Chapter 277: Demonic Alchemy (For the Dawn, Lord He of the Podoldo Alliance)

Chapter 277: Demonic Alchemy (For the Dawn, Lord He of the Podoldo Alliance)



Within the Fourth Rank Mystic Mansion.

Fang Xing sat cross-legged, his divine perception focused on his dantian.

There, a platinum sword pill slowly rotated, each turn absorbing and expelling a vast amount of spiritual energy from the heavens and earth.

The nearly liquid spiritual energy, after being transformed and condensed by his innate flying sword, became Golden Core Sword Essence, even more potent than Golden Core True Essence. It swiftly circulated along fixed pathways within his body.

"The Great Freedom Mystic Gold Sword Scripture truly lives up to its reputation as the guardian cultivation method of the Golden Core Sect."

After a long while, Fang Xing opened his eyes, "Golden Core Late Stage... Just a little more, and I'll achieve Golden Core Perfection."

"I'm not even fifty years old yet..."

Such a cultivation speed would undoubtedly shock the entire cultivation world if it got out.

After all, ordinary cultivators would consider themselves fortunate if they could reach Foundation Establishment before the age of sixty.

Even for direct disciples of the Golden Core Sect, if they could form their Golden Cores before sixty, they would be considered once-in-a-generation prodigies! But for Fang Xing, before he turned sixty, he would likely be challenging the Golden Core stage.

Of course, his cultivation speed was already highly unusual.

Not only did he possess exceptional natural talent, but he also had the boost from a Fourth Rank Spirit Vein Mystic Mansion.

More importantly... it was also thanks to the abundant spiritual herbs from Linyang Bliss Land and the miraculous effects of the Ten Thousand Transformations Cauldron! To be blunt, when Fang Xing eventually achieves the Golden Core stage, the entire Dajing cultivation world, especially the righteous and demonic paths, will have gained a formidable member.

Furthermore, the waste was also significant.

Fang Xing silently calculated the amount of spiritual resources he had consumed in pursuit of rapid cultivation; he felt that it was enough to cultivate several Golden Core Late Stage cultivators.

"Breaking through from Golden Core Mid-stage to Golden Core Late-stage feels incredibly easy."

"For true geniuses, do bottlenecks even exist?"

Previously, after reaching the peak of his cultivation at Golden Core Mid-stage, Fang Xing casually consumed some spiritual pills obtained from the spoils of both the righteous and demonic paths' storage bags. These pills, after being refined by the Ten Thousand Transformations Cauldron, were said to be effective in breaking through bottlenecks. With their aid, he effortlessly advanced to the Golden Core Late-stage.

For Golden Core cultivators, bottlenecks that could hinder them for decades seemed non-existent to him.

From then on, the path to Golden Core Perfection was smooth sailing; he only needed to continuously accumulate his cultivation.

Moreover, Fang Xing never neglected purifying his cultivation, strengthening his foundation.

By now, even without relying on other means, he was confident in defeating several experts of the same caliber as the Five Righteous Protectors or the Six Demonic Heroes with just his own strength and sword.

"My pill concocting skills have reached the Quasi-Fourth Rank level... I can start preparing to refine the Golden Core Pill."

"My standards aren't high; as long as it barely forms a pill, it's good enough... After all, I have more than enough primary materials, so I can afford to waste them."

"As long as one pill succeeds in the end, I can use the Ten Thousand Transformations Cauldron to salvage the situation."

Of course, ideally, he wanted to refine a successful pill, so that after the Ten Thousand Transformations Cauldron's refinement, its effectiveness would be unparalleled, increasing the chances of Golden Core formation.

Fang Xing silently calculated his preparations for Golden Core formation.

"Breaking through a major bottleneck usually involves three aspects—the body, cultivation, and the heart demon..."

"I cultivate the Great Freedom Mystic Gold Sword Scripture, a Divinity Transformation Scripture, ensuring my cultivation is pure and refined, with the sharp edge of metal-attributed Sword Essence... Plus, I have an Extreme-grade metal spirit stone, so it shouldn't be a problem."

