"The Wandering Souls have finally been used up, and the Mortal Ghost has indeed reached the absolute limit of soul nourishment, just as I expected. Next, it is time to change its body."
"Although the Medicine Spirit Ghost is a derivative type of Wood-Attribute Soul Body, it does not necessarily require wood-attribute aura during cultivation. A certain amount of medicinal fragrance will suffice. Of course, if there is no medicinal fragrance, the Spirit-Imitation Art from the True Exposition of the Ghost Path can also use some weak Soul Bodies to imitate medicinal fragrance and achieve the same purpose. But in terms of effect, it is far inferior to using medicinal herbs."
"However, I only have ten Spirit Stones on hand right now. That is not even enough to buy a single spirit herb..."
"Only when the aura of medicinal fragrance enters the Soul Body can it stir Ghost Qi, Yin Qi, and soul power into mutation, merging them with the medicinal fragrance to recast its soul and form a Medicine Spirit Ghost. This step of changing the body is the most crucial. If anything goes wrong, this Mortal Ghost will be ruined."
Hu Donghan frowned, pondering a solution.
Suddenly, inspiration flashed through Hu Donghan's mind. He slapped his hand and thought, That's right, how could I have forgotten! Counting the days, today is the beginning of the month, which is also when disciples receive their monthly stipends. With my Qi Refining First Layer cultivation, I can receive five Spirit Stones and two Lesser Qi-Nourishing Pills. Added to my ten Spirit Stones, it should be enough to exchange for a somewhat inferior spirit herb. Fortunately, the Medicine Spirit Ghost does not have particularly high requirements for spirit herbs in its early cultivation. Otherwise, this truly would have been difficult. As long as I complete the body-changing step, the subsequent solidification will only require enough Wandering Souls...
"However, I have been raising ghosts for three days straight and am truly exhausted. I should rest awhile before going."
With that in mind, Hu Donghan sat cross-legged on the bed, closed his eyes, and began meditating.
Once the Profound Yin Heart Method shifted to Yin, Hu Donghan had cultivated for only a few minutes before opening his eyes again in shock, sensing the state within his body with some disbelief.
"This... this is? Why has my cultivation speed with the Profound Yin Heart Method become more than twice as fast as before? Could this be the benefit the Mortal Ghost has brought me?"
"No! The Mortal Ghost is not assisting my cultivation at all right now. This is my own cultivation speed increasing! What is going on? Could it be..."
Hu Donghan closed his eyes again and mentally recited the Qi Refining Stage cultivation method of the Profound Yin Heart Method from beginning to end. Vaguely, he felt that his understanding of the Profound Yin Heart Method had become deeper than before. Some portions that had once seemed ambiguous and contradictory were now thoroughly understood; as for certain simpler portions, Hu Donghan even felt as though he had gained some new insights.
His deeper understanding of the cultivation method, along with those new insights, was the main reason his cultivation speed had increased!
"The True Exposition of the Ghost Path! It is the influence of the True Exposition of the Ghost Path! The Ghost Way arts expounded in its general outline have actually deepened and clarified my understanding of the Profound Yin Heart Method! A mere general outline can actually have such miraculous effects?" Hu Donghan verified every piece of information in his mind one by one and quickly found the root cause, his heart filled with endless amazement.
After calming his excited emotions once more, Hu Donghan continued cultivating the Profound Yin Heart Method.
About two hours later, Hu Donghan stopped cultivating. His spiritual power had fully recovered, and even his spirits were much improved.
"The cultivation speed of the Profound Yin Heart Method is probably twice what it was before. As for spiritual power recovery, it is more than three times faster than before. Beyond that, the purity of my spiritual power is also far greater than it was previously. A single general outline can bring such a terrifying improvement—it is truly unimaginable!" Hu Donghan stood up and stretched before thinking, For now, I should first go to the Outer Affairs Hall to collect this month's stipend, then find a way to exchange it for a spirit herb.
He opened the door and walked out. As he shut it behind him, Hu Donghan swept his eyes over it and saw that directly beneath the four words "Girl, save me" he had written, a little fox had been carved. Beneath that little fox was a small dagger.
At the sight of the little fox, tenderness flickered in Hu Donghan's eyes.
Sure enough, that girl had already come.
This little fox was Hu Meier's mark. Hu Donghan believed that throughout the entire Yin Soul Sect, the only person who would draw a fox beneath the words "Girl, save me" was Hu Meier. As for the small dagger beneath the fox, it was probably because of Hu Donghan's way of calling her "girl."
Ever since childhood, Hu Donghan had lived together with Hu Meier, so he naturally understood her character better than anyone.
Although Hu Meier, his child bride, had often "bullied" Hu Donghan since they were young, her concern for him had always been genuine. Now that Hu Donghan had called for Hu Meier's help, she had surely been keeping watch over everything around him at all times. Should Hu Donghan encounter any danger, Hu Meier would absolutely be the first to appear and protect him—just as Hu Donghan would protect Hu Meier.
After firmly shutting the door, Hu Donghan strode out of the outer disciples' courtyard.
He had not gone far when Hu Donghan sensed that someone seemed to be watching him. Turning his head, he swept his gaze around and discovered a figure furtively hiding away.
"That damned menial? Hmph!" Hu Donghan recognized the figure, sneered, and ignored it.
Before long, Hu Donghan arrived at the Outer Affairs Hall. He went to the "Monthly Stipend" area to collect his stipend, then left the Outer Affairs Hall without lingering. Standing outside, he was considering how to obtain a spirit herb when he suddenly saw six cultivators hurrying over from afar. Two of them were people Hu Donghan knew—Mu Zhengfeng and Wang Linshu!
Among the six, aside from Mu Zhengfeng and Wang Linshu, three wore green robes, with whips hanging from one side of their waists and iron plaques hanging from the other. They were actually law enforcement disciples! As for the last man, his clothes were not particularly luxurious and his appearance was merely ordinary, but the aura around him revealed his exceptional nature. He was at least a Foundation Establishment Late Stage Cultivator—he should be an inner sect disciple!
"Three Martial Uncles, that's him!"
Mu Zhengfeng spotted Hu Donghan from afar. His already narrow eyes squinted even smaller as he pointed at Hu Donghan and shouted excitedly, "There! Over there! That fellow is Hu Donghan!"
Hearing Mu Zhengfeng shout like that, the others all frowned and instinctively kept some distance from him. The three law enforcement disciples were especially so—they had come this time partly because someone had reported Hu Donghan for violating sect rules, and partly out of respect for that Foundation Establishment Late Stage Cultivator. Otherwise, why would the three of them have the time to make a special trip from the main peak to Overlapping Peaks just to trouble a Qi Refining First Layer cultivator? With that time, they would be better off cultivating behind closed doors than coming here!
(End of Chapter)
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