Chapter 1304

Under the gaze of all, Liang Qu removed the Qiankun bag from his waist, pulled the gold thread open, and reached in to rummage about.

The Horn Shark King, the Sea Tooth King, and several other Yao Kings cursed Liang Qu inwardly for pushing his luck; he had taken fish heads and tails, ten small Genghai Dans, and still found it insufficient, not knowing when to stop, actually wanting the Whale Emperor to help remodel his dantian and expand his Genghai.

The Twenty Jiaoren King frowned slightly, feeling Liang Qu's action showed no reverence or respect for the Whale Emperor whatsoever — wanting everything, not understanding courtesy in the least; truly a nest of monkey-men, crude and without propriety.

The Snake Yao felt only that things boded ill.

Only King sneered while harboring a trace of self-satisfaction.

It had long since grasped Liang Qu's boundless greed; because it was half a day late in presenting its congratulatory gift, Liang Qu had rebutted it right there in the hall, nearly causing the Twenty Jiaoren tears plan to die in the womb and losing the "advertising" opportunity. Having seen through the other party before all the other Yaos, it had anticipated this; at this very moment, it felt a dark delight at having seen through everything, its vision and ability surpassing all the Yao Kings present.

It knew how to do business, and understood how to probe hearts and fathom human nature, strategizing from within the tent.

Was there any Yao in the world smarter than it?

Once the Eight-Claw King died, the Twenty Jiaoren King ought to choose it as a partner, so that Hai Fangzhu would not go to the Southern Frontier and stir up trouble.

A pity the Whale Emperor gave it no chance; if it had been allowed to arrange the Great Hunt, those ten small Genghai Dans might well have become its own.

Ai.

Timing, fortune, fate.

Indeed, if all beasts possessed wisdom like its own, instead of being a bunch of fools, the East Sea could not possibly be in its present state.

The waters of Canglang are clear, they can wash my cap-strings; the waters of Canglang are muddy, they can wash my feet.

Why did Heaven bestow upon it such world-transcending, solitary wisdom, standing out like a shark among pigs?

King sank into self-intoxication, its fleshy fins fluttering and dancing.

"Found it — precisely this strand of long Qi, named Yellow Mud Mother!"

In the "Eye Identification Method", all manner of gazes exist; Liang Qu paid them no heed — mere jealousy of the worthy, to which he had long grown accustomed. Without breaking rhythm, he took out a pottery vessel and presented it with both hands, respectfully.

The ceramic was dusty gray, hazy and misted.

He lifted the lid.

A strand of yellow-green Heaven-and-Earth long Qi swayed slowly.

Consuming Qi has five difficulties, the first being the difficulty of collection; however, Liang Qu has the Great Shun at his back, possessing the Four Wilds Jing Tian Yi — a national treasure — not to mention, privately, an even more portable, "omnipotent" Grand Preceptor who knows exactly what container to use just by smelling it.

The Position Fruit is too powerful, leading to quality requirements for the container; long Qi differs, and the container's value has no strong correlation with the long Qi's value. Some container materials are indeed rare, hence precious; others are found everywhere — like Yellow Mud Mother, which only requires clay from the bottom of the Yellow Shahe, fired into pottery, to contain it.

Dig it out, bake it with heart-fire, and the job is done.

Hence this pottery vessel has a bizarre shape, as if someone randomly pinched a handful of clay — extremely ugly.

Only now no one cares whether the pottery is good-looking or not.

"Fertile soil yields flourishing flowers and fruit; barren saline land gives roots no purchase. Good long Qi! The Huai King wishes to self-cultivate a Position Fruit — no wonder he wants to use this strand of long Qi; it will be like adding wings to a tiger."

The Whale Emperor sighed in admiration.

It raised a hand and beckoned; the Yellow Mud Mother inside the pottery vessel actually flew into its hand without any hindrance, without a container, without turning into a special state like a spirit fish — directly grasped bare-handed!

"The Whale Emperor has discerning eyes." Liang Qu did not conceal his surprise, bowing with cupped fists. "The path of cultivation is arduous and long; those who can self-cultivate are few enough to count on one's fingers.

I truly do not wish to miss any opportunity, yet I fear haste makes waste, that a grave mistake might occur on the cultivation path. Since the Whale Emperor asks, I will venture an answer.

If there is anyone under heaven who can solve it, the Whale Emperor is certainly among them; to have the ability to solve it and also be willing to solve it — the Whale Emperor is probably the only one. I beg you to grant this!"

"The path of cultivation is arduous and long————"

Xu Zishuai curled his lip, mimicking Liang Qu's tone as he shook his head and swayed, repeating it once, causing the Xu clan members to glare back at him; he immediately reined in his movements and sat upright with proper decorum.

The Whale Emperor laughed heartily.

