Chapter 468: Return

Chapter 468: Chapter 468: Return

Another early spring, the twenty-eighth day of the first lunar month.

It was a fine day, a time when the mortal realm’s destiny settled and heaven and earth returned to tranquility.

Bai Mo opened the Black Prison manual and recorded the incident within.

The Celestial Dao had been obscured, allowing all manner of evil to emerge. Sect Disciples had poured forth from the mountain to slay demons and vanquish evil.

By the end of it all, countless heretics and demons had been killed or captured. The Black Prison took in a total of one hundred and fourteen new inmates.

Of these, fifty-six were taken away by disciples and had all perished. Another four caused trouble in the prison, triggering the restrictive formations and dying from the backlash of Spiritual Qi.

The older inmates took twenty-nine, leaving the Black Prison with a net increase of twenty-five new prisoners.

The disciples of the Xuandao Sect withdrew and once again fell silent.

After signing his name in the manual, Bai Mo slowly entered the Black Prison.

The recent comings and goings and the complex changes in personnel had made the atmosphere inside heavy and oppressive.

Seeing that the new inmates had grown accustomed to prison life, Bai Mo nodded slightly. He made his rounds before leaving.

Only then did the prisoners let out a collective sigh of relief.

"It’s over..."

A new prisoner muttered. Even though they were trapped, a wretched life was better than a good death. They had not yet reached the point of taking life and death lightly.

Bai Mo returned to his stone house, where Ah Er was already skillfully controlling the furnace’s temperature.

However, Ah Er still needed Bai Mo to plan out the changes in advance, or else it would be completely lost.

KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!

A knock came from outside. Ah Er’s ears twitched, but it kept its eyes glued to the flame before it, not daring to get up.

Bai Mo walked out and opened the door.

"Junior Brother, I’m back!"

It was An Caiwei, looking quite cheerful.

She had left on a sect mission last winter and had only just now been able to return.

Bai Mo’s gaze shifted slightly, landing on a fingernail-sized red mark on her right cheek. It stood out starkly against her otherwise fair, rosy skin.

Bai Mo pointed to the same spot on his own face.

"This is..."

An Caiwei was a little vexed that he had noticed it right away.

"I got it from frostbite in that ice nest. It’s a long story, so I won’t go into the details."

"Do you have a way to fix it?"

Bai Mo flipped his palm, and a Pill appeared. A faint, rosy glow flowed over its snow-white surface.

"This was refined from the Rosy Glow you gave me, Senior Sister. It contains life force and has a beautifying effect. It’s the perfect remedy."

An Caiwei’s face lit up, and she took the Pill from Bai Mo’s hand.

"I knew you’d have a solution!"

"Give me another one. That way, I won’t have to worry for so long if this happens again."

Bai Mo coughed lightly and shook his head.

"This is the only one. There are no more."

"I used the rest of the Rosy Glow to refine life-saving Pills. I didn’t waste any of its life force."

An Caiwei opened her mouth, then deflated slightly.

"Fine."

With that, she took out a flowery pouch, opened it, and shook it out.

A number of things rustled out and fell to the ground.

Bai Mo looked down and immediately frowned.

"What awful quality. Who grew these?"

On the ground were all sorts of ice-attribute herbs, but their quality was extremely poor.

There were signs of artificial cultivation, but the work was crude, and they had clearly been neglected.

"Could they have been left behind by the former Cultivators of that town after they were wiped out?"

Such herbs were precious. As an Alchemy Cultivator, Bai Mo couldn’t help but lament.

"Such barbarians. They clearly never looked up proper herb cultivation methods..."

"It was me..." An Caiwei turned her head, avoiding Bai Mo’s gaze.

"That ice nest was indeed quite different from the outside world. I just followed what the senior sisters taught me and casually planted some seeds that are easy to grow."

"These kinds of seeds aren’t considered precious in the Silkworm Valley."

Bai Mo fell silent.

"Never mind."

