Chapter 423: Hiring

Chapter 423: Chapter 423: Hiring

「Half a month later.」

Bai Mo received a reply from the old man.

’So the path of an Outer Pill’s medicinal power secretly corresponds to the path used to circulate Spiritual Qi for a Divine Technique?’

Bai Mo spread the letter out on his desk and studied it intently.

The letter was filled with flowing script covering half a page, with many places showing signs of pauses and rewrites.

It was clear the old man had given his reply serious thought, making this a truly sincere exchange.

’As expected of an old-timer in the Alchemy Dao. He’s so experienced and knowledgeable, a true role model for us to learn from.’

Mulling over the theory proposed in the letter, Bai Mo let out a sigh of admiration and glanced at a book he had set aside.

It happened to be open to a page detailing a technique called *Golden Skin and Stone Flesh*.

This technique was passed down from ancient times and originally came from Demonic Cultivators.

After its merits were discovered, it was slightly modified and became widely practiced.

As for its effect, by circulating Spiritual Qi, it grants a Cultivator an incredibly tough physique, capable of withstanding blades and axes.

Even if the defense was broken, it would prevent them from bleeding.

With a flick of his hand, Bai Mo turned the page to a diagram of the meridian pathways.

Upon examining the pathways, he found they were extremely similar to those on the humanoid Pill Furnace.

’So it’s the unmodified version of *Golden Skin and Stone Flesh*? What an ancient art.’

Bai Mo walked over to the humanoid Pill Furnace and once again observed the pathways on its surface.

This unmodified technique required refining a layer of fascia within the Cultivator’s body, from which new meridians would grow.

Circulating Spiritual Qi through them would grant a person immense resistance.

However, this technique was originally meant to be used in conjunction with the Outer Pill method. The ultimate goal was to refine this layer of fascia out of the Cultivator’s body and into an Outer Pill.

By doing so, another person could gain this ability simply by consuming the Outer Pill, without having to endure the suffering of Body Refinement.

This was the way of the Demon Dao.

’Therefore, it’s impossible to successfully refine a medicinal Pill with this Pill Furnace.’

’Applying this process to a Cultivator who has mastered *Golden Skin and Stone Flesh*—that’s the proper way to use it.’

Bai Mo mused.

’Figuring out the inner workings is one thing, but how do you control an Outer Pill’s medicinal power to make it follow a specific path inside a Cultivator’s body?’

’There’s a great mystery in that.’

He mulled it over and over but couldn’t find an answer.

In the end, Bai Mo gave up and pinned his hopes on the colleagues of that mad Cultivator from across the Celestial Barrier Mountain.

...

As it happened, Yuan Chu came to visit two days later.

"Heh, Junior Brother Bai, you’ve got some pull."

"A single letter from you was enough to mobilize the three of us."

"Xiong Xin and Gong Gui are still running around the sect on your behalf. They haven’t had a moment to come over."

Bai Mo welcomed him inside and personally served him tea.

"I rarely move about the sect and don’t know many people. I’m truly indebted to you Senior Brothers for this!"

Yuan Chu waved his hand, returning the polite gesture.

"Don’t say that. We owe you a great deal, but you rarely ask for our help."

"It’s a matter of reciprocity, and frankly, we haven’t done enough on our end."

The two exchanged a few pleasantries.

Yuan Chu then steered the conversation back to the matter at hand.

"Let me be upfront."

"These inner sect members are all heaven’s chosen. They aren’t easily swayed."

Bai Mo nodded. He was already prepared for this.

Those who managed to enter the inner sect were all individuals of extraordinary talent.

Even if they weren’t initially, after reaching Foundation Establishment and being in the inner sect’s environment, they would naturally become so.

Their pride was naturally high.

"Is their asking price extremely high?" Bai Mo asked.

Yuan Chu said with a serious expression:

"It’s not a matter of price."

"The key is, they are engrossed in their cultivation and simply don’t want to be bothered with other matters, let alone an errand like yours, Junior Brother, which requires a long journey to the Celestial Barrier Mountain range."

"So, unless you’re offering a sky-high price, it’s probably not going to happen."

In truth, Bai Mo couldn’t afford such a price.

Yuan Chu then said, "The people we’ve been able to find are all a bit strapped for cash."

