Geng Metal Essence

Elder Han: "..."

Nothing had gone his way lately. He had been unbelievably unlucky today. Had he offended the Grand Duke of Jupiter?

He could not see through Jiang Ming's cultivation, but he had witnessed Jiang Ming's strength. That only made Jiang Ming seem even more mysterious in his eyes.

With great reluctance, Elder Han took a scroll of beast-hide parchment from his Sea of Bitterness. The thin booklet looked to have only seven or eight pages, roughly the size of a standard sixteen-page book.

"Hand it over. I'm only taking a look, not stealing your lousy book. What are you afraid of? We're friends."

Jiang Ming reached out and snatched it away, giving Elder Han a disdainful look as he spoke irritably.

"Friends? Friends my ass! When did I become friends with this monk? Why don't I know about it?"

Elder Han wore a baffled expression, starting to question his life.

"Alright, go pick your Nine-Leaf Phoenix Divine Herb. Are you waiting for more demons and monsters to come and fight you for it?

"You're already so old, yet your state of mind is truly terrible. You keep getting distracted at every turn. More importantly, you aren't generous enough. You're far too petty.

"Do you want me to guard your path? This humble monk pinched a flower and smiled, then made a calculation with my fingers. I have a feeling it won't be easy for you to successfully harvest that spirit herb."

Jiang Ming casually flipped through the beast-hide book in his hand, taking the opportunity to mock Elder Han a few times before kindly making the suggestion.

Elder Han had risked his life to obtain this thing from some ruins twenty years ago, and three of his friends had died because of it.

Calling me petty? If you're so generous, take out your treasures and let me have a look.

Elder Han grumbled inwardly, but he did not dare say it aloud. As for the latter half of Jiang Ming's words, he did not believe a single word. Compared to the dangers here, he felt Jiang Ming was far more dangerous.

He had harvested herbs here many times. The most dangerous creatures had been the Four-Winged Centipedes and their descendants, the Two-Winged Centipedes. All of them had just been killed by those Rogue Cultivators.

Then, taking advantage of the opportunity, he had struck and killed the remaining Rogue Cultivators, leaving behind three injured ones whose lives he had been about to reap.

Then this bald monk before him had ruined everything.

Everything had originally been going smoothly, but it had suddenly turned into a mess.

"Then go on. I'll sit here and read. Don't worry, I won't leave with your lousy book. Compared to your book, I value you more.

"As the saying goes, the Buddha saves those with affinity. From the moment you and I met, it was destined that I would guide you to the Western Paradise. Someone with spiritual roots like you would be wasting them if you never visited Mount Sumeru."

Jiang Ming sat down where he was, placed the beast-hide book on his knees, and spoke with a solemn, dignified expression.

Elder Han: "..."

Why did those words sound so strange? He just could not remember what was strange about them.

Before he could think it through, Elder Han saw Jiang Ming sitting there reading and actually breathed a sigh of relief.

If the beast-hide book was lost, then so be it. He would treat it as spending money to avert disaster, as though he had fed it to a dog.

But the Nine-Leaf Phoenix Divine Herb concerned whether he could prolong his life.

With that herb, he would only be two ingredients short of refining a Longevity Elixir.

Back then, he had obtained two beast-hide books. The other recorded several ancient prescriptions, including one for refining a longevity medicine.

The only regret was that the Nine-Leaf Phoenix Divine Herb was still somewhat insufficient as an ingredient for the pill formula.

The herb's medicinal potency was actually nowhere near as impressive as its name suggested. It could not compare at all to the sacred medicines atop the holy mountain in the Desolate Forbidden Land.

Unfortunately, the Desolate Forbidden Land was impossible to enter. Since ancient times, emperors of the Central Province Dynasty and leaders of great sects had all wanted to pick its fruits to extend their lives, yet none had ever returned after entering.

Forget it. There was no point thinking about such unrealistic things.

For now, he needed to obtain the Nine-Leaf Phoenix Divine Herb as quickly as possible, then prepare to gather the other two herbs.

