loose cultivators.”

…

The cold light of the full moon gently strokes, the cold pool shimmering with waves.

Near the Ghost Moon Cyan Jade Tree, the light is especially bright.

Ji An sat cross-legged on the pudun beneath the tree, running the Evergreen Wood Skill, with the light of many Spiritual Objects beside him gradually dimming.

The Water Element Spirit Light flashing deep black light nurtures, the Earth Element Spirit Light emits yellow light nourishing, the Wood Element Spirit Light in vibrant color dazzling, silver moonlight like finely falling ox hair, entering through his breath.

In his Sea of Consciousness, silver flowers fell like snow, his Spirit Soul rejoicing.

Frost condensed on his hair and skin, making him seem transparent.

Ji An wandered outside of things, feeling himself like a wild grass, withering and thriving with the cycle of four seasons, life cycling between booming growth and withering decay, vitality emerging to hide, after the winter, it blooms once again.

Year after year, days and months pass, mountains collapse, rivers cease, the wild grass undergoes countless generations, yet with the spring breeze remains green as ever.

The cold within his body grew stronger, Ji An ended cultivation and slowly gathered his energy.

Azure Dragon Wood completely decayed, showing no trace of its original form.

The Profound Yellow Soil resembled mud bricks fallen off after countless frosts and winds experienced by a dirt wall, and the Trickle Spirit Water within the Jade Bowl had completely ’evaporated.’

He removed the pudun, revealing the whitish soil below, a trace where the vitality of the black soil was seized.

Ji An cast the Thick Earth Returning Origin Spell, the warm yellow Spirit Light spreading over the ’selected’ land, the Magic Intent nurturing and healing the damage.

With his hands weaving the Spell, a rolling white mist flashed the glow of jade under moonlight, seemingly hiding grains of pearls.

Filled with the nurturing breath of the Dao of Gui Water, the Spirit Rain silently nurtured objects, his Magical Power swelled, his body floating.

Beside the cold pool, on the Celestial Essence Pear tree hung Tier Two Spirit Fruit, glowing with bluish light bending the branches.

The fruit was egg-sized, glossy like jade.

…

The next day.

After having breakfast, Ji An came near the Dragon Blood Tree, sat cross-legged and commenced the Cultivation Technique, beginning the day’s cultivation.

As the cultivation technique operated, various Spirit Light surrounded him.

Faint black, yellow, emerald green, and orange-red.

Respectively Light of Gui Water, Light of Ji Earth, and Light of Ding Fire, the Magic Intent of nurturing, nourishment, and spirit warming proliferating.

Ji An felt himself become a burning fire tree, roots digging deep into the earth, drawing nutrients from magma.

The Evergreen Wood Skill in Ji An’s hands had completely changed, something perhaps not even anticipated by the creator of the cultivation technique.

As the morning sunlight rose, pale golden sun fire fell from the void, entering his body along with other Spirit Light.

The splendor of Ji Earth entered the spleen, Bingding Fire entered the heart, Gui Water entered the kidneys, Wood of Jia and Yi entered the liver, four types of radiance flowed, lungs slightly brightening white.

If the High-Tier Cultivators of the sect knew, they would be astonished, this feat is simply beyond the scope of Foundation Establishment Cultivators!