Cultivation: When you take things to the extreme - Chapter 117
Chapter 117: Chapter 83: The Pill is Formed – Part 1
Translator: 549690339
After tending to the fields, he visited the fish ponds, which had also flourished. Over a decade, the quality had transformed.
Content with this development, Xu Yang finally made his way to the medicinal herb garden.
The garden boasted a variety of spiritual medicines, which, nurtured by skill traits combined with “fertilizer” and “spiritual energy”, had reached a medicinal age of a hundred years.
A hundred years was quite decent, but most of the herbs Xu Yang had cultivated were mundane, and a century-old medicinal age was far from miraculous; at least a millennium was required for them to transform substantially.
After his contact with the Cultivation World, he had purchased batches of spirit medicinal plant seeds at various markets. However, spiritual medicines grew much slower than mundane herbs. After a decade of cultivation, their medicinal age had increased by only twenty years, making them nearly useless.
Xu Yang was here not to harvest the spiritual medicines, but to utilize the power of this “spirit land” to aid in his alchemy.
What pill?
Foundation Building Pill!
Xu Yang opened his storage bag and took out several spiritual medicines radiating spirit light, and brimming with spiritual energy.
These were cultivated in the Blackwater River, then transferred here through the power of his Divine Soul. He had conducted numerous successful experiments with them and could replace the materials of this world to refine Foundation Building Pills.
These ingredients were sufficient for three attempts. If he succeeded once, he could use the pill to break through the fifth realm and achieve Foundation Establishment!
With his current mastery of Elixir Skills combined with the help of his skill traits, his success rate was around fifty percent.
Fifty-fifty, neither high nor low.
Not very stable.
But Xu Yang still decided to proceed with alchemy, because after a decade of accumulation and refinement under the effect of various skill traits, particularly “Heaven rewards hard work”, he had reached the carrying limit of the Qi Refinement Realm. If he did not consume a medicinal pill for Foundation Establishment, he might lose control and inadvertently establish his foundation on his own.
This was the power of skill traits. Heaven rewards hard work, and there will always be a return. No bottleneck or barrier could prevent it from working. As long as you practice, there will definitely be gains and rewards.
Regrettably, Heaven rewards hard work could only guarantee returns in
martial practice and cultivation, not assured success in realm breakthroughs.
Its principle was like watering a plant; it only focused on pouring in, not caring whether the container could handle it or not.
Therefore, the risks of Foundation Establishment still existed, and only by consuming spirit pills could one be completely safe.
Xu Yang had no choice but to start the furnace and begin alchemy.
Of course, he had another option, which was to refine it in the Blackwater River and then transport the finished Foundation Building Pills here. This would ensure complete safety without having to worry about the success rate. But after weighing the pros and cons, he did not choose to do so.
The cost-effectiveness was too low!
Transporting a complete Foundation Building Pill would consume a lot of Divine Soul power, a price much greater than transferring spiritual medicines.
If Xu Yang chose to transport Foundation Building Pills, he would have to give up many skill traits and the divine seal he had been striving to attain. Was it worth giving up all that for one Foundation Building Pill?
Of course not.
To him, the Foundation Building Pill was important but not that important.
His life was critical, only one chance, no room for error.
But this realm, Foundation Establishment, what was it in comparison? Not much really.
Compared to those skill traits and the divine seal related to the Earth Deity Cultivation Method, one Foundation Building Pill really wasn’t much.
A person aiming for great success must plan for the moment and even more for a lifetime!
So after careful consideration, Xu Yang decided to only transfer the spiritual medicine ingredients and allocate his Divine Soul power to more important skill traits.
Now, with three sets of ingredients, if he couldn’t succeed in refining one Foundation Building Pill, he would have to consider other options, such as attending a major auction held by the Foundation Establishment powers.
But that was a big risk. Over the past ten years, Xu Yang had seen several such auctions, but every time one ended, it resulted in a bloodbath outside the markets.
Many Robbing Cultivators would come to snatch the pills, and even those who were not Robbing Cultivators didn’t mind playing the part. Even Foundation Establishment Cultivators would shamelessly disregard their status and engage in the mantis stalking the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind.
