Life and Death! True Essence!

In the blink of an eye.

A month later.

"Dad!"

"You're truly a god!"

"There was actually a Great Medicine there!"

"It's the Jade Marrow Ganoderma!"

In the cave dwelling, the four returned together, Meng Santan extremely excited.

Her excitement was twofold—

First, they successfully obtained the Great Medicine.

Second, her Dad had actually predicted correctly; there was indeed a Great Medicine in the candle holder, and it just happened to mature around that time.

Foresight!

This was what truly thrilled her.

"Jade Marrow Ganoderma."

"Inferior Great Medicine."

Meng Nan had been focused on his cultivation for the past month and was actually quite anxious. Seeing the four return safely and with the Great Medicine in hand, his face also showed joy.

He looked at the Great Medicine in Zhao Xiaoshuang's hand—

Shaped like a Lingzhi mushroom.

Containing jade marrow within.

This was the Great Medicine, 'Jade Marrow Ganoderma'.

Its rank among known Great Medicines wasn't very high, but it was at least much better than the lower-grade 'Dan Yuan Wandering Veins', much, much better!

"The emergence of a Great Medicine is bound to cause unusual phenomena, and killing Zhang He would also alert others."

"This medicine cannot be kept for long."

The arrow was nocked and ready; now that the Great Medicine was in hand, it had to be used.

Meng Nan looked at Zhao Xiaoshuang, "You—"

The words caught in his throat.

He suddenly paused.

He had originally intended for Zhao Xiaoshuang to consume it.

But then he remembered that to break through to Qi Condensation by consuming a Great Medicine, one had to first open the Three Cavities. Once the Three Cavities were opened, the vital energy would surge, and at that point, there would be no turning back—

Success meant becoming an Immortal Master.

Failure meant death.

This was a gamble for life.

Meng Nan hesitated for a moment.

"Even if I don't take this gamble now, I only have about ten years to live at most."

"Don't worry."

"I will definitely succeed!"

Zhao Xiaoshuang was responsible and did not refuse.

Among the five people here, Meng Nan's cultivation had regressed, and he was practicing a new technique, having just formed True Qi; he definitely couldn't use it.

The three younger ones were his children; they certainly wouldn't benefit from it, and they all still had thirty years of lifespan left, so there was no rush.

Thus, Zhao Xiaoshuang was not pretentious or hesitant.

She held Meng Nan's hand, shared a knowing smile, and then strode into the quiet room.

True Essence circulated.

The Three Cavities opened.

The Great Medicine was refined.

Rumble, rumble, rumble!

With great momentum, she was about to break through to Qi Condensation!

"You all go outside and stand guard."

Meng Nan glanced at Zhao Xiaoshuang, then saw the tension and anxiety on the faces and in the eyes of Meng Santan and the other two. He waved his hand, sending the three out.

The emergence of a Great Medicine would cause celestial phenomena.

Although they had the advantage this time, arriving first and obtaining it, others in the vicinity must have also noticed and would likely track them down soon.

One had to be prepared.

About half a day.

In the quiet room, spiritual energy gathered, and the vital energy was pressing, making it impossible for Meng Nan to look directly.

And outside the cave dwelling.

Rumble rumble rumble!

The rumbling sound did not stop. This was the commotion of fighting, and indeed, someone was tracking the Great Medicine.

Meng Nan was powerless—

Whether it was Zhao Xiaoshuang's breakthrough.

Or the three little protectors outside.

He couldn't help at all.

He could only pretend not to hear and wait silently.

He didn't know how much time had passed.

At this moment.

The spiritual energy in the quiet room suddenly dispersed, and the vital energy abruptly retracted, revealing Zhao Xiaoshuang's figure within.

She sat cross-legged on a bamboo cushion.

She looked up at Meng Nan, and the two met each other's gaze.

Zhao Xiaoshuang's face was smiling, and there seemed to be lingering affection in her eyes.

But the next moment.

Before Meng Nan could get close, Zhao Xiaoshuang's eyes dimmed, her spirit faded, and her head slowly drooped.

She was no longer alive.

"Xiaoshuang."

Meng Nan came to her side, gently embraced Zhao Xiaoshuang, and felt a surge of sorrow in his heart.

In previous lives, either Meng Nan and Zhao Xiaoshuang had faced life and death together, or Meng Nan had taken the lead.

This was the first time Meng Nan had watched her die with his own eyes.

The first time Zhao Xiaoshuang had passed away while Meng Nan was still alive.

"Scoundrel!"

Outside the cave dwelling, the three little ones were truly enraged. The three of them each manifested their Giant Spirit bodies, each reaching a height of three zhang. Some held clubs, some held swords, and some held spears. Sorcery flew everywhere as they fought against six people.

