Chapter 686: News from the Eastern Yi (20,000 Monthly Tickets Extra Update)

Chen Mobai wasn't looking down on Yan Shaoyin; it was simply that for Core Formation cultivators in the Eastern Reaches, achieving Nascent Soul was virtually impossible. The probability was zero. Even if Zhou Ye, with his Heavenly Earth spiritual root, hadn't relied on his deep reserves when forming his core, his chances might have been slightly better. However, without cultivating the Primordial Dao Fruit, the critical stage of 'core-shattering and soul-emergence' would undoubtedly lead to his demise.

Furthermore, the Heavenly River Realm has its own heavenly tribulations. Compounding this, most Core Formation cultivators here achieve their breakthroughs by relying on elixirs, resulting in unstable foundations and impure spiritual power. All these negative factors were stacked against them. Even if Yan Shaoyin managed to successfully cultivate all three elixir formulas he received from Chen Mobai, at best he would only achieve the spiritual and mental state of the most common Golden Core Perfected Person in the Immortal Sect. Within the Immortal Sect, even preeminent figures like Gongye Zhixu and Duanmu Longrong failed to form a Nascent Soul, despite consuming the Soul Nurturing Elixir. The moment Yan Shaoyin attempted to form a Nascent Soul, death was guaranteed.

This was precisely Chen Mobai's 'acceleration plan'. Since Reverting Heaven Valley was under the protection of the Star Heaven Dao Sect, an overt assassination was unfeasible. However, if Yan Shaoyin were to perish from a self-inflicted attempt, there would be no issues whatsoever. With Yan Shaoyin's death, and no Core Formation cultivator to lead, Reverting Heaven Valley would inevitably decline to a second-rate power, despite the backing of the Star Heaven Dao Sect. The presence or absence of a Core Formation cultivator was the critical determinant for the survival of the major sects in the Eastern Reaches. Chen Mobai wouldn't even need to lift a finger. Rogue cultivators in the Eastern Reaches, aware of Reverting Heaven Valley's immense wealth, would likely target its shops and markets throughout the region. Some audacious groups might even venture into Xia State to plunder. This acceleration plan had been set in motion long ago when the Longevity Elixir Scripture was provided, and the time for its fruition was finally at hand.

Originally, Chen Mobai and Yan Shaoyin had agreed that for the refinement of the three elixirs, they would each contribute half the ingredients and then divide the finished products equally. As his own gains were at stake, Chen Mobai had previously shared all the crucial details he had uncovered regarding these three elixir formulas with Yan Shaoyin without reservation. Subsequently, as many primary and auxiliary ingredients were unavailable in the Eastern Reaches, he leveraged his pharmacological expertise to provide two or three substitutes for each, instructing Yan Shaoyin to test them individually. Due to the vast differences between the Immortal Sect's elixir refinement system and that of the Heavenly River Realm, even a grandmaster alchemist like Yan Shaoyin encountered repeated failures when initially adjusting the medicinal properties of the ingredients. Yet, through repeated setbacks, Yan Shaoyin still demonstrated the caliber of the Eastern Reaches' premier alchemist. During his third attempt to refine the True Return Elixir, he successfully produced the first batch of finished pills.

However, only four pills were produced. As per their prior agreement, Yan Shaoyin was to send two. But upon inspection, Chen Mobai discovered a severe excess of medicinal toxins. Bearing his acceleration plan in mind, he opted to use one of these pills to offset half the ingredients for the Nirvana Elixir, returning the rest to Yan Shaoyin. Yan Shaoyin was naturally ecstatic about this. With these four True Return Elixirs, he only needed to refine one more batch and carefully manage the toxins to advance his cultivation to the peak of Core Formation.

"Collect the medicinal ingredients on this list. Once the Golden Liquid Jade Restoration Elixir has been refined, send them to Reverting Heaven Valley." Chen Mobai instructed Yue Zutao to take the letter from the table.

