Cultivation starts from devouring the Dao fruits

"You are too modest. Not a single Pill Master in the Shiyang Commerce Association can refine a Second-order Superior Grade Lifespan Extension Pill, let alone a Superior Grade Lifespan Extension Pill! There are probably no more than five people in the entire Northern Desolate who surpass Master Zhao in the art of Alchemy."

"Master Zhao, I know what you are worried about. Please don't rush to refuse—take a look at the gift I've brought you."

The Shiyang hermit gave a slight smile, took out a jade box and opened it, revealing a lump of black and white divine mud the size of an adult man's fist, lying quietly inside the box.

A glint of fervor flashed through Zhao Yu's eyes, "Black and white divine mud!!"

According to the Mountain Sutra, after one has cultivated the Earth Attribute Body, the next step is to condense the Mountain Treasured Body. If one can condense the Mountain Treasured Body, their speed of cultivating the Mountain Sutra would climb to a new height.

However, to condense the Mountain Treasured Body, one must absorb the power of a Fourth-Order Superior Spiritual Vein as well as countless Earth Attribute Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures.

Besides condensing the Mountain Treasured Body, once one cultivates the Mountain Sutra to the Golden Core Stage, they can nurture the Lifebound Magic Treasure Mountain Seal within their body. The refinement of the Mountain Seal also requires many precious Earth Attribute Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures, one of the most invaluable being the black and white divine mud.

The Shiyang hermit continued and took out another jade box, revealing a half-inch segment of black wood with some tiny roots on it.

A trace of curiosity crossed through Zhao Yu's eyes, "What is this?"

The Shiyang hermit smiled slightly, "This is Soul-Nurturing Wood, which can be planted in Yin-rich Spiritual Energy lands. Ghost Creatures staying near the Soul-Nurturing Wood can recover their strength faster and enhance their cultivation level. This segment of Soul-Nurturing Wood still has roots, and if cultivated properly, it can grow an inch every thousand years.

For every thousand years the Soul-Nurturing Wood grows, its efficacy doubles. If it grows for ten thousand years, it can even have miraculous effects on Fourth-Order Evil Ghosts."

"Indeed, a rare treasure to come by!"

Zhao Yu's face remained calm, but his heart was stirring slightly.

The Yin Ghost Sect most yearned for Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures like the Soul-Nurturing Wood. For this short segment with roots, they would definitely pay a steep price for it.

Because if the wood were cultivated, it would greatly assist Evil Ghosts in breaking through bottlenecks; a Second-Order Superior Grade Evil Ghost that consumed this short segment of wood would have a thirty percent chance to advance to a Third-Order Low-grade Evil Ghost.

"This is a Third-Order Low-grade Fierce Ghost Relic. I wonder if these three treasures could persuade you to help refine the Golden Core Pill?"n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om

The Shiyang hermit took out another jade box and opened it, inside which lay a Jade Pendant exuding a chilling Yin energy.

Zhao Yu pondered for a while and said, "Add ten more Second-Order Fierce Ghost Relics!"

Originally, Zhao Yu did not intend to get involved in this messy affair, but the Shiyang hermit offered too much, and he couldn't resist.

The Shiyang hermit smiled and said, "It's a deal!"

Zhao Yu said, "Shiyang hermit, let me clarify beforehand that even for me, the success rate of refining the Golden Core Pill currently is only about forty percent."

The Shiyang hermit's brow furrowed slightly, "Is there any way to increase it?"

Collecting the materials for refining the Golden Core Pill in the Northern Desolate was extremely difficult, and the Shiyang hermit had also spent much time and effort to quietly gather them all.

Zhao Yu said, "It's possible! However, I need to refine other Third-Order Low-grade Spirit Pills first and familiarize myself with the properties of Third-Order Spiritual Medicine to increase the success rate. You will need to prepare one more Third-Order Low-grade Spirit Pill recipe for me, along with the materials needed for ten furnaces worth of that Spirit Pill.

After I familiarize myself with the properties, I will be able to increase the success rate to over seventy percent."

