Private Transmission

The Spring Return Valley at night was extremely tranquil.

Apart from the flickering lamplight still visible in the Zhou-character Pill Room, everywhere else was silent. All the disciples of the Great Luo Pill Dao were in their respective rooms performing their evening practices. In the distant sky, a few faint streaks of light flashed by – these were disciples on patrol, flying on their swords. Within the Spring Return Valley, a team of Daoists in apricot-yellow robes was also patrolling, checking the integrity of the restrictions at various strategic points.

Lin Xiao's residence was located in a small maple forest at the foot of the main western peak. This small patch of exotic maple trees, with leaves red as fire year-round, naturally dispersed a hint of refreshing, mind-clearing coolness. Lin Xiao had fallen in love with this maple forest at first sight. After obtaining Dan Fusheng's permission, he built his small wooden house within the forest, and around the house, he planted various exotic flowers and plants. The exterior walls and roof of the house were covered with a thin layer of moss, giving it an elegant yet rustic charm.

The wooden house wasn't large, just two small rooms, each about ten feet square, one inside and one out. The outer room had a square table and two long benches. The inner room contained only a wooden couch covered with a coarse cloth mattress; there wasn't even a thin quilt. At this moment, Lin Xiao was sitting cross-legged on the couch, tightly gripping a dark red Spirit Stone, continuously absorbing its fiery spiritual energy and slowly converting it into Pure Fire True Essence.

In just two years, the spiritual energy within the Spring Return Valley had become slightly thinner than when Lin Xiao first entered. Even with the 'Spirit Gathering Array' set up by the sect's ancestors, the sparse spiritual energy could only sustain the growth of the countless spiritual herbs in the valley. The cultivation of the Great Luo Pill Dao disciples relied more on the assistance of various Spirit Stones and pills. However, due to the decrease in spiritual energy in the world, new Spirit Stones were no longer found in the Spirit Stone mines. Even this Mid-grade Spirit Stone Lin Xiao held, which was not of high quality, was now extremely rare.

This Spirit Stone was a reward specifically given to Lin Xiao by Dan Fusheng three months ago after he broke through to the eighth level of the True Fire Art.

Lin Xiao calculated that with this Spirit Stone, he could probably advance the True Fire Art to the mid-stage of the ninth level. The True Fire Art required breaking through thirteen levels to form a Golden Core. As for achieving a Great Perfection Golden Core, he had no idea how much effort, Spirit Stones, and pills it would take. He just figured that obtaining another suitable fire-attribute Spirit Stone in the future would likely be even more difficult.

Due to the long-term consumption of those peculiar Lotus Seeds, the True Fire within Lin Xiao's body grew stronger day by day. The strange spiritual energy contained within the Lotus Seeds continuously nourished Lin Xiao's body, making his foundation incredibly solid. When others circulated their energy, they were always cautious, fearing that a moment of distraction could lead to qi deviation. Yet, Lin Xiao could wander his thoughts while circulating the True Fire Art. If Dan Fusheng and the other elders of the Great Luo Pill Dao saw Lin Xiao's demeanor while cultivating, they would probably exclaim, "Genius, monster!" again.

"Sigh~" Lin Xiao suddenly sighed. He ended his practice for the day, retracting the surging True Essence within his body into his Dantian, and muttered in a low voice, "Yao'er was taken away by Master and the others. I wonder how it turned out? Huh, what kind of place is so mysterious that Senior Sister Yao'er can go, but I was stopped at the door?" Recalling the astonished faces of Dan Fusheng and Daoist Danling when they saw the improved 'Spirit Gathering Pill' Yao'er brought, Lin Xiao couldn't help but chuckle.

The facts proved that Yao'er's modification of the 'Spirit Gathering Pill' formula was extremely successful. Yao'er had only added a dozen common medicinal ingredients in the Pill Room, increasing the efficacy of the 'Spirit Gathering Pill' by thirty percent, while reducing the usage of the other four more precious ingredients by twenty percent. Although the addition of more than a dozen ingredients made the refining process of the new 'Spirit Gathering Pill' slightly more complex, the reduction in the usage of precious ingredients would increase the profit from the 'Spirit Gathering Pill' by more than thirty percent for the Great Luo Pill Dao in the future!

