The silk cloth recorded that the initial stages of the Mystic Turtle Divine Pill's refinement were complete. It was already a Spirit Pill in its own right, which could be refined to forge a Flawless Saint Body.
However, one could also choose to continue its refinement. There were two ways to proceed. The first was to place it at the confluence of Spirit Veins, where, like a true Black Tortoise Divine Beast, it would absorb the essence of the sun and moon and be nurtured by the Creation of heaven and earth for a thousand years. This would naturally give it a chance to become a complete Divine Pill.
The second method was for a Cultivator to swallow it but not rush its Refinement. Instead, they would use the Divine Pill's own respiration, Innate polishing, and nurturing from Creation, allowing their energies to merge. Yin and yang would serve as the furnace fire and Creation as the copper charcoal. When the Cultivator broke through to the Nirvana Realm, they could then use the Nirvana Fire to potentially perfect the Divine Pill!
Both methods had their pros and cons. As for the first—a place where Spirit Veins converged and were steeped in the profound mechanisms of the sun and moon—such locations were exceedingly rare. However, the old demon was knowledgeable and well-traveled. Combined with the countless ruins in his memory, he could recall a few such places. But these locations were either heavily guarded sect territories or situated within perilous Ancient Ruins.
Besides, nurturing it for a thousand years was far too long. By then, the old demon would have either ascended to godhood in the Nine Heavens or been reduced to ashes, killed by some powerful enemy!
The second method was more feasible, but it was by no means easy.
The path of Martial Dao Cultivation began with the Martial Arts Ninth Layer Heaven, followed by the Condensing Vein Realm, the Sea of Reincarnation Realm, the Nirvana Realm, the Reincarnation Realm, and the God-Demon Realm.
The Nirvana Realm was a level one could only look up to in awe.
'There's no choice to be made. I choose neither. I'll swallow this Mystic Turtle Divine Pill directly, absorb it into my body, and forge the Flawless Saint Body!'
Qin Feng gave the methods a cursory glance and immediately discarded the idea of continuing to nurture the Mystic Turtle Divine Pill. It wasn't that he couldn't find such a miraculous location; in his mind, he remembered several terrifying ruins where Divine Beasts sealed since the Taigu Era were being nurtured.
The most crucial factor was the time it would take! Whether it was finding a place where Spirit Veins converged or cultivating to the Nirvana Realm, neither would be a short process.
The Golden Era would fully unfold in just a few years. He didn't have that much time to wait.
He had to speed up his Cultivation. Otherwise, he might miss this frantic era, be cast aside by it, and become a mere stepping stone for others!
'A benefit I can pocket right now is a true benefit! The most important thing at the moment is to forge the Flawless Saint Body and increase my Cultivation speed.'
His chest rose and fell slightly. Qin Feng quelled the chaotic thoughts storming his mind and slowly approached the Alchemy Furnace. There were two ways to open such a furnace: one was to use a mechanism hidden somewhere on it, and the other was to use a matching Hand Technique.
As an Alchemy Master, there was no way Qin Feng would be unable to find the opening mechanism on a simple Pill Furnace.
The round mouth of the Pill Furnace opened. There was no unusual fragrance, nor were there any strange phenomena!
'Divine Objects conceal their own brilliance!' Qin Feng wasn't surprised at all. An elixir like the Mystic Turtle Divine Pill already possessed spirituality. It was different from ordinary Spirit Pills that would merge with the Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi and emit all sorts of phenomena.
What was surprising was that the Alchemy Furnace was empty. It was pitch-black inside, with only a faint medicinal aroma—the unique fragrance left behind after being cleansed by an elixir's essence.
No, the sharp-eyed Qin Feng did spot something—a dark, black object!
It looked like a stone, sitting dark and black at the bottom of the Pill Furnace, resembling an utterly ordinary rock.
It was like a stone bead, the size of a fist!
The moment he saw this stone bead, a look of joy spread across Qin Feng's face. As an Alchemy Master, his experience told him that this was the Mystic Turtle Divine Pill.
A layman would surely have thought it was a Wasted Pill or perhaps furnace slag. But Qin Feng could dismiss that conclusion with a single glance. A truly Top Grade Alchemy Furnace would not leave behind any slag when its fire was extinguished; the slag would typically dissipate as smoke through other vents.
As for a Wasted Pill, such a thing would be even less likely to appear in a high-quality Alchemy Furnace. Even if a Wasted Pill were thrown into it, the furnace's rich elixir essence would wash away its impurities, gradually transforming it into a superior Spirit Pill.
This was the most precious function of a Top Grade Pill Furnace: it could nurture elixirs. The longer an elixir remained in the furnace, the better its quality would become. The elixir nourishes the furnace, and the furnace nurtures the elixir!
The only possibility was that the elixir's quality was too high. Divine Objects conceal their own brilliance!
The Mystic Turtle Divine Pill!
"It's you!" Qin Feng laughed aloud. 'After all the hardships, I've finally found it! As long as I swallow this Mystic Turtle Divine Pill, absorb it, and forge the Flawless Saint Body, my Cultivation speed will advance by leaps and bounds. I might not surpass those peerless prodigies, but at least I won't lose to the ordinary geniuses of the Golden Era!'
He stepped forward and activated the Pill Furnace's mechanism, intending to tip the stone pill out. But just then, the stone pill suddenly changed. In an instant, it shot up as a streak of colorful light from the Furnace Tripod, attempting to flee.
