208: A miraculous recovery? Unveiling the truth!

As Li Changsheng's voice fell, bursts of exclamations erupted from the crowd.

A beautiful woman dressed in luxurious palace attire stepped forward first, her beautiful eyes filled with excitement and admiration.

She was a Yaochi Grand Elder named Lin Miaoyin, known as the Marvelous Sound Supreme. Her cultivation had reached the Middle Stage of the Great Ascension Stage, and her status in Yaochi was second only to the Holy Mother.

"Good! Good! Good!" Lin Miaoyin praised repeatedly. Looking at the vibrant divine medicine, her eyes shone with brilliant light. "Young Friend Li is truly a genius of the heavens. To think you could use the long-lost Myriad Spirits Spring Restoration Art so masterfully."

"This nine marvels undying medicine is the lifeblood of my Yaochi. For thousands of years, countless alchemy Grandmasters have been helpless. I didn't expect it to return to life in your hands today. Our entire Yaochi will keep this kindness in our hearts."

Several Great Ascension Stage Elders around her also chimed in, not holding back on their words of praise.

"Indeed, Young Friend Li not only has a solid cultivation, but his attainments in the Path of Spirit Plants are likely the best in the world today."

"If not for Young Friend Li, this divine medicine probably wouldn't have lasted another hundred years. This is a debt of gratitude for the rebirth of our Yaochi."

Hearing the flattery of these powerful figures standing at the peak of the Cultivation World, Li Changsheng could almost not suppress his pride.

He lowered his head slightly to hide the ecstasy and arrogance in his eyes, feigning humility as he said, "Seniors, you overpraise me. This Junior merely happened to learn this method from an ancient Incomplete Manual and has a slight affinity for the Spirits of Flora, hence my lucky success."

"This nine marvels undying medicine is a divine object of heaven and earth with its own spirituality. This Junior was simply going with the flow."

He spoke nonchalantly, but his heart was screaming wildly: It's set! As long as I max out Yaochi's favor, take the fruit of the nine marvels undying medicine, and then take the opportunity to win over the legendary Yaochi Saintess, my path to rising will be unstoppable.

A cold and indifferent voice, yet as piercing as eternal ice, suddenly exploded in everyone's ears, instantly shattering the peaceful and enthusiastic atmosphere.

"Returning from the dead? I think not. This is merely an illusion of a final radiance before the end."

As soon as these words were spoken, the entire field fell into a dead silence.

Everyone's gaze instantly converged on the source of the voice.

They saw Lu Yuan standing with his hands behind his back, his white robes as pure as snow, his expression as indifferent as water, as if that earth-shattering sentence hadn't come from his mouth.

He quietly looked at the divine medicine enveloped in green mist, a hint of unmasked mockery in his eyes.

And arriving here with Lu Yuan was the Yaochi Holy Mother.

The smile on Li Changsheng's face instantly froze, then turned into a look of humiliation and anger.

He turned around and looked directly at Lu Yuan, his voice carrying a suppressed anger: "What do you mean by that, Senior? The facts are before our eyes. The divine medicine is full of life. Where is this 'illusion' you speak of?"

Lin Miaoyin also frowned slightly. Although she was wary of Lu Yuan's unfathomable background and strength, since it concerned the Sect's divine medicine, she had to speak up in defense: "Fellow Daoist Lu, one can eat whatever they want, but one shouldn't say whatever they want."

"Young Friend Li has expended his Origin to treat the divine medicine, and the results are obvious to all. Isn't it beneath your status to belittle him like this?"

Lu Yuan's expression remained wave-less, as if stating a simple fact: "I don't understand spirit plants? Perhaps. But I understand Laws, and I understand the Heavenly Dao even better. The Great Dao requires everything; solitary Yin cannot give birth, and solitary Yang cannot grow."

"This nine marvels undying medicine was already in an extremely weakened state and simply cannot withstand such a massive amount of external life force."

"Fellow Daoist Li's actions, forcibly injecting Wood Essence, may look like saving a life, but they are actually taking it."

"It's like forcibly giving a dying person a potent tonic; while they may look flushed and healthy, they are actually overdrawing their last bit of foundation. This isn't treatment; it's slow suicide."

"Nonsense!" Li Changsheng swept his sleeve and laughed in anger. "I, Li, have studied the Path of Spirit Plants for hundreds of years and have never heard of life force being a death sentence."

"If Senior is unconvinced, feel free to produce evidence. Relying only on your words to spread alarmist talk is truly beneath you."

"Evidence?"

The corner of Lu Yuan's mouth curled into a playful arc. "To prove whether this is an illusion is actually quite simple. Time is the only standard for testing the truth."

"By simply accelerating the growth process of this divine medicine and seeing its future state, everything will naturally come to light."

Turning to the Yaochi Holy Mother, who had yet to speak, Lu Yuan nodded slightly and said, "Holy Mother, I possess the Law of Time and can accelerate the flow of time within a localized area."

"If the Holy Mother trusts me, it will only take half a day to verify that my words are true."

The Yaochi Holy Mother's eyes, which seemed to contain a sea of stars, rested on Lu Yuan for a moment.

She could feel Lu Yuan's calm and unhurried confidence—not a blind arrogance, but a composure born of having everything under control.

"Since Fellow Daoist Lu has such an interest, then let us try," the Yaochi Holy Mother said, her voice ethereal.

"Holy Mother! What if he plays tricks in secret?" Lin Miaoyin was somewhat worried.

"It matters not." The Yaochi Holy Mother waved her hand. "I am here. Whether he plays tricks or not will be clear at a glance."

Having received her consent, Lu Yuan spoke no more.

He stepped forward, his Chaos Dao Body trembling slightly as a profound ripple spread from within him.

It was the aura of the Great Dao that stood above all living beings.

Lu Yuan gave a soft cry, and his eyes seemed to contain a surging river.

He pointed a finger, and an invisible yet tangible ripple instantly enveloped the area within three zhang of the nine marvels undying medicine.

The Great Ascension Stage Cultivators present felt their pupils shrink suddenly.

They clearly perceived that the space in that area seemed severed from the outside world, as a heart-palpitating Law power distorted the flow of time.

Six-Transformation Law of Time.

After ascending to the Great Ascension Stage and reaching Major Achievement in the Great Dao of Space, his comprehension of the Law of Time had also risen accordingly.

The time acceleration he performed now was enough to achieve the effect of a hundred days passing inside for every single day outside.

Everyone held their breath, their gazes locked onto the divine medicine.

At first, the nine marvels undying medicine continued to emit a dense life force, its leaves a dripping emerald green.

Seeing this, Li Changsheng sneered inwardly, thinking: Putting on a show. I'll see how long you can last. Once the time is up and the divine medicine is unharmed, I'll see where you hide your face.

However...

As time passed, though only an hour had gone by outside, several months had passed within the area enveloped by the Law of Time.

The originally emerald leaves began to lose their luster, and a hint of withered yellow appeared at the edges.

Two hours passed.

The leaves began to wither on a large scale, and the once-upright branches became shriveled. The massive life force that had been forcibly injected earlier was receding like a tide, dissipating even faster than before.