Turbulence Within the Sect: Chapter 7 - Turning Stone into Gold
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Chu Xing soon furrowed his brow again.
The seed’s suction was too weak; its vitality was on the verge of collapse, unable to actively absorb anything.
Moreover, the warm current transformed by the stone bead was not concentrated enough, with most of it dissipating into the air.
At this rate, once the primordial energy was depleted, the seed could not be saved.
“It seems gentleness won’t do,” Chu Xing’s eyes narrowed, revealing a trace of determination.
Resolute, he stopped the gentle infusion and instead mobilized the few strands of primordial energy he had painstakingly cultivated, pouring all of it into the stone bead!
Hum…
The stone bead trembled slightly, instantly fully activated.
The chaotic energy within it, under the driving force of Chu Xing’s primordial energy, began to be efficiently purified and compressed.
Finally, it transformed into a droplet of energy, viscous like mercury, emitting a faint green glow!
“Consolidate!”
Chu Xing called out lowly, focusing all his attention as he precisely aimed the energy droplet at the seed resting in his palm!
This time, it was no longer silent.
Pop!
A faint sound, like a tender sprout breaking through the soil, came from within the seed.
Success!
Chu Xing felt the power within him instantly drained; a wave of exhaustion surged, but he paid it no mind, his eyes fixed tightly on the changes in his palm.
The subtle cracks on the gray-brown seed were slowly healing at a visible pace.
Its previously lifeless color now held a hint of luster.
When Chu Xing clasped it again, he could clearly sense the difference.
A faint but tenacious vitality was pulsing slowly inside the seed, like a heart awakening.
This seed was alive!
Though still weak, it had been forcibly pulled back from the brink of death.
“It’s really saved…”
He exhaled deeply, snapping out of intense concentration. A wave of joy welled up in his heart. Clutching the seed reborn in his hands and feeling its faint but genuine life, the corners of his mouth involuntarily curved into a smile.
His gaze shifted toward the direction of Hundred Herb Valley outside the window.
What others saw as a pile of trash now appeared like a treasure mountain.
The problem of cultivation resources seemed… to have a solution.
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Inside the alchemy hall of the Black Star Pavilion, in an elegant quiet chamber.
Elder Fu Lingchuan was holding a jade slip, his brow slightly knit. The slip recorded the recent losses in the alchemy hall’s warehouse.
His finger lightly tapped on the line marked “Centennial Dragon’s Blood Herb.”
“Master.”
A voice called from the door as Mu Wanqing entered carrying a tray of newly refined pills.
Seeing Fu Lingchuan staring at the list, her heart tightened.
“Master, I have already replenished the contribution points for the Dragon’s Blood Herb,” she said softly.
Fu Lingchuan slowly looked up, his gaze resting on her with a calm expression.
“Contribution points are a minor matter,” the elder said as he put down the jade slip and picked up a withered root of Dragon’s Blood Herb, completely depleted of its essence and shriveled.
“I am more curious about how you managed this.”
Mu Wanqing’s heart suddenly sank.
Fu Lingchuan handed the root to her.
“I have spent my life with spirit herbs and pills. When spirit herbs are burned by fire-element primordial energy, their medicinal power usually erupts violently, leaving burn marks. But this plant… its essence seems to have been sucked away entirely, vanished without a trace. The root itself has not even a single scorch mark.”
The calmer his tone, the faster Mu Wanqing’s heart beat.
Her master was not angry, yet that was more pressure-inducing than anger itself.
“I… I just…” Mu Wanqing’s eyes flickered evasively as she lowered her head. “I’m not sure. The situation was urgent. Perhaps it was… an accident.”
Fu Lingchuan watched her silently and did not press further.
The atmosphere in the chamber grew somewhat tense.
After a long moment, Fu Lingchuan withdrew the herb root and waved his hand.
“Enough. Since it was an accident, then let it be. Your newly refined pills are of good quality. You may go.”
“Yes, Master.”
Relieved as if granted amnesty, Mu Wanqing bowed deeply and quickly left the chamber.
Fu Lingchuan did not look at her retreating figure.
His entire focus returned to the withered root in his hand.
He brought it close to his eyes, scraped it with his nails, then smelled it at his nose.
In his cloudy old eyes flickered confusion and suspicion.
“It’s neither fire nor ice… this aura is like something devoured the vitality at its root…”
Fu Lingchuan muttered, his brow knitting ever deeper.
“To think such a ruthless yet refined method of absorption exists in this world…”
Carefully placing the root into a jade box as one would store a priceless treasure.
Chu Xing had no idea that his inadvertent act had cast a stone into the heart of the alchemy hall elder.
Unable to suppress his curiosity, early the next morning he set out again directly for that treasure land.
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In Hundred Herb Valley, Chu Xing focused all his attention on cultivation, rummaging through the piles of waste for withered branches and leaves to absorb energy.
Sometimes, by luck, he found seeds that could still be saved among the discarded material and would rescue and keep them.
After two days, Chu Xing had completely settled here. His primordial energy grew ever fuller, and the ragged bag at his side now held more than a dozen revived seeds.
After absorbing the essence of another withered herb, his brow involuntarily furrowed.
He could clearly feel he had reached the limit of the Body Refinement Stage Five, just one final step from breakthrough!
Yet the surrounding area had been almost thoroughly scavenged over the past two days.
If others knew, they would surely be astonished beyond belief!
He had just barely broken through to Body Refinement Stage Five yesterday, and now his realm was fully consolidated, with only a single step to Stage Six!
Such a cultivation speed was not that of a prodigy, but a monster!
Yet Chu Xing himself frowned deeply.
Too slow!
The remaining energy in these rotten leaves was insufficient to allow a swift breakthrough in such a short time.
His cultivation slowed, and there was no place to stow the seeds in his bag.
He had to find a more concealed place with richer primordial energy!
Chu Xing stood up, brushing the mud off his hands, and let his gaze extend beyond this barren area toward the depths of Hundred Herb Valley.
That place was rarely visited, overgrown with weeds, and even the mountain patrol disciples were said to be too lazy to go there.
Might as well take a look!
Without hesitation, he hoisted his iron spade and walked along the edge of the dirt ditch inward.
The further he went, the rougher the path became. The stench of rot gradually faded, replaced by the smell of moist earth.
After about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, Chu Xing stopped.
His gaze was drawn to a plant nestled in a corner of the stone wall.
It was a half-man-high plant, mostly withered, its leaves yellowed and scorched. Yet at the top, a few stubborn green leaves clung on, covered with clearly visible blue veins!
“Blue Vein Herb!”
Chu Xing’s heart jolted; he caught his breath.
This was the principal ingredient for refining Blue Vein Pills, highly valuable!
The pill grades were divided into Yellow, Black, Earth, and Heaven stages, each subdivided into upper, middle, and lower ranks. The Blue Vein Pill was an upper-rank Yellow Stage pill!
For disciples at the Body Refinement stage, this pill greatly reinforced the meridians, accelerating the flow of primordial energy and solidifying their foundation.