Chapter 424: Studying an Immortal Formula

After the flying vessel returned to the Realm of Qingming, the Mastercraft Hall disciples went to report to Yu Zhizhuo, while Hsu Henshui led the disciples of Mother Nature Monastery to settle in a place that was overflowing with spirit qi.

The location he chose was very close to a herb garden and also near the new city housing the Xu Clan youngsters and human sacrifices. It was located at none other than the heart of the realm. The site was destined to become a vital hub for pill-making, so Wei Yuan naturally did not wish to let any harm befall it.

Although Hsu Henshui had come only with ten people, he had brought four large mystic-treasure-grade storage artifacts with him. They contained not only dozens of pill furnaces of various sizes but also a complete medicinal warehouse filled with processed herbs.

In addition, Hsu Henshui had brought more than ten different types of fire seeds to be used in conjunction with various pill formulas.

After several days of nonstop work, they finally finished unloading all the supplies they had brought. Hsu Henshui then drew up blueprints, and 300 young servants began the official construction of the Mother Nature Monastery branch. Wei Yuan also dispatched an additional 200 cultivators to assist in the work, which was why construction proceeded at a rapid pace.

Seven days later, Hsu Henshui finally had a chance to take a short break. As fatigue set in, Hsu Henshui closed his eyes and fell into a deep sleep.

Then he had a very strange dream. In it, he seemed to have entered a strange space where he encountered several people and discussed pill formulas with them at length.

Strangely, though these people appeared to know very little about pill-making, they possessed a rather wondrous ancient formula—a Kun Origin something Pill?

Hsu Henshui had spent the entire night studying this ancient pill formula. To his credit, he was highly erudite and deeply versed in the Dao of pill-making. Moreover, the Hsu Clan possessed deep accumulation and had hoarded countless precious items in their treasure trove. This granted him a breadth of knowledge that few could hope to match. Thus, Hsu Henshui was able to roughly identify two of the herbs in the ancient formula and find modern substitutes for them.

However, in the midst of his excitement, before he had a chance to verify his findings, the time he had set for himself elapsed, and he awoke from his slumber. Upon waking, Hsu Henshui could only vaguely recall fragments of the dream. Most of the experience had slipped his mind.

However, such a scenario—one resembling a dream bestowed by an immortal—could never occur without a cause. Moreover, as an Avatar with an unwavering Dao heart, it was impossible for him to experience a random, uncontrolled dream during deep sleep.

After careful reflection, Hsu Henshui went to the merit hall to exchange for a batch of books, ultimately confirming that the phenomenon of immortals bestowing dreams actually existed. The two ancient herbs he had learned about in the dream also deeply intrigued him.

Many of these immortal-grade herbs had either become extinct or shifted their places of origin due to changes in Heaven and Earth, making them nearly impossible to find. For a pill master like Hsu Henshui, every herb was a window through which he could glimpse a corner of the Great Dao of Heaven and Earth. Such long-lost herbs, in particular, promised to unlock unprecedented treasures.

Thus, despite finding the situation bizarre and even a little eerie, Hsu Henshui decided to take a risk during the very next day. He first set up an array to fully protect his perception, then ordered his men to guard his residence. Finally, he sat in the center of the array and fell into a deep sleep.

Once asleep, Hsu Henshui indeed found himself back in the immortal’s dream realm. However, his consciousness never cleared up completely, and his vision was mostly pitch black save for the occasional figures flashing by.

People seemed to be speaking around him, but he was unable to make out what they were saying. Suddenly, Hsu Henshui sensed an aura around him that felt very familiar and comforting—as if it shared the same origin as his own—but the aura immediately vanished afterward and conveyed no message to him.

Nevertheless, sensing the familiar aura put his mind at ease.

That night’s dream once again revolved around studying the ancient immortal formula. Hsu Henshui’s spirits lifted and, throwing all his worries to the back of his mind, he began studying it with total concentration. Although he had not yet found modern substitutes for the remaining ingredients, simply studying the principles behind the formula’s creation had already yielded immense benefits for him.

When he awoke, Hsu Henshui felt mentally and spiritually exhausted. His perception was plagued by waves of inexplicable pain as well. His memories of the immortal’s dream realm had once again become extremely hazy—most of them outright forgotten—yet the memories related to the immortal formula and the principles he had learned remained crystal clear in his mind, which filled him with overwhelming joy.

As Hsu Henshui rubbed the back of his head, he finally realized that it wasn’t his head that ached—it was his perception. He groaned, stood up, and suddenly froze.

The array he had set up to protect his perception had been completely destroyed!

Hsu Henshui hurriedly summoned the disciples on guard, but they looked completely bewildered, saying that no one had entered the courtyard and there had been no movement in the room.

Everyone chosen to come to the Realm of Qingming this time were outstanding disciples of Mother Nature Monastery. Both their capabilities and loyalty were beyond reproach. Naturally, Hsu Henshui did not suspect any of them. Moreover, they were all at the Dao Foundation stage, while he was in the Avatar stage—if even he hadn’t detected anything amiss, how could these disciples possibly have noticed anything?

