Killing and Arson, Golden Belt

Zhao Bai Jiang's storage bag contained...

A mere three bottles of Pure Qi Pills, a bottle of healing medicine, and a bottle of Calming Pills, worth no more than 30 spirit stones.

But the pile of spirit stones was substantial, totaling 50.

This was probably Zhao Bai Jiang's entire life savings.

The other miscellaneous books and two low-level cultivation methods were useless to Su Hao.

"What is this?"

Su Hao noticed an inconspicuous item in the storage bag: a slender banner. Its surface was entirely black, the material light and thin, inscribed with a ring of white incantations. In the center, a large character read "Soul."

Its appearance was about seventy to eighty percent similar to the Soul Refining Banner from Heavenly Treasure Pavilion.

Su Hao pondered for a moment and began refining the magic artifact.

Inside the Soul Banner was a space containing over ten malevolent spirits. They all looked dull and foolish, devoid of any consciousness.

"This must be the Soul Refining Banner."

Su Hao confirmed it. This was a type of artifact that refined souls; the stronger the soul's owner was in life, the more souls it could hold, and the more powerful it would become. Its potential far surpassed that of conventional magic artifacts.

But Zhao Bai Jiang, that waste, was weak. Among the more than ten souls in the banner, only one belonged to a Qi Refining Level 1 cultivator. The rest were souls of worldly martial artists.

The power of this Soul Refining Banner was pitifully weak, completely unusable for actual combat.

Su Hao was amused. He wondered where Zhao Bai Jiang got this Soul Refining Banner from. It sold for two to three hundred spirit stones at Heavenly Treasure Pavilion.

How laughable that this old man dared to covet Lin Zhi Shan? He was truly tired of living!

Su Hao guiltlessly pocketed the Soul Refining Banner. Later, he would search for methods to use the Soul Refining Banner and find an opportunity to refine souls.

Next, he examined Lin Zhi Shan's storage bag.

"Holy..."

This storage bag looked unremarkable on the outside, but its internal space was astonishingly large!

"This must be a mid-grade storage bag, right?"

According to the old man at Heavenly Treasure Pavilion, storage bags of this quality were rare and in high demand, with prices fluctuating. At its peak, it could sell for over two hundred spirit stones.

In any case, it was not something a low-level cultivator could afford.

The 15 cubic meters of space were like a small room, with three rows of small wooden shelves.

Various bottles and jars were displayed.

And in the corner, a pile of glittering spirit stones was stacked.

"30 bottles of Tiger Heart Pills, 10 bottles of Golden Snow Spirit Pills."

Su Hao took a closer look at the pills.

Tiger Heart Pills were commonly used cultivation pills for cultivators from Qi Refining Level 6 to Level 9, costing 20 low-grade spirit stones per bottle.

The Tiger Heart Pills he obtained from Heavenly Treasure Pavilion had greatly helped him break through to Qi Refining Level 6.

Golden Snow Spirit Pills, on the other hand, were top-tier cultivation pills for Qi Refining cultivators. They were Spirit Grade pills, incredibly valuable, costing 150 low-grade spirit stones per bottle!

Just these alone, if resold, could fetch over a thousand spirit stones.

The pile of spirit stones was less numerous, around 400.

"As expected, murder and arson lead to great wealth!"

Su Hao exclaimed excitedly.

Just by killing Zhou Cui Feng, Zhao Bai Jiang, and Lin Zhi Shan, he had obtained over 2000 spirit stones in wealth!

No wonder the Outer Sect had such a severe atmosphere of private conflict and contention.

To survive in the Outer Sect of the Golden Light Sect, one had to either:

Drudge away mining ore or bones, acting as the lowest form of cattle, a slow suicide that would eventually ruin their foundation and make them a stepping stone for others.

Or, embrace the law of the jungle, preying on others for their pills and spirit stones.

Smart people knew which path to choose.

In the storage bag, there were also two Divine Sense Jade Slips.

"Medicine King's Secret Codex, Hundred Profound Medicine Veins."

Su Hao eagerly picked up the jade slips. As his divine sense touched them, he understood their contents.

As an alchemist, these two pill-related books were the most precious items for Lin Zhi Shan.

The Medicine King's Secret Codex encompassed over a thousand types of pills for Qi Refining cultivators, including over a hundred Spirit Pills and five Mystic Pills.

And this Hundred Profound Medicine Veins was the true cultivation method, a Mystic Grade cultivation method!

Its cultivation content only went up to Qi Refining completion. Its primary focus was on how to cultivate the Hundred Profound Gang Body, a secret technique.

Cultivation was supplementary, including the Essence Absorption secret technique, the "Medicine Slave Chapter," all designed to aid in the completion of the Hundred Profound Gang Body.

Lin Zhi Shan had gone to great lengths, spending a vast amount of spirit stones and resources to complete the Hundred Profound Gang Body, spending over five thousand spirit stones, most of which was continuously invested in it!

Years of planning, and finally, success in the past few days. Not only have I taken a step towards the Foundation Establishment stage, but I can also reach new heights in alchemy.

Combined with those Golden Snow Pills and other pills, I can reach Qi Refining Completion solely through pills. With a little more effort and obtaining a Foundation Establishment Pill, there's a sixty to seventy percent chance of entering the Foundation Establishment stage.

As for Medicine Slaves like Su Hao who have taken Origin Blood Pills, and others who have consumed large amounts of Heart Nourishing Pills, the records also describe a special method to help them re-cultivate Blood Pills and recover a large portion of their medicinal potency.

"Comprehend Medicine King's Secret Codex."

