Chapter Twenty-Five: Refining the Spirit Elixir

[Secondary Deification System 1%..... The Supreme Purity Sage bestowed the Supreme Purity Immortal Talisman, which contains his insights into the Four Supreme Saint Talismans. This greatly enhances the Deification System. One must know that previously, just the three Supreme Saint Talismans from the Lord of Primordial Origin had already advanced the system directly from Level One to Level Two. How much greater, then, is the Supreme Purity Saint Talisman?

15%...

The four Supreme Purity Saint Talismans merely raised the Deification System to 15% of Level Two. The gap to Level Three remains vast!

"As expected, the higher you climb, the harder it gets!" Qingxu could understand this well. After all, the same holds true for cultivation; each new realm is exponentially more difficult to break through. Like himself now: to rise from mid-stage Earth Immortal to late-stage Earth Immortal would take several times the effort it took to ascend from Qi Refinement to Spirit Transformation.

Unlike the Jade Purity Immortal Talisman, which possessed three great powers, the Supreme Purity Divine Talisman, though containing one more Supreme Saint Talisman, only offered two major abilities: defense and summoning avatars.

As for defense, it was no different from the Jade Purity Divine Talisman—both reached the peak of Grand Luo Golden Immortal.

Examining the method for summoning avatars, Qingxu couldn’t help but be shocked. “One Qi Begets Three Purities? It’s actually One Qi Begets Three Purities?”

Having traversed from another world, Qingxu naturally understood the profundity of this technique. In his memories of the late stages of the Deification War, the Supreme Elder used this very art to contend with Tongtian, displaying divine might that shook the cosmos.

At its peak, One Qi Begets Three Purities could briefly grant the power of a Sage—it was nothing short of defying the heavens!

“With this Supreme Purity Immortal Talisman in hand, even facing a Hunyuan Loose Immortal or a quasi-sage, I can still escape with my life!” By summoning three avatars and arranging them into the innate Three Talents Formation, borrowing the immense power of heaven and earth, it might not defeat a Hunyuan Loose Immortal, but trapping one for a while would be no problem.

“Alas! If only I’d had this Supreme Purity Immortal Talisman earlier, the Nine Fiend Demon King would have become nourishment for the Mystic Demon Sword, and with such power, the sword could have rivaled Yuan Tu and Abi!” Qingxu mused.

Yuan Tu and Abi, the two innate swords of slaughter, were the personal treasures of the Blood Sea Patriarch of the Netherworld. Legend says he was born cradling both swords, standing atop the Twelve-Petaled Blood Lotus.

Yet, among the weapons of slaughter in the world, Yuan Tu and Abi were still a notch below the Four Immortal Executioner Swords and the Godslayer Spear.

“Enough, one must be content. I’ve already gained immensely this time: not only the Mystic Demon Sword but also a breakthrough to mid-stage Earth Immortal. As for the loss of the Jade Purity Immortal Talisman? It was a blessing in disguise, for the Supreme Purity Immortal Talisman is far superior!” On reflection, Qingxu truly had gained much from this ordeal.

“That’s right! My cultivation is now at mid-stage Earth Immortal, but my magical power and immortal essence remain at the early stage. Relying on my own technique, Harmonizing Dragon and Tiger, Capturing Kan and Filling Li, would take at least several months to advance. Since I’ve just plundered the old demon of Mount Daba’s immortal herbs and roots, why not refine some elixirs to speed up the process?”

With the realm achieved, using the aid of elixirs to boost magical power in line with cultivation would not harm his foundation.

The Dao of Alchemy divides elixirs into two main categories: Spirit Elixirs and Immortal Elixirs. Each is further graded into nine ranks, with First Rank the lowest and Ninth Rank the highest—such as the Ninefold Golden Elixir refined by the Supreme Sage, which is a Ninth Rank Immortal Elixir.

In three thousand years, Ba Liming had searched, killed, robbed, and stolen without scruple, amassing a trove of immortal herbs and roots unrivaled in both variety and quantity—numbering in the thousands, piled up like a small mountain, each at least ten thousand years old.

From the Lord of Primordial Origin, Qingxu had also learned many alchemical methods—not profound, but enough to refine First, Second, Third, or even Fourth Rank Spirit Elixirs with ease.

