Chapter 261

Thousand-thread Zen Heart Seed, a thousand thoughts and myriad threads become one Zen heart; actually, eating it raw also has a considerable effect, but if one can refine it into pills, naturally it's good to refine it into elixir.

Inside the Ice Heart Cave dwelling of the Ice Immortal Pavilion, Yunhe sat cross-legged in the pill-refining chamber, looking at the Thousand-thread Zen Heart Seed in his hand.

Before him lay many other materials, such as Thousand Drunk Powder and Calm Heart Lotus Seeds, etc.

To gather these materials, he had expended considerable effort.

Mainly because the material names recorded in the ancient pill formula differ somewhat from the current terminology used in the cultivation world.

Thus, Yunhe had possessed this pill formula for quite some time, only now barely managing to gather all the ingredients.

Of course, the hardest material to collect in this formula is the main ingredient, Thousand-thread Zen Heart Seed; if he hadn't obtained it from the Luo Tian Secret Realm, then even gathering all the auxiliary ingredients would be useless.

While in the Cloud Realm he was extensively gathering 'special products', he had never even heard of the Thousand-thread Zen Heart Seed, and after returning to the Eastern Realm it was even more so.

Let's first try refining a batch.

He has three Thousand-thread Zen Heart Seeds, which gives him a margin for error.

But this item is precious, so Yunhe carefully adjusted his condition, then reviewed the pill formula dozens of times in his mind, ensuring no omissions, before formally beginning the refinement.

Now Yunhe's pill-refining level, after continual practice refining Spirit Grain Elixir, has reached the standard of a third-rank upper-grade pill refiner, giving him the foundation to refine Wisdom Spirit Elixir.

However, his greatest reliance is still his divine sense.

By borrowing a divine sense comparable to that of a Yuan Ying Cultivator, the pill-refining process can be relatively better controlled.

First, throw the Thousand-thread Zen Heart Seed into the pill furnace, roast it with pill fire; during this, one must control the heat well, and at the moment when the thread and the Zen Heart Seed are completely separated, remove the thread and incinerate the Zen Heart Seed into powder.

Pill refining proceeds bit by bit.

Ice Immortal Pavilion.

As a long-established sect towering above lofty snow mountains, the Ice Immortal Pavilion enjoys considerable fame in the surrounding region.

That day.

A group of white-clad, graceful female disciples fluttered about, playing on the ice surface with cheerful chirping sounds, appearing extremely lively.

Senior Sister Li, quickly tell us how you came to know the Grand Elder—the Grand Elder is truly formidable!

I've heard that although the Grand Elder is a loose cultivator, he actually shares ancestry with a certain forebear of our Ice Immortal Pavilion, so the Grand Elder is not an outsider.

Recently, news of the Grand Elder has spread, and many cultivator families have come to probe and inquire about his situation.

Yunhe's appearance, especially the demise of three Golden Core cultivators—the two from the Lu family, Mid-stage Golden Core Lu Tianbing and Early-stage Golden Core Lu Xinye, and the Mid-stage Golden Core Fu Gui Shangren of the Ghost Sect—at the Ice Immortal Pavilion, caused the Pavilion's fame to resound throughout the Wu Kingdom.

Inevitably, the many female disciples within the Ice Immortal Pavilion are full of curiosity about this somewhat mysterious Grand Elder.

As a disciple of Dong Ning Xuan, the current eldest senior sister among the third-generation disciples of the Ice Immortal Pavilion, and also Li Yun who originally returned together with Yunhe, she naturally became the object of everyone's inquiries.

Li Yun had a gentle expression, her long hair hanging down to her waist, her eyes carrying a hint of the sea's azure, and her appearance was outstanding.

Recalling the scene when Yunhe rescued her and her master, a look of reverence spontaneously appeared on her face as she smiled and said:

The Grand Elder, he—

This wasn't the first time she had recounted what happened when she met Yunhe, yet the many female cultivators still listened with relish.

For these female cultivators who have not yet succeeded in Foundation Establishment, their cultivation life is always dull and monotonous; occasional stories can immerse them.

Just as the women were discussing, a streak of flowing light suddenly shot straight from the horizon.

