Chapter 687: Return Home

Profound Heaven Mountain, Stone Hall.

The dense pill radiance filled the entire dark hall, turning this place into a fairyland of the human world.

The medicinal ingredients for a total of seven Profound Heaven Treasure Pills had all transformed into flawless immortal pills within that cauldron, each grain containing the complete power of ten tribulations.

Although Ye Lan's alchemical attainment was shallow, having grown up on the peak since childhood, she was considered well-traveled and knowledgeable.

She had never seen an alchemist like Shen Yi; whether it was his alchemical movements or his control over the fire intensity and the breath of heaven and earth, from start to finish, not a single detail was off.

Those pills seemed like replicas, with no difference in quality or appearance; they were simply inhuman!

Even if her master were to rise from the dead, he恐怕 would not be able to achieve the level Shen Yi had reached.

What terrified Ye Lan even more was the expression on the young man's face.

This dense, terrifying pill radiance failed to bring even a trace of joy to his calm expression, as if he had expected it all along.

"If... if only I had met you in earlier years, how wonderful that would have been."

Ye Lan's fingertips trembled slightly, her emotions inexplicably losing control.

Such an alchemical genius, if he could replace her and join the Pill Peak, under her master's strenuous cultivation, might have long ago become that transcendent Pill Immortal.

Back then, when helping Shenxu Laozu survive the great tribulation, her master would not have led numerous fellow disciples to forcibly refine that third-rank tribulation pill, ultimately failing to form the pill, resulting in the destruction of their entire sect.

"I apologize, I have lost my composure."

Ye Lan breathed rapidly a few times, adjusting her mood: "Just leave the pills here; let us go."

"..."

Shen Yi silently gazed at the seven Profound Heaven Treasure Pills before him.

Counting those refined during his previous duel with Liu Ruifeng, it meant that every time Shenxu Laozu woke up, he had to consume over a hundred tribulation powers to stabilize his realm.

It was "stabilizing," not "improving."

That is to say, these tribulation powers were all wasted; it was equivalent to saying that every time he opened his eyes, Profound Heaven Mountain would lose one fifth-rank Great Taiyi Immortal.

Such a huge consumption, even for a giant like Profound Heaven Mountain, must have exhausted its entire foundation to accomplish.

With such a vast immortal sect, supporting one person.

Even so, this ancestor still could not get his fill.

Refining these pills, even though Shen Yi had made substantial progress, with ten tribulation powers in the medicine only three or four being retained, he still lost over forty tribulations of his demon lifespan.

Under these circumstances, the other party still wanted to eat him.

Shen Yi could feel that the eyes on the bronze door had indeed disappeared, but that ancestor was clearly staring at him, his gaze never leaving the Great Void Jin Dan within his body.

He now felt as if thousands of sharp swords were pressed against his body; any tiny movement other than alchemy could lead to death.

Under what circumstances would a glutton let go of a delicacy right under his nose?

"What is wrong with you?"

Ye Lan, who was turning to leave, sensed something was wrong and looked back in confusion.

She saw Shen Yi standing with his hands by his sides; after the pill radiance gradually dispersed, the hall returned to darkness, and the cauldron fire made his Bai Xi face flicker between light and shadow, as if lost in thought.

A moment later.

The young man slowly raised his palm; under Ye Lan's astonished gaze, he pinched a Profound Heaven Treasure Pill and blatantly sent it into his mouth.

He chewed carefully; the medicinal power melted between his lips and tongue, dissolved into the Dao fruit of the Green Wood Silver Wheel, and became part of the Great Void Jin Dan.

Cultivation increased by ten tribulations!

"You..." Fear surged onto Ye Lan's face. Shenxu Laozu was not the kind of sect elder understood by normal people, outwardly stern and severe, but inwardly gentle, quite like a strict father... none of this had anything to do with the ancestor; the other party was simply a very pure cultivator.

A cultivator whose heart held only the Great Dao, with all external things serving the Great Dao!

