A Stirring of the Heart

Divine Lord Zhenyuan sat quietly in the Yunyi Daoist Temple. As he condensed the Law Treasure's sleeve, his right arm still felt somewhat unnatural.

This was the price he paid for fulfilling the promise made by the Empress Dowager.

Daojun and Nine Spirits Primal Sage were no ordinary people. The sparring with Daojun's avatar was still within control, but the tearing of Nine Spirits Primal Sage's head by Fatianhua was something that Divine Lord Zhenyuan could not withstand.

Fortunately, most of the things that Divine Lord Zhenyuan had agreed to were nearing completion.

The power of the Great Han Dynasty did not smoothly transition to a situation where the new emperor and Princess Dou jointly ruled, but it was still a relatively stable transition.

Princess Dou herself was incompetent and unable to stay in Anle Palace, so it's no wonder that Divine Lord Zhenyuan couldn't be blamed.

The person who needed assistance no longer exists, and the many matters that Divine Lord Zhenyuan was obligated to handle are now nearly finished, so there is no need to delay until three years later.

Apart from being bitten on his right arm, Divine Lord Zhenyuan has almost fulfilled all his requests.

His gaze swept over another Law Treasure cloth spread on the bed, Divine Lord Zhenyuan felt even more satisfied.

If the secrets of the Law Treasure cloth's inheritance cannot be uncovered, Divine Lord Zhenyuan believes that inviting experts to cooperate might erase the mark on the Law Treasure cloth, allowing him to create another Law Treasure sleeve, which would give him more flexibility in dealing with different opponents.

He pondered for a moment, his gaze sweeping over the main hall of Yunyi Daoist Temple.

As the Empress Dowager's promise drew to a close, Divine Lord Zhenyuan did not appear particularly impatient, but quietly awaited the conclusion of many events, maintaining his masterful demeanor even while cooperating with Li Shaojun.

"That Eight Steps to Immortality Pill is tainted with the demon blood of the Nine Spirits Primal Sage. The Holy Son can take it, but others probably can't!"

Li Shaojun and others discussed the Eight-Step Ascension Elixir in the main hall of the Daoist temple.

Divine Lord Zhenyuan believed that Li Shaojun and the new emperor would most likely die if they took the Eight Steps to Immortality Pill, but Zhang Xuezhou would most likely survive if he took it.

For cultivators with advanced poison-avoidance techniques, the chances of something going wrong after ingesting it are slim.

Li Shaojun's alchemy and medicine-making skills were lacking. It was only when he was fighting against the Nine Spirits Primal Sage that he was able to refine the materials into a block by Dou Taizhu's powerful activation of the Nine Dragon Cauldron to spew flames. The rest could not be refined into a solid form no matter how many times he tried. In fact, when someone tampered with it later, it exploded, resulting in a complete loss.

"The Holy Son's Law Power is suppressed, making it difficult for him to improve his cultivation. Taking this medicine now is probably useless!"

Those who are qualified to take pills cannot improve their cultivation, while those who are capable of improving their cultivation cannot take pills. This situation amazed Divine Lord Zhenyuan.

He remained silent, waiting quietly for the people in the Daoist temple hall to finish their discussion.

"Dongfang Shuo possesses profound Law Power; there's a 30% chance he's taken the Eight-Step Ascension Pill!"

"Dongfang Shuo, demonstrate your Law Power! I want to compare!"

"My Law Power isn't strong enough anymore!"

"Your Law Power seems inferior to my Qi and Blood, Daoist Master. What are the chances that I can successfully take the medicine?"

"Perhaps fifty percent!"

In the main hall of Yunyi Daoist Temple, Li Shaojun pursed his lips.

The Eight-Step Ascension Pill has been produced, but it is not the Eight-Step Ascension Pill he wanted.

The flames spewed from the Nine Dragon Cauldron burned the Nine Spirits Primal Sage' vomit to ashes, but Li Shaojun felt that something unclean had mixed in.

Even Li Shaojun himself would have to risk his life to dare to take these Eight Steps to Immortality Pills.

If he could secure an opportunity with the current emperor, Li Shaojun felt he wanted to re-refine the Eight-Step Ascension Pill.

In the past few days, he has not only become familiar with the Nine Dragon Cauldron, but he has also learned about his success rate in alchemy.

If the new emperor is willing to invest heavily, Li Shaojun believes he can definitely try his luck and refine a normal pill.

