Family Cultivation: Rise of the Wilderness

Chapter 181 Receiving a Foundation Establishment Pill

Four?

Li Xiangming looked at the Green Sheep Taoist, his mind racing with calculations.

There are definitely more than four Thousand-Jun Pills, because the production of pills depends on the auxiliary materials, not the main ingredients.

To refine a batch of Huangya Dan, only one evening primrose is needed, but dozens of auxiliary materials are added to the furnace along with the evening primrose.

A normal alchemist can refine more than 12 Yellow Sprout Pills, which is why pills are packaged in bottles of 12.

Even Foundation Establishment Pills can yield eight or nine, or even more than ten, pills in a single batch.

Only four Thousand-Pound Pills were refined; that's far too few.

Of course, Li Xiangming was not an alchemist and dared not draw any conclusions.

It's also possible that Qingyang Daoist wasn't very skilled at alchemy since it was his first time, and as he said, many unexpected things happened, affecting the success rate of the pills.

Or perhaps it was indeed because Qingyang Daoist's skills were not refined enough, and he was just lucky to have successfully refined the Thousand-Jun Pill.

Because of the Grass God Pill, which is also a second-tier pill, Qingyang Daoist suffered from splitting headaches and had not succeeded in making a single pill for several years.

But most likely, it was Qingyang Daoist's selfish motives that led him to conceal the true number of Thousand-Jun Pills.

Li Xiangming has always believed that everyone has selfish desires, and even a saint can only show his saintly side in front of others.

Therefore, he was not surprised that the Taoist Qingyang had lied about the pills, nor did he have any intention of exposing him.

So what if we lied?

The Qingyang Daoist repeatedly claimed that it was with his help that he was able to establish his foundation.

But without Qingyang Daoist's information about the Thousand-Jun Grass, as well as the crucial Foundation Establishment Pill formula and alchemy techniques, what good would it do for Li Xiangming to obtain the Thousand-Jun Grass?
It was just like Hua Lun casually tossing it to Li Qianhe, who then casually sold it to some customer.

The profit from it might not even amount to a single spirit stone.

Moreover, the Thousand-Pound Grass had already been given to Daoist Qingyang, so even if Daoist Qingyang said that he had only refined one Thousand-Pound Pill, Li Xiangming had nothing to say.

But Qingyang Daoist did not do that; he kept observing Li Xiangming's expression.

When he saw that Li Xiangming's expression was normal, he secretly breathed a sigh of relief and said, "I have only obtained one Thousand Jun Grass in all these years. I don't know if I will have this opportunity again."

"Therefore, these four Thousand-Jin Pills may be unique."

“I ate one, kept one for the Qingyang Temple’s inheritance, and originally intended to give the remaining two directly to Layman Li as a thank you gift.”

"Unfortunately, Liu Xiongyu is too powerful, and I am no match for him. I can only share one pill with him. All that is left for you, Little Li Jushi, is one Thousand-Jin Pill."

As he spoke, the Taoist Qingyang took out an exquisite white jade porcelain bottle and gently placed it on the table.

"Foundation Pill"

Looking at the white jade porcelain vase on the table, Li Xiangming couldn't help but gulp.

Li Qianxiong had hinted that he would try to obtain a Foundation Establishment Pill, and with the addition of this Thousand-Jun Pill, his hopes of reaching the Foundation Establishment stage would be greatly enhanced.

"Thank you, Taoist Master."

Li Xiangming did not delay and put away the pills.

"I have another request."

"Qingyang Daoist suddenly said."

"Oh?"

Qingyang Daoist cupped his hands in greeting: "If the Li family fails to find a new Thousand-Jin Grass, I hope that Young Master Li can help cover up the matter of the Thousand-Jin Pill."

Upon hearing this, Li Xiangming understood perfectly.

Logically speaking, since Qingyang Daoist has already successfully established his foundation, he should be superior to Li Xiangming in terms of both strength and status.

However, the Taoist priest remained humble and polite.

The reason for this is not unrelated to the Li family behind Li Xiangming.

After all, how could a Foundation Establishment cultivator whose aura is not yet stable contend with the Li family?

The Taoist priest of Qingyang is probably feeling uneasy right now.

Because his current situation is just like that of the cook in the story he told.

Now that the cook is dead, how can we be sure that the Li family won't be the ones who killed him?
In particular, the Thousand-Jun Pill in the hands of the Qingyang Taoist is inextricably linked to the Thousand-Jun Grass given to him by Li Xiangming.