And what Shen Yi was doing now was undoubtedly dancing on the ancestor's bottom line, as if afraid not to anger the other party.

In the instant she was distracted, Shen Yi had already picked up the second Profound Heaven Treasure Pill, followed by the third, the fourth—

Until five pills entered his belly, that bronze door finally roared.

The gray mist surged again; this time even Ye Lan could see a pair of dull eyes emerging from the mist, as if having seen through the red dust and the heavens and earth, foolish yet carrying a trace of inexplicable clarity.

The instant those eyes looked at her, Ye Lan felt her whole body turn ice-cold; no matter what waves surged in her heart, her body could not move a bit, and even the Great Void Dao fruit within her body seemed frozen.

Shen Yi ignored it, his arm stiff but stubbornly reaching for the next pill.

Finally, the remaining two pills were all swallowed by him.

Such an act, seen in Ye Lan's eyes, struck her like lightning; with her understanding of Shen Yi, she could not possibly understand how a ruthless cultivator so cautious and careful, who could survive under the hands of the Immortal Court, would today make such an irrational move.

However, those eyes watched quietly, as if trying to see every tiny change within Shen Yi's body.

After an unknown amount of time, a hoarse voice, as if coming from ancient times, finally sounded within the hall.

It was only one word, yet it made Ye Lan's eyes suddenly widen.

"Good."

Not anger, nor praise; it seemed merely an objective evaluation.

Like a diner commenting on ingredients.

Shen Yi lowered his eyes, looking at the ground, standing quietly.

The question he had been pondering while refining pills finally had an answer just now.

Under what circumstances would a glutton let go of a delicacy right under his nose?

Naturally, when the fish is not fat, the fruit is not ripe, the dish is only half-cooked, and the fire intensity is still far from sufficient.

Shen Yi swallowed these Profound Heaven Treasure Pills only to prove one thing: that the Great Void Jin Dan was still far from perfection, with plenty of room for improvement; eating it now would be like forcibly twisting a melon, relieving thirst for a moment but not sweet enough.

It is already this tempting now.

When the pill is finally formed, how fragrant and delicious will it be?!

The gray mist grew more violent; those eyes gradually cleared, and in an instant, lines of golden tribulation power drilled out from the mist, numbering forty-nine, weaving into obscure symbols.

The Great Void Jin Dan was connected to Shen Yi by invisible threads, encompassing his soul, four limbs, five organs, and six bowels.

In total, sixteen spots, meaning sixteen Tribulation Force Golden Talismans; each Golden Talisman contains forty-nine tribulations, totaling seven hundred and fourteen tribulations!

At this moment, all these tribulation numbers had merged into the Grand Void Golden Core, plus the seven Void Origin Treasure Pills swallowed earlier.

Shen Yi's Grand Void Golden Core suddenly leaped to one thousand seven hundred and seventy-four tribulations, his cultivation nearly doubling!

His face still showed no joy.

This cultivation that appeared out of nowhere was a mark.

The so-called Grand Void is like Wang Yangdahai, while one's self is like a leaf boat.

A boat sailing on the sea, with no shore to rely on, will inevitably sink one day, and the Grand Void Golden Core is that anchor point, guaranteeing Shen Yi can return to heaven and earth.

At this moment, that anchor point had been seized by Shenxu Laozu.

Tianyan Sijiu; there is nowhere to escape.

This Elder understood Shen Yi's meaning, so he made a mark on him, continued his own slumber, and would return to pluck and swallow him once he had grown fat and plump.

"This..."

Ye Lan had no idea of the many thoughts between the two; in her eyes, Shen Yi had inexplicably swallowed the Elder's tribute, and the Elder not only did not get angry but instead used his own tribulation force to help Shen Yi's cultivation grow.

Bizarre! Absurd!

However, the next voice to sound directly shattered her understanding.

