When Zhang Yong woke from his slumber, the scene before him was slightly different. A strong light shone from above, but it didn't seem like sunlight.
The rock walls were extremely gloomy,like smooth black stones.
The view resembled a volcanic crater,a volcano but without lava, only a hard, black rocky floor. This was the mountain's internal structure.
Zhang Yong leaned against one of the walls, breathing calmly. He felt his back as if it were surrounded by moss. Then he looked ahead; there was a pond in front, with green lights floating in the air around it, giving a refreshing sense of life.
"Your injuries are already healed?" An old man appeared before Zhang Yong. This old man gave off a ghostly feeling. He was short, his body somewhat plump, but his face was very thin as if he hadn't eaten for days. He had thick eyebrows and a bald head.
The old man stared at Zhang Yong for a while. Zhang Yong slowly rose from the ground, first touching his body. His back was covered with herbal sap. From the smell alone, these were medicinal healing herbs.
After that, he looked around the place with a calm expression, and finally, turned his gaze towards the old man in front of him and bowed with his fists clasped forward. "I thank the Elder for saving me."
The old man smiled faintly, a look of satisfaction mixed with a hint of mockery appearing in his eyes. He said in a quiet voice, "No need. I watched your fight from the outside. The flame you used was Origin Flame, wasn't it?"
Zhang Yong looked at the old man with suspicion. Origin Flame was rare, and because the Alchemy Society controlled the Flame Valley, very few possessed Origin Flame, making this information scarcely spread.
The fact that the old man recognized it could only mean he was extremely knowledgeable. To remain in a spectral state like this, his mental energy must have reached at least the Ruler realm, meaning he was of the King rank.
Zhang Yong bowed slightly and clasped his hands. "Replying to the Elder's words, yes, that is correct."
The old man calmly stroked his beard. "Oh, you don't seem surprised to see me. Ordinary people would be terrified and freeze in fear from fright."
Zhang Yong smiled lightly, his eyes shining with quiet confidence. "I won't lie to the Elder. In fact, I previously went to one of the ruins and met a Refiner's spirit there. He said he fell a thousand years ago in a great war. So I was wondering, with all due respect, did the Elder fall in that battle?"
The old man let out a short laugh, which sounded like a hollow echo reflecting off the rock walls, then said with ambiguous expressions, "Unfortunately, I did not participate in that war. I died a bit earlier, roughly 1,030 years ago, long before that war. I am called Tian Hua, and I was one of the Twelve Kings of my era, the Sacred Fire King. At that time, I was the fourth strongest existing King. I had one close friend who was a 10th-rank Venerable. And there was a woman between us. But she chose me over him, even though I felt it was unfair to him. But he said he would still be my brother. Who would have expected that all of this was a scheme? In fact, he was the one who introduced me to her in the beginning. But who would have thought he did that only for the secret to reaching the Emperor rank? I didn't know until it was too late. I was betrayed by the two of them. Fortunately, I managed to escape, but I couldn't survive. My soul was damaged, but I managed to escape with my body to a place he wouldn't be able to find me. And so I came here."
Tian Hua fell silent for a moment, his face etched with deep sorrow mixed with suppressed anger. He continued in a strained voice, "I had strength, power, and companions. But in the end, I fell due to treachery and betrayal. The two people closest to my heart betrayed me... and plotted together to strip me of everything."
Zhang Yong listened silently and respectfully, contemplating the story of the former King. But this was only what he showed on the surface, and he began his analysis. 'This old man...'
So far, Zhang Yong had met the spirits of two King-rank individuals, and each had their own personality. But the thing that united them was arrogance. The Thief King was arrogant and possessed his own pride, while the King accompanying Jian Yi was submissive and humble because of Ling Xi. But after Zhang Yong absorbed him, he had an idea about him; it was that pride.
Given that the personalities of Kings were arrogant, it was impossible for one to casually mention being betrayed unless he was throwing mud on his own face. Of course, each individual had their own unique personality, but an ordinary person wouldn't say that casually either. This meant that this specter was trying to gain his sympathy! But for what reason? He didn't know.
