Chapter 431 - 398: Foundation Establishment Perfection, the Fake Pill Realm

Chapter 431: Chapter 398: Foundation Establishment Perfection, the Fake Pill Realm

"What a pity..."

With a soft sigh, the roaring True Flame flickering beneath the Pill Furnace extinguished. Amidst the billowing heat from the furnace, several silver-white Elixir Pills hovered before Chu Mu.

He gazed at the Elixir Pills, a hint of regret flashing in his eyes.

’If I understood the mysteries of the "Forbidden God Seal,"’ he thought, ’and if I could modify it to infuse into these pills, it would be absolutely undetectable.’

’Even if I wouldn’t dare use it on a Nascent Soul True Demon, those "old acquaintances" from Qili Village are only at the Foundation Establishment Realm. With them being at the same cultivation level and having no emotional ties, I would have no reservations.’

’Controlling those two and having them enter the Secret Realm... given the realm’s unique nature, my safety would be tremendously assured.’

Without the "Forbidden God Seal," he could only tamper with the Elixirs themselves—specifically, controlling... their medicinal effects...

For an Alchemist like him, this was, of course, extremely easy.

It was merely a matter of slightly modifying the Pill Recipe and siphoning off a portion of the medicinal effects to act as a control mechanism.

When this portion of the Medicinal Power was siphoned off, it would normally be indistinguishable from the rest, remaining an integral part of the Elixir.

But if the need arose, an external trigger could activate this siphoned portion, causing the Elixir’s effects to fail.

Given the unique nature of the Secret Realm, once the medicinal effects failed...

Chu Mu suspected the outcome would not be pleasant.

However, this was only his speculation.

He wasn’t sure what the exact nature of the Secret Realm’s restrictions on Cultivation was.

After all, there were Tier Two Demon Beasts within the Secret Realm.

This uncertainty meant that he absolutely could not use this method unless he had no other choice.

Otherwise, if the effects dissipated, all pretenses were dropped, and there were still no consequences for them, he would be finished.

"Hm?"

As he was pondering, he seemed to sense something and abruptly looked up and out the window. He saw the originally calm Spiritual Qi in the courtyard suddenly surge, forming a tornado-like vortex that was already swirling around Xu Yuan.

A look of delight appeared on his face. With a wave of his hand, he tidied up the room and took a single step, arriving in the courtyard.

He had long understood the transformation involved in Bloodline Foundation Establishment.

At its root, bloodline cultivation was not fundamentally different from traditional Immortal Dao Cultivation.

It was just that due to the nature of bloodlines, bloodline cultivation generally leaned more towards body cultivation.

It could be considered a unique Cultivation System that combined the Immortal Dao with bloodlines.

Tier Two Foundation Establishment, Tier Three Core Formation, Tier Four Nascent Soul—the paths were interconnected; only the internal systems differed.

His Divine Sense had already enveloped Xu Yuan. Every internal and external change of the bloodline’s transformation into Foundation Establishment was clearly reflected in Chu Mu’s Divine Sense Perception.

The bloodline fusion was long complete. The surging power of his bloodline had come to a full boil within Xu Yuan’s body. After several years of continuous fusion, the final transformation had begun.

Chu Mu observed with great care. From his years of bloodline experiments, he knew with absolute clarity that the moment of Cultivation Advancement was when a bloodline was at its most unstable.

In this state of instability, the possibility of Ancestral Return would also increase dramatically.

Under such conditions, one could naturally glimpse more of a bloodline’s mysteries, such as its lineage and Bloodline Divine Techniques...

This final, critical transformation lasted for nearly a full day and night. When the bloodline fluctuations subsided and the swirling Spiritual Qi dissipated...

Bloodline Foundation Establishment... was complete!

Chu Mu retracted his Divine Sense Perception, took out a Jade Scroll with a flick of his wrist, and recorded all his recent observations into his bloodline research notes.

"Brother Mu..."