"A Divine Pill with spirituality! I was prepared for this trick!" Qin Feng's eyes showed no panic. Instead, he burst into laughter. His hand shot out like the wind, his feet moved like a shooting star, and his five fingers clamped down like iron hooks. A powerful force surged between his fingers, rushing forth like a tsunami.
Profound Turtle Sea-Suppressing Fist—Profound Turtle Suppression!
A massive force descended on the stone pill. His five fingers instantly closed around the fleeing pill, capturing it fiercely.
BUZZ! BUZZ! The Divine Object was spiritual. Perhaps knowing its doom had arrived, it struggled with all its might. A torrential force surged forth, causing a sharp pain in his five fingers. For a moment, Qin Feng felt his grip falter!
It wanted to fly free of its restraints. If given the chance, it might truly have been able to transform into a living creature of heaven and earth and begin its own Cultivation Path.
But there was no way Qin Feng was going to let it slip through his fingers!
"Insolent! Black Tortoise Divine Fist, suppress it!" Qin Feng roared. His five fingers clenched like a Dragon Claw as he stomped his foot furiously. The ground seemed to tremble, as if a great Black Tortoise were turning over. His bones and sinews moved like a great dragon, and he stomped down like a terrifying Black Tortoise. His body flipped, and the great earth shook.
BUZZ! BUZZ! The Mystic Turtle Divine Pill's spirituality was extraordinary. Its power was heavy enough to easily shatter mountains and rock, and it tried time and again to shake Qin Feng off.
However, Qin Feng's Black Tortoise Divine Fist seemed to be its perfect counter. The immense suppressive force was its nemesis, and in the end, it could not escape his five fingers.
BUZZ! BUZZ! Seemingly aware that it could not escape the Destiny of being devoured, the Mystic Turtle Divine Pill began to emit a strange, rosy glow. The glow was like a Flame, and it began to boil like a tide within Qin Feng's five fingers.
Qin Feng's expression changed. Seeing no escape from his palm, the Mystic Turtle Divine Pill was actually trying to disperse its own spirituality and self-destruct. It would rather die than submit!
The difference between a Divine Pill and an ordinary elixir, aside from its medicinal effects, was that sliver of spirituality. Once the spirituality was gone, its efficacy would be drastically reduced.
If he let this Divine Pill destroy its own spirituality, its medicinal properties would likely be reduced by sixty percent!
"Trying to destroy my Treasure Medicine? In your dreams!" A cold glint flashed in Qin Feng's eyes. How could he let this Divine Pill get its way?
"I'll just swallow you!" He opened his mouth wide and directly swallowed the Mystic Turtle Divine Pill, which had revealed its true form. As an Alchemy Master, how could he not have a way to deal with such a Divine Object?
He sat cross-legged, five centers facing the heavens, and let out a soft cry. "With the Great Void as my tripod and Tai Chi as my furnace! With purity as the pill's foundation and non-action as my Dantian! With life and nature as lead and mercury, concentration and wisdom as water and fire! Quell desire and punish anger to unite the elements! Let temperament and nature be one, like metal and wood combined! Wash the heart and cleanse the mind as a holy bath! Preserve sincerity and fix intent as reinforcement! Precepts, concentration, and wisdom are the three essentials! The center is the profound gate, enlightenment is the proof, and seeing one's nature is the final binding! The three origins merge into one, forming the Spirit Embryo! Taixu Mixed One Spirit Stealing Technique—seize its spirit for my own use!"
The Taixu Mixed One Spirit Stealing Technique was a Seal Technique Qin Feng had acquired from an eccentric alchemy genius of a later age. It was specifically designed to seal a spirit that was trying to self-destruct.
He had originally intended to use it against enemies. During an ambush, some particularly unyielding foes would choose to self-destruct their spirits to prevent him from extracting any useful information, and also to avoid suffering and torture. In doing so, they would return to the heavens and earth, taking their precious information with them.
The Taixu Mixed One Spirit Stealing Technique possessed a wondrous power that could create a sealed Space, directly imprisoning the opponent's dissipating spirit and halting the process.
If it were a person trying to self-destruct their spirit, Qin Feng wouldn't have been able to stop them with his current Cultivation. But for a Divine Pill, he could swallow it whole. The upper, middle, and lower Dantians in his body were three natural, sealed spaces. He could directly apply this Daoist Skill to restrain the Divine Pill's spirit.
As the Mystic Turtle Divine Pill surged into his Dantian, he used the Taixu Mixed One Spirit Stealing Technique to seal the spirit that was about to dissipate. The scattering wisps of Spiritual Light were like headless flies being forced back into the Divine Pill. Faint, tragic wails could even be heard as a vast and gentle medicinal energy began to spread from his Dantian, nourishing his physical body.
Under the baptism of the immense medicinal power, even the hair on his body was tempered by the overflowing energy. All the flaws and impurities within him were expelled. Many hidden dangers and old injuries lurking in his body vanished under the gentle, continuous stream of medicinal properties. His potential grew,
and his entire being began to emanate a flawless aura. He glowed with a crystalline luster, like a Spirit Embryo shimmering with a faint, divine light!
A moment later, his body shuddered. The bottleneck that had been holding him back shattered, and a majestic aura erupted from him. He had broken through directly to the Early Stage of Martial Arts Third Heaven!