vstars Chapter 111 Taking Stock of the Harvest
Chapter 111 Taking Stock of the Harvest
Chapter 111 Taking Stock of the Harvest (Seeking Monthly Tickets)
Several more hours passed, and the number of disciples in the square reached forty-nine.
"Grandmaster—"
Qin Ruxue looked at the spatial rift that had become unstable and stepped forward to ask for instructions.
"Wait a little longer—"
Ruan Zhixuan was clearly in a bad mood, while Hei Yuan Zhenren beside her also had a somber expression and did not object.
With both Core Formation cultivators adopting such an attitude, Qin Ruxue could only wait.
After an incense stick had burned for a while, a figure darted out from a gap in space.
Almost the instant this person burst forth, the spatial rift could no longer be maintained, twisted violently, and vanished into countless silver specks of light.
An astonishing void fluctuation spread out, only to be concealed by layers of array formations.
Everyone who witnessed this scene was secretly terrified. If they were in the spatial passage at that moment, facing the void storm directly, they would surely die!
"Greetings, Master."
The last person to escape was Linghu Qiuye, who was emaciated and clearly had suffered a great deal.
"Okay, it's good that you're out. Let's go back."
Without making a sound, Ruan Zhixuan prepared to leave with her people.
"Fellow Daoist, wait a moment! We haven't seen what this boy has gained yet," Black Origin True Man shouted, unable to contain himself any longer.
The few demonic disciples he had placed high hopes on had not yet emerged; they had clearly all perished within the secret realm.
"Hehe, there was no clause in the previous agreement that required us to show our harvest to you."
Ruan Zhixuan stood her ground, and said pointedly, "Or are you perhaps planning to break the spiritual contract, fellow Daoist?"
Master Heiyuan's expression changed, then he sneered: "How dare I? That spirit contract was personally retrieved by you from the sect's secret vault. It's a high-grade third-tier contract. Even a cultivator at the peak of the Core Formation stage would be severely injured if they disobeyed it—I don't want to perish. Hmph, let's go back."
He was filled with hatred, convinced that the seed he had his eye on had been killed by Linghu Qiuye, and that the most valuable treasures in this secret realm must be in this man's storage bag!
No wonder Ruan Zhixuan didn't even look at her and was about to leave!
Linghu Qiuye, on the other hand, seemed hesitant to speak, glancing at the demonic disciples opposite him, but he didn't see the person who had attacked him earlier, leaving him feeling uncertain and puzzled.
Jade Island.
After confirming that Qin Ruxue, Xiang Dahu, and the others had returned, Fang Qing stopped paying attention and focused on his cultivation.
Within his dantian, more than twenty drops of liquid magic power transformed into a pool of emerald green water, radiating unfathomable magical energy fluctuations.
"The Dao gives birth to the Pearl!"
Fang Qing's heart stirred, and the primordial energy originally stored in the Dao Sheng Pearl, at the early stage of the Dao Foundation stage, surged down, rapidly causing his magical power to surge, turning into fifty drops of liquid magical power, reaching the limit of magical power at the mid-stage of the Foundation Establishment stage.
At this point, even though there was still some energy left, a bottleneck was sensed, preventing the breakthrough of this upper limit.
This is similar to the feeling he had when he was at the peak of his cultivation in the early stages of Foundation Establishment, and when he took Water Essence Pills, he could only restore his cultivation but could not break through the bottleneck.
Similarly, if this magical power is completely converted into a Dao Foundation, it can only reach around the peak of the early stage of the Dao Foundation.
Is this my strongest fighting force right now?
Fang Qing pondered to himself: "The difficulty in breaking through to the mid-Foundation Establishment stage must be due to limitations in aptitude; I'm stuck at a bottleneck—if I had a Heavenly Spiritual Root, I could have rushed all the way to Core Formation—"
When he was practicing Qi cultivation and absorbing Qi, he could break through a minor realm by slightly transforming his magical power. This was naturally because his average aptitude was sufficient, and he did not encounter any major bottlenecks.
Slightly smaller bottlenecks can be easily broken through by powerful magic.
After reaching the Foundation Establishment stage, those with average aptitude are no longer sufficient. Those who attempt to break through the bottleneck with powerful magic will either succeed by chance or suffer serious injury or even death if they fail. Fang Qing naturally dared not gamble.
However, if I combine it with a second-tier pill that can strengthen the meridians—and then frantically pour in my mana to break through the bottleneck, there is a two or three chance of breaking through—but even if I succeed, I will be seriously injured, or even my roots will be damaged—but I have the Sweet Dew Spring, which can slowly recuperate—this is a secret method for breaking through bottlenecks that only I am suitable for.
