Chapter 28 : A Spirit Vein in the Wilderness

A century ago, Withered Bone Old Demon refined his demonic skull, dominating the State of Chu with near invincibility and unleashing a great calamity of Demon-Slayer chaos.

When the nest is overturned, no egg remains whole. Ronan Yang also participated in the great war between the Chu State Cultivation World and the Demonic Cultivator forces, ultimately meeting his demise amidst the demonic scourge.

Nearly another century passed thusly, until a dozen or so years ago when this cave abode was accidentally discovered by three individuals, subsequently becoming their lair.

It must be said those three were exceedingly cautious. Over the years, they had been luring prey by distributing fragmented maps, and they would only sell these fragments to cultivators who appeared young.

Because of this, their murderous business of entrapment managed to operate for over a decade without being discovered.

Alas, one who often walks by the river will inevitably get their shoes wet. That the trio now fell into the hands of Eldrin Chen was a tribulation they were fated to encounter.

"A pity. There are no other treasures within this cave abode."

"However, this Spirit Vein [a natural conduit of concentrated spiritual energy] is a fine thing. It is only a shame it lies within the Hundred-Thousand-Mile Great Wilderness."

Eldrin Chen could not help but shake his head. A Second-Order Spirit Vein, if located favorably, could perhaps nurture the rise of a Foundation Establishment Immortal Clan.

Unfortunately, the Hundred-Thousand-Mile Great Wilderness teems with rampaging demonic beasts. During every Beast Tide Burst, this region serves as a bloody buffer and battleground between the human and demonic races, making it utterly inhospitable for mortal settlement and proliferation.

"We can only abandon this place for now."

"In the future, when our Chen Family grows stronger, we can consider utilizing this location."

In the end, Eldrin Chen made a decision. He collected the Formation Banner of the Numinous Fire Soul-Burning Formation, then sealed the entrance to the cave abode. After concealing it well, he continued his journey towards Yu County.

Another month passed in the blink of an eye. During this time, he opened the trio's Storage Bag.

To his astonishment, within the three Storage Bag, there were over twenty low to mid-grade first-rank magical artifacts, more than six hundred Spirit Stone [a mineral that stores and radiates spiritual energy], and over a dozen jade slips containing replicated cultivation arts.

It was clear that most of these items originated from cultivators who had been lured to their doom by the three.

Most of these cultivation arts only reached the Vital Essence Refinement Stage. However, a single Foundation Establishment Stage manual caused Eldrin Chen's eyes to light up with excitement.

This art was named the Blazing Fire Path to Ruins Art. It was a remarkably profound Foundation Establishment Stage technique, capable of guiding cultivation all the way to the Foundation Establishment 9th Tier. Furthermore, it even contained the forging method for a type of Lifebound Magical Treasure [a magical artifact forged with a cultivator's blood and soul essence, growing in power alongside them].

It must be understood that although the Chen Immortal Clan possessed three Foundation Establishment cultivation arts, only the Scorching Sun Soaring Void Art was capable of reaching the Foundation Establishment 9th Tier.

The Chen Family's Scorching Sun Soaring Void Art was also an exceptional Foundation Establishment technique, recording the divine ability known as Blazing Heaven Sword. However, it uniquely lacked the forging method for a Lifebound Magical Treasure.

The Lifebound Magical Treasure [a cultivator's personal weapon, bound to their soul and grown with their cultivation] that the Patriarch once wielded, the Blazing Fire Spirit Saber [a saber imbued with the power of blazing flames], was merely a common, generic type of such a treasure. Its power could not be considered exceptional.

Although the Blazing Fire Path to Ruins Art [a cultivation technique focusing on the destructive power of fire leading to ultimate ruin] did not record any divine abilities, it detailed the forging method for a Lifebound Magical Treasure called the 'Blazing Fire Abyssal Return Sword' [a sword of blazing fire that returns all to the abyss], which was an exceptionally superior type of Lifebound Immortal Sword [an immortal-grade sword bound to one's life force].

According to the records within the technique, forging this Lifebound Immortal Sword required obtaining Millennial Crimson Iron [iron refined for a millennium within an earth fire vein, turning crimson], then fusing it with Blazing Fire Crystal [a crystalized essence of pure blazing fire energy]. One must then extract the Blazing Fire [the essence of fire] and Geng Metal [the essence of hard, sharp metal] energies from the Five Elements Essence [refined spiritual essence containing the power of the five fundamental elements] and temper the blade day and night with them. Only after forty-nine days would the sword take its initial form.

The offensive Force Extreme [an ultimate expression of raw, overwhelming power] of this sword was astonishing. Upon its initial completion, it could unleash a sword radiance extending three Zhang-length [one Zhang-length equals three point three three meters]. Its power ranked among the very pinnacle of Lifebound Magical Treasure within the same realm. It was potent enough to slay demons and vanquish monsters. Wielding it, one could roam the world with few rivals among cultivators of the same cultivation level.

"Millennial Crimson Iron," Eldrin Chen murmured, looking at the sword blank with unconcealed delight.

