Chapter 271 - 199: Ancient Medicine Substitution, Steady Progress
’Second, I must constantly circulate the Concealing Breath Skill whenever I’m out. I need to upgrade it to the Concealing Breath Demon Technique as soon as possible for greater security.’
’Third, I must use this sense of crisis to continuously acquire more techniques and steadily advance my Cultivation! I have to face whatever comes in my strongest possible state.’
A plan formed in Lin Changheng’s mind, a glint in his eyes.
He was perfectly clear-headed. Prudence was his guiding principle. Cultivation wasn’t some novel about a protagonist like Long Aotian who went around humiliating everyone. Walk by the river long enough, and your shoes are bound to get wet. Act recklessly, and you’ll eventually run into a steel wall.
Take that shop assistant he’d met in the Ruins District, for example. The man had a gloomy disposition and had bided his time for thirty years. He eventually murdered the owner to seize the shop, achieved Foundation Establishment to change his fate, and even specialized in killing wealthy customers for their treasures—all without incident.
But in the end, hadn’t he still failed? Decapitated and killed instantly with a single slash.
Lin Changheng couldn’t be sure that if he acted too recklessly, he wouldn’t run into another "Lin Changheng" concealing their Cultivation and end up dying an obscure and bitter death on the spot.
This was a scenario Lin Changheng was doing his utmost to avoid.
Unless he reached the fabled "end of his story," but that was another matter entirely.
...
His next core task was to focus all his efforts on finalizing the replacements for the two Ancient Medicines required for the Spirit Communication Pill.
「One month later.」
Lin Changheng emerged from his seclusion. He was in high spirits, clearly pleased.
During this period, he had verified a substitute for one of the primary ingredients. It was indeed viable. Although there was a slight deviation from his initial deductions, the substitution worked perfectly as long as a common Tier One medicinal material called Chongmingzi was added to the formula.
As for the other supplementary ingredient, his initial hypothesis had proven unworkable in practice. However, Lin Changheng had already identified the problem and devised a new mixture of replacement materials. This time, he was ninety percent certain it would succeed.
All that remained was to retrieve the materials from the Spiritual Materials Hall and run the experiment.
It was safe to say he was now just a stone’s throw away from completing the mission assigned by Bai Zhenchuan on behalf of the Immortal City’s core leadership.
When that time came, Lin Changheng would have a direct line to the Immortal City’s core leadership. This would not only expand his personal network but also establish a new channel for fulfilling certain needs and achieving particular goals.
...
But what pleased him most was the progress in his Cultivation.
His Magical Power at the Third Layer of Foundation Establishment, a realm he had only recently broken into, had already accumulated significantly. Lin Changheng estimated that the time needed to reach the Peak of the Third Layer Foundation Establishment and encounter the bottleneck to the Middle Stage would be roughly the same as the time it took him to advance from the Second Layer to the Third—not much different.
About eight years, give or take.
This calculation already factored in his consumption rate of the Red Transparent Crystal Stones.
If he had a sufficient supply of Red Transparent Crystal Stones, the time required could be shortened by several more years.
But he probably wouldn’t find any more, and frankly, Lin Changheng didn’t want to.
They represented crisis and trouble.
Lin Changheng had plenty of Lifespan. A methodical, step-by-step Cultivation was far more reliable and gave him greater peace of mind.
This steady sense of well-being was a special kind of romance, a continuation of his "golden mean" personality from his past life.
If, within those eight years, his Spirit Roots could gain more Spiritual Charm and evolve into Upper Grade Spirit Roots, he could shorten the timeline even further.
At this thought, Lin Changheng cast a Spirit Detecting Skill on himself.
Fire Spirit Root: forty-four wisps of Spiritual Charm!
Wood Spirit Root: twenty-four wisps of Spiritual Charm.
Earth Spirit Root: seventeen wisps of Spiritual Charm.
Metal Spirit Root: ten wisps of Spiritual Charm.
Water Spirit Root was the same, also at ten wisps.
His Fire Spirit Root was now only seven wisps of Spiritual Charm away from evolving.
His Metal and Water Spirit Roots were also on the verge, just a hair’s breadth away from evolving into Lower Grade Spirit Roots.
At that point, all five of Lin Changheng’s elemental Spirit Roots would finally shed their Mixed Grade status!
Lin Changheng eagerly anticipated that day.
...
"Brother Lin!"
As Lin Changheng emerged from seclusion, he was met by a delighted Yan Mingyi.
The young woman now had a turtle and a clam as her left and right "Dharma Protectors," so even though she was by herself, she was never bored.
"Have you been diligent in your Cultivation and studying your Skills lately?"
Lin Changheng asked with a smile.
"I have!" Yan Mingyi nodded vigorously. She circulated her Cultivation Technique, revealing an aura that had clearly grown much stronger. Then, with a wave of her hand, she produced a dog-shaped Middle Grade Masterpiece Puppet. "And," she added with a smile, "I can now refine Tier One Middle Grade Masterpiece Puppets!"
"Oh?"
Lin Changheng looked over and saw a yellow puppet dog, four feet tall and six feet long.
With its proud snout and thick, powerful limbs, it had an impressive appearance.
"Let me give it a try!"
Lin Changheng’s interest was piqued.
"Of course." Yan Mingyi stepped aside, her eyes filled with a smile as she watched him.
Lin Changheng immediately erased the preset Magical Power Mark on the puppet dog and imprinted his own Divine Sense Mark. Then, he began to directly manipulate it using his Upper Grade Puppet Control Skill.
A Divine Sense Mark could be considered a more advanced anchor for control than a Magical Power Mark.
This wasn’t just because only Foundation Establishment Cultivators and above could generate Divine Sense—while those in the Qi Cultivation Stage only possessed Magical Power and a Divine Thought that could not leave the body.
It was also because control via Divine Sense over Artifacts, Puppets, and the like was far more precise, fluid, and intuitive than control via Magical Power.
In fact, Divine Sense control was a matter of Divine Sense for guidance and Magical Power for empowerment. In contrast, Magical Power control relied solely on visual targeting and brute-force driving. The former was significantly more powerful and allowed for a much greater ability to seize opportunities.
That was why a Foundation Establishment Cultivator could almost always crush and kill a Qi Cultivation Cultivator.
The same held true in a one-on-one duel between a Middle Stage and an Early Stage Foundation Establishment Cultivator.
After all, with the dual advantages in both Divine Sense and Magical Power, defeating a lower-level opponent was a simple matter.
...
With a mere thought from his Divine Sense, the puppet dog crouched low, extending its Sharp Claws in a pouncing stance.
Then, it burst forward, charging into the courtyard.
Its power was impressive.
’Its might is even slightly greater than when I controlled an Upper Grade Masterpiece Puppet back at the Peak of Qi Cultivation!’