Ling Yun's eyes continued sweeping over the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well. Before long, another plant caught his attention.
It was a purple chrysanthemum. Its stamen rose more than half a foot above the petals, radiating golden light, and its fuzzy petals made the whole flower look exceptionally beautiful. This was the Singular Velvet Sky Chrysanthemum.
Eating it could send strength through the limbs and blood through the eight meridians, forging an indestructible body of diamond. It was a neutral Immortal Herb, suitable for both men and women.
There were rules to eating it, too: first the stamen, then the petals. The roots and stem were not to be eaten. Afterward, one had to refine its medicinal power.
Chrysanthemum Douluo of the Spirit Hall had the Singular Velvet Sky Chrysanthemum as his Martial Soul. He was also an effeminate man; unless he spoke, it was hard to tell whether he was male or female.
Beyond these herbs, the other Immortal Herbs were out of sight, so Ling Yun began moving around and searching carefully.
He had walked no more than ten meters when an intoxicating orchid fragrance wafted straight into his nose. He quickly pinpointed its source.
It was an eight-petaled orchid, pure white and crystal clear. It rested quietly between two rocks, giving off an elegant, otherworldly air. This was another Immortal Herb: the Eight-Petal Immortal Orchid.
Eating it could strengthen one's foundation, remove impurities, and increase cultivation speed.
The way to eat it was much simpler: just chew and swallow. But one had to take care when picking it. Like the Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass, it had to be harvested with metal. Once picked, it could be kept in a jade box, where it would not wither for a thousand years.
After walking a few more steps, another rich fragrance filled Ling Yun's senses. He soon spotted its source. Its stem was as fine as a strand of hair, and its roots intertwined like vines, spiraling upward. At the top bloomed a golden tulip.
Its name was easy to confuse with the Aromatic Silk Beauty. This one was called the Aromatic Silk Beauty.
Eating it allowed one to absorb the essence of heaven and earth and the radiance of the sun and moon—a blessing bestowed by nature.
To use this Immortal Herb, one had to gently inhale its fragrance from the stamen and slowly refine its medicinal power. It could not be swallowed directly.
Turning his head, he spotted a red-leafed plant not far away, dazzling with light. Its veins were crimson-gold, while the rest of the leaves were red, and the top resembled a cockscomb.
This was the Cockscomb Phoenix Sunflower, an Immortal Herb that greatly nourished pure Yang energy. It was suited to Soul Masters with fire attributes and could purify their flames.
Eating it was a little painful. It could not be chewed; the entire plant had to be swallowed before refining its medicinal power. The process would bring intense pain.
If one could not endure it, all one's efforts would go to waste.
Before long, Ling Yun found another Immortal Herb: the Narcissus Jade Muscle Bone. It was pure white all over and shaped like a white lotus root, appearing utterly spotless. It could nourish the muscles and bones and circulate energy through the eight extraordinary meridians.
When eating the Narcissus Jade Muscle Bone, one should eat only the petals, then gently inhale from the stamen and refine its medicinal power.
Ling Yun continued exploring. A moment later, a snow-white plant entered his view.
Its leaves were crystal clear like water droplets, and its graceful shape resembled a swan's neck.
He strode over and stopped a meter away to inspect it carefully. This plant was called the Snowy Swan Kiss. It had only one effect: amplification. It could amplify poison hundreds or even thousands of times over.
However, it was not poisonous itself. Great care was needed when picking it, and only something pure could be used. It had to be stored in cold jade; if the temperature rose above zero, it would wither.
If Dugu Bo so much as touched it by accident, the poison would erupt and kill him outright.
Without stopping, Ling Yun was drawn to a huge boulder. The entire rock was pitch-black, and a small white flower grew in one of its crevices. It was about the size of a palm, leafless, and looked quite ordinary. A few of its petals bore a bright red streak, like blood.
This was the Lovesick Heartbreak Red, the flower with the most appearances throughout the Douluo series. It could bring the dead back to life and restore flesh to bare bones.
