Chapter 365 : Gifts of the Heavenly Tribulation

Yvonne the Violet Consort possessed a Single Spiritual Root [a rare and potent spiritual foundation that allows cultivation of a single element with exceptional purity], and with only two Supreme Grade Magical Treasures [the highest grade of enchanted artifacts, possessing immense power] in her possession, she too coveted these four Supreme Grade Magical Treasures.

Lyra Jiang exchanged a glance with Eldrin Chen, then handed the four Supreme Grade Magical Treasures—including the Black-Gold Ancient Alms Bowl and the Violet-Infused Mist Veil Canopy—to Yvonne the Violet Consort.

"You possess a Single Spiritual Root, and your arsenal of Lifebound Magical Treasures [magical treasures forged with one's own essence, growing in power alongside the cultivator] is insufficient," she said.

"These four treasures can aid you in weathering the Heavenly Thunder Tribulation [a cataclysmic trial of thunder and lightning faced by cultivators seeking to ascend to a higher realm]. Keep them."

Yvonne the Violet Consort shook her head, offering the Violet-Infused Mist Veil Canopy back to Lyra Jiang. "Your Green Sun Demon-Suppressing Pagoda was destroyed in this battle. You should keep at least one Defensive Magical Treasure [a magical treasure specialized for protection and warding off attacks]."

"There is no need,"

Lyra Jiang replied with a gentle smile. "Back when we faced Deng Morgrim, we obtained a Purple-Gold Glazed Armor and a Crimson-Gold Glazed Armor [a suit of armor forged from crimson-gold, tempered to a glazed finish, offering formidable defense]. We still have one Purple-Gold Glazed Armor remaining, unused to this day."

Hearing this, Yvonne the Violet Consort finally accepted all these Supreme Grade Magical Treasures.

Having acquired four Supreme Grade Magical Treasures, a look of joy spread across Yvonne the Violet Consort's face. With such gains from this battle, her confidence in surviving the Heavenly Thunder Tribulation had grown immensely. Now, she only needed to wait until her cultivation reached Golden Core Great Perfection [the pinnacle stage of the Golden Core Realm, where one's core is refined to its utmost limit].

With Yvonne the Violet Consort taking several Supreme Grade Magical Treasures, the remaining 'Ancient Furnace Heaven-Mending Elixir' [a legendary elixir said to possess the power to mend grievous wounds and even flaws in one's cultivation foundation] and the two Void-Cleaving Treasure Talismans [powerful talismans capable of tearing through the fabric of space for instantaneous travel or escape] naturally fell into the hands of Eldrin Chen and his wife. This content originates from audio-novel-dot-com. Please respect copyright.

The Ancient Furnace Heaven-Mending Elixir [a legendary elixir capable of mending foundational flaws and extending life] possesses extraordinary efficacy, its value far surpassing that of four Supreme Grade Magical Treasure [the pinnacle grade of enchanted artifacts]. The two of them intended to reserve this item for Elara Lin.

The members of the Chen Clan, such as Kael Chen, had proven themselves quite capable and likely would not require such an item. As for whether Lior Chen and others could even break through to the Golden Core [the third major realm of cultivation, where one forms a solidified golden core of power] remained uncertain; they certainly could not afford a treasure of such immense value.

Although Elara Lin had been supported by the two of them to reach her current standing, she had, after all, journeyed alongside them and provided significant aid in numerous major battles along the way.

Aside from her Personal Disciple [a formally acknowledged disciple under a master's direct tutelage], Elara Lin, Lyra Jiang's other disciples were merely nominal ones. By now, except for Su Mingwei and Liu Seraphina, they had all passed away in meditation. Their own disciples and grand-disciples were even less qualified to use such a precious treasure.

Lyra Jiang felt a surge of joy. Elara had been by her side for so many years; strictly speaking, their relationship was one of both master-disciple and deep friendship, akin to that of close confidantes.

Now that she and her husband's future shone brightly, if Elara Lin were to pass away prematurely, it would surely grieve her for a long time.

The remaining two Void-Cleaving Treasure Talisman [a powerful talisman that allows the user to tear through space to escape over vast distances] were taken, one each by Eldrin Chen and Lyra Jiang. These were supreme treasures for escaping peril.