The 'Spirit Gathering Pill' was a basic auxiliary spiritual pill, one of the most commonly used by cultivators. For example, the Origin Sect, a major client, had recently accepted twenty-five thousand new disciples. Even if each disciple only took one 'Spirit Gathering Pill' per month, the increased profit from Yao'er's new formula would be an astronomical sum. This represented thousands of Spirit Stones and tens of thousands of pounds of precious medicinal ingredients! Lin Xiao clearly remembered Daoist Danling's golden, shining eyes after he tested the new 'Spirit Gathering Pill' formula.

"What a greedy sect leader uncle!" Lin Xiao smiled slightly, tucking the fire-attribute Spirit Stone into his inner pocket. He muttered to himself, "However, it's also fortunate that the sect leader uncle manages things so well, otherwise, how could he support so many disciples? I heard that in two years, they plan to open the sect gates wide and recruit a thousand new disciples. This is a terrifying undertaking. Although not comparable to the Origin Sect, it's still unique among nearly a hundred nearby planets."

After cultivating for two years, Lin Xiao had come to understand that the land he was on was actually a giant sphere. This was progress.

Gently stretching, Lin Xiao pushed open the window in the wall and peered outside. The moon was hanging high in the sky, slightly to the west. It had just passed midnight.

Hurriedly throwing on a green Daoist robe, Lin Xiao took a jade pot and a small jade knife from the bamboo pegs on the wall and rushed out of the wooden house. "Hmm, I almost forgot, today is the day the 'Midnight Orchid' bears fruit. If I miss today's harvest, I'll have to wait another three months. Wouldn't I be scolded to death by Big Sister Hua?"

Near each disciple's residence in the Great Luo Pill Dao, there was a small private medicinal garden where they could plant exotic herbs according to their wishes. The 'Midnight Orchid' in Lin Xiao's garden was a rare plant with miraculous effects for beauty, nourishing the complexion, and restoring youth. This was also planted at Hua Feng'er's request, as her residence, a waterside pavilion, was not suitable for the growth of the 'Midnight Orchid'. Furthermore, this flower, which had little practical use for cultivation, could not be placed in the Great Luo Pill Dao's medicinal gardens.

"Beauty-Nourishing Pill! Hmm, why are these women so concerned about their appearance? They say Big Sister Hua asked for my help, but if it weren't for my Mistress threatening me, why would I get involved in this trouble?" Complaining as he went, Lin Xiao dashed to the medicinal garden outside his wooden house, quickly crouched down, and stared intently at the small patch of jade-green orchids before him.

The slender leaves of the orchids swayed gently in the night breeze. More than a dozen flower stems trembled slightly. On the stems were clusters of translucent purple flowers, shaped like small wine cups, the size of a thumb. They slowly drifted down with wisps of fragrance. With a few soft 'pats,' as if by magic, pigeon-egg-sized, green fruits grew on the flower stems. The fruits slowly swelled, their color gradually changing from green to light purple, then from light purple to milky red, finally transforming into a bright, vibrant red.

A faint, slightly sour fragrance wafted towards him. Lin Xiao chuckled, his eyes shining, and waved the inch-long small jade knife in his hand, cutting off the dozen or so Midnight Orchid fruits one by one and stuffing them into the jade pot. Once the fruits of the Midnight Orchid appeared, if they weren't harvested within a quarter of an hour, they would dissipate into mist and scatter with the wind. Lin Xiao had already missed a harvest date once, and Hua Feng'er had nagged him for half a month. Furthermore, Danxia had summoned him and inexplicably lectured him for nearly an hour. This time, he absolutely dared not be late.

"It's just the main ingredient for a Beauty-Nourishing Pill! Is it that serious?" Lin Xiao stood up, shaking his head and complaining, "Mistress has already formed her Golden Core decades ago; her appearance naturally won't age. Big Sister Hua is only one step away from forming her Golden Core. Although she looks a bit older now, she can regain her youthful appearance in the future. What use is this Beauty-Nourishing Pill to them?"

The current Lin Xiao still didn't understand some of women's obsessions.

Putting away the jade knife and holding a silk cord on the jade pot with his finger, Lin Xiao turned to go back to his wooden house. Suddenly, someone rushed out of the woods in a hurry. Upon seeing Lin Xiao, they cried out in joy and threw themselves into his arms. He instinctively wrapped his arms around the person, but the palm-sized jade pot in his hand swayed and flew far away. In Lin Xiao's despairing gaze, the jade pot indeed hit a rock and shattered into pieces. A gust of night wind blew, and the dozen or so Midnight Orchid fruits inside turned into vibrant red mist and scattered.

"Oh, heavens!" Lin Xiao roared at the sky, "It's gone again!"