As the saying goes, every art has its mastery: among the Three Purities, Supreme Purity specializes in alchemy, Jade Purity in artifact crafting, and Upper Purity in formations. As a disciple of Primordial Origin, Qingxu’s skill in alchemy was limited, but as a Sage’s pupil, basic alchemy was within his grasp.

Alchemy requires much attention to detail. The first step is a superior cauldron; the second is fire, whose temperature must be precisely controlled according to the herbs and roots. As for the subtleties of fire and medicinal nature—that comes only with experience, not in a single leap.

Qingxu casually tossed out pieces of Blazing Gold and Profound Ice Stone, then performed incantations to smelt them with the Worldly Mystic Fire. Compared to True Samadhi Fire, the Worldly Mystic Fire was ten or even a hundred times fiercer. In just the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, the two materials melted completely into liquid, water and fire intermingled, yin and yang coexisting, evolving into the Eight Trigrams and Nine Palaces.

His fingers danced through incantations, leaving afterimages, spiritual light pouring into the liquid wrapped in the Mystic Fire. In a flash, as the light shone, the liquid condensed into a three-legged cauldron, its base stabilizing yin and yang, its surroundings embodying the four images, its top matching the Eight Trigrams and Nine Palaces, radiance swirling, immortal energy billowing, treasure light soaring to the heavens. Fortunately, Qingxu had laid down concealment formations beforehand, or who knows how many demons, monsters, witches, and beasts would have been drawn here.

Small Sumeru Array, Great Sumeru Array, Two Forms of Heaven and Earth, Acquired Eight Trigrams Array, Nine Palaces Array...

Formation after formation was inscribed into the cauldron, instantly elevating its power and rank.

One acquired restriction, then two...

“A low-grade immortal artifact (acquired spiritual treasure), containing two layers of acquired restrictions—already much improved over when I forged the Azure Sword. The Dao is long; steady progress will see me attain enlightenment one day.”

Though it sounds simple, forging the cauldron took Qingxu over ten days. Refining elixirs would take even longer. Comparatively, it was less efficient than drawing in the world’s spiritual energy to cultivate magical power, but in the long run, it was well worth it. Once he advanced further, the aid of elixirs would allow his magical power to keep pace, saving much time and effort.

One by one, immortal herbs and roots were placed into the cauldron—these were all the lowest-grade ingredients, used just for practice.

He summoned True Samadhi Fire and began refining. The Worldly Mystic Fire was too fierce and domineering; Qingxu couldn’t yet control it finely enough for alchemy.

After several hours, a fragrant aroma filled the air. Wisps of spiritual energy rose from the nine apertures of the cauldron’s lid, saturating the ten-odd-zhang cave and transforming it into a veritable paradise.

First Rank Spirit Foundation Elixir—success!

“Alas! Of ten parts medicinal potency, three were lost. Just a First Rank Spirit Elixir. Alchemy truly is profound!” With a wave, he opened the cauldron, drawing out fourteen Foundation Elixirs, each the size of a thumb, shining with clear light and emitting exotic fragrances. Using herbs aged over ten thousand years, even with only seven parts medicinal strength, the result was extraordinary—a single pill could raise a cultivator from early to peak Qi Refinement. But such pills had little value to Qingxu.

He swallowed one whole, circulating his power through several cycles to refine the medicinal energy, and his immortal essence increased slightly.

Onward!

First Rank: Foundation Elixir, Essence Cultivation Elixir...

Second Rank: Dragon-Tiger Elixir, Qi-Nurturing Elixir...

Third Rank: Mind-Concentrating Elixir, Spirit-Transforming Elixir...

With abundant ingredients, Qingxu began a frenzy of alchemical refinement. First Rank Spirit Elixirs had a one hundred percent success rate and over seventy percent medicinal potency. For Second Rank, the success rate dropped to eighty percent at best, with five to six parts medicinal strength. Third Rank succeeded only about fifty percent of the time, with under three parts potency. However, as the number of attempts increased, both success and potency improved.

Time flew by. Before he knew it, a hundred days had passed. In three months, Qingxu stopped refining, having used up over half of Ba Liming’s lower-grade ingredients.