Mirror Flower, Water Moon Slays the Wolf King!

After conquering the Tier 3 spiritual vein, Luo Chen's time suddenly became abundant. Before this, it had felt as though a mountain of affairs weighed upon him, a tangled mess with no place to begin. Yet once it was seized, with no further need to fret over the all-important matter of a spiritual ground for cultivation, everything seemed to ease at once. Even though establishing the sect's spiritual grounds still involved countless trivial chores, Luo Chen only needed to oversee the overarching strategy. His daily life slowly returned to a disciplined rhythm. Cultivating, concocting pills, studying fundamental restrictions, and mastering the basics of simple formations. Meanwhile, he continued to dispatch people to gather Fire Spirit Diamonds while steadily raising his spell proficiencies. Under this regulated routine, his strength across every domain grew in a measured, orderly fashion. First and foremost was the Starry Sky Pill! After consuming vast quantities of ingredients and enduring thousands of successes and failures, his proficiency in the Starry Sky Pill was finally drawing close to the Great Perfection level. Half a year later. Inside the immortal's cave that Fei Ming had personally renovated, Luo Chen watched the glowing red Shangshu Cauldron with rapt attention. Within it, the raw liquid essences of medicinal herbs were slowly coalescing. A rich, refreshing pill fragrance imperceptibly drifted through the cave before being locked in place by the array, forbidden from leaking outward. Luo Chen's hands formed spiritual incantations, governing the pace of the fusion while in his mind, he pondered the multiplier of the Starry Sky Pill's medicinal efficacy. If the potency of a low-grade Starry Sky Pill were considered one standard measure, then a mid-grade Starry Sky Pill reached two standard measures. A high-grade Starry Sky Pill doubled again, reaching around four standard measures. Calculated this way, once proficiency reached Great Perfection, the supreme-grade Starry Sky Pill he concocted would likely be around eight standard measures. Yet this was merely conjecture. Judging by the intensity of the pill fragrance, Luo Chen suspected it might well surpass that by a wide margin. After all, at entry-level proficiency, ten portions of raw ingredients produced a single bottle of low-grade pills. At the Great Perfection level, ten portions of raw ingredients likewise yielded a single bottle of supreme-grade pills. The success rates between the two were identical, yet the degree of herb utilization was on an entirely different level. "If the essence of ten portions of ingredients can truly be condensed into a single batch of pills, the shift in potency will definitely not be as simple as seven or eightfold." Harboring bright hopes, Luo Chen guided the final step of pill formation. Once the pill fragrance reached a certain crescendo, Luo Chen's thought stirred. "Collect!" With a lift of his palm, the cauldron lid flew open. Ten round pills, shimmering with clear radiance like stars, floated within the cave. A single glance was enough to leave one dazzled and enraptured. Luo Chen beckoned with his hand, and the ten pills settled into his palm. His spirit eyes scrutinized the patterns upon them. One, two, three, four... nine... nine and a half patterns! That final half cloud-pattern was strikingly golden. Thanks to this wisp of a golden half-pattern, this dazzling Starry Sky Pill appeared almost like a Golden Core itself. "A Golden Core cultivator consuming a Golden Core to cultivate—marvelous! Marvelous! Truly marvelous!" Exclaiming "marvelous" three times in succession, Luo Chen gleefully stored away the ten supreme-grade Starry Sky Pills. Swishing his wide sleeve, he tidied up the makeshift pill room and turned to enter the partitioned cultivation chamber. The moment he stepped inside, the exceedingly dense worldly spiritual energy surged toward him all at once. In this rich environment, the five-colored Golden Core within Luo Chen's body seemed almost restless, as if eager to revolve on its own. The reason for this lay in Fei Ming using a secret Mount Ailao method to channel the spiritual energy of the spirit vein directly here. Thus, the cave's spiritual environment had been elevated from its original Tier 3 low-grade level to the Tier 3 mid-grade level! Among the three spiritual mountains of the Luotian Alliance, Luo Chen alone enjoyed such a cultivation environment! Closing the door of the cultivation chamber, Luo Chen sat upon the Ice Silkworm Mat dedicated to cultivation. The Ice God Jade hanging from his neck gradually calmed his thoughts as well. "A Tier 3 mid-grade spiritual environment." "Tier 3 supreme-grade Starry Sky Pills." "And the Burning Wood True Art at Perfect proficiency." "With all three stacked together, I wonder just how much higher my cultivation efficiency will soar?" With mild curiosity, his mind settled until it was as calm as an ancient well. After swallowing a supreme-grade Starry Sky Pill and cycling his natal cultivation art, Luo Chen entered a state of deep cultivation. The rich, free-floating spiritual energy all around seemed to have found its anchor, converging toward Luo Chen. Within the compact cultivation