Chapter 235: Han Li’s Intentions
The common medicine pills of this world were of no use to a Core Formation cultivator.
Only medicine pills refined with medicine ingredients that were aged over several hundred years and a few spiritual medicines that were born from Heaven and Earth could increase the speed of their cultivation. Thus, Core Formation cultivators would have to travel far and spend a majority of their time to search and scrape together extremely rare medicinal ingredients.
This was also why when Li Huayuan saw the great amount of spiritual medicines Han Li took out from the forbidden area, he fundamentally thought of every means to immediately accept him as a disciple. He was truly too covetous toward these spiritual medicines of Heaven and Earth!
Actually, even if Li Huayuan hadn’t been the one to bring the group to the forbidden area and it was instead Lei Wanhe or another Core Formation cultivator, it was unlikely they would’ve let a portion of Han Li’s spiritual medicines slip by. In most cases, they would’ve used a similar trick. Li Huayuan, on the other hand, was truly a bit stingy and only made Han Li an in-name disciple!
However, taking medicine pills was only of assistance toward progressing one’s magic power. They still had to seclude themselves in meditation and absorb Spiritual Qi for a time. Bitter and diligent cultivation was the true way to turn Spiritual Qi into one’s own magic power!
Otherwise, if one took medicine pills and didn’t spend time to refine Spiritual Qi afterwards, it would be of no effect and wouldn’t increase one’s magic power in the slightest. After all, external Spiritual Qi and one’s magic power were fundamentally two different things.
There were also ancient records of people who took-heaven defying medicine pills, resulting in their bodies exploding. As a result, wanton use of medicine pill beyond one’s limits could be extremely dangerous.
In addition to increasing magic power, when one encountered a bottleneck, using the spiritual power of the medicine pill to break through was a common action taken by many cultivators; its common use further proved its efficacy.
Cultivators who could break through bottlenecks without drawing the support of medicinal power were far too few in number in the cultivation world. Furthermore, they were all geniuses who appeared only once every hundred years.
Those possessing heavenly spiritual roots were the ones with the greatest aptitude, but when those possessing mutated spiritual roots came across a bottleneck, they had no method to break through without using medicine pills; they were similar to those possessing ordinary spiritual roots in this aspect.
This cultivator Lei Wanhe happened to have come across this sort of bottleneck. Thus, in order to refine supplementary medicine pills, he had gone on a search in the secular world and had just returned.
However on this trip, he didn’t have much luck at all. Apart from two medicinal herbs that were slightly older than four hundred years old, he had ended up empty handed. This caused him to hold a belly full of grievances!
This was also the primary reason why he immediately killed the cultivators from the Thousand Bamboo School when he laid eyes on them. If he hadn’t vented his feelings at that very moment, his mood would likely not have improved for quite a long time. It could only be said that Huang Long and his company were too unfortunate and happened to run into this foul-mooded demon.
Up to this moment, Lei Wanhe’s mood was continuously fluctuating
In his three-hundred-year-long experience as a cultivator, he had never seen such spiritual herbs before. When these two spiritual herbs entered his eyes, he immediately made an accurate judgment of their age. He couldn’t help but become exalted after doing so.
He was currently planning to refine Soul Strengthening Pills but was lacking medicinal herbs that had reached a maturity of five hundred years; thus, he went on this trip that had nearly taken a full year. However, after browsing everywhere, including the State of Yue’s large and small market cities as well as the great medicine stores of the mortal world, he still hadn’t found any medicinal ingredients that satisfied him.
He could only reluctantly take the two mediocre four hundred year-old herbs and make his preparations!
However, he knew in his heart that using these spiritual herbs to refine the Soul Strengthening Pills wouldn’t be enough. Perhaps their medicinal efficacy would be greatly reduced when he created them and wouldn’t be of much assistance to him. However, he truly did not have any appropriate core medicines at hand; could he even refine them?
He continued his search, but he only ended up squandering his time.
Even if a great medicinal ingredient had actually appeared somewhere, it would have long been hastily acquired by a cultivation sect or clan. By the time he arrived, there wouldn’t be a single strand of medicine left. As for the cultivation worlds of nearby countries, looking there would be even more uncertain!
That was why when he heard that this Martial Nephew had medicinal ingredients of a certain maturity, his heart beated. He decided to take a look, entering the incomparably crude and simple cave dwelling.
Actually, Lei Wanhe thought to himself, “How could a Foundation Establishment disciple possibly stumble on good medicinal ingredients? It’s most likely a two or three hundred year-old medicinal herb.”
After all, he had searched for such a long time but could only acquire four hundred year-old medicinal ingredients. This was also because he was a Core Formation Expert; no one dared to compete with him over them.
All of a sudden, this pair of six to seven hundred year-old medicinal herbs before him. This caused him to become absolutely baffled and overly joyous from the surprise!
Thus, although it seemed that his eyes were staring at the two medicinal herbs, appraising it, he was actually already considering how he would ask this Martial Nephew to hand it over to him.