It seemed like the last time was similar. The last time he was supposed to harvest the Midnight Orchid, Yao'er excitedly brought over some concoction and asked Lin Xiao to help her test it. Lin Xiao drank the medicine in one gulp and fell into a deep sleep for three days and three nights, naturally missing the deadline. This time, the fruits were already in hand, but it was still Yao'er again~~~

"Senior Sister Yao'er! My 'Midnight Orchid'!" Lin Xiao's body trembled as he looked at the smiling Yao'er and wailed, "I don't even fear another scolding from Mistress, but if Big Sister Hua catches me and nags me for half a month, I'll die! This time, you have to help me take the blame! I've already harvested the 'Midnight Orchid' fruits, but now!"

"Oh? That flower again?" Yao'er clearly didn't take the matter seriously. She peeked around furtively in Lin Xiao's arms, grabbed his ear, and dragged him back into the room. Bang bang bang bang, Yao'er slammed the wooden house door and windows shut tightly, then used all her strength to set up a three-ring warning formation inside the house.

"Phew! That's better." Yao'er triumphantly hopped around in Lin Xiao's room a few times, then pulled out a purple jade tablet from her embrace, about a foot long, an inch wide, and two fen thick. "Quick, use the energy circulation methods for the first, fourth, and sixth layers of the foundational Evergreen Art to infuse three streams of True Essence into the jade tablet. Hurry! It's a good thing!" Yao'er forcefully shoved the jade tablet into Lin Xiao's hands, her small face filled with a joyful smile. She quickly pinched Lin Xiao's arm with her right hand, constantly urging him on.

The purple jade tablet was of excellent quality, almost translucent. Inside, countless layers of purple clouds drifted, and a circle of lustrous purple light enveloped the entire tablet. Holding the tablet, Lin Xiao felt it was extremely slippery and a faint power resisted his palm, as if trying to push his fingers away.

"What is this?" Lin Xiao looked at Yao'er, not understanding what it was.

"Idiot!" Yao'er jumped up and slapped Lin Xiao's forehead hard, who was now a head taller than her. She sniffed unhappily and frowned, "Just do as I say, why are you rambling? Does Senior Sister Yao'er still want to harm you? Hurry up and do it, there are benefits! Big benefits!" Yao'er's eyes were full of excitement. Suddenly, she started singing a cheerful song and hopped around the narrow wooden house. Clearly, Yao'er was in an extremely joyful mood!

"Uh, you won't harm me? Senior Sister Yao'er, these past two years, you've already harmed me countless times." Lin Xiao looked at the gesticulating Yao'er with a wronged expression, feeling a pang of sadness in his heart. He thought again of the jade pot that Yao'er had knocked away! Heavens, Hua Feng'er would go crazy this time! Even Danxia would go crazy with her! Lin Xiao's scalp tingled.

Sighing, he recalled the energy circulation route of the Evergreen Art. Lin Xiao drew a stream of Pure Fire True Essence from his Dantian and, following Yao'er's instructions, circulated it through his body according to the energy circulation routes of the first, fourth, and sixth layers of the Evergreen Art. He then infused the three streams of True Essence into the jade tablet. He didn't know until he tried it. As soon as Lin Xiao acted according to the method, he discovered that the nature of his Pure Fire True Essence had undergone a subtle change. The scorching fire-attribute True Essence was now tinged with a layer of gentle vitality. Lin Xiao was startled. Could it be that the introductory cultivation technique of the Great Luo Pill Dao, the Evergreen Art, had other miraculous uses that he didn't know about?

However, Lin Xiao had no time to ponder this question. The three streams of True Essence he infused into the jade tablet were like three keys with special markings, breaking through three extremely complex restrictions within the tablet and reaching a flashing core inside. A stream of information, like a surging ocean tide, poured into Lin Xiao's mind, almost making him faint.

What a complex and vast database it was, containing identification methods and preparation techniques for hundreds of thousands of medicinal ingredients, as well as refining secrets for countless miraculous pills. Moreover, it contained the insights and experiences of the elders of the Great Luo Pill Dao throughout the generations in the art of alchemy. The mighty torrent of information struck Lin Xiao like lightning, making his body tremble.

"Phew~" Lin Xiao exhaled a deep breath, casually dropped the jade tablet, and stumbled back a few steps. Countless spiritual techniques and hand seals danced before his eyes. It seemed as if thousands of past elders of the Great Luo Pill Dao were chattering in his ears, teaching him various secret knowledge of alchemy. The four large characters that finally emerged from the jade tablet startled Lin Xiao so much that his heart fluttered. Lin Xiao 'saw' the four golden characters clearly: they were unmistakably 'Great Luo Pill Scripture'!