chamber, a funnel-shaped vortex of spiritual energy faintly formed, and the center of that funnel was Luo Chen's body. *** Two shichen later, Luo Chen temporarily paused his cultivation. This was a standard cultivation duration. He could have continued, but there was no need for now; first, he had to gauge his current cultivation speed. Opening his status panel: [Lifespan: 112/402] [Golden Core Layer One: 8/100] Gazing at these two numbers, Luo Chen fell into contemplation. An extra two years added to his maximum lifespan came as no surprise. With his Wither-Bloom Fire, he had swallowed the vitality of many low-tier demon beasts, and earlier he had even devoured a small amount of vitality from a Tier 3 demon wolf, all complemented by advances in his body refinement. An additional two years was only natural. What he was pondering was his cultivation speed. Forming his core at age one hundred, then spending ten years consolidating his realm and digesting the vast worldly spiritual energy swallowed during core formation, he had thereby advanced to Golden Core Layer One, saving himself years of effort. Someone like Fu Jiusheng had formed a core earlier than he had, yet only a few days ago had Fu Jiusheng barely stepped into Golden Core Layer One. After age one hundred and ten, Luo Chen's time had mostly been spent in quiet cultivation, rushing off to Azure Pill Valley to concoct the Nascent Soul Formation Pill, and fighting in the opening war. Over those two years, he had had very little time to cultivate. The greatest gain had come during the past half-year, aided by cultivating with mid-grade and high-grade Starry Sky Pills. Only thus had he barely pushed his cultivation progress to [8/100]. And from the session of cultivation he had just completed, Luo Chen, relying on his acutely perceptive divine sense, had already gauged his cultivation speed with precision. "Overall, it has increased roughly sixfold compared to before!" With this figure, Luo Chen was both satisfied and a little dissatisfied. A sixfold cultivation speed meant that the thirty years he had originally estimated to advance to Golden Core Layer Two could, barring any unforeseen mishaps, be shortened to five or six years. Advancing a minor realm in five or six years would sound utterly shocking if word got out. After all, this was the Golden Core stage, where even minor gains often took decades or a whole century! That was precisely why Luo Chen was pleased. Yet where his dissatisfaction lay was that the cost was simply too exorbitant! "The raw ingredient cost for concocting a single batch of Starry Sky Pills is around two thousand spirit stones." "To produce a batch at the supreme-grade level requires at least ten portions of raw ingredients, meaning the cost is twenty thousand spirit stones!" "Spread evenly across each pill, that is still two thousand." "Which means that in pill consumption alone, I must spend two thousand a day, sixty thousand a month, and over seven hundred thousand a year!" "And that is merely the raw cost. Ordinary Golden Core cultivators out there struggle to obtain even ordinary Tier 3 cultivation pills, let alone supreme-grade Tier 3 pills. If they bought them with spirit stones, I could sell a bottle for fifty or sixty thousand, or even seventy to eighty thousand at an auction!" "If I factored in renting a Tier 3 mid-grade cave, that would be over a million a year... Forget that; my current cave doesn't cost anything." "Such an enormous price, just to buy a sixfold boost in cultivation speed." After calculating the finances, Luo Chen sighed. No wonder cultivators, upon advancing to Golden Core, placed such immense demand on spiritual grounds while demanding fewer pills. It was not that they genuinely had no need, but that there was market demand without supply—a single pill was virtually unobtainable! Even those legendary master alchemists could never do what he did—effortlessly elevating a Tier 3 pill to the supreme-grade level. Even so, ordinary Tier 3 low-grade cultivation pills were fiercely sought after and craved by Golden Core cultivators. This was precisely why high-tier alchemists held such lofty standing. A rogue alchemist without a sect like him, upon stepping into the Golden Core stage, instantly attracted followers in droves, and many peers actively sought his favor. Forming an allied faction had also been effortless, meeting practically no obstacles. Shaking his head, Luo Chen cast aside these wandering thoughts. He earnestly planned his next steps. Given the Luotian Sect's current businesses, it could earn him at most five hundred thousand spirit stones a year, and that included the Jade Dew Pill trade with the Ice Fort. Moreover, as things stood, that five hundred thousand would likely take a hit. Improving the sect's spiritual grounds was an ongoing expense. The Luotian Sect would have to invest at least a hundred thousand spirit stones into it every year. In other words, Luo Chen would only end up with around four hundred thousand in hand. Yet his annual cultivation expenses, not even counting killer moves, totaled over seven hundred thousand spirit stones in pills alone. Between income and outlay, there was a shortfall of three hundred thousand spirit stones. "In the short term, I