Turning Waste into Treasure!

Li Qingshan could clearly feel that the torrent of pure spiritual energy was forcibly clearing out those atrophied and blocked tiny meridians with the force of a landslide!

The accumulated impurities were washed away, dissolved, and expelled from his body.

Under the nourishment of this vitality, his withered and shrunken meridians were like dry branches after a long drought; they greedily absorbed the moisture and began to struggle to regain a hint of elasticity!

A large amount of gray-black, foul-smelling grime began to seep out from the surface of Li Qingshan's body.

His bones emitted soft, crackling sounds, and his aged, stiff muscles trembled slightly.

He did not know how much time had passed before that surging warm current finally calmed down, eventually returning to his dantian energy sea.

There, a faint yet incredibly distinct cyan airflow, carrying vibrant vitality like a newly sprouted seedling, slowly rotated and remained stable.

Wood-attribute mana!

First Level of Qi Refining!

Li Qingshan slowly opened his eyes.

The stone room remained dim, but in his eyes, it seemed much brighter.

He could feel the presence of the thin spiritual energy in the air; it was gathering toward his body in wisps, spontaneously and steadily—though weak, it was truly real.

The grime on his body emitted a foul stench and was sticky and unbearable.

Yet, he felt an unprecedented sense of lightness.

The heavy feeling of exhaustion had largely vanished, his blurred vision seemed a fraction clearer, and the subtle sounds in his ears had increased.

Most importantly, a faint yet genuine vitality was once again flowing through this aged body, as if a withered tree had met spring and sprouted a new bud.

He lowered his head to look at his palms, which were covered in wrinkles but no longer as withered and lifeless as before, then looked at the Yellow-Skin Wine Gourd lying quietly on the stone bed.

Deep within the Hall of Discarded Treasures, there was silence.

Only the sound of the wind occasionally drifting in from outside the window, and the heart in Li Qingshan's chest—which had been silent for a hundred years—was now beating powerfully, with new vitality, one beat after another.

"This Yellow-Skin Gourd is absolutely a supreme treasure! With this Yellow-Skin Gourd, perhaps my path to immortality has hope!"

Li Qingshan grinned, his eyes brighter and more brilliant than ever before.

However! I must test it to see what exactly this Yellow-Skin Gourd is capable of! If it can truly turn waste into treasure, with so many discarded pills in this Hall of Discarded Treasures, I might be able to rapidly improve my cultivation!

Li Qingshan thought to himself.

He did not hesitate in the slightest and walked toward the Hall of Discarded Treasures.

Suppressing his excitement, he began to search carefully in the corners of the Hall of Discarded Treasures.

He specifically chose the piles of discarded pills. Many pills had completely turned into powder or had stuck together into clumps, emitting a pungent, strange odor.

He patiently sifted through them, looking for those discarded pills that, while dim, damaged, and weak in spiritual energy, still barely maintained the shape of a pill.

The Hall of Discarded Treasures only held a year's worth of stock, as disciples came every year to refine those discarded pills and damaged magical artifacts into ash.

Moreover, most of the discarded pills were in clumps, and there were not many truly intact discarded pills.

After spending most of the day, Li Qingshan had gone through the entire pile of discarded pills and found a total of over a dozen intact ones.

Among them, most were Qi-Boosting Pills, which could help cultivators at the early stage of Qi Refining recover their mana.

In addition, there was a Body-Tempering Pill covered in cracks on its surface, which could slightly strengthen one's physique.

There was also a distorted Spirit-Condensing Pill, its original appearance barely recognizable, which could assist in meditative practice and resist inner demons.

These dozen or so pills had almost all their spiritual energy dissipated, their pill patterns blurred or broken, belonging to a state of complete waste.

Li Qingshan carefully placed these dozen discarded pills into the Yellow-Skin Gourd.

After pondering for a moment, he grabbed a small piece of clumped-together discarded pills and stuffed it into the Yellow-Skin Gourd as well.

After plugging it, he kept the gourd close to his body.

Returning to the stone room, he sat cross-legged and attempted to calm his mind to practice the Evergreen Technique, but his thoughts kept drifting toward the gourd in his embrace.

That night was exceptionally long.

The next morning, Li Qingshan took out the gourd almost immediately.

He took a deep breath, his eyes full of anticipation, and then pulled out the stopper.

A complex fragrance mixed with pure medicinal scent wafted out.

"Did it succeed?"

Li Qingshan's eyes were filled with excitement.

He held his breath and tipped the gourd mouth downward.

Fourteen round, plump pills with inner radiance rolled into his palm.

They were discarded pills yesterday, but now they were lustrous in color, brimming with spiritual energy, with four clear, profound pill patterns flowing on their surfaces.

They were unmistakably top-grade spiritual pills!

In total, there were twelve top-grade Qi-Boosting Pills, one top-grade Body-Tempering Pill, and one top-grade Spirit-Condensing Pill!

Apart from that, there was a lump of fused waste pills that showed no change whatsoever.

"I'm rich, I'm truly rich this time!"

Li Qingshan's gaunt hand gripped the Yellow-Skin Gourd tightly, his knuckles turning white from the exertion. A brilliance never before seen erupted within his murky eyes.

He realized two things immediately.

First, this Yellow-Skin Gourd could indeed turn waste into treasure; low-grade spirit pills could become top-grade ones, and even waste pills, as long as a trace of medicinal power remained, could be elevated to top-grade quality.

Second, it was not omnipotent; those waste residues that had completely turned to powder or fused into lumps, as well as those pills that could no longer maintain their shape, could not be improved.

Does the improvement from the Yellow-Skin Gourd require the presence of spiritual energy? That must be why there was no change when I used it to hold wine before!

Low-grade Qi-Inducing Pills and those waste pills all contain a trace of spiritual energy, which is why they could be improved!

In other words, the Yellow-Skin Gourd can only improve items containing spiritual energy; it has no effect on ordinary objects!

A look of realization dawned in Li Qingshan's eyes as he mused to himself.

Aside from medicinal pills, I wonder if other things can also be improved and turned from waste into treasure? It seems I will need to experiment a few more times to find out!

However, the most urgent task is to refine these pills and turn them into my own strength! If these top-grade spirit pills are exposed, I fear I would be left without a place to be buried!

Li Qingshan clutched the Yellow-Skin Gourd, thinking to himself.

In the days that followed, Li Qingshan's life had a clear purpose.

He continued to sweep the Hall of Discarded Treasures at dawn every day, his movements still sluggish, but his gaze was more focused.

While cleaning, he paid closer attention to every new batch of discarded waste, especially the piles of medicinal pill residue.

Like a patient gold prospector, he sifted through them to pick out those waste pills that still retained a trace of medicinal properties and were barely intact.

Every time he found a few, he would treat them like precious treasures, carefully tucking them into the gourd.

When the next day arrived, it was time to harvest the top-grade spirit pills.

He began to consume the top-grade spirit pills for his cultivation; the top-grade Qi-Boosting Pills had an unexpectedly good effect on his early-stage Qi Refining.

However, the spiritual energy contained within the top-grade spirit pills was so abundant that it took Li Qingshan three days to refine a single top-grade Qi-Inducing Pill.

With a constant supply of top-grade pills to assist him, Li Qingshan's cultivation speed accelerated abruptly.

The top-grade Qi-Boosting Pills stabilized his first-layer Qi Refining cultivation and continuously cleansed his meridians, purging even deeper layers of impurities.

His body was no longer as heavy as it had been before; his movements became slightly lighter, and his eyes grew much clearer.