Of course, in terms of effectiveness, the Breakthrough Pill is definitely the best.
a few days later.
Inside the Xuanbi Cave.
"You mean—Master Ruan questioned Junior Nephew Linghu, and his expression changed drastically?"
Fang Qing couldn't help but chuckle when he heard Qin Ruxue describe what happened on the way back.
Obviously, anyone who thinks they've won but turns out to be the one who's been tricked will lose their composure.
The fact that Master Ruan did not severely punish his nephew Linghu is already a testament to his remarkable self-control.
"On the way, another disciple reported an important piece of news—he found a Five Elements Fruit Tree in the core area." There were still a few unripe Five Elements Spiritual Fruits on the branches, but he was prevented from taking them by the restriction. However, a demonic disciple also found the tree with him, so I'm afraid this news can't be kept secret any longer.
Qin is like snow.
"Oh?"
Fang Qing was somewhat surprised, but then realized that this should not be the same path as Senior Brother Ruan.
With so many core disciples of the Azure Sea Sect, they could easily split into several groups and explore the core area of the secret realm as much as possible.
"The Five Elements Fruit Tree—"
He did know about this spiritual plant: "The Five Elements Spiritual Fruit that this tree bears has the miraculous effect of helping pseudo-core cultivators break through the bottleneck of core formation, increasing their chances by about 10%. It is said that in ancient times, there was no formula for forming a golden core, so ancient cultivators directly consumed the Five Elements Spiritual Fruit to form their core."
Fang Qing knew this because the "Five Elements Spiritual Fruit" was the main ingredient in the Golden Core pill formula!
A single Golden Core should be enough to increase the chances of a Foundation Establishment cultivator reaching the Perfection stage by 20-30%, which is equivalent to a Pseudo-Core cultivator breaking through to the next level.
"According to the estimation of our sect's elders specializing in spiritual plants, the fruit will be fully ripe in a few decades. At that time, disciples can bring special items to break the restrictions and successfully harvest the fruit—"
Qin Ruxue continued.
Although the disciple failed to obtain the spiritual fruit, he recorded the map and the types of restrictions.
It's not too difficult to present it to the sect's higher-ups for research and then create a specific treasure that breaks the restrictions.
"When will that secret realm open?"
Fang Qing asked.
"According to estimates, this opening will accelerate the collapse of the restriction. Generally speaking, the next opening will be in sixty years." Qin Ruxue said, "After discovering the Five Elements Fruit Tree, some senior members of the sect have suggested that the disciples who enter next time can bring spiritual herb seeds and choose a place to plant them. This secret realm will be developed and transformed into the sect's spiritual herb garden."
"That shows foresight, but unfortunately the Demonic Path Annihilation Alliance is right next door—"
Fang Qing shook his head, not very optimistic about the suggestion, unless Hei Yuan Zhenren was eliminated and visitors from the East Sea cultivation world could be blocked.
Just as they were discussing this, a sound transmission talisman flew over.
He couldn't help but smile: "They've arrived."
He immediately waved his hand, and the cave's restrictions were lifted, allowing the three of them to enter.
The three are Xiang Dahu, Miao Yifan, and Bei Lingshu.
It has to be said that the survival rate is extremely high. On the contrary, Li Tianlong and Shu Rou, whom Fang Qing had slightly favored, did not survive the journey out of the secret realm.
It can only be said that, apart from Xiang Dahu who received his secret initiation, the other disciples still needed a bit of luck to survive.
No matter how skilled Li Tianlong and Shu Rou are, they'll still die if they're unlucky.
Fang Qing never cared about the dead. He looked at the three of them and smiled. "You can take turns coming with me to the secret room to make the transaction. This secret room has a restriction, and only you and I will know the contents of the transaction. — Hmm, Miao Yifan, you go first."
Upon hearing his arrangement, the three disciples seemed to breathe a sigh of relief.
Miao Yifan bowed deeply upon entering the secret chamber, a look of shame on his face: "I humbly report to my senior uncle, I am incompetent, and have only managed to find this one second-tier superior-grade 'Qin Yuan Flower' —"
As he spoke, he took out a jade box.
Fang Qing examined it and found that it was indeed a second-grade high-quality spiritual medicine, needed to refine a second-grade high-quality barrier-breaking pill. He nodded and said, "Since that's the case, our accounts are settled. I have nothing to give you. You may leave."