can still make up for it with my savings." "However, to ensure sustainable growth..." After some thought, Luo Chen reached a conclusion. He still had to keep concocting pills to sell outside! Low-tier pills were out of the question; he would sell Starry Sky Pills! It was simple and saved trouble: while refining supreme-grade Starry Sky Pills for himself, he could casually produce a batch of ordinary low-grade Starry Sky Pills along the way. For pills like these, the market was vast. To say nothing of others, within the Luotian Alliance alone, Diwu Qi and Jiang Yu would surely be willing to pay handsomely. Given their strength and needs, one bottle a month at a market price of five thousand spirit stones per bottle would come to sixty thousand a year each, totaling one hundred and twenty thousand for the two of them. As for Cen Qiusheng, he was advanced in years and held little hope for the Great Dao, so his demand would likely be lower. He would budget thirty thousand spirit stones for him. For Fu Jiusheng, offer a discount—twenty percent off! He was an insider, after all; a little perk was only fair. Plus, Luo Chen had previously promised to give him five bottles free each year. Taken together, with seven bottles, that was roughly another thirty-thousand-stone budget. "From within the alliance, a total of one hundred and eighty thousand spirit stones can be bridged." "Still not enough!" Luo Chen thought about it and turned his sights toward his friends. Song Mi, master of a sect, possessed considerable wealth. Count him in. Chen Xiuli had a steady stream of income from her dharma robe business and was quite well-off. Moreover, having formed her core recently, her demand for Tier 3 pills was bound to be high. Count her in. The two combined would bring in around one hundred and twenty thousand spirit stones. Luo Chen had not inflated the price. They were friends, after all! Providing them an avenue to purchase pills was mutually beneficial in the first place, and they would surely be deeply grateful to him. Calculated this way, eighteen plus twelve: the three-hundred-thousand spirit stone shortfall was resolved cleanly! "With my alchemy skills, supplying this group will be more than manageable—taking on even more would be no problem." "Yet I must not draw too much attention. This level is just right." "It upholds my reputation as a Tier 3 master alchemist while showing outside Golden Cores that I treat close friends generously and keep them in mind whenever suitable pills are available. That way, even more Golden Core cultivators of modest backing will take the initiative to befriend me." "At the same time, concocting pills at this scale won't eat up too much of my cultivation time." Muttering to himself, Luo Chen made his decision. With the plan settled, his path forward became clearer. Luo Chen reined in his thoughts and began circulating the Micromote Origin Art. The worldly spiritual energy he had captured earlier, along with the vast medicinal potency transformed from the pill, still lingered in his body. Once briefly transformed, this spiritual energy became spiritual power. However! This was not magic power! A major portion of a Golden Core cultivator's effort lay in converting spiritual power into even more potent magic power. Ordinary Golden Core cultivators without powerful inheritances could only rely on their Golden Core to absorb spiritual power and then slowly infuse and convert it using their soul. This process was complex and tedious, consuming vast amounts of time and energy. Yet this very aspect was the easiest part for Luo Chen. He had no grand inheritance, but he had his self-created Micromote Origin Art. This secret art was not only a supreme core-formation art, but also contained the secret knack for transforming spiritual power into magic power. He had formed his core with it, and he could still use it now to convert magic power. In fact, the reason he could boost his cultivation speed to sixfold, aside from external conditions, was due in no small part to the tremendous merit of the Micromote Origin Art. Within the boundless ocean of his qi sea, surging spiritual energy billowed like an expanse of mist, where a five-colored Golden Core bobbed up and down. As the Micromote Origin Art circulated, vast amounts of purified spiritual energy were converted into magic power and absorbed into the Golden Core. The color of the Golden Core deepened, and its size grew by an imperceptible margin. *** Early the next morning, Luo Chen withdrew from his cultivation state and stepped out of the cave. Summoning Zeng Yilong, he assigned him a task. "Take these two bottles of Starry Sky Pills and go to Poyue Immortal City to find Sect Master Song Mi of the Heavenly Blade Sect and Patriarch Chen Xiuli of the Chen family. If you cannot find them in Poyue Immortal City, head to Taishan Market and Tianyi Workshop. Tell them I intend to offer a stable supply of this pill." "If they want them, have them hand over a year's worth of spirit stones for you to bring back. After that, they can take the initiative to send someone here to collect them." At his current realm and stature, Luo Chen no longer bothered with door-to-door delivery sales strategies. He was confident they would willingly