After all, leaving such rare items in this Martial Nephew’s hand would be far too much of a waste! They would reach their greatest potential in the hands of this great cultivator Lei if he refined them into pills.
However, he was also an old fox of many years; he had already thought of a good excuse in the blink of an eye.
He coughed two times, and after reluctantly returning the medicinal herbs to the case, he turned his nearly obscured neck toward Han Li and amiably said, “These two medicinal herbs are truly rarely-seen items of value; they are over six and seven hundred years of age! Martial Nephew must have spilled quite a bit of blood to acquire them!”
“That’s right. This disciple spent quite a bit of strength to acquire them from an action at a secret store! At that time, there was also a thousand year-old spiritual herb that appeared; unfortunately, this disciple lacked the power to acquire it. He could only helplessly look on as others bought it. This caused disciple to feel rather regretful!” Han Li replied with half-truths.
“A secret store even had thousand year-old herbs!”
When the fatty heard this, he nearly jumped up from his stone seat!
Hearing Han Li speak of this regretful affair, he felt so much distress. It was as if his heart was being gouged out.
To think that a Core Formation Cultivator who racked his brain on how to find spiritual herbs and spiritual medicines and visited secret stores of all locations and even seven or eight clans, could miss such a fortuitous event such a this? If he had been there, no such treasure would be able to escape his grasp! Even if he had to spend more spirit stones, he absolutely would be willing to!
As he thought of such an extremely rare and great opportunity, he looked at the brat before him who had let it go. Panting with rage, the fatty wanted to boldly hold Han Li’s neck in his hands and interrogate him! He would do this despite clearly knowing that the other party was a Foundation Establishment Disciple who couldn’t afford such an extremely expensive item.
“Fine. A miss is a miss! Perhaps there will be another opportunity in the future!”
The fatty eventually calmed himself down and had no choice but to reluctantly say a few words of comfort toward Han Li. After all, he still planned to acquire his two spiritual herbs! He couldn’t let these herbs slip from his fingers.
“Martial Nephew Han, how do you intend to use these two spiritual herbs? Could it be that you’re thinking of handing it over to the sect’s pill-refining experts? But as your Martial Senior, I must warn you that the pill-refining experts in our Yellow Maple Valley are truly terrible! If you were to deliver such precious items to them, they would absolutely extort you. Your losses would be truly great!” the fatty advised, using the sincere and earnest manner of an elder.
“How could I give it to them to refine! Disciple intended to use these spiritual medicines to exchange for a few items! After all, just to buy these medicinal herbs, this disciple nearly lost a family fortune! How could I easily squander them?” Han Li shook his head. His words caused Lei Wanhe to feel greatly surprised, making him choke on his previously prepared script.
However, the fatty had a second thought: “This Martial Nephew wants items in exchange for the medicinal herbs? Is that all he wants? On the basis of my own status as a Core Formation Expert, apart from those extremely scarce pill and tool-refining ingredients, how could I not satisfy this disciple? This is a good opportunity to fairly and honorably exchange for it!”
With this thought, Lei Wanhe’s eyes grew more squinted from smiling, making him appear increasingly more amiable.
“What items does Martial Nephew Han want? The collection that this Martial Senior has procured over the past several hundred years is not small! Perhaps I have items that will satisfy Martial Nephew,” The fatty happily stated as he blinked his small eyes.
“Ah! Could it be that Martial Senior wants these spiritual herbs? If it’s like that, this disciple can give a herb to Martial Senior as a Junior’s filial offering!” At this moment, Han Li appeared to have realized this and quickly spoke with reverence.
When Lei Wanhe saw that Han Li was so quick-witted to actually not bring up the matter of the exchange and instead immediately offer an herb as a gift, he could not help but feel greatly happy; Han Li also became increasingly more pleasant to look at.
However, the fatty’s goal was both of the herbs! There was a still one herb left, and he would hate to have to let it go.
As a result, Lei Wanhe waved his hand and grandly said, “Martial Nephew Han, what is this? Could it be that I, Lei Wanhe, am someone who covets the items of his Juniors? Do not hesitate to say what you need. Martial Senior will immediately find it and exchange with you fairly. I absolutely won’t let Martial Nephew suffer any losses! Do you want to exchange it for a top-grade magic tool? Or any medicinal pills that you currently need?”
When Han Li heard the other party’s grand words, he grew greatly happy. He had maneuvered in such a large circle, waiting for these words to be spoken out loud. However, with his outward appearance hesitant, he said in embarrassment, “I will not hide this from Martial Senior Lei. Disciple is very interesting in the Dao of Pill-refinement. However, the storage room in Yue Lu Hall doesn’t have any practical pill-refining recipes. Disciple later found out that the pill-refining skills of ancient times has nearly died out. The current pill-refining skills of my fellow martial disciples and Seniors were all either bitterly researched for several tens of generations or happened to be discovered from ancient ruins. Each are as precious as one’s own life and are not easily acquired. Thus, disciple intended to use these two spiritual herbs to exchange for pill formulas that he could use for himself!”