Wei Zhong distributed four bottles of Medicinal Pills among the group and accepted the Profound Bright Spirit Grass from Shang Mengchun. He then clasped his hands together in a farewell gesture to the four cultivators.
"Until next time, everyone," he said. "If such a fortunate opportunity arises again, Fellow Daoist Lan, please contact me."
With that, he transformed into a streak of azure light and vanished into the distance.
The remaining four cultivators divided their spoils and dispersed.
After flying several dozen miles, Wei Zhong landed in a deserted area and reverted to his original appearance and attire.
Just as he was fully activating his Breath Concealing Technique and Invisibility Technique in preparation to return to his island, he suddenly spotted a streak of escape light streaking across the sky.
The figure was clad in black robes and a hooded hat, with a black mask concealing their face. Not a trace of their Qi Aura leaked out. Wei Zhong felt an inexplicable sense of familiarity with this person, yet he couldn't quite place their identity.
After scrutinizing the figure for a moment, another person arrived from behind—Tan Bo.
Tan Bo, hovering in the air, confronted the masked Black-Robed Cultivator. "Who are you, Fellow Daoist?" he demanded. "Why have you followed Fellow Daoist Song here? Do you intend to ambush him?"
The Black-Robed Cultivator let out a peculiar, chilling chuckle. "Heh heh... and what if I do? Surely you harbor similar intentions, Fellow Daoist?"
"Hmph, this Daoist would never stoop to such despicable tactics as taking advantage of another's vulnerability."
"Haha, Fellow Daoist Song hiding here might disagree. Wouldn't you agree, Fellow Daoist Song Zhong?"
He's just bluffing.
Wei Zhong was supremely confident in his Breath Concealing Technique. How could this Black-Robed Cultivator possibly have detected him?
He probably just saw my escape light vanish and assumed I was hiding here.
When his probing words failed to draw out his target, the Black-Robed Cultivator flicked his sleeve, sending a plume of black smoke toward Tan Bo. Then, he transformed into a dark escape light and sped away.
After dealing with the smoke, Tan Bo watched the figure disappear, grunted in frustration, and turned to leave.
Wei Zhong stared at the retreating black escape light, his mind racing:
With such a venomous snake lurking in the shadows, I won't be able to sleep soundly.
Dao of Time
Less than an hour had passed since Wei Zhong's first use of the Dao Technique within the Secret Realm. His cultivation base surged from Late-Stage Foundation Establishment to Early Core Formation.
With a light step, Wei Zhong activated the Cloud Soaring Technique. Fueled by his Core Formation spiritual energy, his escape speed now far surpassed what it had been during his Foundation Establishment stage. He swiftly pursued the black escape light ahead.
The mysterious black-robed figure flew across the Luo River without pausing.
What's wrong? Why have I felt so uneasy ever since leaving? Could Tan Bo have caught up? Or perhaps Song Zhong?
My spiritual sense has never been wrong. Some imminent danger must be approaching.
Suddenly, a premonition struck. He glanced back to see a streak of black escape light rapidly closing the distance. His brow twitched violently, confirming that this newcomer was the source of the threat.
A Core Formation cultivator? How could I possibly have provoked someone of that caliber?
He shouted loudly, "Senior, please wait! There must be some misunderstanding between us!"
Wei Zhong ignored his plea. He condensed spiritual energy into a massive hand and lunged forward to seize the black-robed figure.
Seeing the Core Formation cultivator attack without warning, the black-robed figure immediately raised his Spirit Shield, activated a Spirit Talisman, and teleported a hundred zhang away in an instant.
An Instant Teleportation Talisman?
Wei Zhong shattered the Spirit Shield with a single palm strike. With a stomp of his foot, he instantly closed the hundred-zhang gap.
The vast mana of a Core Formation cultivator allowed him to temporarily amplify the Cloud Soaring Technique, granting it a speed akin to teleportation.
With a single stride, Wei Zhong closed the distance, his black magic sword dancing in his hand as he slashed at the fleeing cultivator's back.
