Chapter 262: with translation of chapter title

One month later.

Yunhe once again awoke from the "Enlightenment" state.

All told, he had taken five "Wisdom Spirit Pills", and in between he refined the remaining two Thousand Thread Zen Heart Seeds into "Wisdom Spirit Pills" as well.

Now his alchemy skill is roughly that of a Fourth Level low‑grade pill master, and his success rate in refining "Wisdom Spirit Pills" has changed from the initial seven pills yielding two perfect pills and two mediocre pills to the final eight pills yielding one ruined pill, two mediocre pills, and five perfect pills.

His alchemy skill can be said to have undergone a qualitative leap.

Thus, after using five "Wisdom Spirit Pills", he still had seven perfect pills and six mediocre pills left, reserving them for future difficulties in his cultivation.

And by taking those five "Wisdom Spirit Pills", many of his cultivation problems were answered, and his abilities in the hundred arts of immortality all saw substantial progress.

Besides reaching Fourth Level low‑grade in alchemy, his artifact and talisman skills have also both reached the upper limit of Third Level high‑grade.

The greatest improvement, without doubt, is in his formation skill, which has already reached Third Level middle‑grade.

After all, with formations, those who understand get it; those who don't, no matter how much time they spend, can only grind slowly, making progress extremely slow.

The "Wisdom Spirit Pill" focused on enlightenment can be said to be very suitable for formations.

Besides that, Yunhe also made considerable progress in other areas.

For example, the fourth layer of the "Myriad Insects Art"—the troubles he encountered while practicing it before have all been resolved; if he persists, reaching minor accomplishment in the fourth layer should be just a matter of time.

However, training the fourth layer of the "Myriad Insects Art" requires solving the technique's problems, and the process itself is a kind of "torment"; it is difficult for those without great willpower.

Besides these.

Yunhe also made a significant breakthrough in his created technique, the "Mysterious Beast Technique".

Now his "Mysterious Beast Technique" has reached the eighth layer, which corresponds to the mid‑Third Level demon beast stage, and can be said to satisfy the cultivation needs of all demon beasts on Huanhu Dao.

Of course, he also added several spells and secret arts to this technique, greatly enhancing the combat ability of the demon beasts that cultivate it.

Creating a technique is also a cultivator's self‑review in practice—reviewing the old to learn the new—giving him a new understanding of the technique he cultivates.

And what Yunhe values most is undoubtedly a divine ability he tailor‑made for himself—Inverting the Five Elements to Draw Spirit Divine Light!

It combines Yunhe's mastery of the Five Elements Divine Radiance, Spirit Pupil, Dragon Scale Pattern, and the three‑eye divine light of the three‑eyed earth toad.

Taking the Spirit Pupil as the foundation, the Five Elements Divine Radiance as the basis, the Dragon Scale Pattern as an aid, and the three‑eye divine light as the means, they are blended together.

In short.

This ability is unleashed through Yunhe's eyes, combining the three‑eye divine light and the spatial power accompanying the Dragon Scale Pattern, then enveloping everything with the Five Elements Divine Radiance of the Inverted Five Elements—glaring is the casting.

However.

Yunhe's grasp of the Five Elements Divine Radiance, Spirit Pupil, Dragon Scale Pattern, and three‑eye divine light is still superficial, so this ability he has created is only a basic outline, not yet fully perfected.

It's not that he doesn't want to keep taking "Wisdom Spirit Pills" to perfect this ability; it's just that the pill isn't some miraculous elixir that grants mastery of everything with a single dose.

The pill's effect is merely to greatly boost a cultivator's spiritual awareness in a short time, putting them into a state akin to "Enlightenment"; what they can comprehend from it depends on what basic knowledge they have learned and mastered.

If he wants to fully perfect this technique, he must still completely master the Five Elements Divine Radiance and the three‑eye divine light secret arts.

That is beyond his current cultivation capacity.

Furthermore.

Although the divine ability he created has basically taken shape and can be used, its actual power remains to be seen, likely only testable in a duel of spells.

Without trying, merely shutting oneself away to invent will not yield truly perfect results.

One must test it in actual combat to find its shortcomings, then devise ways to improve or compensate.