He must neither refuse the new emperor nor allow him to succeed in order to obtain what he needs in the future.

"This Eight-Step Ascension Pill has been nurtured for many years, and its medicinal power is beyond the ordinary. Only cultivators at the Sole Self Realm and True Self Realm can take it relatively normally," Li Shaojun said. "If Dongfang Shuo wants to take the Eight-Step Ascension Pill, he can only choose those freshly made pills!"

"Does the Daoist priest have any fresh ones here?" Zhang Xuezhou asked.

"No," Li Shaojun shook his head repeatedly, "This old Daoist priest only managed to refine one batch of pills after dozens of attempts fifty years ago, and hasn't refined them since!"

"Master, could you refine another batch?"

Upon hearing Li Shaojun's excuse, Zhang Xuezhou knew that Li Shaojun's alchemy had failed.

This made him inwardly scoff, feeling that Li Shaojun was good for nothing. He had made grand promises and boasted so much, but when it came to actually doing the work, he was lacking.

"The Eight Steps to Immortality Pill requires high-quality cinnabar, sulfur, lead oxide, chalcanthite, realgar, orpiment, zeolite, and primordial water as ingredients," Li Shaojun said solemnly. "This pill also requires a top-tier Pill Furnace for repeated high-temperature adjustments to condense the outer elixir. It's not something I can just refine whenever I want. I had to rent the Yin-Yang School's water-fire Pill Furnace and spend most of my fortune to successfully refine one batch, ultimately breaking through the 'Only Me ' and entering the True Self '!"

"Break free from the Only Me and enter the True Self!"

The new emperor, listening nearby, felt a surge of emotion.

Compared to the unseen and intangible secret realm, Li Shaojun's Eight-Step Ascension Pill is almost visible.

The imperial arsenal has no shortage of the materials Li Shaojun mentioned, and the palace also has top-notch Pill Furnace.

If Li Shaojun is willing to refine pills, the new emperor believes there is a good chance of successfully refining fresh pills.

The new emperor cannot take the old, nourishing elixir, but he is indeed interested in the new elixir, especially since Li Shaojun has experience taking it and has demonstrated his abilities at the Empress Dowager's funeral.

Most importantly, the Eight Steps to Immortality Pill does not conflict with the Creation Pill; on the contrary, it can enhance the effects of the Creation Pill.

Even the imperial court did not possess a similar elixir.

Let alone taking the Eight Steps to Immortality Pill normally, even if it had an 80% high stability, the new emperor felt he wouldn't hesitate much.

But with a probability as low as 50%, he really didn't want to gamble his life by taking this old elixir that had been nurtured for many years.

"Master, are you selling this pill?"

The new emperor asked a question cautiously.

He didn't need Li Shaojun's aged elixir right now, but the new emperor felt he could make plans for the future.

If Li Shaojun is willing to part with it, he will pay the price to acquire the elixir, so as to avoid having to use it in the future.

"This kind of elixir is dangerous, and this gentleman is not yet eligible to take it. I'm also afraid that the young man might act rashly and take a risk at some point," Li Shaojun said. "If you are qualified to take this medicine, I can send you a portion later!"

"If we manage to gather all the necessary resources for alchemy, could you, Daoist Master, refine a new batch of pills for us?" the new emperor asked anxiously. "Rest assured, Daoist Master," the emperor replied, "We won't let you help us for nothing. Just tell us what you need!"

"This old Daoist priest is getting on in years and is finding it somewhat difficult to refine pills. The failure rate is quite high, which I'm afraid this gentleman might find hard to bear," Li Shaojun shook his head and said, "As for the reward, that's just something external. At my age, I've come to terms with things and don't need anything!"

"Master Li, we're not afraid of taking a loss, please help us out," Zhang Xuezhou said.

"Yes, we're not afraid of losing money!"

Heavenly materials and earthly treasures only realize their value when used; piling them up in the imperial armory will not bring any benefit.

Having finally found a new path that almost perfectly met the requirements, the new emperor wouldn't care about any failures in alchemy or the price that might be paid.

He felt that Li Shaojun before him had become a guiding light on his path of cultivation.

If the Eight-Step Ascension Pill could be produced in large quantities, and considering the standards Li Shaojun currently uses to administer it, the new emperor felt that Wei Qing and others were qualified to take the pill.