"They might not be the most outstanding people in the inner sect, so you can’t be picky, Junior Brother!"

Bai Mo quickly stated his position.

"Don’t worry, Senior Brother. Just finding anyone is good enough. Please proceed as you see fit."

"As long as they have a Foundation Establishment cultivation base, they’ll be able to get the job done!"

With that, Yuan Chu knew what to do and departed at a leisurely pace.

He had come to gauge Bai Mo’s attitude.

Otherwise, if Bai Mo ended up not using the people he found, it would be an unnecessary offense, and the situation would be awkward for all three parties.

Bai Mo understood this and simply told his senior brother to proceed as he saw fit.

Just after seeing Yuan Chu off, Ah Er came down from the mountain, covered in dust and dirt. With every shaky step, it dislodged a spray of soil.

Bai Mo knew it had been running up the mountain every day recently, but he didn’t know what it was busy with.

Ah Er was also quite surprised to see Bai Mo outside and set down its shoulder-pole with the hoe in front of him.

"What have you been so busy with?"

Bai Mo asked.

For a moment, Ah Er didn’t know where to begin. It scratched its head, pointed up the mountain, and started gesturing while making some noises.

"There’s been a change on the mountain?"

Bai Mo frowned.

The arrival of the Great Suanni had brought a massive amount of Pure Yang Qi.

When that clashed with Mi Mountain’s original baleful Yin Qi, there was bound to be a significant disturbance.

’But is it happening this quickly?’

"Fine, I’ll go with you tomorrow to have a look."

Hearing this, Ah Er nodded happily, a self-satisfied look on its face.

Bai Mo didn’t understand why.

It wasn’t until the next day that Bai Mo finally understood why it had been so proud.

He strolled up the mountain.

The parts of the mountain that had been overrun with flowers and plants had been trodden into a small path by Ah Er over the past few days.

Some of the flowers and plants were no longer in their original spots; Ah Er had dug them up by the roots and moved them elsewhere.

This might have damaged the plants, but it was better than them dying completely.

Their original locations were now strikingly different.

Perhaps it was because the rocky ground had absorbed too much of the Suanni’s Spirit Charm, becoming extremely saturated with Yang energy.

Or perhaps it was because the accumulated baleful Yin Qi within Mi Mountain was leaking out, making the area abnormally cold and gloomy. A normal person standing there for too long would surely fall ill with a hundred ailments.

The clash of Yin and Yang brought about by a single Suanni sacrificing itself here was this intense.

It was just like dropping ice into boiling water.

An inkling of understanding suddenly dawned on Bai Mo.

As he was lost in thought, Bai Mo’s peripheral vision caught something, and he spun around abruptly.

Ah Er, who had been striding proudly ahead, was a step slower but also turned its head to look in the same direction.

In a corner behind and to their left, a flicker of flame curled up, taking the shape of a Suanni. It watched the man and the beast from a distance.

A gust of wind blew, and the small Suanni swirled before extinguishing and vanishing without a trace.

Bai Mo looked back and saw that Ah Er had a curious expression, not one of great surprise.

"Have you seen a lot of things like this these past few days?"

"Ah, urgh!"

Ah Er nodded emphatically.

Bai Mo paid it no more mind and continued up the mountain with it.

Seeing the many transplanted flowers and plants that had survived, Bai Mo couldn’t help but praise it.

"You’ve become quite capable now."

He wasn’t talking about how hardworking it was, but rather its skill in transplanting flora.

Ever since its trip to Immortal Arrival City, the Spirit Beast had probably been well-taught by the bookshop’s Shopkeeper.

Not only did it know to actively flip through books, but it had clearly put its heart into it.

Combined with Bai Mo’s past teachings, it had learned the skill of tending to flowers, plants, and trees.

The flowers and plants on the mountain had all been transplanted just right.

For example, the Tiger-Eating Lord not far away. The vine had resisted violently during the transplant, fighting with Ah Er and suffering considerable damage to its roots.

Yet now, Ah Er had managed to nurse some life back into it.

Such skill, from an ordinary perspective, was already beyond reproach.

"Let’s go to the summit and see. We’ll try to find some trace of the Suanni and receive a bit of its venerable legacy..."