Celestial Essence

"To test one's sword across the realm—such a path of supremacy is arduous in the extreme. Yet without exception, all who see it through carve their names into history." As the girl in green spoke, brilliant light shone in her eyes. In the adjacent seats, several people who had read the reports in the night papers marveled aloud as well. Testing one's sword across a hundred cities was indeed a magnificent undertaking. "Some of those renowned old seniors walked such a path in their youth as well!" Qin Ming listened quietly. Only after a long time, when the novelty of the journey wore off, did the chatter begin to dwindle. The black mist surged; even high above the vault of heaven, not a trace of light was visible. An energetic group of youths, even with nothing left to discuss, showed no sign of fatigue. Many came out onto the deck to gaze into the ink-black expanse ahead. "I feel a bit uneasy. What if we plunge down? Even if we walk the immortal path, we haven't reached the level where we can discard the mortal vessel and survive purely on the conscious spiritual light." "Don't jinx it. Don't say such unlucky things." Someone hurried to silence him, though he couldn't help reaching down to check the parachute pack strapped to his waist. The night was like an abyss. High in the air, it was even bleaker than on the ground; after all, across the dark earth below, Fire Springs dotted the landscape like sparse fireflies. Sailing across this abyssal sky, the Vermilion Bird airship was truly extraordinary. A dark crimson luster flowed across its hull as it parted the sea of mist. Before long, its speed slackened until it came to a complete halt. "Everyone, celestial essence occasionally drifts down from the night sky, sweet as divine nectar. Whether you obtain any depends entirely on luck," a woman's voice transmitted via conscious spiritual light. Everyone knew the highlight of the journey had arrived. Why had they boarded the Vermilion Bird airship rather than traveling atop high-grade mutated beasts? It was precisely to harvest this celestial essence. Those who had been resting their eyes opened them and stepped onto the deck. Outside the ship, it was far from quiet; astral gales churned, and dense fog rolled like surging waves. Many of the youths wore eager, expectant expressions. After halting, the Vermilion Bird hovered in place. Fine lines intertwined across the hull, weaving a massive net that rose high above to envelop the vessel. "Could there be dangerous creatures lurking in this night sky?" someone muttered under their breath. "The nocturnal sea is unfathomable. Who can truly comprehend it? Say no more," a middle-aged man cautioned. Soon, the woman's conscious spiritual light rippled once more, informing the crowd that based on past experience, there was a high probability of celestial essence descending in this region. Qin Ming also made his way onto the deck. To him, all of this was a novel experience. "It's here! I see a streak of light!" someone cried out. Unfortunately, it was quite far from the airship, and the radiant shower swiftly receded into the distance. "No rush. We'll be staying here for a long time, so there's plenty of opportunity to capture the celestial essence." A quarter of an hour later, amidst a chorus of gasps, a cascade of radiant rain pierced through the heavy fog and poured down from higher in the vault of heaven, covering a broad expanse. This time, the airship eased forward, adjusting its position to meet the light directly. "This ticket was worth every coin!" someone shouted in delight. This shower wouldn't slip by; through the gaps in the glowing net, the celestial essence drifted down. Everyone made their move, channeling the radiant rain toward themselves. Qin Ming circulated the *Heluo Classic*, reaching out toward the light rain to capture over a dozen drops. They had no scent, but each glimmered faintly with spiritual luster. He gave them a taste. They possessed no flavor at all, feeling remarkably like plain water. Yet soon, a new sensation took hold. As the dozen-odd drops entered his stomach, he felt threads of warmth circulating through his flesh and blood, followed by a gentle nourishment of his spirit. A moment later, when he savored the lingering sensation, there was even a faint hint of intoxication, as though he had drunk fine, fragrant wine. Qin Ming was quietly astonished. This substance was indeed immensely beneficial to the body. If one were to brew tea with it year-round or drink it like ordinary water, it would be an unimaginable luxury. He could only sigh inwardly at how delightfully refined the lives of those veteran seniors must be. Then he thought of Li Qingyue. Having obtained the near-immortal Eight Trigrams Furnace, she could capture celestial essence every day. No wonder so many people envied her. "This is merely the most common variety of celestial essence. Please savor it at your leisure," the woman's conscious spiritual light transmitted again. "The ship is slow, but the fare is steep—and with good reason," someone praised. For a first voyage, the experience was indeed remarkable. The black mist roiled outside the ship like an ocean. Half an hour later, another shower of radiant rain appeared, denser than the last, blanketing the area. This time, Qin Ming held nothing back. Channeling the *Heluo Classic*, he made use of the dense night fog and its heavy moisture to seize the celestial essence. "You lot are... far too fierce!" several passengers exclaimed. Qiu Long, Lu Xu, and others lashed out using their conscious spiritual light, looking practically like bandits on a raid. Those nearby stomped their feet in frustration. This was especially true for the Newborns. Some could not yet project their heavenly light and could only stare helplessly as the celestial essence was swept clean long before it came near them. This time, Qin Ming guided nearly thirty drops of celestial essence to himself. Glistening like dewdrops and bathed in brilliance, they were strikingly beautiful, making him feel as though he were drinking sweet jade nectar. "Fine wine!" someone nearby even praised in admiration. "Everyone spread out! Don't crowd together!" someone yelled. Even so, there were simply too many people on the deck—around five hundred packed together densely. No matter how much they dispersed, some were still left empty-handed. Soon, the gap in skill became glaringly apparent. A few individuals stood out remarkably, drawing down a sizable share of