The surging magical power fluctuations emanating from the other party caused the women below to catch their breath.

It's a Golden Core elder!

As the women stumbled about, they realized the comer was a Golden Core cultivator!

However, they did not show much panic.

Because this was not the first Golden Core cultivator to come to their Ice Immortal Pavilion, and likely not the last.

Soon.

From within the Ice Immortal Pavilion, a white light burst forth, revealing a woman clad in snowy white palace robes—none other than the Pavilion Master of the Ice Immortal Pavilion, Ice Gui Immortal Maiden.

Hahaha—Lord Ran intrudes uninvited; I hope Ice Gui Immortal Maiden will forgive me.

The earlier streak of light also dissipated, revealing an old man with speckled white whiskers.

Upon seeing the visitor, Ice Gui Immortal Maiden's face also broke into a standard smile; after a modest salute, she said:

Lord Ran, where do you get off saying that? Your coming to my Ice Immortal Pavilion truly brings glory to my humble abode; please, Lord Ran, come inside!

Sorry for the disturbance, sorry for the disturbance.

The elder surnamed Ran also returned the salute with a chuckle, following Ice Gui Immortal Maiden into the main hall of the Ice Immortal Pavilion.

He probably wants to visit the Grand Elder again.

Seeing the two depart, a female cultivator of the Ice Immortal Pavilion on the ice patted her swollen chest and stuck out her tongue, saying:

It's true, this is already the third Golden Core cultivator to come, right? The elder of the Ran family?

They all come to ask the Grand Elder for help.

But I reckon the Ran family elder might end up making a wasted trip.

It is quite evident that this is apparently not the first person who wants to visit Yunhe; after all, anyone with a bit of discernment can see that the strength he displayed is at least that of a Late Jie Dan Stage cultivator, possibly even a perfected Golden Core cultivator!

Such a cultivator instantly makes the Ice Immortal Pavilion's standing in the Wu Kingdom somewhat different.

Some cultivator families that are still hesitating in the face of demonic sects, to varying degrees, wish to establish a certain connection with it.

Boom!!

The rich elixir qi transformed into white smoke that rose up.

As the furnace lid opened, seven elixirs were skillfully taken out by Yunhe from the furnace.

However, as the elixir qi retracted and the smoke dissipated, among these seven elixirs, three directly shattered into black powder, two quickly dimmed and lost their luster, while only the last two, after the elixir qi retracted, showed a snowy white color, with countless silken threads faintly entwining and wrapping around them.

Three wasted elixirs, two inferior elixirs, two successful elixirs—this success rate is indeed rather low.

Yunhe smacked his lips, also feeling somewhat helpless.

But there's no way around it, after all it's a Fourth Level Elixir; given his current alchemy proficiency, being able to succeed is already quite good, and this is still thanks to his powerful divine sense.

"However, after I take one, the situation should improve greatly."

He is already somewhat eager to try the effects of the Wisdom Spirit Elixir.

The "Three Tribulation Bodhi Seeds" from back then left a fresh memory in his mind.

Yunhe released his divine sense, which quickly enveloped the entire Ice Immortal Pavilion.

While he was refining elixirs, he also noticed the outside situation to some extent.

At this moment, inside the hall of the Ice Immortal Pavilion, Ice Gui Fairy, who was exchanging pleasantries with the Old Ancestor of the Ran family, heard Yunhe's mental transmission.

"Ice Gui Fairy, announce externally that this poor Daoist will go into seclusion."

Hearing this, Ice Gui Fairy blinked slightly, then nodded without changing expression, turned her head and resumed pleasantries with the Ran family Old Ancestor.

Yunhe withdrew his divine sense.

As for those Jie Dan cultivators who came to the door attempting to visit, he actually had a clear idea in his mind.

They were merely here to inquire and probe.

The Lu family lost two Jie Dan cultivators, causing the Lu family to be utterly wiped out; this matter is neither huge nor tiny, but its influence is confined within the borders of Wu Kingdom.

However, the Fu Gui Senior who died together is different.

That is an elder of the Demonic Path Ghost Sect.

