Chapter 357 - 346: Strengthening Pill

Chapter 357: Chapter 346: Strengthening Pill

Li Yuan took the Spiritual Essence Jade Marrow Ore and descended deep beneath the Mist Forest Marketplace.

This was the core node of the marketplace’s defensive array, situated on a Spirit Vein. Crisscrossing Array Patterns on the rock walls glowed softly, and the dense Spiritual Qi underground coalesced here into an invisible vortex.

He walked to the center of the Array Hub and carefully placed the Spiritual Essence Jade Marrow Ore right in the middle of the vortex.

Li Yuan glanced at the Jade Marrow Ore quietly steeping in the vortex of Spiritual Qi, then turned and returned to the surface.

Just as he returned to his stone house, a deacon from the management office delivered an urgent message.

The Primordial Yang Sect was setting up a Teleportation Array in Yunyang Marketplace. Due to an extremely tight schedule, they were requesting assistance from the Array Masters of various marketplaces.

Li Yuan didn’t delay, setting out that very day.

When he arrived at Yunyang Marketplace, the core area was already completely sealed off.

Li Yuan passed through multiple layers of guards to enter the site, where an Inner Sect deacon from the Primordial Yang Sect shoved a thick, heavy Array Map into his hands.

"A Tier Three Array," the deacon said, speaking rapidly. "We have several Array Masters leading the project. Pavilion Master Li, with your solid foundation in Tier Two array techniques, you’ll be responsible for carving the circuits and guiding the flow for the six outer spatial nodes."

Li Yuan took the Array Map and extended his Divine Sense into it. An enormous volume of incredibly complex Array Patterns instantly flooded his mind.

A Tier Three spatial Teleportation Array.

Even though his Tier Two array techniques had reached the Great Success stage, the sight of these dense circuits involving spatial folding and Spiritual Power collapse still made his head spin. His current skill level was indeed insufficient to set up such an array independently; he even struggled to fully comprehend the Array Patterns of the core region.

But he didn’t back down.

To be able to assist and personally carve the outer nodes of a Tier Three Array was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to learn from the masters.

Li Yuan immediately threw himself into the work. He controlled the pressure of his Spiritual Power, precisely carving each circuit into the designated stone foundations. Aided by buffs from traits like [Array Mechanism Sympathy], he could always faintly perceive the subtle connections between these outer circuits and the core Array Hub as he worked.

On the third day of construction, the deacon distributed a batch of rewards for the completed phase.

It was mostly routine pills and Spirit Stones, but under Li Yuan’s name, there were two additional archaic-looking jade slips.

One of them contained an array called the Earth Element Array.

The other was a partial copy of a text on Core Formation.

Both were items Li Yuan had spent Contribution Points to redeem.

During a break, Li Yuan extended his Divine Sense into the Core Formation text.

The jade slip recorded several detailed Core Formation methods left behind by Primordial Yang Sect predecessors. He quickly scanned past the cultivation techniques, his gaze landing on the list of Spirit Medicines at the end.

Core Formation didn’t just test the foundation of one’s essence, qi, and spirit; external aid was also crucial.

The jade slip clearly divided Core Formation Spirit Medicines into two categories.

The first category increased the success rate of Core Formation. This included Spirit Medicines that protected the meridians, stabilized the Dantian, or condensed one’s Divine Sense. These types of medicines didn’t offer much help to the final Golden Core Grade.

The second category enhanced the quality of the Core Formation. These Spirit Medicines contained a type of primordial worldly qi or could deeply cleanse the impurities from one’s physical body. If integrated during Core Formation, they could elevate the quality of the resulting Golden Core.

Li Yuan put away the jade slip. It had been a great help to him.

「Ten days later.」

The initial construction of the Teleportation Array at Yunyang Marketplace came to a close. The core Array Masters still needed time for adjustments, so the support staff, including Li Yuan, returned first.

On his first day back at Mist Forest Marketplace, Li Yuan chanced upon a recipe for the Strengthening Pill at a Loose Cultivator’s stall.

It was a Tier One pill, primarily used to treat latent meridian injuries and stabilize Qi Blood. For the current Li Yuan, a recipe like this posed no challenge whatsoever.

He returned to his stone house, lit two Pill Furnaces, and threw in the ingredients for the Strengthening Pills.

Four Divine Sense Lines instantly spread out. Two of them locked onto the space beneath the Pill Furnaces, precisely controlling the Pill Fire’s temperature and the fusion of the medicinal liquids.

