Chapter 281: Entering a Dream in Search of Qiong Cang

Pills have five grades: Mortal Grade, Middle Grade, and Supreme Grade—these are the three grades of the mortal world; additionally, there are Immortal Grade and Divine Pill, which are the pill grades of the Immortal Realm.

The matter of spirit-refining is just like the matter of war; it also emphasizes the right time, the right place, and the right people. The so-called "right people" refers to the alchemist's cultivation level and their attainments in pill arts, while "right place" refers to the environment and location during spirit-refining and the medicinal materials produced thereby. As for "right time," there are many different theories about that.

The great sages of old all spoke of the right time, yet they held various views on it; some spoke of the climate, others of the hour, little knowing that no matter which it is, it is nothing more than the truth of all phenomena, and compared to it, humans are but ants.

Even so, it cannot be denied that the right time is indeed important.

Nowadays, the Heavenly Dao is sparse and faint, spiritual veins are thin, those who achieve greatness are few, and highly skilled alchemists are even fewer. In such a situation, the human world has been declining for a hundred years, and thus it is difficult to find those with the pure wind of the Heavenly Dipper.

However, even so, those who seek the Dao still do not fear hardship, devoting themselves to cultivation to verify the Great Dao.

This is the current phenomenon, and Lingxiang is one of them.

Lingxiang was born with a crippled spirit and grew up in an age where Spirit Roots are scarce, so she naturally knows the difficulty of cultivation, which is why she tirelessly pursues a method to break the deadlock. Yet, it was precisely through years of constant exploration that she came to understand the hardships on this path, but even so, she still forged ahead bravely and never gave up.

However, all these experiences completely collapsed the moment she saw the Life-Prolonging Pill before her.

In such a rare realm, Tumi Xianzi could actually refine an Immortal Grade pill; not to mention whether it is possible or not, this alone is enough to show that her attainments in the Dao are profound.

But according to what Lingxiang has heard, her mother had no extraordinary achievements, so how could she refine something from the Immortal Realm? And that too in the human world?

What exactly is her mother's background?

Lingxiang stared at the Life-Prolonging Pill in her hand for a long while, scrutinizing it. At first glance, the patterns and grooves on it seemed like totems, but looking closely, they were actually tiny dots, only that among those recessed dots, some were relatively slightly larger.

It is an array again!

Lingxiang furrowed her brows, rubbing this Life-Prolonging Pill.

As far as she knew, the three grades of pills in Chenjian were such that the Mortal Grade were just ordinary medicinal pills with nothing remarkable, the Middle Grade had a slight exotic fragrance but were still like the Mortal Grade, and only the Supreme Grade would reveal golden light.

The Immortal Grade, however, was the opposite; the higher the grade, the more ordinary it appeared.

Just like the Immortal Grade pill before her, it indeed looked golden on the outside, yet it revealed no spiritual light, and even its fragrance was not as intense as the Supreme Grade of Chenjian; instead, it was more restrained, as if it wanted to gather all its brilliance within. Moreover, the array patterns on it were not prominent; if one had not been immersed in the pill arts for a long time, one would surely think this pill was merely Middle Grade.

Lingxiang felt the flow of the patterns on the Life-Prolonging Pill with one hand, while tracing the Dharma Array within it with the other.

"Dark Pattern Seven-Star Lamp!" Lingxiang was greatly shocked.

It is rumored that the Seven-Star Lamp Array is an ancient Dharma Array with the effect of prolonging life, using the Big Dipper of the heavens to replace the life gate of the body; if the array does not fail for seven days, one can prolong life for another cycle.

"So that's how it is."

Laws have their methods, the Dao has its principles, and pill arts also have evidence to rely on before one can achieve Pill Condensation. What the Life-Prolonging Pill relies on is connected to the Seven-Star Lamp Array, only the Seven-Star Lamp Array uses external force to draw life into the body to defy the heavens and change fate, while the Life-Prolonging Pill extends life from within.

It is just that Lingxiang does not understand why Ajin specifically gave this box to Zhao Wuyang, yet why did it have to be her who opened it?

Looking at Zhao Wuyang on the couch, Lingxiang thought for a long time but could not figure it out. Moreover, based on her understanding of Ajin, she feared that Ajin had not told Zhao Wuyang the reason for it either.

