External Pill

"The way this realm practices Core Formation places the greatest emphasis on accumulating true essence, neglecting cultivation of the three origins. This method is inherently flawed. If I form a core, I must not follow it!"

"Still, when cultivators of this realm break through to Core Formation, they can condense a Golden Core from a single speck of supremely refined true essence. Although the resulting Golden Core is incomplete, they do genuinely advance, gaining several hundred years of lifespan out of thin air. This method is quick and convenient, and requires no consideration of temperament or spiritual attainment."

"As for the cultivation methods of the Zu Mountain World, they may be complete, but their requirements are also high. Besides, spiritual energy in the Mortal Realm is sparse to begin with. Unifying the three origins in one stroke is all but impossible. I can only proceed step by step."

"So, if I want to form a core and lay the groundwork for cultivating primordial qi in the future, I need to combine the strengths of both worlds."

Inside his temporary mountain cave abode, Lin Yun pondered silently.

"Using the mortal world's method of refining true essence to form a core, I can first refine origin qi to the utmost purity and concentration. At the same time, I'll visualize the Heavenly Treasury Divine Talisman, using it as the foundation and pure origin qi to imitate primordial qi. By cultivating the true through the false, I'll first form an internal origin qi pill."

"Then I'll cultivate the origin pill with the Nine-Turn Return-to-Elixir Method, using origin qi to nourish my vital essence and primordial spirit step by step. Refining the pill will also refine my qi. After three turns, the pill's qi will no longer leak, and naturally, neither will my true yang. Three turns lock in true yang, six turns unite spirit and qi, and nine turns return them to one, producing a genuine Golden Core that unifies the three origins. Then I can use the Golden Core to evolve primordial qi!"

"But with this method, there's no turning back once the core is formed. So I can't form my core immediately. I must first refine an external pill to practice and test whether there are any flaws in my deductions."

Lin Yun took out the jade bottle containing the sealed Qianyang five elements stellar qi and considered intently, "As innate astral qi, Qianyang five elements stellar qi is supremely pure and refined. It can serve perfectly as the true essence used to condense a Golden Core. Paired with five elements yin fiend, it will let me jointly refine astral and fiendish qi to evolve origin qi, using the art of external pills to simulate the core formation process I've devised."

After reviewing the process of jointly refining astral and fiendish qi once more in his mind, Lin Yun began refining the pill.

Unlike his previous pill refinements, Lin Yun did not intend to use a pill furnace this time. Instead, he would use the mysterious pass aperture as his furnace and refine the external pill within the profound aperture.

For qi-refining cultivators, the mysterious pass aperture was another furnace for gathering and refining qi besides the cinnabar field. It lay outside the body, yet shared a special connection with the cultivator's body and divine soul.

Lin Yun was not truly forming his core, so he neither needed nor could use his cinnabar field to refine the external pill. Refining it in the profound aperture therefore became his first choice.

He removed the Clearvoid Invisible Sword, the Taiyi Five-Smoke Gauze, the Supreme Goodness Pearl, and the other items from his profound aperture. Only once it was completely empty did Lin Yun place the Qianyang five elements stellar qi and five elements yin fiend inside.

Once the astral and fiendish qi entered the aperture, Lin Yun immediately visualized a pill furnace within it, enclosing both kinds of qi.

Following the connection between his profound aperture and cinnabar field, he transported true essence into the aperture. Then a nameless heart-fire rose within him, instantly igniting the true essence. It transformed into spirit flame and began firing the pill furnace.

Five days passed in a flash. Under the spirit flame's heat, the Qianyang five elements stellar qi and five elements yin fiend gradually merged until they were indistinguishable, becoming a mass of chaos.

Lin Yun sat cross-legged in his temporary cave abode, eyes closed as he rested his mind. Burning true essence for five days straight to refine the astral and fiendish qi had consumed an enormous amount of it.

Had his profound aperture not been constantly refining spiritual energy to replenish his true essence over those five days, even Lin Yun's abundant reserves might not have sustained such consumption.

Moreover, visualizing the Eight Trigrams Furnace was extremely taxing on his mind. Had Lin Yun not cultivated the Purple Mansion Manual and strengthened his divine soul, he would have given out long ago.

After recovering a little of his mental strength, Lin Yun resumed refining the external pill.

Within his purple mansion, a strand of his divine soul quietly manifested, taking the shape of a sharp axe. Following the connection between his purple mansion and profound aperture, it instantly cleaved into the chaotic mass of astral and fiendish qi.

