Chapter 105: 810
There was a melting medicinal pill inside the jade box. In fact, about half of the box was filled with a liquid that emanated a strong medicinal aroma in the cave.
Xu Qing had never heard of a spirit whale pill, but he understood plants and vegetation. So, after smelling the aroma, his mind kicked into high gear as he analyzed it.
Halfmaple blossom, hundredgrass leaf, storax seed... also plumed cockscomb musk, trumpet vine lotus.... Xu Qing made a brushing motion with his hand, bringing some of the fragrant aroma right to his nose. He inhaled. And seagold paste!
Looking very serious, he stared at the jade box as he analyzed everything.
The pill had a lot of complicated ingredients, so Xu Qing couldn’t break down the entire mixture just by smelling it. But he could identify the major components. Given his skill with the dao of poison, and his general knowledge of plants and vegetation, he could tell that the pill was intended to be a nourishing supplement. After all, every living thing had spirit power in it, especially plants.
The basic theory behind nutritional medicines was to take the spirit power in plants and change it into something a cultivator could bring into their cultivation base.
I can smell numerous medicinal ingredients in this pill, including something that seems like blood. I wonder what it’s from. The pill name has ‘whale’ in it. Could it be from some sort of sea beast? After some thought, he extended his right hand, and the jade box flew into his palm.
Although I don’t know all the details of the pill, I can easily catalyze it to the completion point. Narrowing his eyes, he took out some medicinal plants from his bag of holding, adjusted the ratios, and then put them into the jade box.
A few hours later, it was completely dark outside, and there was even more wind and snow than the day before, to the point that the cave Xu Qing hid in was completely buried. However, the snow couldn’t mask the screaming of the wind. Xu Qing listened to it as he watched the jade box.
The half of the pill that had remained before was now gone, and the entire box was filled with medicinal liquid. It was translucent and bright orange, and the aroma from before was a bit more faint.
After looking at the liquid, Xu Qing picked up the box and drank it.
As the liquid poured down his throat and into his belly, a mysterious wave of heat erupted inside him. It was a stark contrast to the frigid cold outside, and it made him feel like he was about to explode. Every single one of his meridians opened up to accept the heat, which spread through all of his flesh and blood. It was like he had become a sponge, sucking up every bit of the spirit power in the medicinal liquid. A tremor passed through him, and his eyes shone. He could tell that this medicinal pill had shocking medicinal efficacy, and as a result, felt his trust in Patriarch Golden Vajra Warrior growing a bit.
Part of the reason for his lack of hesitation in consuming it was his natural ability to resist poison. As he activated the Seaforming Scripture, his spirit sea, which had reached 291 meters on Sealizard Island... started growing rapidly.
It instantly reached 294 meters!
And it didn’t stop there. With the help of the spirit power from the medicinal liquid, his spirit sea kept growing rapidly, reaching 297 meters. And then... 300!
When that happened, a bright violet glow erupted in his eyes, causing him to inhale sharply. He had just broken through from the ninth level of Qi Condensation and into the tenth!
To most disciples, that was the absolute limit of the Seaforming Scripture! The technique was broken into ten levels, each of which brought different transformations to spirit power, and more crushing might from the energy of the Forbidden Sea. This was a level of strength that surpassed most small sects and clans, and was considered a high-level technique. It was also the source of strength for Seventh Peak disciples.
However, there were limits to it. The first level started with a 30-meter spirit sea. The tenth level ended with a 300-meter spirit sea. That was the final limit of the technique’s growth!
But occasionally, a disciple would come along who broke past that limit, and continue to grow their spirit sea. People like that weren’t very common, and even when they did come along, they usually only went ten or twenty meters past the limit. Even still, anyone like that was considered outstanding among their peers.
However, based on what Xu Qing had come to understand, the reason for those limitations to the Seaforming Scripture was mutagen!
When cultivators practiced cultivation, it was impossible for the mutagen to not accumulate over time. Even using medicinal pills to cleanse the body was simply treating the symptoms but not the root cause. After enough time passed, mutagen eventually accumulated. And the more mutagen you had, the more severe the limitations on the Seaforming Scripture.
But he... had absolutely no mutagen in him.
What influences the size of my spirit sea isn’t mutagen, it’s my own limitations.
His eyes flickered with violet light as he sensed the spirit power raging in him thanks to the medicine. In fact, he was somewhat shocked that Patriarch Golden Vajra Warrior had acquired a pill like this.
To the patriarch, this pill must have been absolutely precious....
