Chapter 249: Chapter 199: Lead and Mercury Congeal the Great Medicine, the True Inheritors Ponder Advance and Retreat

Another person joked with a smile.

Across the boundless azure sky, endless Spiritual Energy swirled into a colossal vortex, like a celestial river pouring down from the heavens.

Ren Water and Kui Water churned within, one a vibrant emerald, the other a murky yellow, creating a majestic and boundless spectacle.

At the sight of this, the surrounding chatter gradually died down.

Everyone held their breath, their eyes fixed on the Daoist as they witnessed him successfully gather the Tai Yin True Mercury.

The magic ark, which had already departed from Kan Peak, suddenly came to a halt.

Liu Jing shot up from his spacious, six-Jiao embroidered couch and stared at the sky. A cold moon hung high, shining alongside the blazing sun—a strange and brilliant sight that seemed to illuminate only one person.

"The Tai Yin True Mercury, the most difficult of all to gather? Isn’t he the new master of Shao Yang? How could he have any connection to Tai Yin?"

His voice was low, failing to conceal the shock in his heart.

The green tiger shook its head and answered,

"Who’s to say? Of the six Great Medicines, this Tai Yin True Mercury and the Water from Beneath Kan are the hardest to get. Do you think it’s possible? That this Daoist could refine all six Great Medicines and form that supreme-grade True Qi, the kind that hasn’t been seen in ages?"

Liu Jing drew a sharp breath. If Daoist Jiang could truly absorb Gang Sha with a supreme-grade True Qi, his chances at Foundation Establishment would be close to eighty percent!

’So this is a path paved by the Ancestor himself... completely free of obstacles!’

His tone was tinged with unconcealable envy.

The green tiger hastily whispered a reminder,

"True Master, you should probably take back what you just said. If the Daoist really does ascend to his position, the moment that Shao Yang divine light shines down, you’ll be in a world of trouble."

Liu Jing fell silent. He turned and sat back down on the embroidered couch, resting his chin in his hand, deep in thought.

On the path of Cultivation, every realm is a life-or-death trial.

Many Dao Materials, prodigies of stunning talent during the Qi Cultivation stage, would often waste the better part of their lives unable to reach Foundation Establishment for a variety of reasons, be it their Techniques, True Qi, or Gang Sha.

Such occurrences were not uncommon, even within the Ancestral Sects.

As for those Cultivators who achieved Foundation Establishment and Dao Entry, revered as True Masters, yet lived through five lifetimes without attaining Five-Life Perfection, or who never earned the favor of a Dao Fruit and thus could never ascend to the rank of Upper Cultivator—their numbers were simply countless.

Hence the widely circulated saying: a miss by a hair is to miss becoming True entirely!

"Bring me the Southern Dipper List. I wish to see it."

Liu Jing suddenly ordered in a low voice.

Not daring to delay, the green tiger immediately fetched a gold and jade tome, about two fingers thick, from the magic ark’s storage compartment and presented it to him in its mouth.

Liu Jing took it and slowly flipped it open.

"Selected two Daoist Scriptures, ranked first in Dao Wisdom. Gathered four Great Medicines, ranked third in Dao Enlightenment... The southern and northern lands are truly teeming with talent."

He muttered to himself, clinging to a sliver of hope—as long as Daoist Jiang couldn’t obtain the Water from Beneath Kan, he would at most gather five Great Medicines. He would ultimately lack the profound foundation required for a supreme-grade True Qi.

Just as he was lost in this thought, he heard the green tiger beside him say sullenly,

"He’s going after the Tai Yang True Lead! This is the union of lead and mercury, the convergence of Yin and Yang!"

Liu Jing’s head snapped up, his eyes wide with astonishment.

Even a top-tier Dao Material like Gu Changling from Gen Peak had to exhaust his mind and energy to gather a single Great Medicine, requiring a long period of recuperation afterward.

’But this Daoist shows no sign of fatigue. Does he intend to do it all in one go—gather the mercury, refine the lead, and obtain both Yin and Yang medicines?’

...

...

’Lead is the "ancestor of the five metals" and is regarded as the "Essence of the Sun." As the Discourse on Alchemy states, when lead and mercury congeal, a golden fluid forms the elixir, and one may attain long life.’

Jiang Yi petitioned the Celestial Book several times, confirming again and again that there would be no issue in gathering the Tai Yang True Lead and that Ji Fuyao, who held the Golden Position, had not secretly laid a trap for him. Only then did he dare to proceed.

The Divine Techniques of a True Monarch in the Yanfu Vast Land were truly immense; he couldn’t afford not to be cautious.

’Tai Yang True Lead contains Innate True Qi, which can solidify one’s core and guard one’s spirit.’

After gathering the Tai Yin True Mercury, Jiang Yi drew several streams of Spiritual Energy from the Foundation Establishment Pill suspended high in his Inner Mansion. He used them to nourish his Primordial Gate and Divine Sense, then immediately began gathering the Tai Yang True Lead.

As the saying goes, such a supreme treasure is within everyone’s grasp; it is only the foolish who fail to recognize it.

The Tai Yang True Lead lies hidden within one’s true yang. It requires unceasing effort, using Profound Light Magical Power to constantly smelt it, to extract even a single drop of Primordial Essence.

But Jiang Yi specialized in the Fire Element. With his Bing and Ding Fires combined, he was exceptionally skilled at refining things like True Essence and Primordial Qi.

And indeed, as the Profound Light circulated, illuminating his body from the inside out until it was translucent, the area three inches below his navel began to tremble slightly.

After about four hours, as the Bing Ding Fire burned hotter and hotter, a piece of black lead finally emerged. It resembled a lump of charcoal and was surprisingly heavy.

