Immortality and Cultivation: Starting with Harvesting the Talents of Demonic Beasts

Chapter 260 Spirit Clam Breakthrough, Crystal Scorpion Demon Blood
However, he couldn't see through the old Taoist's true cultivation level...

Lin Changheng felt a little relieved. Fortunately, he didn't have any other ideas. Otherwise, if they had started fighting, this old Taoist priest might have been a formidable opponent.

But then he remembered what the old Taoist priest had just said, "The West..."

To the west of the [Azure Cloud Gate] area, go all the way to the end, and you'll find the Floating Life Immortal City.

Could it be that some demonic cultivator has fled to the immortal city?
Lin Changheng rested his chin on his hand and began to ponder.

Suddenly, I remembered something that happened around the same time as the incident involving the extermination of the demonic cultivators...

That was my old neighbor in the lakeside cave outside the immortal city, the one who never left the house and who was discovered to have quietly left in the middle of the night one night... who moved in around the same time.

"No way? What a coincidence?"

Given the similar timing and the other party's rather strange behavior, it was hard for Lin Changheng not to make connections.

Only then did it become clear that it was the right decision not to rush after them that night, because among this group of demonic cultivators, there was still one fake Core Formation demonic cultivator remaining.

At that time, having lost ten years of accumulation, his strength was definitely no match for a pseudo-core cultivator.

"That's all."

Lin Changheng immediately abandoned his plan to seize the Vajra Bodhi Wood.

At the same time, I feel that my relocation was absolutely the right thing to do, and the timing was perfect.

Otherwise, with such a mysterious person, or rather, a demonic cultivator, hiding by one's side, trouble would inevitably ensue sooner or later.

Once you get caught in the vortex, things will be very bad.

……

The next day, very early in the morning.

Lin Changheng went to a shop that could recycle old items, intending to leave immediately after the transaction.

They won't be back for at least a short time.

After some bargaining.

In the end, he sold the low-grade spiritual weapon he had obtained from the Qiu family patriarch and the three cultivators near Jade Belt Lake at a price that was still acceptable at 65% of the original price.

There are five items in total.

I have acquired a little over 23,000 low-grade spirit stones.

As Lin Changheng walked out of the shop, he still remembered the shopkeeper's glaring gaze.

I'm so overwhelmed with surprise...

Then it flew directly out of the market and disappeared.

He didn't mind that the shop had ulterior motives and sent a Foundation Establishment cultivator to follow behind and steal the spirit stones back, which would allow him to make another profit.

Unfortunately, it didn't have a tail.

In fact, the shopkeeper had initially planned to do this, but the array of magical artifacts before him, shimmering with spiritual light, gave him a reminder.

This person is probably a vicious one.

Don't drag your own family into this mess.

Only then did he suppress his evil thoughts.

……

In the following time, Lin Changheng, carrying a map of the Bixiaomen area, went to two more old workshops.

After selling a few unused mid-grade spiritual artifacts, he flew back towards Jade Belt Lake with satisfaction.

As for the second-tier high-grade ghost head saber, Lin Changheng will keep it for now. In the future, he might be able to barter for it, which would be better than simply converting it into spirit stones.

The low-grade jade bracelet, a magical artifact, was also not sold and was kept in a storage bag.

He even glanced back at the storage bag and found that the number of spirit stones inside was even more than the number he had brought with him.

The resources gained were plentiful.

……

More than half a year later.

Lin Changheng is 96 years old.

Qiyue Island was unusually quiet.

A sense of unease permeated the air.

The source of this water is not from the lake outside the island, but from the inner lake of Qiyue Island.

At this moment, the waters of the inland lake are extremely turbulent.

The lake water surged violently as if it were boiling, bubbling and spewing huge bubbles. Pure water spiritual energy mixed with an increasingly strong demonic energy surged out from the bottom of the lake like a tide, forming visible vortexes of spiritual energy on the surface of the water.

At the center of the vortex, a huge shadow, emitting a hazy white light, could be vaguely seen slowly rising.

Lin Changheng had already activated the island's formations to their maximum extent. The cloud formation of the [Flowing Clouds Obscuring the Moon Formation] was so thick that it was almost impossible to disperse, while the [Azure Waves Sea Curtain Formation] drew upon the surrounding lake water to form a thick water wall, firmly protecting the entire island and isolating it from internal and external influences and spying.

Yan Mingyi stood in the pavilion far from the water's edge, nervously watching the churning water, her hands unconsciously twisting the hem of her clothes.

She knew that this was the time when Xiaobai was hitting a bottleneck in her attempt to break through to the mid-stage of the second tier of spirit beasts!

If successful, the spirit clam will greatly increase its strength, and the innate abilities it has cultivated will also change.

However, when a spirit beast breaks through to the next level, not only is the breakthrough itself extremely dangerous, but it also triggers more intense changes in the spiritual energy and demonic energy of heaven and earth, making it very easy to attract the covetousness of other powerful demonic beasts or cultivators.

