The Pharmacopoeia Points the Way Forward

After the immense joy and excitement subsided, waves of exhaustion rose from the depths of his mind, crashing against him like tides against a shore and reminding Ning Chuan of the shackles of reality.

Standing on the cold metal platform, he slowly shifted his gaze away from the twenty-seven top-grade Spirit Stones and onto the beast-hide pharmacopoeia, Ten Thousand Herb Appraisal.

Transforming the Spirit Stone energy to nourish the Willow Deity True Spirit had succeeded, but the process had placed an enormous burden on his mental strength.

He had no desire to experience that feeling of having his soul drained dry and his Martial Soul on the verge of collapse again anytime soon.

In the end, he was still too weak.

Twenty-fifth-level Soul Power was as insignificant as dust before the Heavens Trash Station.

Without the Recycling Station's precise control and protection, he would not even have been qualified to touch that immense energy, much less wield it.

"I have to become stronger as soon as possible!" Ning Chuan clenched his fists, his gaze turning incomparably resolute.

Only his own strength could serve as his foundation!

His attention returned to Ten Thousand Herb Appraisal.

This pharmacopoeia from a higher plane might be the key to rapidly increasing his strength!

His consciousness sank into his mind, and that vast sea of knowledge emerged once more.

Rather than skimming through it as he had when he first obtained it, Ning Chuan began searching and filtering carefully with a clear purpose in mind.

The contents of Ten Thousand Herb Appraisal encompassed everything. The medicinal herbs it recorded were bizarre and fantastical, with many names he had never heard before. Their forms and medicinal properties were even more mysterious and unfathomable—things like "grows beside the Nine Netherworld Springs, blooms once every three thousand years, its flower resembling a ghost's face," or "collected from a Stellar Core Fragment, containing Solar True Fire"...

It was dazzling to behold and deeply shocking.

The ancient pill formulas were no exception: "Nine-Turn Golden Pill," "Nirvana Pill of Extinction," "Heaven-Stealing Creation Pill"...

Just their names made it obvious that they were anything but ordinary, while their required main ingredients included things like "True Dragon Heart Blood," "Phoenix Nirvana Feather," and "Innate Five-Element Spiritual Root"...

Forget finding such things—he had never even heard of them. They had clearly vanished from countless planes long ago.

These are... far too distant. Ning Chuan smiled bitterly to himself, suppressing the shock in his heart as he adjusted his search criteria.

Filter: pill formulas whose required medicinal ingredients are relatively common, low-grade, mild in nature, and suitable for low-level cultivators to strengthen their foundations, replenish their vitality, and increase Soul Power, spiritual power, or mental strength.

The command was issued, and the stream of information in his mind rapidly changed. Large numbers of brilliant yet unattainable pill formulas dimmed, leaving behind only a few dozen relatively "plain" options.

Even so, the "common" herbs required by these formulas would mostly be costly Soul Master resources on the Douluo Continent.

Ning Chuan examined them one by one.

"Soul-Condensing Pill: Condenses Soul Power and slightly accelerates cultivation. Main ingredients: Soul-Condensing Grass, Energy-Gathering Flower... supplementary ingredients: powdered spine bones of ten-year Soul Beasts..."

"Body-Tempering Paste: Tempers the flesh and strengthens the body. Main ingredients: Iron-Bone Vine, Blood Ganoderma... must be blended with the essence blood of a hundred-year Soul Beast..."

"Mind-Clearing Powder: Calms the mind and focuses the spirit, assisting mental-strength cultivation. Main ingredients: Mind-Calming Lotus, Spirit-Calming Leaf..."

These pill formulas were indeed relatively basic, but every main or supplementary ingredient was either an herb nourished by Soul Power or material related to Soul Beasts. They were impossible to find in a place like Holy Soul Village.

Even if he went to Nuoding City to buy them, the price would be far beyond what he could afford right now.

Those forty Gold Soul Coins might seem like a lot, but in the world of Soul Masters, they probably could not even buy a decent batch of medicinal ingredients.

Isn't there anything more... commoner-friendly? Ning Chuan continued flipping through the records unwillingly.

Just as he was about to give up and seek another method, a pill formula listed at the very end of the "strengthening foundations and replenishing vitality" category, marked "Ancient Method · Incomplete," caught his attention.

"Foundation Establishment Pill (Incomplete Ancient Formula)"

The name of the pill formula was plain and unremarkable, even somewhat outdated.

The description below was equally simple: "A foundational pill formula from a sect of Qi Refiners in a low-magic plane. Mild in nature, suitable for mortals without cultivation to cleanse their essence and marrow, solidify their foundations, nourish innate qi, and lay a firm foundation for future cultivation. It may also be used by low-level cultivators to stabilize their Dao foundation."

"Main ingredients: hundred-year Polygonatum, hundred-year Poria, hundred-year Fo-Ti."

"Supplementary ingredients: Rootless Water, Morning Dewdrop, Century-Old Warm Jade Powder (trace amount)."

"Refinement: Must be slowly refined over a gentle flame, undergoing Nine-Steaming Nine-Sun-Drying to remove impurities and preserve the essence. Blend the medicinal properties into one, forming a round pill, earthy yellow in color, sweet with a slight bitterness."

"Effect: Gradually improves the body, clears the meridians, and slightly increases one's perception of and affinity with the energy of heaven and earth. Cannot directly increase cultivation."

"Note: Because the required herbs are old but low-grade, while the refinement process is complicated, time-consuming, and slow to show results, this formula was long ago replaced by many fast-acting pills and has nearly been lost."