Xu Yang really did not want to wade into that mire.
Therefore, this time, he must succeed in refining the pills!
Xu Yang arranged the various spiritual medicines, then took out a pill furnace as green and lustrous as carved jade.
The Green Jade Furnace, a supreme-grade magic artifact, made from the “Green Jade Stone” that is a specialty of the Green Jade Sect’s mountain gate. It conveyed spiritual energy better and came with an intrinsic essence of green jade, which could slightly improve the success rate and quality of spirit pills crafted from herbs.
This item had cost Xu Yang two thousand eight hundred lower-grade spirit stones!
One must know that when Xu Yang previously sold the supreme-grade magic artifacts of The Three Scourges of White Dragon, he fetched just over a thousand spirit stones per item. But this Green Jade Furnace, also a
supreme-grade magic artifact, nearly cost him three thousand spirit stones, highlighting the enormous expense of alchemy.
An ordinary Loose Cultivator couldn’t even dream of affording it.
Fortunately, Xu Yang was no ordinary Loose Cultivator.
“Rise! t,
Xu Yang activated his Gang Yuan, transforming it into mana, and channeled it into the Green Jade Furnace.
Immediately, the magic artifact expanded upon contact with the wind and turned into a large cauldron, landing firmly on the ground.
“Open ! ”
Xu Yang cast another stream of Gang Yuan mana, opening the cauldron in anticipation of the pill fire.
Pills require fire to refine!
This fire was not a regular flame, but a “Spiritual Fire” ignited by a cultivator’s mana.
Generally speaking, cultivators with wood-based cultivation techniques had the greatest advantage in alchemy due to their fire brimming with vitality, most suitable for refining various beneficial and restorative herbal spirit pills.
Of course, cultivators of other elemental cultivation techniques could also use their mana to ignite spiritual fires for alchemy, and it wasn’t necessary to only employ wood elemental spiritual fire. It really depended on the elixir skills and spiritual medicines in question.
Xu Yang was a mere mortal without a Spiritual Root. He could cultivate all elemental techniques since he was, according to common sense, not able to cultivate any—his efficiency in absorbing spiritual energy was nowhere near the standards of cultivation.
However, thanks to the Martial Arts Scripture and various skill traits, he could meet the standards of cultivation despite lacking a Spiritual Root. This fatal flaw had now become an advantage, enabling him to practice all elemental cultivation techniques and produce mana of any element.
So is he going to use a wood-attributed spiritual fire for alchemy now?
No!
Xu Yang brought his hands together, and Thunderbolt Strength roared into existence, electric light danced like dragons, soaring and startling as it moved.
Innate Divine Ability—Thunder Commanding Power!
While all attributes of mana could be utilized, how could they compare to the ease of using an innate divine ability?
It must be said, Zhuanzhou Mengdie truly had boundless creation, even capable of transmitting innate divine abilities.
Xu Yang’s Thunder Commanding Power was at his fingertips, as natural as an extension of his body.
“Boom!”
The thunder and lightning entered the furnace, replacing the fire used for making pills, infusing thunderbolt strength and turning the Green Jade Furnace into a golden jade color.
For thunderbolt is the pivot between heaven and earth, capable of commanding all within the Three Realms and nine lands, not only governing destruction but also creation. Otherwise, how could Xu Yang use it for both body tempering and increasing his cultivation?
Similarly, using thunder techniques in alchemy can also create extraordinary effects!
As Xu Yang manipulated the electric energy, the golden lightning poured into the furnace, making the Green Jade Furnace appear transparent and visible.
Then, with a control of mana, the spiritual medicine took flight, autonomously hurling itself into the furnace to have its essence extracted beneath thunderbolt creation, turning into elixir liquid.
The grass and wood elixir technique solidifies the liquid into pills!
With Xu Yang manipulating the lightning, it danced chaotically like golden snakes. It appeared less like he was concocting pills and more like he was dueling with someone.
There was a sense of wild intensity, yet it flowed smoothly like the drifting clouds and flowing water—a paradoxical beauty!
“Ha!!!”
