Chapter 144: Ten Years!

The true essence of an alchemist is to help fellow Daoists find happiness.

Shen Lian had realized this long ago.

The number of Qi-refining cultivators in Nanya Immortal City was enormous, ranging from trackers and fishermen to various other professions. If one managed the trade of these ordinary cultivators well, the profits could be equally substantial.

During his month of wandering through the city, he had witnessed too much numbness among the lower-tier cultivation world. It was much like what he had seen in the Myriad Star Sea, only more pronounced here in Nanya Immortal City.

Even though they were trying to make a living in a major immortal city like Nanya, for the lower-tier cultivators, it was merely trading one place for another to live in the cheapest low-roofed shacks and endure oppression.

What was wrong with spending a dozen spiritual stones for a day of happiness?

Cough, cough... Of course, all of that was nonsense.

The reason Shen Lian did not sell high-tier pills was to avoid drawing unnecessary trouble.

As an outsider, he simply wanted to enjoy the peace and stability within the immortal city safely, and making a few extra spiritual stones along the way would be even better.

Once he started selling second-tier pills in large quantities, the mixed and complex factions within Nanya Immortal City would easily target him.

By then, if he endured it, he would be filled with pent-up frustration; if he didn't endure it, he would have to pack up and run again.

Sell pills on the first floor, cultivate on the second.

Clam Street happened to be located at the boundary between land and water, with the sea lying directly beneath the elixir shop.

Furthermore, when the immortal city was originally established, the area beneath this half-sea-facing city had been specially excavated to a depth of at least a hundred zhang, and was further shrouded by underwater formations.

There were even some city structures submerged underwater capable of absorbing the tidal energy of the vast ocean, making it a place frequently used by cultivators for meditation.

Some fellow Daoists might wonder if anyone would dump human waste down there; on that front, one could rest easy. The immortal city had strict regulations: anyone caught dumping waste into it would be drowned.

Otherwise, why would Shen Lian have chosen this location to open his elixir shop?

His choice of this place also took into account whether he could probe the vulnerabilities of the immortal city's defenses in the future, providing himself with an emergency exit.

Or perhaps, to find an inconspicuous spot and carve out a defensive cave dwelling of his own.

......

Half a year after the elixir shop opened, Sanqian, having successively absorbed two demon cores, finally awakened from its deep slumber.

Although it had not yet advanced to the second tier, its originally entirely green scales now possessed a faint golden border.

The protruding bone on its forehead appeared somewhat more formidable and rugged than before.

"Master..."

"Big Brother Hei..."

Inside the beast-taming bracelet, sensing Shen Lian's divine sense descend, Sanqian wriggled its body and spoke.

Shen Lian's divine sense carefully inspected Sanqian's body; its external aura had not changed much compared to before.

However, hidden within one of the segments of its fish-spine bone was a trace of dragon aura.

That piece of fish bone containing the dragon aura was only a few inches long, yet it bestowed upon Sanqian the potential for a complete transformation.

According to the manager back then, Sanqian's mother was a quasi-third-tier fierce beast, but looking at it now, its cultivation realm had likely reached the second-tier peak, while its bloodline power remained slightly inferior.

For fierce beasts, consuming certain spiritual objects could indeed forcefully break through minor bottlenecks within a major realm.

This principle held true for the human race as well.

However, such advancements stemming from external forces did not signify an increase in one's own inherent potential.

Much like the trackers outside who earned five spiritual stones a day, doing so day in and day out, only to stumble upon ten stones at the docks one fine day—such good fortune would not happen every single day.

"Sanqian, if you consume one more demon core, you will be able to advance to a second-tier fierce beast."

Currently, Shen Lian had over a dozen second-tier demon cores in his possession, all harvested from solitary fierce beasts he had casually slain while crossing the northern waters of the Sea Demon Archipelago.

Sanqian could advance simply by using demon cores; after all, it was Big Black's child.

"Master... no."

......

The Outer Seas of Nanya.

Shen Lian chose an island inhabited by mortals. Wherever mortals lived, it inherently meant depleted spiritual Qi, distance from main shipping lanes, and various other factors.

The environment of the current cultivation world was vastly different from that of ancient or even medieval times.

In ancient times, the spiritual Qi of heaven and earth was abundant, and spiritual energy manifested naturally everywhere; there was no need whatsoever to search for blessed lands to cultivate.

In medieval times, although the spiritual Qi of heaven and earth had waned, the stray spiritual power drifting through the atmosphere was still sufficient for cultivators to practice.

By the present day, the spiritual Qi of heaven and earth had further depleted. While spiritual Qi still existed in most regions of the cultivation world, it was no longer sufficient to sustain a cultivator's advancement.

An environment where spiritual lands could be found everywhere had evolved into a regional cultivation ecosystem centered around spiritual veins.

If the spiritual vein here was of a high grade, the range of spiritual Qi was vast; if the spiritual vein was of a low grade, the range of spiritual Qi suitable for cultivation was much smaller.

This resulted in even Qi-refining cultivators having to choose marketplaces or immortal cities as their places of practice.

