Cultivation is just so scientific! Chapter 1404 - 748: Ten Years (Part 2)

The Identity Jade Disc resting on his person began to vibrate while he was immersed in a state of profound cultivation.

Because he was not in a state of total seclusion, he had maintained a fragment of divine sense to monitor external matters.

This sliver of consciousness focused on the Identity Jade Disc, discovering an urgent missive from Jian Wuwei, his mentor.

With a sense of resignation, he started to consolidate his internal spiritual power, gradually withdrawing from his meditative trance.

A significant amount of energy from a Fourth-grade Advanced Spirit Pill remained unabsorbed within him; typically, a cultivator would be loath to halt so abruptly, as the remaining essence of such a high-tier pill would be squandered.

However, Li Yuanba was indifferent toward Fourth-grade Advanced Spirit Pills; since reaching the Nascent Soul Middle Stage, he had consumed them in ever-increasing quantities.

Throughout the last decade, any sword cultivator at the Sword Intent Chongxiao Pavilion who could claim a connection to him sought him out by any means necessary. Even though his alchemy fees far exceeded those of other Alchemy Masters, the fervor of the sword cultivators never waned.

The primary reason was that every Fourth-grade Spirit Pill he produced was of the Advanced grade.

The efficacy of a single Fourth-grade Advanced Spirit Pill was several times that of a Mid-level Fourth Grade Spirit Pill, and it outperformed a Junior-level pill by more than tenfold.

Moreover, these Advanced pills left behind minimal medicinal impurities, which allowed for shorter intervals between doses and significantly boosted a cultivator's efficiency.

In terms of market value, one could not even trade ten Mid-level pills for a single Fourth-grade Advanced Spirit Pill; no sane cultivator would agree to such an exchange.

Rumors also circulated that consistent use of these Advanced pills provided subtle advantages, such as refining more potent spiritual power. However, since very few could afford to consume them continuously, these claims remained hearsay without empirical data.

In those ten years, the sheer volume of Nascent Soul Early Stage Fourth Grade Elixirs crafted by his main body, Li Shiming, had fulfilled nearly half the requirements for the Nascent Soul Middle Stage cultivators within the Sword Intent Chongxiao Pavilion.

It was unavoidable; the sword cultivators of the pavilion were relentless in finding mutual acquaintances to funnel alchemy requests his way.

He never intended to turn these commissions down, as it only required a brief trip to collect the materials every now and then.

For Li Shiming, the process was even more effortless; his personal cultivation was never interrupted, as six Fourth Grade Pill Furnaces operated simultaneously within the infirmary space. Unless the task involved Great Cultivator Spirit Pills, any workload was handled with ease.

Exhaling a cloud of pill gas—the residual energy of the Fourth-grade Advanced Spirit Pills—Li Yuanba stood up.

He retrieved his Identity Jade Disc, sent a reply, and walked out of the Cultivation Room.

Leaving his cave, he took flight toward the residence of his mentor, Jian Wuwei.

Despite Jian Wuwei only being at the Nascent Soul Early Stage, he held a prestigious position at Sword Intent Chongxiao Pavilion due to his status in the Jian Family’s core bloodline.

His cave was located in a prime spot near the center of the Sword Cave Heaven.

The entrance opened automatically the moment Li Yuanba arrived.

Entering the cave, he found Jian Wuwei and Great Cultivator Lou sitting across from each other, with a deathly pale Lou Wu resting beside them.

"Junior Master Lou, Mentor, what has happened to Lou Wu?" Li Yuanba asked. He had only been told that Lou Wu was in trouble, but the young man's actual state was far worse than he had anticipated.

He felt he hadn't been the most attentive mentor to Lou Wu.

Luckily, Jian Wuwei had been there to look after his grand-disciple. Despite being at the same cultivation level as Lou Wu, Jian Wuwei possessed core inheritances and secret knowledge of the Jian Family that gave him a theoretical understanding of sword cultivation that even surpassed Great Cultivator Lou.

