As his cultivation advanced, Qin Sang gained an increasingly deeper understanding of the technique as well.
Cultivating this method carried immense risks in itself, and the consequences of being plucked and replenished were likely far from the understated "troubled merely by a few threads of emotion" that the sect master had claimed.
Once plucked and replenished, even if no brand were left upon one's origin soul, one would still become deeply rooted in passion, unable to extricate oneself. Thereafter, whether breaking through bottlenecks or even during everyday cultivation, one would be swayed by these threads of emotion.
This influence was imperceptible yet ever-present, terrifying to the extreme.
When on the verge of a breakthrough, it would manifest abruptly as an inner demon. Once one's state of mind was shattered, all past efforts would go down the drain. Unless one possessed tremendous willpower, further advancement would be nearly impossible.
***
"Disciple pays respects to the sect master."
The cave abode opened wide, and Sect Master Yu walked inside. Qin Sang rose and bowed.
The moment he condensed the jade cauldron and approached the completion of the third layer, he had immediately sent out a voice transmission talisman. By now, half a year had passed since he had ascended Shaohua Mountain.
He did not know how the others were faring, but Qin Sang was certain that no one could be faster than him.
Hearing Qin Sang say he had already condensed the jade cauldron, Sect Master Yu's face darkened instead, his voice heavy. "This old man warned you long ago: cultivation must never be rushed! Do you know that a month ago, He Mu had his state of mind shattered by a heavenly demon of desire? His primal yang leaked away, his cultivation plummeted five realms in succession, and he nearly lost his life!"
Qin Sang was stunned, unable to do more than sigh in pity.
After checking thoroughly, Sect Master Yu's expression softened slightly. He looked at Qin Sang with some surprise and nodded. "I never expected that you would be the first to condense the jade cauldron. Let me inspect your talent first... Eh? A five-element spiritual root!"
Qin Sang naturally used spirit herbs once again to disguise his talent, but he did not dare conceal the fact that he had consumed a Foundation Establishment Pill with zero effect.
Stealing a glance at Sect Master Yu, Qin Sang noticed that the sect master's expression did not look promising. His heart could not help but pound with trepidation, his fists clenching secretly.
It was not that he lacked composure; this was likely his closest chance of reaching Foundation Establishment in ten years!
Little did he know that Sect Master Yu was also muttering inwardly.
His authority as sect master was neither small nor particularly great. The venerable masters had merely seen that he was seasoned and prudent, with no hope left of forming a core, and so pushed him forward to handle trivial affairs to keep from disturbing their own cultivation.
Major sect affairs on Shaohua Mountain were always decided by the Nascent Soul patriarch's sole word, or by decrees handed down after the Golden Core Masters deliberated together; he simply carried them out according to regulations.
Once Shaohua Mountain disciples broke through to Foundation Establishment, so long as their talent was not terrible, they all had the chance to be taken under a Golden Core Master's wing. It could be said that everyone had a backing, and none of them feared him as sect master in the least—at most showing him a bit of courtesy on the surface.
What he handled most in daily life were petty, trivial squabbles in the sect. Once it involved conflicts of interest, he could only become a marionette, waiting for the results of the games played above.
He could hardly even intervene in the distribution of Foundation Establishment Pills.
First, the sect had strict rules that no one dared defy.
Second, the number of Foundation Establishment Pills was limited. Even when there was a decent harvest with a few extras to spare, eyes were already fixed upon them, claimed early on for someone's juniors. If distribution was uneven, the grievances would be taken straight to the Golden Core Masters.
This time, Master Mawu had handed down a decree seeking a dual cultivation companion, backed by the patriarch himself. Naturally, he dared not be negligent; even knowing there were issues with this technique, he still had to exert every effort to prepare.
He had even wracked his brains to prepare three Foundation Establishment Pills for contingencies.
Yet he never expected to encounter a disciple with a five-element spiritual root. Three Foundation Establishment Pills were definitely not enough. If he were to forcibly seize others' Foundation Establishment Pills now and stir up trouble, it would be beyond his power to suppress.
In any case, he had already found someone who met the conditions, which counted as completing the task. Master Mawu could deal with the rest himself—it was just a few Foundation Establishment Pills.