"Hahaha, what your senior brother said is quite interesting. I recall humans like to record the years of outstanding talents — the Huai King entered the Yinglong at twenty-seven, unique in all the world, and he still finds it arduous and long?"

"Where is there any genius? I merely took the time others spend drinking tea and devoted it all to cultivation; even while serving in the imperial court, I often missed the morning roll-call because of single-minded cultivation, and was harshly reprimanded by my superiors."

Yang Dongxiong looked back at Xu Zishuai.

Xu Zishuai understood the meaning in that gaze and nearly vomited a mouthful of blood.

No, others believing it is one thing, but Master, you actually believe it?

Xu Yuelong also wore a constipated expression.

Harshly reprimanded?

When did I ever harshly reprimand him?

Which time did I dock his salary? Weren't they all advanced withdrawals you requested?

Liang Qu secretly praised his senior brother Xu's perfectly timed remark.

As Long Eying said, since we are bringing people along, we might as well go all the way; the more completely without guard one appears, the more sincere one seems.

The Whale Emperor wants to demonstrate to everyone that his verification is without problem; Liang Qu also needs to show that he places great trust in the Whale Emperor's verification. What could be more reassuring than dragging one's family along as if taking advantage?

It is precisely because it is Senior Brother Xu — swap in anyone else and the effect would not necessarily be the same.

Come on, come on, just waiting for the rice to hit the pot————

"The Huai King's Genghai is nearly six hundred, right?"

"It is."

A low murmur rose.

The cursing in the hearts of the Horn Shark King and the Sea Tooth King lessened somewhat.

This guy — wasn't he said to be a newly advanced Wu Sheng? How many times has he sat the temple? And his Genghai is already this large? If he reaches Great Completion like this, who in the same realm could withstand him in a fight?

The Yellow Mud Mother swayed and rotated.

"Since that is the case, there are two problems to solve. First, the Huai King's six-hundred-fold Genghai is too vast; a single strand of Yellow Mud Mother long Qi cannot contain it all, and the fusion may fail halfway, rejected by his own Genghai, wasting the effort."

"Rejection?" Liang Qu started.

The Whale Emperor nodded: "Correct. This is also the second problem. In human cultivation, when one enters Entering Entering Zhen Xiang by hunting the tiger, the consumed Qi is already set; even if one later uses it without fusion, one must be careful. How much more so for you — this Yellow Mud Mother remodels the dantian's sea of clouds, all the work is on the sea of clouds, no different from fusion, hence the concern?"

"Correct, correct." Liang Qu nodded.

"Long Qi is a fragment of rules; even identical fragments may be incompatible. Forced fusion at Entering Entering Zhen Xiang means certain violent death; even if one luckily survives, one is no different from a cripple. By the time of Yinglong, the mass gradually grows, the strong and weak reverse, and one can endure the backlash; but even if one endures it, the foreign long Qi cannot stir up much of a wave.

It's like oil and water not mixing, with water being heavier and oil floating on the surface, or like pigments blending together—too minute to alter the essential hue, neither blending nor substantial enough. The final result is that after suffering trauma, the inner sea of clouds slowly expels the mixed colors. Therefore, before resolving the blending issue, one must first have sufficient quantity of deep ink.

Liang Qu hastily pulled out another clay jar: "I dare not deceive the Whale King, but in truth, I only obtained two strands of Yellow Earth Mother previously, and the other strand—I intended to keep it for my disciple, unsure if two strands would suffice."

"Hmm?" Wen Wen Shi Yun, who had been burying her head in eating, lifted her head: "And what about my matter?"

He Han Yu sighed slightly and shook her head.

The Prince of Huai could devote even the time others spent drinking tea to cultivation, enduring how much humiliation for this, and even today, for the sake of progress in cultivation, he willingly took risks, petitioning the Whale King to take another look—

"I think this half-year-old steamed fish is quite good." Wen Wen Shi Yun turned her head, recommending it along with several classmates to avoid appearing overly attentive: "Exquisitely fresh, not to be missed."

Wen Junxuan nodded repeatedly, pointing to his own table: "Tried it, tried it—delicious, delicious!"

"Far from enough." The Whale King shook his head: "The Thousandfold Root Sea, originally derived from a thousand strands—let alone two strands, in my view, one fold per strand wouldn't suffice. A large mass of white with a small amount of black mixed in could already produce a noticeable color change, or fiftyfold Root Sea would require one strand. Only then would it work. For six hundredfold, at least twelve strands are needed."

Liang Qu furrowed his brow.

He never expected the old Yin Whale to throw the problem back—it wasn't unwilling, but simply lacked sufficient vital energy.

If the same vital energy lacks a fixed "harvest" method, relying purely on luck to accumulate it—when would one ever gather enough? He might not even find a third strand after traversing the entire Yellow Shahe.