With Lin Changheng stationed within the formation, the latter is basically unaffected; however, Xiaobai will have to rely on himself to break through his cultivation level.

However, Lin Changheng also prepared a breakthrough medicine for him.

【Tidal Water Element San】!
……

"Boom!"

A muffled, loud bang came from the bottom of the lake, as if something had exploded.

Immediately afterwards, a thick, condensed white beam of light shot up from the center of the vortex, piercing through the lake water and soaring into the sky!

Beneath the beam of light, a clam shell could be vaguely seen opening, and the shadow of the giant clam flashed by!
The purest demonic energy and spiritual energy burst forth, causing violent ripples to spread throughout the spiritual energy and the lake!

"Is it going to work?" Yan Mingyi's heart was in her throat.

This woman has spent decades with the [Deep Lake Spirit Clam], so naturally she has her worries.

At this moment, Lin Changheng's powerful divine sense had already enveloped the inner lake like an invisible spider web, and every change in the spirit clam at the bottom of the lake was clearly reflected in his mental mirror.

Sensing that Xiaobai's demonic power had reached its peak and that the process of breaking through the bottleneck was smooth but slightly lacking in momentum, Lin Changheng's heart stirred slightly.

He did not get up, but with a thought, a jade bottle flew out of his storage bag, transformed into a stream of light, silently pierced through the lake water, and accurately entered the slightly open shell of the spirit clam.

"Crack!"

The Deep Lake Spirit Clam, which was connected to Lin Changheng's mind, immediately closed its shell, shattering the jade bottle and engulfing all the medicine powder.

As soon as it entered the body, it instantly transformed into a gentle yet powerful medicinal force, like a long-awaited rain after a drought, rapidly replenishing the spiritual clam's energy consumed in breaking through its bottleneck and nourishing its demonic soul.

The light around the spirit clam intensified slightly, and the originally steady rhythm of its impact suddenly became powerful, with its demonic energy flowing more smoothly and surging.

The entire breakthrough process became quiet and did not cause any major celestial phenomena. Only the surrounding water elemental energy gathered more rapidly, forming a slowly rotating vortex of spiritual energy above the spirit clam.

About a day and a half later, the vortex of spiritual energy suddenly shrank inward and disappeared completely into the clam shell.

The next moment, a more condensed and vast demonic aura belonging to a mid-stage second-tier spirit beast slowly emanated, and although it was still unstable at the beginning, it had already laid a solid foundation.

On the shell of the spirit clam, the mysterious patterns seemed even clearer and deeper, with a faint flow of precious light.

Clearly, the [Deep Lake Spirit Clam] has successfully broken through.

Seeing this, Yan Mingyi also breathed a sigh of relief.

Lin Changheng stepped forward and patted Yan Mingyi on the head: "You're next. Are you confident?"

“My husband has prepared everything for me, how can I not have confidence?”

Yan Mingyi snuggled into his arms, tilted her head back, and offered him a kiss, smiling.

"That's good."

After savoring the taste, Lin Changheng whispered something in her ear as she was breathing heavily. The woman's cheeks flushed red, and she hurriedly ran away.

"Hahaha..." Lin Changheng couldn't help but burst into laughter.

It was exceptionally pleasant.

It has to be said that Xiaobai's breakthrough to the mid-stage of the second tier has further boosted his abilities, which is truly something to be happy about. So, celebrating a little with his concubine tonight is perfectly harmless.

Now, the blood donation of the [Deep Lake Spirit Clam] can be postponed until its cultivation is stable, and there is no need to rush it.

However, the Black-Armored Ground Turtle's turn could not be delayed even slightly; it had to be arranged as usual.

It was quite obvious that the Black-Armored Tortoise had been tricked by its own gluttony; the so-called blood-replenishing pills weren't as tasty as it seemed...

But I chose this path myself, so I had no choice but to bite the bullet and donate blood.

"Chirp..."

With the long needle inserted into his body, Xiao Hei looked like he was bravely going to his death, allowing a sufficient amount of his essence and blood to be extracted.

……

A month later.

Lin Changheng suddenly saw a communication jade talisman fly over from the neighboring island, plunge into the formation, and remain motionless.

"finally come!"

Lin Changheng's spirits lifted.

It's been so long; the neighbor next door only just finished dealing with their business and then remembered me.

Although it was late, I still remembered it eventually.

This is enough.

This means that his previous need for the essence blood of the [Frosty Jade Crystal Scorpion] is finally coming to fruition.

Lin Changheng absorbed the jade talisman and scanned it with his divine sense, confirming his suspicions.

After making some quick preparations, they flew directly to the neighboring [Floating Star Island].

……

"Fellow Daoist Lin, it's been a long time."

I was led into the main hall by a maid, where a beautiful woman sat smiling in the main seat.

It is evident that this person is wearing a light blue flowing dress, carrying abundant fruits, indicating considerable wealth. Her black hair is simply tied up, and her makeup is light and elegant, making her appear refined and otherworldly.

There was no one else besides her.