"This Venerable wishes to take this child as a disciple, bestowing the title Tian Dan; you all must care for him diligently and not let outsiders harm him."

The hoarse voice shook like thunder, transmitting out of Shenxu Mountain, sweeping over the Eight Peaks, and finally echoing through hundreds of small branches.

"..."

Jin Lei Dao Ren's face changed slightly, and the other five Peak Masters also fell into astonishment.

They had all seen the Dan Hua that had gathered inside Shenxu Mountain earlier, and a few had spoken words of praise, but even so, no one expected that Shen Yi, relying on his alchemy attainment, had gained the Master's favor.

Directly leaping from a Third-Generation Disciple to a Second-Generation Disciple, becoming of the same generation as the few of them.

"This, in the future I must call him Junior Brother?" Master Jinxue tugged at the corner of her lips and said in a low voice, "Lan'er must change her address to call him Junior Uncle?"

"..."

Qian Feng Dao Ren frowned.

His point of focus was different from others; according to the Immortal Sect's inheritance, the Dao titles of Second-Generation Disciples almost always have a traceable pattern.

For instance, Hong Jing and Master Qingmei of the Yu Chi Immortal Sect both took their titles from heavenly treasures and earthly gems.

And our own Shenxu Mountain, Jin Lei, Mu Yang, Master Jinxue... follow the pattern of heavenly and earthly phenomena; why is Shen Yi's title based on Dan?

Tian Dan, what does it mean?

"..."

Inside the Stone Hall of Shenxu Mountain.

Shen Yi slowly raised his eyes, locking gazes with the eyes on the bronze door; after a long while, he sighed with a helpless smile.

This was not a smile of relief after surviving a disaster, but one containing many emotions.

Tian Dan, a heavenly-bestowed Immortal Pill.

So blatantly, so without any concealment.

The mark the other party had cast earlier, using the number forty-nine, was equivalent to claiming himself as Heaven, as the Great Dao!

This Shenxu Elder never thought to restrain his greed, nor did he ever worry about being discovered, because under the Great Dao, there is nowhere to escape.

It is truly good to have power...

"You must, live well."

The gray mist swept away, leaving only the Elder's instruction in the hall.

Shen Yi put away his smile and gazed seriously at the bronze door: "Rest assured, I will."

Having spoken, he turned and headed toward the outside of the Stone Hall.

Ye Lan stood dazed; coming to her senses, she hurriedly chased after him, following closely behind the youth: "Shen Yi, you..."

Although she had witnessed this shocking scene with her own eyes, once she came to her senses, she quickly thought of many things.

Ye Lan was not a selfish person, nor had she ever thought to impose her own grudges on others.

Even though she hated Shenxu Elder to the extreme and would one day draw her sword against him, she would not, just because the Elder treated Shen Yi well, bind Shen Yi and forbid him from accepting this benefit, forcing him to stand on the same side as her.

What she worried about was that this so-called "goodness" hid ten thousand dangers!

"What should you call me?"

Shen Yi looked back, his expression calm.

"I..."

Ye Lan paused for a moment, suddenly noticing the other party's slightly raised eyebrow; she couldn't help but give Shen Yi's shoulder a punch with a bitter smile and chided: "Junior Uncle!"

What kind of time is this, yet you still have the mood to joke.

Truly worthy of someone who could escape and roam freely under the hands of the Immortal Court; such a state of mind is truly incomparable to ordinary people.

But, for some reason.

After this teasing remark, Ye Lan suddenly felt her heart ease up a little.

"Since we are here, let us be at peace."

Shen Yi smiled, withdrew his gaze, and his voice remained clear.

This matter was indeed very headache-inducing, but similar life-and-death crises, how many times had he not experienced?

The lofty Great Luo Immortal Venerable and those Qi Refinement realm little demons who had once chased him were no different; they merely wanted Shen Mou's life, that was all.

The difficulty of this time lies in...

