Chapter 70: The Ingredients for Refining the Foundation Establishment Pill

Because he was caught off guard by his shock, he lost the initiative and had no time to dodge. The combined power of the two fireballs instantly evaporated the already thin protective light around the burly man, like a bubble bursting. When the remaining three fireballs struck him as well, his entire body was engulfed in flames, and he let out a desperate, heart-wrenching scream.

“Damn mosquito, go to hell!”

With nowhere left to run and death looming, the burly man summoned his last ounce of strength and condensed a blade of sword energy, hurling it viciously toward Xiao Wenzi.

Clearly, compared to Chu Xiner, the hatred in his heart was directed more toward this cunning little mosquito with awakened intelligence, capable of choosing the perfect moment to launch a sneak attack. Without its repeated ambushes, even if he had been outmatched, he could have escaped with his life.

“Ah! Xiao Wen, get out of the way!”

Seeing the golden blade of energy streak toward Xiao Wenzi like a bolt of lightning, Chu Xiner, who had finally regained her wits, couldn’t help but cry out in alarm.

Xiao Wen was truly incredible, able to conjure so many fire talismans out of thin air, and his sense of timing on the battlefield was impeccable. Without him, victory would have been nearly impossible. In fact, this was already the third time he had helped her turn the tide and escape danger. The path to immortality was full of hardship, and with a companion like him, she would have far fewer thorns to face. Chu Xiner couldn’t bear for any harm to befall Xiao Wenzi.

But concern breeds confusion, and she was simply too far away—no matter how much she wanted to help, it was impossible to make it in time.

Her worry, however, was unnecessary. Xiao Wenzi’s demonic senses were always extended, ever vigilant for the slightest movement around him—a habit long ingrained.

Just before the sword energy struck, Xiao Wenzi’s figure flickered and divided into three.

The golden blade slashed through one of his forms, but there was no sign of demonic aura or blood. It was only a phantom.

At the same moment, the man in red perished within the blaze, his already weakened soul burned away completely. All that remained was a storage pouch that fell to the ground with a soft thud.

Clink, clink—

The crisp sounds of magical artifacts hitting the ground rang out one after another. Exhausted, Chu Xiner didn’t even have the strength to recall her flying swords. Once she was sure that Xiao Wenzi was unharmed, she simply sat cross-legged, panting for breath, and took out a medicinal pill to swallow.

This place was not safe, and Chu Xiner’s decision to recover her cultivation as quickly as possible was certainly wise. With Xiao Wen by her side, she had no fear of wild beasts or other disturbances.

Although the Water Cloud Pill was not an elixir that instantly replenished one’s energy, the spiritual power contained within it was substantial. As dusk fell, Chu Xiner, having refined most of the pill’s power, had nearly recovered.

Opening her bright eyes, she smiled at Xiao Wenzi sitting before her. “Xiao Wen, are you alright? And those fire talismans and phantom clones you used—what were they?”

“I’m fine. The demon fire talismans are something I usually refine, and the Demon Shadow Technique, well, both just appeared mysteriously in my mind as a bloodline inheritance after my last breakthrough...”

Xiao Wenzi had already expected Chu Xiner’s curiosity when he displayed the demon fire talismans in front of her. Having thought it through, he was ready with an excuse. Since she had once suspected he might be a primordial variant, using “bloodline inheritance” as a reason was perfectly plausible. After all, there was no master-servant contract between them. If they trusted each other, they could continue together; if not, it wouldn’t matter if they parted ways.

“Oh, I see. I knew your background wasn’t simple, Xiao Wen. But listen, you’d better not display these powers in the sect unless absolutely necessary, to avoid unwanted trouble...” Chu Xiner, clever as ever, didn’t press him further even though she wasn’t entirely convinced by his explanation. Smiling, she nodded and gave her warning.

Xiao Wenzi understood her concern—she feared that once the elders learned of a primordial demonic mosquito with such abilities, they might take him away by force.

He had every reason to steer clear of cultivators in the Foundation Establishment stage or higher, so he had no objections to the girl’s advice.

By this time, night had fully fallen. A cold wind howled, and snowflakes began to drift down from the sky. Occasionally, the distant growl of a hungry beast could be heard.

Lingering here held no appeal for Chu Xiner. She quickly gathered up the magical artifacts, collected the red-robed man’s storage pouch, and transformed into a streak of light, flying away.

Compared to the girl braving the wind and snow, Xiao Wenzi was far more comfortable, having returned to the spirit beast pouch where he felt neither cold nor discomfort.

On such a stormy night, even ordinary folk would not venture out, and even cultivators seldom wandered needlessly. Chu Xiner sped through the darkness without encountering any trouble.

Over an hour later, she paused her flight above a small mortal town a hundred miles away.

The night was deep, and the innkeeper and servants were already asleep. But with Chu Xiner’s abilities, waking them to open a room posed no difficulty at all.

Once settled in a clean, comfortable room, the girl bathed and changed quickly, then sat cross-legged on the bed to cultivate. After all, she had been in too much of a hurry earlier and hadn’t fully refined the Water Cloud Pill’s medicinal power.

The little town was peaceful and quiet at night. Soon, it was past midnight. Feeling restored and full of energy, Chu Xiner opened her bright eyes, flipped her hand, and took out the red-robed man’s storage pouch.

The man's cultivation had far exceeded hers, and though he had perished, the imprint he left on the pouch took considerable effort for her to break.

“Oh—this is Lotus Cloud Ganoderma, and these are Jadeleaf Grass, Spirit Frost Sprouts, and Wisteria Flower...”

There were not many spirit stones or treasures inside the burly man’s pouch, but there were eight or nine jade boxes for storing medicinal herbs. Opening them one by one, Chu Xiner was delighted by what she found.

Lotus Cloud Ganoderma, Jadeleaf Grass—these were all ingredients for refining Foundation Establishment Pills, the very items she needed for her sect mission.

Combined with the spiritual herbs and flowers she had found in the gaunt old man’s storage pouch, she had unwittingly gathered more than half the ingredients needed for the Foundation Establishment Pill—an unexpected boon.

After her initial joy, Chu Xiner carefully stored the precious herbs for the Foundation Establishment Pill separately. She had no intention of handing these valuable materials over to the sect; she could submit one or two lesser herbs instead.

In truth, with her newfound wealth, Chu Xiner had little need for those contribution points.

Still, after being away from the sect for a month or two, it would be hard to explain her return without any spiritual herbs at all. Not to mention, her close friend Senior Sister Hong would surely ask questions.

Now, with a few herbs to hand in, she could complete her mission, then go into seclusion to break through her bottleneck in peace. Once she reached the thirteenth level, she could search for the remaining Foundation Establishment Pill ingredients. How could Chu Xiner not be pleased?

As for why the red-robed man who had eyed her had so many suitable herbs, Chu Xiner quickly figured it out. As a cultivator half a step into Foundation Establishment, it was only natural that he would collect materials for the Foundation Establishment Pill in hopes of breaking through.

With the sect’s quota of spiritual herbs secured and the Water Cloud Pill for her breakthrough in hand, Chu Xiner was ready to return to the Greenleaf Sect.

But before that, she needed to find a few lone rogue cultivators for Xiao Wen to feed on, since once she entered seclusion, she wouldn’t be able to come out for quite some time.

For this reason, when Chu Xiner left the little mortal town the next day, her traveling speed was not particularly fast.