Chapter 34 Soul Recovery
Zhong Cai and Wu Shaogan were somewhat confused.
Wu Shaogan looked at Zhong Cai and asked, "Shall we go in or not?"
Zhong Cai's lips twitched slightly, and she really wanted to ask back—Old Wu, what makes you think we can go in?
But then he thought, after all, he and his buddy had been inseparable, and they had grown up together and had a great rapport.
People often say that couples eventually develop a familial bond and live together in a way that shows they understand each other very well... So, how can this not be considered a de facto married couple?
That makes sense, but Zhong Cai still felt something was off.
Seeing Zhong Cai lost in thought, Wu Shaogan nudged him: "Cai?"
Zhong Cai snapped out of his daze, stared at the stone tablet for a while, and suddenly felt a surge of competitiveness, saying, "Go!"
Wu Shaogan raised an eyebrow.
Zhong Cai snorted: "If a lover's feelings are sincere, are Tiezi's feelings not sincere? Huang Qing also said he planned to come with his friends. He has that confidence. Is our friendship not as good as his and his friends'? Besides, we meet the requirements."
Wu Shaogan's pupils were tremor-like.
Zhong Cai continued, "We've done everything a husband and wife should do, judging by our actions, not our intentions."
Wu Shaogan remained silent.
Judging by actions, not intentions... is that how it's used?
However, if A-Cai wants to go, then let her go.
The two exchanged a glance.
Zhong Cai extended her hand.
Wu Shaogan held his hand.
Zhong Cai looked down and still felt something was off.
But he immediately raised his voice, pointed ahead with high spirits, and shouted, "Old Wu! Let's wipe out their lair!"
Wu Shaogan found his reaction amusing and laughed, agreeing, "Take it!"
·
Xiang Lin remained outside the cave.
If anything unusual happens in the cave, he will rush in and destroy the illusion array.
Qingyu and Qinghui, who had already reached the second level and had been hiding in the two people's sleeves, were now left outside to be cared for by Xiang Lin.
·
The moment we stepped into the cave, the illusion array was indeed activated.
Zhong Cai's consciousness blurred for a moment, and she found herself in a mountain forest, roasting meat over a campfire.
Zhong Da stood guard nearby; the surroundings were very quiet.
The grilled meat sizzled and dripped with oil, and Zhong Cai ate with great relish. After finishing the piece in his hand, he devoured two or three more. However, there was still one piece left that looked particularly tender, and he considered grilling it several times, but for some reason, he didn't touch it.
Zhong Cai sat in front of the campfire, waiting, but felt a sense of emptiness.
Why is no one here...? No, he didn't make any appointments with anyone. Who is he waiting for?
Zhong Cai thought this to herself, but she still didn't leave.
He didn't sleep a wink all night, from evening until morning.
However, no one ever came.
Zhong Cai endured it for a long time, but finally couldn't hold back any longer. She jumped up, pointed at the sky, and shouted, "Where is he? Where is my Tiezi? I don't remember who he is, but I'm not stupid! Someone must be hiding! Hurry up and let him out!"
As if in response to him, cracks appeared in the sky all around.
At this moment, countless memories rushed into Zhong Cai's consciousness...
Zhong Cai muttered, "I told you I had a close friend, give Lao Wu back to me!"
·
In another illusion.
Wu Shaogan walked alone in the mountains, carrying a longbow, his face indifferent.
This was something he was used to.
Because his strength had reached the peak of the Palace-Opening Realm, even the death guard Xiang Lin wouldn't always be by his side—when traveling at high speed, Xiang Lin simply couldn't keep up with him.
Gradually, Wu Shaogan walked to the front of a low slope.
There are a few clumps of bushes and a stream.
There was nothing in front of the stream.
Wu Shaogan stood quietly not far away, looking at the open space.
There should be people there.
Someone should call him over.
But no.
Wu Shaogan did not leave; he stood there until dawn.
Still no one.
Why isn't it there?
A surge of rage welled up from the bottom of Wu Shaogan's heart, and the ferocity in his eyes was almost uncontrollable.
The next instant, he drew back the bowstring and shot straight into the air!
Space shattered.
Wu Shaogan looked enlightened.
Acai.
...Then he heard A-Cai cursing and swearing.
"That's too much! How could you just make Old Wu disappear like that? Is this how you do things?!"
"Luckily, I'm smart! Even if it's an illusion, it shouldn't be this cruel, right?"
"I don't know what kind of settings were used, it's infuriating!"