"Senior, spare me!" the cultivator cried, realizing how effortlessly Wei Zhong had overtaken him. He desperately detonated his various magic tools in a futile attempt to block the lethal black blade.
But the might of a Core Formation cultivator was far beyond the reach of a mere Foundation Establishment practitioner. The black magic sword effortlessly severed the cultivator's head, leaving his headless body to collapse limply forward.
Wei Zhong seized the corpse, crushed it to dust with a single palm strike, and retrieved the Storage Pouch. This pursuit had been motivated by the prospect of such spoils; otherwise, a Flying Throwing Technique would have ended the chase instantly.
After fastening the Storage Pouch to his waist, Wei Zhong picked up the severed head and peeled off its disguise. The exposed face startled him slightly.
"Mou Yuanfeng?"
The light had long faded from the man's eyes, leaving only a trace of lingering resentment. With a surge of spiritual energy, Wei Zhong pulverized the head, obliterating the last vestige of its existence.
Turning, he began his journey back to the island. As he walked, memories of this Secret Realm expedition and their past explorations together flooded his mind, filling him with a sense of profound reflection.
A single Millennial Spirit Medicine had driven him to undertake such a perilous venture, truly showcasing the dangers of the Cultivation World. From now on, he would exercise even greater caution around fellow Daoists.
Moreover, the man who had fled appeared to be at the Late-Stage Foundation Establishment realm.
Heh, what a master of deception! Pretending to be at Early Foundation Establishment—even this Secret Realm couldn't force him to reveal his true strength. He's even better at hiding than I am.
A nearly transparent escape light streaked into Cloudglow Island. As the holder of the Main Formation Chess Piece for the Azure Lotus Array of Azure Waters, Wei Zhong's return caused no disturbance to the formation whatsoever.
Stepping into his Grotto-Heaven, he immediately retrieved the Primordial Water Pearl, now a Second-Grade High-Tier magic tool.
His Core Formation cultivation base would only last a little longer, so he seized the opportunity to elevate the Primordial Water Pearl to the rank of magic treasure.
Gathering the various spiritual materials he had prepared in advance, Wei Zhong summoned a ball of flame in his palm—the Pill Fire unique to Core Formation cultivators.
Unlike ordinary flames, Wei Zhong's Pill Fire wasn't a bright yellow but a deep, inky black.
Probably due to my Cultivation Technique.
Without dwelling on it, Wei Zhong picked up the spiritual materials and began refining them.
Refining a Lifebound Magical Treasure wasn't particularly complex, even for Wei Zhong, who lacked any expertise in artifact refinement.
Wei Zhong extracted the essence from various spiritual materials and poured it into the Primordial Water Pearl. Then, he struck his chest and spat a mouthful of golden refined blood onto the pearl.
Raising his right hand, he pointed and chanted, "Empower!"
He placed the Primordial Water Pearl above the Pill Fire, its scorching flames rising to envelop it.
The pearl immediately absorbed the refined blood and began to spin, collapsing inward upon itself as it gradually shrank until it was the size of an egg.
Wei Zhong extinguished the Pill Fire, cradled the Primordial Water Pearl, and sensed the intensified connection between it and himself. He knew his Lifebound Magical Treasure had been successfully refined.
Suddenly, a wave of weakness washed over him. The first Dao of Time technique had expired, causing his cultivation base to regress from Early Core Formation to Late-Stage Foundation Establishment.
Before long, the second Dao of Time technique would also fade, plunging Wei Zhong back to Mid-Stage Foundation Establishment.
He stored the Primordial Water Pearl in his Dantian. At this stage, the Lifebound Magical Treasure no longer needed further refinement. Instead, it required gentle nurturing from its cultivator to strengthen their bond, ensuring it would respond to his will as seamlessly as an extension of his own arm when used in battle.
Moreover, Wei Zhong doubted his Foundation Establishment body could withstand the strain if he allowed the Lifebound Magical Treasure to continue refining and absorbing.