accept such terms. Having received his orders, Zeng Yilong raised no objections and set off that very day. Luo Chen did not sit idle either. He first dropped by Min Longyu's place to check the progress of the restriction-spell fusion technique Min Longyu was researching for him. After receiving a reply that it still needed a bit more refinement, he went to visit Fu Jiusheng to study some fundamental restrictions. By afternoon, he had intended to visit the place where Wang Yuan was in secluded cultivation. Yet before he could take a step, he was halted by a sudden commotion. Hearing the colossal rumble echoing from behind Tieqing Mountain, Luo Chen's brow furrowed. "Another demon beast incursion?" Before long, a Foundation Establishment cultivator from Wind and Rain Mountain Manor came sprinting back. "Alliance Leader, a Tier 3 wolf king has strayed here from the frontline battlefield! My two manor masters are fighting desperately to hold it off. Could you..." "I shall go lend a hand!" Luo Chen tossed out casually, telling Fu Jiusheng not to worry about it and continue setting up the arrays. Then he soared into the sky, streaking straight toward the back of the mountain. As he crested Tieqing Mountain, he cast a glance down at the peak. Quite a few low-tier cultivators from Wind and Rain Mountain Manor were already engaging and slaughtering lower-tier demon wolves. Farther away, three silhouettes crisscrossed the sky, locked in fierce, heated combat around a Tier 3 mid-stage demon wolf. "A troublesome one has turned up this time!" Luo Chen murmured under his breath, not entering the fray right away. Instead, he kept his distance, observing from afar the techniques of the three cultivators and the strength of the demon wolf. Diwu Qi, Jiang Yu, and the other looked familiar... Yu Jiaolong! Luo Chen quickly recalled the petite woman's background. A genius from Mengquan Cave! A Heavenly Spiritual Root cultivator, and like himself, a heaven-blessed genius who had formed her core within a century. Previously, on the Dao Discussion Platform in Poyue Immortal City, Wang Yuan had provoked her. Back then, she had barely made a move, giving no clue as to how formidable she was. Looking at her now, despite her petite frame, her combat style was remarkably fierce and ruthless! A black whip that seemed condensed from flowing water cracked through the air in her grasp. With every strike, amid the surging discharge of magic power, it left a glaring wound upon the Tier 3 mid-stage wolf king. By contrast, Diwu Qi, whose cultivation was slightly higher, appeared rather unimpressive. Luo Chen's arrival naturally caught the attention of both the three cultivators and the wolf. The wolf king was already at a disadvantage, and seeing yet another human Golden Core arrive, it fought with redoubled savagery. Every move and strike was nothing less than a desperate gamble for its life. The encirclement formed by the three gradually developed a gap. Suddenly! "Danchenzi, you have watched for long enough! Why not lend a hand?" Yu Jiaolong called out sharply, her voice carrying across a radius of a hundred li. Diwu Qi and Jiang Yu exchanged a glance and slightly loosened their encirclement. Finding an opening amidst the trio's assault, the demon wolf lunged toward Luo Chen without hesitation. It possessed intelligence. It could tell that Luo Chen's cultivation realm was not particularly deep, making him the weakest gap. At this sight, Yu Jiaolong felt puzzled. Yet a sneer crossed Diwu Qi's face. "A beast is a beast. How could it know that Danchenzi's prowess is not a whit inferior to ours?" Manipulating his Rain-Calling Banner, Jiang Yu replied, "We only need Danchenzi to hold it off for a breath or two, and the three of us will strike with all our might to blast it to pieces." Yu Jiaolong remained half-convinced, her magic power surging into the whip as she primed herself to unleash an earth-shattering blow. Only—could Luo Chen truly stop a Tier 3 demon wolf fighting for its life? Under the watchful eyes of the three, as the demon wolf charged, Luo Chen suddenly closed his eyes. In his hands, he wove intricate hand seals. "Out of my way, human!" A thunderous roar reached his ears. A foul, reeking gust blasted toward his face. Luo Chen snapped his eyes open. Within his pupils, water mirrors seemed to surface one after another, brimming with myriad scenes of kaleidoscopic splendor that drew the soul into their depths. Hum... A bizarre hum echoed through the demon wolf's mind. Faintly, it seemed to behold familiar sights. And its body stiffened abruptly for an instant. At that very instant, seizing the opportunity, three ferocious attacks crashed down together upon the entirely defenseless demon wolf. Boom! A deafening explosion echoed through the rolling green mountains. A rain of blood showered across the sky. Yu Jiaolong and the other two stared with shock and suspicion at Luo Chen's figure—standing as serene as a deep pool, as unyielding as a mountain peak, unmoved and steadfast. "Hiss!" "Gulp..." "What kind of technique was that?" "To make a dignified Tier 3 mid-stage demon wolf king freeze motionless and wait for death without lifting a claw!" "Danchenzi's strength has grown yet again—he has never used this move before!"