Qi-Gathering Pill

Qin Wan walked straight into the largest merchant pavilion in the market.

Relying on her status as a personal disciple of Lone Moon and an acting manager, the shopkeeper dared not show the slightest negligence and personally ushered her into a quiet private room.

When Qin Wan neatly arranged the stack of Wind-Riding Talismans on the sandalwood desk, the knowledgeable shopkeeper examined them, and a flash of undisguised astonishment crossed his eyes.

These talismans were not only crafted with extremely precise spiritual patterns, but more shockingly, the spiritual power circulating within the runes was surging and solid, clearly produced recently and by the same hand.

What kind of talisman master was this dedicated?

After a moment of surprise, the shopkeeper did not press for answers.

Following a flawless round of negotiation and haggling, Qin Wan displayed the shrewdness and adaptability of someone born into a merchant family.

This batch of escape talismans, which were already highly sought after among low-level cultivators, ultimately sold for a good price.

After tallying the gains, Qin Wan went to another location and exchanged half of them for the cultivation supplies Xia Dong had requested.

The transaction was completed cleanly and efficiently.

It was still the same Pine Slope Pavilion hidden amidst the swirling clouds and mist.

Xia Dong watched as Qin Wan pushed the parcel over; a quiet sweep of his divine sense made him fully aware of its contents. His expression was gentle, and he naturally took three Qi-Gathering Pills and fifteen spirit stones from the parcel, gently pushing them back toward Qin Wan.

"Wan'er, that this batch of supplies could be sold so smoothly and without leaving a trace is entirely thanks to your maneuvering. This is the compensation you deserve; please accept it."

Seeing this, Qin Wan waved her hands repeatedly, urgently declining, "Brother Xia, since we have already become sworn siblings, this was merely a small effort. How could Wan'er covet your cultivation resources?"

Xia Dong looked at her quietly. "One thing is one thing. Over these past few years, if not for the support from you and Senior Lone Moon, I, Xia Dong, would not have reached where I am today. If you do not accept these, how could I have the face to seek your help again when I encounter trouble in the future?"

Qin Wan bit her red lip. She knew that if she refused again, it would only seem pretentious and distant.

In the end, she nodded. "Thank you, Brother Xia."

Holding the Qi-Gathering Pills and spirit stones that radiated pure spiritual energy, Qin Wan could not help but feel a surge of infinite emotion.

When they first met, Xia Dong was merely a mortal youth who needed her to secretly provide spirit stones from her own pocket. Yet, in just a few short years, this Brother Xia had not only seen his martial arts cultivation skyrocket to the peak of the Bone Forging Realm, but he was now even able to support her on the path of immortality.

Is this the foundation of those with a Dao Registry... Qin Wan murmured silently in her heart, her emotions surging.

She knew very well that Xia Dong could take on such a lucrative job of "smuggling" cultivation resources precisely because of his "Dao Registry" background, which had been personally verified by the Bureau of Profound Mysteries.

The Great You Dynasty, which now suppressed the world and was at the height of its power, was, when all was said and done, established jointly by the thirty-six Dao Registry families from the founding era.

And those original "Thirty-Six Dao Traitors" were themselves core figures with immense authority within the various immortal sects and demonic gates.

Even if they had chosen to betray their sects to support a mortal dynasty back then, could those thousand-threaded inheritances and bloodlines really be severed so cleanly?

Perhaps, deep within the current immortal sects and demonic gates, unimaginable influence still lay hidden.

The survival strategy of the aristocratic families had always been this way.

The Great You Dynasty was indeed powerful right now. But the Dao of Heaven rotates, and fortune is fickle; who could guarantee that one day the immortal sects or demonic gates would not rise again to regain control over the rise and fall of this continent?

Moreover, although the Great You Dynasty was the current hegemon of this continent, it was not without external enemies.

In short, the Dao Registry families would likely always have the qualifications and deep enough trump cards to calmly choose to stand on the side of the victor.

Qin Wan sighed inwardly.

