Ice Soul Essence

Red Cloud calculated in his heart and learned the origins of this spiritual root. It was a mid-grade Acquired Spiritual Root.

Spiritual roots were divided into innate and acquired. Whether innate or acquired, their grades were the same: low-grade, mid-grade, high-grade, and supreme-grade, from lowest to highest.

Innate Spiritual Roots had fixed numbers. Under the Heavenly Dao, there could be at most ten supreme-grade Innate Spiritual Roots, thirty-six high-grade Innate Spiritual Roots, fifty-four mid-grade Innate Spiritual Roots, and seventy-two low-grade Innate Spiritual Roots.

Innate Spiritual Roots were even rarer than Innate Spiritual Treasures. In the vast Primordial World, there were only one hundred seventy-two Innate Spiritual Roots and two hundred twenty-five Innate Spiritual Treasures in total.

If Innate Spiritual Treasures could only benefit one person, then Innate Spiritual Roots could benefit an entire faction.

Unlike Acquired Spiritual Roots, every Innate Spiritual Root was a purifier for the world. It could absorb chaotic qi, transform it into innate spiritual qi, and release it.

Even the most barren land could gradually be transformed into a blessed land if an Innate Spiritual Root were planted there.

Even in an age devoid of spiritual laws, when the path of immortality had been severed, one could still cultivate normally with an Innate Spiritual Root.

Furthermore, like Innate Spiritual Treasures, Innate Spiritual Roots contained a strand of Innate Imperishable Spiritual Light. Even if they were shattered into pieces, they could slowly recover.

However, the greater the damage, the longer the recovery time. It was the same as with Innate Spiritual Treasures.

Acquired Spiritual Roots were different. Once an Acquired Spiritual Root was destroyed, it was gone for good and could not be restored.

Red Cloud looked at this mid-grade Acquired Spiritual Root, called a Cold Jade Tree, upon which hung eight or nine Cold Jade Fruits.

[Cold Jade Tree]: Mid-grade Acquired Spiritual Root. It flowers once every hundred years, bears fruit after another hundred years, and matures after another hundred years. It takes a total of three hundred years to yield thirty-nine Cold Jade Fruits.

Compared to Innate Spiritual Roots, whose fruits often took thousands or even tens of thousands of years to mature, Acquired Spiritual Roots matured much faster.

Most Acquired Spiritual Roots took no more than a thousand years for their fruits to mature, with three to five hundred years being the norm.

With spiritual roots, one reaped what one sowed. The longer they took to mature, the better their effects.

Cold Jade Fruits matured in only three hundred years, so their effects naturally could not be considered exceptional. They could increase one's cultivation by a thousand years, and the more compatible one's cultivation technique was, the higher the conversion rate.

The effects of Acquired Spiritual Roots varied from person to person, but anyone who ate the fruits of an Innate Spiritual Root received the same benefits.

The spiritual fruits of Innate Spiritual Roots contained a trace of innate origin qi. Even if a mortal accidentally stole and ate one, they would not explode and die from being unable to withstand its power.

The spiritual fruits of Acquired Spiritual Roots, on the other hand, were different. If one could not endure them, they would instantly be reduced to ashes.

Looking at the Cold Jade Tree before him, a trace of disappointment flashed through Red Cloud's eyes. He had thought it was some kind of spiritual treasure!

Thinking about it, there was no innate formation protecting this cold pool, which had already ruled out the possibility of it being an innate object.

With a casual gesture, Red Cloud drew the Cold Jade Tree into his hand, then flipped his palm and stored it inside his Heaven in a Jar world.

Heaven in a Jar: One of the Earthly Fiend Divine Powers. It could open up a space or cave abode, contain Mount Sumeru within a mustard seed, and even hold a universe within one's sleeve or heaven and earth in one's palm.

Over the years, all the treasures Red Cloud had found had been stored in his Heaven in a Jar world. Immortal herbs and spiritual minerals filled the place, and it had already formed a small world.

Afterward, Red Cloud searched the bottom of the cold pool again and found a material: Ice Soul Essence.

Ice Soul Essence was a piece of ice-aspected Black Iron. If forged into a magical treasure, it would absolutely suppress all things of extreme yang.

"Not bad, not bad!!"

Red Cloud nodded in satisfaction. Top-grade materials like this were hard to come by even in the Primordial World, and it had already developed all kinds of wondrous properties.