Wu Shaogan looked at the handsome young man who was jumping up and down.
The boy happened to look over as well, seemingly searching for something.
Their eyes met.
Wu Shaogan couldn't help but laugh, and the violence in his eyes vanished instantly.
·
Zhong Caigang had just regained consciousness and couldn't help but complain a few more times, while also scanning her surroundings.
Upon seeing the familiar figure, he immediately ran over.
"Old Wu! You scared me to death!"
Wu Shaogan opened his arms and caught him.
The two shared a tight hug.
Zhong Cai was still muttering, "Let me tell you, this illusion is just too much..."
After listening to Zhong Cai's story, Wu Shaogan also told him about his own illusion.
Zhong Cai let out a breath and said unhappily, "We've never even encountered this thing before. What can it test? Can it test whether we can sense something's wrong? Even if we didn't notice anything, what does that prove?"
Wu Shaogan patted Zhong Cai on the back and guessed, "Perhaps there's some hidden setting, like those with shallower feelings are more easily immersed in illusions?"
Zhong Cai pouted: "Even if what you guessed is true, it's normal for a young couple to have just gotten together and not have a deep enough relationship yet. After coming in through this illusion, they'll just look at each other awkwardly! Their feelings for each other will probably never have a chance to deepen."
Wu Shaogan smiled.
After all, the inheritance belongs to the cave master, and setting up an illusionary array to test lovers will inevitably involve the weaknesses of their feelings. If you want to obtain what's inside the inheritance, you should naturally be prepared for this beforehand.
But Wu Shaogan wouldn't explain for the cave master at all.
He still feels lingering fear when he recalls not meeting A-Cai in the illusion.
Zhong Cai muttered to herself for a while, then grabbed Wu Shaogan's hand and said regretfully, "I wanted to come in and play, but it made you feel bad. I shouldn't be so curious in the future, always wanting to join in the fun."
Wu Shaogan chuckled: "It's only right to actively seize opportunities when they arise. Besides, I believe in our relationship."
Zhong Cai felt a little more at ease, and her spirits lifted.
"Alright, let's keep going and see what other trouble we can cause!"
Wu Shaogan held him tightly and walked with him deeper into the area.
·
The illusion array set up at the cave entrance is quite complex, and there are three levels of challenges.
The first condition is that neither of them has met the other.
The second challenge is that both of them are ordinary people, and when they encounter danger during their training, will they share the hardship together? Zhong Cai and Wu Shaogan both want to cover the rear and let the other run first.
The third issue is the intrusion of a third party, both male and female, each with their own unique charm, seemingly capable of capturing the hearts of both Zhong Cai and Wu Shaogan... but unfortunately, none of them captured their hearts.
Zhong Cai has a better temperament. He rejects anyone who tries to flirt with him. If they don't listen to his rejection and keep bothering him, he ignores them. But when they get really annoying... well, if I can't afford to mess with them, can't I at least avoid them?
Wu Shaogan was more ruthless. Although he would refuse first, if the other party refused to leave, he would think that the other party had other purposes. At best, he would beat them up, and at worst, he would beat them to death.
·
After the three illusions, a blurry phantom asked the two ten questions.
The questions involve the preferences of both the challenger and the partner, as well as memorable experiences related to each other.
But there were indeed no traps. All the questions would not be related to the challenger's cultivation, but only to the relationship between the two.
After the questioning ended, Zhong Cai and Wu Shaogan met again and smiled confidently.
You only pass if you have eight or more identical answers to a question; otherwise, you'll all appear outside the cave together.
At this moment, the two were standing side by side in a stone chamber.
·
Zhong Cai looked around and sighed, "What a place to live!"
Wu Shaogan also took a look and agreed, "All kinds of furnishings are available. The tables, chairs and beds were all purchased. They are quite old, but not damaged. The quality should be good."
Both of them knew that it was precisely because they wanted to live well here that they made the cave dwelling as comfortable as possible, and it was indeed suitable for a couple to live together.
On the long table in the side room, there were several resources.
And a letter.
The two walked over, but did not immediately take the letter.
Wu Shaogan fired a feint arrow in that direction—but there was no other reaction.
Zhong Cai thought for a moment, then took out several precious herbs, quickly squeezed and mixed them to create a juice, which she carefully splashed onto the long table and the letters.
Half an hour later, the juice showed no other changes.
Wu Shaogan then occasionally fired an arrow in other directions, but nothing seemed amiss.
Only then did the two feel relieved and went to the long table to read the letter.
Zhong Cai and Wu Shaogan met head to head and browsed together.