Since it was only a Tier One pill, the entire refinement process was ingrained in the muscle memory of his Great Success level Alchemy.

Li Yuan stood up and clapped his hands together. His actual body then pushed open the door and walked out of the stone house.

He left the Divine Sense Lines inside to control the furnaces and refine the pills while he went to patrol the marketplace.

An hour later, Li Yuan returned to the stone house.

The Pill Furnace on the left happened to emit a soft ringing sound.

"Open."

A Divine Sense Line flicked, and the furnace lid flew open. Four round Strengthening Pills landed on a jade plate, their quality upper-mid grade.

Li Yuan reached out and picked one up.

A panel popped up.

[Detected Equipable Item: Strengthening Pill (Complete)]

[Equip Trait Preview: Meridian Fortification (White)]

[Effect: Meridian repair speed +20%; Meridian toughness +20%]

[Permanence Condition Preview: Consume one Strengthening Pill daily for seven consecutive days.]

A white-grade trait. Very basic, but also extremely practical.

"Equip."

[Equipped: Strengthening Pill (Complete)]

[Meridian Fortification (White) is now in effect.]

Li Yuan took out another Strengthening Pill and tossed it into his mouth. A gentle medicinal power instantly dissolved and spread.

[Meridian Fortification (White) Permanence Condition: Consume one Strengthening Pill daily for seven consecutive days (1/7).]

He glanced at the panel and swallowed the remaining few pills.

The next day, on his way to the management office, Li Yuan ran into Chen Yi.

Chen Yi glanced around before pulling Li Yuan into a private room in a secluded teahouse on a street corner.

"Good work with the array," Chen Yi said, pouring a cup of tea, his expression grave. "But there’s no time for you to rest right now."

"A new mission from the Sect?" Li Yuan asked.

Chen Yi nodded but didn’t get straight to the mission. Instead, he brought up a piece of history.

"Pavilion Master Li, do you know who this territory belonged to before the Primordial Yang Sect occupied Liangzhou?"

"A Demon Sect?" Li Yuan recalled from some miscellaneous records he had read.

"Correct. The White Nether Sect," Chen Yi said, tapping the table. "And even earlier, the Nascent Soul Grand Sect that ruled the surrounding area was the Profound Nether Sect. Although the White Nether Sect was a Demon Sect, they weren’t allied with the current Evil Slaying Sect—in fact, they were mortal enemies. The two sides clashed countless times in secret, fighting over resources."

"It was precisely because the Evil Slaying Sect was constantly backstabbing them that the White Nether Sect’s strength was greatly diminished, giving our Primordial Yang Sect the opportunity to defeat them in one fell swoop and occupy Liangzhou."

Li Yuan listened quietly, not interrupting.

"I’m telling you this because the situation has changed," Chen Yi said, taking a deep breath. "The Spiritual Qi in Mozhou is rapidly declining. That region was already barren, and now it’s practically become a Land of Absolute Spirit."

A glint flashed in Li Yuan’s eyes.

A Land of Absolute Spirit.

"One of the destinations for that Tier Three Teleportation Array in Yunyang Marketplace is Mozhou," Chen Yi said, getting to the point. "Don’t be fooled by the fact that Demon Cultivators use Demonic Qi; as I said before, they still need Spiritual Qi to sustain their core Cultivation. Therefore, a place like Mozhou, where Spiritual Qi is depleted, has paradoxically become a relatively safe zone."

"Demon Cultivators won’t station themselves there in large numbers. Even if they gave chase, they would be severely restricted."

Chen Yi looked at Li Yuan.

"The Sect wants you to make a trip to Mozhou. The corresponding Teleportation Array on that end has fallen into disrepair over the years and needs someone who understands arrays to activate and repair it. This task is extremely resource-intensive, so the Sect will approve a large amount of Spirit Stones to support you."

"Why me?" Li Yuan asked.

"You understand arrays, and you’re a strong combatant," Chen Yi said, taking out a jade slip and pushing it toward Li Yuan. "This is a deposit. The Sect promises that as long as you complete the repair mission, they will not only release the rewards for the Demon Cultivators you killed previously but will also grant you complete and total access to the full text on Core Formation."

The full text on Core Formation.

This was the very stepping stone to a higher realm that Li Yuan currently needed most.

"When do I leave?" Li Yuan asked, accepting the jade slip.

"The sooner, the better."