Now that his Lifebound Magical Treasure was complete, Wei Zhong retrieved Mou Yuanfeng's Storage Pouch. Since its owner was dead, erasing the pouch's seal proved effortless.
After sorting through the spoils, Wei Zhong extracted a gourd, two spiritual herbs, and a jade slip. The gourd contained the red spirit wine he had obtained in the Autumn Maple Forest. The two spiritual herbs were both over five hundred years old. Upon closer inspection, Wei Zhong recognized them as auxiliary ingredients for refining the Dustfall Pill: Azurebrow Grass and Crimson Moonflower.
With these additions, Wei Zhong now needed only a thousand-year-old Nine-Heart Fruit and about twenty other spiritual herbs with less stringent age requirements to complete the necessary ingredients for refining the Dustfall Pill.
Having gathered these resources, Wei Zhong could finally prepare to refine the Dustfall Pill for himself. However, before proceeding, he needed to advance his alchemy technique to the Third-Tier and ensure his proficiency at this tier was sufficiently high. Collecting such rare spiritual herbs had been no easy feat, and Wei Zhong had no intention of wasting these hard-won spiritual treasures through carelessness.
Wei Zhong knew that once his proficiency improved, his goal should be to succeed on the first attempt and achieve perfect pill formation.
Given his mediocre aptitude, he didn't expect a single Dustfall Pill to propel him to Core Formation. He estimated needing three or four.
Collecting that many Dustfall Pills wouldn't be easy.
Although his status as a Guest Elder in the Chamber of Commerce allowed him to exchange Contribution Points for them, accumulating those points took time. Wei Zhong preferred using them to acquire profound inheritances rather than Medicinal Pills.
Even bidding with spirit stones at auction wouldn't be simple. While Luochuan Prefecture was rich in resources, it was also densely populated with cultivators, and there would likely be fierce competition for Dustfall Pills among Late-Stage Foundation Establishment cultivators.
After considering all options, Wei Zhong concluded that refining the pills himself was the most reliable approach.
Shifting his focus from the spiritual herbs, Wei Zhong turned to the final jade slip.
It contained a rather intriguing secret technique with no name, seemingly a fragment of some incomplete method.
Its primary effect appeared to be enhancing a cultivator's spiritual sense, especially amplifying it in times of crisis. When danger drew close enough, it could even pinpoint the source of the threat.
No wonder Mou Yuanfeng fled so desperately when I was pursuing him. This technique must have been working.
Excellent, excellent. This technique is perfectly suited for me.
After organizing his spoils, Wei Zhong began cultivating the technique using the jade slip.
Several days later, he successfully mastered it. To his surprise, the technique lacked a proficiency level.
Among all the techniques Wei Zhong had learned, only the Dao of Time shared this characteristic. However, unlike the Dao of Time, which was explicitly labeled as a Dao Technique, this new technique was completely bare, devoid of any description.
I'll call it the Spirit Sense Technique.
The moment this thought crossed Wei Zhong's mind, a new entry appeared in the Technique section of his interface: [Spirit Sense Technique].
Having mastered the secret technique, Wei Zhong stood up and went to the pond outside his residence.
Sensing his approach, Big Gold emerged from the water, its massive golden head rising above the surface, its two round eyes fixed on Wei Zhong.
Wei Zhong patted its head and retrieved the black spirit soil he had obtained from the Secret Realm.
Under the Spirit-Seeking Art, the soil radiated a dazzling rainbow glow.
This spirit soil can nurture spirit medicines like the Thousand-Year Profound Bright Spirit Grass. It might also benefit Big Gold's symbiotic spirit herbs.
This was why Wei Zhong had hastily grabbed a handful of the soil even in that critical moment.
He glanced at the two strange spirit herbs in the pond, showing signs of bearing fruit, and scattered the spirit soil around their roots. Then, patting Big Gold's fish head, he muttered, "Advance your cultivation soon."
As Wei Zhong exited the Grotto-Heaven, a Message Sword flickered in the Cultivation Chamber.
