Longevity: Comprehending the Heart Method

”Alright, I’ll send a message to Changsheng.”

——————

The banquet lasted until sunset. Everyone went home satisfied.

On the way back to the bamboo house, Song Qingluo was still uncontrollably excited. After all, it was the first time he had seen world-renowned figures like the Great City Lord and the Second City Lord, and he had even sat in the same hall with them. The whole day had left the newly-adult young man feeling dizzy, with a strong sense of unreality.

Song Changsheng was much calmer. It wasn’t his first time seeing them, after all. Only after returning to the bamboo house did he have time to inspect his gains from the recent battle.

His losses in this battle were not small. The power of the Celestial Thunder Shock Talisman was somewhat beyond his expectations. Not only did it destroy the Spiritual Artifacts of Qian Ming and the others, but the set of Tier Two Array Banners and the Array Foundation he used to set up the Thunder Attraction Array were also destroyed, without even a fragment left to be found.

Moreover, to keep the Array running, he had invested all the Spirit Stones he had on him. After the fight, not a single one was left, making him a pauper once again.

In addition, the Profound Celestial Battle Armor and the Covered Water Seal were severely damaged. The Profound Celestial Battle Armor, in particular, was basically beyond repair, which made Song Changsheng’s heart ache.

After all, besides the Luwu Bell, it was his strongest defensive Magical Artifact. Without it, Song Changsheng’s defenses had dropped by a whole level.

Fortunately, he had seized a Tier Two Low Grade Golden Thread Robe from Cheng Yufei last time, which could serve as a passable replacement.

Looking at the three Qiankun Bags before him, Song Changsheng licked his lips. He was counting on them to recoup his losses. However, he didn’t have very high expectations.

Because all three were Loose Cultivators. It wasn’t that Song Changsheng thought all Loose Cultivators were poor, but these three were the type to risk their lives for a bounty. If they had deep pockets, would they really be selling their lives for a mere 100,000 Spirit Stones?

He emptied the contents of the three Qiankun Bags. The result was just as he had expected: each of the three was poorer than the last. There wasn’t a single Spiritual Artifact among their belongings; he only managed to harvest a pair of Tier Two Middle Grade daggers, a Tier Two Middle-grade Flying Sword, and a Tier Two Low Grade Fine Iron Long Rod.

Although they were all Magical Artifacts of decent quality, they were of no use to Song Changsheng. He could only find a place to sell them off.

The amount of Spirit Stones, however, was a pleasant surprise. The three of them combined had over 40,000 Low-Grade Spirit Stones, which was a huge recovery for Song Changsheng. His wallet was full again.

Other than that, only a few bottles of Tier Two Pills and several scrolls of Magic had any value.

But Song Changsheng, backed by his family, wouldn’t spare a second glance for ordinary Magic. However, Jiaonu’s Concealment Technique greatly interested him.

It was an excellent choice for both ambushes and escapes.

But after searching through all the Jade Scrolls, books, and anything else that could possibly contain writing, he couldn’t find the mysterious Concealment Technique, much to his regret.

”Loose Cultivators really aren’t very profitable,” Song Changsheng sighed softly. Although he had known this would be the outcome, he still found it a bit hard to accept. After all, these items weren’t enough to cover his losses.

’It’s all my fault for using too much power. I didn’t manage to save the Qiankun Bags of Qian Ming, Liu Yunfeng, and the others.’ Whenever he thought of this, Song Changsheng’s heart couldn’t help but twitch.

Qii Feiyun was one of the Lieyang Sect’s Direct Disciples. The fact that he could cultivate both the Formless Sword Array and the Little Four Symbols Battle Formation showed that his status was high and his family was wealthy.

Those twelve flying swords alone were worth a fortune.

And Liu Yunfeng was an even greater loss. The birthday gift for the Great City Lord was on him—it had to be a Tier Three Treasure at least. And just like that, it was gone. He was so frustrated!

Although Qian Ming was a Loose Cultivator, he was one of the wealthier ones.

He had personally destroyed the three most lucrative hauls. He felt like slapping himself.

Fortunately, it wasn’t a total loss. Although the Heaven-Encompassing Net was torn, it was, after all, a High-Grade Spiritual Artifact. As long as it was re-refined and repaired, it could still retain the rank of a Low-Grade Spiritual Artifact.

But Song Changsheng’s current Artifact Refining Technique was not yet capable of this. He could only take it back and ask the old master to handle it.

Then there was Liu Yunfeng’s iron ruler. Its name was the Celestial Measuring Ruler, a Low-Grade Spiritual Artifact. Although it was severely damaged, it could be restored by infusing it with a batch of Five Elements Essence Qi.

Finally, there was the Spiritual Fire left behind after Qian Ming’s Low-Grade spiritual lamp shattered.