Brother Xu from Shengyang Island was not present.

Lin Changheng cupped his hands in greeting: "Fairy Cheng, it's been a long time. You're even more beautiful than before. How have you been?"

After exchanging pleasantries, Lin Changheng hesitated to speak directly, and Cheng Suling, knowing this, brought up the topic: "Brother Lin's absence last time was a good thing; it showed foresight."

Lin Changheng immediately looked surprised: "What do you mean?"

"The situation inside was more complicated than I had anticipated. The strength and number of the [Frosty Jade Crystal Scorpions], as well as the strangeness of the environment, were all unexpected. I almost perished inside after entering..."

"There was some harvest, but only one-third of what was expected... and the time spent was several times more than anticipated."

Cheng Suling shook her head, clearly dissatisfied with the result.

"Where is there an opportunity that can be completely fulfilled? If that were the case, everyone would be fighting tooth and nail for it."

Lin Changheng was already aware of this.

"Brother Lin sees things very clearly."

Cheng Suling smiled.

"I wonder if Fairy Cheng summoned me here because she has obtained the essence blood of the [Frosty Jade Crystal Scorpion]?"

"good."

Cheng Suling raised her hand and waved out a bottle of essence blood, which floated into Lin Changheng's hand.

Upon holding the bottle, one immediately felt a bone-chilling cold emanating from it, as if holding not liquid, but a block of ancient ice. A layer of white frost instantly condensed on the bottle's surface, and even the surrounding air temperature seemed to drop several degrees.

Lin Changheng probed with his divine sense and saw that the bottle contained half a bottle of blood that was as viscous as mercury and dark blue in color. It seemed that countless tiny ice crystals were slowly rising and falling and colliding within it. It appeared to be an extremely pure and cold bloodline, exuding an unruly and ferocious aura.

"This is the essence blood of a second-tier [Frosty Jade Crystal Scorpion], and it is of excellent quality, with the original power of the bloodline perfectly preserved."

Cheng Suling offered a timely explanation.

A hint of satisfaction flashed in Lin Changheng's eyes as he looked up at Cheng Suling. "As expected, the fairy trusts people. What would you like me to exchange for this?"

"Furthermore, does the fairy possess any more of this kind of essence blood? Even first-tier blood would be acceptable."

Upon hearing this, Cheng Suling smiled slightly, her beautiful face appearing even more ethereal: "Fellow Daoist Lin, you are too kind. Although essence blood is rare, it is not something I urgently need, and there is plenty of first-grade essence blood available. The reason I invited you here is to discuss another matter."

"Oh?"

"Please speak frankly, Fairy."

Lin Changheng was secretly disappointed. It would be safer and simpler to trade with spirit stones, but if the other party had something important that needed help, it would be much more troublesome.

But he still spoke directly, with a smile on his face.

"I have heard that Brother Lin's name is renowned in the Immortal City for a long time, and his alchemy skills are even more widely praised and superb. Fellow cultivators come to Jade Belt Lake in an endless stream to seek pills, which has also made my business much better. With this in mind, I would like to ask Brother Lin to help me refine two batches of pills."

Cheng Suling stated her purpose directly.

That's it?

Lin Changheng breathed a sigh of relief, his tone calm and confident, "As for fighting and exploring secret realms, I'm not very good at that, but when it comes to alchemy, that's my specialty. As long as Fairy Cheng has the formula and the ingredients, just tell me."

Cheng Suling smiled and said, "Excellent! Then it's a deal."

The two reached an agreement.

Cheng Suling then waved her sleeve and took out a pile of essence blood, totaling more than four hundred bottles.

They are mostly first-tier essence blood.

Its value is limited, but it is extremely useful to Lin Changheng.

Lin Changheng accepted it directly.

"By the way, if Brother Lin still needs more, you can also ask Brother Xu; he has quite a few as well."

Lin Changheng held the jade slip containing the pill formula provided by the other party in his hand when he suddenly heard Cheng Suling remind him.

"Thank you."

Lin Changheng left.

At this moment, his storage bag contained only a collection of essence blood and jade slips containing pill formulas, but no medicinal herbs.

Because the other party indicated that they needed to collect the information for a while, Lin Changheng could first familiarize himself with and study the prescription.

Lin Changheng naturally had no objection to this.

After leaving Floating Star Island, Lin Changheng did not go back directly, but instead flew to Rising Sun Island.

Not long after the message was sent out, they were welcomed inside.

About half an hour later.

Accompanied by a beaming Xu Maoling, they were seen off.

The two were chatting and laughing, clearly indicating that a deal had been struck.

……

They returned to Qiyue Island once again.

After having dinner with Yan Mingyi, Lin Changheng returned to the secret room.

Looking at the more than six hundred bottles of essence blood in front of him, Lin Changheng was about to seize the spirit.

Xu Maoling provided only two hundred bottles of essence blood, which were purchased at a price slightly above the market price.

Lin Changheng was very satisfied; it was a money-saving and worry-free experience.

(End of this chapter)