60: Inventory of harvest

Lin Jingyu was like a parched sponge, desperately absorbing these basic yet fundamental pieces of knowledge.

He stubbornly maintained this strange posture, "reading" in the cave for over an hour.

He read until he was dizzy, his temples throbbing as if pierced by countless steel needles, and his head buzzing as if it would explode the next second.

"What the hell? What is this crap? Why is it all these mysterious and vague introductory prefaces? Where's the useful stuff? Where are the practical applications? Where are the Pill Formulas?"

Lin Jingyu complained wildly in his heart, feeling as if he had been stuffed with a "PhD Thesis Introduction" for the Alchemy world; the whole thing talked about significance, history, philosophy, and morality, but never about how to actually start the furnace and refine pills!

What he was trying so hard to absorb wasn't knowledge at all, it was just filler!

The only thing he felt was somewhat valuable was probably gaining a sufficient understanding of the profession of "Alchemist."

Tens of thousands of years ago, humanity was initially nothing more than slaves to Yao Beasts and Essence Spirits, the lowest existence.

The entire race was treated as food, slaughtered at will.

It wasn't until someone comprehended the methods of cultivation from heaven and earth and spread the Dao in all directions that the Human Race gained some ability to protect themselves.

They began to grow stronger continuously, eventually becoming the overlords of the world, their power shaking the four seas and eight directions.

Alchemists also emerged at this time when someone discovered that certain Spiritual Plants, when combined, would have various incredible and wonderful uses.

So, he tasted thousands of types of Spiritual Plants across the world and recorded the characteristics of every Spirit Medicine.

Furthermore, he compiled the first book on how to pair Spiritual Plants and spirit vegetation to refine Medicinal Pills.

From then on, the path of the Alchemist began.

However, the only problem was that the ancient human leader who spread the Dao and tasted the Spiritual Plants must have been an incomparable powerhouse.

Perhaps even a being who had achieved Immortal Ascension after Undergoing Tribulation.

Why was it recorded here as just "someone" or "a certain person," instead of a specific name?

This was quite puzzling.

Could the historical gap be so severe that not even a single name was passed down?

Putting down the heavy "brick," Lin Jingyu let out a long, weary breath of turbid Qi, feeling as if his entire head was filled with paste, heavy and sluggish.

He instinctively raised his hand to rub his swollen and aching temples, trying to alleviate the intense dizziness.

Just as he withdrew his mind from the vast Elixir Canon, a mixed stench, strong enough to sting his eyes and hit his brain, suddenly rushed into his nostrils.

It was a "biochemical weapon" woven from the heavy body odor left by the black bear, the damp mustiness of the cave itself, and the dried blood on his own body.

"Ugh..."

When he was fully focused on healing and "reading" just now, his concentration was so high that his senses seemed to have automatically blocked out this stench.

Now that his mind had relaxed, the smell hit his olfactory nerves like an invisible heavy punch; his stomach churned, and he almost vomited on the spot.

"This godforsaken place is no place for a human!" He cursed under his breath, quickly held his breath, and, enduring the nausea, began to count the "inheritance" in Lin Jingxie's Storage Pouch.

A small pile of neatly stacked Low-Grade Spirit Stones, roughly counted to be about a hundred and twenty, each one round and full, emitting a soft white light.

This windfall instantly filled his Storage Pouch, which had shriveled after buying the Green Turtle Spirit Shield, effectively giving him a significant "blood transfusion."

Next were two long white jade boxes with a warm texture and exquisite carving, about the length of an arm, tightly closed, with faint Restriction spiritual light flowing over the boxes.

Clearly, the items inside were quite precious and not ordinary goods.

Lin Jingyu didn't touch them for now, leaving them for later study.

The most abundant harvest was the Medicinal Pills, a total of fourteen bottles, each with a thumb-sized label.

"qi-restoring pill," "Regenerating Muscle and Bone Paste," "Heart-Clearing Powder," "Poison-Avoiding Pill"... there were quite a few varieties, mostly common Medicinal Pills for healing and assisting in Cultivation!

The most precious was the qi-restoring pill; a bottle of five cost over two hundred Spirit Stones, and taking one could restore about thirty percent of the spiritual power of a Qi Refining Fifth Layer cultivator within twenty breaths.

In a life-and-death struggle, it was an indispensable Spirit Pill and wondrous medicine.

But there were also one or two bottles labeled with names like "Spirit-Exploding Pill" or "Blood-Burning Powder," which exuded a sense of wickedness, clearly things used when risking one's life.

In the corner, there was also a pile of miscellaneous items: several sets of robes made of obviously good fabric; a few pieces of Ore of different colors and unknown uses.

A few booklets recording various information, and even a few mundane erotic art albums... Lin Jingyu's lips twitched as he saw them; Lin Jingxie's tastes were truly broad.

He couldn't help but criticize them severely.

What really caught his eye were the two Magical Artifacts shimmering with spiritual light.

One was a silver small sword with a cold, sharp glint; the blade was narrow and thin as a cicada's wing, and its sharp aura could be faintly felt even through the space of the Storage Pouch. Two small characters were engraved on the hilt—"Fen Shui."

A First-Tier Medium Grade offensive Magical Artifact; unlike the one obtained from Chen Biao, the Grand-Uncle, this one was almost brand new.

Its value was several times higher.

The other was a palm-sized ancient bronze mirror; the frame was made of an unknown dark gold metal, with intricate cloud patterns carved on the edges, and the mirror surface was as smooth as the calmest lake, with faint brilliance flowing over it.

It was a First-Tier Medium Grade defensive Magical Artifact.

Having the Green Turtle Spirit Shield, he didn't really need it, so he could sell it at the Market.

These two items were clearly not ordinary; they were likely Magical Artifacts that Lin Jingxie had replaced or kept as backups. Under the terrifying power of the thunder fiend talisman, he hadn't even had a chance to use them, and now they all belonged to Lin Jingyu.

"Is... Is that it?"

However, after finishing the inventory, the expectation of "dropping divine gear" in Lin Jingyu's heart was like being doused with a bucket of ice water, instantly cooling by half; he was even a bit dumbfounded.

"It's an Ancient Cave Mansion, man! A legendary place of Opportunity! Where are the promised Spiritual Artifacts everywhere, Spirit Treasures all over, and Medicinal Pills like stray dogs? Where are the mountains of Cultivation Techniques and Secret Manuals? This harvest... is a bit too pathetic, isn't it?"

He couldn't help but complain wildly in his heart, aside from that Taihao Elixir Canon which was of immeasurable value but currently could only be looked at and not used.

Although the other things were good, they were clearly Lin Jingxie's own items, not something obtained from the Ancient Cave Mansion.

However, this frustration only lasted for a few breaths.

On second thought, he quickly felt relieved and even wanted to laugh.

"True, if there were a pile of divine weapons, Sharp Weapons, and Heaven-Defying Spirit Pills lying there, that guy Lin Jingxie would have long since popped pills to restore himself to full status, grabbed his gear, and fought me to the death. How could it be my turn to pick up the scraps?

I probably wouldn't have even touched the edge of his Storage Pouch before being blown to bits."

"Being able to pick up this Jade Slip recording a Fourth-Tier Alchemy Legacy is already a stroke of incredible luck, a blessing from eight lifetimes; I've made a massive profit!"