Upon this hide was recorded a Tier 2 pill named the "Blood Fiend Pill."
According to the description, once successfully refined and consumed, it could provide a cultivator with a vast amount of blood fiend power.
This blood fiend power was different from the purified, refined spiritual power of ordinary cultivators, yet for those cultivating the blood dao, it could also increase their cultivation.
Luo Chen immediately thought of Xiao Wuyan, the blood dao cultivator Wang Yuan had slain with his own hands on the Dao Discussion Platform.
"A blood dao pill?" Luo Chen's eyelids twitched violently.
Wang Yuan couldn't resist asking, "Can you refine it?"
Luo Chen didn't know whether to laugh or cry. "Brother Wang, you think far too highly of me. This is a Tier 2 pill—how could I possibly refine it? Besides..."
He paused, his expression turning solemn.
"This is a demonic dao pill. If I refine it, I'll die a miserable death, and so will you."
The Jade Cauldron Sword Sect cracked down severely on the demonic dao.
Or rather, across the entire Far East Thirty-Six Domains, not a single demonic sect existed.
Even a sect walking the line between orthodox and unorthodox like the Hehuan Sect had to observe mutual consent when dual cultivation harvesting others, operating under the veneer of Tianxiang Pavilion.
Merely glancing over the main ingredients listed in the recipe on the hide made Luo Chen's skin crawl.
Cultivator essence blood, Yellow Springs yin fiend, and copious amounts of human placenta.
Not a single one had anything to do with the resources commonly used by orthodox cultivators; they were entirely of the demonic and unorthodox path.
Never mind refining the pill—merely gathering such main materials would get someone pulverized by Jade Cauldron sword cultivators the moment it was noticed.
Wang Yuan was well aware of this, and his spirits sank.
He let out a sigh, an unwilling look surfacing on his face.
"A pity. With the aid of such a pill, I could attempt a breakthrough to the Foundation Establishment stage even without a Foundation Establishment Pill."
"Is it that useful...? Wait."
Luo Chen looked at the man before him in astonishment. "Can someone establish their foundation without a Foundation Establishment Pill?"
"Who told you a Foundation Establishment Pill is mandatory for foundation establishment?" Wang Yuan countered.
Luo Chen froze.
He carefully recalled the people and events he had encountered throughout his past years of cultivation.
Those blessed with Heavenly Spiritual Roots faced no bottleneck in breaking through to Foundation Establishment and had no need for a Foundation Establishment Pill.
There were also cultivators with dual spiritual roots who had managed to break through with the help of other auxiliary pills.
If nothing else, he personally knew someone who had once attempted foundation establishment without a Foundation Establishment Pill.
Fu Xiuxiu!
Back after their first dinner together, Bai Meiling had spoken of Fu Xiuxiu's past.
She had a Dao companion who was once a disciple of the Jade Cauldron Sword Sect, but after failing his breakthrough, he was demoted to the outer sect to manage sect properties.
Afterward, he became despondent, sinking into decadence and self-indulgence.
Perhaps Fu Xiuxiu couldn't bear to see her Dao companion wallow in despair, or perhaps she felt she had accumulated enough foundation, so she attempted foundation establishment once without relying on a Foundation Establishment Pill.
Only, she failed in the end.
Even though she failed, her unique constitution prevented severe backlash, and after years of recuperation, she had fully recovered.
It was precisely because of this that the Divine Talisman Pavilion held her in such high regard, promoting her to deacon and even preparing to bring her back to the sect itself.
Thinking about it this way, was a Foundation Establishment Pill really an absolute necessity?
Wang Yuan said flatly, "I don't follow the path of traditional Qi refiners; I focus mainly on body refinement. Although I also practice Qi refinement techniques on the side, if my physique is strong enough and the qi and blood in my body undergo a qualitative transformation, I can completely force my way across the Foundation Establishment threshold.
"And this Blood Fiend Pill is undoubtedly an elixir that could trigger that qualitative change in my qi and blood."
An elixir?
Yet its primary ingredients were the lives of cultivators and even mortals!
The two fell silent.
Wang Yuan reached out, intending to take the hide back from Luo Chen.
Unexpectedly, the hide didn't budge; the other end remained held fast in Luo Chen's grip.
"Hmm?"
Luo Chen looked up and said earnestly, "Brother, leave this pill recipe with me for now!
