Smooth Communication

"Perform the Fengshan ceremony at Mount Tai to cleanse your entire body with the energy of heaven and Heaven and Earth, or seek out the Nine Cauldrons of the Human Emperor forged by King Yu of Xia to suppress the evil energy of the corpse!"

Li Shaojun did not simply describe one solution; instead, he directly presented the Empress Dowager with two solutions.

The Empress Dowager behind the screen had an extremely solemn expression.

It wasn't that she hadn't considered Li Shaojun's plan, but rather that she found it difficult to meet that requirement.

These were indeed two extremely difficult tasks to accomplish, even for someone of her high status.

The new emperor was too young and lacked the strength to perform the Fengshan ceremony, and the Empress Dowager, being a woman and elderly, was even less likely to perform it.

Finding the Nine Cauldrons of the Human Emperor, which have been lost to history, is also a difficult task.

A hundred years ago, there were still rumors about the Nine Cauldrons, but after the Great Qin Dynasty unified China, the Emperor Qin collected the Nine Cauldrons, and the whereabouts of many of the tripods and the Emperor Qin and many other related figures eventually became unknown.

"Does Fellow Daoist Li know where these Nine Cauldrons are kept?" the Empress Dowager inquired.

"It is said that the Emperor Qin once controlled the Nine Cauldrons, but the matter of the Nine Cauldrons disappeared without a trace after his death. Our Daoist Daoist School has had too little contact with the imperial court, so this is a mystery to us. Fellow Daoist Dou comes from Huang-Lao Daoism, so there should be relevant lineages," said Li Shaojun.

Li Shaojun's response was extremely tactful and appropriate.

The "Huang" in Huang Lao Dao refers to the Yellow Emperor, the most important figure in the imperial way, which is why Huang Lao Dao has always been closely associated with emperors.

If one is seeking royal secrets, this is indeed the area most familiar to Huang Lao Dao, not the Daoist School to which Li Shaojun belongs.

His response caused the Empress Dowager to sigh deeply.

"When the Great Qin collapsed, flames raged across the sky, burning the capital Xianyang to the ground, forcing our Great Han Dynasty to find another capital," the Empress Dowager said. "What was left for our Great Han Dynasty was a devastated land, and many things are now impossible to know."

"What a pity!"

Li Shaojun sighed, echoing the Empress Dowager's lament.

"I've heard that Fellow Daoist Li is skilled at suppressing injuries and has repeatedly survived great calamities. Is this true?"

The conversation between the two paused for only ten seconds before the Empress Dowager began to ask other questions, which made Li Shaojun's heart tremble slightly.

"This old Daoist does indeed possess some Secret Method for suppressing the body," Li Shaojun nodded. "While these techniques can temporarily suppress injuries, they also cause our cultivation to drop rapidly. To be honest, Fellow Daoist Dou, this old Daoist's current cultivation level isn't even at the Divine Ability Realm; I'm practically a cripple!"

"This Secret Method causes such great damage!" the Empress Dowager exclaimed in surprise.

"My body is like dry twigs now; the slightest carelessness will break it," Li Shaojun said. "If it weren't for your invitation, fellow Daoist, this old Daoist... alas... I'm truly ashamed to face anyone!"

Li Shaojun reached out and brushed his sleeve across his face.

By taking the initiative to ask questions, he can gain the upper hand, while by responding passively, he finds it difficult to maintain subtle details such as his demeanor to match his identity, making it easy for flaws to be seen.

He could only cover his face with his sleeve, forcefully squeezing out a few tears, and then sobbing softly.

"Fellow Daoist, there is no need to be so discouraged. You should know that this cultivation is nothing when you are born, and you cannot take it with you when you die. It is nothing but fleeting smoke," the Empress Dowager comforted her.

"Fellow Daoist Dou, you may not know this, but in recent years I have frequently lingered in the Mount Tai region, seeking traces of immortals, attempting to replicate the Immortal Court's Life-Extending Golden Elixir. Having lost my cultivation, I am no longer able to act, and being unable to act is tantamount to my lifespan being nearly exhausted," Li Shaojun said, covering his face with his sleeve and sobbing softly. "This 'one move affects everything' has led me into a dead end from which I cannot escape!"