"As for the heart demon... I didn't encounter one during Golden Core formation, so I wonder if I'll face one when attempting Golden Core?"

"As for the Golden Core Thunder Tribulation... I've already cultivated the Ten Thousand Arts Ghost Infant, and I possess two spiritual treasures, the Azure Sun Demon Lamp and the Scorched Tail Zither. If I can't pass this tribulation, no cultivator ever will..."

"It seems that this cultivation clone, aside from the body, has maxed out all other aspects. It would be against the laws of heaven if it couldn't form a Golden Core."

Fang Xing sighed.

The Golden Core Pill's effects were extraordinary; it could replenish the essence, energy, and spirit of a Golden Core Late-stage cultivator. Like the Golden Core Pill, it could temper most of the pill's power to strengthen the body, aiding in breaking through the three bottlenecks.

Some cultivators had robust bodies but weak cultivation; they could focus the pill's power on the cultivation bottleneck, promoting a transformation.

For cultivators with weak spiritual perception, the pill's power could be concentrated on enhancing their perception, assisting in its breakthrough.

This was the fundamental principle of rank-breaking pills—compensating for innate deficiencies! Of course, if a cultivator's essence, energy, and spirit were all lacking, and the pill's power wasn't sufficient to make up for the flaws, failure was inevitable, and no one could do anything about it.

"Hmm?"

As Fang Xing pondered, he sensed fluctuations in the spiritual energy outside and couldn't help but smile, "Is someone forming a Golden Core?"

He didn't care about the Mu Clan's affairs at all.

As long as the Mu Clan hadn't produced a Golden Core True Monarch, even if they formed an Immortal Golden Core, he wouldn't bother as long as they didn't try to seize his Mystic Mansion.

However, when Fang Xing released his divine perception, he discovered that the Golden Core phenomenon was collapsing.

In the end, the initial Upper Pill phenomenon transformed into a False Core phenomenon.

"This... is greed getting the better of him. He tried to rush into the Half Golden Core stage, but failed and suffered backlash."

"Or perhaps... he succumbed to the Heart Demon Tribulation and took the Core Formation pill?"

"Or even... someone sabotaged him?!"

Fang Xing took a glance and immediately understood the reason for the unfortunate cultivator's failure during Core Formation: "He was too hasty. If he had been more patient, advancing to the True Core stage wouldn't have been a problem... Additionally, if he had another Core Formation Spirit Treasure, the pill's power could have been sustained until the end, solidifying his cultivation... He wouldn't have fallen back a stage..."

As a Quasi-Fourth Rank Alchemy Master, he had the expertise to make such an assessment.

After a brief glance, he averted his attention and resumed his seclusion.

"It's time to start preparing to refine the Soul Condensation Pill... Thank the gifts of nature, I have five Divine Baby Fruits... Moreover, the auxiliary materials are almost complete, gathered from the storage bags of both righteous and demonic cultivators..."

The previous Soul Condensation Pill formula was obtained from the Nine Infants Sect's Heimo Qing.

Moreover, he had thoughtfully prepared most of the auxiliary materials.

Fang Xing intended to gather the remaining materials in Linyang Bliss Land.

Similarly, the storage bags of demonic Golden Core cultivators also contained similar preparations.

With enough materials for five attempts, success was highly likely.

"The key now is to refine at least one successful pill within five attempts, even if it's a low-quality one!"

Fang Xing contemplated for a moment.

The Divine Baby Fruit couldn't be divided, so each attempt required a whole fruit for one pill.

If entrusted to a Fourth Rank Alchemy Master, they could guarantee at least one successful pill per attempt, with the possibility of one or two additional low-quality ones.

The Soul Condensation Pill wasn't a common pill; the highest record in the cultivation world was a Fifth Rank Alchemy Master refining five successful pills in one attempt! Unfortunately, he was only a Quasi-Fourth Rank Alchemy Master, but with sufficient raw materials, he had a good chance.

"However, for a typical Quasi-Fourth Rank Alchemy Master aiming to advance to the Fourth Rank, they would choose the cheapest Fourth Rank pills to refine..."

"Using the Soul Condensation Pill as practice is indeed a bit wasteful..."