This letter...
I only realized how thin the paper was after I opened it; it had been folded many times.
If it were fully unfolded, it would be at least several feet long.
Zhong Cai: "..."
Wu Shaogan: "..."
Is it really necessary to write so much in a letter to the inheritor?
·
The first page of the letter describes the design of the illusion array.
The guesses of Wu Shaogan were pretty much the same: the deeper the feelings, the easier it is to notice something is wrong; the shallower the feelings, the easier it is to become addicted.
However, the cave owners had no intention of harming anyone; they simply wanted to find a loving couple to entrust their inheritance to.
As long as the feelings are there, they'll give each other everything.
Starting from the second page, it becomes a lengthy love story between the cave master and his Daoist partner.
This story begins from their first meeting and continues until his death.
What exactly is it about?
There was no way to cultivate, no way to acquire resources, no way to obtain opportunities...
The cave master confessed his love at first sight, lavishly praising his Daoist partner's charm and detailing how he had worked so hard to win her heart, and how they had lived a carefree life together as independent cultivators. Of course, some misunderstandings had occurred along the way, but they had both given each other a chance to explain, so their love remained as strong as ever.
Unfortunately, neither of them was able to break through to the Enlightenment Realm. Seeing that they would die in a dozen years, they took all their savings and went into seclusion here, spending their last days in peace.
·
Zhong Cai scribbled the paper upwards page by page, and Wu Shaogan caught and folded them one by one.
Both of them were deeply moved after reading the entire tender and poignant text.
Zhong Cai was utterly astonished: "Old Wu, did you count just now? How many pages are there in total? Besides the first page, there are only three pages left!"
Wu Shaogan's feelings were complicated: "I counted, there are twenty-six pages."
Zhong Cai: "..."
It's a long story.
What's even more bizarre is that this cave owner really didn't reveal any other information!
It's all about love!
Wu Shaogan remained silent, tugged at the paper, and said, "The last three pages should get to the important stuff."
Zhong Cai then unfolded the last few pages.
Sure enough, they finally started talking about the inheritance.
The third-to-last page explains that there is a box in the inheritance containing one hundred Xuanzhu pearls.
Meanwhile, the rest of the text focuses entirely on the loving relationship between the author and their Daoist partner throughout their lives, how the partner saved money, and how they accumulated their savings. The inheritor, after taking the Mystic Pearl, also vows to maintain a loving relationship with their partner for life, and so on…
Basically, it's all about showing off their love, and then reminding those who come after them to remember the love between the cave masters and their husbands when they're being affectionate.
Zhong Cai remained silent and looked at the second-to-last page.
This page directly introduces two second-grade superior-level mystic artifacts: a spear and a fan, both of good quality and power; a second-tier cultivation technique, two spear manuals, and a fan technique manual, all quite exquisite; and three bottles of pills: a head-protecting pill, a heart-protecting pill, and a meridian-protecting pill, all surprisingly of mid-grade, corresponding to the three difficulties of the Heavenly Guidance Realm, showing considerable thoughtfulness.
Zhong Cai said irritably, "Finally, you've stopped nagging."
Wu Shao chuckled dryly, "The handwriting on this page is not from the same person as the previous ones."
Zhong Cai was taken aback, then looked at it again and immediately said, "That's right! This must have been written by the cave master's partner; their personalities are completely different."
The couple who owned the cave were probably inseparable throughout their lives, and they influenced each other deeply, even their handwriting was very similar.
Only through careful observation can subtle differences be detected.
The two compared these descriptions with the items on the long table, and found that only half of the jade tablet was still missing.
Zhong Cai took the jade tablet.
This must be something that has some information recorded on it.
Wu Shaogan's gaze fell on the last page, and his fingers froze slightly after just one glance.
Zhong Cai looked back at the jade tablet and asked, "What is this? Have you explained it?"
Wu Shaogan hesitated.
Zhong Cai simply moved closer to him, shoved the jade tablet into his hand, and glanced down at the paper—
The Jade Inlay Dual Cultivation Method
There is also a saying left by the cave master: "Dragon and phoenix bring good fortune, harmony and endless joy."
Zhong Cai hissed, feeling a slight burning sensation in her eyes.
Wu Shaogan then focused his mind on the jade tablet, then froze for a moment before handing it back to Zhong Cai.
Zhong Cai was bored and his mind sank into the task.
"The Jade Inlay Dual Cultivation Method - Part 1", featuring auspicious dragons and phoenixes, and harmonious union of fish and water.