With such an artifact in hand, one could flee tens of thousands of Li-lengths [one Li-length equals five hundred meters] in an instant, potentially even evading pursuit from a Nascent Soul True Lord [a cultivator who has formed their Primordial Spirit, the fourth major realm].

After dividing the treasures, the group returned to the Chu Kingdom. No sooner had they arrived back at Spirit Isle Lake than Lior Chen hurriedly sought them out.

"Word arrived not long ago," he reported. "Immortal Maiden Ji is preparing to move against the Demon Cave Cavern."

"Oh."

Eldrin Chen's eyes flickered slightly. Freya Ji had been guarding the Demon Cave Cavern for a century, and for all those hundred years, she had been using a Fifth Rank Formation [a powerful magical array of the fifth tier] to refine and purify the Demonic Qi [the corrupt, malevolent energy cultivated by demonic beings] within the cavern.

Furthermore, Eldrin Chen understood clearly that Freya Ji's very purpose in holding the Demon Cave Cavern was to harness its formidable power to temper herself, thereby increasing her certainty of forging a Heavenly Dao Nascent Soul [the highest-grade Nascent Soul, aligned with the Heavenly Dao].

Now that Freya Ji was finally preparing to completely eradicate the Demon Cave Cavern, it seemed she felt her strength was sufficient and the time was ripe to break through to the Nascent Soul [the realm where a cultivator's spirit forms a nascent soul, a major leap in power and longevity].

Thinking this, Eldrin Chen said, "Since we are taking action, we must commit our full strength."

"Uncle Lior, you arrange to mobilize personnel and conscript cultivators from all provinces and counties who are at the Qi Refinement, Late Stage [the late stages of Qi Refinement, the first major cultivation realm] or above."

"Understood."

Lior Chen nodded. At this moment, the Old Patriarch was still in seclusion, mending his foundation, and Eldrin Chen was busy refining the Golden Core Formation Pill [a precious pill that aids in the formation of a Golden Core]. These matters would have to be handled by their Elder Council.

After seeing Lior Chen off, Eldrin Chen and Lyra Jiang immediately went to Green Sun Mountain to begin pill refinement.

The first pills they refined were the Cloud-Returning Tribulation-Breaking Pill [a pill that assists in breaking through the mid-stage of the Golden Core realm], which aids in breaking through to the Golden Core, Mid Stage. Given Eldrin Chen and Lyra Jiang's mastery of Alchemy [the art of refining spiritual pills and elixirs], the difficulty of refining such a Pill was no longer significant for them.

Working together and aided by the Fourth Rank Earthfire [a potent underground fire source suitable for high-level alchemy and artificing], the two of them successfully completed the refinement of this batch of Pill [a medicinal pellet refined from spiritual herbs, used to aid cultivation] in merely one month's time.

Furthermore, this batch yielded a full six Cloud-Returning Tribulation-Breaking Pill [a high-grade pill that aids cultivators in overcoming heavenly tribulations]. For a Fourth Rank High Grade [a designation for the pinnacle level within the Fourth Rank] Alchemist [a master of the art of refining spiritual pills], this Pill Success Rate [the ratio of successful pills produced per refinement attempt] was by no means poor.

After refining the Cloud-Returning Tribulation-Breaking Pill, the pair opened the furnace once more to craft the Golden Core Formation Pill [a precious pill that significantly increases a cultivator's chance of forming a Golden Core]. Using the Inner Core [the condensed spiritual essence core of a powerful demonic beast] of the Earth Lion Demon King and two stalks of Heavenly Heart Herb [a rare spiritual herb that calms the mind and stabilizes the spirit], they managed to produce seven pills from this single batch.

"With these seven Golden Core Formation Pill, our stockpile of these pills is finally at a more comfortable level,"

Eldrin Chen remarked, a faint smile touching his lips as he gazed upon the seven pills.

In previous years, they had three pills remaining in reserve. However, over the last thirty-odd years, Su Mingwei had attempted a breakthrough twice using two of those pills, both times ending in failure, leaving their stock of Golden Core Formation Pill depleted to a single pill. Support the author by reading on audio-novel .c om.

With the understanding that members of the Chen Clan Cultivators would soon begin attempting their Golden Core [the third major realm of cultivation, where one's spiritual energy condenses into a solid, golden core] breakthroughs in succession, the scarcity of Golden Core Formation Pill had become a pressing concern.

