184: Chapter 184 Returning to Mount Dayu

Liu Xianglan's disappointment was not feigned.

For the past few years, she had been studying this Corpse Person and the Pill-vessel, all for the sake of refining it into a Corpse Puppet General as quickly as possible, but after so much effort, she had still failed.

Wu Guiyun staggered, supporting herself against the nearby stone wall. Looking at the disappointment in Liu Xianglan's eyes, her heart was also filled with bitterness.

She gently patted Liu Xianglan's shoulder, "Xianglan, there's no need to be too discouraged. We've both done our best. It's just that this Corpse Person is still a bit lacking, and our cultivation is too low. It hasn't been easy to last this long. For now, let's recover our spiritual energy first."

Liu Xianglan nodded, her eyes full of helplessness.

She gripped the soul-inducing lamp in her hand. The faint, eerie light from the lamp reflected the redness in her eyes, and her voice carried an unmistakable sob: "But we've already tried three times, and every time we fail at the final step."

"Father is out searching for medicine just to break through to Foundation Establishment. Haoer and Yaoer are still at the Qingyun Sect, and our family is currently being watched by those people from the Xuanyou Sect..."

"If we can't even refine a single Corpse Puppet General, how will we defend Lingyun Valley if the Li family comes for revenge in the future? How can we live up to Grandfather's entrustment?"

As soon as she finished speaking, the White Eagle circling above let out a low cry.

It slowly descended and gently rubbed its head against Liu Xianglan's arm, its eyes full of docility.

Xiao Yu was Ye Yi's spirit pet, stationed here to watch over the two women. Sensing their low spirits, it came down to comfort them.

Wu Guiyun looked at the Corpse Person slumped on the ground with a weak aura, then at the hideous Pill-vessel that was still vibrating slightly and seeping turbid gas, her brow furrowing slightly.

As if thinking of something, she asked, "Xianglan, don't you think this failure was different from the previous two?"

They had attempted the refining process three times over the past month, calibrating after each failure.

Hearing this, Liu Xianglan set aside her dejection and looked toward the Corpse Person, condensing a faint trace of spiritual energy in her hand.

She carefully probed inside.

Sure enough, although the resentment surrounding the Corpse Person was intense, it wasn't as violent as before. Instead, it seemed to have been nourished by the spirit fire and the soul, becoming much calmer.

And the vengeful souls within the Pill-vessel were only slightly restless, not crashing around frantically as they had before.

"Sister-in-law, are you serious?"

Liu Xianglan's voice held a hint of disbelief, the disappointment in her eyes gradually replaced by hope.

"Sister-in-law, could it be that our refining this past month actually worked? It's just that our cultivation is too low, and our spiritual energy isn't enough to support the final step of Fusion?"

"Most likely!"

A light also flickered in Wu Guiyun's eyes, and her tone became a bit firmer.

“According to the records in 'Corpse Puppet Refining', refining a Foundation Establishment Corpse Puppet General requires the refiner to have a cultivation of at least Qi Refining Level 7 or higher, as well as sufficient spiritual energy to support the Fusion of the soul and the corpse."

"Both you and I are only at Qi Refining Level 5. Getting to this step was already a stroke of luck. If it weren't for the White Eagle's lightning suppression and your soul-inducing lamp, I'm afraid we wouldn't have been able to restrain the Corpse Person, let alone control it."

"Then, Sister-in-law, should we continue the refining?" Liu Xianglan asked, feeling a bit hesitant.

Since it was because their cultivation was insufficient, no amount of compensation could bridge that gap.

Seeing this, Wu Guiyun sighed and said, "Unless we have powerful spiritual energy to complement us, but our cultivation is not enough. However, if we try a few more times, it will help us master the intensity of the fire."

"You mean, we should refine the Corpse Person while also honing our control over the fire?"

Liu Xianglan asked.

Wu Guiyun nodded and said, "Yes. Anyway, Father has given us plenty of time. Didn't he ask you to study the foundation establishment pill's Pill Formula? If we can refine the Corpse Person and improve our Alchemy skills at the same time, why not?"

Seeing her sister-in-law's optimism, Liu Xianglan was also encouraged and said, "Then let's try again!"

Meanwhile, Ye Jing.

He returned once again to that wasteland, but this time he headed straight for Dayu Mountain.

The reason was none other than the fact that the final ingredient for the foundation establishment pill, cold spring dew, was extremely precious. He had visited several medicine shops in Tiangong Market and even searched the surrounding small markets, but he couldn't buy any.