In fact, he had already found the whereabouts of one of those herbs. It was in the hands of one of his friends. To obtain it, he would probably have to pay a price in exchange.

Elder Han glanced at Jiang Ming again. The monk was truly sitting on the ground, studying that book describing Dao Patterns.

His gaze flickered slightly, and he sighed inwardly. He was not confident he could kill this man in a sneak attack, and he might even die horribly instead. Since he could not defeat him, he could only take things one step at a time.

A faint green light flickered as twelve Greenwood Swords circled Elder Han's body. He carefully headed deeper into Fallen Phoenix Ridge. From afar, he could already see the Nine-Leaf Phoenix Divine Herb, and his heart burned with excitement.

Of course, he was an old hand. Cunning and treachery were second nature to him; even his eyelashes were hollow. He was a true old fox. He knew clearly that the more he wanted the Nine-Leaf Phoenix Divine Herb, the more cautious he needed to be.

Meanwhile, Jiang Ming really was simply reading the beast-hide book. The old bastard was, after all, an established Life Spring Realm cultivator. He had more good things on him than even Jiang Ming's master. His master was far too honest—or perhaps too rigid. How could he compare to the scheming and vicious Elder Han, whose collection was so abundant?

In a sense, Dao Patterns were the insights that cultivators of earlier generations had gained from themselves, heaven and earth, nature, and all things in the world. They had transformed those insights into something that could be learned, engraved them, and passed them down generation after generation as a form of inheritance.

The copying of Dao Patterns could not only help cultivators understand and comprehend various Dao laws. More importantly, Dao Patterns involved stealing from heaven and replacing the sun, borrowing the power of heaven and earth to unleash might far beyond a cultivator's own strength.

That was right. Jiang Ming was talking about Formation Patterns.

This was a foundational text on Formation Patterns left behind by the ancients. It was just right for Jiang Ming to study, allowing him to integrate the basic Dao Patterns he had mastered with the Dao Patterns of this world.

There were also some annotations from Elder Han. "Heh, this old fellow isn't very good at learning himself, yet he scribbled nonsense everywhere. This part is clearly wrong."

Jiang Ming had entered Smoke Glow Grotto-Heaven at thirteen. It had taken him one year to reach Foundation Establishment, and he had cultivated for seven years. In this small place, his talent already placed him among geniuses, but across the entire Eastern Wasteland, he was nothing special.

Not to mention anything else, among the six great Grotto-Heavens and Blessed Lands of Yan Kingdom—

Spirit Ruins Grotto-Heaven had a girl named Weiwei. She was a true prodigy.

However, Jiang Ming possessed the knowledge of his past life. He had always known a little about Formation Patterns, talismans, and artifact refining.

After all, he had once been Shushan's most talented senior disciple, a sword immortal who had only descended the mountain after reaching the Mahayana Stage.

Of course, Jiang Ming also kept an eye on Elder Han. Near the Nine-Leaf Phoenix Divine Herb was a golden centipede, though it appeared to have been injured, its entire body blackened by scorching.

In other words, Elder Han would be in danger, but the danger would not be too great. If Jiang Ming remembered correctly, in the original plot, the old fellow had successfully harvested the Nine-Leaf Phoenix Divine Herb. When he had later prepared to refine Ye Fan into a pill, he had even kindly shown Ye Fan his collection.

"Hiss!"

Sure enough, the Two-Winged Golden Centipede was only palm-sized. It had been hiding in a crack between the rocks, sleeping as it healed its wounds. The Nine-Leaf Phoenix Divine Herb had not yet matured, and it was the key to this creature's transformation into a Four-Winged Golden Centipede.

Though it had only two wings, it possessed the strength of the Life Spring Realm. The two Four-Winged Black Centipedes that had once lived in Fallen Phoenix Ridge had both been its underlings.

The Insect Race had once been known as Gu Insects and placed even greater importance on bloodline suppression. The two Four-Winged Centipedes here, dozens of Two-Winged Centipedes, and countless Gray Centipedes were all its underlings.