Lin Xiao tilted his head, looking at Yao'er, who had gotten a little tired from hopping around and was now sitting cross-legged on the bench, gulping down cup after cup of cold tea.

"Senior Sister Yao'er, this is~~~" Lin Xiao's lips moved, and he finally asked Yao'er.

Yao'er raised her eyebrows, gently patted the table, and floated gracefully to Lin Xiao's side, affectionately hugging his arm. "This is the Great Luo Pill Scripture! It's the supreme secret scripture of our Great Luo Pill Dao, encompassing everything of the Great Luo Pill Dao!" She casually rubbed her cheek against Lin Xiao's arm, wiping the tea from the corner of her mouth onto his hand. She said with a proud smile, "Master and Sect Leader Uncle said it would take me about three months to absorb all the records inside. But I finished it in less than fifteen minutes. What about you?"

Three months, fifteen minutes!

Lin Xiao recalled the time it took him to absorb all the information in the Great Luo Pill Scripture; it was also about fifteen minutes. He couldn't help but look at Yao'er in astonishment and asked in a low voice, "This, what's going on? Master and the others should be correct. With our current cultivation, it would probably take three months of continuous day and night study and absorption to remember everything inside, but we~~~"

Yao'er narrowed her eyes and looked at Lin Xiao with a hint of confusion. However, she quickly smiled. "This just shows you're as smart as Yao'er! What's strange about that? Hmm, look, isn't Senior Sister good to you? When I got something good, I immediately brought it to you! Hmm, the Great Luo Pill Scripture! Hehe, this is something only Master and the others are qualified to study. This time, it's benefited us."

Yao'er's fair, tender face was right in front of him, her smile like a blooming orchid, making Lin Xiao stare blankly.

Yao'er continued to excitedly chatter, "Master wants me to go into seclusion for three months to study the Great Luo Pill Scripture, and then immediately return this jade tablet. Hmph, Yao'er is going into seclusion soon, so I rushed to let you try it out and see if you could remember the contents. Indeed, Junior Brother is as smart as Yao'er!" Yao'er happily patted Lin Xiao's face and said righteously, "Yao'er knows you stayed in the Huang-character Pill Room to help Yao'er, so when Yao'er gets something good, she shares the good fortune with you, right? Junior Brother!"

'Share good fortune, face hardships together' – these were phrases Lin Xiao had told Yao'er about the chivalrous heroes he had seen when he practiced medicine in the Spring Return Hall during his free time. Yao'er, who had grown up in the Spring Return Valley, remembered these rough words firmly. However, she only dared to say them in front of Lin Xiao.

"Yes, that's right!" Lin Xiao's heart pounded. Looking at Yao'er's beautiful face, he suddenly felt an inexplicable urge.

They had shared kisses before, but they were never pleasant experiences. Each time, he was left gravely injured and on the verge of death, and Yao'er would rush to give him medicine to save him.

But this time, it was different.

Lin Xiao knew that this time was completely different.

He forcefully turned Yao'er towards him, burying his head.

In Yao'er's astonished gaze, Lin Xiao, a little clumsily, kissed her.

Yao'er rolled her eyes and instinctively held her breath. Her small hands, which had been digging into Lin Xiao's soft spots, eventually gently wrapped around his waist, patting his back. Yao'er closed her eyes, seemingly enjoying this intimacy that, while she didn't understand it, filled her heart with sweetness.

After a long while, their lips parted.

Lin Xiao stumbled back a few steps, and Yao'er did the same. The two young people, their faces flushed, panted heavily. Fortunately, they were cultivators with long-lasting breaths; ordinary mortals holding their breath to kiss for over fifteen minutes would have died from suffocation long ago.

Yao'er stuck out her tongue and licked her rosy lips, then suddenly tilted her head. "Mmm, I haven't had dinner yet. Go roast a wild chicken for me~~~ Hateful, you had pickled cabbage steamed buns from the mess hall for dinner again? Your mouth stinks of pickled cabbage!"

The marvelous Yao'er possessed the ability to shatter any beautiful atmosphere with a single sentence.

Lin Xiao's face turned bright red, and he obediently ran out of the wooden hut to hunt a wild chicken in the back mountains.

As he sprinted through the forest, Lin Xiao cursed the disciple in charge of the mess hall to hell. (To be continued)