There was no label on the jade bottle, nor did even a trace of medicinal fragrance seep out. Yet Qin Chen keenly sensed that the bottle's material was extraordinary-it could actually block probing divine sense.
"Interesting."
Qin Chen pulled out the stopper, and an extremely pure spiritual energy fluctuation, carrying even a hint of violence, instantly spread outward.
Inside the bottle lay a dark red pill the size of a longan fruit. Strange patterns covered its surface, pulsing faintly as though alive.
"This is..."
Qin Chen's pupils abruptly contracted.
"A Blood Fiend Nascent Soul Condensation Pill?!"
Qin Chen sucked in a cold breath, his eyes filled with shock.
The Blood Fiend Nascent Soul Condensation Pill was an extremely obscure and sinister pill.
Its main purpose was to help cultivators at Golden Core Paragon forcibly break through to the Nascent Soul stage!
Breaking through from the Golden Core stage to the Nascent Soul stage was an extremely dangerous process for cultivators. Not only did it require an enormous accumulation of spiritual energy, it also required comprehension of the laws of heaven and earth. The slightest misstep could cause cultivation deviation, or even shatter their Golden Core, ending both their lives and their paths of cultivation.
Yet this Blood Fiend Nascent Soul Condensation Pill could forcibly condense a Nascent Soul, greatly increasing the chances of a successful breakthrough.
But its price was also extremely steep.
Refining a Blood Fiend Nascent Soul Condensation Pill required extracting the blood essence and souls of large numbers of high-level demonic beasts, or even cultivators, and refining them into pure blood fiend power.
Although taking this pill allowed a forced breakthrough, the cultivator's Nascent Soul would be polluted by blood fiend power. Their temperament would change drastically, they would become bloodthirsty by nature, and they would never advance another step for the rest of their lives!
"This Liu Family cultivator actually carried such an evil pill with him?"
Qin Chen's brows knitted tightly.
This cultivator had only been at the late Golden Core stage, still some distance from Golden Core Paragon. Clearly, he had not prepared it for himself.
Could it... have been prepared for that Liu Family elder who's been stuck at Golden Core Paragon for years?
Qin Chen silently speculated.
"Too bad. It's mine now."
Qin Chen gave a cold laugh.
This Blood Fiend Nascent Soul Condensation Pill was poison to others, but to him, it was a rare treasure!
The Heavenly Cycle Star Body he cultivated embraced all things and devoured every kind of energy.
Although the immense blood fiend power contained in this Blood Fiend Nascent Soul Condensation Pill was violent, once refined by star force, it could be converted into the purest energy and used to ignite micro star-dust!
"Still, although this thing is violent, the energy it contains really is astonishing. I could swallow it directly and forcibly refine it with the domineering power of the Heavenly Cycle Star Body, but that would be somewhat wasteful."
A thought flashed through his mind.
The system's returns!
Sinister though this Blood Fiend Nascent Soul Condensation Pill was, it was still an extremely precious resource at its core. If he gave it to his father, Qin De...
The reward returned by the system would definitely be ten or a hundred times better than this Blood Fiend Nascent Soul Condensation Pill!
"That's what I'll do!"
Qin Chen immediately took out a blank jade slip and recorded the Blood Fiend Nascent Soul Condensation Pill's origins, medicinal effects, and potential risks in detail.
At the same time, he packed the hundred-odd thousand low-grade spirit stones, several hundred mid-grade spirit stones, and all those magical treasures and pills into a storage pouch.
"Xiaobai, wake up."
Qin Chen patted the white cat sleeping soundly in his arms.
"Meow?" Xiaobai groggily opened its eyes and gave a disgruntled cry.
"Run an errand for me." Qin Chen hung the storage pouch and jade slip around Xiaobai's neck. "Take these things to my father."
Although Xiaobai was young, it was highly intelligent and immediately understood Qin Chen's meaning.