What if Li Xiangming reneged on his promise under pressure from his family, even though it was a gift given voluntarily at the time?
Qingyang Daoist has seen too many of the true colors of powerful families.

I still vividly remember the time a few years ago when the Li family besieged Qingyang Temple for more than a month.

Therefore, Daoist Qingyang was certain that once the Li family learned of the Thousand-Jun Pill, which combined the strengths of both families, they would not remain indifferent and would certainly consider it part of their family's interests. This was undoubtedly a huge hidden danger for Daoist Qingyang.
For this reason, Qingyang Daoist proposed to share the Thousand-Jun Pill with Li Xiangming. This was not only an acknowledgment of Li Xiangming's contribution of the Thousand-Jun Grass, but also to keep the news of the Foundation Establishment Pill within a small circle and eliminate any potential risks.

Li Xiangming agreed without hesitation.

Although the Foundation Establishment Pill in Qingyang Daoist's possession was of great importance to the Li family, Li Xiangming also needed the Daoist, an alchemist.

Protecting the Taoist priest will greatly benefit his future.

Conversely, if the family is informed, they might be able to obtain the Foundation Establishment Pill from Qingyang Daoist through force or by using a conciliatory approach.

But neither of these options is what Qingyang Daoist desires.

The relationship between Li Xiangming and Qingyang Temple will be completely broken as a result, turning them into enemies.

This is definitely not what Li Xiangming wanted.

Since his own interests were at stake, Li Xiangming could only pretend to be confused and give up the credit for reporting the Foundation Establishment Pill.

Compared to his merits, the alchemist Qingyang Daoren was more important.

If the Taoist priest really only refined four Thousand-Jin Pills and gave two to himself, it would already be a great show of sincerity.

Although one of them was given to Liu Xiongyu out of necessity.

But the real reason was to save Li Xiangming's life.

Therefore, Li Xiangming had nothing to say about the loss of this pill.

"I will keep the Thousand-Jun Pill a secret, but I must report the matter of the Daoist's Foundation Establishment."

"It doesn't matter."

Qingyang Daoist waved his hand. Even if Li Xiangming didn't say anything, he still wanted to show the Li family his Foundation Establishment cultivation level so that he could secure greater benefits for Qingyang Temple.

"I have one more request."

"Please say."

After a moment's hesitation, Li Xiangming continued, "If you refine the Thousand-Jun Pill in the future, I hope you can sell me some of the pills."

"no problem."

Qingyang Daoist smiled. He noticed that Li Xiangming only said "I" instead of "my family".

This shows that Layman Li was willing to keep it a secret.

Having known each other for several years, Qingyang Daoren was very confident in Li Xiangming's sense of propriety.

As for selling the Thousand-Jun Pill, it wasn't a difficult decision.

He has already established his foundation, so his need for Foundation Establishment Pills has greatly decreased. Using them to exchange for spirit stones is the right thing to do.

Besides, how could he possibly get his hands on a thousand-pound grass all by himself?
As the saying goes, even a clever cook can't cook without rice; selling elixirs is nothing more than a pie in the sky.

Unless the Li family provides him with the Thousand-Jun Grass.

If that's the case, then it's more acceptable.

The two then chatted about everything under the sun until late at night before Li Xiangming finally bid farewell to Qingyang Daoist.

Back at the animal trapping camp, Li Xiangming lit a lamp and carefully examined the Thousand-Jin Pill in his hand, feeling deeply moved.

Unexpectedly, the Foundation Establishment Pill, which everyone in the world desperately wants, came into his hands so easily.

It didn't even cost them the slightest bit of money.

This is the benefit of having a backer.

Li Xiangming viewed Qingyang Daoren primarily through the lens of his identity as an alchemist, considering him a respectable friend and an excellent partner.

However, Qingyang Daoist could not simply regard Li Xiangming as a young cultivator friend.

In his eyes, Li Xiangming was a member of the Li family, with powerful family influence and vast interests behind him.

Being on good terms with Li Xiangming is being on good terms with the Li family.

If Li Xiangming were merely an insignificant rogue cultivator, even if Qingyang Daoist admired him greatly, he would never have handed over even a single Thousand-Jun Pill.

"I should be happy to have the Foundation Establishment Pill, but now..."

Li Xiangming shook his head; the shadow of the evil green robe still lingered in his mind, and he couldn't bring himself to laugh.

Touching his clothes, Li Xiangming muttered, "What exactly are you?"

After blowing out the candle, Li Xiangming sat cross-legged on the bed and meditated quietly.

(End of this chapter)