All-class Gu Immortal

Chapter 160 Third-Order Pill Recipe! Yuanhun Golden Pill! (Two Chapters Combined)

The next day.

Zhou Qing got up early to do his morning exercise. Around noon, Lanlan came to the backyard and told him that Shangguan Hong was coming to visit.

"Lead him to the front hall to serve tea, I will follow shortly."

Zhou Qing wiped the sweat from his brow and gave the instructions.

"Yes." Lanlan bowed and withdrew.

Zhou Qing returned to her room, washed her face, changed into clean clothes, and then went to the front hall.

When Zhou Qing arrived at the front hall, Lan Lan had just served him hot tea.

"Brother Shangguan." Zhou Qing entered the hall and bowed to Shangguan Hong.

Shangguan Hong stood up with a smile on his face. "Brother Zhou, I've been busy with many things lately and haven't been able to visit you sooner. Please forgive me."

"Brother Shangguan, you flatter me. I should be the one visiting the Shangguan family," Zhou Qing said politely.

Zhou Qing dismissed Lanlan and then sat down in the chair next to Shangguan Hong. "It's just Lanlan and me at home, so please excuse any neglect."

Shangguan Hong smiled slightly, "If Brother Zhou likes it, I can send some beautiful women over to serve you."

"I appreciate Brother Shangguan's kindness. I am by nature quiet, and even Lanlan was sent by Miss Han; otherwise, there might not be a single maid in the manor," Zhou Qing politely declined.

"I never expected Brother Zhou to be such a person who can endure loneliness and cultivate diligently. No wonder he has such cultivation at such a young age and has been valued by the Han family. His future is limitless."

Shangguan Hong smiled and complimented him, then suddenly changed the subject.

"I wonder what your relationship is with Brother Zhou, the fourth young lady of the Han family, and Young Master Lu?"

"I met Miss Han and Brother Lu in a small town below the county seat, so we're friends," Zhou Qing said with a smile.

"I see." Shangguan Hong nodded, and seeing that Zhou Qing didn't want to say more, he didn't press further.

However, he had made a lot of preparations before coming, so he naturally knew a lot about Zhou Qing.

The Poison Demon's newly accepted disciple was already worthy of his high regard, not to mention that the Han family treated him as an honored guest, so he must be extraordinary.

Straight to the point:
"Brother Shangguan, do you know the elixir formula you mentioned last time?"

"The prescription is here." Upon hearing this, Shangguan Hong didn't hesitate. He reached into his robes, took out a dark red animal hide, and handed it to Zhou Qing.

Zhou Qing took the animal hide and was surprised to find it warm to the touch. The surface of the hide was uneven and had a rough keratin layer that looked quite sharp. When he touched it with his fingers, he felt a slight stinging sensation.

"What is the material of this animal hide?" Zhou Qing was very curious about the material of the animal hide.

His hands, with their well-developed skin and muscles, are the most defensive parts of his body.

Moreover, he had cultivated the first level of the Hundred Poisons Primordial Body, making his physical strength far exceed that of other martial artists in the Bone Refining Realm. The fact that he could feel a stinging sensation in his fingers suggests that this animal hide was of great significance.

"Brother Zhou, you truly have discerning eyes. You recognized the extraordinary nature of this animal hide at a glance. It is the hide of the Flame Demon, a member of the demon race," Shangguan Hong explained.

"Demons? Flame demons?" Zhou Qing had never encountered any demons before, only heard some rumors and read a few words about them in ancient books.

"Demons are a race with extremely terrifying vitality. Even if ordinary demons suffer fatal injuries such as ruptured hearts, decapitation, or dismemberment that would kill an ordinary person instantly, they can recover quickly. Some top-level demon powerhouses can even regenerate from a drop of blood, or even reshape their bodies with a single hair."

Shangguan Hong added.

"No wonder this animal hide is still warm. This Flame Demon is probably no ordinary demon, is it?" Zhou Qing's gaze sharpened.