It stood up and shook its snow-white fur, mysterious spatial runes lighting up once more in its silver eyes.
When Qin Chen had left Yanjing City, he had left a trace of Xiaobai's spatial coordinates on Qin De's communication talisman.
Humm-
The space around Xiaobai twisted slightly. The next second, it vanished into thin air from the cave.
Qianlong Continent, Chu State,
Prince Qin's residence.
Qin De was handling affairs of state.
Suddenly, ripples spread through the space before Qin De without warning.
"Who's there?!"
Qin De abruptly raised his head.
However, what emerged from the spatial ripples was no powerful enemy, but a small, adorable cat with snow-white fur all over.
"Is this... Chen'er's pet?" Qin De froze for a moment, then immediately recognized Xiaobai.
Xiaobai walked gracefully up to Qin De, opened its mouth, and retched out a storage pouch and a jade slip. Then it meowed at Qin De, and with a flicker, vanished once again.
The whole process was as fast as lightning. Qin De had not even had time to react.
"This... this is spatial teleportation?!" Qin De's eyes widened, his face filled with disbelief. "A cat actually mastered spatial teleportation?!"
After recovering from his shock, Qin De picked up the jade slip from the floor and probed it with his divine sense.
A moment later, Qin De's expression became extraordinarily varied, shock, wild joy, worry, and all manner of emotions intertwining.
Inside the cave on the deserted island at the edge of the Chaotic Star Sea.
Qin Chen waited quietly.
After roughly the time it took an incense stick to burn, that familiar mechanical voice finally sounded in his mind.
[Ding! Detected that the host has gifted his father, Qin De, one Blood Fiend Nascent Soul Condensation Pill (defective), 130,000 low-grade spirit stones, 500 mid-grade spirit stones, and several mid-grade spiritual artifacts...] [Tenfold return!] [Congratulations to the host on obtaining: one Nine-Turn Creation Pill!] [Congratulations to the host on obtaining: 10,000 top-grade spirit stones!] [Congratulations to the host on obtaining: ten star flare stones!]
Hearing the system's notifications, Qin Chen's breathing instantly quickened.
"A Nine-Turn Creation Pill! Top-grade spirit stones! Star flare stones!"
His eyes snapped open, a terrifying brilliance bursting from them.
The system had actually judged the Blood Fiend Nascent Soul Condensation Pill to be merely "defective," while the Nine-Turn Creation Pill it returned was a supreme pill said to bring the dead back to life, regrow flesh on bare bones, and help people break through cultivation realms without any side effects!
Top-grade spirit stones needed no explanation. They were the highest-grade hard currency in the cultivation world. A single top-grade spirit stone contained as much spiritual energy as a million low-grade spirit stones, and its purity was so high that it could be absorbed directly with almost no refining.
What excited Qin Chen most were those ten star flare stones!
These were superb treasures for cultivating the Heavenly Cycle Star Body. They contained rich star force that could be refined directly, sparing him the need to convert spiritual energy into star force before opening up star-dust within his body.
"With these resources, my Heavenly Cycle Star Body will definitely undergo a qualitative leap!"
Qin Chen forcibly suppressed his excitement and added several more layers of reinforcement to the cave's defensive formation.
"Next comes secluded cultivation!"
He sat down cross-legged and took out a star flare stone without hesitation.
The stone was only the size of a fist, its entire body a deep, dark gold. Magma seemed to flow across its surface, and it radiated heart-rattling heat and terrifying energy fluctuations.
Qin Chen drew a deep breath and activated the Primordial Ancestral Dragon Art and the Heavenly Cycle Star Body simultaneously.
"Devour!"
He gripped the star flare stone with both hands. His body seemed to turn into an enormous black hole, frantically drawing in the violent energy contained within the stone.
Boom!
A terrifying torrent of heat instantly surged into Qin Chen's meridians, as though it would tear his body apart.
"Be suppressed!"
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