To honor Brother Sheep's generous contribution, Xiao Heng devoured all ten oversized mutton skewers. In the cramped cave, blue firelight illuminated an ancient yellow map marked with herb locations.
The Magical Beast Mountain Range was rich with medicinal herbs. Well-known growth sites were noted on the map, but scattered or rare herbs required Xiao Heng to search on his own.
"Tomorrow, I'll check out these common herb sites," he murmured. "Start with basic ingredients to practice, then move to slightly advanced pills to minimize losses."
Aspiring alchemists consumed vast amounts of herbs in their early stages. Skilled alchemists were forged through relentless practice, and the cost of wasted herbs was steep. For Xiao Heng, harvesting his own herbs kept expenses low.
With his plan set for the next day, Xiao Heng turned to his day's haul: five soybean-sized energy droplets. Channeling his fire-attribute Fire Cloud Art, he swallowed the droplets whole.
Swallowing was the fastest way to absorb their energy. Ambient Dou Zhi Qi in the air was too sparse, but absorbing it through his pores was quicker. The pure energy droplets followed the Fire Cloud Art's pathways, converging in his dantian. The third blue qi cyclone, nearly complete, began to solidify.
Half an hour later, Xiao Heng broke through to Three-Star Dou Zhe, his Dou Zhi Qi reserves surging. He set up a hammock to rest, having already scouted the area for magical beasts. All was quiet, and the barren surroundings offered little of value. The poorer the place, the safer it is, he thought.
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At dawn, Xiao Heng cultivated, absorbing ambient Dou Zhi Qi for two hours before leaving the narrow cave. He headed toward a dense herb-growing area.
Any magical beasts he encountered were reduced to ash, but he detoured around pack-dwelling ones. At Three-Star Dou Zhe, his Mid-Level Di Class technique and high-tier Dou Techniques gave him an edge, but he stayed cautious. One stray high-tier beast, and I'm done for.
The first herb site, a small basin, was a two-hour trek. After circling to ensure no humans or beasts were nearby, Xiao Heng began harvesting. The cyan storage ring from Xun'er had ample space, likely a high-grade artifact. Unconstrained by storage limits, he swept up every quality herb and moved to the next site.
While gathering, Xiao Heng avoided beast confrontations, skirting stronger ones. With enough herbs collected, he began his first attempt at alchemy.
After ruining several batches, Xiao Heng took his first step on the alchemist's path. He quickly mastered simple pills like Blood Coagulation Powder, which required no magic cores.
Refining first-tier pills, however, took a month in the range. His first success was a Rejuvenation Pill, a first-tier healing pill, a step above rudimentary powders like Blood Coagulation or Rejuvenation Powder. He'd mastered the powder within seven days, but first-tier pills were delayed by the scarcity of magic cores. Not every beast had a core, and finding one with the right attribute was a gamble.
As his herb and core stockpile grew, the situation improved. Without finding the treasure cave, Xiao Heng lacked gold to buy ingredients. He refined whatever pills he could with the herbs and matching cores he had.
Though only a Three-Star Dou Zhe, his combat strength made him untouchable among Dou Zhe cultivators.
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Two months passed in a blur. Through constant alchemy and absorbing energy droplets, Xiao Heng's cultivation soared four stars. Now a Seven-Star Dou Zhe, his Devouring Blue Flame was a cultivation cheat code.
His mastery of Dou Techniques also deepened. The Low-Level Xuan Class Vacuum Palm, High-Level Xuan Class Eight Extreme Collapse, and High-Level Xuan Class blade technique Demon-Sealing Slash grew more potent in his hands.
Eight Extreme Collapse, a close-combat technique, was a gift from Yao Lao when Xiao Heng requested one. Yao Lao had also passed it to Xiao Yan early.
Xiao Heng's Low-Level Di Class blade technique, Tyrant's Dominion, lacked a worthy target, but he'd used it to ambush a second-tier Silent Ice Snake. The result was impressive, yielding a second-tier ice-attribute magic core—a key ingredient for the second-tier Vein-Protecting Pill.
Silent Ice Snakes, reliant on venom, posed little threat to Xiao Heng. His Devouring Blue Flame rendered him immune to poisons. Poison-based beasts are practically made for me—weak in every other way, he thought. He'd charge at them unless they were in large groups, weighing risks against other beasts more carefully.
While ambushing the snake, Xiao Heng was nearly caught by a third-tier Black Wood Ape. Quick reflexes led him to a cave, narrowly escaping. That Di Class technique's Dou Zhi Qi fluctuation must've drawn its attention, he realized. He avoided using it afterward.
Now, with Seven-Star Dou Zhe strength, Xiao Heng could match low-star Dou Shi in full combat. Time to find that cave. This broke life is killing me.
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He pulled out the map again. Ten Thousand Herb Hall's herb-gathering routes were no secret. After a trip back to Qing Shan Town to confirm they hadn't changed, Xiao Heng began searching along them.
The hall had four main routes. Xiao Heng's plan was to identify suspicious sites along each, then eliminate them one by one. If that failed, he'd join their gathering team and tail Xiao Yi Xian.
In the first month, he pinpointed fifteen suspicious sites across the routes. Eight were plagued by third-tier beasts, slowing his progress. Two months later, at the fourteenth site, he found the cave.
"Damn, am I cursed with bad luck? If I hadn't shuffled my search order, I'd have found this on the last try!" Xiao Heng cursed at the cave's entrance.
Over those two months, he'd crossed paths with mercenaries, saving a few and killing others—only Wolf Head Mercenary Group members, and sparingly to avoid attention.
Notably, he'd encountered Xiao Yi Xian twice. The first time, while scouting the fifth site, he found a third-tier herb and let her have it.