This was because cold spring dew was no ordinary Spiritual Plant; it was formed from the condensation of the world's yin-cold energy in the eye of a cold spring within deep mountain ravines.

Furthermore, it had to be collected on the night of a new moon, absorbing the cold essence of the stars and moon to obtain just a few drops. A single bowl of cold spring dew would consume hundreds of years of the spring eye's spiritual essence.

This dew could not be artificially cultivated, nor did it have a fixed output. Even the medicine storehouses of large Sects only held a few bottles, which were rarely released to outsiders.

A single drop could be refined into a foundation establishment pill.

This showed how immense its spiritual energy content was.

Tiangong Market had its own unique channels, yet even they found it difficult to find such a natural spiritual treasure.

Ye Jing spent dozens of Spirit Stones to buy a map from the Qiwu Pavilion, which sold maps of spiritual treasures.

According to the map, the nearest location for cold spring dew was Dayu Mountain.

Ye Jing couldn't help but think of the moonlight spirit stones he had obtained in the Iron Azure Wolf King's cave. That cave had been full of black iron ore, and the spiritual energy there was extremely dense.

It was possible for cold spring dew to appear in a mountain range with such spiritual mineral veins.

Ye Jing had spent the month managing the shop's business and had also found a wood-attribute first-order Middle Stage Scorpion Monster for Ye Tianhui to form a contract with, giving him a Yao Beast assistant.

Perhaps because he had killed those troublemaking Li family members, no similar incidents had occurred at the shop for a month.

Thus, he felt comfortable enough to head out and search for this ingredient.

As the sky gradually darkened, Ye Jing withdrew his techniques and stopped amidst a field of jagged rocks. He hadn't been to this mountain in years, and the scene of those three Foundation Establishment Cultivators fighting the Iron Azure Wolf King remained vivid in his mind.

Ye Jing was also somewhat grateful for the small actions he had taken, which prevented those Foundation Establishment Cultivators from noticing him; otherwise, even ten Ye Jings would not have escaped.

Learning from his past mistakes, Ye Jing did not set up any Talismans or defensive arrays that could be easily sensed by other Cultivators.

He completely concealed his cultivation and began to observe the surroundings.

Ye Jing easily sensed that many Cultivators and Mortals were gathered around Dayu Mountain, but the cultivation levels of these Cultivators were not high.

Most were Sect Cultivators dressed in blue, while some Mortals were bare-chested, excavating black iron ore from the caves.

It seemed that after the three Lingxiao Sect Elders dealt with the Iron Azure Wolf King, they had claimed Dayu Mountain for mining spiritual ores.

Ye Jing held his breath, pressed against a jagged rock, his gaze sweeping over the busy figures below, his heart sinking slightly.

Those blue-clad Cultivators mostly appeared to be at Qi Refining Level 6 or 7, guarding the area around the mine shafts in small groups.

Dharma swords hung at their waists. Although they lacked a sharp aura, they still tightly surrounded the black iron ore mining area.

Mortal miners with bare backs were piling up the dark black iron ore in the clearing outside the mine. The iron stones shimmered with a faint spiritual luster. It seemed the spiritual mineral veins of this mountain range were indeed rich, making it no wonder that the Qingyue Sect had taken this place for themselves.

cold spring dew grows in the eyes of cold springs in dark ravines, which should be in the gloomy parts of the mountain range. However, the visible areas of Dayu Mountain were now entirely controlled by the Qingyue Sect. Ordinary paths would certainly be patrolled by Disciples, and if he were to rush in, he would likely be detected as soon as he approached a ravine.

He furrowed his brows in thought, his fingers rubbing the Storage Pouch at his waist, which contained the map from the Qiwu Pavilion.

The map indicated an unmarked valley on the northern foothills of Dayu Mountain. Beside it was a small spring with the single word "Cold" written there; it was likely the potential source of the cold spring dew.

That valley was on the shaded side of the mountain range in a remote area, separated by a dense forest. It was likely that the Lingxiao Sect, focused on mining, had not necessarily brought that desolate valley under their control.

Having made up his mind, Ye Jing turned slightly and, using the cover of jagged rocks and withered trees, silently circled toward the western side of the mountain range.

The vegetation here, nourished year-round by the spiritual energy of the black iron ore, grew thicker than elsewhere, with branches and leaves intertwining to form a natural screen.

He lightened his steps, his Qi Refining Level 9 cultivation completely withdrawn into his body. He even kept his breathing extremely shallow. Occasionally, when he encountered patrolling Qingyue Sect Disciples, he would stand still in the shadows of the trees, waiting for them to move far away before continuing.