Chapter 190 - 135: Foundation Establishment Pill Exposed, Alchemist Zhuang’s Guarantee

Chapter 190: Chapter 135: Foundation Establishment Pill Exposed, Alchemist Zhuang’s Guarantee

"It’s actually Profound Ice Jade Marrow?!"

Chen Jianghe knew of this Heaven and Earth Spiritual Object. As one of the three main ingredients for refining Foundation Establishment Pills, it was exceedingly rare south of the Tongtian River.

Produced deep within the Far North Ice Abyss, harvesting it required meeting numerous strict conditions. It could not be touched by mortal iron or ordinary magical artifacts, or it would instantly turn to dust. It had to be excavated and extracted using Ice Attribute Spiritual Artifacts during the Sunflower Water Moon, making it truly hard to come by.

Like the Purple Mist Red Fruit, the Profound Ice Jade Marrow possessed three major effects.

First, Condensing Pill Base. Its nature was cold but not piercing, capable of suppressing the rampaging Spiritual Qi in the body during Foundation Establishment, thereby preventing the danger of one’s body exploding.

Second, nourishing the Sea of Consciousness. It nurtured the Sea of Consciousness to prevent the Divine Sense from scattering under the impact of Spiritual Qi during a breakthrough.

Third, clearing the three passes. It dissolved the blockages in the Ren and Du Meridians as well as the Central Meridian, allowing the Spiritual Qi to flow autonomously through a Grand Circulation in the body, thus laying the foundation for future cultivation.

The last time they crowdfunded alchemy, Chen Jianghe had guessed that the Profound Ice Jade Marrow might have been substituted. However, he didn’t know what it had been replaced with. This alone showed just how precious the Profound Ice Jade Marrow was.

It was truly unimaginable that Gao Peiyao would give Yun Xiaoniu such a heavy gift before her departure. Back then, Yu Daniu had helped Gao Peiyao purchase a High-Grade Defensive Spiritual Artifact, scraping together over two hundred Spirit Stones from various sources. This time, Gao Peiyao returned the favor with a piece of Profound Ice Jade Marrow.

This could certainly be considered a small investment yielding a massive return.

The market price for a single piece of Profound Ice Jade Marrow was one thousand two hundred Spirit Stones. At an auction, it would typically fetch over one thousand five hundred.

"It seems Gao Peiyao wants Xiaoniu to take the same path as me—crowdfunded alchemy," Chen Jianghe murmured.

Foundation Establishment Pills were hard to come by. Even though Gao Peiyao was a Foundation Establishment Disciple of a Sect, it would be difficult for her to obtain one. Merely securing a piece of Profound Ice Jade Marrow was already incredibly rare.

The intention behind Daniu’s letter was very clear. He wanted Chen Jianghe to help plan for Xiaoniu and keep an eye out for any crowdfunded alchemy opportunities in the Qinghe Marketplace.

Yu Daniu trusted Chen Jianghe without reservation. Otherwise, he absolutely would not have leaked the news of the Profound Ice Jade Marrow. After all, this was a Heaven and Earth Spiritual Object that could bring a fatal disaster upon its owner.

"Xiaoniu is already forty-four years old this year. It really is time to plan for a Foundation Establishment Pill. Since he wants to do crowdfunded alchemy, he might as well join me."

He had a Low-Quality Foundation Establishment Pill on hand, but he would not use it lightly; it was his last resort. If he could obtain a better Genuine Foundation Establishment Pill, he certainly wouldn’t settle for the low-quality one.

"I just don’t know if Ruan Tieniu can get his hands on a Purple Mist Red Fruit."

The most difficult aspect of refining a Foundation Establishment Pill was obtaining the Purple Mist Red Fruit. Everyone knew where it grew, yet few dared to venture there. Fusang Cliff, located three hundred miles deep within the Youxian Mountain Range, was home to more than just a single Tier Two Demon Beast. Even a team of three Foundation Establishment Cultivators would likely never return from such a trip.

Promptly, Chen Jianghe wrote a reply to Yu Daniu. His words were subtle, but they clearly conveyed his stance: Yu Daniu could leave the matter of Yun Xiaoniu’s crowdfunded alchemy to him. Once the crowdfunded alchemy began taking shape, Chen Jianghe would send another letter, having Yu Daniu and Yun Xiaoniu come to the Qinghe Marketplace together.

As for why the father and son didn’t do their crowdfunded alchemy in the Jingyue Marketplace? The reason was simple.

The Jingyue Marketplace had only been established for over twenty years. Its foundations were still shallow, and it likely didn’t even have a single Tier Two Lower-Grade Alchemist. How could they possibly crowdfund the refining of a Foundation Establishment Pill?

After replying to the letter, Chen Jianghe resumed his secluded cultivation. He planned to seek out Alchemist Zhuang at the end of the year. He didn’t know the Foundation Establishment Pill Formula that Ruan Tieniu and Alchemist Zhuang had traded for, so he needed to ask if the three main ingredients for refining the Foundation Establishment Pill were the same as those in the conventional pill formula, or if a substitute for the Profound Ice Jade Marrow was the only viable option.

Time flowed on.

In the latter half of the twelfth lunar month.

After drawing a Middle-Grade Five Elements Escape Talisman, Chen Jianghe packed away his Wolf Hair Talisman Pen and materials. He sat cross-legged on his bed and circulated the Ten Thousand Waters Scripture to recover his Magical Power.

Seven hours later, his Magical Power was restored to perfection. However, he did not get up. Instead, he rested his mind, doing his utmost to prevent the drawing of Spirit Talismans from damaging his Soul Essence. Earning Spirit Stones was important, but his own condition was paramount.

Three days later.

Now brimming with energy, he slowly opened his eyes, instantly feeling refreshed and clear-headed.

"It seems my Divine Sense has strengthened," he realized.

Chen Jianghe felt his Divine Sense carrying a greater pressure, so he immediately released it outward.

Ten breaths later.

A look of pleasant surprise washed over his face. The range of his Divine Sense had actually reached seventy-two feet! In just two years, it had increased by twelve feet.

"How did it increase so much?"

Chen Jianghe was somewhat puzzled. He hadn’t taken any Nourishing Spirit Pills, nor had he consumed any Tier One Spirit-Enriching Spirit Liquid. He certainly hadn’t cultivated any Spiritual Techniques either. Logically speaking, it shouldn’t have improved this fast.

"Could it really be because of drawing Spirit Talismans?"

Chen Jianghe felt something was off. There were so many Talisman Dao Cultivators, yet he had never heard of drawing Spirit Talismans significantly enhancing one’s Soul Essence and strengthening their Divine Sense. But if it wasn’t due to drawing Spirit Talismans, there was only one possibility left.

It was related to Little Black’s improvement.

Over the past two years, Little Black had devoured twenty-four Spirit Cores from Late-Stage Tier One Demon Beasts, causing its cultivation to skyrocket. If the Spirit Platform Mark could feed back Little Black’s improved Soul Essence, then the strengthening of his Divine Sense stemmed directly from Little Black’s cultivation growth.

Seventy-two feet.

This far exceeded the Divine Sense strength of a Ninth-Layer Qi Refining Cultivator. While it couldn’t compare to those Ninth-Layer Qi Refining Cultivators who had access to Spiritual Cultivation Techniques, it undoubtedly bolstered his foundation.

Once he cultivated a Spiritual Technique in the future...