Chapter 590: Five Elements and Three Veins

Inside the Spirit Treasure Pavilion, Foundation Establishment Pills began to be exchanged smoothly. Chen Mobai showed particular concern about this. The customs of the Eastern Barrens truly made him uneasy. Faced with this opportunity that could transform cultivators and elevate them to a higher realm, he feared some might lose their minds.

However, Chen Mobai's worries proved to be unfounded. After all, locals understand locals best. Many ninth-level Qi Refinement disciples who exchanged for Foundation Establishment Pills did not return to their own cultivation caves after leaving the Spirit Treasure Pavilion. Instead, they directly rented the sect's cultivation rooms. These rooms were established when Zhou Shengqing formed his Nascent Soul, which caused widespread spiritual energy fluctuations. Chen Mobai, emulating the Immortal Sect, specifically created areas with calm spiritual energy within these rooms to aid the cultivation of lower-level disciples.

Each cultivation room was set up by the sect's Formation Department, with powerful restrictions installed. Even Foundation Establishment cultivators would need a considerable amount of time to break through them. Many ninth-level Qi Refinement disciples who obtained Foundation Establishment Pills bought enough Bigu Pills. Carrying their entire savings in their storage bags, they unhesitatingly rented the cultivation rooms with the highest spiritual energy grade and immersed themselves in secluded cultivation, determined to succeed or perish.

After Chen Mobai heard about this, he summoned Yi Shaoqing, the head of the Formation Department, and instructed him to guide the Myriad Wood Grand Formation to direct some of the spiritual energy circulating above Gigantic Wood Ridge towards these cultivation rooms. This way, anyone who successfully broke through to Foundation Establishment could directly enjoy third-tier spiritual energy concentration.

There were also some true disciples with profound backgrounds who, after exchanging for Foundation Establishment Pills, did not choose to immediately enter secluded cultivation and consume them. Instead, they aimed for perfection, following the Foundation Establishment knowledge taught by Chen Mobai. They continued to consume spirit rice, nourish their bodies, purify their spiritual power, and refine their divine sense. These were the individuals more likely to succeed in Foundation Establishment.

Half a month later, Kong Shanxu of the Five Elements Sect arrived at Gigantic Wood Ridge. Besides him, there were two other Foundation Establishment cultivators: Tan Rong from the Fire Meridian and Ji Guanhai from the Water Meridian. Tan Rong was a beautiful woman with a fiery figure, while Ji Guanhai was a slender scholar. They were all direct disciples of Core Formation cultivators, and their status and cultivation were equivalent to the vice-hall masters of the Divine Wood Sect's three main halls. The collective arrival of the three this time clearly indicated that the Five Elements Sect attached extreme importance to the Foundation Establishment Pills.

Yue Zutao received Kong Shanxu and the two others. After hearing their probing words, he did not deny it and simply nodded. After all, the Spirit Treasure Pavilion had recently been packed with ninth-level Qi Refinement disciples. Divine Wood Sect disciples who had accumulated 10,000 contribution points often rushed over to exchange for Foundation Establishment Pills. They had no intention of concealing such a grand situation; in fact, per Chen Mobai's instructions, they were actively promoting it to the three meridians of the Five Elements Sect, planting a seed.

"Our Wind-Rain Dock still has some second-tier demon beast inner cores. Previously, we entrusted the Eastern Wu region to help refine them. We wonder if Senior Brother Zeng is available..." Ji Guanhai from the Water Meridian asked. They were stationed in Yunmeng Marsh, where demon beast resources were the most abundant. If even Zhou Wangshen could lead the hunting of three, they would only have more, not less.

"I need to ask the sect master about this matter. However, Senior Brother Zeng's schedule for refining Foundation Establishment Pills is already booked for the next two years. Even if the sect master agrees, you will still have to wait." Having refined ten batches of Foundation Establishment Pills for the sect, Zeng Woyou worked at high intensity for three full years. This made him, who originally regarded refining Foundation Establishment Pills as the highest honor of his life, directly grow weary, tired, and exhausted. And now Zhou Wangshen had provided the Alchemy Department with the task of refining three batches of demon beast Foundation Establishment Pills, leaving Zeng Woyou truly unable to muster any enthusiasm.