The moment Ning Chuan saw this pill formula, his eyes lit up!

This was it!

It was practically tailor-made for him—especially for his younger sister, Ning Xiaohe!

Its medicinal nature was extremely mild and suitable for mortals with no cultivation whatsoever!

Wasn't that perfect for Xiao He, who had no innate Soul Power?

Cleansing the essence and marrow, solidifying the foundation, improving the physique, increasing one's perception of and affinity with the energy of heaven and earth...

Every one of those effects directly addressed the root cause of having no innate Soul Power: the barrier between the body and the energy of heaven and earth!

Although it could not directly produce Soul Power, it would undoubtedly lay an incomparably solid foundation!

It was like transforming a barren patch of land into fertile soil suitable for planting!

Once her foundation improved and her perception of energy increased, she might not lack the possibility of developing Soul Power in the future!

Even if she ultimately still could not cultivate, the effects of strengthening her body and extending her lifespan would be more than worthwhile!

Moreover, this pill would greatly benefit him as well!

Although he already possessed Soul Power, he was still fundamentally an ordinary farm child from Holy Soul Village. His foundation could hardly be considered solid.

This Foundation Establishment Pill could stabilize his foundation and prepare him to absorb higher-age Soul Rings and break through to greater realms in the future!

More importantly, its main ingredients!

Century-Old Polygonatum, Century-Old Poria, Century-Old Fo-Ti!

Among the countless spiritual materials recorded in Ten Thousand Herb Appraisal, these herbs truly belonged to the lowest-grade, most "ordinary" category.

They did not depend on an environment rich in Soul Power to grow. Instead, they absorbed the essence of the earth and the spiritual energy of the sun and moon. Under the rules of the Douluo Continent, they could absolutely exist!

Holy Soul Village backed onto the mountains, and the back mountain was rarely visited. Finding wild hundred-year medicinal herbs was not entirely hopeless!

Even if he could not find them in the village, the mountain ranges outside Nuoding City were far more extensive, offering better opportunities!

As for the supplementary ingredients, Rootless Water, which was rainwater, and Morning Dewdrop would be easy enough to obtain.

Only the Century-Old Warm Jade Powder was somewhat troublesome, but since only a trace amount was needed, perhaps he could find a substitute, or... search through the Garbage Station?

"Station," Ning Chuan asked, suppressing his excitement. "Analyze the component properties of the 'Century-Old Warm Jade Powder' in the Foundation Establishment Pill formula. Search the platform's current materials and past recycling records for substitutes with similar properties."

"Analyzing..."

"Century-Old Warm Jade Powder: Properties: warm in nature, pure in quality, contains weak earth-element energy and stable energy. Used to harmonize, nourish, and guide medicinal properties."

"Searching..."

"Search complete. Similar substitute materials found:

"1. Fragmented Earth Crystal Powder (Quality: ordinary). Properties: a pure earth-element energy crystal, stable and mild in nature. Its energy intensity is slightly higher than Warm Jade Powder and must be used only in trace amounts. Usability: high."

"2. Zerg Chitin Powder (after high dilution). Properties: contains biological activity and stable chitin. Requires special processing to remove its violent properties while retaining its stabilizing and harmonizing characteristics. Usability: moderate (requires additional processing and carries slight risk)."

"Recommended option: the first."

Excellent! Ning Chuan rejoiced inwardly.

He still had plenty of Earth Crystal Powder in storage. It could completely replace the Century-Old Warm Jade Powder!

The greatest material problem had been solved!

Now, only the main ingredients remained: Century-Old Polygonatum, Century-Old Poria, and Century-Old Fo-Ti.

They had to be wild, pure in medicinal potency, and preferably contain Earth-Origin Qi... He would need to search for them in the mountains himself.

A plan swiftly formed in Ning Chuan's mind.

He exited the Garbage Station, and his consciousness returned to his body.

Outside the window, the sky was already beginning to brighten.

Ning Chuan silently got up, changed into a neat set of old clothes, and tucked the old firewood cleaver his father had given him for protection into his waistband.

He pushed open the door, and the cool morning air rushed over him.

His mother, Liu Lan, was already awake and busy beside the stove, preparing breakfast for the family.

"Mom, I'm up." Ning Chuan walked over.

"You're up so early today?" Liu Lan looked surprised. Normally, she always had to wake her son.

"I couldn't sleep. I thought I'd take advantage of the cool morning to walk around the back mountain and see if I can gather some firewood or... dig up some wild vegetables." Ning Chuan spoke casually, doing his best to make his tone sound natural.

"The back mountain again?" Worry appeared on Liu Lan's face as she remembered the large pit her husband had mentioned a few days ago. "Didn't your father say the back mountain wasn't peaceful? He told you not to go."

"It's fine, Mom. I won't go near the mountain hollow. I'll just wander around nearby and check whether any of the traps we set before caught rabbits or something." Ning Chuan had long prepared his excuse. "Besides, it's already daylight. Nothing will happen."

Liu Lan looked at her son. Seeing that he truly seemed energetic, she considered it for a moment before nodding. "All right, then. Don't go too far, and come back early for breakfast."

"Okay, I know." Ning Chuan answered, picking up a small wicker basket and a little medicinal hoe from the corner.

The family normally used them to dig up ordinary herbs in exchange for a little pocket money.

As he walked out of the courtyard, Holy Soul Village was still shrouded in tranquil morning mist.

Ning Chuan took a deep breath and looked toward the rolling mountain range behind the village, its dark green-black outline emerging beneath the dawn light.

The Three Main Herbs for the Foundation Establishment Pill—his hope lay within those mountains.