Chapter 257: Evolution
Kael sat in the valley’s edge, Spirit Eyes still active, cataloguing every herb within range. The information flooded his mind—properties, interactions, refinement requirements, potential combinations. A month’s worth of alchemical research condensed into minutes.
"System. Show me a recipe for a body refining pill using the herbs available here."
The System responded with a list. Seven recipes appeared in his vision, ranging from Mortal to King Grade, each with different ingredient ratios and refinement difficulties.
Then one highlighted itself.
Body Essence Pill (King Grade) Description: A revolutionary body refinement pill that combines multiple body refinement herbs into a single breakthrough catalyst. Rather than tempering the body gradually, the Body Essence Pill forces a sudden, violent restructuring of bone, muscle, and meridian tissue. Painful but extremely efficient. Can push through body refinement bottlenecks that would normally require months of conventional training.
Ingredients Required: Void Iron Root (primary catalyst), Moonlight Moss (accelerator), Ironwood Bark (structural stabilizer), Heartfire Blossom (mana infusion to prevent body rejection), Dark Bloom (darkness affinity channeling), Thunder Root (nervous system optimization to handle the pain).
Refinement Difficulty: King Grade pill. Requires Rank 5+ alchemist with specific comprehension of body-herb interactions.
"Show me soul pill recipes. And mana cultivation recipes using these herbs. Anything that improves all-round cultivation."
More lists appeared.
Soul Nourishment Pill (Sky Grade) — 2,500 SP Uses: Soul Nourishing Lotus as primary ingredient. Accelerates soul path progression by allowing the soul core to absorb ambient soul force directly.
*Soul Vein Elixir (Heaven Grade) — 8,000 SP Uses: Spirit Vein Crystals. Temporarily expands soul sense range by 50% and strengthens soul attacks by 30% for twenty-four hours. Can be refined into permanent enhancement if used consistently.
*Mana Expansion Pill (Sky Grade) — 2,500 SP Uses: Heartfire Blossom. Temporarily expands mana capacity by 15% for one week. Can be refined into permanent expansion if used consistently.
*Darkness Affinity Pill (Sky Grade) — 3,000 SP Uses: Dark Bloom. Permanently increases darkness ability efficiency by 5% per dose. Cumulative up to 30% maximum. Stackable with other darkness enhancement methods.
Kael calculated rapidly. "Total cost?"
[CALCULATING...] Soul Nourishment Pill: 2,500 SP Soul Vein Elixir: 8,000 SP Mana Expansion Pill: 2,500 SP Darkness Affinity Pill: 3,000 SP Body Essence Pill Recipe: Already obtained as secondary reward Total: 16,000 SP
"Twenty-three thousand with the Body Essence Pill recipe. Accept."
[23,000 SP deducted. Remaining: 39,000 SP]
He transferred the recipes to a storage tablet and found Kelvin scribbling notes in a corner of the valley, still overwhelmed by the botanical wealth surrounding him.
"Kelvin."
The alchemist jumped like he’d been shot. "Y-Young Master?"
"Take this." Kael handed him the tablet. "Begin refining immediately. Body Essence Pill first. Then the rest in that order. I need them before I leave for the Vorn Estate."
Kelvin’s eyes went wide as he scrolled through the recipes. His hands shook. "Young Master, these recipes... this Body Essence Pill alone would be worth a fortune to the Ashbury family. They would pay millions—"
"Begin. Now."
Kelvin bowed so deeply his forehead nearly touched the ground. "Immediately."
A few days passed in a blur of pill refinement and territorial integration.
Kael called three people into his study: Viper Selene, Bruski, and Rook—a Shadow Hound he’d trained personally, now serving as a squad leader in his military.
They stood before his desk, uncertain why they’d been summoned.
Kael’s finger touched each of their foreheads.
Soul power pressed outward. Rank 5 runes flared to life, burning slave marks into flesh and bone. The process took thirty seconds each. The marks were permanent, unremovable, absolutely binding.
"Relax," Kael said, leaning back. "I don’t trust easily. This isn’t punishment. It’s insurance. You’re mine now—completely, irrevocably. In exchange, you get my protection, my resources, and a position no one else can offer."
Selene’s expression remained composed. Bruski said nothing as he already swore his loyalty to Kael after he defeated him. Rook simply nodded.
"Continue integrating Greymoor City into my territories alongside Aldric. Selene handles the black market networks. Bruski handles the mines. Rook coordinates intelligence between all three cities and continue with the training of my Shadow hounds."
They left to execute his orders.
[NOTIFICATIONS]
Territory integration complete: Starfall City, Trevor City, Greymoor City
Title Upgraded: LORD OF STARFALL → TERRITORY LORD
New Effects: All soldiers in Kael’s territory receive +10% combat stats when defending his lands. Territory aura weakens enemies within borders by 5% per hour of exposure. Resource extraction efficiency +15%. The 2x mana density boost and 1.4x strength boost during attacks on city remain active.
Secondary Rewards: 20,000 SP, Body Essence Pill Recipe (already obtained) New System Function Unlocked: Territory Management Interface — Real-time overview of all territories, resources, and threats.
[Current Shadow Points: 59,000 SP]
A week passed.
Kael immersed himself in cultivation. The Body Essence Pills were everything the recipe promised—violent, painful, effective. Each pill felt like his bones were being unmade and remade. His Void Body screamed in protest. His soul core stabilized the process, preventing permanent damage.
His body cultivation crept toward Peak Tier 4. Just a step away. Before leaving the city, he would reach the peak Tier 4.
His mana and soul paths progressed steadily. The Soul Nourishment Pills accelerated his soul sense—now reaching 41 meters. The Mana Expansion Pills pushed his Transcendent Core’s capacity even higher. The Darkness Affinity Pills made his darkness techniques smoother, more efficient, less wasteful.
And throughout it all, the System provided detailed analysis of his newly acquired technique.
INFERNO CORE ANALYSIS
Original Creator: Segio De Vorn
Grade: Mystic Grade
Current Status: Adaptation Phase
Sergio De Vorn was Aldric’s grandfather. One of the people that fought alongside the Family head 200 years ago before he passed away in battle. The system was currently helping him to integrate the technique to fit his own abilities. Specifically, into a dark core. The inferno core was a power technique that Kael felt he really needed especially due his trend of always fighting cultivators above his realm.