Shangguan Hong nodded: "The Flame Demon clan, once they reach adulthood, are comparable to a Grandmaster of the Three Flowers Gathering at the Top of a Martial World. This skin was taken from the chest of a Flame Demon's corpse. It is difficult to be damaged by ordinary swords and knives, and it is not afraid of insect infestation. It can last for thousands of years without decaying."

"Using the skin of a Flame Demon to make a pill formula, this ancient pill formula must have a very significant origin."

Zhou Qing said in a deep voice.

Shangguan Hong said solemnly, "Brother Zhou will know at a glance."

Zhou Qing unfolded the folded dark red Flame Demon Skin. The entire Flame Demon Skin was very large, about three feet square.

However, it was completely empty, with neither words nor pictures.

"This is."

Zhou Qing looked at Shangguan Hong; he shouldn't have come all this way just to tease him.

Shangguan Hong looked apologetic: "Brother Zhou, you may not know this, but this ancient pill formula is extremely strange. It requires the blood essence of a Blood Exchange Realm Grand Martial Master or a beast of the same level to be applied to it before the contents of the pill formula can be revealed."

Even so, only a portion of the content can be presented, and its lifespan is very short.

According to the Shangguan family's ancestors, to fully reveal the contents above, it would likely require the essence and blood of a Grandmaster at the Three Flowers Gathering at the Top realm.

Zhou Qing frowned slightly. "Brother Shangguan, you don't think I can get my hands on the blood essence of a Grandmaster, do you? Even the blood essence of a Great Martial Master isn't so easy to obtain."

Essence blood is different from ordinary blood; it is the most refined part of a martial artist's body after being tempered and refined through countless trials.

To put it simply, it's like drawing blood from the heart.

This will damage a martial artist's vital energy; the higher the level of the martial artist, the more precious their essence and blood.

Although Zhou Qing possesses the essence blood of the Ice Soul Mystic Spider and can unlock the pill formula, he cannot reveal this fact.

Shangguan Hong smiled and said, "Brother Zhou, please be patient. Although the ancestors of the Shangguan family did not reveal the full contents of this pill formula, they confirmed that it is a genuine third-tier pill formula."

Even without the complete alchemy techniques, the formulas for making pills alone are enough to inspire alchemists.

Brother Zhou, you have such cultivation at such a young age, you must know an alchemist with very high alchemy skills, right?

If you give him this prescription, he will surely appreciate its value.

I'm exchanging this pill formula for Brother Zhou's first-tier divine weapon. Either way, Brother Zhou is making a profit.

"I don't know any powerful alchemists. If the Shangguan family wants to contact alchemists through me, they're dreaming," Zhou Qing denied. He had no reason to fabricate an alchemy master out of thin air.

The third-tier pill formula is indeed valuable, but he has no need for it at the moment.

Whether the Mystic Spider has the ability to improve the third-order pill formula remains to be seen.

Shangguan Hong's decision to do something that is clearly a losing proposition suggests he has ulterior motives.

This kind of bargain isn't so easy to come by.

"Brother Zhou, please don't misunderstand. The Shangguan family just wants to make friends with you. The family has already left behind a copy of the first half of this pill formula."

As for the content that cannot be revealed later, even if the Shangguan family obtains the essence blood of a Grandmaster in the future, they will not have an alchemist of that level.

This prescription may seem incredibly valuable, but its actual value is quite low, and we have no other motives.

Shangguan Hong explained.

“If that’s the case, then this deal can continue.” Zhou Qing made his decision after a moment of contemplation.

He possesses the essence blood of the Ice Soul Mystic Spider. An adult Ice Soul Mystic Spider is a fourth-order Gu worm, and using its essence blood to unlock the pill formula is like using a sledgehammer to crack a nut.

Since the Shangguan family has no other motives, he doesn't mind accepting the pill formula.

Just because we don't need it now doesn't mean we won't need it in the future.

After saying this, Zhou Qing took out the Spirit Gourd Sword and handed it directly to Shangguan Hong.

"Brother Zhou is indeed decisive. I've decided to be your friend!" Shangguan Hong smiled, but he only took out the Spirit Gourd Sword and examined it briefly. It seemed that he cared more about his relationship with Zhou Qing than the divine weapon.