"yes!"
Miao Yifan bowed and withdrew.
As for whether this person had truly been plundered by the sect and couldn't produce any more rare spiritual herbs, or whether he wanted to hoard them, or whether he was coerced or bribed by other elders—Fang Qing had little interest in that at all.
After all, they were just cannon fodder and a decoy.
The next thing Bei Lingxu did was give Fang Qing a pleasant surprise. He took out several spirit herbs that were about eight hundred years old, enough to gather all the materials for a second-tier Breakthrough Pill, and could also refine another kind of pill to enhance the mana of the mid-Foundation Establishment stage.
"You're good—"
He looked at the delicate-looking female cultivator before him, who exuded a herbal aura: "The contribution of all these items you've collected is less than that of a Foundation Establishment Pill. I'll bestow upon you a bottle of Sweet Dew Spring Water. This substance is excellent for nourishing one's foundation; even if you fail to break through to Foundation Establishment, it can quickly restore your vitality—but its effectiveness only lasts for a few months—By the way, you exchanged for a Foundation Establishment Pill from the sect, didn't you?"
"This disciple contributed most of what he obtained, and indeed received a Foundation Establishment Pill quota in return. Thank you, Martial Uncle!"
Bei Lingxu bowed again, then suddenly spoke: "Uncle-Master, I have a question. If a disciple of the Azure Sea Sect were to secretly harm a fellow disciple within the secret realm, how should this be dealt with?"
"According to our sect's rules, those who kill each other within the sect shall die!"
Fang Qing answered casually.
"Thank you for your explanation, Uncle-Master." Bei Lingshu bowed again, and seemed much more relaxed after standing up.
"interesting!"
Fang Qing made a mental comment before finally letting Xiang Dahu in.
"Young Master!"
Xiang Dahu was visibly excited.
"Wait a minute."
Fang Qing waved his hand, noticing that Qin Ruxue had already seen off two disciples and activated the cave's formation, before nodding.
With the double isolation of cave formation and array restriction, even a Core Formation Divine Sense cannot scan into the secret chamber.
"That's fine."
After he spoke, Xiang Dahu immediately cut open a piece of flesh from his belly, took out the Xuanmu Ring, and presented it with both hands.
Fang Qing took them, reached out and stroked them, and one by one, spiritual objects appeared, illuminating the secret room with dazzling colors.
Even though he already knew, Fang Qing's breathing became somewhat heavy upon seeing so many treasures.
He first picked up a pale yellow second-tier demon core and laughed, "You're quite lucky—with this demon core, I don't have to go out and kill demons anymore—you also exchanged a Foundation Establishment Pill from the sect, right? I'll give you three more Foundation Establishment Pills. Although you might not need them, you can use them to exchange for valuable resources or to train your own people after you achieve Foundation Establishment—"
C
With his empowerment and a Foundation Establishment Pill, success is practically guaranteed.
"All of this is thanks to you, young master. I am ashamed to accept it."
Xiang Dahu said respectfully.
"Alright, you can go now."
Fang Qing waved his hand: "After you reach the Foundation Establishment stage, I will bestow upon you more treasures."
After sending Xiang Dahu away, his eyes gleamed as he began to carefully examine each item.
First are three talisman treasures: a Sea-Suppressing Ring, a small azure sword, and a jet-black ancient halberd. None of them are brand new; they can probably still be used once or twice.
These are all stolen goods; they cannot be used openly.
Immediately afterwards, Fang Qing opened another jade box and saw a third-tier spiritual herb shimmering with purple light.
"Purple Lotus Flower"—the main ingredient for a third-tier Great Barrier-Breaking Pill. If Xiang Dahu were to offer it directly, it would undoubtedly be immediately requisitioned by the sect.
"And these many thousand-year-old spiritual herbs are enough to refine a large number of pills that enhance magical power —"
"With these, my path to the Foundation Establishment Perfection realm will be smooth sailing."
He carefully put away the medicinal herbs one by one and breathed a sigh of relief.
Next came some Tier 3 ores and materials.
"Third-tier Heavy Profound Crystal and Azure Origin Water Core—these are both sufficient to serve as the main materials for magic weapons, and their value is quite high."
"There's also ten-thousand-year-old ironwood and Qingyuan wood—they seem to be able to make high-level puppets, and even third-tier talisman skins, which can be used to refine third-tier talismans?"
"Finally, there are some second-tier demonic beast materials. This four-armed crocodile dragon has extraordinary bloodline and is also good for refining weapons and pills."