After successfully refining the True Return Elixir, Yan Shaoyin had previously believed he could surpass Chen Mobai and even contemplated gathering the ingredients for the Soul Nurturing Elixir using Reverting Heaven Valley's resources alone. However, after refining the Nirvana Elixir, Yan Shaoyin discovered this was not feasible. Merely refining another batch of True Return Elixirs and the Nirvana Elixir had nearly exhausted most of Reverting Heaven Valley's wealth. The combined primary and auxiliary ingredients needed for the Soul Nurturing Elixir were even more extensive than those required for both of the previous elixirs. It was precisely for this reason that Yan Shaoyin had to concede, agreeing to personally assist in refining the Golden Liquid Jade Restoration Elixir during his crucial preparations for Nascent Soul formation. This was because the three primary ingredients for the Soul Nurturing Elixir were available in the Divine Wood Sect's medicinal fields: namely, the Void-Shattering Immortal Ganoderma, Emerald Spirit Flower, and Revival Grass.

Upon seeing the three fourth-tier medicinal ingredients—treasures of the sect—listed, Yue Zutao's hands involuntarily trembled slightly. "Sect Master, these are..."

"Gather the auxiliary ingredients first. These primary ingredients should only be harvested when they are ultimately needed." Chen Mobai's words brought a sigh of relief to Yue Zutao.

"Sect Master, I'll take my leave then."

After Yue Zutao departed, Chen Mobai instructed Gu Yan to contact Zhuo Ming, asking his cherished disciple to return to Giant Wood Ridge and assist in infusing the Myriad Transformation Thunder Water into the fourth-tier Immortal Peach Fruit. While awaiting Zhuo Ming's return, Chen Mobai, having just achieved a breakthrough, proceeded to the adjacent Longevity Wood Dao Field.

Fu Zongjue was currently manipulating two Purple Yang Puppets in a sparring match. One moved with the precision of an extension of his own arm, while the other, though stiff in movement, glowed with greater spiritual radiance, seemingly crafted from superior materials. Since Chen Mobai had mastered the Extreme Yang Slash, he could effortlessly cut pieces of fourth-tier Longevity Wood. Consequently, Fu Zongjue, who had previously been constrained by the availability of this material, was now able to fully indulge his passion.

"Junior Brother, you've arrived at a perfect time. These Purple Yang Puppets no longer offer me much challenge. I now wish to attempt reconstructing our patriarch's Little Azure Dragon. Please, come and observe." Upon seeing Chen Mobai, Fu Zongjue ceased fine-tuning his new Purple Yang Puppet and invited him over to the large table inside his cave dwelling. The table was covered with the complete blueprints for the fourth-tier Longevity Wood Dragon, featuring numerous fresh ink annotations, evidently Fu Zongjue's own insights during his studies.

"Since Senior Brother wishes to pursue this, you certainly have my full support." As Fu Zongjue had asked Chen Mobai to cut pieces from his own Longevity Wood, Chen Mobai felt no compunction.

"It's merely a pity that the remains of our patriarch's Little Azure Dragon are within the Primordial Immortal City. If we had that as a reference, we wouldn't be limited to crafting only fragments of scales and armor, as we are now." However, crafting a fourth-tier Longevity Wood Dragon far surpassed the current limits of Fu Zongjue's puppetry. Thus, even if he wished to proceed, he could not construct the main body of the wood dragon.

Chen Mobai observed the dragon scales Fu Zongjue had fashioned from Longevity Wood bark, finding them remarkably lifelike. His eyes brightened further when he picked up a branch that Fu Zongjue had shaped to resemble a forked dragon horn. Most components for puppetry in the Eastern Reaches had to be crafted by hand, and Fu Zongjue's creations were akin to works of art. Unfortunately, the fourth-tier Longevity Wood was exceptionally hard. Without the Extreme Yang Slash, Fu Zongjue was unable to significantly work with such formidable material.

Chen Mobai was one of the Immortal Sect's rare third-tier puppeteers, practically a leading expert in the field of puppetry. Thus, in discussions with Fu Zongjue, Chen Mobai often offered surprising insights, resolving many of Fu Zongjue's perplexities regarding puppetry. Fu Zongjue, while astonished, simply attributed this to Chen Mobai having received the true teachings of the Longevity Puppetry Art.