Chen Mobai allowed Zeng Woyou to rest for half a year. However, the sect continued to systematically collect auxiliary materials for the Foundation Establishment Pills. Furthermore, at Chen Mobai's suggestion, Yan Jinye, Zeng Woyou's former deputy, was given an opportunity to refine a batch of demon beast Foundation Establishment Pills. This was to cultivate reserve talent for the sect. After all, if only one person could refine Foundation Establishment Pills, should anything happen to Zeng Woyou, the Divine Wood Sect would again have to seek help from Return to Heaven Valley. As for Yan Jinye, this opportunity also greatly excited her. As an alchemist who had received Zeng Woyou's true teachings, she had participated in almost every batch of Foundation Establishment Pills refined within the sect. She had long mastered the process of refining this type of elixir, lacking only the opportunity for practical application.

However, Foundation Establishment Pills were of great importance. Even Zeng Woyou dared not make the decision himself; only Chen Mobai, the sect master, could speak up and bear the responsibility. Because alchemists in the Eastern Barrens all grew through repeated failures, Yan Jinye's first batch of demon beast Foundation Establishment Pills would essentially not succeed. Regarding this, Chen Mobai specifically called Yan Jinye over and encouraged her, telling her to be bold and not fear failure, as the sect would back her up. With Chen Mobai's words, the originally nervous Yan Jinye completely relaxed.

On this day, it was time for the Divine Wood Sect to transfer Foundation Establishment Pills to the Five Elements Sect. Chen Mobai did not appear; Yue Zutao and Luo Xue'er presided over the matter.

Inside the Merit Hall, the Foundation Establishment cultivators from the three meridians of the Five Elements Sect looked at the fifteen Foundation Establishment Pills, each individually packaged in a transparent jade bottle, and all felt a great sense of novelty.

"The material of this jade bottle had never been seen before. What kind of mineral was it smelted from?" Kong Shanxu, as a Foundation Establishment cultivator of the Earth Meridian, had essentially seen most of the minerals and jade stones in the Eastern Barrens, but had never encountered a composite material like glass.

"It is an ancient formula obtained by the sect master from the Everlasting Sect. Not only can it be used to replace jade, but it is also more convenient for engraving restrictive spiritual patterns. It can be integrated into the bottle body during the smelting process, and after formation, it only needs to be activated with spiritual power to have functions such as constant temperature, refrigeration, and preservation." These glass bottles were mainly created because Chen Mobai had previously ordered all sect legacies to be converted into jade slips, which led to a temporary shortage of jade stones that the Divine Wood Sect originally used to store elixirs and rare herbs.

Yue Zutao reported the problem, hoping to temporarily suspend the conversion of legacies into jade slips. After all, if elixirs and similar items were not sealed and stored in jade, their medicinal efficacy would dissipate too quickly. However, after Chen Mobai heard this, he directly downloaded the glass manufacturing process from the Immortal Sect network. This was the Immortal Sect's choice for replacing jade. Moreover, if spiritual stone powder was added during refining, its efficacy could even surpass that of jade. These spiritual stone powders, also known as spiritual essence, were crushed dry spiritual stones. The Immortal Sect generally only added a small amount, allowing it to preserve spiritual power, which facilitated the engraving of spiritual patterns and the formation of restrictions. But here in the Eastern Barrens, these were considered waste materials.

After obtaining Chen Mobai's glass manufacturing process, the Artifact Forging Department and the Spirit Meridian Department jointly researched it for a year and quickly reproduced this item. Although the craftsmanship was not as refined as that of the Immortal Sect, much more spiritual stone powder was added here, almost exceeding half the proportion, resulting in a spiritual efficacy far superior to even the best glass from the Immortal Sect.

Upon hearing this, Kong Shanxu and the two others were all filled with envy for the Divine Wood Sect. The fact that Chen Mobai was the Saint Son of the Everlasting Sect had spread throughout the Eastern Barrens. Everyone attributed his rapid cultivation to his inheritance from the Everlasting Sect, an ancient grand sect. Unexpectedly, he was now selflessly sharing these good things with the Divine Wood Sect. The Wood Meridian truly had good fortune!