As the saying goes, lead is the "mother" and mercury is the "son." When mother and son are united, they can be refined into a Holy Pill.

Following the principles from the Discourse on Alchemy and the guidance of the Celestial Book, Jiang Yi sequestered the Tai Yin True Mercury and the Tai Yang True Lead within his Primordial Inner Mansion and began the process of drawing and supplementing.

Unlike the others, these two Great Medicines could merge, prolonging one’s life and vitality.

’Draw the lead to supplement the mercury, pass through the gates and consume it, five dragons present the holy offering, circulate the lead and mercury between the three fields...’

True Monarch Lu, having studied alchemy extensively, watched Jiang Yi perform the drawing and supplementing technique. The admiration deep in his eyes grew increasingly apparent.

"The Daoist’s control over the process is masterful. He has a true talent for Alchemy."

After obtaining the Tai Yin True Mercury and Tai Yang True Lead, one could use the "drawing and supplementing technique" to merge the Great Medicines.

The process wasn’t overly complex. First, the Tai Yang True Lead was used to fill the Inner Mansion. Then, it was guided upward past the three gates—Weilü, Jiaji, and Yuzhen—all the way to the Primordial Gate, where it merged with the Tai Yin True Mercury.

Then, it would descend, the two energies of Yin and Yang nurturing each other until they fused into one.

The entire process required the practitioner’s body, their Cultivation Furnace, to remain "warm but not fiery, moist but not dry"—a tremendous test of one’s Cultivation Merit.

In True Monarch Lu’s eyes, Jiang Yi’s execution was meticulous and seamless, without a single discernible flaw.

Considering the Daoist did not come from an Ancestral Sect or the Direct Lineage of a great clan, his achievement was all the more remarkable.

After eighty-one cycles of this process, the lead and mercury finally merged. Like fire and water in perfect balance, they transformed into a circular halo of light that hovered behind Jiang Yi’s head.

...

...

Luofeng Mountain, Fuyin Manor.

Shao Guansu, wearing a golden crown and magnificent robes, rose into the air like a wisp of rosy mist and gazed toward Kan Peak from afar.

’Gathering the Great Medicines in public... Is the Daoist displaying his profound foundation to make the Eight Peaks True Inheritance disciples recognize the disparity and back down?’

He mused to himself that gathering all six Great Medicines meant one would encounter no obstacles in the Flying Foundation Establishment Realm, which would drastically reduce the time needed to break through.

’Eight or ten years will pass in a flash. If the Daoist succeeds in his Foundation Establishment, then the descendants of the eight monarchs and the master-disciple lineages, no matter how unwilling, will have to just hold their noses and accept it.’

Shao Guansu then turned his gaze to Gen Peak, wondering how Gu Changling, the unofficial leader of the True Inheritance disciples, would choose to proceed.

...

...

The Gen trigram symbolizes the mountain.

Surrounding Gen Peak were sixteen massive, sprawling islands that stretched for over a thousand miles, hovering between the tangible and the illusory.

They were like the Buddha Lands of the Ximizhou Continent: as vast as Mount Sumeru, or as small as a mustard seed.

Below, primordial Innate divine beasts with dragon heads and tortoise bodies carried the massive islands on their backs, cruising slowly through the void.

On one of them, "Ranyun Island," a youth with a commanding presence and his hair tied in a high Daoist topknot stood upon an elevated perch.

A dense, solid, earth-yellow radiance swirled around him, heavy as a mountain. It would sometimes form into fortified city walls, other times into sheer cliffs and strange peaks.

With a great RUMBLE that sounded like mountains collapsing and seas churning, Ranyun Island trembled slightly as he recalled all the Magical Profound Light into his body.

"This Great Art of Xuanhuang One Qi Capture is truly difficult to master."

The youth flicked his sleeve. The ground beneath his feet seemed to shrink, and in a few steps, he was back inside the grand hall.

"My lord, True Monarch Luo has sent a gift. It is to congratulate you on your great advancement in your Daoist Technique, which brings you one step closer to perfecting a Divine Technique."

The steward at his side bowed respectfully and presented a wooden box on a tray.

The smile vanished from the youth’s face in an instant, and his eyes became as calm and still as an ancient well.

"Just leave it there for now."

After the steward had withdrawn and the hall was empty, the youth slowly sat down before his desk.

The light outside grew dim, but as they had not been summoned, the servants and maids dared not light the lamps without permission.

The great hall was shrouded in darkness, as if it had completely swallowed the youth’s figure.

Not until the first light of dawn the next day did the youth finally lower his head and open the wooden box.

’Yellow Dragon Gall... a First Grade, Earth Element Spiritual Object for Foundation Establishment.’

The youth sighed in resignation.

"Congratulating me for advancing my Divine Technique... It seems the True Monarch doesn’t want me to retreat. But the path ahead is a line I dare not cross. How can I possibly step over it?"

...

...

’I’ve gathered five Great Medicines. All that’s left is the Water from Beneath Kan.’

An unknown amount of time passed before Jiang Yi suddenly opened his eyes. The lead and mercury had merged into a Great Medicine, and the changes to his body were especially pronounced.

It wasn’t so much an increase in his Cultivation Merit as it was the surging vitality that now coursed through him.

’True Earth captures True Lead, True Lead controls true mercury, lead and mercury return to True Earth, body and mind become still and unmoving... My lifespan should have increased by a great deal.’

Jiang Yi’s expression grew thoughtful as he began to consider which Daoist Skill to deduce using the third page of the golden paper.

In his situation, a longer lifespan was useless.

’Ten thousand years is too long; I will fight for sixty. If I don’t become a True Monarch within this cycle, I’ll be nothing more than another pawn, used and then discarded!’