Translator: Cinder Translations
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"Ji Yin Junior Brother, in the year you've been away, I successfully expanded the planting scale of the Demon Spirit Grass. Within ten years, the yield should double. Outside, I've also bought some from the Wu Yuan Market, and the Dragon Strength pills refined from them will be enough to meet the needs of a Shadow Gu Worm."
Zhou Siyi spoke with great enthusiasm, almost as if seeking praise.
"Thank you for your hard work, Senior Sister," Song Wen replied gratefully.
"Also, regarding the 'stronger version of the Blood Qi Pill' you asked me to refine, I have some ideas," Zhou Siyi continued.
She then took out a jade slip and handed it to Song Wen.
"All my ideas are recorded in this jade slip. Please take a look," she said.
Song Wen took the jade slip and probed its contents with his spiritual sense.
Zhou Siyi's idea was to improve and refine a type of fourth-grade pill called the "Return to Heaven Pill."
The Return to Heaven Pill is a healing pill.
When severely injured, taking this pill can stimulate the body's blood energy, temporarily revitalizing the cultivator's physical condition. However, once the pill's effect fades, the cultivator becomes even weaker than before.
This pill is generally used as a last resort in a life-or-death situation.
Zhou Siyi had replaced two core herbs and several auxiliary herbs in the pill formula.
The replacement of the core herbs was to allow the stimulated blood energy to transform into spiritual power.
As for the auxiliary herbs, she adjusted their types according to the properties of the new core herbs to ensure that the pill could be successfully refined.
"Ji Yin Junior Brother, my understanding of fourth-grade pills is limited. Based on the refining experiences you provided and my own understanding, I came up with this new formula. But there may be many issues with it, and it will need your personal adjustments and improvements," Zhou Siyi explained.
Song Wen had refined the fourth-grade "Nascent Spirit Pill" before, so his understanding of fourth-grade pills was far superior to Zhou Siyi's.
He could immediately tell that there were indeed some flaws in the new formula.
However, he could also see that Zhou Siyi had put considerable effort and time into coming up with this new formula.
"Senior Sister, you have to manage the spiritual fields, refine the Dragon Strength pills to feed the Gu Worms, and now you're thinking about this new pill formula. I'm afraid you won't have time to cultivate properly. You don't need to work so hard. If it affects your cultivation for my sake, I'll feel uneasy," Song Wen said, a bit reluctant.
"It's nothing. Helping Junior Brother makes me very happy," Zhou Siyi replied, clearly not wanting to dwell on this matter further. She quickly changed the subject.
"Junior Brother, this new pill formula involves many third and fourth-grade spiritual herbs. It will be difficult to buy them on the market. We'll need to figure out how to get the seeds or unharvested plants of these herbs and cultivate them in the spiritual fields at Qingluo Mountain. Otherwise, even if we successfully create a formula that meets your expectations, we won't be able to refine pills in large quantities over the long term."
The reason major sects restrict the development of loose cultivators is because some rare spiritual herbs will not circulate in the markets, and their seeds are even less likely to be found there.
Song Wen nodded. From a long-term perspective, Zhou Siyi's idea made sense.
He scanned the list of herbs mentioned in the jade slip and asked, "Do other forces in the Yishi Ridge have any of the herbs mentioned in the formula?"
Zhou Siyi replied, "Yes! There are about eight or nine types of auxiliary herbs that can be bought in Yishi Ridge."
"Buy them?" Song Wen's eyes gleamed with a sharp light. "I don't intend to buy them."
"Junior Brother, what do you plan to do?" Zhou Siyi asked curiously.
"The new pill formula involves too many types of herbs. Relying solely on you and me, plus Qingluo Mountain, we would need many years to gather them all. I plan to consolidate the forces in Yishi Ridge and have the entire region help me collect the herbs. I will even have the loose cultivators in Yishi Ridge plant these herbs for me," Song Wen said.
Zhou Siyi noticed that Song Wen, at this moment, was very different from usual.
Most of the time, Song Wen gave her the impression of being low-key and hidden in the shadows.
But at this moment, he exuded a sharpness that was hard to ignore.
"Junior Brother, do you plan to establish a force in Yishi Ridge?" Zhou Siyi asked.
Song Wen nodded. "One's personal strength is limited. To have a continuous source of cultivation resources, I must rely on more power."
"But Yishi Ridge is a buffer zone between the righteous and demonic paths. If you establish a force here, neither side will likely approve," Zhou Siyi said with some concern.
Song Wen replied, "We'll deal with them when they come. At worst, we abandon the newly established force and flee. It won't cost us anything."
"Since Junior Brother has made his decision, I will naturally give my full support," Zhou Siyi said with firm resolve.
"Thank you, Senior Sister," Song Wen said.
"Junior Brother, where do you plan to start?" Zhou Siyi asked.
"Let's begin with the Golden Core Loose Cultivators' gathering three days from now. At that time, I will need your assistance," Song Wen said, his eyes gleaming sharply.
"Junior Brother, what do you need me to do?"
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Three days later.
Zhou Siyi arrived at Wu Yuan Market and flew straight to a pavilion at the center of the workshop.
The top floor of the pavilion had no walls, only a dozen pillars supporting the roof.
Zhou Siyi's figure appeared on the top floor of the pavilion.
This was the gathering place for Golden Core loose cultivators in Yishi Ridge.
These Golden Core cultivators did not trust each other and were wary of being ambushed on another's territory. As a result, the gathering was held in this pavilion, which had no formations or defensive arrays.
When Zhou Siyi arrived, four cultivators were already waiting there—three men and one woman.
As she approached, a man in a black robe came forward to greet her. This was Xiao Chen, a late-stage Golden Core cultivator.
Xiao Chen's cheeks were sunken, his eyes deep-set, and his frame extremely thin, as if his body was merely skin stretched over bones, with barely any flesh.
His entire being exuded a dense ghostly aura, making it obvious at a glance that he was a demonic cultivator practicing the ghost path.
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"Fairy Zhou!" Xiao Chen's tone carried a hint of surprise. "Fairy, this must be your first time attending the gathering."
Xiao Chen noticed that Zhou Siyi carried a high-grade magical artifact that concealed her aura, making it impossible for him to discern her cultivation level.
Previously, when Song Wen killed Fu Mei, he had used a technique to obscure the perception of others with killing intent. Thus, the outside world only knew that Qingluo Mountain had two Golden Core cultivators capable of killing late-stage Golden Core cultivators but was unaware of their exact cultivation levels.
As a result, Xiao Chen was quite wary of Zhou Siyi.
"I've been busy cultivating recently. My apologies for missing your previous invitations, Xiao Chen. I hope you won't take offense," Zhou Siyi said.
Xiao Chen's gaunt face twisted into a grotesque smile, one ugly enough to make children cry.
"You're too kind, Fairy Zhou. Please, have a seat."
As he spoke, Xiao Chen gestured toward a nearby empty stone chair.
"Thank you, Fellow Daoist Chen," Zhou Siyi replied.
As she walked toward the stone chair, the other three Golden Core cultivators immediately stood up.
"Daoist Zhou, come sit by my side," said the only female cultivator present.
This woman had an ordinary appearance and looked to be about forty years old.
"Thank you, Fellow Daoist Yu Wen," Zhou Siyi said as she approached the female cultivator.
Having been in Yishi Ridge for over a year, Zhou Siyi naturally knew the names of these Golden Core loose cultivators.
The other two male Golden Core cultivators also greeted Zhou Siyi warmly.
(End of the Chapter)
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