There was nothing left at the bottom of the cold pool. Without the Cold Jade Tree suppressing it, the pool's temperature was beginning to rise.

Red Cloud flew out of the cold pool with the Ice Soul Essence and used Spitting Transformation, one of the Earthly Fiend Divine Powers, on it.

Spitting Transformation: Blowing out a breath of immortal qi to transform an object without changing its essential nature.

A stream of immortal qi fell onto the Ice Soul Essence, which instantly transformed into a divine bow.

The bow was ice-blue and bore dragon patterns. Both ends were shaped like dragon heads, each spitting out a blue thread of ice.

Looking at the ice-blue divine bow in his hand, Red Cloud casually drew it, condensing an ice-blue frost arrow.

Then Red Cloud released his fingers, and the frost arrow shot forth, transforming into an ice dragon that roared as it flew.

With a thunderous explosion, the frost arrow struck the cold pool below, and the splashing water instantly froze into a glacier.

"Ah, looks like I overdid it."

Looking at the ice pillar that seemed to have risen from the depths of the earth, Red Cloud froze for a moment before rapidly fleeing into the sky.

The ice pillar followed close behind, like an ice dragon roaring after Red Cloud as he shot into the heavens at top speed.

At a certain moment, Red Cloud flew beyond the cold pool's range and reached an altitude of ten thousand meters in the blink of an eye.

Then, the cold pool spanning a hundred meters suddenly erupted, and an ice pillar shot thousands of meters into the clouds.

The ice pillar then exploded with a thunderous crash. Chunks of shattered ice and stone of varying sizes flew in every direction and crashed down.

Ice stones rained across more than a dozen miles, smashing the grass and trees wherever they fell into a battered mess.

"Good thing there aren't any living creatures nearby."

Red Cloud secretly sighed in relief. If lives had been lost because of his actions, he had no idea how much karmic debt he would have to bear.

Just as Red Cloud was thinking this, a deep, furious roar suddenly resounded through the clouds.

Red Cloud looked toward the sound and saw the earth begin to churn as an earth-yellow Qilin emerged from underground.

The moment he saw the Earth Qilin, Red Cloud's expression darkened. He had actually alerted the Qilin Clan, the overlords of the land.

This was the era when the Three Clans divided the Primordial World between themselves. The Dragon Clan occupied the Four Seas, as well as the rivers, lakes, and other waters of the Primordial World, making them the rulers of the waters. The Phoenix Clan occupied the Undying Volcano in the south and the skies of the Primordial World, making them the rulers of the heavens. The Qilin Clan occupied the mountains and lands of the Primordial World, making them the rulers of the earth.

Earth Qilins were a branch of the Qilin Clan, beloved by the Heavenly Dao and blessed with the rare innate divine ability to travel through Earth Veins.

"The aura of the Golden Immortal Realm!"

Red Cloud sensed the Earth Qilin's aura. Its cultivation had already reached the Mid-Stage Golden Immortal.

As expected of a race favored by the Heavenly Dao, the Qilin Clan's starting point at birth, cultivation speed, innate divine powers, and more were beyond the comparison of other races.

"Daoist, who are you? Why have you caused such a disturbance within my clan's territory?"

"I don't care who you are. Since you've caused trouble in my clan's territory, come with me and receive your punishment!"

The Earth Qilin transformed into a Primordial Dao Body, taking the form of a domineering middle-aged man. His gaze locked onto Red Cloud, and with a wave of his hand, he sent the power of the earth crashing toward him.

"Perfect. I'll use you to test my strength!"

Red Cloud looked at the Ice Soul Divine Bow formed from the Ice Soul Essence in his hand. The ice dragons at both ends of the bow seemed to come alive, letting out dragon roars that shook the soul.

Upon hearing that dragon roar, the Earth Qilin's expression changed repeatedly. He shouted furiously, "So you're from the Dragon Clan!"

The Earth Qilin added more force to his attack, and the power of the earth transformed into a Qilin that came down to suppress Red Cloud.

Seeing this, Red Cloud drew the bowstring, and the Ice Soul Divine Bow immediately condensed a frost arrow.

The frost arrow shot out like lightning, transforming into an ice dragon that roared as it charged forth. The ice dragon grew larger and larger, actually swallowing the Earth Qilin formed from the power of the earth in a single bite.

The next instant, the ice dragon released endless chill. The Earth Qilin formed from the power of the earth was swallowed and instantly frozen in ice, transparent as amber.