Rebuilding the Immortal Cultivator Clan

Chapter 104: Choice

”Is this Insect-Extinguishing Powder?” a disciple who was eradicating black insects questioned as he looked at the pitch-black Spirit Pill in his palm.

”Why donʼt you try it and see?” his companion said casually.

As he spoke, he reached out to take the Spirit Pill, tossing it into the wooden bucket in front of them.

Shortly after the Spirit Pill dissolved, the originally clear spring water turned pitch black and emitted a strong foul stench.

”Why does it smell so bad!”

Insect-Extinguishing Powder itself had a fishy smell, but it was not as intense as the batch made by Li Zhirui, which was so strong that it deterred people from getting close.

The companion shouted, ”Stop talking! Use magic quickly and get rid of this bucket of black water.”

The two of them performed the familiar Spirit Rain Skill, pulling the black water from the bucket and the moisture from the air, turning it into a small shower that fell on the twenty-odd zhang area of land in front of them.

The previously lively black insects wilted upon contact with the rainwater and ultimately perished in the light, steady drizzle.

Not only that, the two even used their Divine Sense afterwards to carefully inspect the ground and discovered that the insect eggs underground had also lost their vitality.

”Is this really Insect-Extinguishing Powder?” It was the same disciple, the same question, yet the reaction was completely different.

The previous Insect-Extinguishing Powder could also kill black insects, but its range was not as wide, nor was it as fast-acting.

”Is there any more of this kind of Insect-Extinguishing Powder?”

The companion checked and found that there was only one pill left.

Because of this, the two went back to the camp to request more Insect-Extinguishing Pills but were driven away by the Distributing Cultivators, as he had never heard of anything called Insect-Extinguishing Pills.

Fortunately, as the Insect-Extinguishing Pills made by Li Zhirui became more numerous and known to a large number of cultivators, the word spread among them about the more effective Insect-Extinguishing Pills.

After several twists and turns, the news reached the ears of Sect Master Liu Yunde and Zhu Yiming.

”Letʼs go and meet this talented Li,” Liu Yunde said, quite surprised when he heard the news—he had not expected that Li Zhirui not only had improved the Pill Recipe but had also enhanced its effectiveness.

Li Zhirui, who was pondering how to modify the Hundred Herbs Pill, was interrupted by a sudden knock on the door.

”Do you two need something?” Li Zhirui asked, somewhat displeased, yet he concealed it well.

”We apologize for disturbing you, Daoist Li. Weʼve come to ask a favor of you,” Liu Yunde, as the Sect Master who had long developed his Eagle Eyes, caught Li Zhiruiʼs displeasure instantly.

Therefore, he abandoned his initial plan for pleasantries and directly stated his intent, ”The Insect-Extinguishing Pills you make have shown superior effectiveness, so the Yuanming Sect hopes that you can focus on producing Insect-Extinguishing Pills in the coming period.”

”In return, once this matter concludes, you can select an additional second-tier Pill Recipe.”

”Good!” Li Zhirui nodded without hesitation, as he was still clueless about the second-tier Hundred Herbs Pill anyway.

The Hundred Herbs Pill could be produced using first-tier Spiritual Medicine, but the requirements for the Alchemist were extremely high. After all, controlling fifty types of Spiritual Medicine with Divine Sense was not something ordinary Alchemists could manage, especially since the proportions had to be exactly correct.

Furthermore, because it was so meticulous, merely altering the quantity of one type of Spiritual Medicine necessitated adjustments to the related Spiritual Medicines as well.

The end result was that as the modifications continued, Li Zhirui suddenly found that the quantities of nearly all the Spiritual Medicines had changed.

Liu Yunde smiled faintly. To the Li family, a second-tier Pill Recipe that could be inherited might be precious, but to the Yuanming Sect, it was just so-so.

It wasnʼt that they didnʼt value it enough, but rather that these Pill Recipes could be bought outside anyway; itʼs just that they couldnʼt be taught to others or used for inheritance.

