Chapter 158 : A Bounty of Foundation Pills

After the refinement was complete, the group tallied the results and discovered that this batch had yielded an astonishing one hundred and five Foundation Establishment Pills [precious elixirs that aid cultivators in solidifying their foundation for the next stage].

Once the Foundation Establishment Pills were counted, Eldrin Chen could not help but chuckle. "A great victory indeed, and its rewards are plentiful. It seems the Border Province will nurture many more Foundation Establishment Cultivators [cultivators who have established their foundational cultivation base] in the coming century."

Exquisite Jiang also revealed a smile. "With so many Foundation Establishment Pills this time, we can afford to lower their price. Let us set it at twelve thousand Spirit Stones [minerals that store and radiate spiritual energy, used as currency and for cultivation] per pill."

After exiting the Alchemy Chamber, they found that the battle spoils from Heavenly Ruins Mountain had already been fully accounted for. Consequently, Exquisite Jiang summoned the Violet Sanctum Cultivators [cultivators who have opened their Violet Palace, a higher realm of power] from the major clans.

Before long, everyone had gathered, each face bearing a look of satisfaction.

Eldrin Chen reviewed his clan's accrued Merits [a metaphysical "currency" representing contributions and virtuous deeds] and found that the Chen Clan's share was second only to that of the Xu and Yang Clans. In fact, due to the pivotal role he and the Old Patriarch played in turning the tide of battle, the gap in Merits between their clan and the Xu and Yang Clans was not particularly large.

"This decisive victory owes much to the contributions of all present," Exquisite Jiang stated calmly, her gaze sweeping over the assembly. She then shifted her tone. "Although the Border Province suffered no losses among its Violet Sanctum ranks in this battle, our Foundation Establishment and Vital Essence Refinement [the initial stage of body tempering and energy gathering] cultivators paid a heavy price."

"Over four thousand Vital Essence Refinement cultivators fell. Heavenly Ruins Mountain will provide the compensation for their families."

"Twenty-six Foundation Establishment Cultivators perished—casualties exceeding twenty percent. For each fallen Foundation Establishment Cultivator, I will award one Foundation Establishment Pill and an additional three thousand Spirit Stones worth of resources as compensation."

"Once these compensations are distributed, you must all ensure that no one under your command attempts to seize what rightfully belongs to the fallen's families."

Hearing Exquisite Jiang's warning, everyone nodded in agreement. They understood in their hearts that Exquisite Jiang had no tolerance for sand in her eyes [idiom: would not tolerate any misconduct], and they must not provoke her displeasure on this matter.

Seeing their assent, Exquisite Jiang glanced at Distant Grain Yang and continued, "During this great battle, Upright Origin Yang performed meritorious service of no small measure. Now he is gravely wounded and has lost his clan's guardianmagical treasure|an enchanted artifact used by cultivators>>."

"Therefore, I intend to grant the Purple Gold Heavenly Net Shield as compensation. Do any of you have objections?"

Upon hearing this, the group pondered briefly before ultimately agreeing with Exquisite Jiang's judgment.

In this campaign, Patriarch Yang had fought across three battlefields. His Merits [a metaphysical "currency" representing virtuous deeds and contributions] ranked first, second only to those of Heavenly Ruins Mountain. However, strictly speaking, his Merits were not significantly greater than those of the Chen Clan and the Xu Clan.

After all, in both major clashes, Eldrin Chen had been the first to slay the enemy and break the deadlock. The Chen Clan had also slain several Violet Sanctum Demonic Beast [demonic beasts at the Violet Sanctum cultivation realm], shattering key stalemates. The two from the Xu Clan had also contributed greatly; Path Abyss Xu fought in successive battles, and Xavier Xu had pinned down the Purple-Spotted Wolf King for a considerable time.

Calculated in terms of Spirit Stones [a mineral that stores and radiates spiritual energy, used as currency], the entire Yang Clan's military achievements were worth approximately three hundred and twenty thousand. The value of the Purple Gold Heavenly Net Shield, however, exceeded two hundred thousand Spirit Stones.

Without this compensation, after the Yang Clan exchanged their merits for this treasure, the remaining Spirit Stones owed to them would logically be few. By now declaring the Purple Gold Heavenly Net Shield as compensation, Exquisite Jiang was effectively saving the Yang Clan a staggering two hundred thousand Spirit Stones.

With everyone's agreement secured, Exquisite Jiang retrieved another set of treasures, these of the third rank, and laid them before the assembly.

"Your contributions in this battle were significant. Select from these treasures as you see fit."

Gazing upon the Third-Rank Magical Treasure [enchanted artifacts of significant power] before them, everyone's faces lit up with ecstatic joy. In this battle, the various great clans of Border Province had united their efforts. With Exquisite Jiang joining the fray, they had collectively slain twenty Violet Sanctum Demonic Beast [demonic beasts at the Violet Sanctum cultivation realm].

The Third-Rank Magical Treasure obtained from this numbered a staggering twenty-three items. Ten of these came from the seven demonic beasts slain by Exquisite Jiang, while the remainder were the spoils of the others' victories.

Most of these treasures were of Third Rank Lower Grade quality, with a mere five reaching the Third Rank Middle Grade level.

Now, Exquisite Jiang set aside two Third Rank Middle Grade items and five Third Rank Lower Grade magical treasures for her disciples. She then brought out the remaining spoils, pooling a total of sixteen Third-Rank Magical Treasure for the group to choose from.

The value of these treasures, and thus the corresponding battle merit, was calculated based on standard market prices: Third Rank Lower Grade artifacts ranged from thirty thousand to fifty thousand Spirit Stone [a mineral that stores and radiates spiritual energy], while Third Rank Middle Grade ones were valued between eighty thousand and one hundred thousand.