Now, with these eight Golden Core Formation Pill serving as a safety net, it should be sufficient for the needs of Lior Chen, Caleb Chen, Chen Elara, and others over the next century.

Lyra Jiang carefully stored the eight Golden Core Formation Pill, then sighed softly. "With Mingwei's two failures, it seems her path will likely end at the Golden Core realm."

"I will provide her with one more Golden Core Formation Pill. If she still cannot break through to the Golden Core realm, then she shall retire and live out her remaining years in peace."

Eldrin Chen listened quietly from the side. Su Mingwei had failed to break through to the Golden Core [the third major realm of cultivation, where one's spiritual energy condenses into a solid, golden-hued core] realm twice in succession and already owed Lyra Jiang four million Spirit Stones [minerals that store and radiate spiritual energy, used as currency and for cultivation]. Adding one more pill would bring the debt to six million Spirit Stones.

It was only because the couple possessed immense wealth, and this Golden Core Formation Pill [a rare and precious pill that aids a cultivator in forming their Golden Core] had been refined from a Demon King [a powerful ruler among demonic beasts] he himself had slain, that they could bear such a burden. An ordinary cultivator in the early or middle stages of the Golden Core realm would likely have been crushed by such a debt long ago.

This situation was unavoidable. Su Mingwei's temperament was quite similar to Elara Chen's, and she also possessed the dual Spiritual Roots [the innate spiritual affinities that determine a cultivator's elemental aptitude and potential] of Fire and Wood.

Now over three hundred years old, if she failed yet again, others within the clan would surely begin to harbor discontent. After all, both the Chen Clan and the Heaven's Ruin Sect had many Purple Mansion Cultivators [cultivators who have established their spiritual foundation within the Purple Mansion, the second major realm], and these individuals would also covet the Golden Core Formation Pill in the future.

Speaking of cultivators, both the Heaven's Ruin Sect and the Chen Clan had developed with astonishing speed in recent years.

Among the disciples and descendants under Lyra Jiang's tutelage, Foundation Establishment Cultivators [cultivators who have solidified their spiritual foundation, the first major realm] now numbered over two hundred, with five or six among them having reached the Purple Mansion realm.

Although the Chen Clan had only slightly over eighty Foundation Establishment Cultivators, more than half of them had achieved this through Self-Guided Foundation Establishment [the perilous method of establishing one's foundation without external aids like pills]. Consequently, the proportion of Purple Mansion Cultivators far exceeded that of the Heaven's Ruin Sect, numbering over seventeen or eighteen individuals.

In truth, after several centuries of development, the mortal population of the Chen Clan had surpassed thirty million, and its Qi Refinement Cultivators [cultivators in the initial stage of refining their vital energy] exceeded forty thousand. Yet, Foundation Establishment Cultivators numbered a mere eighty-plus.

Generally, within a Foundation Establishment Immortal Clan [a clan whose power is anchored by Foundation Establishment cultivators], the ratio of Foundation Establishment Cultivators to total cultivators is about one in three hundred. For a Purple Mansion Immortal Clan [a clan whose power is anchored by Purple Mansion cultivators], this ratio improves to about one in two hundred.

The Chen Clan's ratio of one Foundation Establishment cultivator for every five hundred was pitifully low, even among Foundation Establishment Immortal Clans. The fundamental reason was that a vast number of its cultivators had chosen the path of Self-Guided Foundation Establishment.

The reason the Chen Clan has so few Foundation Establishment Cultivator is that many cultivators of promising talent have fallen at the threshold of Self-Guided Foundation Establishment [the perilous method of advancing to the Foundation Establishment Realm without external aids], including even two geniuses with Anomalous Spiritual Root [a rare and superior type of spiritual root].

Behind every successful Self-Guided Foundation Establishment often lies the tragic fate of eight or nine cultivators who failed and perished in the attempt. This price is staggeringly high, a burden almost too great to bear.

Yet, the Chen Clan has cultivated a tradition that esteems Self-Guided Foundation Establishment. Many of its cultivators look down upon those who rely on a Foundation Establishment Pill [a rare elixir that forcibly aids in breaking through to the Foundation Establishment Realm], and the status accorded to each group within the clan hierarchy is not on the same level. Official source: audio–novel.com. Unauthorized reproduction is prohibited.