Therefore, even if they gave it to Li Zhirui, they wouldnʼt suffer any loss.

On the contrary, now that they had Li Zhiruiʼs Insect-Extinguishing Powder, they could save some materials and speed up the eradication of the black bugs.

When comparing the two, it was clear which was more important and which was less so.

”Li, once this matter is concluded, I plan to hold a exchange meeting for second-tier Alchemists. I wonder if you have time to participate?” Zhu Yiming, who was beside him, spoke up.

Li Zhirui was very interested in this. Although his method of alchemy was different from most Alchemists, the stone of other mountains could be used to polish jade; perhaps it would give him new insights?

After the two had discussed what they needed to, they didnʼt stay any longer at the spot and left. After their departure, the two Loose Cultivators with a touch of admiration in their voices said, ”Li, you truly are a genius!”

Obviously, they too had overheard Liu Yundeʼs words.

A young Alchemist with exceptional talent, who had reached the second tier, was worth establishing a good relationship with, which was why they were slightly flattering towards Li Zhirui.

”Donʼt flatter me too much,” Li Zhirui said modestly. ”I merely had some luck, plus the characteristics of Water Method Alchemy, that allowed me to create the Insect-Extinguishing Powder.”

After a brief exchange, they agreed to have a thorough discussion at the exchange meeting and then dispersed.

With the concerted efforts of Li Zhirui and his four companions, the black bugs in Yunping State were gradually exterminated, and in half a month, the last of the black bugs within the state were completely eradicated.

However, since there were still some black bugs in Guangqing State, to prevent them from fleeing over, Li Zhirui and the others still made Insect-Extinguishing Powder for a few more days, just in case.

As for Green Mountain State, they had already dealt with the black bugs early on and had been on guard against Yunping State all this time.

Since he was going to participate in the upcoming exchange meeting, Li Zhirui was not in a hurry to return to Da Rong Island. He simply sent a clan member to take his message back and entered the second floor of the Yuanming Sectʼs Scripture Pavilion.

The Scripture Pavilion of the Yuanming Sect was vast. Each floor was divided into four major areas: techniques, laws, skills, and miscellaneous. The area of each major section was about the size of one floor of the Li familyʼs Scripture Pavilion, showing the great disparity between the two.

Li Zhirui only had the privilege to select Pill Recipes, so he could only stay in the Alchemy area of the skills section.

Next to each Jade Slip, there was a piece of Spiritual Paper that recorded the general information of the Pill Recipe. Li Zhirui didnʼt rush to pick a Pill Recipe but took his time to carefully note down the contents on each piece of Spiritual Paper.

Even though it was just general information and didnʼt involve the specific content of the Pill Recipes, it could still broaden Li Zhiruiʼs knowledge, so he ignored the contempt and disdain in the eyes of the Foundation Establishment Cultivator who was monitoring him.

Finally, when he could stand it no longer and was about to erupt, Li Zhirui decided on the two Pill Recipes he wanted to choose.

One was the Water Refining Qingyuan Pill, a Spirit Pill specifically for Cultivators with Wood Spirit Root to consume and enhance their Mana.

Although Li Zhirui was not a Cultivator who specialized in Wood Spirit Root, the Qingyuan Pill was still useful to him, and it was a recipe that did not require any modifications from him.

The other was the Three Treasures Pill, which replenished essence, energy, and spirit. This was one of the rarer kinds among all the Pill Recipes, and his family also had the three main ingredients required for it.

Having chosen the Pill Recipes, the next day Zhu sent someone to invite Li Zhirui to the exchange meeting.

The location of the exchange meeting was on Alchemy Peak of the Yuanming Sect, but only when they arrived did they realize that the participants were not just the five of them but also included first-tier Alchemists cultivated by the Yuanming Sect.

This was the home ground advantage of the Yuanming Sect, and they didnʼt want to fall out with the Yuanming Sect over such a small matter.