"I'll collect my payment first. Moreover, I will need you to make a magical oath that, should you successfully advance to the Golden Core Stage, you will never harm me!"

The so-called magical oath isn't just any ordinary vow, but a contract secreted using a special secret technique onto the skin of a high-order demon beast or high-order spirit wood. Once signed, anyone who breaks it will suffer from the backlash.

"I never intended to harm you in the first place. Fair trade is a principle I adhere to. I can make a magical oath not to harm you, but I'll add a condition that you must not harm me either. If you break this condition, the magical oath will cease to exist."

The hermit Shiyang smiled slightly, taking out a piece of paper made from the skin of a Third-Order Demon Beast, writing the magical oath on it, and then dropping a drop of fresh blood from his fingertip onto the paper, before passing it to Zhao Yu.

After carefully reading it, Zhao Yu also cut his fingertip, letting a drop of fresh blood fall onto it.

The magical oath paper instantly burned up and disappeared.

But in that moment, Zhao Yu felt that if he were to become enemies with the hermit Shiyang, the magical oath would directly dissipate.

"This is the recipe for a Third-Order low-grade Spirit Pill called the Nine Beasts Origin Blood Pill, which requires inner cores from nine different Second-Order Demon Beasts and a Primordial Blood Flower from Third-Order Spiritual Medicine as the main ingredients. This pill can strengthen and purify a cultivator's qi and blood, essential for a Body Cultivator."

"Here are the materials for ten batches of the Nine Beasts Origin Blood Pill. May I ask when will you be ready to officially start the refinement of the Golden Core Pill?"

The hermit Shiyang took out a storage pouch, extracted a pill recipe and various materials, and pushed them towards Zhao Yu.

Zhao Yu said confidently with a smile, "Please give me half a year to prepare. After half a year, I will surely be able to refine the Golden Core Pill for you!"

"Then I'll leave it in your hands! This is your payment."

The hermit Shiyang gave a slight smile, pushing three treasures and ten newly extracted Fierce Ghost Relics for Second-Order Evil Ghosts directly in front of Zhao Yu.

With the trade completed, the hermit Shiyang, along with Yunshan, quietly left Little Danling.

Zhao Yu went straight to a cave in the core area of Little Danling where the spiritual energy was rich and the sun never shone, planting a small piece of Soul-Nurturing Wood carefully into the ground.

"Soul-Nurturing Wood grows in extremely yin conditions and is very difficult to cultivate. However, my Minor Supernatural Power—Earth Vein Gathering Spirit Technique—is naturally suited for nurturing various spirit plants, altering the Earth Qi. Creating an artificial land of extreme yin is a breeze for me!"

Zhao Yu smiled slightly, activating the Master-level Minor Supernatural Power—Earth Vein Gathering Spirit Technique—that he had painstakingly cultivated over the years. A mass of Earth Qi swept in from all around, entering the cave, and altering under his will to form an environment suitable for the growth of Soul-Nurturing Wood.

"A Master-level Earth Vein Gathering Spirit Technique can gather the surrounding Earth Qi, creating an environment conducive for the growth of spirit plants, accelerating the concentration of medicinal power in the plants. At its highest, it can increase the growth rate of Spiritual Medicine by twenty times."

"However, this Divine Skill draws Earth Qi from the surrounding area, where one acre of a spiritual medicine garden requires the Earth Qi from a hundred acres around it. Moreover, on Second-order Spiritual Land, it can only accelerate the growth of Second-Order Spiritual Medicine. If Third-Order Spiritual Medicine is planted on Second-order Spiritual Land, it won't be able to speed up their growth."

"Soul-Nurturing Wood is naturally a Third-Order Spirit Plant, and even with my mastery of a Master-level Earth Vein Gathering Spirit Technique, I can only maintain its growth in Little Danling."

Zhao Yu looked at the tiny Soul-Nurturing Wood, slapped the Ghost Nurturing Jar on his body, and the White Ghost Emperor flew out, landing next to the Soul-Nurturing Wood. With a fierce and terrifying face splitting into a grin, showcasing sharp teeth, it let out a fierce smile, clearly pleased with the environment.