Picking it up, he heard Xie Linghua's voice: "Master, Senior Qingze has arrived."
Moments later, Wei Zhong and Qingze sat facing each other in the same cliffside pavilion.
"Fellow Daoist Wei, your skills are truly extraordinary!" Qingze exclaimed heartily, draining a cup of spirit wine. "Refining three Second-Tier Breakthrough Pills in a single batch—you surpass those vainglorious Pill Refiners by leaps and bounds!"
Wei Zhong refilled Qingze's cup, aware that the senior was still displeased with Zhu Shen's deliberate belittling.
"Not at all, Fellow Daoist. This was merely good fortune. If you were to provide another batch of ingredients, I couldn't guarantee such success again."
"Haha, Fellow Daoist Wei, you're too modest! With your alchemical prowess, securing a Guest Elder position at the Cloud Gathering Merchant Guild would be well within your reach."
A faint smile played on Wei Zhong's lips as he thought to himself:
I actually do have a Guest Elder Token, but I obtained it through my brewing.
Having spent years in Luochuan Prefecture, Wei Zhong was no longer the Foundation Establishment Loose Cultivator he had been in Wild Plains Prefecture. He now understood the true value of a Guest Elder position within the Cloud Gathering Merchant Guild.
Generally, ordinary Second-Tier techniques were insufficient to earn one such a position, unless it involved a special spiritual treasure like Wei Zhong's Second-Tier Azure Spirit Brew, which provided the Chamber of Commerce with a steady stream of profits. Simply refining common Spirit Pills like the Qi Harmonizing Pill by the book wouldn't impress them. There were countless Second-Tier Pill Masters capable of such tasks; if they all received Guest Elder Tokens, the position would become worthless.
Wei Zhong's current alchemy skills were indeed sufficient to try for another Guest Elder Token, but it hardly seemed worth the effort. He hadn't created any groundbreaking Pill Formulas that would grant him Contribution Points through profit-sharing. Instead, he would have to constantly accept missions and accumulate points upon completion. This would consume a significant amount of time, interrupting his cultivation, and the resulting Contribution Points might not even surpass those from his existing Second-Tier Azure Spirit Brew recipe. The effort simply didn't justify the reward.
In truth, most Guest Elders in the Cloud Gathering Merchant Guild earned their Contribution Points through missions. Even key figures like Sikong Changming and Ling Ziwei, who were responsible for escorting spiritual treasures for the Chamber of Commerce, maintained their positions through such methods.
In contrast, those like Wei Zhong, who could sit back and reap the rewards from a single wine recipe, were few and far between.
"We'll discuss it later," Wei Zhong said. "While I greatly desire the position of Guest Elder at the Cloud Gathering Merchant Guild, they might not look favorably upon my rudimentary alchemy skills."
"Haha, Fellow Daoist Wei, you're being too modest," Qingze chuckled.
"Fellow Daoist Qingze," Wei Zhong asked curiously, "are you departing to prepare for your Late-Stage Foundation Establishment breakthrough?"
Qingze nodded. "My aptitude is mediocre. I've been stuck at Mid-Stage Foundation Establishment for countless years. If I hadn't managed to gather the materials for a Second-Tier Breakthrough Pill this time, who knows when I'd have another chance to advance."
Wei Zhong raised his wine cup. "Then I wish you every success in your endeavor, Fellow Daoist Qingze."
"May your efforts bear swift fruit!" Qingze replied, raising his own cup.
...
After sharing a few drinks with Wei Zhong, Qingze happily departed with his medicinal pill.
Wei Zhong stood on the cliff, watching the waterfowl on the distant river, silently pondering:
Late-Stage Foundation Establishment... With my current aptitude, I wonder if I can ever reach it.
His Hundred-Jun Heavy Water Spirit Body was roughly equivalent to a low-grade Water Spiritual Root. But low-grade was still low-grade; two low-grade components could never combine to form a mid-grade one.