Those who are suited to the Heavenly Guidance and the Palace-Opening Realm are cultivators.
Then came large, clear, overlapping images.
Male to male, male and female, female and female, female and male...
Zhong Cai leaned back, but luckily Wu Shaogan caught her.
The jade tablet was tossed back onto the long table with a crisp sound.
·
Zhong Cai gasped, exclaiming in surprise, "Old Wu, what you saw was also that kind of process?"
Wu Shaogan nodded silently.
The two looked at each other, their ears turning slightly red.
Then, they all looked at the last page of the letter, at the small print below the dual cultivation method.
This time, the handwriting was a mixture of the cave master's and his partner's—it was obvious that the cave master might have been speaking too carelessly, and his partner quickly erased the parts that shouldn't have been written.
Looking at it more closely now, you can see that it was told in a very serious manner.
The couple who own the cave said that they have tried this dual cultivation method and found that it is not only harmless, but also greatly enhances each other.
Although their aptitude and opportunities were not good enough, which prevented them from making further breakthroughs, their cultivation speed doubled after practicing this method.
Furthermore, after they used this method to fuse their auras over a long period, their companion treasures became imbued with the aura of each other's treasures. When they fought again, their attacks could be combined, increasing their power by three to five times.
This dual cultivation technique is the most precious thing in their heritage. However, it requires genuine feelings and no selfishness towards each other during cultivation, otherwise the cultivation will fail.
That's why they set up the illusion array that way and made those demands.
Besides entrusting the inheritance, it also meant not wanting to betray this dual cultivation technique.
·
Zhong Cai thought for a moment, then looked at Wu Shaogan.
Wu Shaogan silently looked back.
Both of them recalled a few months ago, when they were trying to heal their wounds...
Zhong Cai cleared her throat: "Obviously, this technique is not suitable for us."
Wu Shaogan paused for a moment and said, "I haven't even been able to summon my companion treasure yet."
Zhong Cai solemnly said, "But this opportunity is still very precious to other cultivators in the Heavenly Guidance Realm, so what I mean is..."
Wu Shaogan suppressed his somewhat strange emotions and, as always, tacitly completed the second half of Zhong Cai's sentence.
"We'll keep the Xuanzhu for ourselves. We don't need the pills, Xuan weapons, and other cultivation techniques, so we can give them to Huang Qing."
Zhong Cai nodded, pondering, "And this cultivation method that the cave masters specifically instructed..."
Wu Shaogan said, "Why don't we also make a copy for Huang Qing?"
Zhong Cai looked at the jade tablet, recalling its contents, and hesitated, "Who copied it?"
Wu Shaogan: "...I'll do it."
Zhong Cai immediately relaxed: "Then let's do it this way!"
Next, Zhong Cai casually put the jade tablet into her mustard seed bag.
Wu Shaogan then gathered the other resources together, intending to give them to Huang Qing when they met again.
Zhong Cai said smugly, "We're such great people, aren't we? We've really done right by Huang Qing, haven't we?"
Wu Shaogan chuckled: "Yes, a very good person."
·
Finally, the two explored the cave and, following the only request in the "will," found a wooden coffin in a dark room.
The cave owners, a husband and wife, lay inside, embracing each other, now reduced to ashes.
Wu Shaogan lit a fire and precisely burned the two skeletons to ashes, then used talismans to gather the ashes together.
Zhong Cai found a level-two mystical artifact bottle in a corner of the dark room; it was an urn prepared for them by the cave master and his wife.
The two put the ashes into bottles.
Immediately, Wu Shaogan dug a large hole on the spot, put the urn into the ground nine feet deep, and buried it again.
Zhong Cai pulled Wu Shaogan out of the dark room, and the moment they closed the stone door, they activated a formation—left by the cave master and his wife—that could make the land more compact and largely indestructible.
·
The two left the cave.
Xiang Lin felt slightly relieved upon seeing the two of them.
At that moment, a loud bang suddenly came from behind the two of them.
It turns out that after the inheritance is taken away and the inheritor leaves, the illusion array will also destroy the cave.
The cave owners, husband and wife, can now rest peacefully and peacefully underground.
·
In the blink of an eye, a month has passed.
Having already gone out to join in the fun, Zhong Cai has started staying home again.
Aside from further tempering his bones and raising his strength to the peak of the sixth level of the Heavenly Guidance Realm by consuming Qi-replenishing pills, he spent all his other time refining Soul-Nourishing Pills.