"Almost enough; such high‑intensity training also consumes a considerable amount of divine sense."

To avoid wasting the effect of the "Wisdom Spirit Pill", he kept his mind highly focused throughout; even though his divine sense now rivals that of a Yuan Ying Cultivator, he still finds it somewhat taxing.

After finishing his training, Yunhe simply lay down and slept.

He slept for a day and a night; upon waking again, he felt refreshed and clear‑minded.

He slapped his storage bag and took out a parasol.

A treasure, the Heaven‑Covering Bag!

He smeared a thread of his essence blood onto the Heaven‑Covering Bag, then tightly refined it, gaining a deeper understanding of this treasure.

"It's rather badly damaged."

Looking at the Heaven‑Covering Bag in his hand, Yunhe couldn't help but frown.

The auction house claiming it could still match a Third Level supreme‑grade treasure is certainly exaggerated; it is indeed stronger than an ordinary Third Level high‑grade defensive treasure, but upon reflection, this treasure was originally a Fourth Level middle‑grade artifact—even if its artifact spirit fell and its rank dropped greatly, the essential materials used to forge it haven't changed, so its defensive ability naturally isn't poor.

"But it's not impossible to repair it somewhat; if we have 'Earth‑Gold Sand', 'Lofty Stone', and 'Floating Wood Root', these materials, and then re‑refine it, its defensive capability can be improved again."

"As for its ability to withstand heavenly tribulation, that's probably due to this part."

Within the Heaven‑Covering Bag, Yunhe saw some patterns he didn't quite understand; he could only tell that when combined, they have the ability to guide lightning.

"The one who forged this treasure must at least be a Fourth Level middle‑grade artifact smith, perhaps specially made to counter lightning‑attribute spell attacks? Interesting."

"If we could replicate it and apply it to the 'Warrior Demon Armor', perhaps that armor could also gain this effect. However, it's unnecessary—these patterns, while increasing lightning‑guidance ability, would inevitably reduce the armor's defensive power, and I don't need to specialize against cultivators of lightning‑attribute techniques; maintaining overall defense is enough."

"As for resisting heavenly tribulation, using the Heaven‑Covering Bag will suffice. Or later, if we want to forge another treasure, mastering these few patterns isn't that easy either."

He flipped his hand and stored the Heaven‑Covering Bag into his qi sea dantian.

He plans to give this treasure a light refinement; it's not used often, so he doesn't need to painstakingly nurture it day and night. He already has the Five Elements Heaven‑Thunder Sword, Warrior Demon Armor, and Beast Soul Banner—three vitally important treasures that need refining—and he can't spare much energy for others, so he'll treat it like the Earth‑Thick Cauldron.

"Warrior Demon Armor, Heaven‑Covering Bag, and Earth‑Thick Cauldron are all defensive treasures; actually, strictly speaking, the Beast Soul Banner can count as half a defensive treasure—this is truly"

Yunhe's expression was somewhat strange.

He tucked in his robes and slowly walked out of the cave dwelling.

Holding a jade slip in his hand, he used his divine sense to browse it while admiring the scenery of the snow‑capped mountains.

Speaking of which, since moving into the Ice Immortal Pavilion, he still hasn't properly enjoyed this place's snow scenery.

Doing two things at once is too simple for him.

The information recorded in this jade slip is what the auction house steward Wei Qingshu gifted regarding the Great Five Elements Sect.

He hadn't taken a few steps before Yunhe arrived at a pavilion outside his cave dwelling.

Ice Gui Fairy was right; Ice Heart Cave truly is the finest cultivation cavern of the Ice Immortal Hall, its interior brimming with spiritual energy, and its exterior scenery equally splendid.

Right beside the pavilion, there is a small cold pool.

Being able to remain unfrozen at such low temperature shows that the water of this cold pool has some special quality.

And within the cold pool, many fish glide like jade.

"Cold chi carp? I didn't expect such spirit fish to be raised on the snow mountain," Yunhe's eyes brightened as he glanced.

Perhaps because the He Clan's patriarch has been around for so long, Yunhe has grown somewhat fond of feeding fish.

He sat beside the pavilion, grabbed a handful of bait and scattered it, causing the cold pool to ripple noticeably.