After instructing Xie Linghua, Wei Zhong boarded his Green Boat and set off for the Luochuan Prefecture branch of the Cloud Gathering Merchant Guild, located in Moonrise City, the prefecture's central hub.
Moonrise City, the most prosperous city in Luochuan Prefecture, was jointly managed by various factions, including local Core Formation sects and the Cloud Gathering Merchant Guild from the prefecture capital.
The city's shops displayed a wide array of rare and valuable goods, and auctions occasionally featured Core Formation resources such as Millennial Spirit Medicines and Third-Tier Pills.
Moreover, the city was built atop a high-grade Third-Tier spirit vein, its spiritual energy quality rivaling that of Wei Zhong's own Grotto-Heaven. It was considered a sacred land by cultivators throughout Luochuan Prefecture.
Securing a Third-Tier Immortal's Cave in Moonrise City meant a cultivator would never again have to worry about finding suitable territory to cultivate until reaching Core Formation.
Upon entering the city, Wei Zhong immediately headed for the tallest and most opulent structure: the Cloud Gathering Pavilion, the local headquarters of the Cloud Gathering Merchant Guild.
Inside the shop, Wei Zhong, who had altered his appearance and aura, presented his Guest Elder Token. The shop attendants were visibly startled.
A maid in a white silk robe approached him. "Fellow Daoist, I am Yun Luo. I will be your guide today. Please follow me to the inner chambers."
She led Wei Zhong to a private room where tea had already been prepared by another maid.
"What brings you to the Cloud Gathering Merchant Guild today, Fellow Daoist?" Yun Luo asked.
Wei Zhong produced a yellowed parchment listing most of the items he required.
Wei Zhong then presented the sediment from the bottom of a spirit wine pool he had obtained from a Secret Realm. "Please have these appraised to determine what kind of Spirit Medicines they are remnants of," he requested.
Yun Luo took the list and her eyes widened in astonishment as she scanned the items: "A thousand-year-old Nine-Heart Fruit, a Thousand Spirit Water Stone, a Third-Tier Water Method Alchemy Inheritance, Soul Nourishing Pills, and a Jade Marrow Mushroom over five hundred years old..."
The items on this list alone were worth at least seventy to eighty thousand low-grade spirit stones.
I've struck gold with a major customer, Yun Luo thought, barely suppressing her elation. Her lips twitched, threatening to betray her excitement.
Years of professional training, however, kept her composed. She calmly addressed Wei Zhong: "Fellow Daoist, most of the spiritual treasures on your list are exceedingly rare, and many are currently out of stock. For example, we've never sold a thousand-year-old Nine-Heart Fruit off the shelf. If you're interested, our Chamber of Commerce will hold an auction in a year where such a Millennial Spirit Medicine will be featured. If you're not in a hurry, you can wait and bid for it there. However, if you need it sooner, you can exchange your Contribution Points. We can then arrange for it to be transferred from the Prefecture City, which would only take a few days."
Wei Zhong shook his head. "Let's move on to the other items."
"We have three Thousand Spirit Water Stones in stock, each priced at one thousand low-grade spirit stones."
"We have multiple Third-Tier Alchemy Inheritances, but the Water Method Alchemy you're seeking is quite niche. We only have one copy of that."
"We also have Soul Nourishing Pills available at eight thousand spirit stones each. Additionally, we have a substantial quantity of five-hundred-year-old Jade Marrow Mushrooms at two thousand spirit stones per stem. How many would you like?"
Wei Zhong pondered briefly before replying, "I'll take all three Thousand Spirit Water Stones. For the Third-Tier Alchemy Inheritance, bring me that Water Refinement Method, and also two excellent Fire Refinement Methods for comparison."
"I'll take three Soul Nourishing Pills and ten Jade Marrow Mushrooms."
"And please expedite the appraisal of this item." Wei Zhong gestured to the jade jar filled with remnants on the table.
"Understood, Senior. We'll gather your items as quickly as possible. However, given the severely damaged condition of this spiritual treasure, the appraisal may take some time. We appreciate your patience."
