The Chaotic Immortal Wood Sect: Immortal Cultivation War - Chapter 25

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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25. Ascending to the Foundation Building Stage and Obtaining the Heaven-Permitted Cauldron

Something buried within the mist.

The moment Kang Hyeon’s consciousness detected it, he dove into the mist without looking back.

How could he let slip this opportunity seized by one in a thousand, one in ten thousand chances.

Ziiiiiiing!

But that thing within the mist seemed to have no intention of readily revealing its existence to Kang Hyeon.

A dizzying sensation that pierced through his mind tried to neutralize Kang Hyeon’s consciousness.

It felt like suddenly losing strength and having his knees buckle.

‘I cannot lose!’

But Kang Hyeon’s consciousness, like pouring desperate strength into collapsing knees in an instant, used all his will to endure the fainting spell and reached it.

Chiiiiing!

The resistance weakened by half.

Kang Hyeon realized this was giving him an opportunity and pushed his consciousness into it.

Deeeeeeeng!

‘Kugh!’

At the same time, a massive bell sound resonated through his consciousness.

And following the concentric circles of sound waves created by that bell sound, his consciousness expanded and was purified.

In that moment, Kang Hyeon’s consciousness expanded several times over while simultaneously clearing away all impurities.

‘Ah, this is a fortuitous encounter.’

It was a fortuitous encounter that cleanly organized the small threads of heart demons that had accumulated in Kang Hyeon until now.

And with that purified consciousness, the incantations carved on the surface of the temple bell spread out as semi-transparent three-dimensional forms, then gathered in one place to create something.

‘That is a cauldron?!’

Kang Hyeon recognized that it had the shape of a cauldron, and at that moment, the meaning of the cauldron created by the gathered incantations naturally came to mind.

‘An alchemy furnace! That is an alchemy furnace. Moreover, it’s a supreme divine artifact that the Heaven and Earth Laws have permitted for pill refining. Therefore, if one refines pills with that, there will be no heavenly tribulations whatsoever. For it is recognized by the Heaven and Earth Laws. Ahhhhh.’

Kang Hyeon was moved to tears.

Cultivators are inevitably those who defy heaven.

The Heaven and Earth Laws gave lifespans to all things, but cultivators go against that heavenly mandate to pursue longevity, and reaching the extreme, even longevity becomes insufficient as they seek immortality.

How could rejecting the natural reincarnation of the Heaven and Earth Laws not be defying heaven.

Therefore, when a cultivator’s realm rises and that level of defying heaven reaches its limit, the Heaven and Earth Laws are bound to send down heavenly tribulations to punish it.

Kang Hyeon’s current ascension to Foundation Building is not such a great matter, so no advancement tribulation descends.

But when cultivators try to form their Nascent Soul, heavenly tribulations descend to interfere with it, and from then on, the heavenly tribulations of the Heaven and Earth Laws occasionally manifest in all activities of cultivators.

‘Pill refining is the same. If one tries to make spirit pills that go against the natural order of the Heaven and Earth Laws, naturally one must overcome heavenly tribulations. Starting from the Spirit Body stage Advancement Pills that help when forming the Nascent Soul, pill refining tribulations descend. But if one uses this cauldron? Ah, truly where else could such a treasure exist.’

Kang Hyeon could not hide his emotion looking at the single ash-colored pill furnace that had fully revealed itself in his space.

A future of easily breaking through to the Spirit Body stage and Avatar stage by making Advancement Pills with that pill furnace was wavering before his eyes.

Of course, the secret recipes for such spirit pills are not easily obtained, but when fate connects, there will be a day when they come into his hands.

Hwahwahwahwat! Seutzeutzeutzeutzeutz!

‘Mmm!’

While Kang Hyeon was being so moved, suddenly a strong suction force that drew in his consciousness was felt, and the Spirit Communication Passage that had touched the Heaven and Earth Laws closed.

And Kang Hyeon’s consciousness had returned to his own Mental Space.

‘Whew, is this the consciousness of Foundation Building?’

Kang Hyeon briefly spread his expanded consciousness this way and that.

And inwardly shook his head.

‘This absolutely cannot be called the consciousness range of an ordinary Foundation Building cultivator. How could a Foundation Building cultivator’s consciousness be this wide, and the spiritual consciousness also cannot be this strong.’

Having heard and seen things, he had some idea about Foundation Building cultivators.

But Kang Hyeon’s current state was absolutely not the level of Foundation Building cultivators he had previously imagined.

‘At least more than double, no, this requires multiplication, so it’s much larger and stronger than that.’

His consciousness was like that and his spiritual consciousness was like that.

And this naturally also meant that Kang Hyeon could overwhelm ordinary Foundation Building cultivators.

‘Good. I’m now at early Foundation Building, but perhaps I could even handle late Foundation Building.’

Kang Hyeon confirmed his condition and reached such a conclusion.

Naturally, his inner satisfaction was indescribably great.