Having reached this point in his train of thought, his eyes filled with determination. Whether it was the danger he would surely face once he returned to the sect, or simply his desire to improve himself, he wanted to see what level he could push his spirit sea to.
Taking a deep breath, he activated the Seaforming Scripture, and started bringing the medicinal pill’s spirit power into him. He did the same with his fleshly body, and a moment later, the spectral drought demon appeared and began to perform breathing exercises.
There was no sound outside, but in Xu Qing’s mind, there were deafening rumbling sounds as wave after wave of spirit power caused his spirit sea to expand.
303. 393. 483….
His spirit sea grew at a terrifying rate. Before long it was at 690 meters, and it was still going. Thanks to the terrifying breakthrough, as Xu Qing sat there cross-legged, he emanated a might vastly beyond anything from before.
A vortex formed, causing the wind and snow outside to distort and ripple in an area the exact same size as Xu Qing’s spirit sea: 690 meters.
It kept growing!
720. 750. 780 meters....
It was at this point that the medicinal properties began to lose effectiveness within him.
Meanwhile, the wind and snow around the cave had transformed into a dramatic tornado. Thankfully, he had picked a remote part of the Crimson Wilds to do this, a place where there were few inhabitants. And during a big storm at that. As a result, no one was there to witness it.
According to the Seaforming Scripture description, from ancient times until now on the Seventh Peak, the biggest spirit sea to ever form in Qi Condensation was 810 meters....
Opening his eyes, he quickly performed a double-handed incantation gesture, then threw his hands wide. The previously vanishing medicinal effects were suddenly put under immense weight. At the same time, random bits of spirit power from the surrounding wilderness flowed wildly toward Xu Qing. It wasn’t the purest spirit power, but he absorbed it nonetheless, and it was enough for his purposes.
The combination of his actions caused his spirit sea to grow again!
789. 798. 807….
And finally, 810 meters!
The entire cave shook in that final moment. The wind and snow collapsed, and cracks appeared on the surface of the ground. Then the entire hill exploded, revealing a huge crater with Xu Qing sitting in the middle of it.
Terrifying spirit power fluctuations rolled off of him, and the wind and snow didn’t dare to get close to him. The spectral drought demon threw its head back and howled, and violent flames erupted out from it.
More cracks appeared on the drought demon’s skin, and the lava within them grew more intensely hot. All of the snow in the area transformed into rain, which then melted into hissing water vapor. Two bulges appeared on the drought demon’s back, which seemed to be fleshy wings that could spring out at any moment.
Xu Qing opened his eyes, and they erupted with violet light. Looking down at himself, he could sense his spirit sea and the shocking aura that surrounded him.
“The great circle of Qi Condensation!” he murmured. He had the feeling that he wouldn’t even need an attack of godliness to defeat the old Patriarch Golden Vajra Warrior. With his magical techniques, heavenly saber, and dao of poison, he could kill the man in his own right.
At this point, Xu Qing waved his finger toward the sky, and his Forbidden Sea dragonwhale appeared in the form of a snakeneck dragon. As it stretched out, it reached a length of 810 meters. Then Xu Qing murmured something, and it shrank back down to 300 meters.
He did the same with his spirit sea.
As was his custom, he kept the true extent of his strength hidden. After making sure he was sufficiently disguised, he got to his feet, his eyes shining with deep anticipation. And that was because he could sense that his spirit sea had not reached its final limit. It could still grow further.
I guess I’ll find out for sure later!
With that, he sped off into the night. His plan was to find another city to get passage back to Seven Blood Eyes. He had been away for over a month, had taken care of some important matters, and had improved his cultivation base. Now was time to go back and see if things with the Merfolk and Third Highness had blown over.
Using flight talismans, Xu Qing took three days to reach his destination, which was a Seven Blood Eyes city some distance away from the Crimson Wilds. Entering the city, he headed straight to the teleportation portal. Upon reaching it, he paid the fee, looked back at the Crimson Wilds, and then let out a sigh of relief.
After all this time, he felt he could breathe a bit easier. Although Patriarch Golden Vajra Warrior wasn’t actually dead, the end result was something he could accept.
And now, as long as things are calm in the sect, I can get a good night’s sleep.
The teleportation portal activated, and a sea of light swept over him. When the light faded, he was gone.
Wind and snow still swept over the lands, turning them white. Everything looked clean. Coldness filled every inch of the wilderness, turning into killing intent, and ruthlessness.
How very brutal.