Human-grade Herbs and the Central River Continent

"Human-grade herbs?" Lin Chuan paused, as this was the first time he had heard of a classification system for herb quality.

"That's right. Like Spirit Roots, herbs are also classified by grade. However, it isn't as granular as Spirit Roots; they are simply divided into four broad categories—Heaven, Earth, Human, and Mortal—without the further subdivisions of high, middle, and low," Bu Lianshi said softly, bowing her head slightly.

"What is the purpose of these herb grades? I recall that every herb is categorized based on the minimum cultivation level required to consume the pills refined from them. For instance, the Crimson Flame Lotus—the pills refined from this herb can only be consumed by cultivators at the Foundation Establishment Stage at a minimum. If a Qi Refining Stage cultivator were to take one, they would risk being burst apart by the spiritual power. Shouldn't that be the standard for classifying herbs?" Lin Chuan asked thoughtfully.

Bu Lianshi nodded, neither confirming nor denying. "What Brother Lin Chuan says is correct, but there is a nuance. Take the Crimson Flame Gold Lotus you just saw: in essence, it is still a Crimson Flame Lotus, and that hasn't changed. However, the herbal essence contained within it has been greatly enhanced, reaching the level of a Golden Core Stage herb."

At this point, Bu Lianshi lowered her voice to whisper to the two of them, "Yet, the pills refined from this herb can still be consumed by Foundation Establishment Stage cultivators. Brother Lin Chuan is so clever; you should be able to understand what this implies, right?"

Upon hearing Bu Lianshi's words, Lin Chuan's white eyes narrowed slightly, and he immediately grasped the gravity of the situation.

The existence of such Human-grade herbs was almost equivalent to a cheat code for alchemy. The spiritual essence contained within them was elevated by an entire tier, yet they remained safe for those with lower cultivation levels to consume. The rarity of such an item was self-evident; it was undoubtedly a treasure that every major family would scramble to obtain.

Imagine the terrifying effect of a pill refined from a Golden Core Stage herb being consumed by a Foundation Establishment Stage cultivator. Normally, such a pill would be impossible for them to take, but only a "hacked" existence like a Human-grade herb could achieve such an effect to a certain extent.

"In other words, I could consume this herb directly without worrying about being burst apart, right?" Lin Chuan asked in a low voice, his meaning clear.

Bu Lianshi nodded. "Theoretically, yes. But Brother Lin Chuan, how do you plan to deal with that big guy next to the Crimson Flame Gold Lotus?"

Qin Lang, listening from the side, shook his head with a wry smile. The item was excellent, but given their current strength, let alone snatching the Crimson Flame Gold Lotus, it was impossible for them to even walk alive to the side of that Nascent Soul Queen Ant.

Lin Chuan rubbed his chin thoughtfully and said softly, "Solutions are meant to be found. Our target is the Crimson Flame Gold Lotus, not the Queen Ant. We just need to find a way to take the lotus without alerting her!"

Bu Lianshi and Qin Lang exchanged a bitter smile. They said that, but with their current abilities, such a feat was impossible; it was nothing more than an empty dream.

"By the way, Bu Lianshi, if a Human-grade herb is equivalent to lowering the requirement of a high-level herb by one grade, allowing someone one level lower to consume it, then wouldn't the Heaven and Earth grades above Human-grade be even more powerful? By this logic, an Earth-grade herb could lower the requirement by two levels, and a Heaven-grade herb by three?" Lin Chuan asked again.

"Brother Lin Chuan is correct, but all herbs start as Mortal-grade. They can only increase their grade through evolution, and this evolution is extremely difficult. Growth environment, the richness of spiritual energy, the required soil, the years of growth—there are numerous conditions that restrict a herb's evolution. Basically, very few herbs can meet the requirements for such a transformation."

"Human-grade herbs are already extremely scarce. Earth-grade herbs are enough to make the entire continent go mad. As for the highest Heaven-grade herbs, forgive me for being blunt, but I have never heard of such things actually existing! Heaven-grade herbs are things that only exist in legends," Bu Lianshi said with a solemn expression.

"I see!" Lin Chuan nodded. This did not exceed his expectations. Even at the Human-grade, the effects of such herbs were already astonishing; those that reached the Earth or Heaven grades could truly be called heaven-defying existences. How could they be so easily obtained?

"There is one more point: because these herbs are the result of evolution, they possess an extraordinary attraction to Spirit Beasts. Even if a Foundation Establishment Stage herb evolves to the Human-grade, it is enough to attract a Nascent Soul Queen Ant to guard it. It is said that this evolutionary power can be transferred directly into the Spirit Beast's body through consumption, thereby causing the Spirit Beast itself to mutate or even evolve!"

Bu Lianshi explained further, as she could see that Lin Chuan was very interested in these things. Moreover, considering that Lin Chuan could consume herbs directly, it was not an exaggeration to view him as a Spirit Beast to some extent.

Hearing Bu Lianshi's explanation, Lin Chuan realized that such herbs might have an even more important role regarding the Fruit of the God Tree, though he could not be certain yet. He would have to find a way to get his hands on this Crimson Flame Gold Lotus first.

Lin Chuan already had some ideas in mind—methods to obtain the herb without going through the Queen Ant. However, he could not yet confirm their effectiveness and needed to experiment a little before making a decision. Regardless of the method, all his means pointed toward one pair of eyes: the Tenseigan!

"Human-grade herbs, I'm really looking forward to this! I wonder how many such herbs are left on this Central River Continent..." Lin Chuan murmured softly. His voice was not loud, but Qin Lang and Bu Lianshi, walking beside him, heard him clearly.

The moment they heard this, the expressions of Qin Lang and Bu Lianshi changed instantly. Their faces were almost immediately flooded with a complex mix of pain, sorrow, resentment, and various other emotions, which then shifted into shock.

"Central River Continent? Brother Lin Chuan, you are also from the Central River Continent?" Qin Lang and Bu Lianshi asked almost in unison.

Lin Chuan turned to look at them, only to see Qin Lang and Bu Lianshi wearing expressions of utter astonishment, as if something unbelievable had just occurred. "What's wrong? Why are you so surprised? Isn't this the Central River Continent?"

Lin Chuan's mind struggled to process this. What did they mean by "you are also from the Central River Continent"? Wasn't this it?

"But this isn't the Central River Continent at all!"

"Brother Lin Chuan, we are currently on the Southern Bright Continent, not the Central River Continent!"

The two sentences from Qin Lang and Bu Lianshi exploded in Lin Chuan's mind. Instantly, a wave of shock, anger, hatred, sadness, and various other negative emotions—emotions that did not belong to the current Lin Chuan—surged through him.

Those belonged to the former Lin Chuan, the one who had his eyes gouged out and was beaten to death. Those were his emotions; those were his roars; those were his desperate, agonizing cries!