Amidst their envy, they opened the fifteen glass bottles one by one and poured out each Foundation Establishment Pill for inspection. Among them, Tan Rong and Ji Guanhai mainly focused on the elixirs, but Kong Shanxu kept examining the glass bottles, wondering if he could find a way to replicate this manufacturing process after returning.

"The elixirs are fine. Let's distribute them now." In front of Yue Zutao and Luo Xue'er, the Foundation Establishment cultivators from the three meridians of the Five Elements Sect each took five Foundation Establishment Pills. Watching this scene, Yue Zutao's heart stirred slightly. He wondered if, when the next batch of Jade Marrow Golden Ganoderma matured, the sect could give two extra Foundation Establishment Pills, orchestrating a "two peaches kill three warriors" scheme!

"Junior Brother Yue, Senior Sister Luo, we need to take these Foundation Establishment Pills back as soon as possible. Before we leave, we wonder if we could pay a visit to Sect Master Chen?"

"That's rather unfortunate. Senior Brother Jia Songyang from Golden Light Cliff just arrived today, also to collect Foundation Establishment Pills, and the sect master is currently personally meeting with him." After Kong Shanxu and the two others heard Yue Zutao's words, their mouths twitched slightly. They felt slighted, but Golden Light Cliff and the Divine Wood Sect were as close as brothers, a relationship that their three meridians indeed could not compare to.

"That is truly a pity." But outwardly, the three dared not express any dissatisfaction towards a Core Formation cultivator. After speaking, they also expressed hope that they could use the Divine Wood Sect's teleportation array to depart.

"No problem."

Kong Shanxu was the first to bid farewell and leave. Tan Rong then asked about Ding Ying. When Chen Mobai previously led a team to inspect the Eastern Barrens, the two had interacted and could be considered acquainted.

"Junior Sister Ding is teaching at the Everlasting Academy. If Junior Sister Tan wishes to find her, she would need to go to Beiyuan City in Yan Kingdom." As they were both women, Luo Xue'er had interacted more with Tan Rong. Tan Rong, however, did not know about the Everlasting Academy yet, and after hearing the explanation, she couldn't help but be greatly astonished.

"Cultivators can also run schools?" Qi Refinement cultivation focuses on enhancing one's spiritual root characteristics; basically, everyone is different. Even within sects, the emphasis is on guiding disciples in and giving them cultivation methods to comprehend on their own. Could an Everlasting Academy, like a mortal private school, truly be useful for cultivators?

"If Junior Sister Tan has time, you can go and visit the Everlasting Academy. This year, the first batch of students is graduating, and the sect master, as the principal, will also personally attend." Hearing Luo Xue'er's words, Tan Rong's heart stirred. She had long been curious about Chen Mobai, the Eastern Barrens' foremost sect master, but had consecutively missed two opportunities to meet him. Visiting the Everlasting Academy, she could consider it an investigation for the sect into the feasibility of the academy/private school model. Moreover, Ding Ying, an acquaintance, was there.

"Senior Sister Luo, I'll take these Foundation Establishment Pills back first." However, Tan Rong did not forget her mission for this trip. Luo Xue'er nodded and personally escorted her to the teleportation array at Gigantic Wood Ridge.

Divine Wood Hall.

Chen Mobai was speaking with Jia Songyang. The latter was still somewhat excited, constantly pressing his right hand against the storage bag at his waist, which contained 26 Foundation Establishment Pills. Golden Light Cliff had not seen so many Foundation Establishment Pills since its separation. Indeed, entrusting these matters to the Divine Wood Sect was the correct decision. Now, even Foundation Establishment Pills could be mass-produced.

After a long while, Jia Songyang recovered from his excitement. He did not miss this opportunity to seek Chen Mobai's guidance on the Scarlet Flame Sword Art. At this moment, two people arrived at Divine Wood Hall. One was Yue Zutao, who had brought Ji Guanhai from the Water Meridian of the Five Elements Sect here.