Five Percent

It was a pity that he, too, had been on the verge of exhausting his spiritual power back then and had not dared to spare Luo Xingnan's life; otherwise, he could have gained a living corpse possessing the strength of the middle Foundation Establishment stage. To refine a living corpse, he was still missing the soul-attracting grass needed for the Heavenly Corpse Talisman. Through Yunyouzi, Qin Sang had become acquainted with the cultivators in charge of the Taiyi Elixir Pavilion, and he had already asked them to keep an eye out for it. By now, Qin Sang was already extremely skilled at refining baleful corpses. Simply by following the procedure step by step, he successfully refined the baleful corpse without any mishaps. He commanded the baleful corpse to strike at him to test its strength, and could not help but nod in secret satisfaction. It was a cut above the previous baleful corpses he had refined, matching the records closely—a formidable helper. Storing it in his corpse puppet pouch to let it slowly nourish, he then began closed-door cultivation, waiting for news from Yunyouzi. …… A year later. Sensing that his cave abode's restrictions had been disturbed, Qin Sang awakened from his meditation. He checked his sea of qi, then stood up and walked out of the cave abode. Seeing Yunyouzi outside with a ruddy complexion and fully recovered vitality, he could not help but feel delighted. "Senior, you have completely recovered?" Yunyouzi smiled and nodded. "Fortunately, I had that thousand-year Mist-Enveloping Grass; otherwise, I would have wasted several more years. Brother Qin, I have already had the Taiyi Elixir Pavilion prepare an alchemy chamber, and the auxiliary ingredients have all been gathered. We can begin refining the pill." Hearing this, Qin Sang actually felt a hint of nervousness. Secretly mocking himself for lacking composure, he suppressed his restless excitement and followed Yunyouzi to the alchemy chamber. The Taiyi Elixir Pavilion had discovered a subterranean flame vein in the snow-capped mountains, and the alchemy chambers were built here to harness the power of earth fire for pill refinement. Some alchemy chambers were rented out to outsiders, while the two with the most stable earth fire were reserved for the sect's own masters. From the entrance on the cliff face, walking down the stone steps, Qin Sang felt the surrounding air grow increasingly scorching. Entering deep underground, they were eventually stopped by guards. Qin Sang handed the Xuanwen Huangjing to Yunyouzi, watched him enter the corridor toward the innermost alchemy chamber, and then waited outside. Three days passed in the blink of an eye. Yunyouzi had still not emerged. The tension in Qin Sang's heart had long since subsided. With an impassive expression, he sat cross-legged cultivating, waiting for news without any haste. He knew alchemy was no simple task. Some alchemists would even shut themselves in the alchemy chamber for an entire month to still their minds until they were like unruffled water, just to improve the chance of success by the slightest margin. Four days. Five days. …… All the way until the tenth day. A faint sound of footsteps came from the corridor. Qin Sang's eyes snapped open, and he rose abruptly to his feet. Under Qin Sang's expectant gaze, Yunyouzi did not keep him in suspense, saying with a beaming smile, "Fortunately, I have lived up to your trust!" Even with Qin Sang's temperament, he could not help but let out a long breath of relief, the stone in his heart finally dropping. Then he saw Yunyouzi wave his hand to cast a barrier, holding a jade bottle in his other hand. Inside the jade bottle, an elixir held Qin Sang's gaze transfixed. The spirit pill radiated a rich, blackish-yellow light. Faint patterns of profound markings flickered upon its surface within the glow, bearing a striking resemblance to those on the Xuanwen Huangjing. This was the Xuanwen Heyun Pill! Qin Sang had heard descriptions of the Heyun Pill before: it was moon-white and bore no such profound markings, vastly different from the Xuanwen Heyun Pill—a difference resulting precisely from the alteration of the main ingredient. Taking the jade bottle, Qin Sang opened it. No scent wafted out, but the blackish-yellow light on the pill abruptly surged forth like a gushing spring. Qin Sang hastily capped the bottle and cupped his hands to thank Yunyouzi. "Thank you for your painstaking