"I've heard that you can refine the Life-Creating Fortune Pill, fellow Daoist. Could it be that this medicine also fails to relieve your ailments?" the Empress Dowager asked.

"The Life-Creating Fortune Pill has an exquisite formula, requiring a large Pill Cauldron and many precious ingredients. Lacking cultivation and the necessary resources, this old Daoist is no longer able to refine it," said Li Shaojun.

"This... Fellow Daoist, do you have a secret formula? We can gather all the necessary ingredients and have a top-tier Alchemist refine this pill," said the Empress Dowager. "If the pill can be successfully refined, Fellow Daoist will also be free from the torment of illness."

"This medicine..."

"You can't take anything with you when you're born, Fellow Daoist Li. When a person dies, everything is meaningless. No matter how many secret formulas you have, they only show their effectiveness when they are put into practice!"

Seeing Li Shaojun hesitate, the Empress Dowager quickly tried to persuade him.

The Han Dynasty had many recipes for elixirs, but the availability of top-tier elixirs was a source of great distress.

Some ancient, secret formulas have lost their raw materials and have been abandoned by the times, while new Pill Formula have been developed after various upheavals, with few achieving great success.

In recent years, only the Immortal Court has reported good news of the production of new top-grade pills. In many other places, they are still living off their past achievements, and some even lack top-grade Alchemist so much that they cannot even make ends meet.

By this point, the Empress Dowager had exhausted all her options and could only eke out a living day by day until Li Shaojun appeared, which gave her some renewed vitality.

"Fellow Daoist Dou, my cultivation has greatly declined, making it difficult for me to refine pills myself. If I were to offer guidance, it might lead to misunderstandings," Li Shaojun sighed. "This pill has extremely high requirements. I wonder if the imperial court has any eighth-rank Alchemist?"

"Eighth rank... this eighth rank is a bit difficult!"

Li Shaojun did not directly refuse, but the other party's request inevitably made the Empress Dowager somewhat embarrassed.

The eighth rank in alchemy corresponds to the Sole Self Realm" of cultivators. It is extremely difficult for an Alchemist to advance to the eighth rank, and even Alchemist at the Divine Ability Realm are extremely rare.

The Empress Dowager pondered over the famous Alchemist within the Great Han Dynasty, but after failing to find any, she couldn't help but think of a treasure.

"Our court once possessed a treasure. Ordinary, mediocre pills, when nurtured within it over time, would transform into medicines of far superior potency," the Empress Dowager said. "If Fellow Daoist Li can refine some mediocre Life-Creating Fortune Pill, nurturing them with this treasure will yield true elixirs!"

"If such a wonderful thing exists in the world, then we are saved!" Li Shaojun exclaimed with great joy.

Li Shaojun was genuinely happy. He came to the Great Han Dynasty hoping to gain some advantage, but nothing could compare to the treasures mentioned by the Empress Dowager.

If he possessed such a treasure, it could almost perfectly compensate for his lack of alchemy skills.

"Fellow Daoist, please bring it quickly, so we can refine pills and make medicine together," Li Shaojun said happily.

"This thing..."

The Empress Dowager felt a sharp pain in her heart.

In the past, she didn't think much of it. After all, there were some problems with the ancient gourd stored in the Imperial Medical Hall after it was used to refine pills. Moreover, the higher the grade of the medicine, the more difficult it was to succeed in refining. For the royal family, who were meticulous, those pills were not up to standard. However, when she was seriously ill, she didn't need to consider so much.

She had never lacked medicine gourds before, but now that many pills had failed and she needed top-grade pills, a shortage had arisen.

Even if the Life-Creating Fortune Pill cannot cure her body, it can stabilize her body for a period of time, thus getting rid of symptoms such as weakness, broken Law Power, and difficulty in exerting her realm power.

Li Shaojun needs elixirs, and so does the Empress Dowager.

Both of them have serious illnesses, are old and in poor health, and there is a possibility that they can help each other.

"Fellow Daoist Li, please don't be impatient. This item is quite ancient and has been tampered with. I'll have someone investigate it first, and then we'll retrieve the treasure!"

Things from the past century are difficult to investigate, and the Empress Dowager did not believe that this theft case could not be solved in less than ten years.