These pieces of stone gall had been obtained in Kunlun, and now they were proving extremely useful.
Golden and purple stone gall were relatively hard to find, but ordinary stone gall was much easier to come by.
The Source Heaven Book recorded a method for cultivating the Source Heaven Divine Eye, and dripping stone gall juice into the eyes could accelerate its cultivation.
Once mastered, the Source Heaven Divine Eye could directly pierce the mysteries of stone. Not only that, it also granted the ability to see through things!
Jiang Zhu mainly valued the first function. As for seeing through things, that was something his friend wanted.
He split open the purple stone gall and some ordinary pieces, extracted their juice, and dripped it into his eyes while circulating the cultivation method recorded in the Source Heaven Book. Before long, a hint of purple surfaced in his eyes.
Countless Dao patterns gathered within his eyes, intricate yet orderly. The purple Dao patterns continuously absorbed the energy contained in the stone gall.
As the purple divine light steadily increased, his eyes became like purple moons, illuminating the world.
The Source Heaven Divine Eye was complete!
Jiang Zhu carefully examined the sensation and discovered that the world before him remained exactly the same, without any changes.
"Did something go wrong with my cultivation?"
He tried activating the Source Heaven Divine Eye's ability to see through things. Suddenly, the scene before him changed. Everything inside the cave abode became transparent, and he could clearly see the lush mountain forests outside.
He could even see through a mountain peak to the scenery behind it.
"Hmm... is it because my eyes were already True Dragon Eyes, so they weren't strengthened any further and only gained the ability to see through things?"
After confirming that he had mastered the Source Heaven Divine Eye, Jiang Zhu breathed a sigh of relief. He had thought his cultivation had gone off the rails. Although he could easily review his past memories ever since he began cultivating and knew which stone contained the seed of the Kirin Immortal Medicine.
Still, this concerned his future path of cultivation, and there was no room for error. Having the Source Heaven Divine Eye offered a better safeguard.
Since ancient times, the Sacred City had been the absolute center of the Northern Region of the Eastern Wilderness.
Compared to the rest of the Northern Region, the oasis where the Sacred City stood was the most peaceful. The major holy lands, great clans, and immortal dynasties all owned businesses here, and members of the older generation often remained stationed here for long periods.
As a result, the entire oasis enjoyed peace. Attacking and flying were forbidden within the city, so even cultivators had to walk on the ground like mortals.
The Sacred City was unimaginably ancient, and no one knew its origins. This majestic city had already existed since the earliest written records!
Legend had it that in an age of unfathomable antiquity, it had floated in the sky. Only during the Desolate Ancient Era had it fallen to the ground, for reasons unknown.
This ancient city was exceptionally imposing. Its walls stretched endlessly, encircling it like an azure dragon. The bricks used to build them resembled dragon scales, gleaming with a cold metallic luster.
The magnificent gate tower rose a hundred meters high, grand and imposing. Seen from afar, the enormous ancient city exerted a suffocating sense of pressure.
Jiang Zhu walked into the Sacred City. His appearance had changed drastically, and his body bore many true dragon features, with two small, exquisite true dragon horns protruding from his head.
His black hair hung loose, an ink-dark scale rested between his brows, and his figure was slender and well-proportioned. Dense dragon aura circulated around him.
After all, he was going to cut out the Kirin Immortal Medicine, so adopting an alternate identity was quite necessary. Jiang Zhu used the True Dragon Transformation, which was far more convenient than the Great Art of Changing Heaven and Earth recorded in the Source Heaven Book.
The Sacred City was bustling beyond measure, filled with jade palaces and splendid towers. Its streets were broad, and stone-gambling workshops, the Immortal Pavilion, Fengyue Palace, Saint Lord Tower, and Demon King Pavilion offered everything one could want. Extravagance abounded, with mortals and cultivators mingling together.
"Cutting out the Kirin Immortal Medicine comes first. Everything else can wait. Then I'll head to the Yaoguang Stone Workshop first!"
There were relatively few people inside the Yaoguang Stone Workshop, and it was less lively than the streets outside. Trees provided shade, bamboo groves stretched in clusters, and the surroundings were serene and quiet.