For the rest of the day, Hsu Henshui remained on edge. It was to the point where he had nearly forgotten his usual skincare routine. However, when the Zi Hour[1] arrived, Hsu Henshui’s mind was filled only with the pill-making principles he had pored over the previous night.

This ancient immortal formula was clearly quite comprehensive. The entire process of refining the elixir had been laid out before his eyes. The only difference between this and a transmission of true intent was that it was covered up by a thin veil. Each such formula was incredibly valuable as a matter of course, and after just one night of study, Hsu Henshui felt that his mastery of the Dao of pill-making had improved once more.

After much deliberation, he finally stamped his foot, let out a soft sigh, and lay down on his bed, falling into a deep sleep.

This time, he didn’t bother setting up a spirit-protecting array.

Meanwhile, Wei Yuan was poring over a map and pondering the situation in the surrounding area, when a sudden feeling struck him. He sensed that some sort of change had taken place within the Great Realm once again.

As soon as Wei Yuan’s perception entered the Great Realm, he saw Hsu Henshui’s figure appear.

Hsu Henshui was clearly in a state between sleep and wakefulness. While he was still dazed and disoriented, Yin Yang appeared behind him and immediately pulled a black cloth bag over his head, blocking off most of his senses[2]. Shortly after, she teleported him into a stone hall. An orb of light floated in the center of the hall; there was nothing else there.

Hsu Henshui was extremely docile. He immediately sat cross-legged beneath the orb of light and began to study it.

Wei Yuan knew this orb of light all too well—t was none other than the ancient immortal formula of the Kun Origin Pill of Longevity, through which he had received an inheritance of true intent. However, Wei Yuan’s mastery of the Dao of pill-making was mediocre at best, and he had never been able to find the time to delve into it. As a result, the immortal formula had remained unfulfilled to this day.

Hsu Henshui was an Avatar, and not just any Avatar. How had he been dragged in here as well?

The classification of an Avatar mirrored that of a Dao Foundation and was divided into four tiers: Immortal, Heaven, Earth, and Human. A Human-tier Avatar generally corresponded to an Earth-tier or Heaven-tier Dao Foundation, and an Earth-tier Avatar corresponded to a Heaven-tier or Immortal-tier Dao Foundation.

A Heaven-tier or Immortal-tier Avatar could only be obtained with an Immortal-tier Dao Foundation. Thus, there were differences even between two Immortal-tier Dao Foundations. In fact, the gap between two Immortal-tier Dao Foundations could be greater than the gap between an Immortal-tier Dao Foundation and a Human-tier Dao Foundation.

Hsu Henshui’s Avatar was the Orchid Immortal—a Heaven-tier Avatar by any measure. That was why Wei Yuan could never have imagined that Hsu Henshui of all people would be drawn into his Avatar world. It would seem that he needed to reassess the true level of the Fire of Humanity once more.

Anyway, Hsu Henshui’s Orchid Immortal Avatar was immediately sealed by Yin Yang upon entering the place. She had also blocked the vast majority of his senses, allowing him to access only the ancient immortal formula.

Hsu Henshui was a scholar. The moment he saw the ancient immortal formula, he instantly became absorbed by it and forgot everything else.

Wei Yuan breathed a sigh of relief. Thank goodness the guy’s senses were sealed off. Yin Yang was completely naked right now; it wouldn’t have been a huge loss if he had gotten a glimpse of her.

No sooner had this thought crossed Wei Yuan’s mind than Yin Yang turned her head toward him. He inwardly winced—he had almost forgotten that she now possessed a sentient mind and was no longer the puppet he could manipulate at will.

Yin Yang looked down at herself, and one by one, garments suddenly appeared on her body. Finally, she was clad in a scholar’s robe—one identical in style to Zhang Sheng’s.

Wei Yuan felt the urge to slap himself. He really should’ve known better than to let his mind wander like that.

Some time later, it was time for Hsu Henshui to awaken once again. The man withdrew his perception, but it was clear from his expression that he was quite reluctant to leave. Just then, Yin Yang silently appeared behind him and struck the back of his head with her palm, sending him flying across the Great Realm and scattering the vast majority of his memories, leaving him with only the parts related to the immortal formula.

Several light orbs of varying sizes remained where Hsu Henshui had been standing, each containing his insights into the ancient immortal formula. As Yin Yang gathered the orbs and organized them, Wei Yuan’s consciousness was enriched with various pill-making knowledge that he definitely didn’t possess before.

Standing at the side, Wei Yuan could only watch in utter astonishment. Even now, he could hardly believe what had just taken place in his own Avatar world.

Could it be that he, the realm lord, had already become a figurehead[3]?

1. 11 pm to 1 am. Also remember Hsu Henshui has not been indoctrinated yet. ☜

2. Some mysteries are better left unsolved... ( ?° ?? ?°) ☜

3. Yes. ☜