Lou Wu frequently sought guidance from Jian Wuwei; although the world of cultivation prizes raw power, sect hierarchy and lineage remain paramount.

Even with Jian Wuwei’s lower cultivation, Lou Wu was required to treat him with the respect due to an ancestor.

"Lou Wu was caught in an ambush while traveling. We have administered Fourth-grade Advanced Healing Spirit Pills, yet his condition remains unstable!" Great Cultivator Lou replied, his voice thick with anxiety for his son.

Li Yuanba moved to Lou Wu’s side and extended his divine sense.

While probing another's body with divine sense is usually a grave taboo, as Lou Wu’s mentor, Li Yuanba ignored such etiquette.

The damage to Lou Wu’s physical form and Nascent Soul was strange; a corrosive energy was slowly tainting his entire being.

His internal system was saturated with medicinal power, proving he had already taken several Fourth-grade Advanced Healing Spirit Pills.

Such heavy usage meant he wouldn't be able to benefit from similar pills for a long time.

Lou Wu must have realized this, implying his injuries were so dire that he had no other choice but to risk it.

It was Li Yuanba who had originally given those High Grade Healing Spirit Pills to his disciple for emergencies. Those pills, combined with the protective charms from Great Cultivator Lou, were the only reason Lou Wu was still alive.

Li Yuanba sighed and shook his head; Lou Wu seemed to be a magnet for trouble. During their last encounter, he had also barely escaped death.

However, the previous wounds were easily mended by pills; these new injuries were far more resilient.

Fortunately, over the last decade, Li Shiming’s research had significantly enhanced their control over the 'Innate Wood' Divine Power.

With a flick of his wrist, he unleashed several waves of 'Innate Wood' Divine Power. Beams of verdant wood-element light descended upon Lou Wu, bathing both his body and Nascent Soul in a restorative glow.

Li Yuanba cast the 'Innate Wood' Divine Power ten times in rapid succession, draining every bit of the rune energy he had stored.

"He is out of danger now," he remarked, checking Lou Wu’s pulse once more before relaxing.

His mastery of the 'Innate Wood' Divine Power was still in its early stages, far from reaching its full potential.

At the pinnacle of mastery, this wood-element power would grant near-immortality, allowing a cultivator to instantly regenerate from even the most devastating attacks.

In his current state, however, healing Lou Wu had completely exhausted his reserves of 'Innate Wood' rune energy.

"This boy is a constant burden to you!" Great Cultivator Lou said, his face finally showing relief as he thanked Li Yuanba.

"I have been a negligent mentor; this is the least I should do," Li Yuanba replied with a wave of his hand. He then looked at Lou Wu and asked, "Who did this to you?"

The last time Lou Wu was harmed, Li Yuanba had nearly wiped the Qianren Sect off the map.

"I will deal with this. Lou Wu had a dispute with some members of the Infinite Sect, and a group of them happened to be nearby and swarmed him," Great Cultivator Lou explained on his son's behalf.

Li Yuanba frowned, skeptical of such a "coincidence."

Back in Langcai Cave Heaven, he had become a mortal enemy of Che Lian from the Infinite Sect.

Even though he hadn't left his cave in ten years, he stayed informed about the world.

Che Lian’s life had been miserable; labeled as ungrateful, his reputation was ruined, which in turn shamed the Infinite Sect.

Consequently, the Infinite Sect stripped Che Lian of his core status. Now a mere rank-and-file cultivator, his path to higher stages was effectively blocked.

Naturally, Li Yuanba had become the target of the Infinite Sect's bitterness.

He couldn't be certain if Lou Wu's ambush was retaliation, but he had his suspicions.

He kept these thoughts to himself. The solution was simple: he would go out and draw the Infinite Sect’s ire toward himself, protecting those around him from the consequences.

Besides, it was time for him to travel. Ten years of cultivation had brought his spiritual power and sword intent to new heights.

However, his sword intent was currently based on theory; he needed real combat to validate the research Li Shiming had conducted.