As for the vast oceanic lands, although they had not yet become barren zones devoid of spiritual Qi, they were only sufficient for low-level tier one and two minor cultivators to absorb and refine.

Anyone with even slightly higher strength had to seek out places with denser spiritual Qi.

Otherwise, they had to rely on consuming medicinal pills for cultivation; as long as the supply of pills was sufficient, the ambient spiritual Qi environment could be directly ignored.

Shen Lian belonged to this latter category. Because the pills he refined were of superior quality, even meditating directly on top of a second-tier spiritual vein could not compare to the efficiency of swallowing his elixirs.

Therefore, over the past few years, he had been consuming pills for his cultivation, effectively carrying a private spiritual vein with him wherever he went.

The environment of the chosen island was not overly complex; almost the entire place consisted of low-lying mountain ranges, with towns constructed only on the flat terrain along the edges.

Failing to find an underground cave, Shen Lian surveyed the area before plunging directly into a concealed basin, setting up the Thousand Illusions Shadow-Tracing Array on the outer perimeter.

The array and the rolling hilly terrain fused together seamlessly, making it completely indistinguishable from the outside.

Having set up the illusion array, he then arranged the Lesser Five Elements Array, and finally released his puppet talisman men, marking the preliminary completion of the entire cave dwelling.

"Master..."

He released Sanqian and Big Black from the beast-taming bracelet.

Two first-tier spirit beasts, even if released openly within Nanya Immortal City, would not particularly stand out.

Mainly, Shen Lian wanted to loosen Big Black's joints and test the efficacy of the Heavenly Derivation Earth Domain.

Naturally, this task could not be performed inside Nanya Immortal City.

A pool had been excavated within the cave dwelling, allowing Sanqian to frolic happily inside. Having slumbered for several years, it was practically bursting with pent-up energy.

Big Black lingered by the edge of the pool, using its massive pincers to perform a landscaping project on Sanqian's pool.

"Blurp, blurp..."

In the pool, Sanqian poked its head out and spat a mouthful of water right at Big Black. Big Black picked up a stone with its pincer and hurled it back.

The two little beasts began trading blows, attacking back and forth.

Ultimately, exasperated, Big Black leaped into the water, pinned Sanqian down with both large pincers, and gave it a thorough thrashing.

"I won't be able to beat you in the future, so I have to beat you now while I can."

While striking, Big Black muttered under its breath.

"It's fine, Big Black brother, once you get a wife in the future, I'll protect her for you..."

Hearing these words, Big Black swung its pincers with even greater force.

"I treat you like a little brother, and yet you..."

"Big Black brother, I am, I am..."

The large pincers banged rhythmically against the golden scales, but Sanqian offered no resistance. Having absorbed two demon cores during its years of slumber, its strength had long since surpassed Big Black's.

Big Black finally came to its senses.

Ah, this was a little sister.

......

Regarding the antics of the two spirit beasts, Shen Lian simply lay on a nearby stone couch, watching. Once the two little fellows tired themselves out, he reached out and grabbed Big Black.

"Master, you... you..."

Clutched in Shen Lian's hand, Big Black tucked in its two rows of long legs. Seeing the five-colored spiritual aura flickering in Shen Lian's other hand caused its entire body to tremble.

The five-colored spiritual aura first flashed with a crimson golden flame before shifting into an earthy yellow hue.

"Come, let me loosen your joints first. With a body this weak, how do you expect to ever advance to the second tier?"

The spiritual power glowing with an earthy yellow radiance descended upon Big Black's back.

It scared Big Black so much that its two black eyes receded deep into its sockets.

"What are you trembling for?"

As his first spirit beast, one that had guided him out of the Myriad Mountains, Shen Lian naturally wanted to nurture and develop it.

Otherwise, an ordinary person would have abandoned a fierce beast with such a low bloodline long ago.

Releasing just a tiny sliver of earth spiritual power, he let it land on Big Black's back.

Strands of profound energy seeped through the black carapace and penetrated deep into Big Black's body.

Big Black, which had been cowering and trembling all over, realized that the nightmarish splitting sensation from before did not recur, and it quickly regained its composure.

As an earth-attribute fierce beast, it possessed a natural affinity for earth and stone.

At that moment, although the earth-attribute spiritual power entering its body caused its flesh and blood to ache intensely, it was far more tolerable than the continuous splitting sensations of the past.

Shen Lian's divine sense enveloped every inch of Big Black's flesh and blood, sensing that the earth spiritual power infused with the Heavenly Derivation Earth Domain indeed underwent a transformation upon entering Big Black's body.

It wasn't the earth spiritual power itself that did the work, but rather the profound mysteries of the Heavenly Derivation Earth Domain contained within it, which Big Black eagerly absorbed into its body.

"Master, it hurts, it hurts, I'm going to split apart."

As Big Black was enveloped by the earthy yellow spiritual power, a stinging pain spread throughout its entire body.

Even though Shen Lian intentionally exercised control, this was, after all, Foundation Establishment-stage spiritual power.

Moreover, he was currently unable to invoke the Heavenly Derivation Earth Domain independently, and could only output its profound mysteries via earth-attribute spiritual power.

If he wanted Big Black to absorb more profound mysteries, he had no choice but to increase the output of earth-attribute spiritual power.