These six people were also well-known in the vicinity, notorious for their skills, which were no less than those of Meng Nan and his wife or Zhang He of Yanxia Ravine.

They refused to back down in their struggle for the Great Medicine.

At this moment, the formation of the cave dwelling was withdrawn, and Meng Nan walked out, holding Zhao Xiaoshuang.

"Old Man Five Thunders."

"Granny Sword."

"Alas!"

"The path of immortality is truly difficult!"

"Senior, please accept my condolences!"

Among the six people, Yan Zhan, a rogue cultivator who practiced on Sanliang Mountain, recognized Meng Nan and his wife. Seeing Meng Nan now, and seeing that Zhao Xiaoshuang in his arms had no life left, he naturally understood the reason.

The Great Medicine Steaming and Boiling.

The spiritual opportunity had not yet appeared.

This was a failure after great effort, a tragedy born from extreme joy.

Seeing this, Yan Zhan shook his head.

A hunter killed, a cook discarded.

He lost all interest.

"Thank you for your hospitality!"

He suddenly lost the will to fight, sighed, and flew away.

"Senior (Fellow Daoist), farewell!"

The remaining people also sighed, laughed, and dispersed.

Yaozi Mountain.

Outside the cave dwelling.

The place was quiet for a moment.

"Dad!"

"Mom!"

Meng Santan swayed and dissipated his Giant Spirit Body, appearing before Meng Nan. Looking at Zhao Xiaoshuang's serene face, his heart ached uncontrollably, and his eyes immediately turned red.

Meng Xingzhe and Meng Jian landed before them and also knelt silently.

In the end!

It still didn't work out!

A great elixir was by no means foolproof. Even a top-grade great elixir rarely guaranteed a ten percent chance of finding a spiritual opportunity, let alone an inferior one.

This was a desperate gamble.

But at least with the help of the great elixir, the success rate could be increased somewhat.

Yet, it was still slim.

Yaozi Mountain.

A new grave.

Meng Nan stood before the grave and sighed again.

Then he got up, no longer indulging in melancholy, turned back to his cave dwelling, and continued his arduous cultivation.

To escape such tragic human suffering in reality, to never again witness life and death separations, he had to cultivate harder and harder!

"True Essence Sense Imprint!"

Meng Nan's goal for this life was to first achieve the fifth level of Sense Imprint.

Thirteen years!

He hoped it would be enough!

For the next period, Meng Nan returned to the state of his previous lives--

Cultivating techniques.

Practicing sorcery.

Studying Alchemy.

Studying artifact refining.

Techniques were fundamental, sorcery was for defense.

Alchemy and artifact refining were for the long term.

These were skills for earning money.

Whether for better cultivation or to earn Spirit Sand to open future timelines, they were indispensable.

The stronger, the better.

In addition to the above, Meng Nan was also reviewing the cultivation experiences and travel essays of himself, Zhao Xiaoshuang, Meng Santan, Qian Yu, and even his disciples such as Qin Zhongjie, Xu Rong, Chen De, and Wang An.

One was for cultivation.

The other was for leisure.

With jade slips replacing books, it saved a lot of time.

Flipping through these jade slips now was like experiencing the lives of various True Essence rogue cultivators.

Decades.

Centuries.

Cultivation continued, and time flowed.

The mighty power of time was fully displayed.

Some died of old age.

Some left.

Life and death, gatherings and separations.

This was the mortal world.

Meng Nan entered seclusion for arduous cultivation.

Over the years, for him and Zhao Xiaoshuang, not counting other miscellaneous items, the Spirit Sand alone totaled nine catties and two taels.

This amount of Spirit Sand was not enough for breaking through Qi Condensation.

But it was more than enough to support Meng Nan's current cultivation.

He didn't even need these; the pills they had on hand were sufficient.

True Qi Qi Accumulation.

True Qi Body Cleansing.

Meng Nan's foundation was solid, so even with a change in cultivation path, it all came back to the same principles. He quickly caught up to his previous life.

Next, he refined his internal organs, completing the True Qi Body Cleansing.

After that.

As the True Qi surged, his blood was unknowingly replaced, becoming thicker, denser, and purer.

This was called Blood Replacement.

Following Blood Replacement was Marrow Cleansing.

It also happened naturally, a seamless process that required no specific actions or cultivation.

One only needed to feel it.

After Marrow Cleansing, impurities within the body were further expelled.

At this point, the 'flesh', 'sinews', 'skin', 'bones', 'organs', 'blood', and 'marrow' had all been cleansed and renewed.

The body grew stronger.

Pressuring the True Qi.

The True Qi within was forced to sublimate.

Until a point of Origin Energy descended, illuminating the True Qi and transforming it into True Essence.

Thus.

The final hurdle before Qi Condensation--

"True Essence!"

"It's done!"

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