Once all the spiritual medicine had been inserted, the man, who was seated cross-legged, suddenly stood up, raised his hands furiously, and lightning burst forth like a dragon.
“Boom!!!”
The lightning, like a dragon, plunged in, and the furnace, weighing tens of thousands of pounds, suddenly lifted from the ground, suspended in midair.
As the thunder and lightning danced wildly around the furnace, mana within his body rapidly depleted, but Xu Yang continued to discharge the electric energy relentlessly.
So it went on for who knows how long…
“Rumble!!!”
Another roar thundered, scattering the thunderbolts and causing the Green Jade Furnace to crash down, shaking the entire small island.
At the same moment of impact, the lid of the furnace opened, and electric light erupted, spitting out a bolt of lightning.
“Ha!”
Xu Yang laughed heartily, reaching out his hand to draw in the lightning, which immediately hurtled towards his palm.
Then, closing his hand, the lightning dissipated, leaving behind only a shimmering Spirit Light.
Xu Yang looked down, opened his hand, and saw a Spirit Pill quietly lying there in his palm.
The main body of the pill was white jade in color, with golden patterns like climbing dragons on the outside, and amidst the shimmering light, flashes of lightning could be seen…
It was indeed the pill born from Thunder Tempering Skill—the Supreme Grade Foundation Building Pill!
This pill contained the life-force of spiritual medicine and also the power of thunderbolt creation.
The former could protect the body and divine soul, smooth out the violent surges of mana, prevent the adverse effects of a failed Foundation
Establishment due to the clash of the three forces, and save the cultivator’s life.
The latter could enhance mana, refine the body and soul, assist in merging the power of the three forces and, upon successful Foundation Establishment, improve the cultivator’s abilities, even directly reaching the peak of the early phase of Foundation Establishment.
This is the Supreme Grade Foundation Building Pill, made through the Thunder Technique.
Typically, Foundation Building Pills refined through general elixir techniques come in three qualities: low, medium, and high.
Low-grade pills only save lives, while medium and high-grade pills provide some assistance and promote the merging of the three forces.
But to significantly promote the merging of the three forces and enhance the capabilities after Foundation Establishment, only the Supreme Grade Foundation Building Pill can achieve that.
And such a Supreme Grade Pill cannot be produced through ordinary elixir techniques, but only with special elixir techniques. Xu Yang’s Thunder Tempering Skill is one of them.
“Marvelous!”
One attempt with the materials resulted in success, and a Supreme Grade pill at that. It goes without saying that Xu Yang was overjoyed; he laughed loudly and stored the Spirit Pill in his Storage Bag.
If he were to auction this pill, selling it for tens of thousands of Spirit Stones would be a breeze. If it were sought after by the scions of great Sects or powerful factions needing Foundation Establishment, it could even fetch hundreds of thousands of Spirit Stones.
But obviously, Xu Yang would not do that, for he was not in lack of Spirit Stones.
Having farmed for over a decade and with various patrons willingly giving him their wealth, Xu Yang’s net worth might not be enormous, but it was substantial. Moreover, with a continuous stream of income, there was no need to take the risk of auctioning this Supreme Grade Foundation Building Pill.
This one was for his own use, and if the remaining two sets of materials also yielded success, he would use them for the Golden Eagle and the Electric Eel King.
If both demon beasts successfully achieved Foundation Establishment, he would have three major Foundation Establishment level forces. As long as he didn’t provoke the Three Sects of Golden Core, he could do as he wished in the Cultivation World of Liang Country. “A decade of accumulation finally pays off!”
“Now, it is time for Foundation Establishment.”
Xu Yang packed up the furnace and did not entertain the thought of continuing alchemy, but instead began to plan for Foundation Establishment.
This successful pill concoction could not be attributed to luck alone, but it also involved a significant element of chance, and so couldn’t be guaranteed to happen again and again.
Therefore, as a prudent measure, it would be better to consume the Spirit Pill and complete Foundation Establishment first.
With an elevated realm and strengthened power, the effects of alchemy would also significantly improve.
After all, the quality of mana and the strength of one’s divine consciousness are important factors affecting alchemy.