"I am sorry for what happened to Elder Tian Hua. But what does the secret to reaching the Emperor rank have to do with it? Isn't it a rank everyone can reach?" Zhang Yong asked with a puzzled expression.
Elder Tian Hua sighed quietly. "It's not as simple as you think. Most people reach the 10th-rank Venerable stage and stop because there are special conditions. To enter the Venerable realm, one must purify the five organs. To reach the King rank, a person must reach the perfection and fruition of their path—the Truth! If you can't do that, you can't advance further. As for reaching the Emperor rank, one must absorb Sacred Qi."
Zhang Yong immediately took Tian Hua's words to heart, for knowledge of the advancement conditions for the Emperor rank wasn't information available to everyone, and he wouldn't have obtained it had he not met this old specter. If what he said was true, Zhang Yong had really hit the jackpot.
Zhang Yong bowed again and thanked him. "Thank you, Ancient Elder, for such valuable information. But unfortunately, this information...."
The old man smiled calmly. "I know about your condition. A broken energy core, am I right? Don't worry, when I treated you, I checked your body to make sure you had no internal injuries. That's how I know."
Tian Hua continued calmly, "In fact, your condition isn't entirely hopeless. There is still hope for restoring your energy core."
Zhang Yong looked at the Elder with interest, his eyes lighting up with faint excitement. For a moment, he thought he had misheard. There was a way! A way to restore his cultivation. It seemed like a dream.
However, who would give something like this away for free? So, there must be a catch. "Is there something I can offer the Elder in exchange for the method?"
The old man Tian Hua smiled calmly. "Don't worry. Your mental strength is that of a fourth-grade Alchemist. I want you to refine a pill for me. It's called the Soul Imprint Pill. I won't ask you to create a body for me, but I want to solidify my soul into a tangible form so I can live without problems."
Zhang Yong stared at the Elder for a moment. "Elder, what rank is this pill exactly?"
The Elder walked a little away towards a pile of mixed items on the ground in the corner. "It's a sixth-grade pill. If you successfully make it, not only will I give you the recipe for your healing pill, but I will also give you all of my knowledge." The Elder quietly lifted a scroll from the middle of the pile. "This is the recipe for treating your condition. I'm showing it to you to demonstrate my sincerity."
Zhang Yong held his chin for a moment. "A sixth-grade recipe, this... would require sixth-grade ingredients."
The Elder laughed softly. "Don't worry, there is still some power in this Qi spring to create quite a few herbs."
Zhang Yong's eyes widened when he heard that. "Wait, a Qi spring? This pond is a Qi spring? But there's always a guardian spirit around a It , To control it, you must obtain the spring's origin. Does this mean you..."
Elder Tian Hua shook his head. "No, rather, the guardian spirit was already injured and died over time. But I already possess the origin, so I can control it. Otherwise, I wouldn't have lived all this time."
A QiSpring was a special spiritual pond that was difficult to find, but many sects possessed them and they were also the foundation for establishing them. These springs could produce quantities of spirit stones in caves. If left alone, the spring would spread its aura throughout the area, allowing for the formation of spirit stone caves.
However, obtaining one wasn't that simple either, because there were always guardian spirits around these springs, who guarded the spring's origin. Therefore, sects had two options: either form a contract with the guardian spirit, or kill it and obtain the spring's origin. But most chose the first option. Why?
Because it was beneficial for the guardian spirits as well. They also absorbed and relied on the spring. But when the pressure became too great and unbearable, the guardian spirit would die. So, to share the burden, they agreed to let Refiners absorb Qi from the springs, reducing the pressure and allowing them to endure.
And for sure , as long as the pond exist , the sect can keep them as guardians of the sect to help the future generations
Zhang Yong held his chin and thought for a bit before saying, "I don't know the recipe, and I don't have a cauldron, Elder."