To pick it, one had to think of the person one loved, force out a mouthful of blood, and spit it onto the petals.
If one's thoughts were even slightly impure, one could bleed until every drop of blood in one's body was gone, and it still would not work.
If the love in one's heart was pure, the Lovesick Heartbreak Red's roots would detach from the rock on their own and acknowledge the person as its master. If someone forcibly picked it and destroyed the Black Absolute Stone beneath its roots, all its medicinal properties would vanish.
Once the Lovesick Heartbreak Red acknowledged its master, it would never wither for all eternity. It could even protect its master, making it a divine treasure among flowers.
Ling Yun kept exploring and found many more rare herbs, including the Nine-Grade Purple Ganoderma, Dragon Ganoderma Leaf, Snow Lotus, and others.
He also found the Earth Dragon Golden Melon, Ink Jade Divine Bamboo, and Primordial Immortal Grass—the Immortal Herbs that would join the protagonist's group twenty thousand years later.
But their grade had not yet reached that of Immortal Herbs.
They had the potential to become Immortal Herbs, but they still needed time to mature.
In less than half an hour, Ling Yun had searched every plant around the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well.
He did not recognize most of the plants that had never appeared in the original story, but his ace support did. How could the Yin-Yang Mirror be such an inconvenient thing?
At Ling Yun's request, the Yin-Yang Mirror appeared in the outside world once more, its Yin-Yang light enveloping the entire valley.
All those special harvesting techniques were nothing in front of the Yin-Yang Mirror. They were no trouble at all.
While preserving the herbs' medicinal properties, the Yin-Yang Mirror also left their roots and stems intact. It had clearly mastered the art of sustainable harvesting.
One herb after another flew around the Yin-Yang Mirror like twinkling stars, slowly circling it.
They illuminated the valley in a dazzling array of colors.
The Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass and the Infernal Delicate Apricot attracted and restrained each other. Under the Yin-Yang light, they slowly drew together and fused.
Several neutral herbs joined in, and the mixture continued to fuse and condense, turning into medicinal liquid. The liquid blended together into a great ball of water, then split into five portions. Each portion glowed with alternating red and white light.
In the next instant, the natural energy of the Scorching Yang Spring and Extreme Cold Ice Spring surged continuously into the void. At last, five pills appeared.
The Ice-Fire Body Refining Pills were no less effective than swallowing Immortal Herbs directly.
Ling Yun hurriedly took out a jade bottle. Under the Yin-Yang Mirror's control, the five pills flew into it like swallows returning to their nest.
Not a single herb was spared. Every Immortal Herb was refined, even the Lovesick Heartbreak Red and the Snowy Swan Kiss, which the Yin-Yang Mirror handled with ease.
There was nothing Ling Yun could think of that the Yin-Yang Mirror could not do.
A batch of pills, made by combining six Immortal Herbs and thirteen other herbs, was complete. They were called Heaven-Seizing Creation Pills, and there were nine in total.
Cloud patterns swirled over each pill. They were smooth and plump, radiating a faint glow of treasure. One glance made it clear they were extraordinary.
A quarter of an hour later,
Ling Yun had filled ten jade bottles, three wooden boxes, and a gourd.
The Yin-Yang Mirror had already transformed into a streak of light and returned to the depths of his soul. It had thoughtfully transmitted a stream of information, explaining what each pill was for and exactly what effects it had.
The harvest from this trip had far exceeded his expectations.
Ling Yun poured out an Ice-Fire Body Refining Pill and let it dissolve on his tongue. His body began changing color, turning red and then white.
He tossed his clothes and Storage Soul Tool onto the bank, leaped into the spring, and began Ice and Fire Body Tempering.
The effects were almost too strong. He grimaced in pain.
Without the Ice-Fire Pill's medicinal power protecting him, he would have faced only two possible fates upon entering the spring: either being frozen into crumbs or melted into them.
Trying Ice and Fire Body Tempering without it? Not a chance.
Before you continue