“It is my honor to be a friend of the Shangguan family,” Zhou Qing nodded. “Actually, there is something else I would like to ask if Brother Zhou would be interested?” Shangguan Hong changed the subject, his eyes filled with eagerness.

"What is it?" Zhou Qing looked at him and her heart skipped a beat; she already had a guess.

"Brother Zhou, you have already broken through the bone barrier at such a young age, so your talent and comprehension must be outstanding. Therefore, I would like to invite you to study the Shangguan family's secret technique, the 'Divine Ape Technique,' together. What do you think?" Shangguan Hong asked with burning eyes.

Zhou Qing's expression was somewhat unnatural.

Upon seeing this, Shangguan Hong quickly said, "Brother Zhou, please don't be disturbed by rumors. Although the Divine Ape Technique is a male-male dual cultivation technique, it pursues spiritual communion, unlike the filthy and unsavory male-female physical dual cultivation."

Once you master the Divine Ape Technique, your true energy will increase significantly, making it easier to break through to the Blood Exchange Realm in the future.

Moreover, their combat strength among those of the same level will be top-notch. The Shangguan family has always been small in number, but they have always been able to occupy a place in the county city, relying on this Divine Ape Technique.

Brother Zhou, you can first choose to study the Divine Ape Technique, and then decide whether to cultivate with me.

Shangguan Hong's words were extremely sincere.

But Zhou Qing felt a chill run down her spine.

The reason why the Shangguan family has so few members is naturally because there have been people practicing the Divine Ape Technique throughout the generations.

People who are attracted to male beauty are generally not interested in female beauty, which naturally makes it difficult for them to reproduce.

"This..." Zhou Qing pretended to ponder, then shook his head. After awakening his new profession, he had lost interest in the Divine Ape Technique and did not want to have anything to do with Shangguan Hong in this regard.

The primary task now is to refine a second-tier Gu worm.

"My current level of cultivation is due to my focused practice of the White Cloud Palm Technique. I simply cannot be distracted by anything else, so please forgive me, Brother Shangguan. Although the secret technique is good, it may not be suitable for me."

Upon hearing this, a hint of disappointment flashed in Shangguan Hong's eyes, but his smile remained unchanged. "In that case, I won't force you to do anything against your will."

"Actually, I have another first-tier divine weapon here. If Brother Shangguan is interested, please accept it as well." Zhou Qing changed the subject and took out Wuchenzi's whisk divine weapon.

"This is..." Shangguan Hong examined the whisk that Zhou Qing had taken out.

"What? Is there a problem?" Zhou Qing asked. He wasn't afraid of being exposed, since he hadn't killed Wuchenzi and Chen Feng anyway.

Moreover, Wuchenzi and Chen Feng clearly do not have any Blood Exchange Realm backers.

Otherwise, there would have been no need to travel all the way to Ping'an County to find help; they could have easily found a Blood Transformation Realm Grand Martial Master to explore the cave.

“No.” Shangguan Hong shook his head. “It’s just that this divine weapon is rather unorthodox. There probably aren’t many people who cultivate martial arts using this kind of divine weapon. If you were to start cultivating it from scratch, I’m afraid only some martial artists who have exhausted their potential would choose it.”

Even the rarest divine weapons are valued by the direct descendants of powerful families in the county, who treat them like vegetables, weighing and assessing their quality.

This is normal, though. A scholar who has passed the county-level imperial examination is considered learned in a village or town. But in a prefectural city full of high-ranking officials and nobles, he is nothing special.

"Let's make friends. Brother Shangguan, you can give me whatever you think is appropriate," Zhou Qing said casually. Even the worst first-tier divine weapon costs at least ten or twenty thousand taels of silver, and you can't buy it even if you have the money. It basically circulates within the same circle.

If this whisk were auctioned, it could probably fetch twenty or thirty thousand taels of silver.

This divine weapon is a niche divine weapon, not a common one like swords or blades. Moreover, not everyone can awaken a profession like Zhou Qing, which lowers the requirements for using divine weapons.