Wei Zhong nodded and picked up his cup of Spirit Tea.
The woman named Yun Luo took the inventory list, retrieved the jade jar, and left the room.
Wei Zhong had barely taken a sip of his Spirit Tea when Yun Luo returned with the items.
After a quick inspection of the Soul Nourishing Pills, Jade Marrow Mushrooms, and other miscellaneous spiritual treasures, Wei Zhong stored them in his Grotto-Heaven. He then picked up the three translucent Thousand Spirit Water Stones, a thought crossing his mind.
No wonder these are so popular at the Cloud Gathering Merchant Guild—they're practically idolized for their Spirit Body transformation properties. If I hadn't arrived at just the right moment, I doubt I would have had a chance to acquire these three stones.
Clutching the stones in his hand, Wei Zhong asked, "Can these Thousand Spirit Water Stones be reserved?"
Yun Luo's smile faltered momentarily before she shook her head apologetically. "This item is extremely popular at our Chamber of Commerce and cannot be reserved, Fellow Daoist. We ask for your understanding."
Unsurprised, Wei Zhong casually put the stones away.
He then turned his attention to the Third-Tier Alchemy Inheritances, examining each one carefully.
Since only portions of each inheritance were displayed, Wei Zhong quickly finished browsing them.
"I'll take the Water Refinement Method and the Fire Refinement Method," he declared, pointing to the Water Refinement Method on the far left and the Fire Refinement Method in the center.
Yun Luo's excitement surged as Wei Zhong selected two inheritances at once. She retrieved jade boxes to carefully package the two Inheritance Jade Slips before asking, "
"The appraisal of the spiritual treasures is still in progress. Please wait a moment longer, Fellow Daoist," Yun Luo said.
Wei Zhong nodded, accepting the jade box.
Yun Luo refilled his teacup and kept him company with conversation. Wei Zhong responded with polite evasiveness, revealing nothing about himself.
After Wei Zhong had finished five cups of Spirit Tea, an old Daoist with a white beard finally entered the room. He carried a jade jar in one hand and a sheet of paper covered with the names of various spiritual treasures in the other.
Handing the paper to Wei Zhong, he said, "The spiritual treasures you provided are too fragmented. I could only barely identify a portion of them."
Wei Zhong took the paper and scanned the long list:
"Golden Silk Bamboo, Thousand-Knot Flower, Dragon Saliva Liquid, Azure Jade Fruit..."
The list contained over twenty different spiritual treasures.
What a chaotic mess, Wei Zhong thought, his head beginning to ache. With such a diverse collection of incomplete treasures, he had little confidence in piecing together the original Wine Recipe. Only if his brewing technique reached Grandmaster or even Grandmaster-level would he have a slim chance.
Or... could I just ask the Third-Tier Spirit Monkey directly?
An idea sparked in Wei Zhong's mind.
"This is sufficient. Thank you, Fellow Daoist. May I inquire about the appraisal fee?"
The man shook his head, his silver-flecked beard swaying from side to side. "Fellow Daoist, identifying this item was purely out of personal interest. There's no need for compensation. However, if you wish to discern the spiritual treasures within, you'll need to reverse-engineer the spirit wine's recipe."
Wei Zhong nodded readily.
To ensure an accurate appraisal, Wei Zhong had refrained from processing the residue, which still reeked of strong wine. It was only natural for the appraiser to deduce its origin.
"In that case, Fellow Daoist, you have quite a task ahead of you. Judging by the complexity of the spiritual treasures used in this wine, it doesn't appear to be the work of human cultivators. Rather, it resembles the crude concoctions of barely civilized demon beasts and spirits."
Wei Zhong's expression betrayed his surprise. He hadn't anticipated that such a detailed conclusion could be drawn from mere dregs.
He clasped his hands in a respectful salute. "I haven't yet inquired about your esteemed name, Fellow Daoist. May I know your honored title?"
The man stroked his white beard. "I am Xu Xuan, the humble shopkeeper of this establishment."