"I'll try replacing the main ingredients to refine a pill suitable for you."
Taking a deep look at Luo Chen, Wang Yuan drew his hand back.
"Then keep it with you."
Luo Chen carefully wrapped up the hide and tucked it into the storage bag at his waist.
As he was about to leave, he turned back and couldn't resist saying:
"I don't know what other treasures you got from Xiao Wuyan, Brother, but the blood dao won't be tolerated by Jade Cauldron in the end. Body refinement might not be ideal for longevity, but it's an orthodox path after all. Brother, tread carefully!"
"Mm."
A simple grunt—there was no telling whether Wang Yuan had truly taken it to heart.
***
On the way home, there were no longer four of them, but only two.
Qin Liangchen had gone to Crescent Moon Valley to help Murong Qinglian handle some matters for the Medicine Hall.
Thus, only Luo Chen and Gu Caiyi remained.
The young man and woman walked along the bustling main road of the outer city.
The dirt path that used to be covered in yellow mud had also changed; crushed gravel had been spread over it, packed firm under the constant tread of passersby.
This transformation had not happened overnight.
Rather, it had begun gradually even before the grand opening ceremony of the Dao Discussion Platform.
Jade Cauldron Sword Pavilion was steadily developing the outer city district.
With a better environment, more outside cultivators would choose to stay.
The more people there were, the more spirit stones major sects like them could earn.
Though the outer city had grown more crowded, it was actually much safer than before.
After all, the lingering awe of Jade Cauldron's Golden Core still held sway.
Inside the Sword Pavilion, Miao Zhen was no longer the sole Jade Cauldron Foundation Establishment cultivator; an additional inner sect Foundation Establishment cultivator had arrived specifically to oversee the Dao Discussion Platform enterprise.
Looking at the outer city streets, where the scenery remained yet the times had changed, Luo Chen couldn't help sighing with emotion.
Dahe Market was growing increasingly prosperous, and life was looking up for the cultivators.
Of course, that applied to mid- and late-stage cultivators; those at the bottom in the early stage of Qi Refinement still suffered miserably.
"Luo Chen, thank you."
"Why thank me? You may have joined the Mountain Breaker Gang, but you'll be earning far less than you did at Tianxiang Pavilion."
"That's not how it works. Staying in that kind of place too long always made me feel strange inside."
Gu Caiyi's gaze drifted, a genuine smile gracing her face.
During this period after quitting and staying home, her daily routine had gradually normalized, and her social circle was no longer as chaotic as before.
"Besides, with you leading the Pill Hall, things will definitely only get better from here."
Luo Chen chuckled. "You have that much faith in me?"
Gu Caiyi tilted her head, gazing at Luo Chen's handsome profile.
"Big Brother Qin told me everything. You get a cut of the Pill Hall's profits—wouldn't you want to earn more?"
Luo Chen smiled faintly and let the topic drop.
How much of the Pill Hall's profits he received was up to Mi Shuhua and the Mountain Breaker Gang leadership to decide.
But how much this hall could earn was entirely up to him.
And through it all, he would never let himself get the short end of the stick.
Whoever heard of a tavern chef letting himself starve?
"Let's head home. I heard Sister Xiuxiu is cooking tonight to treat us to a farewell meal."
At the mention of Fu Xiuxiu, Gu Caiyi paused.
As fellow women, the other had always seemed to walk the right path: Dao companion to a disciple of a renowned orthodox sect, deacon of one of the six superior sects, someone who had even made a bold attempt at foundation establishment, and now set to travel afar to become a disciple of the Divine Talisman Sect.
Compared to her, Gu Caiyi was still struggling and whiling away her days in this tiny place called Dahe Market.
To say she felt no envy would be a lie.
Yet it was far from actual jealousy.
That was a woman whose life had been harsher than her own, yet who lived with even greater resilience.
And so what if she was struggling and passing time in Dahe Market?
Wasn't the younger man beside her facing everything with optimism, too?
She chuckled softly, two shallow dimples appearing on her alluring cheeks.
"On the way home, let's buy a couple of green cucumbers!"
"Green cucumbers?"
"A spirit fruit that Spirit Source Studio sells every year around this season. It's somewhere between a fruit and a vegetable, and it tastes delicious!"
"Sure! But you're paying."
"Miser! Fine, I'll buy them!"
Chapter 79