Shortly after, the two parted ways.

Xia Dong returned to Changchun Medical Hall without a sound.

The night was deep. Xia Dong locked his door and skillfully slipped into the secret chamber at the bottom of the well.

Sitting cross-legged on the cold stone floor, he took out the supplies from the parcel to count them, his gaze finally settling on the jade bottle containing the "Qi-Gathering Pills."

"Let me see what kind of miraculous effect this immortal pill, worth ten low-grade spirit stones each, truly has."

Xia Dong pulled out the stopper and poured out a Qi-Gathering Pill. The pill was only the size of a soybean, perfectly round, with a faint cloud pattern flowing on its surface. A refreshing and extremely pure medicinal fragrance instantly permeated the entire secret chamber.

Without the slightest hesitation, he tilted his head back and swallowed the Qi-Gathering Pill.

BOOM!

The moment the pill entered his mouth, it did not need to be slowly digested by his stomach; it transformed directly into a stream of extremely pure spiritual power that dissolved within Xia Dong's body.

Xia Dong's expression tightened as he immediately mobilized his divine sense, putting his all into circulating the cultivation method of the Profound Yin Scripture.

The mana vortex in his dantian began to spin crazily, like a greedy mouth, desperately swallowing this stream of pure spiritual power.

With the help of this medicinal strength, Xia Dong clearly felt that the mana in his dantian, which had originally been as thin as a thread, was growing and solidifying at a speed visible to the naked eye.

Unfortunately, even though Xia Dong had done his utmost to refine the medicinal power, limited by his root foundation—which had not yet fully transformed into a "Spiritual Root"—he could still only barely intercept and refine one-tenth of this spiritual power.

As for the remaining nine-tenths of the spiritual power...

Hum.

Deep within the sea of consciousness, the mottled Bronze Ancient Bell, resembling a bottomless pit, emitted a joyful hum.

It unleashed an incomparably tyrannical suction force, swallowing every last shred of spiritual energy that was about to dissipate from the body.

Over these past few years, Xia Dong had gradually grasped the temperament of the ancient bell.

This thing not only required a massive consumption of spiritual power when deducing cultivation techniques, but it also silently consumed spiritual energy just to maintain its own operation while suspended in the sea of consciousness.

Xia Dong gathered his focus, thoroughly converting that ten percent of spiritual energy into his own Profound Yin mana. He could feel that the ten percent medicinal potency brought by this single Qi-Gathering Pill alone was equivalent to half a month of bitter meditation in this secret chamber.

Just as Xia Dong prepared to conclude his session and rise, he habitually swept his gaze over the Bronze Ancient Bell within his sea of consciousness.

On the bell's dim, lusterless bronze surface, which was covered in the marks of time, there had unexpectedly appeared a trace of gold, almost imperceptible!

That golden thread was extremely minute, like a speck of gold dust clinging to a strand of hair, flickering in and out of existence.

If Xia Dong hadn't become so familiar with every single texture on its body over the past few years that it was etched into his bones, he would have even mistaken it for an illusion.

This ancient bell... could it be that after absorbing a sufficiently vast amount of spiritual energy, not only can it deduce cultivation techniques, but its very essence will undergo some kind of transformation?

This ancient bell was his greatest reliance for survival in this world of immortal cultivation; if it could evolve and transform, heaven only knew what heaven-defying, miraculous abilities might be unlocked.

But he quickly calmed down, as if doused by a basin of cold water.

"It's been years... I have used my divine sense to draw in spiritual energy to feed it day and night, and I've poured in so many spirit stones. Now, even with this highly refined Qi-Gathering Pill, I've only managed to feed it a sliver of gold thinner than a strand of hair."

"If I want to wait for this gold to completely cover the entire bell body and complete its transformation, I'm afraid I'd have to drain the entire spirit stone vein of Linyuan Prefecture, wouldn't I? When will this ever end?"

Xia Dong shook his head, ceasing his thoughts. Increasing his own cultivation base was the most urgent matter.