‘Let’s call that the Heaven-Permitted Cauldron.’

Having confirmed his consciousness to some extent, Kang Hyeon looked at the cauldron placed in one corner of his Mental Space.

It was a conceptual thing created by gathered incantations.

Having no substance, it could not be taken outside the Mental Space.

‘Though it has no substance, that makes it even more remarkable.’

Kang Hyeon already clearly knew what it was.

‘That is an incantation to be inscribed on a substantial alchemy furnace. If one refines that Heaven-Permitted Cauldron into an alchemy furnace with the power of consciousness, that alchemy furnace becomes the Heaven-Permitted Cauldron.’

Though it had the shape of a cauldron, in reality that Heaven-Permitted Cauldron was like a permit certificate that the Heaven and Earth Laws allowed pill refining.

“But once inscribed, one can only refine pills once, and to use the Heaven-Permitted Cauldron again afterward, one must wait until that incantation recovers.”

It wasn’t something that gave endlessly without limit.

The gift of the Heaven and Earth Laws that Kang Hyeon named the Heaven-Permitted Cauldron had quite a few restrictions on its use.

‘Without actually using it, I can’t know how long it takes for the Heaven-Permitted Cauldron’s incantation to recover, or whether there’s a way to reduce that time. But I can’t test it right now either…’

Among the pill refining recipes that Kang Hyeon possessed, there were none that reached the level of bringing about heavenly tribulation.

So there would be no occasion for the Heaven-Permitted Cauldron to activate.

‘I’ve obtained an ancient treasure, but there’s no immediate use for it.’

Though Kang Hyeon felt disappointed, he made an effort to compose himself and awakened his consciousness to return to reality.

Thuuuuung!

The moment Kang Hyeon opened his eyes, a powerful spiritual energy wave burst forth from the cultivation chamber where he was.

It was a spiritual energy fluctuation like a triumphant cry announcing to the world that a Spiritual Energy Technique cultivator had successfully ascended to the Energy Accumulation realm.

This was intense enough for all the cultivators near Kang Hyeon’s manor to notice.

Probably those who knew Kang Hyeon would realize his realm advancement and decide their future conduct accordingly.

“What about In Deok? Hmm, he shouldn’t have any problems with advancement either. It’ll take a few days, but it’s stable.”

Kang Hyeon checked In Deok’s condition in the adjacent building with his Energy Accumulation cultivator’s spiritual consciousness and showed a relieved expression.

Then he immediately got up and moved his body around inside the cultivation chamber before leaving with a satisfied expression.

Thanks to the temple bell that rang during the process of obtaining the Heaven-Permitted Cauldron, Kang Hyeon’s essence, energy, and spirit were in perfect condition, so he could skip the process of stabilizing his realm after advancement.

“Excellent!”

Kang Hyeon exclaimed softly and headed to the herb garden he had set up next to the cultivation chamber.

The herb garden where the True Fertile Earth Secret Method was applied was the place where Kang Hyeon invested the most time and effort.

Since the heaven and earth spiritual energy had fluctuated due to this Energy Accumulation advancement, he wanted to check if there were any problems with the herb garden.

He had nothing particular to do until In Deok came out anyway.

***

“Aren’t these the famous Taoist friends from Yang Won Manor?”

“It seems our reputation has spread even here?”

“How could it not? Energy Accumulation advancement happens often, but it’s rare for two friends to advance simultaneously.”

“I see.”

Even after In Deok completed his Energy Accumulation advancement, Kang Hyeon and In Deok didn’t leave the manor for quite some time.

While Kang Hyeon didn’t need to stabilize his realm separately thanks to hearing the temple bell during the process of obtaining the Heaven-Permitted Cauldron, In Deok was different.

After realm advancement, not only stabilizing that realm but also adapting to all the rapidly enhanced abilities is necessary.

For this reason, they spent three months secluded in the manor after the Energy Accumulation advancement.

But how could they achieve their purpose of coming to Cheong Myeong Bang Si if they stayed in the manor forever?

Thus, today Kang Hyeon and In Deok finally decided to officially make their debut in Cheong Myeong Bang Si.

So they arrived at this place.

The Liaison Trading Hall.

This was a place that received and collected requests, assigned them to suitable people to get work done, then received and paid compensation – essentially a gathering of brokers.

“Did the two Taoist friends visit our Liaison Trading Hall to make a request, or to receive work?”

On the first floor of the Liaison Trading Hall, members of the hall sat at tables along the three walls excluding the wall with the entrance.

Looking closely, each table had nameplates of the members with slightly different colors and patterns.

Since Kang Hyeon had already gathered some information about the Liaison Trading Hall, the table he sought was one that handled mid-to-low level requests.

If he were still at the Spiritual Energy Technique level, he would have sought a low-level table, but at the Energy Accumulation realm, he could receive mid-level requests.

“First, some verification would be necessary, wouldn’t it? So please show us work we could handle.”