"I should take it slow. After all, the Mu Clan has produced Primordial Spirit cultivators, and they should have a few Fourth Rank pill formulas or fragments. I can try those first..."

Although gathering materials for Fourth Rank pills was challenging, Fang Xing's current wealth gave him confidence.

In recent years, aside from cultivation, he had devoted most of his time to alchemy.

"After I condense my Primordial Spirit, I'll see if the frontier war is worth pursuing... If not, I'll head to the Han Sea Cultivation World to seek cultivation methods and scriptures for the Divinity Transformation stage."

For most Primordial Spirit True Monarchs, the Great Freedom Mystic Gold Sword Scripture was sufficient for cultivation up to the Divinity Transformation stage.

However, for Fang Xing, it was far from enough.

His knowledge of martial arts was already sufficient for him to cultivate to the Martial Deity stage.

But after that, there was no clear path! Although the Blue Star Federation was still in its early stages, Fang Xing needed to prepare an alternative path, which was the Immortal Martial Path! Therefore, by collecting cultivation world scriptures equivalent to the Martial Deity stage, he could have his cultivation world clone advance first and then feedback to his original body, potentially assisting his breakthrough to the Martial Deity stage.

A flash of light appeared, and a jade slip containing the Soul Condensation Pill formula emerged in Fang Xing's hand. He began to carefully study it.

"Divine Baby Enters Furnace, Nine Dragons Ascend, Green Bamboo Blue Waterfall, Jade Vessel Three Turns, Repeated Nine Turns... With Crimson Fruit, Jade Stone..."

"Damn these alchemy masters and their cryptic language and rhymes..."

"Cultivation should be based on science! Why not just state the dosage and temperature clearly?"

After studying the formula, Fang Xing felt like spitting blood.

These were the pitfalls of cultivation scriptures; even more so for those that hid crucial information, only to be passed down orally from master to disciple.

Fortunately, he had several copies of the Soul Condensation Pill formula, allowing for cross-referencing.

As a Quasi-Fourth Rank Alchemy Master with extensive experience, he could deduce some information.

By experimenting with the Divine Baby Fruit and wasting a few attempts, he would likely grasp the technique soon.

As he was studying the formula, a sound transmission talisman flew into his cave abode.

"Hmm?"

Fang Xing casually grabbed it with a thread of spiritual power, and the talisman landed in his palm.

After listening to a few sentences, he sighed, "Alright... I suppose it's time to meet."

A blue pearl appeared in his hand, the Nine Infants Pearl.

With a thought, he transformed into Mu Wanlong, appearing weak.

He waved a small flag, and multicolored talismans emerged from the mist, concealing places like the beast pen and alchemy room from prying eyes.

After completing these preparations, Fang Xing snapped his fingers, sending out a sound transmission talisman and simultaneously opening the formation outside the Fourth Rank cave abode.

Several streams of light flew in, led by Mu Wanzhang.

In addition to him, there was a young man with a proper face and pale complexion, as well as several Foundation Establishment Stewards.

They arrived in the living room and saw Mu Wanlong on the cloud bed, their eyes instantly turning red. "Supreme Elder..."

At this moment, Mu Wanlong's hair was grayed, devoid of vitality, his skin wrinkled, eyes clouded, and even his body emitted a foul odor.

It was evident that he didn't have long to live.

"Ancestor, Qing Shi has failed your trust... I have exhausted the family's resources, only managing to condense a False Core. I beg for your punishment, Ancestor."

The young man with the proper face was none other than Mu Qingshi, kneeling in apology, his voice filled with sobs.

"Good child..."

Fang Xing spoke, his voice hoarse, "This is not your fault. What exactly happened?"

He turned to Mu Wanzhang.

Mu Wanzhang was also helpless. With the family's Core Formation Seed only managing a False Core, the family's stability was at stake.

At this moment, they could only visit the Ancestor, spreading the news of the Ancestor's well-being to barely stabilize the situation.

However, they never expected that the Ancestor, who had always refused their requests, would agree this time.