They can still produce eighteen batches of pills every day, and each batch can now consistently produce four top-grade pills.
At the end of the month, Zhong Cai calculated the total number of pills and breathed a slight sigh of relief.
There are 4,320 high-grade pills and 2,160 top-grade pills.
Zhong Cai pondered, adding the few hundred pills his buddy hadn't finished eating, and the rest that were refined later, the total was now close to three thousand.
Seeing that his friend's soul would be completely healed in the next two days, and then he would have to start fusing the soul marrow and spiritual heart, he wondered if these three thousand level-one soul nourishing pills would be enough to nourish his friend.
Also, I haven't drawn any cards these past few days. Should I draw a few rounds before we officially merge?
Zhong Cai then calculated the amount of cinnabar essence he had left: 29,777.
That still didn't round up.
Zhong Caili deftly opened several more furnaces, continuing until six furnaces of pills were completed and enough pill essence was gathered before stopping.
It was almost midnight.
Wu Shaogan, sitting with Zhong Cai, said with a smile, "It's time to sleep."
Zhong Cai leaned closer with great interest and said mysteriously, "Guess how many Dan Yun I have now?"
Wu Shaogan chuckled and said, "Do you even need to guess? I know perfectly well how many pills you've refined."
Zhong Cai: "Then name a number."
Wu Shaogan was confident: "Thirty thousand and forty-one."
Zhong Cai's eyes widened: "Wow! You know better than I do."
Wu Shaogan smiled.
The main issue is that although I have things to do, I'm actually quite free.
Zhong Cai said with a grin, "How about we do three rounds of ten consecutive runs to use up all the Dan Yun, and then go to sleep?"
Wu Shaogan had no objection, but smiled and reminded him, "Don't forget to recite the exercise."
Zhong Cai rolled her eyes: "And don't forget to keep chanting about the soul essence and spiritual heart."
The two looked at each other and laughed happily.
·
In front of the Red Flame Pool.
Zhong Cai gestured as she poured all the cinnabar essence into the pool.
The crimson clouds plunged into the flames, swirling and spewing out thirty red seals.
Zhong Cai and Wu Shaogan then began to recite respectively:
"Soul essence, spiritual heart, cultivation techniques, cultivation techniques..."
"Cultivation techniques, soul essence, and spiritual heart..."
The two recited the inscription as they retrieved the envelope.
Zhong Cai gave Wu Shaogan ten.
Wu Shaogan and Zhong Cai opened all the red seals at once!
·
All the procedures are exactly the same as before.
With various flashes of golden light, some large and some small, accompanied by a cloud of smoke, all thirty resources were suspended in mid-air.
As usual, the two collected the low-grade mystic stones first, and this time there were ten in total.
The three guaranteed level 6 rare medicinal herbs are: Stone Heart Leaf, Lotus Beak Fragrance, and Nine-Jointed Ginseng.
Of the remaining seventeen resources, there are—
Five items of level three: two cultivation manuals and three mysterious artifacts;
Seven level-four items: one secret technique, two pills, one rare beast egg, two mystical artifacts, and one ordinary soul marrow and spirit heart;
Three level-five resources: one cultivation technique, one beast fetus, and one soul essence and spirit heart.
Two level-six resources: one jade tablet and one defensive array plate.
·
Zhong Cai ignored everything else and rushed over with a cheer, grabbing the soul essence and spirit heart with both hands.
"What did I say! Isn't reciting it very useful!"
"Old Wu, look! Two pieces of Soul Essence and Spiritual Heart! Two pieces!"
"One is at level four, and another is at the same level! Our luck is just amazing!"
Wu Shaogan was equally shocked.
What's going on? Although A-Cai did invest a lot of Dan Yun, the things she got in return were far too much. Moreover, after reciting it more often, it actually increased the chances of obtaining the resources she wanted?
Wu Shaogan noticed that not only had Soul Essence and Spiritual Heart been produced, but there were also three cultivation techniques. Although the upper limit of third-tier cultivation techniques was relatively low, the fifth-tier ones were already almost the highest-level cultivation techniques in the nearby cities.
At this moment, Wu Shaogan began to have some doubts about the altar.
Too few restrictions, and too much luck...
After her initial excitement subsided, Zhong Cai noticed that Wu Shaogan had a furrowed brow.
Then, with a slight shift in his eyes, he knew what this guy was worried about.
Zhong Cai patted Wu Shaogan on the shoulder, pointed to the edge of the pit, and said to him, "Old Wu, look."
Wu Shaogan looked in that direction and saw that the edge of the Flame Pool was covered with a large circle of golden light.
