Chapter 438 - 207: Entering the Hundred Herbs Secret Realm, Obtaining a Tier 4 Spirit Medicine
Chapter 438: Chapter 207: Entering the Hundred Herbs Secret Realm, Obtaining a Tier 4 Spirit Medicine
’A True Yang Transformation Pill?’
Wasn’t that the legendary secret medicine rumored to help cultivators forge a Dharma Body?
Xiao Chen had read about it before in a book called Treasures of the Eastern Domain. The description had left a deep impression on him, and he had committed it to memory.
The origin of the Dharma Body could be traced back to Ancient Times, stemming from extensive research on Spiritual Roots by numerous cultivators.
The Spiritual Root is the foundation of every cultivator and, in most cases, determines their ultimate potential.
But these things are innate. Some people are born with a Celestial Spirit Root, while others have only a low-grade Spiritual Root, and some have no Spiritual Root at all.
And so, a portion of cultivators began to investigate: Do Spiritual Roots follow fixed patterns?
Is there a way to improve one’s Spiritual Root later in life?
Or perhaps, is there a way to transplant another’s Spiritual Root onto oneself?
This last method was rumored to be the work of the Demon Dao and had caused the deaths of many cultivators.
Unfortunately, whether it was the Righteous Dao or the Demon Dao, all research in this area ultimately ended in failure.
In a way, however, this was a good thing. At the very least, it ensured that Loose Cultivators without powerful backing wouldn’t be suddenly captured by Demon Cultivators to have their Spiritual Roots extracted.
However, over countless years, this extensive research was not entirely fruitless.
This is precisely where the Dharma Body came from.
During their studies, some cultivators discovered that by refining and integrating Treasures of Heaven and Earth to alter a cultivator’s physical constitution, they could dramatically increase their affinity for a specific type of Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi.
This, in turn, produced an effect similar to that of a Celestial Spirit Root during daily cultivation.
It could both increase cultivation efficiency manifold and effectively boost Magic Power.
After generations of refinement, the Dharma Body system has become highly developed.
Except when facing cultivation bottlenecks, where they are still constrained by their inherent Spiritual Root, a cultivator possessing a Dharma Body is virtually indistinguishable from one with a true Celestial Spirit Root.
The initial transformation process was exceedingly complex.
Now, however, the process has been streamlined and simplified. One merely needs to consume a Transformation Pill of the corresponding attribute and carefully refine it for a chance to form a Dharma Body.
Most importantly, even if the transformation fails, the side effects are minimal; one can fully recover after just a few days of rest.
The True Yang Transformation Pill corresponds to the Fire Element, allowing one to cultivate the True Yang Dharma Body.
It’s said that a Wood Spirit Root requires the Cyan Lotus Transformation Pill to cultivate the Cyan Lotus Dharma Body.
When he first read this passage, Xiao Chen had fantasized about getting the chance to buy a couple of Cyan Lotus Transformation Pills to try his luck in the future.
Unfortunately, upon turning the page, he discovered that the Cyan Lotus Transformation Pill was a Tier Four Spirit Pill!
’That’s probably a bit pricey.’
He had promptly squashed the idea and hadn’t given it much thought since.
He never expected to hear news related to it today, and it instantly jogged his memory.
"A Canhe Guardian Flower?"
The name was a bit unfamiliar to Xiao Chen. ’Looks like I’ll have to properly memorize the Spirit Grass Atlas when I get back.’
’Since that Elder Qian can produce a True Yang Transformation Pill, maybe he also has a source for Cyan Lotus Transformation Pills.’
’Of course, all of this hinges on whether I can get the Spirit Medicine the other party wants.’
September passed smoothly.
The only change to his routine was that he reduced the time spent cultivating the Nine Transformations Dragon Technique from three hours to two, using the extra hour to study the Spirit Grass Atlas.
Xiao Chen also found the time to go out again and buy several more, different atlases.
Along the way, he heard of even more bounties being posted.
It wasn’t just Tier Four Spirit Grass; high prices were also being offered for some of the rarer Tier Three Spirit Grasses.
These bounties came from various factions; Xiao Chen even heard that the Demon-Vanquishing Sword Sect was collecting Sword Cry Grass.
As time passed, more and more cultivators arrived in Hundred Herbs City.
The crowds on the streets grew visibly larger.
By mid-October, the city was a veritable sea of people, several times more bustling than it had been during the Sea Spirit Festival.
In late October, Xiao Chen paused his cultivation to begin making his final preparations.
As was his habit, he used his Divine Sense to observe his interior. Both Golden Cores shone brilliantly—a pleasing sight to behold.
After several months of arduous cultivation, the amount of True Essence in his Golden Core had reached one hundred forty-eight wisps, while his Life Pill contained one hundred forty-six.
That was a total of two hundred ninety-four wisps of True Essence, bringing him close to the three hundred mark.
’This should be enough to handle a one-on-one fight against a cultivator at my level,’ he estimated. ’But taking on multiple opponents at once will depend on the situation.’
’The main problem is that I can’t quite gauge the general standard of strength here in the Eastern Domain.’
’I should go out and gather some intel.’
Xiao Chen rose and deactivated the Nine Orifice Linked Array. Immediately, a cacophony of noise flooded in from outside.
Compared to before, there were many more cultivators on the streets wearing uniform, dark green Magic Robes emblazoned with the emblem of Hundred Herbs City.
Their gazes were sharp as they watched the crowds, apparently maintaining order.
After walking just a few steps, Xiao Chen overheard from passersby that this was because multiple brawls had recently broken out in the city.
Conflicts inevitably erupt when large crowds gather.
This was especially true for cultivators from different factions who were unfamiliar with one another. Aside from a few famous prodigies, the crowd was a chaotic mix of the skilled and the mediocre, making it difficult to distinguish one from another.
As a result, incidents of people drawing their swords over the slightest disagreement became a frequent occurrence.
The number of cultivators who had come for the Secret Realm was exceptionally high this year—at least thirty percent more than in previous years.
Moreover, in the last few days, nearly ten thousand cultivators had been arriving at Hundred Herbs Island each day. At this rate, it was projected that over one hundred thousand people would ultimately gather.
Even if ninety percent of them were only Qi Refining cultivators...
And ninety percent of the remainder were Foundation Establishment cultivators...
After filtering out the ninety percent who were stuck at the Great Perfection of Foundation Establishment, unable to break through to the Golden Core realm, a conservative estimate still suggested that over a hundred fellow Golden Core cultivators would be entering the Secret Realm to compete.