Furthermore, after absorbing the profound mysteries, Big Black's flesh underwent an accelerated metabolic process, causing its body to split open once more.

"It's splitting, it's splitting."

Lowering Big Black—now shrouded in earth spiritual power—and watching it howl miserably on the ground, Shen Lian initially thought of taking out medicinal herbs to repair its physical body.

However, he sensed a few drops of viscous liquid oozing from the cracks of Big Black's splitting armor.

This made him pause and withhold the medicinal herbs.

Every beast had its own destined path; Big Black was evidently destined to endure this hardship.

Although he hadn't invoked much of the Heavenly Derivation Earth Domain's profound mysteries, Shen Lian still felt a wave of fatigue. Putting Big Black back into the beast-taming bracelet, he crossed his legs and began to regulate his breath.

Staying in this peaceful cave dwelling for over half a month and subjecting Big Black to three sessions of baptism from the Heavenly Derivation Earth Domain, Shen Lian eventually returned to Nanya Immortal City.

Bloodline transformation, much like cultivation, was a protracted process.

Big Black's frame was simply too fragile, requiring a gradual, step-by-step approach.

Upon returning to the immortal city, Shen Lian resumed his role as the modest little shopkeeper of the True Heart Elixir Shop, spending his days selling pills, inquiring about news big and small within the immortal city, and searching for any medicinal herbs he might need.

Public order within the immortal city was quite favorable. Every day, cultivators traversed the skies above the city on spiritual boats, and any practitioner daring to fight within the city limits would be swiftly and forcibly suppressed.

......

When he first came to Nanya Immortal City, Shen Lian had made up his mind to stay here for a period of time to allow himself to consolidate his foundations.

To his surprise, this period of consolidation lasted a full ten years.

Over the decade, he managed the True Heart Elixir Shop, catering to the path of lower-tier ordinary Qi-refining cultivators, and deliberately avoided conflicts with others during his operations.

For the same pills, whatever the unified market price was, he sold them for; whatever quality others sold, he matched that quality, occasionally even letting the quality drop slightly.

After all, for a small shop, subpar pill quality was only natural.

As time passed, after observing for a while, neighboring elixir shops ceased paying excessive attention to the True Heart Elixir Shop.

Selling pills together was fine, so long as everyone maintained a harmonious mutual interest circle.

Adhering to the principle of flowing with the mainstream, Shen Lian experienced some minor friction initially, but overall, everything passed smoothly and peacefully.

Once the shop was running on track, he began altering his identity to purchase ingredients for body refinement and cultivation, brewing the elixirs necessary for his own advancement.

Occasionally, he would close his doors for ten days to half a month to venture out and procure herbs.

For a small-scale business, attending personally to acquiring cheap herbs made complete sense.

Profits were squeezed out through thrift.

Taking advantage of these excursions, his experiments on Big Black were carried out step-by-step, yielding exceptionally good results.

Though bloodline transformation was slow, Big Black's bloodline was undeniably improving.

In this manner, both Big Black and Sanqian successfully advanced to the second-tier fierce beast realm.

During the experimentation process on Big Black, Shen Lian had also utilized the profound mysteries of the Heavenly Derivation Fire Domain to nourish the purchased black phoenix egg.

After several years of nurturing, Erwan had indeed recovered a portion of its primordial vitality.

Right, Erwan was the black phoenix.

Even though Erwan was still trapped inside its eggshell, Shen Lian, acting as a naming virtuoso and drawing on his experience naming Sanqian, bestowed the name Erwan upon his third fire-attribute spirit beast, the black phoenix.

Big Black, Sanqian, Erwan.

At a single glance, the names clearly belonged to the same lineage.

Sensing that Erwan's primordial vitality had recovered, he was in no rush to hatch it. Instead, he continued to nourish it with the Heavenly Derivation Fire Domain at regular intervals, hoping to see if its bloodline could advance even further while still inside the shell.

Being a descendant of a third-tier black phoenix bloodline did not guarantee a hundred percent chance of advancing to the third tier; it merely meant the offspring had a high probability of doing so.

What Shen Lian wanted to do was push that probability infinitely higher—to eighty, ninety, or even one hundred percent.

......
True Heart Elixir Shop, Second Floor.

[Calm and composed, epiphany points +1]

[Mind devoid of external distractions, spiritual comprehension points +1]

[Calm and composed, epiphany points +1]

......

[Calm and composed, epiphany points +1]

......

Shen Lian snapped out of his meditation, an empty pill bottle resting before him.

A lingering trace of medicinal potency still emanated from the interior of the bottle.

This was the Thousand Sinew Powder used for tempering the physical body, refined primarily from a second-tier top-grade spiritual herb known as the Thousand Velvet Jade-Skin Vine.

To win the bid for this spiritual herb at an auction, Shen Lian had shelled out forty-three thousand spiritual stones.

When factoring in all the other supplementary herbs, the total cost for this single batch of body-refinement elixirs approached seventy thousand spiritual stones.

Yet the effects were equally stellar, elevating his body-refinement realm to a durability comparable to a second-tier top-grade magical artifact.