Zhong Cai pointed to her head again and said, "After I offered the elixir, a lot of information came through, but I was in a hurry to see the results, so I didn't pay attention to it."
"Now that I've taken some time to look into it, I know what's going on."
Wu Shaogan looked at him, waiting for him to explain in detail.
Zhong Cai then said, "When I offer more than 50,000 Dan Yun, I can truly start the altar upgrade process. It turns out that whenever a certain number of Dan Yun is offered, the upgrade can begin."
Wu Shaogan pondered, "Is this circle of golden light the guidance?"
Zhong Cai nodded: "That's right. I've invested more than 75,000 units of alchemical essence so far, and the golden light has remained in about 70-80% of the entire circle. If I calculate it, the altar can be upgraded by one level when I invest about 100,000 units of alchemical essence."
Wu Shaogan understood.
Zhong Cai then pulled Wu Shaogan to the back of the Red Flame Pool.
The flames had just been boiling, obscuring the view here, but once you come closer, you'll find a new deep pit has appeared.
It's about the thickness of a water vat, and its depth is unfathomable.
Zhong Cai explained, "This pit is reserved for me to allocate resources."
Wu Shaogan was taken aback, recalling the scene when he was examining the mutated soul essence and spiritual heart.
"Deploy...upgraded resources?"
Zhong Cai sighed and said, "The altar is a companion treasure that grows with age. I thought that all it needed to upgrade was Dan Yun. But in reality, having enough Dan Yun is just a qualification for upgrading... and perhaps it can be considered one of the materials. But if it wants to truly upgrade, it needs a lot of other resources. And the higher the level of upgrading, the more Dan Yun and resources it needs will probably need."
Wu Shaogan remained silent.
Honestly, this is more reasonable.
Zhong Cai glanced at him: "I also thought my luck was a bit too good before, and the resources I got from drawing cards were too easy, a bit too easy to rely on. But after drawing this half circle today, and with this pitfall, I know I was really overthinking it! If I hadn't been able to draw so many resources, with my current strength, I don't know how long it would have taken to accumulate enough ores and rare materials for upgrading!"
Wu Shaogan felt somewhat reassured about the altar.
Upon hearing this, he laughed and said, "Things that are too easily obtained are a bit too hot to handle."
—If Zhong Cai sacrificed himself using pills he had refined, it's understandable that he would have good luck when drawing cards. After all, pills are very valuable, so why bother drawing if you're not lucky? If he only used pill essence, the chance of getting high-grade cards for free should be very low, and there shouldn't be a guaranteed reward in ten draws.
Zhong Cai deliberately sighed deeply, saying, "So we're going to be quite busy from now on."
Wu Shaogan also feigned a troubled expression and said, "They're all big spenders who embezzle money. It's worrying."
They both laughed when they heard that.
·
The remaining resources also needed to be carefully collected, and the two gathered them together one by one.
In the end, only two level 6 items were still hanging there.
Wu Shaogan first took down the array plate, examined it, and said, "This is good. Although the space it can cover is not large, as long as you are in that space, cultivators at the Foundation Establishment Realm and below cannot launch any attacks. It is very safe."
Zhong Cai jumped up excitedly and said quickly, "I've thought about this before. Of all the items drawn from the cards, the low-level ones are fine; Qing Kong can just take them and sell them privately. But the ones above level four are harder to deal with..."
"Now that we have this array plate, we can have Qingkong find a suitable level four or five city, buy a small shop, set up this array plate, and put all the resources in it. We don't need any living people to run it. Didn't we draw a level two puppet before? We can just let it stay in the shop. Although it can only do the simplest transactions, it will prevent people from haggling over the price."
Wu Shaogan listened carefully and thought the idea was good.
Zhong Cai suddenly had another idea.
"By the way, Lao Wu, I think some items that don't sell for a high price can be used to attract customers and organize an event or something."
Wu Shaogan became interested: "How so?"
Zhong Cai chuckled: "Open the blind box."
Wu Shaogan: "Blind boxes?"
Zhong Cai quickly said, "The shop has resources of different levels. Since most cultivators are at lower levels, they probably can't afford the expensive ones, so the promotional effect is greater. So we can set up several sealed boxes of different grades, such as one gold coin each, one Xuan Pearl each, and one low-grade Xuan Stone each..."
Zhong Cai spoke at length until his throat was dry.
Wu Shaogan handed him a cup of tea to soothe his throat and said with a smile, "You can try it."