the radiant rain each time, and Qin Ming was among them. "What technique is he using? It isn't conscious spiritual light, nor is it divine wisdom. The fog surges, and the light rain just falls toward him! It's infuriatingly enviable!" Several looked on in shock. Even those walking the immortal and esoteric paths showed surprised expressions. This youth's methods were extraordinary; he snatched more than they did, sweeping up great swathes of celestial essence with a single gesture. "Senior brother, what does celestial essence taste like? I haven't tasted a single drop yet," a young girl said pitifully, gazing at him with wide, pleading eyes. Qin Ming smiled and gave her two drops. However, that set a poor precedent. A crowd immediately swarmed over. The passengers here were not solely youths; there were also older adults among them. Many pushed forward. Unable to draw the distant celestial essence themselves, they aimed to intercept whatever drifted down near him. Qin Ming did not lose his temper. After a brief thought, he turned and walked back into the cabins. "It's him!" a girl in purple exclaimed from a distance, recognizing him. "Who?" The girl in purple said, "Back when the Yuqing ancestral court held that small test, the mutant Cao Wuji only aroused seven colors of heavenly light, but he aroused eight!" "He's someone with hopes of becoming a core disciple of an ancestral court? Yuqing is one of the highest sanctuaries on the Newborn path. Who would have thought he'd choose to head to Kunjun!" The talents walking the outer and esoteric paths were surprised. Even at their level, they felt a lingering wariness toward disciples favored by Yuqing or the Six Imperials. "No wonder he has such methods. He's likely practicing that extraordinary manual, the *Heluo Classic*," someone remarked, guessing Qin Ming's style. Qiu Long, Lu Xu, Qi Ming, and the others exchanged glances and smiled faintly. The top disciples of the Newborn path's great ancestral courts were formidable, but that advantage was limited strictly to the earliest stages. Their elders had taught them what to do if they encountered a top Newborn disciple early on: simply turn away with indifference. By the mid-to-late stages of the second major realm, even talents like that could only stare forlornly at the receding backs of their former rivals, mourning their fate, for they would never catch up again. "Though I don't know what he's like, I think I'll turn away first," someone said with a light chuckle, turning his back to that direction. "Heh, I'll turn away too." Nearby, several Newborns who heard these remarks looked grim. They knew precisely what it meant; it was a slightly disparaging jest. Yet the light laughter soon choked off. Someone suddenly noticed that the youth had appeared in another, partitioned section of the ship. Leng Yue of the outer yang land, Su Shiyun of the immortal land, Zhao Yaoting of the esoteric sect, and others were all gathered in that very area. Their identities had already been uncovered: descendants of pathfinders, seeds of near-immortals—all possessed immense backing and extraordinary natural talent. The crowd was stunned. How had that youth walking the Newborn path crossed over there? What was more, someone was offering him tea—no, offering him a cup of celestial essence! All at once, those who had just been making quips fell dead silent, their hearts jolted. What was going on here? After being crowded by those passengers, Qin Ming had simply shown his ticket and moved to another section! The moment he arrived, Qin Ming was amazed. The people here all possessed rare treasures that allowed them to swiftly draw in celestial essence as well as other wondrous substances. For instance, one person held a jade cup, standing quietly as purple mist drifted down from deep within the night sky, flowing into the cup with astonishing spiritual energy. Another held a four-inch-tall precious vial, channeling a faint silver glow into it. Qin Ming marveled inwardly. These people truly came from illustrious backgrounds to possess such treasures. While of little use on the ground, high up in the sky, they had boundless utility. In truth, he did not know that these youths had been bestowed these treasures because they were tasked with a mission. Cai Jingcheng of the esoteric sect smiled, greeted him, and took the initiative to offer Qin Ming a cup of celestial essence. Qin Ming expressed his thanks and engaged him in warm conversation. For a moment, Cai Jingcheng could not discern Qin Ming's origins either. Sensing that he could walk among them and share the chartered premium cabins, he assumed Qin Ming was likely a companion on this same mission. Consequently, he was exceptionally courteous. Qin Ming noticed that the crystal cup held by the youth next to him was actually drawing in strands of outer heavenly light, which had already condensed into a liquid! Qin Ming's eyes instantly brightened with intense luster, and he could not help looking at it again and again. "Brother, what is it...?" Zhao Yaoting of the esoteric sect asked, feeling uneasy under his intent gaze. "Ah, I've had a severe shortage of heavenly light lately. Would you be willing to sell some, brother?" Qin Ming asked. "This..." Zhao Yaoting pondered briefly, then took out a thumb-length vial half-filled with translucent liquid. "I'll gift you a bottle." Qin Ming felt somewhat embarrassed; how could he take something for free? He could only thank him repeatedly. But soon after, Zhao Yaoting was thoroughly dumbfounded. He watched as the youth tipped the vial straight to his lips and began drinking the liquid condensed from outer heavenly light. "Brother, you've made a mistake! That isn't celestial essence!" he cried out in warning. "I know," Qin Ming replied. He took a sip first and felt nothing amiss, though the substance was far more overbearing than fallen fruit. Then, treating it like fine liquor, he slowly savored it. In an instant, the several youths in the area turned completely to stone. Could someone actually do that? Drinking outer heavenly light liquid straight from the vial? "I originally intended to use that to temper spiritual artifacts. Are you... really all right?" Zhao Yaoting asked with a complicated expression. Qin Ming fell silent as well, speaking only after a pause: "I've been cultivating a secret art lately that requires me to endure all manner of hardship. Right now, I'm stimulating my physical body. I'm fine—a few more bottles wouldn't hurt at all."