If it weren't for the Yuan Ying Cultivator of the Snow Sword Sect holding down the fort within Wu Kingdom's borders, it's very likely that Yuan Ying cultivators of the demonic sects would now be coming to the door.

Therefore, among those who come under the pretense of visiting, it's hard to say how many are genuinely there to visit and how many intend to relay information to the demonic sects.

Thus, Yunhe refuses to see any of them.

Withdrew his divine sense.

Yunhe cast two hand seals onto the formation enveloping his cave dwelling, completely isolating the outside world.

He rested for three hours to adjust his condition, and also to prepare the things he needed to comprehend for taking the Wisdom Spirit Elixir this time.

This is a rare opportunity.

Formation Dao, Alchemy Dao, Talisman Dao, Artifact Dao, and also including cultivation techniques, secret arts, divine abilities, and so on.

After making preparations, Yunhe tossed a single Wisdom Spirit Elixir into his mouth and swallowed it.

Sitting cross-legged, he calmed his mind and steadied his breath.

Suddenly.

Yunhe felt his mind completely emptied, with no stray thoughts whatsoever.

Only the issue he was focusing on remained, along with a faint, ethereal sound lingering in the background.

The problems that previously felt obscure and hard to understand now seemed much simpler at this moment; a slight shift in thinking immediately yielded many "answers".

This state lasted for five days.

When Yunhe opened his eyes again, his pupils were full of profound color.

And on his face appeared an expression of "I see".

As he extended his hand, a hazy cluster of five-colored magical power appeared in his palm; as his hand turned slightly, the "Minor Five Elements Mutual Generation Formation" enveloping his cave dwelling emitted a faint tremor, several formation flags shifted positions, and after Yunhe added a few exquisite formation flags, the formation underwent a noticeable change.

"This is the 'Minor Five Elements Mutual Generation Formation' having reached the Third Level of formation proficiency."

Thereafter, Yunhe flipped his palm, changing the positions of the formation flags once more; this formation actually transformed from the "Minor Five Elements Mutual Generation Formation" into the "Minor Five Elements Inverted Formation"!

For these two formations, researched by combining his own cultivation technique "Great Longevity Five Elements True Scripture," Yunhe barely managed to achieve the ability to switch between them freely.

Moreover.

The formation's power also saw a noticeable increase, reaching the Third Level Low-grade formation tier.

If the quality of the formation implements and flags were further changed, perhaps the power could be increased even more.

And Yunhe's formation proficiency, thanks to the effect of the Wisdom Spirit Elixir, finally rose to the level of a Third Level Formation Master.

This is not all of the gains he obtained from taking the Wisdom Spirit Elixir this time.

"If I were to refine the Wisdom Spirit Elixir again now, the success rate should be considerably higher, right?"

"The effect of the Comprehension Dao Elixir is indeed powerful; it would be great if we could maintain the state of comprehension all the time."

"Five days' duration, though the lasting time is somewhat shorter than that of a Third Level Bodhi Seed, the effect during that period should be roughly comparable."

He muttered to himself.

Yunhe took out a jade bottle, poured out the remaining Wisdom Spirit Elixir, and swallowed it without hesitation.

Five days of time, for him who is now at Late Jie Dan cultivation base, is utterly insufficient to resolve all his doubts.

Even the first Wisdom Spirit Elixir merely allowed his formation proficiency to break through the Third Level, gave him minor insights in alchemy, artifact, and talisman Dao, while in cultivation techniques, secret arts, and divine abilities he had yet to gain any substantive progress before the effect ended.

Therefore, while the effect of the first Wisdom Spirit Elixir had not yet fully faded, he took another and entered the state of comprehension once again.

Since he has already "learned" it, he naturally needs to clear up all the doubts in his mind.

Otherwise, that feeling of being neither here nor there would be extremely unpleasant.

Besides, he doesn't need to worry about wasting the elixir's effect, because he has too many bottlenecks that require answers.

And this time.

He had not invested much time in the four Dao of formation, alchemy, artifact, and talisman; after resolving some doubts, he focused his main energy on gaining insight into the Myriad Insects Myriad Worms Secret.

Upon initially entering the fourth layer of the Myriad Insects Myriad Worms Secret, he found many parts overly obscure.

(End of chapter)