"Coincidentally, I can indeed solve both of these issues. Since the Prince of Huai has spoken—"

"Hmm?"

Circumstances shifted unexpectedly.

Liang Qu lifted his head.

Only then did he see the Whale King cradling the Yellow Earth Mother vital energy in his left hand, and holding a mass of cloud mist in his right.

The old toad, just about to store vegetables in his cosmos bag, raised his frog head.

"One strand isn't enough; twelve strands would barely suffice—fifteen strands, then, would eliminate assimilation concerns. Yunbo, go fetch vital energy from the treasure vault—there should be earth-attributed ones. Take them all. I suspect it may still be insufficient, as vital energy is useless for cloud-whale cultivation, so little is stored ordinarily. Yunyan."

The Cloud Whale Demon King, seated opposite Liang Qu, rose: "Your Majesty."

"Hurry forthwith, go exchange for—fifteen strands of Great Order Primordial Yellow."

"Yes!"

After Yunyan dissipated into mist, the Whale King then explained: "This mass of cloud mist in my hand is called Heaven Mother Cloud, one of my innate honored implements, akin to how a grandmaster nurtures spiritual weapons, or a martial sage nurtures profound weapons."

Martial sage profound weapons, when placed in a furnace, become honored implements?

Liang Qu, who had been puzzled about why the Whale King required Primordial Yellow, perked up his ears, noting down this knowledge point.

"Its function is actually simple: it can reverse similar items, causing like kinds to return to unity."

Reverse similar, like kinds return to unity?

Combining the Whale King's earlier request, Liang Qu's mind turned, his pupils suddenly dilating: "Can it convert other earth-attributed vital energies into Yellow Earth Mother?"

Hence the need for fifteen strands of Primordial Yellow?

The demon kings present, whose eyes were already wide, widened them further.

"Not quite right, nor quite wrong—converting vital energy is rather difficult, requiring not only earth-attributed energy but also sufficient similarity and adequate sample quantity. Fundamentally, one can achieve conversion of ten at once, but not a hundred. Fortunately, you possess earth-attributed energy and already have two strands. By nature, it aligns well with the most harmonious Primordial Yellow of the Great Order; otherwise, the conversion would demand considerably more effort."

Hardly had the words fallen when Yunbo had already brought five strands of earth-attributed vital energy—all brown, yellow, and gray.

Liang Qu, unaware of their specific functions, watched as the Whale King selected and discarded two strands, then poured the remaining three strands of vital energy entirely into his right hand's Heaven Mother Cloud.

White clouds gathered, enveloping the three strands of vital energy.

As if some form of life were gestating within.

Faint traces of brown, yellow, and gray could be seen drifting out. After about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, the cloud mist dispersed, and three strands of genuinely authentic "excrement-yellow" vital energy drifted and rotated together.

The Shark King ate while watching, eyes unblinking, his heart shaken by the Whale King's might.

Rule fragments—say they change, and they change?

His conviction grew stronger that joining the sea merchants had been the right decision; over so many years in the Eastern Sea, having spent so much money, as long as he aligned with the Whale King, everything would be worthwhile!

After the three strands underwent preliminary assimilation, the Whale King then added Liang Qu's Yellow Earth Mother.

At this very moment, the Yellow Earth Mother resembled a hub, transforming into a fluffy state, extending "tentacles" to hook onto the remaining three strands of vital energy.

This time took considerably longer—fully an hour.

The banquet was drawing to a close; everyone, demons included, had eaten and drunk their fill, merely awaiting the Whale King's display of marvel.

The cloud mist drifted apart, thread by thread, dissipating.

Liang Qu stared wide-eyed, daring not to miss a single detail of the splendor.

The Heaven Mother Cloud resembled a bird's nest nurturing life, its center—

Four strands of half-yellow, half-green vital energy interwove and flowed.

Grass grass grass!

Liang Qu sprang to his feet directly.

Success!

Damn it, four strands of Yellow Earth Mother!

Is this the furnace method?

Directly altering vital energy?

Heavenly Dragon, Furnace.

Separated by only a single realm, yet Liang Qu felt the scene before him utterly overturned his understanding—no less than if he had painstakingly hoarded gold in preparation for riches, only to turn and see someone pluck a proton of mercury barehanded!

Most of those present were demons, who regarded this method with awe, yet having rarely experienced it firsthand, lacked deep impression. Yang Dongxiong, Su Gu Shan, Xu Yue Long, Ran Zhongshi, and others were all stunned speechless.

Especially Ran Zhongshi, who had only exchanged a strand of vital energy with Liang Qu this year, treating it as a treasure and hiding it away.

Back then, who among them wasn't desperately seeking a suitable strand of superior vital energy? Yang Dongxiong even failed to obtain one—having any was already good, and he used the initiation gift Wen Wen Shi Yun gave at age three, a strand of Primordial Yellow.

