An Alchemist's Path to Eternity

Inside a secluded cave, a man and woman spoke in hushed voices.

”Senior Brother, do we have enough?”

”With the ones we just got, there are fifteen.”

”Only fifteen?” The woman hesitated, then said, ”Senior Brother, why don’t you take these first? You can try to see if you can comprehend the root power.”

”How could I do that? Before we came in, we agreed we’d gather twenty illusory cores first, then start cultivating separately. We’re still short of five. I can’t just go ahead while you’re still waiting.” Dragon Abyss looked at her and added, ”And if one of us really had to go first, it should be you, Tea Mist.”

As she still seemed reluctant, he reassured her, ”There’s no need to rush. Time passes much faster inside the pocket world than it does outside, so we have plenty of time. And with others hunting in the other regions, more and more second-tier and third-tier illusory beasts will be driven inland. Once they start devouring and merging with each other, we’ll see more fourth-tier beasts appear. We won’t be short on chances.”

At this point, Dragon Abyss could not help smiling. ”If your elders hadn’t told me about gathering illusory cores and consuming them all at once, I might have wandered around this pocket world for a hundred years and still gotten nowhere.”

Tea Mist gave a soft murmur of agreement. This trick had been discovered and verified by the elders of her master-disciple lineage through their own experiences inside the pocket world. Unlike the family lineages, their branch simply did not have enough people to provide every participant with a protector. As a result, their cultivators often had to enter the pocket world alone whenever the competition was held.

Without anyone to stand guard, stopping to cultivate every time they obtained an illusory core was simply too dangerous. Eventually, one of their elders found a way round the problem. Rather than consuming each core immediately, they continued hunting while using a secret art to preserve the cores they collected. Once they had accumulated enough, they would find a safe location, set up some defenses, and consume the entire stockpile all at once. It was through this that the elder had succeeded in comprehending his root power.

Tea Mist had no idea whether the others knew the same trick. Her elders had only shared it with Dragon Abyss because of his close relationship with her and the high regard they held for him.

Of course, knowing the trick only solved half the problem. They still needed enough illusory cores to make use of it.

The illusory beasts were born from the Mirage Dragon’s power and were naturally attuned to this world, which made them exceptionally difficult to track. Even after twenty years of hunting together, the two had only managed to obtain fifteen illusory cores, and they were still short of the goal.

Dragon Abyss had already worked out a plan. ”At most, it should take us another ten years to find the last five. After that, we’ll each have ten years to cultivate, and once we’re done, we’ll only be fifty years in. Even if neither of us succeeds, we’ll still have another fifty years to gather enough cores for another attempt.”

Tea Mist nodded. ”Then we’ll do as you say, Senior Brother!”

They had only just settled on their plan when Dragon Abyss’s expression shifted. Without another word, he rose and walked out of the cave.

Tea Mist hurried after him. ”Senior Brother, what is it?”

The moment she stepped outside, her eyes widened. In the distance, a white argali the size of a small mountain was barreling eastward through one stretch of forest after another.

”A fourth-tier illusory beast!”

Dragon Abyss already had his longsword in hand. ”Let’s go. We’ll follow it and wait for our chance to take its core.”

He set off at once, and Tea Mist followed close behind.

***

Elsewhere, two figures could be seen on a mountain peak. The younger-looking one wore an elegant robe and held a white jade fan. He stood at the edge of the summit as he looked down at the abyss below, where thick fog churned together with poisonous miasma.

”Old Ghost Qi, are you sure there’s a fourth-tier illusory beast down there?”

Qi Xiongcheng was carrying a gourd so large it almost dwarfed his hunched frame. He nodded and answered, ”Yes. Three years ago, I saw a bird-type illusory beast hunting third-tier beasts around this area. It devoured a large number of them before flying into the abyss. That beast was huge, and the aura it gave off was far stronger than that of an ordinary fourth-tier beast. I think it must be among the stronger beasts at that tier, so its illusory core must contain an enormous amount of spiritual vitality.”