Xu Yuan stood up, his face filled with excitement.

"Go into seclusion for a while first to adapt to the power of your Bloodline Foundation Establishment."

Chu Mu nodded and casually handed over a Jade Scroll. "This is the Purifying Heart Spell. It can calm the mind and soothe the spirit, and it’s remarkably effective at resisting bloodline corruption. Learn it as soon as you can."

"Also, Refine and familiarize yourself with these few Spiritual Artifacts as quickly as possible."

As he spoke, Chu Mu pointed to several Top Grade Spiritual Artifacts piled up in the room.

Xu Yuan stared blankly, clearly confused.

"There’s turmoil in the Vast Sea. I’m afraid it won’t be peaceful for some time..."

Chu Mu sighed and slowly explained.

After hearing Chu Mu’s explanation, Xu Yuan’s excited expression immediately grew heavy. He had experienced the Jingmen incident, weathered years of ups and downs with the East Lake Xie Family, and had even lost two of his children in the turmoil.

His experience with such turmoil, which affected the entire Cultivation Immortal Realm, was clearly etched into his very bones.

"Don’t overthink it. The True Understanding Pavilion still has some face in Chixia."

"The Chen Family has operated in the Vast Sea for tens of thousands of years. They won’t be defeated so easily."

"As long as the situation doesn’t become irreversible, you can stay here at the True Understanding Pavilion with peace of mind,"

Chu Mu patted Xu Yuan’s shoulder, his tone tinged with a strange sense of melancholy.

Turmoil in the Vast Sea, and the appearance of a True Demon.

Both were fundamentally connected to him.

From now on, as the Ninth True Inheritor of Longevity and a key figure in the True Demon’s scheme, he would clearly be inseparable from any developments.

It was likely impossible for him to remain uninvolved and carefree as before.

In comparison, his own Immortal Path was likely the one that was truly bleak.

"Go on."

Chu Mu waved his hand, looking somewhat helpless.

Xu Yuan nodded, looking a bit downcast, then turned and walked into the room.

Chu Mu surveyed the backyard, pondered for a moment, then took a step and arrived at the True Understanding Pavilion in the front yard.

As he went up to the second floor, two gazes instantly locked onto him.

"Fellow Daoist."

Seeing Chu Mu come upstairs, the two of them rose to their feet.

"Chu Mu, of the Nanshan Clan."

Chu Mu sat down in the hall and looked at the two people from Qili Village before him, offering this strange sentence as a self-introduction.

The two exchanged a look, then replied with a single sentence.

"Xu Ning and Li Xiu, from Nanshan’s Qili Village."

Chu Mu silently repeated their names to himself, then asked, "Has there been any news from your senior?"

The two looked at each other, and finally, Xu Ning spoke up, "It probably won’t be that fast."

Chu Mu was slightly taken aback. His gaze flickered as he looked at the two before him with a hint of confusion.

Xu Ning was silent for a moment before she said slowly, "The mysterious disappearance of the East Lake Secret Realm... Fellow Daoist, you should be aware of this, right?"

Chu Mu nodded.

Xu Ning continued, "The Secret Realm didn’t disappear. It was obtained by the Great Heng."

"According to our senior, the control center of the East Lake Secret Realm was likely grasped by the Great Heng Royal Family long ago. However, the Secret Realm had always been hidden beyond the heavens, with the two worlds separated, so the Great Heng Royal Family could never detect its location."

"After the Secret Realm appeared at East Lake back then, it was detected by the Great Heng Royal Family, who seized control of it. That’s why it mysteriously vanished."

"Although our senior has now detected traces of the Secret Realm, wanting to bypass the Great Heng and open a Gate of Space to it is by no means an easy task..."

Chu Mu asked again, "Then that senior’s clan..."

He stopped mid-sentence.

Xu Ning, however, gave a subtle nod.

Chu Mu’s gaze flickered. With the confirmation from Xu Ning’s words, the faint suspicion in his heart undoubtedly became fact.