He then took a fishing rod from his storage bag.

The rod is also a treasure, obtained from the Lu Clan patriarch Lu Tianbing.

He swung the rod without bait, sat there, perused a Jade Slip, and silently began fishing.

No need to say more.

The cold wind brushed his face, ice and snow wrapped everything, giving him a decidedly solitary fishing‑in‑the‑frozen‑river stance.

At that moment.

A graceful figure, stepping on a crystal‑clear flying sword, swooped in from the great hall of the Ice Immortal Hall; upon seeing Yunhe fishing inside the pavilion, the newcomer's eyes lit up, she lowered the sword, which landed outside the pavilion.

After tidying her attire a bit, she gathered her snow‑white dress and respectfully entered.

"Dong Ning Xuan has seen the Supreme Elder."

The newcomer was Dong Ning Xuan, who entered the pavilion and gave Yunhe, who was fishing beside her, a graceful bow.

Yunhe glanced at her and slightly inclined his head.

"What business?"

Dong Ning Xuan pursed her lips and said softly:

"My master instructed Dong Ning Xuan to see whether the elder needs anything."

She had actually come several times before, but Yunhe was always in seclusion then, so her trips were in vain.

Hearing this, Yunhe paused briefly, then produced a blank Jade Slip, infused his spirit sense into it, and left a message.

"That's all; see if you can obtain it."

He said, then tossed the Jade Slip to Dong Ning Xuan.

The He Clan is accustomed to "using"—now that Yunhe is the Supreme Elder of the Ice Immortal Hall, he will not be courteous to them.

"Yes!"

Dong Ning Xuan carefully took the Jade Slip, her expression solemn as she replied.

"Anything else?"

Seeing she did not leave immediately, Yunhe asked in a calm tone.

Dong Ning Xuan lightly bit her lip, pondering how to begin, but Yunhe seemed to have read her mind and said with a smile:

"It's the three people Ice Gui Fairy is receiving, right?"

Dong Ning Xuan was momentarily stunned, then quickly understood; Yunhe's spirit sense had noticed the situation inside the great hall of the Ice Immortal Hall.

She opened her mouth to say something, but saw Yunhe already put away the rod and stood up.

"Let's go."

The words hung in the air.

He swiftly scooped up Dong Ning Xuan, and in the blink of an eye they were outside the great hall.

At that moment, four Jie Dan cultivators were inside the hall.

One of them was Ice Gui Fairy, and among the other three were two Late Jie Dan Stage cultivators and one Early Jie Dan Stage cultivator.

The two Late Jie Dan Stage cultivators seemed unaffiliated with any faction, whereas the Early Jie Dan Stage cultivator stood together with the other Late Jie Dan Stage cultivator.

"Elder, they are the Spirit Sword Elder of the Snow Sword Sect, the Young Master of the Blood Sect, and the Blood Soul Protector."

Blood Soul Protector?

Yunhe twitched the corner of his mouth.

No need to say more; besides Ice Gui Fairy, there was also one of his "acquaintances" in the hall.

The "Blood Soul Protector" Dong Ning Xuan mentioned was his "acquaintance".

Because his name, if Yunhe remembers correctly, should be the Blood Sect cultivator Blood Ritual who once attacked the He Yu Zou family, deceived the Wang Clan patriarch of He Jian Fang Shi, and essentially lit the fuse of the righteous‑demonic war.

"What a reunion with an old acquaintance. But back then I was only just entering Foundation Establishment, so I probably didn't catch this protector's eye."

Yunhe muttered a self‑deprecating remark silently.

Of course, even if the other side remembers someone like Yunhe, they wouldn't recognize the current "Bee Daoist".

He then led Dong Ning Xuan into the great hall.

Upon Yunhe's arrival, Ice Gui Fairy's face instantly brightened with joy; after quietly sighing in relief, she immediately stepped forward and introduced, saying:

"Allow me to introduce to the three of you: this is my Ice Immortal Hall Supreme Elder, Elder Bee."

All are Late Jie Dan Stage cultivators, and their backgrounds are impressive; this gave Ice Gui Fairy some pressure, but seeing Yunhe arrive finally gave her a bit of confidence.

(End of Chapter)