The two agreed on the plan and even started planning how to set up the shop and how to display the blind boxes in a way that would make them stand out.
Zhong Cai casually picked up the last jade tablet and remarked, "This should also be a cultivation technique. Techniques carried by jade tablets are usually of a higher level; it might even be top-tier among sixth-tier techniques..."
Wu Shaogan was very concerned about whether Zhong Cai was suitable for him, so he took the initiative to delve into his mind to check.
Upon seeing this, his smile froze.
Zhong Cai asked curiously, "What's wrong with you?"
Wu Shaogan said helplessly, "...Take out the jade tablet you got earlier."
Zhong Cai's eyelids twitched, and she also used her mind to check.
Good heavens!
"The Jade Inlay Dual Cultivation Method - Part 2"
·
The two looked at each other in bewilderment.
Zhong Cai silently took out the jade tablet from the first part and placed it together with the jade tablet from the second part.
The two jade tablets merged in the next instant.
Upon checking again, one can find that the cultivation technique has been completely connected, reaching the Palace Building Realm.
As for the specific details...
Wu Shaogan didn't read it.
Zhong Cai didn't even look at it, and simply put it away again.
After that, the two acted as if they had never seen the dual cultivation manual before, and continued to discuss matters concerning the shop.
As they talked, they would sometimes glance at each other, sometimes their eyes would meet, and sometimes they wouldn't.
When they didn't make eye contact, the two quickly looked away.
And it matched up...
They seemed a little uncomfortable, but quickly couldn't help but laugh.
Time flies.
·
Two days later.
As usual, Wu Shaogan swallowed the top-grade Soul Nourishing Pill needed at this time.
The potent medicinal power surged into his soul, striving to repair the last bit of damage to his life force.
Under the combined effects of multiple medicines, the gaps between the three souls and seven spirits had almost been healed more than ten days ago.
In the days that followed, the Heavenly Soul quickly and completely recovered, the gaps almost healed and then completely healed, and most of the damage to the Life Soul was repaired... What remained were only tiny, barely perceptible holes.
The life soul is the core of cultivation in the early stages of the Enlightenment Realm, and it is the main force for the transformation of the divine soul into the primordial soul. Therefore, its recovery is the most difficult, so difficult that even with continuous consumption of Soul Nourishing Pills, the progress of repair is almost invisible.
However, Wu Shaogan could sense that he was constantly recovering every day.
Today, the effects of the Soul Nourishing Pills I've taken are overflowing.
The soul trembled slightly, and amidst the lingering pain, the trauma to the soul was finally completely healed!
The remaining medicinal power circulated throughout the entire soul, as if coating it with a shimmering glow.
Wu Shaogan's breathing was smooth and even, quite different from the slightly sluggish feeling he had always had before.
·
Zhong Cai noticed something was wrong when Wu Shaogan's breathing became slightly erratic, so she quickly stopped refining pills and stayed by Wu Shaogan's side.
Then, he saw that Wu Shaogan's complexion gradually became rosy and his aura became brighter, and he had a premonition.
Wu Shaogan opened his eyes, his gaze gleaming.
Zhong Cai hugged him excitedly and said loudly, "Congratulations, Lao Wu! Your soul has been fully recovered!"
Wu Shaogan also hugged Zhong Cai tightly, his voice trembling before he calmed down.
"Ah Cai." He called out to Zhong Cai, his gratitude unspoken but echoing in his heart.
While still in that position, Zhong Cai patted Wu Shaogan hard on the back and said happily, "It's all right! It'll all be right from now on!"
After a long while, the two finally let go of each other.
Wu Shaogan retrieved the mutated soul essence and spiritual heart.
This was something Zhong Cai had already given to Wu Shaogan to keep himself.
Wu Shaogan would wrap his own aura around it every day and also come into contact with its aura.
Zhong Cai's expression was grave: "Old Wu, shall we begin now?"
Wu Shaogan nodded and said, "There's no time to lose."
Zhong Cai did not stop her.
Anyway, as long as the soul is healed, it can be reintegrated at any time.
He couldn't help but recalculate the number of Soul Nourishing Pills in his inventory... and there were enough.
In addition, there are two ordinary soul marrow spirit hearts available.
Even though she understood everything perfectly, Zhong Cai still couldn't help but show a hint of nervousness.
Wu Shaogan comforted him, saying, "Don't worry, we're fully prepared, we'll definitely succeed."
Zhong Cai took a deep breath and nodded vigorously.
·
Zhong took out a level six defensive array plate and put in enough Xuan stones.