To Song Changsheng, this Spiritual Fire was far more important than the Celestial Measuring Ruler or even the Heaven-Encompassing Net.

A Spiritual Fire is a type of Celestial and Earthly Spiritual Object. Legend has it that at the dawn of the Purple Imperial Realm, through the fortune of heaven and earth, the world’s very first flame was born. It was the ancestor of all flames. After hundreds of millions of years, it developed Spiritual Wisdom and brought chaos to the world.

The Great Powers of every race united and battled it above the Nine Heavens. After paying a terrible price, they finally shattered the flame into countless fragments. This formed a ”rain of fire” that lasted for days, turning more than half of the Purple Imperial Realm into a sea of flames and killing innumerable living beings.

That was the first great catastrophe in the history of the Purple Imperial Realm.

One flame fell, ten thousand fires were born.

A very small portion of the fragments that landed in the Purple Imperial Realm were tainted with a trace of the ancestral flame’s Power of Origin. After countless years of evolution, they eventually became Spiritual Fires.

Whether used for combat, Artifact Refining, or Alchemy, a Spiritual Fire has miraculous effects. This is especially true for Alchemy or Artifact Refining, where it can not only greatly increase efficiency but also improve the quality of Pills or Magical Artifacts.

Every Alchemist and Artifact Refiner in the world desires to obtain a Spiritual Fire, a testament to its preciousness.

Qian Ming was neither an Alchemist nor an Artifact Refiner, yet he had refined it into a Copper Lamp, which transformed into a Spiritual Artifact without needing much further refinement.

The Spiritual Fire was largely responsible for the fame he managed to build as a Loose Cultivator, and now, it had fallen into Song Changsheng’s hands.

When the Copper Lamp shattered that day, the Spiritual Fire was also damaged to some extent, but its seed remained. Song Changsheng had collected it in his Spirit-Slaying Gourd, nourishing it with the Yin and Yang Qi inside.

Now, two paths lay before Song Changsheng. The first was to directly refine and take control of the Spiritual Fire, which would be of immense benefit to his future Artifact Refining.

The second was to follow Qian Ming’s example and refine it into a Magical Artifact, such as the Spirit-Slaying Gourd.

The gourd was only a short step away from evolving into a Spiritual Artifact. If he refined the Spiritual Fire into it, he could bypass this process entirely. Furthermore, he could then use the Spiritual Fire in combat, which would undoubtedly take his strength to the next level.

’Compared to the Hundred Skills of Cultivation, personal strength is what’s most important. Death is the end of everything. Without enough strength, I’ll just end up like Qian Ming.’

’Besides, if I refine it into a Magical Artifact, I can still use it for Artifact Refining. The effect will just be a little weaker.’

Song Changsheng had a clear understanding of his current situation. Improving his strength was more important than anything else; the Hundred Skills of Cultivation were merely tools to help him achieve that.

Having made up his mind, Song Changsheng took out his Bronze Cauldron for Artifact Refining, tossed the Spirit-Slaying Gourd inside, and began the refining process.

What Song Changsheng didn’t know was that the Spiritual Fire he had obtained was called the Earth Core Cold Flame. Once it latched onto something, it would burn it to ash like a maggot gnawing on bone—it was incredibly potent.

This type of Spiritual Fire was not very effective for Artifact Refining or Alchemy. Refining it into a Magical Artifact was, in fact, the best outcome. So, he had stumbled into the correct choice by accident.

The Earth Core Cold Flame had been reduced to a seed the size of a tiny spark, so refining it wasn’t difficult. Moreover, its attributes were compatible with the Spirit-Slaying Gourd, so Song Changsheng refined it without any effort.

And so, the Yin Yang Spirit-Slaying Gourd, after many years of nurturing and refinement by Song Changsheng, finally completed its transformation from a Magical Artifact into a Spiritual Artifact at this very moment, becoming a Middle-Grade Spiritual Artifact!

As he held the Black and White Gourd in his hand, it felt even colder than before. Song Changsheng could clearly sense a new spark of life within it, a feeling of mutual understanding, as if the two had merged into one.

”Finally, I’ve refined my first Spiritual Artifact. It really wasn’t easy.” A smile touched the corner of Song Changsheng’s mouth. Under normal circumstances, the higher the grade of a Magical Artifact, the harder it is for it to transform.

But the Spirit-Slaying Gourd was an exception. He had infused it with a mouthful of Primordial Qi, and it had absorbed a great deal of Sun Essence and Moon Radiance Power. Now, with the addition of a Spiritual Fire that possessed its own Spiritual Attribute, it was able to transform into a Middle-Grade Spiritual Artifact so quickly.

This was a success that would be difficult to replicate.

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