Instead of praising him for the discovery, Shi Ju frowned. ”Then why didn’t you deal with it when you found it? Why wait until I came out of seclusion? You know I didn’t come in here just to comprehend root power, right? I also planned to use the extra time here to cultivate with Supreme Profound Illuminating Blazing Flame. Once we leave, I need to start learning one of the seven great divine techniques.”

From the way he spoke, it was obvious that he already regarded one of the Dao Sect’s seven great divine techniques as his to learn. Yet the experts of the great families all knew that the divine techniques were not something that could be learned just because someone wanted to. No matter how exceptional someone’s aptitude was, there was a basic prerequisite: Either become an Ascendant, or comprehend a Law ahead of time as a Sage. Shi Ju was nowhere near Divine Transformation; thus, his self-assured manner showed that he did not consider Law comprehension an obstacle he might fail to overcome.

Qi Xiongcheng lowered his head. ”If it was an ordinary fourth-tier illusory beast, I’d be confident dealing with it alone. But this one is different. It’s too strong for me to take that risk. That’s why I waited for you. With the two of us working together, taking it down shouldn’t be difficult.”

”Forget it.” Shi Ju waved a hand and snapped his fan shut. ”Since I’m already here, there’s no need for both of us to attack. I’ll destroy its body. You just use the Purple Yang Gourd to collect the illusory core.”

Qi Xiongcheng was momentarily startled. He wants to fight it himself?

Even so, he had no doubts about Shi Ju’s strength. Among the True Inheritors who had entered the pocket world, Shi Ju was unquestionably one of the strongest. His aptitude was exceptional, and his combat strength was equally formidable. Even Dragon Abyss, who had trained for many years in the Northern Sea, had once lost to him.

Thus, the old man was not worried about the fight. His only concern was whether he could activate the Purple Yang Gourd properly when the time came. The True Artifact had been specially crafted by the Shi family for this journey. Its defenses were formidable, but more importantly, its restraint and absorption abilities had been designed specifically for dealing with illusory beasts. However, he had not been refining it for very long, so he had to be especially careful when the time came to use it.

Hooooo...

Shi Ju slowly exhaled, and a wave of heat rolled from his breath. Qi Xiongcheng watched Shi Ju’s sleeves billow as the white fan in his hand slowly opened. He prepared himself to take action as well.

Just as Shi Ju was about to make his move, something else came to mind. He kept the fan raised and glanced at Qi Xiongcheng. ”What about Wilderness Hermit? Did you find anything after I told you to look into him?”

Qi Xiongcheng hesitated, and that hesitation made Shi Ju instantly frown. ”Tell me!”

Not daring to delay, Qi Xiongcheng hurriedly replied, ”I asked Yu Xu about him. Wilderness Hermit is still inside the pocket world.”

”Good.” Shi Ju’s lips curled into a faint smile, and greed flashed in his eyes. ”As long as he’s still here, all is fine”

Qi Xiongcheng hesitated again, but at last he decided to warn him, ”Young Master, that man won’t be easy to deal with. Yu Xu said his divine soul techniques are extremely powerful, and he’s just as dangerous when it comes to spells and physique refinement. I think it would be better if we didn’t provoke him—”

He abruptly stopped there, no longer daring to continue.

Shi Ju sneered. ”That’s exactly why I’m going after him. The Heaven Mystery Pill was personally refined by the Saint Alchemist before she left. The spiritual vitality contained within it could be worth more than a hundred illusory cores. If I can get my hands on it, comprehending the Root of Fire will become much easier. I might even have a chance to grasp a stronger Power of Laws.”

Root power was the most basic manifestation of a Law, and naturally the easiest for cultivators to comprehend. But a single Law could branch into countless different variations, some far more profound than others. Since Shi Ju had the chance to comprehend the Laws, he had no intention of settling for the most ordinary kind.

For now, however, the matter concerning Wilderness Hermit could wait.

He turned back toward the abyss and raised his fan. ”Enough about him. Stand back and watch me drive that beast out.”

At some point, the white jade fan had turned completely crimson. Its ribs glowed like glass fresh from a furnace, while translucent flames danced across its surface. As Shi Ju pointed it down toward the abyss, scorching heat gathered around him, growing more intense by the moment. Just as he was just about to sweep the fan...