Qingyun Sect.
At the peak of Chixiao Peak—
Elder Qingxuan would only emerge from seclusion once a week to deliver a sermon, each session lasting two hours.
After the sermon, he would allocate an additional hour to address the questions and doubts his disciples encountered in their cultivation journey.
At this moment, the disciples of Chixiao Peak had gathered beneath an ancient pine tree, whose age was unknown, at the summit.
The sermon had just concluded, and it was now time for the Q&A session.
Lu Changtian was the first to rise. After performing the customary bow of respect, he looked at the figure in green robes beneath the pine tree and asked, "Master, I heard that Zhao Lingtian, the sect leader's personal disciple, had his dantian shattered by a demonic cultivator during a battle. The sect leader is now deeply troubled, sparing no expense to repair Zhao Lingtian's dantian… Is there truly no way to repair a dantian?"
As soon as this question was raised, the expressions of the others beneath the pine tree shifted subtly.
After all, Zhao Lingtian wasn't the only one with a shattered dantian.
There was also their former fifth junior sister—Li Qingran.
Upon hearing this, Elder Qingxuan's eyes, which had been closed, narrowed slightly. Stroking his beard, he calmly replied, "The dantian is not beyond repair. However, it requires a rare divine elixir from ancient times. With that elixir, even a destroyed dantian can be restored. Without it, the task is as difficult as ascending to the heavens!"
"May I ask, Master, what is this divine elixir?"
"The Primordial Heaven-Mending Pill!" Elder Qingxuan enunciated each word clearly.
The disciples exchanged glances, their hearts trembling just from hearing the name.
What a treasure!
Elder Qingxuan continued to explain in a measured tone:
"At the moment of birth, the dantian of every living being is fixed—it is a predetermined fate.
The quality of each person's dantian varies, affecting the amount and purity of spiritual energy it can hold. In terms of cultivation talent, the dantian's influence is not as obvious as the spiritual root. However, as one's cultivation progresses to higher levels, when two cultivators of the same level and spiritual root talent face each other, the difference in dantian quality becomes apparent.
In ancient times, when spiritual energy was abundant, great masters classified dantians into nine grades. The ninth grade was the lowest, while the first grade was the highest. A first-grade dantian could absorb vast amounts of energy, refine spiritual energy at an incredible speed, and convert it into exceptionally pure spiritual power. Back then, one could determine how far a cultivator could go simply by observing their dantian, and sects placed great emphasis on the quality of their disciples' dantians."
"Then, Master, what grade would you say my dantian is?"
Zhang Hanxiao stepped forward confidently, patting his stomach.
He felt that his dantian was quite good—his cultivation speed was fast, and his spiritual energy was relatively robust.
To his surprise, Elder Qingxuan merely glanced at him sideways and scoffed, "You?"
"Unranked!"
Zhang Hanxiao: "..."
A burst of laughter erupted beneath the pine tree.
Zhang Hanxiao's face instantly turned red, and he wished he could disappear into the ground.
But then Elder Qingxuan added, "What are you laughing at? Most of you are unranked. Only Lu Changtian's dantian can barely be considered seventh grade. In ancient times, when spiritual energy was abundant, you would only be fit to work as outer sect servants, cleaning up the excrement of the sect's spirit beasts!
It's only because the spiritual energy in the Cangyun Realm has dried up, and its quality has declined, that the influence of the dantian on cultivation and combat power has been surpassed by the spiritual root and external aids. That's why you even have the chance to become inner sect disciples or personal disciples."
The laughter ceased, and the disciples' faces turned pale.
With just a few words, Elder Qingxuan had thoroughly humbled all his disciples. Only then did he return to the main topic: "A cultivator's dantian is predetermined. Once shattered, it cannot be repaired, just as spilled water cannot be gathered back. However, the heavens leave one path open. In ancient times, an alchemist extracted a thread of change from the Heaven-Mending Stone and, through it, comprehended the secrets of the heavens to refine the Primordial Heaven-Mending Pill. This divine elixir could transform the predetermined nature of the dantian into a variable. Not only could it repair the dantian, but it could also elevate its quality. And this is merely the effect of the ordinary-grade Primordial Heaven-Mending Pill! As for the effects of the immortal-grade pill, only that ancient alchemist would know…"
After Elder Qingxuan finished speaking, all the disciples' faces lit up with longing.
If they could obtain a Primordial Heaven-Mending Pill now and present it to the sect leader, they might never have to worry about cultivation resources for the rest of their lives.