The defensive power immediately spread out, enveloping the entire courtyard.
Zhong Cai instructed Xiang Lin to stand guard at the entrance of the cultivation room, while he himself went inside to keep watch from a distance.
Wu Shaogan sat cross-legged.
In front of him was a small box filled with countless Soul Nourishing Pills.
Beside the box were ordinary soul essences and spirit hearts that he could easily take.
His hands were clasped together, and in his palms was the mutated soul essence and spirit heart.
·
Wu Shaogan focused his thoughts on the silver soul essence and spiritual heart.
In that instant, the soul essence and spiritual heart emitted a peculiar rhythm, bringing forth wisps of strange power that entered Wu Shaogan's seven orifices, rapidly surging into his divine soul, and little by little, squeezing into the core of his three souls and seven spirits.
At the same time, the Soul Essence and Spiritual Heart seemed to have shrunk slightly.
A burst of intense pain erupted!
Wu Shaogan's face was pale.
However, such a reaction is normal.
Wu Shaogan continued to endure it.
This kind of pain made him feel more real. He could sense that as more and more of his soul essence and spirit merged into his divine soul, the pain would become more and more terrifying.
However, everything went smoothly.
This mutated soul essence and spirit heart seemed to be born to belong to Wu Shaogan, perhaps because Wu Shaogan had already made sufficient preparations and knew exactly how to use it.
Therefore, the entire fusion process was almost completely uninterrupted.
·
Zhong Cai watched quietly.
When Wu Shaogan was sweating profusely from the pain, Zhong Cai also seemed to be in pain, breaking out in a cold sweat on her back.
Zhong Cai really wanted to go over and help smooth things over, but she couldn't at all; she couldn't disturb them!
With no other option, Zhong Cai could only force herself to endure it and remain seated.
Then he saw that Wu Shaogan's face had gone from pale to ashen, clearly showing his weakness and haggardness.
Zhong Cai couldn't stand it any longer and could only turn her attention to the mutated soul essence and spiritual heart.
This thing is shrinking...
His buddy is in a lot of pain!
Everything went smoothly...
But his buddy was in a lot of pain!
It's a good thing there are no obstacles...
However, Old Wu was in real pain.
Wu Shaogan suffered in pain for a long time, and Zhong Cai also endured the torment for a long time.
Zhong Cai watched helplessly as Wu Shaogan trembled with pain—this was an unprecedented scene!
At that moment, he felt even more disgusted with that scoundrel Dai who had been playing tricks behind the scenes.
He's so angry!
·
After an unknown number of hours, the mutated soul essence and spiritual heart were almost invisible.
Wu Shaogan was still trembling slightly, but this torture should be coming to an end soon.
Zhong Cai looked at Wu Shaogan expectantly.
The last glimmer of silver light in Wu Shaogan's palm disappeared, and his complexion suddenly improved considerably.
The next moment, Wu Shaogan opened his eyes.
There was weariness in her eyes, but even more so, joy.
Wu Shaogan looked at Zhong Cai with gentle eyes.
Zhong Cai felt much more at ease and pointed to the resources in front of Wu Shaogan.
Wu Shaogan smiled, took out a handful of top-grade Soul Nourishing Pills and put them in his mouth, while taking out the fourth-level Soul Essence Spirit Heart and holding it in his palm.
This time, Wu Shaogan's expression was very calm.
The only time it was incredibly painful was when a foreign object was fused into the soul. Now, the soul essence and spirit that were being fused into it were just nourishment. Not only was it painless, it was actually quite comfortable.
·
Three whole days have passed.
Wu Shaogan absorbed both ordinary soul essences and spirit hearts, and consumed more than three hundred Soul Nourishing Pills.
Zhong Cai stayed by his side without sleep or rest. When he stopped, she quickly asked, "Old Wu, how are you?"
Wu Shaogan smiled: "It's much better than we expected."
Zhong Cai felt slightly relieved, but was still very anxious.
Wu Shaogan continued, “The mutated soul marrow and spiritual heart have successfully combined with my soul core. Moreover, the soul power I replenished is abundant, and the power of the ordinary soul marrow and spiritual heart, as well as the Soul Nourishing Pill, is rapidly filling the core. Now, a secret gate has been formed. However, this gate is still very weak and needs continuous replenishment.”
"Looking at it now, there's no need to use 'years' to calculate the recovery period. With enough Soul Nourishing Pills, perhaps... it will be soon."
Zhong Cai was so happy she was practically going crazy!
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