Eternal Life by Dual Cultivation-Chapter 140 - 117: Earth Grade Spirit Root (Part 2)
’I only just became a Second Rank Alchemist. Taking on such a difficult task now is just too risky.’
Ling Qiyue smiled faintly. "If you’re confident, little brother, there’s no harm in trying. The Clan Treasury is well-stocked with medicinal herbs right now. It wouldn’t be a problem to take out two sets for you to practice with."
She felt that with Ling Changqing’s Destiny, as long as he didn’t make any major mistakes, success was the most likely outcome. Failure would be the anomaly.
Ling Changqing thought for a moment, then shook his head. "I think I’ll try some other Second Grade Elixirs. I’ll leave the Foundation Establishment Pill to you, Senior Sister."
Ever since stabilizing her Realm as a Golden Core Master, Ling Qiyue’s skill in the Alchemy Dao had also improved significantly. She was likely touching the threshold of a Grade Three Low-rank Alchemist.
Therefore, refining the Foundation Establishment Pill was second nature to her, and the chance of failure was minimal.
"Alright, then. You can try refining the Second Grade Heavenly Flower Rejuvenation Pill instead," Ling Qiyue said gently, not forcing the issue.
This was a Life-extending Elixir used by Foundation Establishment Cultivators. A single pill could increase one’s Lifespan by twenty years, but each Cultivator could only take it once; any more would have no effect.
After Tang Qiu Yao brought the medicinal herbs, Ling Changqing sat back down before the Pill Furnace and activated the Array Restriction.
"Senior Sister, should we discuss renting a Magical Treasure-level Pill Furnace from fellow Daoist Xue Qingtan next time? It might help you break through your bottleneck sooner and advance to a Third Rank Alchemist, right?" Tang Qiu Yao suggested.
The Pill Furnace before them was at the Top Grade Spiritual Artifact Level, suitable for a Peak Second Rank Alchemist. In contrast, Third Rank Alchemists typically used Magical Treasure-level Pill Furnaces for their alchemy.
However, the value of a Pill Furnace far exceeded that of a Magical Treasure of the same level, making them much rarer. Even for High Rank Alchemists, who were generally wealthy, acquiring a Magical Treasure-level Pill Furnace was no easy feat.
Ling Qiyue thought for a moment before shaking her head. "Let’s leave it for now. We’re already in enough debt."
She was thinking that they should at least pay off part of their debt first. Changqing Continent was still undergoing large-scale development and expansion, with considerable expenses in every area. They needed to be frugal with their resources.
And so, Ling Changqing spent over a month in the Alchemy Room, taking turns with Ling Qiyue to refine batch after batch of elixirs.
When the final batch of Foundation Establishment Pills was refined, Ling Qiyue deactivated the Array Restriction and led Ling Changqing and Tang Qiu Yao to her personal chambers.
"...I plan to take you on a long journey, little brother, to check out those Immortal Mansion Ruins."
Ling Qiyue’s words instantly made the color drain from Tang Qiu Yao’s face.
Of course, she knew of that place. When the two of them had explored it together, Tang Qiu Yao had only been a Qi Refining Stage Cultivator, and Ling Qiyue had just reached Foundation Establishment herself.
Although they hadn’t entered the core of the Immortal Mansion Ruins, only circling the outer areas, their gains had been substantial. Ling Qiyue’s Alchemy Dao inheritance had come from there.
"Senior Sister, isn’t this a rather bad time?" Tang Qiu Yao asked, her brow furrowed.
The situation on Changqing Continent had preliminarily stabilized, but there were still many matters to attend to. Ling Qiyue couldn’t be away for a moment.
Besides, the Bai Family, the Yuan Family, and Yu Long Island were still watching them like tigers stalking their prey. There was no telling when they might stir up trouble, so Ling Qiyue had to be present to hold down the fort.
The moment they learned that Ling Qiyue had left on a long journey, those people would surely be unable to restrain themselves and would jump out to cause trouble.
"It’s precisely because I know they won’t behave that I’m in a hurry to take my little brother there to try his luck for a fortuitous encounter."
Ling Qiyue’s expression was grave. "The core area of the Immortal Mansion Ruins certainly holds an extraordinary opportunity. It might even allow my little brother to break through to the Middle stage Foundation Establishment ahead of schedule, or even raise his Spirit Root Talent."
"Can’t we wait a little longer?" Ling Changqing asked. The situation on Changqing Continent seemed calm on the surface, but there were far too many foreign Loose Cultivators in the Marketplace.
Among them, there were definitely spies planted by external powers. As long as Ling Qiyue was with the clan, they wouldn’t dare make a move.
