"I don't think it's necessary to force everything into a single formula," Chen Ming said after listening to the three of them, running several simulations in his mind before speaking. "We can divide it into three separate powders, then mix them in different proportions. Depending on the Spirit Master, we can also add supplementary ingredients to accelerate the refinement process."
Dugu Bo, Ye Renxin, and Chrysanthemum Douluo were all masters in the fields of medicine and pharmacology. With Chen Ming, the rising newcomer, added to the mix, the four of them represented the very pinnacle of medical knowledge on the Douluo Continent. The only one who could be considered their equal was Yang Wudi, the head of the Breaking Clan.
It was rare—perhaps once in several centuries—for so many experts in medicine to gather in one place and exchange ideas.
In such an environment, even Dugu Bo and Chrysanthemum Douluo set aside their bickering, genuinely attempting to deduce the optimal formula together.
For the time being, they cast aside their identities and status, focusing purely on discussion. After several hours of intense debate, the formula for a medicinal powder aimed at low-level Spirit Scholars and Spirit Masters was finally established—at least in its preliminary form.
Chen Ming had already learned most of Dugu Bo's poison techniques and Ye Renxin's medical knowledge, but he had never studied under Chrysanthemum Douluo. Through their discussion, he noticed that much of Chrysanthemum Douluo's approach overlapped with the other two, yet at times revealed entirely different lines of thinking and unique insights.
Clearly, this was knowledge accumulated during his long years within Spirit Hall.
Without even bothering to check the time, the four of them immediately began working with the herbs, refining their respective mixtures.
By the next morning, six different powders had been prepared, each stored in its own container.
Although the general concept and formula had been agreed upon, each person had their own preferences during execution—adjusting proportions or modifying certain ingredients—resulting in six distinct versions.
Dugu Bo, Ye Renxin, and Chrysanthemum Douluo each produced one version. Chen Ming alone created three.
Yet when the three elders examined Chen Ming's results, they were momentarily stunned.
His three versions weren't entirely new formulas. Instead, they were refinements built upon each of their individual approaches—perfecting their ideas and implementing them even more effectively through additional techniques and processes.
The gentlest medicinal effect, the lowest cost, and the most balanced overall performance.
The three of them looked at their own powders, then carefully studied Chen Ming's. For a long moment, none of them spoke.
Given enough time, they could have refined their formulas through repeated experimentation, gradually achieving this level—or even surpassing it. It would have required more effort, more time, nothing more.
But Chen Ming had accomplished it silently, simply by listening to their ideas and executing them perfectly.
That level of speed and analytical ability was almost beyond comprehension.
"In theory, this formula is already workable. It just needs testing," Chrysanthemum Douluo said at last. Bold as ever, he dipped a finger into the powder and tasted it directly. As the slightly bitter flavor spread and a faint trace of Spirit Power emerged upon dissolution, he nodded in approval.
"That said… what should we do with this formula?"
Truthfully, Chrysanthemum Douluo himself wasn't particularly invested in it. Within Spirit Hall, there were already superior formulas—though admittedly far more expensive.
"What do you think, Senior Ye?" Chen Ming asked, turning to Ye Renxin.
Ye Renxin simply nodded. "We can accept it for now."
"It seems neither of you seniors places much importance on this formula," Chen Ming continued after a brief pause. "In that case, may I boldly make a suggestion?"
"This formula was your idea to begin with. The two of us merely made some refinements—and truth be told, even without us, you could have improved it yourself. Why ask us?" Chrysanthemum Douluo replied, clearly puzzled by Chen Ming's attitude.
"I was born into a farming family," Chen Ming said calmly. "From a young age, I've witnessed the hardships of ordinary people. After entering a junior Spirit Master academy, I saw even more clearly the struggles of work-study students. Though I managed to rise above it through talent, there are still countless children from common families, just like those classmates I once knew, who continue to suffer."
He paused, his voice steady but carrying quiet resolve.
"I want to make this formula public, so that low-level Spirit Scholars and Spirit Masters can cultivate more efficiently."
