Chapter 148: Foundation Establishment Preparations

Moonlight barely filtered through the dense foliage, scattering a few strands of silver on the damp moss.

This newly found cave was hidden behind a waterfall, the sound of water muffling most noise, and the Cave Entrance was further concealed by a few concealment array disks Wang Shan had casually set up—it was indeed a decent temporary resting spot.

"Hah... finally a chance to catch my breath." Li Hu plopped down onto the dry stone floor, letting out a long, foul breath. "Old man, this place is really hidden, way better than the last one."

Zhang Mei leaned against the stone wall, silently wiping the longbow in her hands. Hearing this, she nodded, her gaze sweeping through the cave to confirm it was safe.

Wang Shan ignored Li Hu's bluster. He first carefully checked on his grandson Wang Zhitao's condition. The little guy was still unconscious, but his breathing was much steadier, and the frightening dark blue tinge on his face had faded considerably.

"First, let's take stock of things." Wang Shan's voice wasn't loud, but it carried an undeniable authority.

From that big melee at Ghost Sorrow Cliff, he had "picked up" quite a few good things. The Wan Family Cultivators, the Black-clothed Person... their storage pouches were now piled up in front of him.

Wang Shan casually picked up a storage pouch from a Wan Family Cultivator, probed it with his Spiritual Sense, and in a moment, the pouch went flat.

"System, recycle."

【Ding! Recycled 3 Third-Tier Magic Artifact fragments, gained 15 Spirit Plant Points... Recycled 7 Talisman fragments, gained 8 Spirit Plant Points... Recycled 120 Lower Grade spirit stones, gained 120 Spirit Plant Points...】

A string of notification sounds rang out in Wang Shan's mind.

Li Hu watched from the side, eyes burning with envy: "Old man, can all this... be turned into good stuff?"

"Mm." Wang Shan didn't look up, moving on to the next one.

The Black-clothed Person's storage pouch had even more miscellaneous items. Besides spirit stones and pills, there were some bottles and jars emitting a strange aura. Wang Shan frowned but had the System recycle them all the same.

【Ding! Recycled 1 Poison-Quenched Bone Dagger, special material, gained 35 Spirit Plant Points... Recycled fragment 1 of "Blood Fiend Sacrificial Refining Art," analyzable, gained 80 Spirit Plant Points...】

Aside from these, there were also a few decent demon beast corpses he had picked up on the battlefield, along with some damaged Magic Artifacts and Talismans from the fights.

After all that work, when the System reported the total Spirit Plant Points, even though Wang Shan had mentally prepared himself, a barely perceptible flicker passed through his eyes.

"Jackpot, we really hit the jackpot this time!" Li Hu, listening to the occasional numbers Wang Shan let slip, was already overjoyed. Though he didn't know exactly what Spirit Plant Points were, seeing the old man's satisfied expression, he knew it was an enormous benefit.

Zhang Mei also looked at Wang Shan, her eyes asking a question.

Wang Shan didn't explain much. He had more important things to do now.

"Zhitao's poison, and our injuries, all need to be dealt with as soon as possible."

With a thought, he quickly searched through the System Mall.

【Three-Tier Healing Pill Recipe】, exchange! 【Three-Tier Nourishing Spirit Pill Recipe】, exchange!

The corresponding alchemy materials were also exchanged in bulk without any hesitation.

A pile of spirit herbs and medicines, each with a different scent, appeared out of thin air in a corner of the cave, leaving Li Hu and Zhang Mei stunned once again. The longer they followed Wang Shan, the more unfathomable this ability to create things from nothing seemed.

Wang Shan didn't delay. He sat down cross-legged directly, patted his storage pouch, and a half-old alchemy furnace appeared before him.

His expression was focused as he formed a series of hand seals, controlling the furnace fire with his Spiritual Power, and methodically tossing various medicinal ingredients into the furnace. With the System's assistance, his mastery of heat and medicinal properties had reached perfection.

In just half an hour, the first batch of 【Three-Tier Healing Pills】 was completed, filling the air with the scent of pills.

Next came the 【Three-Tier Nourishing Spirit Pills】.

Wang Shan first took one 【Three-Tier Nourishing Spirit Pill】 himself. The pill dissolved upon entering his mouth, and a gentle yet vast medicinal force quickly spread through his limbs and bones. He immediately activated his cultivation technique, guiding the medicinal power to repair the Meridians damaged from earlier activating secret arts and fleeing, while also consolidating his realm, which had just broken through to Body Refinement, Ninth Stage, Early Phase.

After a moment, Wang Shan opened his eyes and exhaled a foul breath with a faint bloody smell. His originally somewhat pale complexion regained its rosy color, and his eyes were even brighter.