"Comprehend Hundred Profound Medicine Veins."

After an incense stick's worth of time, Su Hao let out a long breath.

The Medicine King's Secret Codex is enough for him to master 99% of Qi Refining stage pill recipes, so it's not immediately needed.

The Hundred Profound Medicine Veins, as a Mystic Grade cultivation method, even though it can only be cultivated to Qi Refining Completion, is several levels above the Crimson Flame Sword Art.

Switching cultivation methods doesn't come with a high price, as long as one's talent is sufficient for the method's requirements.

There will be a loss of spiritual energy during the conversion process, and the time it takes varies from person to person.

Now that he possesses the Wood Emperor Physique, his talent in the Wood Element is far superior to the Fire Element, making the Hundred Profound Medicine Veins clearly more suitable for him.

This cultivation method doesn't have many strengths in combat, but it excels in its profound and enduring nature, making it suitable for alchemists.

No matter how poor a Mystic Grade cultivation method is, it's still streets ahead of a Spirit Grade one. He can find better sword techniques later.

The Crimson Flame Sword Art is just a common sword path cultivation method, so there's no need to dwell on it.

Su Hao transferred all his spirit stones and pills into his new storage bag.

Then, he sat cross-legged, preparing to consume pills and cultivate.

A bottle of Tiger Heart Pills was directly poured into his mouth.

The moment the cultivation method activated, spiritual energy gathered above Su Hao's head, forming a vortex.

Including the area of tens of square meters above the cave dwelling, spiritual energy surged and gathered, forming a small tornado that continuously entered Su Hao's body through the rock walls.

Su Hao's eyes snapped open, and he was greatly shocked.

This orange talent is too powerful!

The pills haven't even begun to digest, yet the spiritual energy flowing in is being converted into spiritual power. An hour of cultivation is equivalent to the medicinal effect of a Pure Qi Pill!

At this rate of cultivation, even without consuming pills, his progress would be astonishing!

And when he started to actively digest the medicinal potency, he was equally amazed by the absorption rate and speed.

One bottle of five pills is equivalent to three months of arduous cultivation!

In just half an hour, the entire bottle of Tiger Heart Pills was absorbed, all converted into spiritual power. Simultaneously, the spiritual power gradually transformed, circulating according to the Hundred Profound Medicine Veins' energy pathways, and the violent, scorching fire spiritual power gradually became gentle.

A pill's medicinal potency is ten parts. For cultivators with low aptitude and poor potential, after consuming a pill, two to three parts of the potency are often lost.

Another one to two parts of the potency accumulate in the body and cannot be immediately absorbed, requiring three to five days for complete conversion.

The remaining components are either expelled from the body through metabolism or partially converted into pill poison and impurities.

In contrast, Su Hao achieved an absorption rate of nearly ten parts!

Over the years, he can consume far fewer pills than others, saving a lot of spirit stones.

Not to mention, his current physique is no longer afraid of pill poison and impurities.

After digesting the Tiger Heart Pills, Su Hao took out another bottle of pills from a black porcelain bottle, the Moonlight Spirit Pill!

This top-grade spirit pill obtained from Zhou Cui Feng's storage bag is invaluable. At the very least, the Heavenly Treasure Pavilion in the Outer Sect would not sell such a top-grade spirit pill. It's on the same tier as the Golden Snow Spirit Pill, but of better quality, meaning stronger medicinal effects.

The bottle contained only one pill, which was pale green all over, surrounded by a faint halo of medicinal fragrance.

Normally, a Qi Refining Level 10 cultivator would take ten to fifteen days to digest this pill, and those with weaker strength would lose even more potency.

Su Hao doesn't have this problem.

If Liu Mei hadn't suddenly interrupted, he would have consumed this spirit pill then.

With the Moonlight Spirit Pill in his belly, Su Hao once again entered a state of cultivation.

This time, refining the Moonlight Spirit Pill took longer.

When he opened his eyes again, it was already dawn.

"One more, although there are no more Moonlight Spirit Pills, the Golden Snow Spirit Pills are not bad. Eating one or two should be enough to break through to Qi Refining Level 8!"

Su Hao's mood was calm as he put away a bottle of Golden Snow Spirit Pills from his bedside.

He chose not to continue consuming pills to cultivate.

The side effects of consuming pills were already minimal for him, but the rapid increase in his realm led to superficial spiritual power and an unstable foundation, which was still a problem.

Now that the crisis had passed, he could spend a few days consolidating his cultivation.

Su Hao walked out of the pavilion and stood before the flower bed, calmly calculating:

"Currently, whether I'm at Qi Refining Level 8, 9, or higher, it's not the key. Once my identity is exposed, and the truth comes out, even with Foundation Establishment strength, I won't be able to survive.

How to continue under the guise of Lin Zhi Shan's disciple is the most important thing, determining whether I can keep Heavenly Medicine Mountain and continue my disguise.

Lin Zhi Shan still hasn't completed the pill commission for Heavenly Treasure Pavilion."

He could either try to trick Heavenly Treasure Pavilion into canceling the commission, or he could try to refine the Pure Qi Pills and Spirit Gathering Powder himself.

The former wouldn't hide the truth for long and carried hidden dangers. As for the latter, the refining difficulty wasn't high. Both pills were recorded relatively early and were simpler cultivation pills in either the Pill Dao Scripture or the Medicine King's Secret Codex.

Su Hao's eyes flickered as he made his decision.

"I'm going to refine pills!"

Only by displaying enough value, by proving he could replace Lin Zhi Shan, or even be more useful than Lin Zhi Shan, would others not seek trouble with him over a dead man!