Leaving aside the Third Rank Lower Grade items for now, the three Third Rank Middle Grade treasures were: the Thunderbolt Heavenly Thunder Tribulation Pearl [a pearl that channels heavenly thunder tribulation power], the flying sword taken from the Purple-Spotted Wolf King, and a water-attribute treasure vase.

Upon seeing these treasures, Xavier Xu was overjoyed. He immediately spent two hundred thirty thousand Spirit Stone to claim the Third Rank Middle Grade flying sword from the Purple-Spotted Wolf King and three Third Rank Lower Grade magical treasures.

His remaining battle merit, converted, amounted to sixty thousand Spirit Stone. He opted to exchange it all for five Foundation Establishment Pill [a pill that aids in solidifying one's cultivation foundation], priced at twelve thousand Spirit Stone each.

Celebrating Origin Yang, holding three hundred twenty thousand Spirit Stone, directly spent one hundred eighty thousand to acquire the Thunderbolt Heavenly Thunder Tribulation Pearl and the water-attribute treasure vase. With one hundred forty thousand Spirit Stone left, he bypassed further Third Rank Lower Grade magical treasures and exchanged the sum for eleven Foundation Establishment Pill in one go.

Eldrin Chen tallied the accounts and found the Chen Clan's battle merit converted to two hundred sixty thousand Spirit Stone. He first spent thirty-five thousand to acquire the Solar Fire Heart-Piercing Needle [a needle imbued with solar fire energy] for the Old Patriarch.

He then exchanged his defensive magical treasures, the Luofu Vajra Seal and the Vajra Banner of Suramgama [an enchanted banner renowned for its protective power]. Between these two treasures, the Vajra Banner of Suramgama was exceptionally valuable, and together they cost him ninety thousand Spirit Stone [a mineral that stores and radiates spiritual energy, used as currency and for cultivation].

Seeing that he still had over one hundred thirty thousand Spirit Stone remaining, Eldrin Chen pondered for a moment and then exchanged for another Third Rank Lower Grade [a classification for magical treasures] protective bell.

This treasure was named the Kunwu Bulwark Earth Bell [a bell forged from the essence of Kunwu Earth, famed for its defensive might]. It was originally the Lifebound Magical Treasure [a treasure intimately bound to a cultivator's life force] of a Violet Sanctum [a major cultivation stage] cultivator from the Verdant Sun Sect a century ago, a defensive magical treasure of Extraordinary power.

It was said that earth-attribute defensive treasures were quite rare in the Yan Kingdom. Eldrin Chen planned, after the Beast Tide [a periodic onslaught of rampaging demonic beasts] concluded, to find time to travel to the Yan Kingdom to seek and purchase Positive Water Crystal [a crystal imbued with pure, life-giving water energy]. He intended to use this treasure for a trade; perhaps it would prove even more effective than one hundred thousand Spirit Stone.

After exchanging for these four Third Rank Lower Grade treasures, only five of the original sixteen defensive magical treasures remained. Eldrin Chen did not make further exchanges. With the remaining one hundred thousand Spirit Stone, he acquired eight Foundation Establishment Pill [a precious pill that aids in breaking through to the Foundation Establishment realm].

Once everyone had finished their exchanges, Exquisite Jiang collected the Foundation Establishment Pill and announced, "From the materials gathered after slaying those demonic beasts, the quantity is considerable. I will open the alchemy furnace to refine several batches of Third-Rank Pill [pills of the third rank, potent for cultivation], and I will also forge some Third-Rank Magical Treasure [magical treasures of the third rank]."

"When the time comes, if any of you require them, I can arrange for their purchase through the Heavenly Ruins Pavilion."

The Violet Sanctum cultivators from the Xu and Yang Families showed clear interest upon hearing this. As Violet Sanctum Immortal Clan [an immortal clan with Violet Sanctum cultivators as its foundation], the wealth and resources of the Xu and Yang Families far surpassed what the Chen Clan could hope to match. They were fully capable of acquiring several more third-rank treasures.

Eldrin Chen harbored no such thoughts. The number of cultivators in the Chen Clan was less than one-tenth of the two other families combined. Bestowing a few more Third Rank Magical Artifact upon them would be futile, as they lacked the personnel to wield them effectively.

Although he had now acquired four Third Rank Magical Artifact, two of those artifacts would have to be stored away, gathering dust. The reason was simple: their clan's cultivators lacked sufficient True Essence [the refined spiritual energy cultivated within a practitioner] and overall cultivation base. They simply did not have the spare capacity to activate such powerful treasures.

Instead, it would be far wiser to take advantage of the current low price of the Foundation Establishment Pill [a pill that aids in breaking through to the Foundation Establishment realm] to purchase several more, thereby adding one or two more esteemed Foundation Establishment Cultivators [cultivators who have solidified their cultivation foundation] to the clan's ranks.

And this is precisely what he did. Over the past few years, the Chen Clan had amassed a reserve of over forty thousand Spirit Stones [minerals that store and radiate spiritual energy]. He allocated thirty-six thousand of them to purchase three Foundation Establishment Pills from the Heavenly Ruins Pavilion.

With these treasures exchanged, the entire saga of this Beast Tide [a periodic, massive onslaught of demonic beasts] was finally and completely concluded.

Eldrin Chen delivered the Foundation Establishment Pills back to the clan, leaving it to the Old Patriarch to decide who would receive them. He then returned to Heavenly Ruins Mountain to assist Exquisite Jiang in refining third-rank pills [pills of the third rank, suitable for high-level cultivators] and magical treasures [enchanted artifacts used by cultivators].

By the time they had finished processing all the materials from the third-rank demonic beasts, the two realized nearly half a year had slipped by in their diligent labors.