"Then let's make it 25,000 taels of silver. Even if we auction this divine weapon, it would be difficult to get 30,000 taels of silver," Shangguan Hong said after a moment's thought.

"A very fair price. Thank you, Brother Shangguan, for saving me some trouble." Zhou Qing smiled and cupped his hands in thanks.

"Brother Zhou, you flatter me. I will send the silver with my steward later." Shangguan Hong nodded.

After saying that, he stood up and put away the whisk and the spirit gourd sword.

"The trading is over for today. I have other matters to attend to, so I'll take my leave now. I'd like to invite Brother Zhou to visit me again another day when I have more free time."

Clearly, his mood was affected after Zhou Qing refused to cultivate with him, and he was not in high spirits.

"Definitely!" Zhou Qing stood up to see him off: "Brother Shangguan, take care."

After Shangguan Hong left, Zhou Qing returned to the side room in the backyard and took out the prescription again.

"Xuanzhu, can you check if there's anything wrong with the pill formula?"

Zhou Qing released the Corpse Worm Gu King and asked it a question.

The black spider transformed into a thumb-sized black beetle and perched on the red leather pill formula.

"There shouldn't be any traps or anything like that. Let's try activating it with the blood of the Ice Soul Spider."

After a moment, Xuanzhu responded.

“Alright.” Zhou Qing nodded. He went outside first to tell Lanlan that he would be focusing on his cultivation in the backyard and wouldn’t need to come in for the next two days.

After Lanlan left, Zhou Qing returned to his room and released the enormous body of the Ice Soul Spider from the Spirit Guiding Plate.

呲呲
A palpable chill quickly filled the entire room, and frost covered the floor, tables, chairs, beds, and walls of the room, with the Ice Soul Spider at the center.

Zhou Qing could only use his true essence to protect his body and resist the extreme cold.

Then, he had the Wood Spirit Corpse cut off a small section of the Ice Soul Spider's leg, and then put the Ice Soul Spider's corpse back into the storage space of the Spirit Guiding Plate.

The blood of the Ice Soul Spider was also frozen by the extreme cold, and not a single drop of blue-white blood fell.

"Kaka!"

The hand that the Wood Spirit Corpse was holding the Ice Soul Spider's leg froze rapidly, and its entire arm quickly turned into an ice sculpture.

If it weren't for the fact that it was a corpse refiner, with a physical body stronger than that of an ordinary martial arts master, this arm would probably already be ruined.

A fourth-tier ancient alien species that died many years ago, and was still not even an adult, already possessed such power. Just by looking at this small part, one can understand how terrifying third-tier and fourth-tier powerhouses are.

As the spirit corpse of the wood circulated a large amount of true essence and mobilized the blood and qi throughout its body, the solid ice on its arms melted, and then it used its true essence to dispel the cold air on the spider legs.

Drip blue-white spider blood onto the fire demon's hide.

呲呲
呲呲
In an instant, it was like pouring water into a pot of boiling oil, producing a violent reaction.

A large amount of smoke rose up, making the entire room hazy.

Zhou Qing stared intently and saw flame-like patterns appearing on the three-foot-square Flame Demon Skin.

Within the flame-patterned design are densely packed characters, occupying half of the entire Flame Demon skin.

The other half, however, is a demonic image with two heads and four arms.

Zhou Qing was shocked after just one glance, feeling as if the demons in the painting would come back to life at any moment.

"It's actually a Demon Blood Soul Pill?!"

Xuanzhu exclaimed in shock.

"Do you know this pill? Is it very precious?" Zhou Qing asked quickly.

"Extremely precious! This pill does indeed have miraculous effects in nourishing the soul and refining the body, but the most crucial part is the second half! It records the secret technique for refining demon golden pills."

This secret technique can remove the demonic nature from the inner core of demons, refining it into a primordial soul golden core. This allows martial artists to gain the powerful self-healing abilities and vitality of demons, and may even awaken an indestructible body!

Xuanzhu said excitedly.

"The Yuanhun Golden Core?!"

(End of this chapter)