"Mm, injuries are all gone, the realm is completely stabilized, and there's even a slight improvement." He nodded to himself. The effect of this Third-Tier pill was truly extraordinary.

Next, he walked over to Wang Zhitao, carefully pried open his grandson's mouth, fed him a specially refined antidote pill, and used his own pure Spiritual Power to help dissolve the medicinal force.

Visibly, the last trace of dark blue on Wang Zhitao's face slowly faded, his breathing grew stronger, and though still weak, he was no longer in danger of dying.

"Great!" Li Hu and Zhang Mei had been watching nervously and both sighed in relief.

Wang Shan grunted in acknowledgment, then took out a few Healing Pills and Nourishing Spirit Pills, handing them to Li Hu and Zhang Mei: "You two deal with your injuries too. Recover your strength as soon as possible."

"Thanks, old man!" Li Hu grinned and took them without any hesitation. Zhang Mei also expressed her thanks.

Wang Shan then gave them a few tips on their cultivation. Both looked thoughtful and quickly found spots to sit and recover. Li Hu, who was already not far from Body Refining Seventh Layer, soon had his aura rising with the pills and guidance, showing faint signs of a breakthrough. Zhang Mei also consolidated her Body Refining Sixth Layer cultivation more solidly.

Seeing all this, Wang Shan felt a bit more at ease.

After handling all that, he finally had time to carefully examine this biggest "unexpected gain"—the Black Jade Slip obtained from the Wan Family Cultivator.

Back at Ghost Sorrow Cliff, he had vaguely felt this jade slip resonate with the Earth Vein energy, especially at the moment the Purple Monkey Flower matured, when the resonance became particularly strong.

Now, he held the jade slip in his palm and injected a thread of Spiritual Power.

"Hum..."

The jade slip vibrated slightly, and the incomplete runes on its surface seemed a bit brighter and clearer than before.

"System, scan this jade slip. Deep analysis."

【Ding! Scanning initiated... The target item contains high-level Seals. Analysis will consume 500 Spirit Plant Points, estimated time three hours. Continue?】

"Five hundred points?" Wang Shan raised an eyebrow slightly. That was quite a cost, meaning this jade slip was indeed no ordinary thing.

"Continue."

【Ding! Analysis started... Rune structure analyzing... Energy fluctuation tracking...】

As the System analyzed, streams of information flooded into Wang Shan's mind.

"Beast Taming Sect... Earth Vein Key Fragment..." Wang Shan muttered to himself, his eyes flickering.

The System further indicated that these runes, activated by the Earth Vein disturbance when the Purple Monkey Flower matured, seemed to point to a more ancient and Core inheritance system of the Beast Taming Sect. It even vaguely mentioned some little-known secrets behind the sect's destruction, as well as several immensely powerful arts listed as Forbidden Secret Arts.

"The deeper reason for the sect's destruction? Forbidden Secret Arts?" Wang Shan held the jade slip, feeling it was a bit hot to the touch.

This had already far exceeded the value of the Purple Monkey Flower.

The Wan family, the mysterious Black-clothed Person's faction... what they were after was probably not just the resources of Ghost Sorrow Cliff. This jade slip, or what it represented, was the key.

"So I've... snatched the tiger's tooth and made off with its treasure?" Wang Shan's mouth twitched. He wasn't sure whether to be relieved or troubled.

Trouble was definitely unavoidable.

The Wan family and that group of Black-clothed Persons would never let this go. Although his reputation as the "Fierce Old Man of Pills and Talismans" had spread and could deter petty villains, going up against these two major powers was still like an egg striking a stone.

"I must reach Foundation Establishment as soon as possible!"

Only by reaching the Foundation Establishment stage could he truly step through the threshold of a cultivator, gain some ability to protect himself, and plan for more.

He glanced at his still-sleeping grandson, then looked at Li Hu and Zhang Mei, who were diligently cultivating.

The cave before them was hidden, but its spiritual energy concentration was only average—not an ideal place for Closed Meditation and Foundation Establishment. Moreover, after causing such a huge commotion at Ghost Sorrow Cliff, the Man Yun Mountain Range was temporarily no longer a place they could stay.

"I need to find a place with more abundant spiritual energy, and safer too," Wang Shan calculated in his heart. "The secrets of this jade slip will also take time to study slowly. The Wan family... hmph, this debt, sooner or later I will settle accounts with them."

The path to Foundation Establishment was a matter of nine deaths and one life. But now he had the system's assistance, ample pill resources, and the unknown opportunity brought by this mysterious jade slip.

This was a crisis, but also an opportunity.

He had to seize it! For himself, for his grandson, for that long-destroyed clan, he would carve out a true path to survival!

The night grew deep; the sound of water outside the cave continued as before. Wang Shan held that Black Jade Slip, his gaze profound, his heart already made up.