Shen Yi must constantly improve himself, proving that this "Golden Core" of his still has room for growth, but before finding a means to protect his life, he cannot truly grow to a point where Shenxu Elder feels threatened.

Both extremes would cause this old monster to break his seclusion and come to swallow this Golden Core.

"I still have some Golden Pills here."

Ye Lan bit her lip, stepped closer, and quietly shoved a pile of Imperial Qi Golden Pills into Shen Yi's palm: "My path ahead is unclear for now, so these are useless to me. Keep them for an emergency."

As a Title General of the Demon-Slaying Bureau, she had accumulated quite a lot of savings over the years.

Although Ye Lan was merely a Taiyi Immortal, having only just glimpsed the true meaning of heaven and earth, her eyes were not blind.

The signs of the great calamity in the world were already very obvious.

And this young man before her, judging by the recent events he had encountered, had obviously already entered the calamity in the unseen.

Seeing this, Shen Yi fell silent for a moment.

He glanced at the Miss and said softly, "I won't pay it back."

"Uh."

Ye Lan was stunned for a moment, her expression actually resembling her younger sister's in a few ways.

Although she hadn't expected Shen Yi to repay the debt in the first place, hearing him say it so directly still left her a bit at a loss.

"If there's a chance in the future, I'll try to kill someone for you to offset the debt."

Shen Yi stored the full ten large pills into his ring, descended to the Alchemy Peak, and stepped into the Alchemy Workshop.

A simple sentence, yet it left Ye Lan somewhat puzzled, standing motionless on the spot.

Where did she have any enemies that needed Shen Yi to help kill?

If that person really counted... would a mere thousand calamities of Imperial Qi Golden Pills be too cheap?

While the two chatted.

The various Peak Masters had already entered the Divine Void Mountain with confusion to seek instruction from their Sect Master.

They were all surprised by the appearance of a new peer, and thus had no time to attend to the successive blossoming of Alchemical Flowers on the Alchemy Peak.

Since Shen Yi entered the mountain, even the Flawless Immortal Pills seemed to appear ordinary.

In comparison, what Sect Master did after waking up this time was even more perplexing.

As disciples of a Great Luo Immortal Venerable, they had a vague understanding of the current situation.

And what Sect Master said, ordering them to carefully care for Shen Yi, could it be that he intended to use the name of the Heavenly Pill to have the Divine Void Mountain step forward and fight the great calamity?!

【Remaining Demon Lifespan: Four Hundred Thirty-Two Calamities】

The demon lifespan earned by Lady Qinghua was also a considerable income; the remaining Golden Pills from before, plus those given by Ye Lan, totaled twelve hundred calamities.

Shen Yi seized the time, utilizing the foundation of the Alchemy Peak, and began to digest these gains.

As time slowly passed.

The loss was about thirty percent.

Using everything, he added another eleven hundred calamity forces to this Taiyi Golden Core.

A total of over two thousand nine hundred, already vaguely catching up to the Great Fruit Position of Subduing the Dragon and Tiger!

"Hah."

Shen Yi walked out of the Alchemy Workshop slowly; outside waited Ye Lan.

"Your complexion seems a bit off?"

Ye Lan was preparing to congratulate Shen Yi on his cultivation progress, but upon looking closely, she found that the "Junior Uncle," who could remain unmoved by joy or anger even when facing the Divine Void Ancestor,

now had a pale, handsome face covered in coldness.

"I need to go back for a while."

Shen Yi gazed into the distant sky, but it was not in the direction of Jianyang Prefecture.

Over at the Eight Extremes Valley, Lady Qinghua had not sent any demon lifespan for a long time, but instead sent a message.

It was the matter that had been troubling him all along.

It was also the reason Shen Yi hid his identity and dared not reveal his origins.

"Go back? Back where?"

Ye Lan followed the young man's gaze into the distance, but that direction was quite unfamiliar to her.

Shen Yi stepped and vanished into the void, leaving only two crisp, decisive words.

"Hongze."

(End of Chapter)