efforts, Senior!" Yunyouzi shook his head and said, "Brother Qin, I still need to refine the Nine Splendors Azure Frost Grass, so I won't see you off. There are a few key points you must remember when taking this pill. First, your sea of qi must be completely full and without deficiency when you ingest it. Second, you must not rush; you need an undisturbed place to slowly refine its medicinal power..." Listening attentively to the advice, Qin Sang bid farewell to Yunyouzi. Leaving the alchemy chamber, he could not wait to mount his flying sword, transforming into a streak of sword light that rushed back to his cave abode. He added several more layers to the restrictions outside the cave abode. Qin Sang sat cross-legged on the ice bed, placed the jade bottle before him, and first closed his eyes to sit in stillness, circulating his cultivation method. After a dozen-odd heavenly circuits, he adjusted his condition to its peak. Then, his breath paused slightly. His spiritual sense unstoppered the jade bottle, swept up the Xuanwen Heyun Pill, brought it to his lips, and swallowed it without hesitation. The spirit pill entered his mouth and immediately dissolved into a cool medicinal power, flowing down his throat into his abdomen. Qin Sang locked his mind firmly onto this stream of medicinal power, making sure not to waste a single trace. Unlike the Nine Yang Pill, which carried distinct yang qi, the medicinal power of the Xuanwen Heyun Pill was exceedingly gentle. Once it merged into his meridians, it circulated throughout his body—a process like spring rain, moistening things silently. Yet Qin Sang could feel tremendous changes occurring within his body. His damaged foundation showed signs of recovery, filling his heart with wild joy. The Xuanwen Heyun Pill was effective! With the recovery of his foundation, the most obvious change came from his sea of qi. Before taking the medicine, the spiritual power in his sea of qi had been brimming, but now, there was actually a slight void. The spiritual power in the cave abode surged and gathered toward Qin Sang, but he could only absorb an extremely slender wisp of it, and at an agonizingly slow pace. However, this absorption was continuous and unbroken. And during this process, another change emerged upon Qin Sang's body. If someone else had been in the cave abode right now, they would have seen Qin Sang's appearance grow subtly younger. Where he had previously looked in his thirties, he reverted to a young man in his mid-to-late twenties. Qin Sang had no time to mind the changes in his appearance. He was tensely observing his sea of qi, his mood no longer one of excitement, but rather turning somber. When he had first swallowed the Xuanwen Heyun Pill, the changes in his sea of qi had been the most pronounced, but as time went on, the change became slower and slower. It continued until his sea of qi was restored to ninety-five percent, then came to an abrupt halt. The Xuanwen Heyun Pill had only restored his damaged foundation by five percent! With reluctance etched across his face, Qin Sang attempted to forcibly refine the remaining medicinal power. Time slipped slowly by, yet no matter how hard he tried, the speed at which his foundation recovered remained imperceptible, virtually useless, and an utter waste. After making countless attempts, Qin Sang had no choice but to accept reality. A single Xuanwen Heyun Pill was not enough to cure him. The closer he got to full recovery, the harder the restoration might become. Qin Sang could not even guess how many spirit pills like the Xuanwen Heyun Pill he would need to restore his foundation to its original state. At this point, the medicinal power of the Xuanwen Heyun Pill began to show signs of dissipating. If he did not make a decision soon, the rest of the potency would go completely to waste. Qin Sang sighed inwardly and calmed his emotions. In any case, it had still restored five percent, hadn't it? The remaining medicinal power could be used to advance his cultivation; at least his efforts wouldn't be entirely in vain. Having made his decision, Qin Sang channeled his sea of qi and absorbed all the remaining medicinal power of the Xuanwen Heyun Pill, causing his cultivation to climb steadily higher. The cave abode returned to silence. Qin Sang sat motionless on the ice bed, the aura around him rising swiftly. The frustration on his face gradually faded, ultimately giving way to utter tranquility.