Tian Hua smiled slyly and pointed with his hand to another corner of the cave, where an ancient cauldron with complex engravings and mysterious symbols carved on its surface appeared. "This is the cauldron you will use. I still have some of my treasures from when I was alive, and I used this cauldron as well. Unfortunately, that person I considered my brother stole all the alchemy knowledge I had acquired from a certain shrine. As for the recipe, it is: Purple Dragonhead Herb, Blue Dragonhead Herb, Leaf of Harmony, Autumn Dew Teardrop, ........ Jade Bone Powder, and finally, Stellar Essence."
The process of the recipe was massive, Zhang Yong's expression turned serious as he listened.
And this was for two reasons.
First... one of the ingredients was Stellar Essence. Zhang Yong had thought he could refine this sixth-grade pill because he had experience refining a similar pill of the same grade before. But now, that was just an illusion and overconfidence in himself.
With that single experience, he thought his success rate was at least 70%, but now it immediately dropped to 20%.
Second, he cursed the Elder in his heart. This bastard was a devil. These ingredients were the same as the ingredients for a pill recorded in Xiao Qiong's records. This pill wasn't called Soul Imprint, but Soul Possession. This pill allowed a person to possess a body. In that moment, he realized the old man's scheme.
'This old man indeed intends to steal my body. Damn him. But this might be a blessing in disguise.'
Zhang Yong shrugged, unable to help it. "Elder, it's not that I can't help. There's that group chasing me outside, so this place isn't safe."
Elder Tian Hua waved his hand calmly. "Don't worry, using my energy, I have set up defenses at the entrance. Also, I go out from time to time, so I can scout."
Zhang Yong smiled with a little relief. "That's good. But a sixth-grade pill is somewhat difficult. I will have to make some fifth-grade pills first to get used to it before making a pill of this level. Also, I have never heard of Stellar Essence."
Elder Hua nodded slowly. "Stellar Essence is the condensation of stardust, a rare material, and can be formed and controlled by a person from the Star Path. Don't worry about it. I will control it and assist you in the refining. There is already a portion of it inside the cauldron. But," Elder Hua's expression changed slightly to a frown, "Practicing by refining fifth-grade pills? How long will this take?"
Zhang Yong pretended to think for a bit before answering. "A week. A week should be a sufficient period. I am confident in my talent. If you are not satisfied, how about I try to make this pill once a day? I might even succeed before the deadline, but the success rate might not be high and we might end up wasting all the Qi in the spring."
Elder Tian Hua looked at him with some suspicion, but he had already waited for over a hundred years. A week wouldn't make much difference compared to that. His waiting wasn't a great loss for him.
Elder Tian Hua nodded slowly, his voice calm: "That's fine then. When will you start?"
Zhang Yong smiled broadly, his eyes flashing calmly. "I will start now, Elder Tian Hua. And I thank the Elder for giving me the chance to use such an ancient and powerful cauldron. I promise I will do my best."
Elder Tian Hua shook his head. "It's fine. Tell me, what ingredients do you need?"
Zhang Yong tapped his forehead quietly. "Well, I will need...."
Zhang Yong began requesting the herbs he needed from Elder Tian Hua, then stepped forward and sat in front of the cauldron.
Zhang Yong began preparing the ingredients for the fifth-grade pills, pretending to be intensely focused on carefully preparing each component, while in reality, he was closely observing Elder Tian Hua.
He noticed that the old man was scrutinizing his every move intently, as if examining him with the eyes of an expert.
This gave him a glimpse of the future situation. The scent of herbs began to fill the cave as he melted the components and began assembling them. 'Well, to raise this old man's hopes, let's make this pill succeed.'
Immediately, he released the Great Sun Flame and refined all the components into a purple pill.
"Body Restoration Pill. It can restore severed limbs."
When the Body Restoration Pill was completed in Zhang Yong's hands, the pill was glowing with a majestic purple color. He held it firmly and smiled with satisfaction, then presented it to Elder Tian Hua.
Elder Tian Hua examined the pill cautiously, and soon, admiration appeared on his face. "Your refining skill is not bad at all, even exceeding expectations for a youth your age. It seems you are truly the destined person to receive my legacy."