’The Secret Realm really was taken by the Great Heng.’

’The fifty-year pact was clearly broken by the Great Heng as well.’

The thought flashed through his mind and was gone. Chu Mu looked at the woman before him and asked, "Fellow Daoist, you’re not a Demon Cultivator, are you?"

"To enter the Secret Realm, I will accompany my husband and fall into demonhood."

Xu Ning looked at the perpetually silent Li Xiu, her tone resolute.

Chu Mu was speechless.

If he remembered correctly, quite a few people from Qili Village had survived back in Nanshan Town. There were wanted and unwanted, men and women, old and young.

In Jingmen, he had even treated one of them, receiving a piece of Broken Spirit as payment.

Looking at these two now, the possibility that the other survivors from Qili Village were gone was very, very high.

"I have another question, and I hope Fellow Daoist can enlighten me."

"Please speak freely, Fellow Daoist."

"Entering the Secret Realm, breaking the Sealing Demon Array... what is the purpose?"

As his words fell, Chu Mu stared intently at the man and woman before him, capturing every minute change in their expressions.

"To enter the Demon Realm!"

Xu Ning’s expression was calm.

Chu Mu was startled and suspicious. "You... are all entering the Demon Realm?"

"Correct."

Xu Ning nodded.

Chu Mu pointed to the room to the side. "Then what about him?"

"When the time comes, we will probably have to trouble you, Fellow Daoist."

Xu Ning smiled sweetly.

Chu Mu frowned.

If it was truly as Xu Ning said, then compared to the immense trouble represented by the Spatial Rift, this small matter was undoubtedly insignificant.

He was just afraid that Xu Ning was lying, or that the True Demon had a much grander scheme.

This matter involved a Spatial Rift connecting to the Demon Realm. If he got entangled in it and something went wrong, then in this vast world, there would truly be no place left for him to hide!

Thinking of this, he didn’t press the matter any further.

After all, he wasn’t sure what the relationship between this couple and the True Demon was—were they allies, were they coerced, or were they controlled like slaves...

Asking about some trivial matters was fine, but if he asked about secrets, he might just bring disaster upon himself.

After a few more pleasantries, he hurried down from the pavilion and re-entered the backyard.

The Array Prohibition activated, once again isolating the inside from the outside.

Chu Mu entered the Secluded Meditation Chamber and sat cross-legged. The Light Curtain Panel appeared in his vision.

The Cultivation Progress of his Great Sun Scripture was displayed clearly on the Light Curtain Panel.

’Break through to the Fake Pill Realm!’

Chu Mu pressed his lips together, his eyes growing resolute

No matter what, one’s own Cultivation was always the most reliable support.

If he were at the Nascent Soul realm, all his current predicaments would be illusory.

What was a Nascent Soul True Demon? He could suppress it with a wave of his hand!

He swallowed an Elixir. Chu Mu’s eyes closed slightly, and as his Magical Power circulated, wisps of Medicinal Power were rapidly refined.

In such a critical situation, he could no longer worry about the corrosive Erysipelas in the Elixirs. As his secluded Cultivation continued, he consumed one Elixir after another.

On the Light Curtain Panel, the Skill Level representing his Cultivation Progress was also increasing at a speed visible to the naked eye.

In less than a year, after consuming dozens of Tier Two Upper Grade Elixirs, his Cultivation Progress on the Light Curtain Panel was just one step away from breakthrough to Perfection—a hair’s breadth away.

The long-absent feeling of an invisible barrier also welled up in Chu Mu’s mind.

Chu Mu’s gaze was deep. He consumed a Two-Patterned Pill and closed his eyes again. The surging Medicinal Power rushed forth like a tidal wave. In just an instant, the barrier that had just appeared was shattered like a fragile piece of paper under this torrential force!

Foundation Establishment Perfection Fake Pill Realm... achieved!

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