"Senior Brother, completing this Little Azure Dragon will likely be quite challenging. Perhaps we could start with some simpler fourth-tier puppets instead?" Chen Mobai offered a subtle suggestion. The truth was, he had reviewed the blueprints for the fourth-tier Longevity Wood Dragon and knew that at least a fourth-tier puppeteer would be required to complete it independently. Although Fu Zongjue was already the premier puppeteer in the Eastern Reaches, dedicating himself to this specific endeavor would likely take decades to yield any significant results. He could undoubtedly spend that time more productively.

"Junior Brother, are you suggesting... the puppets of Mount Liujia!?" Although Fu Zongjue was a technical recluse, he was quick-witted and immediately understood Chen Mobai's implication.

"Precisely. The Six Ding Six Jia Puppetry Art is far simpler than the Longevity Wood Dragon. Furthermore, when our sect reclaims the Five Elements Sect in the future, we might acquire the remnants of Patriarch Primordial's Little Azure Dragon from Zhou Ye. Why, then, should Senior Brother expend his time on this now?" Fu Zongjue found this reasoning very persuasive. His primary motivation had been a degree of complacency after completely mastering the Purple Yang Puppets, making him wish to achieve a grand feat immediately. However, over the past year, even with Chen Mobai providing ample Longevity Wood materials, Fu Zongjue had only managed to craft minor components, which had already left him somewhat disheartened. With Chen Mobai's suggestion, he readily agreed, choosing to postpone work on the Longevity Wood Dragon for the time being.

"Hahaha, both Junior Brothers are here!" At that moment, Zhou Shengqing's voice drifted in from outside. After being relieved of the pressure from the Xuanxiao Dao Palace, he had spent most of these past years within the territory of the Five Elements Sect. On several occasions, he had disguised himself as an ordinary cultivator and entered Primordial Immortal City to observe and explore the shifting patterns of the Profound Mechanism Five Elements Array. Unfortunately, Zhou Ye resided permanently in the heart of the immortal city, the array's most fortified point. Zhou Shengqing greatly feared that revealing his Nascent Soul cultivation might not guarantee an instant kill, thereby alerting the enemy or even trapping himself within the grand array. Thus, he had never made a move.

Zhou Shengqing's return this time was prompted by news regarding the Eastern Yi. The news was that Bitter Bamboo had finally quelled all opposition within Empty Mulberry Valley and was now leading the sect's thousands of cultivators out of their grand array, majestically marching towards Mirror Mountain, the location of the Xuanxiao Dao Palace. As the Five Elements Sect had closer ties with the Sun-Bathing Sea than the Divine Wood Sect, news reached Primordial Immortal City much faster. Upon learning this, Zhou Shengqing immediately hurried back.

"This is indeed good news. Although the Xuanxiao Dao Palace now only has four Core Formation cultivators, Old Ghost Jinfeng remains. Relying on their mountain-protecting grand array, they could hold out for at least a decade, even against Empty Mulberry Valley's army." Chen Mobai listened, then calmly analyzed the situation. Back when he slew Yan Fusheng, Mount Liujia, despite lacking any Core Formation cultivators, managed to resist their Divine Wood Sect army for nearly a year by relying on its fourth-tier grand array. If the Xuanxiao Dao Palace was determined to entrench itself, even with two Nascent Soul cultivators from Empty Mulberry Valley pressuring them, breaching Mirror Mountain would likely not be an easy task.

"The Xuanxiao Dao Palace will undoubtedly be too preoccupied to intervene. Therefore, let us seize this opportunity to unify the Eastern Reaches." Zhou Shengqing had initially only aimed to return to the Five Elements Sect and prove himself the most fitting successor to Patriarch Primordial's legacy. However, over the years, under Chen Mobai's influence, he had developed a more proactive, proprietary mindset. As the dominant power in the Eastern Reaches, their Divine Wood Sect, faced with this unprecedented era, had both the responsibility and the obligation to end the long-standing chaos and usher in an era of lasting peace for this region!