"That's not impossible," Chrysanthemum Douluo said, though his tone turned more serious. "But simply publishing the formula alone is useless. If someone wishes to harm you, they need only tweak a few details and pass it along. When something goes wrong, the blame will fall on you. And if someone already has underlying issues, they'll pin those on you as well."
"Having compassion is a good thing, but the world isn't so…" He trailed off, a faint shadow crossing his expression.
He had not come from a Spirit Master family himself. By sheer luck, his Martial Soul had mutated, granting him the potential to cultivate. In his youth, he struggled bitterly, eventually seizing an opportunity to join Spirit Hall. Only after enduring countless hardships had he risen to become the Chrysanthemum Douluo he was today.
Back then, he too had tried doing something similar. The outcome, however, had been deeply disheartening, and from that day on, he abandoned such thankless efforts.
In truth, many throughout history had attempted the same thing—but very few achieved the results they hoped for.
"Yes," Ye Renxin added, sharing the sentiment. "Kindness is admirable, but it's far too easy for others to turn it against you."
He followed a long-held principle: distribute medicine, but never the formula.
He could give medicine away freely if he wished, but the formula itself would never be revealed. It was not only to protect his own interests, but also to prevent trouble—lest something go wrong and his reputation suffer undeservedly. Worse still, malicious individuals might exploit both the formula and the name of the Nine Heart Begonia lineage.
Over a thousand years, their lineage had saved countless lives and accumulated innumerable debts of gratitude. Yet that did not mean they had never encountered disputes. They had—only that such troublemakers had been dealt with by more… direct, physical means.
"If a formula alone isn't enough," Chen Ming said, "then what if we add this as well? Attach the formula to the back of this booklet, and have Spirit Hall distribute it to every corner of the world."
As he spoke, he took out a small booklet he had prepared in advance from his soul tool. He had gone through all this trouble precisely to take a roundabout route—borrowing the influence of Spirit Hall to spread his own name far and wide.
Chrysanthemum Douluo took the booklet and flipped it open. In the next instant, his eyes widened as if they might pop out of their sockets.
"This—this—this?! A meditation method? Impossible! This is actually a meditation method? And it doesn't center on the Martial Soul, but instead uses the meridians to circulate Spirit Power, drawing in the spiritual energy of heaven and earth and refining it?!"
As he studied the diagrams of meridians and the accompanying explanations, feeling the fundamentally different approach compared to traditional, rudimentary meditation methods, Chrysanthemum Douluo felt as though everything he had believed in for his entire life was being shaken.
"This… this is a secret technique among secret techniques!"
"Senior Chrysanthemum," Chen Ming replied calmly, "this isn't some secret technique. Over all these years, as Spirit Masters circulate Spirit Power through their meridians to strengthen their bodies and unleash Spirit Abilities, has no one ever thought to study the meridians more deeply?"
"On the very first day I awakened my Martial Soul, when I looked at the two meditation methods in my hands, I fell into deep thought. One was Spirit Hall's introductory method, the other was a method passed down in our Holy Soul Village, said to have been left behind by a Spirit Saint. Logically, they should have been worlds apart—but in reality, their differences amounted to less than half a percent."
"At first, I thought it was an exception. But after entering the academy, I realized that the essence of low-level and high-level meditation methods is the same. The advanced ones merely include more notes from experience and pay closer attention to certain details. Beyond that, there is no fundamental difference."
"Spirit Masters shouldn't be like this. From the very first day I awakened my Martial Soul—no, from the very first day I learned a meditation method—I felt that things shouldn't be this way."
That was what he said aloud.
But in truth, the method Chen Ming had taken out was not the one he personally cultivated. It was merely the most basic version, circulating only through the twelve primary meridians—the same rudimentary technique he had practiced during the first three months after awakening his Martial Soul, before entering the academy.
He wasn't sharing this out of some lofty ideal of helping the world before even securing his own footing.
This was bait.
A calculated move to establish influence—and to seize the right to speak.
..
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