"Next month, a small ancient secret realm will open in the Central Continent. Not only will there be a battlefield of spirit beasts, but it's also said that there are ancient cultivators' caves. Perhaps we could find this divine elixir there?" Lu Changtian's expression was filled with excitement. According to Elder Qingxuan's assessment, his dantian was currently seventh grade. If he could obtain a Primordial Heaven-Mending Pill, wouldn't his dantian be elevated to sixth grade, or even fifth grade?
"You can try your luck," Elder Qingxuan nodded.
In truth, he wasn't optimistic. The Primordial Heaven-Mending Pill was a rare treasure even in ancient times. How could it appear in a small secret realm? However, entering the secret realm would still be a valuable experience, and they might gain some resources. He decided not to discourage his disciples.
"Today's sermon ends here. Return to your caves."
Elder Qingxuan waved his sleeve, preparing to dismiss the disciples.
But at that moment—
Boom—!
A beam of cyan light shot into the sky from an unknown source.
It pierced through the clouds above Mount Wanqing, continuing to rise until it reached the heavens, resembling a divine pillar connecting earth and sky.
All the cultivators in the Cangyun Realm looked up, their expressions changing drastically.
"A pillar of spiritual light, with the aura of a divine elixir! This… this is the birth of a divine pill!"
"It's coming from Mount Wanqing! Let's go, we might still make it in time!"
"I wonder what kind of divine pill it is. If I could obtain it, my cultivation would surely advance by leaps and bounds!"
At the peak of Chixiao Peak, Elder Qingxuan's narrowed eyes suddenly snapped open.
In the next second, he had already soared into the air, rushing toward the source of the cyan light. At the same time, several other peaks of the Qingyun Sect also had powerful cultivators taking flight.
Around Mount Wanqing, every cultivator with some strength was on the move.
…
[An immortal-grade Primordial Heaven-Mending Pill has been born, and it will cause a great stir. Would you like to spend 18¥ to conceal the heavenly signs?]
"Huh?" Chen Huaian's mouth twitched as he looked at the prompt on his phone screen.
No wonder—the celestial phenomenon was too obvious. It was practically announcing to everyone that there was something valuable here.
On the map, dense clusters of red dots quickly appeared, and more and more dots continued to light up, making his scalp tingle. Fortunately, perhaps because he had already spent 90,000 yuan, the game developers didn't push him to spend more on subsequent maintenance.
But it still felt so frustrating!
Couldn't they just give the "conceal heavenly signs" feature for free?
Gritting his teeth, Chen Huaian spent 18 yuan.
[Concealing heavenly signs…]
The cyan pillar of light vanished, and even the medicinal fragrance in the air disappeared instantly.
Elder Qingxuan, who had been the first to approach, hovered in mid-air, utterly bewildered.
His spiritual sense swept over the area like a tide, covering several miles, but he found nothing.
"Isn't that Li Qingran?" When his spiritual sense passed over a small hut, Elder Qingxuan recognized the person inside as his former fifth disciple. He remembered that after Li Qingran had been expelled from Chixiao Peak, she had also been kicked out of the sect. Zhang Hanxiao had said he escorted her down the mountain to return to the mortal world. Why was she still staying here in Mount Wanqing? Was she courting death?
"Hmph, thinking that by lingering in Mount Wanqing, she can return to the sect?"
Elder Qingxuan shook his head and let out a cold laugh.
Having failed to find the divine elixir, he was already in a bad mood and had no desire to concern himself with Li Qingran.
After searching around fruitlessly, he could only return to the Qingyun Sect, filled with confusion and frustration.
There was no doubt that a divine elixir had been born in Mount Wanqing, but the sudden disappearance of its celestial phenomenon could only mean two things:
Either the divine elixir had already been taken away.
Or the heavenly signs of the divine elixir had been concealed.
In either case, the cultivator responsible for this was someone he couldn't afford to provoke.
"Esteemed senior, may I request an audience? This junior boldly asks for a pill to repair my dantian. I am willing to exchange any resources for it!"
Sect Leader Wu Duantian of the Qingyun Sect bowed deeply toward Mount Wanqing.
If a great master had refined a divine elixir here, perhaps they could also procure a pill to repair a dantian.
That way, his personal disciple could be saved.
However, after waiting for a long time, there was no response from the vast mountains.
"Ah—!" Sect Leader Wu sighed with a pale face, feeling utterly helpless. He had no choice but to return.
The powerful cultivators who understood what had happened all returned.
Only some rogue cultivators and those with limited experience continued to search Mount Wanqing, hoping for a stroke of luck.
No one knew that the divine elixir, which had shocked the entire Cangyun Realm for a brief moment, now lay on an unremarkable wooden table.
In a corner nearby, a girl who had been scared stiff was huddled in fear.