Elder Han's approach naturally woke the Two-Winged Golden Centipede. Like a streak of golden light, it shot toward the back of Elder Han's head.

But in the next instant, it was caught in a hand flowing with golden divine light.

"See, Old Han? I didn't lie to you. If I hadn't been here, you would've been in trouble just now."

The one who had acted was Jiang Ming. Using Buddhailand in the Palm, he had directly captured the Two-Winged Golden Centipede, which was on the verge of advancing to the level of a Divine Bridge cultivator.

Venomous insects were all good for refining medicine or serving as medicinal catalysts. This Two-Winged Golden Centipede was even more valuable, especially since Jiang Ming had spotted a trace of Geng Metal Essence within it.

That was exactly what Jiang Ming needed. He could use it to refine his Life-Bound Sword and help it transform into a Spirit Artifact sooner.

A flash of radiance passed through Jiang Ming's hand, and he extracted that wisp of Geng Metal Essence.

"I didn't need your help. I could have handled a Two-Winged Centipede myself."

Cold sweat drenched Elder Han's back again. How had this fellow gotten so close to him? He was far too fast. If Jiang Ming had attacked from behind, wouldn't that mean he could not have avoided it? Would he already be dead by now?

"You old man really can't tell good intentions from bad ones. Amitabha Buddha. You may possess spiritual roots, but illusion has blinded your eyes.

"You must understand: Bodhi was never a tree, nor was the bright mirror a stand. Originally, there was nothing at all. Where could dust arise?

"I advise you to cast aside your obsessions soon. Put down your butcher's blade and become a Buddha on the spot. I will guide you to the Western Paradise."

Jiang Ming looked at the old man and uttered a Buddhist invocation. A golden halo of Buddhist light appeared behind his head, and he looked so solemn and dignified that he resembled a Buddhist son more than the Buddhist sons of Mount Sumeru.

"You make it sound so nice, yet you still stole my medicinal catalyst. Why don't you let go of it?"

Elder Han looked at the half-dead Two-Winged Golden Centipede in Jiang Ming's hand. Though he lacked the ability to see the trace of Geng Metal Essence within the golden centipede, his eyesight and experience told him it was a good thing.

"Take it. This Golden Centipede does indeed complement the medicinal effects of the Nine-Leaf Phoenix Divine Herb. The two can support each other. You intend to refine a demon beast pill, don't you? Then this Golden Centipede is an excellent medicinal catalyst. It can neutralize some of the overbearing fiery toxicity in the Nine-Leaf Phoenix Divine Herb."

Jiang Ming casually tossed the Golden Centipede to Elder Han. He had already taken what he wanted, and he had no interest in the rest.

The Nine-Leaf Phoenix Divine Herb was decent enough and could help him break through, but with that wisp of Geng Metal Essence, he could more or less achieve a breakthrough anyway.

Besides, one had to cast a long line to catch a big fish. Once Ye Fan killed this old man, Jiang Ming, as his close friend, would definitely receive feedback from the dog system.

Elder Han was one of his test subjects.

If it worked, Jiang Ming would have many friends in the future.

Did they think he would not go into the life forbidden zones to make friends?

Elder Han jumped in fright. The Golden Centipede was still alive! He fumbled in panic and even brought out the Azure Wood Ruler for defense.

"Clang!"

The Golden Centipede collided with the Azure Wood Ruler, scattering sparks everywhere. It fell to the ground unharmed and began wriggling away.

After spending some effort, Elder Han finally killed the centipede and placed it inside a jade box, carefully putting it away.

Even as a Life Spring cultivator, his Sea of Bitterness could not store very many things.

Sea of Bitterness cultivators.

Being able to casually store objects in one's Sea of Bitterness was something only overbearing physiques such as the Desolate Ancient Sacred Body and the Heavenly Tyrant Body could accomplish. Their Sea of Bitterness Life Wheel contained vast life essence, and their Sea of Bitterness was as sturdy as divine iron. Only then could they possess such ability.