Actually, Liang Qu felt a twinge of regret—if only two years later, he could have found something better for his master.

But the old monk had said: vital energy inherently knows no distinction; humans assign upper, middle, and lower grades, with upper grade granting great additional benefit, middle grade slight benefit, lower grade none or even detriment—this benefit lies in technique, not in Dao. With the Guimu Sect destroyed, Yang Dongxiong also had few opportunities to act, and personally, he felt no great regret.

If the Whale King possesses such a method, is he not capable of using a single strand of lower-grade vital energy with similar attributes and transforming it into upper-grade?

No, not just that.

In the eyes of Yang Dongxiong, Xu Yuelong, and Su Guishan, it is the distinction between superior and inferior; in Liang Qu's eyes, it is the distinction between Position Fruit and Long Qi!

After all, for a Tiger Hunter to enter Entering Entering Zhen Xiang, at this realm, at this level, to be able to move the Whale Emperor to act and help turn inferior Long Qi into medium — that is less realistic than directly asking a Wu Sheng for superior Long Qi; who would dare not give it?

With that kind of pull, what more is there to say? They'd just hand over the superior Long Qi to you.

The Wu Sheng might even take the initiative to offer it, requesting an introduction.

One thousand strands of identical Long Qi can synthesize one Position Fruit; they are convertible, equivalent to needing only one hundred strands of native Long Qi and nine hundred strands of similar Long Qi.

Alright, it's still very difficult.

But the difficulty of the two is no longer on the same order of magnitude.

Not to speak of distant possibilities — is it possible to turn his and Old Yuan's Time Sequences into twenty strands?

Yunyan's "Stone in the River" has not yet returned, not even reached the Imperial Capital, perhaps not until evening, but Liang Qu knows this hand is truly awesome, genuinely a case of a small knife scraping a buttock; he hurriedly bowed deeply: "Blessed by the Whale Emperor's display of such divine ability, to witness it with my own eyes is the fortune of three lifetimes; I am moved to tears and filled with trepidation. My earlier words were those of ignorance; I did not know they would trouble you to this extent————"

"No matter." The Whale Emperor shook his head. "If I were unwilling, I would simply say I am unwilling; who in the world could force me? Since I agreed, it naturally counts as no great matter. Just treat it as you asking for a dozen or so strands of inferior Long Qi.

A dozen strands of Long Qi — disregarding utility, even for you it is no great matter, and not worth ten Small Root Sea Pills. Yunyan won't be back for a while; it may take until tomorrow for the full conversion to complete. Aside from the quantity of Long Qi, there is the fusion problem. You keep them safe for now."

Four strands of Long Qi flew out.

Liang Qu hurriedly caught them with the clay pot, and then saw the Whale Emperor pluck a small piece from the Heavenly Mother Cloud, swaying unsteadily, drifting over to him.

"After fifteen strands of Yellow Mud Mother Qi, before you use them normally, use this piece of Heavenly Mother Cloud as a primer, like rice-paste glue; once the two show signs of fusion, then use the Long Qi. Thus, both difficulties resolve themselves."

Liang Qu held the Heavenly Mother Cloud in one hand, the clay jar in the other; on the table still lay ten Small Root Sea Pills and a half-eaten fish head; he was stunned speechless.

He had wanted to take advantage of the opportunity to score a bit, never expecting the haul to be this big.

A village banquet eating Emperor Crab!

The Furnace — is there nothing it cannot do?

The Sea Tooth King, the Twenty Jiaoren King — none were not jealous to the point of distorted features.

This wave fully digested is simply a meteoric rise!

Liang Qu chanted his thanks, racking his brains; the one opposite listened to new lyrics never heard before, the old toad secretly displeased, taking advantage of no demons watching, sped up his movements.

The Whale Emperor said: "In my view, this cultivation session is indeed extremely important for you. The Yellow Mud Mother remodeling the Lower Dantian, aiding Root Sea cultivation expansion — that is perhaps the least important link."

Liang Qu looked up, puzzled: "Whale Emperor, these words————"

"Thousandfold Root Sea is the lower substitute for a thousand strands of Long Qi; inherently easier to achieve than gathering a thousand strands of the same Long Qi, yet it means that before the Third Stage, forming a Thousandfold Root Sea is merely one of the foundational conditions for self-cultivation, not the final threshold. Only by carrying such volume and cultivating to the peak of the Dying Dragon can there be hope of success; there are further barriers midway. I perceive self-cultivation as akin to planting a tree: turning the Cloud Sea into fertile soil, letting self-cultivation grow — there may be unexpected delights."

"May I ask the Whale Emperor, what barriers exist after the Thousandfold?"

The Whale Emperor shook his head: "It varies by person; you must seek your own karmic method."

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