But once she left, it was hard to say what would happen. Ling Tianhe, as a mere Pseudo Core Master, wouldn’t be able to keep the situation under control.
"It’s fine. Qiu Yao, you can just stay behind," Ling Qiyue said. "My junior brother and I won’t be gone for long. We’ll be back in a month at most."
"Only a month? That should be fine, then."
Tang Qiu Yao let out a small sigh of relief.
’As long as they’re careful to keep it a secret,’ she thought, ’Ling Qiyue and her little brother will be back before those powers have a chance to react.’
"There’s no time to lose. Let’s set out now. We’ll tell everyone that he and I are in Cultivation in Seclusion."
After saying this, Ling Qiyue gave Tang Qiu Yao some final instructions and then departed with Ling Changqing.
Without alerting anyone, the two of them once again used a Grade Three Shifting Talisman to leave the clan headquarters, reappearing in a desolate mountain valley hundreds of miles away.
Then, Ling Qiyue summoned her Magical Treasure, the Dengyun Boat, and brought Ling Changqing aboard.
This Magical Treasure-level Flying Ship was one of the two Early Stage Magical Treasures they had rented from the Xingyun sun Commerce Association last time. Its primary function was for travel.
Soaring high in the sky, the Dengyun Boat transformed into a streak of golden light and shot into the distance, disappearing over the horizon in the blink of an eye.
This time, Ling Qiyue did not head toward the Hanyue Continent, but traveled deep into the Eastern Pole Ocean.
For three consecutive days and nights, the Dengyun Boat sped along like a lightning bolt. The ink-blue ocean stretched out below, with islands of various shapes occasionally dotting the vast sea.
As they ventured deeper into the ocean, the number of Rank Two and Three Spiritual Birds and Demon Beasts increased. Some of the larger ones had wingspans of over a thousand feet.
Eventually, even Rank Four Spiritual Birds and Demon Beasts began to appear. Their auras, so solid they felt tangible, could be clearly sensed even from a great distance.
It wasn’t that none of them spotted the Dengyun Boat; they simply chose to ignore it, making no move to provoke or attack.
"...As expected, little brother, your Destiny’s interference works on them too!" Ling Qiyue said with a smile. "It seems our trip into the Immortal Mansion Ruins should go very smoothly."
The last time she came this way, she hadn’t been nearly so conspicuous. She had been extremely cautious, steering far clear of any trace of High Grade Spiritual Birds or Demon Beasts.
"Senior Sister, how much farther is it?"
Ling Changqing asked, a hint of unease in his voice. He had noticed his Destiny was slowly declining, a sign that this sea region was no less dangerous than the deep sea.
"We’re almost there. It should be about ten hours more!" Ling Qiyue explained that the last time she came, she only had a Top Grade Spiritual Artifact Level Flying Ship, so the journey had taken much longer.
"In that case, we should find a place to rest and recuperate before we go in," Ling Changqing said. He needed to restore his Luck and Fortune to their peak to better ensure their safety inside the ruins.
"Don’t worry, there’s a place to rest in the outer area of the ruins," Ling Qiyue said, naturally not wanting to make things difficult for Ling Changqing.
After crossing a vast expanse of scattered islands, an unfamiliar landmass appeared on the horizon.
"Don’t be surprised. This place is only about the size of Changqing Continent, not a supercontinent like Yuzhou. And there are no signs of life on it!" Ling Qiyue explained.
As they rapidly closed the distance, the landmass grew larger, and the details of its surface gradually came into Ling Changqing’s view.
"The environment here... doesn’t seem bad at all. The Spiritual Qi is quite abundant. Why aren’t there any living creatures?"
Ling Changqing was puzzled. Under normal circumstances, a place like this should be home to a massive population of mortals, from which numerous Cultivation powers would have arisen.
After the Dengyun Boat crossed this landmass, six or seven even larger continents appeared one after another. They were similarly desolate and uninhabited, their barren ground completely devoid of even a single blade of grass.
But in the core regions of these continents, Ling Changqing could clearly sense the aura of Grade Four Spirit Veins—and not just one or two.
"Perhaps tens of thousands of years ago, a massive Cultivation power did exist here! But for some unknown reason, it was lost to the river of time," Ling Qiyue said. As for the specific reason, she had no way of knowing.
And so, after the Dengyun Boat had flown over dozens of these landmasses, Ling Qiyue finally began to descend.
In the center of a massive island, hundreds of miles across, dozens of pitch-black stone pillars stood tall, their surfaces faintly shimmering with a ghostly light.
That was the entrance to the Immortal Mansion Ruins.