Every so often, cultivators selected stones, gathering in twos and threes to discuss them, or playing the role of onlookers and commenting on others.
Jiang Zhu passed through this area and headed straight for the Heaven-Class Stone Garden.
All the major holy lands' stone workshops had Heaven-Class Stone Gardens, where every stone was extraordinarily expensive.
Ordinarily, few people entered a Heaven-Class Stone Garden to gamble lavishly. Some elders nearing the end of their lifespans, however, would try their luck inside, hoping to cut out a treasure that could prolong their lives.
The Yaoguang Stone Workshop's Heaven-Class Stone Garden was planted with a peculiar bamboo called Blood-Tear Jade Bamboo. Its stalks were flawless white, and its leaves blood-red. When a gentle breeze passed through, they rustled and turned like falling tears of blood.
The dense bamboo grove even obscured the sky, yet there was nothing sinister about it, only an exceptionally gentle aura.
Just as Jiang Zhu was about to enter the Heaven-Class Stone Garden, someone from the Yaoguang Holy Land blocked his way.
"The Heaven-Class Stone Garden is not open to everyone. Please present sufficient source or proof of your identity."
Upon hearing this, Jiang Zhu took out the divine source granules he had collected from the Two-Qi Celestial River at the entrance to Purple Mountain.
Divine source was extremely valuable, and what he took out was worth tens of thousands of jin of ordinary source.
"Please make yourself at home."
After proving his wealth, he was allowed through. After all, the stones in the Heaven-Class Stone Garden were valuable, so visitors had to be screened to avoid spoiling the honored guests' enjoyment.
"Someone's entered the Heaven-Class Stone Garden!"
"Are they going to cut open a Heaven-Class source stone?"
The cultivators outside the Heaven-Class section immediately began discussing it. There was never a shortage of spectators anywhere, and in this world, those spectators came from every cultivation realm.
Jiang Zhu ignored the noise outside and walked straight into the Heaven-Class Stone Garden.
There were few people in the garden at the moment, only a handful of elders selecting stones.
Jiang Zhu made a circuit of the stone garden and successfully found the stone that sealed the seed of the Kirin Immortal Medicine.
This stone was famous. Rumor held that it could absorb the spiritual vitality of heaven and earth and the essence of the sun and moon on its own. However, a Source Arts Grandmaster had shaken his head and rejected it after examining it, causing the price of the Demon Womb Stone to plummet repeatedly. Even now, no one had attempted to cut it open.
Purple light surged in Jiang Zhu's eyes. After confirming it several times, he bought the Demon Womb Stone.
The Demon Womb Stone cost a hundred and twenty thousand jin of pure source, consuming more than half of the divine source granules Jiang Zhu had obtained at the entrance to Purple Mountain in one stroke.
After accepting the source, the representative of the Yaoguang Holy Land smiled. "The Heaven-Class garden's rules require selected stones to be cut open on the spot. Please begin now, or have one of our veteran stonecutters do it for you."
The stone workshops of all the holy lands in the Sacred City had this rule. Perhaps thanks to the "tireless efforts" of several generations of Source Heavenly Masters, all sorts of fine treasures had been bought and taken away, leaving the major holy lands feeling they had suffered crushing losses.
Although the major holy lands raked in fortunes from stone gambling, watching someone else cut a fine treasure out of a stone in their own workshops was truly heartbreaking. Thus, the major holy lands had jointly established this rule.
They were only a step away from posting "Source Heavenly Masters and dogs prohibited" at their workshop entrances!
At this moment, the others in the Heaven-Class garden saw that Jiang Zhu was about to cut open the Demon Womb Stone and came over as well.
"Someone's actually going to cut open the Demon Womb Stone?"
"What's wrong with the Demon Womb Stone?"
"Fellow Daoist, you've never heard of the Demon Womb Stone? Let me tell you..."
The elders discussed it off to the side. Even the people from the Yaoguang Holy Land were curious about what could be cut out of the Demon Womb Stone.
Many were curious about just what this Demon Womb Stone, rejected by a Source Arts Grandmaster, could yield.
Jiang Zhu looked around with some regret. Why wasn't anyone betting against him and handing him source?
Before you continue