Awakened by this touch of his divine soul, the astral and fiendish qi began separating into clear and turbid portions. Clear qi rose and turbid qi sank, as though heaven and earth were being created.

With a thought, Lin Yun immediately visualized the Six Heavenly Talismans between the clear and turbid qi. These Six Heavenly Talismans were the very heart of the He Sha Marvelous Book's method for cultivating innate five elements qi.

As the Six Heavenly Talismans took shape in his visualization, they immediately began instinctively drawing out the purest five elements essence qi from the clear and turbid qi. It gradually enveloped the Six Heavenly Talismans, forming a perfectly round pill the size of a grain of rice.

At this point, Lin Yun relaxed. Next, he needed to let this five elements origin pill nurture its own spirituality, then draw in a vast amount of spiritual energy from the outside world to complete the origin pill.

With some time to spare for the moment, Lin Yun contacted Xin Ruoyin through the Voice-and-Image Transmission Talisman.

"Ruoyin, how are the repairs to the Teleportation Array going?" Lin Yun asked, holding up the Jade Talisman.

Soon, Xin Ruoyin's gentle voice came from the Jade Talisman. There was a hint of weariness in it, but her delight was even harder to conceal. "Brother Lin, how are things going on your end? Xiao Mei and I have nearly finished repairing the Teleportation Array. It should be fully restored in three days at most."

"Thank you for all your hard work, Ruoyin. Things are going smoothly here, too. I'll also be finished in three days at most. Wait for me to return," Lin Yun said into the Jade Talisman.

"Mm, I'll wait for you. I need to keep working on the Teleportation Array. Goodbye, Brother Lin," Xin Ruoyin said happily.

Another day passed after he ended his conversation with Xin Ruoyin.

Han Li's voice came from the Jade Talisman used to contact him. "Senior Brother Lin, can you hear me?"

"Junior Brother Han, have you arrived? Did the journey go smoothly?" Lin Yun asked.

"Ah... don't even mention it. Yellow Maple Valley is now... ah..." Han Li sighed with a bitter chuckle, then continued, "Senior Brother Lin, I'm just outside the Spirit Stone Mine. Cultivators from the Ghost Spirit Sect and the Joyful Union Sect have occupied it. Also, I have someone with me. Can I bring him along?"

After considering this, Lin Yun said, "Yes. But I'm not beneath the Spirit Stone Mine right now, and I can't get away for the moment. My friend is there repairing the Teleportation Array, though. I can send you a map leading to it. Just go straight to her. I'll need at least three more days before I can come over."

Han Li gave a bitter chuckle at this. "Senior Brother Lin, I don't know your friend. Why don't I come find you instead?"

Lin Yun smiled. "It's fine. You'll understand when you get there. You can help her repair the Teleportation Array, too."

He thought that in the original timeline, Han Li had managed to repair the Teleportation Array himself by following the plans. With Xin Ruoyin there now, having him assist her should speed things up a little and spare her some of the strain.

After speaking, Lin Yun sent Han Li a map of the Hidden Passage leading to the Teleportation Array through the Voice-and-Image Transmission Talisman.

Seeing this, Han Li could only agree.

After sending Han Li the map, Lin Yun immediately informed Xin Ruoyin. "Ruoyin, my junior brother will be arriving soon. Have Xiao Mei go outside the array to meet him. There are two of them."

"Mm, Brother Lin, I understand. I'll have Xiao Mei go meet them right away," Xin Ruoyin said.

When Han Li followed the map to the entrance of the Underground Cavern housing the Teleportation Array, Xiao Mei happened to emerge from the Forward-Reverse Nine Palaces Array.

"Miss Xiao Mei!" Han Li exclaimed in surprise.

When he had purchased the Five Elements Reversal Formation from Xin Ruoyin, Xiao Mei had already been at her side. Naturally, he had met her before, which was precisely why he was surprised. "Then the person repairing the Teleportation Array is Fellow Daoist Xin? So she's Senior Brother Lin's friend. No wonder he said I'd understand once I arrived."

Xiao Mei was equally surprised to see Han Li. "So Senior Han is Young Master Lin's junior brother!"

After entering the Forward-Reverse Nine Palaces Array, Han Li saw Xin Ruoyin working on the Teleportation Array. "Fellow Daoist Xin."

Xin Ruoyin was also a little surprised to see Han Li. "I never expected Fellow Daoist Han to be Brother Lin's junior brother."

Han Li smiled. "Indeed. What a surprise."