“Haha. Whether you give or receive work, it’s always welcome for us. Now then, two cultivators at early Energy Accumulation. Will you move together?”

“Unless there’s something special, we always work together.”

“I see. Then compensation that’s too meager wouldn’t be cost-effective, so how about taking a look at these?”

Mo Yeom, a mid-level steward of the Liaison Trading Hall, pulled out several mission request documents and handed them to Kang Hyeon with a friendly expression.

When Kang Hyeon received them, he saw various different requests with greatly varying rewards.

“How is it?”

Kang Hyeon passed each mission request document he read to In Deok for confirmation, then asked.

“I like this one the most.”

In Deok picked out one document from among the various mission requests and handed it to Kang Hyeon.

“Isn’t this a bit too much for us?”

Kang Hyeon saw it was a request to obtain the Thousand-Year Mystic Spirit Mushroom, the main ingredient for a spirit pill called the Mystic Spirit Pill.

However, the location written in the mission request document where the spirit mushroom was presumed to be was the forbidden zone called Chaotic Dark Valley.

Chaotic Dark Valley was a valley in the Muyeon Mountain Range about 50,000 li northeast of Cheong Myeong Bang Si, called a forbidden zone because many people had gone missing there.

It was definitely not an easy request – to harvest the Thousand-Year Mystic Spirit Mushroom from that Chaotic Dark Valley – yet In Deok had chosen it.

“But the reward is big. Look here, they’ll give either a completed Mystic Spirit Pill or the Spirit Mushroom Pill Recipe.”

“The Mystic Spirit Pill… It’s a spirit pill that resolves discord between essence, energy, and spirit, and there’s no better specific remedy when problems arise during cultivation, but…”

Kang Hyeon hesitated, thinking whether such a thing was really necessary.

The Mystic Spirit Pill would be useful at least at mid or late Energy Accumulation stage, so he wondered if they should take on a request related to it when they were only at early Energy Accumulation.

“It seems like it would be fun too.”

But In Deok added that comment and winked.

At this, Kang Hyeon sighed softly and handed the mission request document to Mo Yeom.

“We’ll take this one.”

“Oh, really? This request has a big reward, but it’s equally dangerous and the aftermath isn’t clean.”

“Whatever the case may be, if we complete the request, there’s no chance we won’t receive the compensation, is there?”

“Hahaha. You mean this? Even if the requesting party refuses to pay, our Liaison Trading Hall takes responsibility and provides the request reward, so there’s no need to worry about that.”

“That’s exactly why I’m saying this. The danger is our share to bear, and after completing the request is the Liaison Trading Hall’s responsibility, so if we each do our part, that’s enough.”

“Very well. Since you put it that way, I’ll provide the mission request document.”

Mo Yeom didn’t lose his business smile even at Kang Hyeon’s words drawing clear lines.

Then he infused spiritual energy into the mission request document and spread it on the table, waiting briefly.

Kang Hyeon and In Deok guessed this was to inform the upper levels of the Liaison Trading Hall that there were people to carry out the request, and to wait for it to be accepted.

“There, it’s done.”

After a faint light flowed from the mission request document placed on the table, Mo Yeom handed the document to Kang Hyeon.

“This mission may have multiple practitioners, but they said they would accept anyone who brings back the Thousand-Year Mystic Spirit Mushroom, so please consider it.”

“So there could be competitors. Then can you tell me how many have taken the mission before us?”

“That’s not difficult. If you look at the bottom of the mission request document, you’ll see four circles. If they’re glowing brightly, it means someone is currently performing the mission, and if they turn dark, it means they’ve either abandoned the mission or met with an accident. Now that you two have been added, there are four circles.”

“Then the others who took the mission will also know that we’ve been added?”

“They won’t know who, but they’ll know that someone new has taken the mission.”

“I see. Understood. Then we’ll return with the Thousand-Year Mystic Spirit Mushroom.”

“Hahaha. I pray to the Heaven and Earth Laws that it will be so. But if things go wrong and you need to abandon the mission, just tear up the mission request document. Also, if you need rescue during the mission, write the situation in true blood on the back of the document and mix mid-grade spirit stone powder with the blood to apply it, then one of the interested elders from Liaison Trading Hall might step forward.”

“That’s not guaranteed though?”

“That’s right. But wouldn’t it work if you greatly increase the compensation in the situation description?”

“Haha. That’s true as well. Understood. I’ll keep this mission request document safe.”

“Hahaha. Master Kang Hyeon is quite perceptive. Yes, that’s exactly right. The mission request document is very important, so you must guard it well.”

“I’ll keep that in mind. Then we’ll be going. In Deok, let’s go.”

“Oh! Right.”

At Kang Hyeon’s call, In Deok, who had been looking around at the other tables, was startled and followed behind.

And Mo Yeom, who was watching them disappear, muttered with expectant eyes.

“It would be nice if the new customers could stay with us for a long time. I’ll look forward to it.”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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