This 'Millennial Crimson Iron' was also an exceedingly rare treasure. The essence extracted from ten thousand units of iron was known as Profound Iron [deep, dense, and spiritually conductive iron].

If a piece of Profound Iron were to fall into an earthly Fire Vein [a subterranean channel of concentrated fire energy] and be tempered day and night by the earth's fires for a full millennium, purging all impurities within the iron and absorbing the power of the Underground Fire Vein [a vein of fire energy deep beneath the earth], it would transform into Millennial Crimson Iron.

When Zhang the Old Demon obtained this Millennial Crimson Iron, he was immediately ecstatic, intending to forge it into a top-tier Lifebound Magical Treasure for himself—the Blood-Transforming Demon Saber [a demonic saber that transforms blood into power]. Now that this material had fallen into Eldrin Chen's hands and he had encountered the refining method for this superior Immortal Sword, it was truly a serendipitous twist of fate.

"The only question now is, where can I obtain the Blazing Fire Crystal?"

Suppressing the excitement in his heart, Eldrin Chen continued his journey home, arriving at Verdant Chariot Mountain not long after.

Upon returning to Verdant Chariot Mountain, he immediately went to the Back Mountain and sought an audience with Old Patriarch Chen.

As soon as Alistair Chen saw him, a flicker of excitement appeared in his eyes, and he looked over with a hint of nervousness.

"Was your journey to Heavenly Ruins Mountain successful?"

"My trip to Heavenly Ruins Mountain was, by fortune, not in vain. The mission is accomplished."

Eldrin Chen nodded, retrieved the Meridian Nourishing Pill [a pill that repairs and revitalizes damaged spiritual meridians], and handed it over.

Old Patriarch Chen took the Meridian Nourishing Pill [a pill that repairs and revitalizes damaged spiritual meridians], opened it for a glance, and a smile touched the corners of his eyes and brows.

A few years prior, he had broken through the bottleneck to the Foundation Establishment Late Stage, believing his path forward was clear, even harboring a hope to glimpse the Purple Mansion Realm [the third major realm of cultivation, where one forms a spiritual mansion within their dantian] in his lifetime.

He never expected to fall into decline so suddenly, his Dao path nearly severed completely. Now, with this Meridian Nourishing Pill [a pill that repairs and revitalizes damaged spiritual meridians], he had finally reclaimed a sliver of hope.

"With this Meridian Nourishing Pill [a pill that repairs and revitalizes damaged spiritual meridians], I am confident I can Recovery [restore or heal] ninety percent of my injuries within five years. By then, taking action again will pose no major hindrance."

He caressed the Meridian Nourishing Pill [a life-saving elixir that repairs and nourishes damaged meridians] with an almost reverent touch, unable to put it down. Suddenly realizing he might be losing his composure in front of a junior, he quickly set the Meridian Nourishing Pill down and inquired with a gentle smile.

"Tell me of your journey's events."

"Yes."

Eldrin Chen did not hesitate and recounted the entire journey's encounters to Old Patriarch Chen.

Alistair Chen listened with an impassive expression at first, but his brow furrowed when he heard that the elixir had been purchased from Elara Lin for one thousand five hundred Spirit Stone [a mineral that stores and radiates spiritual energy, used as currency and for cultivation].

"I know of Elara Lin. She is the sole direct disciple of Jiang the Daoist."

"Her cultivation is unfathomably deep. It is said she reached the Great Perfection of Foundation Establishment [the pinnacle stage of the Foundation Establishment realm] many years ago."

"A life-saving elixir like the Meridian Nourishing Pill could easily fetch two thousand five hundred Spirit Stone. Why would she sell it to us for so cheap?"

"I cannot fathom it either," Eldrin Chen shook his head, equally puzzled. "But from my observation, she did not seem like a person of ill intent."

Alistair Chen could not make sense of it either and could only nod in agreement. "Although Lyra the Ancient Ancestor is a woman, she has guarded the borderlands of State of Chu for two hundred years. She is renowned for her upright character and has the sharpest eye for deceit. It is unlikely she would scheme against an old man like me."

"Perhaps it was to show consideration for a junior. Once my injuries have fully healed, I shall go and pay my respects in person."

With that matter concluded, Eldrin Chen continued his account of the map, speaking of the cave abode left behind by Ronan Yang and the three fishing cultivators.

After listening, Old Patriarch Chen felt a shiver run down his spine, his expression revealing a trace of lingering fear.

"It is fortunate you acted with such caution. Had it been some reckless youth, blinded by the allure of an Ancient Cultivator's Cave Abode, they would likely have lost their life there."

"In the future, when you encounter such situations, you must think deeply and consider all angles. Do not act rashly unless you are absolutely certain of your chances."

"In my own travels during my youth, I too once faced a perilous situation of this nature…"

Alistair Chen went on at length, recounting many tales and experiences from his own century of wandering and cultivation within the Immortal Realm.

Though the lecture lasted quite some time, Eldrin Chen listened with rapt attention. These were lessons hard-won through a senior's hundred years of accumulated experience, wisdom that could help him avoid countless pitfalls in the future.