Bitterness filled his heart, and he said, "Qing Shi has a resilient character, but he thinks too much... He had already reached the upper ranks of True Core, but for the sake of the family, he pushed himself to strive for Half Golden Core... However, he didn't expect the Heart Demon to be completely overcome. He thought he had achieved Golden Core, but in reality, he had walked the path of Core Formation in the Heart Demon's illusion, consuming the Core Formation pill. The original True Core's quality plummeted, barely maintaining the False Core."

Mu Qingshi was filled with shame and could only kneel in silence.

"Sigh... This is fate."

Fang Xing coughed and then looked at the cultivators present, "However... there is still a way to save him."

Upon hearing this, the cultivators' expressions became extremely vivid.

"Supreme Elder... There's no regret in pill condensation."

Mu Wanzhang's heart was filled with both warmth and hesitation as he spoke this common knowledge in the cultivation world.

"Hehe... We cultivators must turn the impossible into possible... There are countless secret techniques and skills in the cultivation world, but 'No Regrets in Pill Condensation' is too absolute..."

Fang Xing shook his head, "This time, I killed a Dark Path Core Formation Cultivator in Linyang Bliss Land and obtained a secret technique from his Storage Bag called 'Demonic Transformation Technique'! It can transform a cultivator's False Core or even True Core without harming their foundation, allowing them to reform their core. This process of breaking and rebuilding will naturally improve the quality of Core Formation."

He looked at Mu Qingshi, "Qing Shi, you are the most outstanding among the Core Formation Seeds. If you can't succeed, no one else can... I've decided to exhaust my remaining essence and cast this secret technique for you, and I'll also hand over all the Core Formation Spirit Treasures in the family to you... You were just a step away from Half Golden Core. After transforming your False Core and reforming it, there's a high chance of achieving Half Golden Core... You will be the pillar that supports the Mu Clan!"

Upon hearing this, Mu Qingshi's eyes immediately turned red, "Ancestor..."

"This secret technique... It's probably very difficult to perform. What about your health, Supreme Elder?" Mu Wanzhang asked hesitantly.

"It's fine... I don't have many years left anyway. It's time to sacrifice this old body and pave the way for the younger generation."

Fang Xing spoke calmly, "In the Land of Falling Leaves, the seeds will thrive."

For a moment, all the cultivators present were deeply moved.

...

When Mu Wanzhang returned to his own Spirit Cave, his heart was filled with surging emotions. "If our Mu Clan can produce a Half Golden Core Cultivator, after a hundred years of seclusion... perhaps we can break through to Core Formation Mid-stage! A Half Golden Core Cultivator at Core Formation Mid-stage is no less than an ordinary Core Formation Late-stage Cultivator. Finally, our Mu Clan has a glimmer of hope for revival."

Just then, he suddenly heard a cough behind him, and his hairs stood on end, "Who's there?"

"It's me!"

Fang Xing emerged from the darkness with his hands behind his back.

"Supreme Elder, aren't you preparing to perform the Demonic Transformation Technique?" Mu Wanzhang was startled.

"What transformation technique? I was deceiving you."

Fang Xing revealed a hint of an eerie smile.

Indeed, there was such a transformation technique in the Dark Path, but the prerequisites were extremely complex and demanding, not to mention it required the involvement of a Primordial Spirit True Monarch and would exhaust their essence.

Even if he could use Ten Thousand Arts Ghost Infant to perform it, he wasn't Mu Qingshi's father and wouldn't make such a sacrifice.

Spreading this rumor was to take advantage of the lack of experience among these False Core and Foundation Establishment Cultivators.

"What?"

Mu Wanzhang's eyes widened.

"I suspect that someone interfered with Qing Shi's Core Formation process... Although the family is in seclusion, there are still remnants within. I deliberately spread this news to lure out the culprits."

Fang Xing calmly explained.

The external forces would certainly not want to see the Mu Clan produce another Half Golden Core Cultivator.

And since they had already taken action once, they would do so again.

Fang Xing was intentionally baiting them.

"So that's how it is..."

Mu Wanzhang's heart was filled with admiration. Indeed, the old ginger is the spiciest. No wonder the Supreme Elder could be the clan leader before!

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end