With this thought, Sect Master Yu bade Qin Sang wait quietly, weighed his words carefully, inscribed a sword talisman, and sent it flying.
The sword talisman turned into a streak of light, vanishing in an instant into the depths of the Yuncang Great Marsh as it shot toward Master Mawu's cave abode.
Moments later, there was no movement from within the Yuncang Great Marsh. Instead, waves suddenly rippled across the sea of clouds atop Shaohua Mountain, its restrictions surging. A streak of green light descended from the sky, falling straight toward the cave abode where Qin Sang was.
Sensing something, Sect Master Yu flashed out of the cave abode. Looking up, he saw an emerald spirit herb wrapped within the green light. Barely the size of a palm, its branches and leaves intertwined, its form actually resembled a true dragon—its body coiling, its posture majestic, lifting its head as if spitting out a pearl, its dragon eyes bright and piercing.
This pearl was the spirit herb's fruit, crimson as fire!
"Dan Dragon Ginseng!"
Sect Master Yu's heart jolted, and he could not help but cry out. Then, the patriarch's decree suddenly sounded in his ear: "Aid this boy in refining the Dan Dragon Ginseng yourself, and break through the bottleneck with all haste. With this ginseng, he will achieve Foundation Establishment even without a Foundation Establishment Pill."
Sect Master Yu hurriedly collected his expression, lowered his gaze, and prostrated himself with five points touching the ground.
"Disciple reverently obeys the patriarch's decree!"
Inside the cave abode, seeing Sect Master Yu's posture, Qin Sang promptly and obediently prostrated himself on the ground, his heart filled with shock and anticipation. He was shocked that his own Foundation Establishment could draw the attention of the Nascent Soul patriarch, Dongyang Bo; what he anticipated was that, to a Nascent Soul patriarch, enabling a disciple to achieve Foundation Establishment ought to be an utterly simple matter, right?
The green light dissipated, and the Dan Dragon Ginseng descended before Sect Master Yu.
Holding both hands high, Sect Master Yu cautiously cradled the Dan Dragon Ginseng. He remained prostrated on the ground motionless for a long time before finally rising. Bowing toward the mountain peak once more, he backed into the cave abode and said to Qin Sang, "Rise."
Qin Sang stood up, his gaze burning somewhat as he stared at the dragon-shaped spirit herb in Sect Master Yu's hands, hesitating to speak.
Seeing this, Sect Master Yu said coolly, "This is Dan Dragon Ginseng. Swallowing it directly has the miraculous effect of aiding one in breaking through bottlenecks. Even during Core Formation, obtaining a thousand-year Dan Dragon Ginseng can provide a certain degree of assistance. Shaohua Mountain has only ever discovered two stalks of such a spirit herb. It is your good fortune. With me aiding you in refining this herb, you will surely achieve Foundation Establishment. Why haven't you thanked the patriarch for his bestowed grace yet?"
Suppressing his surging excitement, Qin Sang kowtowed meticulously toward the mountain summit, then rose and bowed to Sect Master Yu. "Disciple will never forget the debt of the sect master's assistance either."
He was well aware that this stalk of Dan Dragon Ginseng was bought with the price of serving as a cauldron.
Of course, if he were merely a rogue cultivator, he wouldn't even have had the chance to sell himself.
Sect Master Yu nodded. He sent out several voice transmission talismans to arrange the sect's affairs, then waved his hand to seal the cave abode. Raising the Dan Dragon Ginseng in his palm, flames suddenly burst forth, slowly searing the body of the ginseng.
The spirit herb actually held out in the flames for over two hours before showing the slightest hint of withering yellow.
By now, Sect Master Yu's face had grown faintly pale. Suddenly uttering a low shout, the flames in his palm flared violently. The Dan Dragon Ginseng withered faster and faster until it completely dried up and cracked, droplet after droplet of fresh green liquid forced out from within, merging automatically into that dragon pearl.
The dragon pearl grew increasingly vivid red.
With a flick of his finger, Sect Master Yu sent the dragon pearl flying before Qin Sang and barked, "Swallow it, quickly!"
Chapter 128