"Senior Sister, do you want me to refine these into Pills?"

"That’s right." An Caiwei turned back to him and nodded.

"I stayed in that ice nest for too long and it took a toll on my body. I need some Pills to balance my yin and yang..."

The Silkworm Valley was exceptionally skilled in the dao of health preservation. It was said the longest-lived Core Formation Realm expert in the sect was from there.

Bai Mo had dabbled in refining Pills to balance yin and yang long ago, so this wasn’t difficult for him.

"These herbs are perfect for it. I’ll take them."

Bai Mo pointed a finger, and all the herbs instantly vanished, leaving only an ice-ball-like object on the ground.

"Hm?"

An Caiwei gave Bai Mo a suspicious look, but he just squatted down and picked up the ice ball.

"Senior Sister, where did this come from?"

"I got it when I was dredging for lotus roots in the lake." An Caiwei remembered the ice ball well.

"The senior sister with me said this ball might be a condensation of cold energy, a form of worldly essence, so I brought it back."

Bai Mo then placed the ice ball next to his ear, listened for a moment, and then handed it back to An Caiwei.

"It is indeed a worldly essence, but it’s been infested by an insect. The bug is hiding inside, which is why you couldn’t collect it."

"Senior Sister, you should take it back. This insect is probably no ordinary species. If you find the right buyer, you could sell it for a great price..."

This was an unexpected bonus.

After the two discussed some sect matters, Bai Mo suddenly asked:

"Does the Silkworm Valley produce the Five Qi of the Earth Veins?"

"Yes, it does." An Caiwei was stunned for a moment, then answered.

"I remember you used to sell Pills refined with the Five Qi of the Earth Veins back in Immortal Arrival City. Why, are you starting to make those Pills again?"

Bai Mo shook his head.

"I have another use for it. Senior Sister, could you find some for me? The higher the quality, the better."

"That’ll be expensive. High-grade Five Qi of the Earth Veins is usually used by Sect Disciples during Core Formation. The price is outrageous, and you’ll have to wait."

An Caiwei considered this. "If possible, Junior Brother, you might be better off buying some of a lower quality."

"I still have some Spirit Stones." Bai Mo wasn’t concerned.

"Please find it for me, Senior Sister. I also need it for Core Formation, so I can’t compromise on quality."

Hearing this, An Caiwei was shocked.

"You’re about to attempt Core Formation!?"

"Not at all. I’m just preparing early, gathering the materials step by step."

...

An Caiwei’s trip out wasn’t without its rewards.

From what Bai Mo could see, her gains were considerable—no worse than if she had stayed in the sect.

It was all a matter of luck.

Returning to the stone house, Bai Mo casually dealt with the things she had brought and set them aside.

The Pill he had started refining before dawn was now, under Ah Er’s watch, beginning to emit a strange fragrance.

Bai Mo approached, squatted down, and began to instruct Ah Er in a low voice:

"Today, I’ll teach you another technique: one part retraction, three parts release. This change in the fire’s intensity allows the Pill Liquid in the furnace to condense rapidly without losing any medicinal efficacy."

"Watch closely..."

Bai Mo stirred the firewood, manipulating the flames with ease. He deliberately slowed his movements for Ah Er to see.

"If you understood the art of fire control, this step would be much simpler."

"But you have too much to learn as it is, so I won’t teach you the art of fire control for now."

Only then did Ah Er wipe the sweat from its head.

It had been incredibly busy lately. The personal booklet it carried was already filled with notes.

Its intuition told it that its master must have something important to do, otherwise he wouldn’t be in such a hurry.

It wanted to cooperate, but it truly felt like its brain couldn’t keep up.

Bai Mo saw the troubled look in its eyes and gently placed a hand on its head.

"Don’t worry. If you don’t understand, I’ll teach you slowly."

"Come, let’s finish refining this furnace of Pills first. Tomorrow, you and I will go take a look at Divine Dao Mountain and pay a visit to the elders there..."