Forget it, forget it; there is still serious business to attend to right now, so she cannot worry about these things for the moment.

A courtyard with corridors on three sides, and an old locust tree in the yard, rustling under the gentle breeze.

Lingxiang opened her eyes abruptly, and this was what met her gaze. Being in it, it was not as oppressive or stifling as she had imagined; instead, it made her feel extremely peaceful and comfortable.

This must be Wuyang's "Pool"...

The so-called "Pool" is the dwelling pool; it is both the residence of Qi and the place where Qi is trapped.

To cultivate the path of longevity, one only needs the spirit to be complete, the Qi to be complete, and the form to be complete. Those with a complete spirit delight in the void and mystery, enjoy tranquility, and with the clear and calm Qi in harmony, the spirit is naturally complete. When the primordial Qi is full and accumulated, the form and spirit will exist forever. With both spirit and Qi complete, one can lift the form and become an immortal.

If one discusses the Dao in terms of cultivation methods, one must have a resilient form, full Qi, and a wandering spirit. Practitioners often start by tempering the body; if the form is resilient, one can fill it with primordial Qi. When Qi is full, one regulates the breath to reduce Qi; when primordial Qi overflows, it can open the hundred barriers, the Qi meridians will be smooth, and the spirit will be through; when the spirit is through, the Primordial Spirit is at ease.

Primordial Qi is difficult to accumulate but easy to disperse, and joints are easy to close but difficult to open; the dwelling of Qi must not be cut off, and it should be deeply cherished.

The various stages of cultivation, such as body tempering, Qi Refining, Pill Condensation, and Nascent Soul, are all based on this principle.

However, as far as Lingxiang knew, a person's Qi Pool is both a residence and a predicament, mostly trapped and difficult; for it to be as peaceful and enjoyable as Zhao Wuyang's truly exceeded her expectations.

Lingxiang's original intention was to summon the ancient Qiong Cang, as with his ability, he would certainly know the reasons behind this, but she did not expect that after one Dream-Returning Pill, Zhao Wuyang would have not the slightest reaction. Since that was the case, she had no choice but to invite herself in and search through the dream.

But there did not seem to be anyone around here; where should she look?

This scene looked like the scenery of the City Lord Mansion. Although Lingxiang recognized it, she did not dare to wander around. This place was, after all, Zhao Wuyang's Qi Pool, a place of only a few square inches; if she wandered around, firstly, she might sink into it and become a puppet, and secondly, there was no guarantee that she would not disturb Zhao Wuyang's mind, leading to spiritual injury and physical destruction.

But since she had already come, she could not return empty-handed; after all, the method of entering a dream was also extremely mentally taxing...

As if responding to Lingxiang's thoughts, a creaking sound came from the yard, one after another, with a very rhythmic beat.

This sound felt extremely peaceful, like an old man lying on a rocking chair, swaying back and forth comfortably.

Lingxiang looked left and right, but saw nothing; the corridor was also empty, yet the sound kept coming, as if it were coming from all directions.

Just as Lingxiang was searching all around, the sound seemed to become concrete in an instant. She turned her head abruptly and saw a bamboo chair under the corridor rocking back and forth. Beside the bamboo chair was a square table, on which sat a teapot, a cup, and that wooden box that Zhao Wuyang had dropped...

That wooden box containing the Immortal Grade Life-Prolonging Pill!

Lingxiang was startled at first, but soon regained her composure. She lifted her head and gave a soft laugh: "Just now I pleaded and pleaded, yet Senior paid no heed. Now you are playing tricks on a junior like me; what kind of logic is that!"

The rocking chair continued to rock on its own. Lingxiang's words did not seem to have any effect, but she was not in a hurry, only smiling as she looked at the bamboo chair, as if waiting for something.

It was at this moment that a wind rose, and the old locust tree in the yard swayed with the wind, the rustling sound becoming more urgent.

And it was also at this moment, in the blink of an eye, that a person appeared out of nowhere on the rocking chair under the corridor, sitting there with eyes closed and tapping his leg, looking completely composed, and that person was...

Zhao Wuyang!

No, to be precise, it should be the ancient Qiong Cang who had transformed into the appearance of Zhao Wuyang.