Chapter 180: Rebirth Pill
When Xiang Yu finally reached the spirit vein, the hot sensation in his body was intensifying rapidly. His skin had already begun turning an alarming shade of red, radiating heat like a furnace. He wondered what kind of pill his junior sister had given him.
Even more surprising, he could feel unusual changes occurring within his soul infant as well. Without knowing the pill’s exact effects, he assumed the meditative position and began circulating energy to stabilize his condition. Despite his confusion, he trusted that Li Yao wouldn’t give him anything harmful—eccentric as she might be, she had consistently shown genuine care for his wellbeing.
As his meditation deepened, the heat continued rising relentlessly, building to what felt like a crescendo. Then suddenly, pain began lancing through his muscles—initially minor discomfort that rapidly increased in intensity and spread throughout his body. He could sense his internal organs shifting, rearranging themselves in complex patterns.
Though the sensations would have been excruciating for most cultivators, Xiang Yu found them relatively manageable. He reflected that the pain paled in comparison to what he’d endured when receiving the Chaos Body. Still, the similarities were striking enough for him to develop a hypothesis about the pill’s function—it likely had some sort of rebirth effect, similar to the transformation process when acquiring a physique.
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This tumultuous reorganization of his physical essence continued for several more minutes before gradually subsiding. As the discomfort faded, his skin slowly reverted to its natural color.
As this transformation completed, an intriguing thought suddenly struck Xiang Yu. "There’s no way, right?" he wondered silently. Could this rebirth effect, despite being less profound than his physique acquisition, somehow trigger experience gain for his spiritual root that had just reached its maximum? He didn’t need much—just a single point of exp.
With cautious anticipation, he summoned his status screen:
[Body Refining: 14th Layer (1000/14,000)]
[Qi Gathering: 10th Layer (4500/10,000)]
[Soul: Infant (4900/100,000)]
[Spiritual Root: High-Grade Omni-Element (100/3000)]
[Transcendent Dao Body: Level 1 (36,080/1,000,000)]
[Chaos Body: Level 2 (200/20,000)]
[Bloodline: Dragon, Phoenix: Half Blood (500/3000)]
Xiang Yu’s jaw dropped in astonishment. That single pill had catalyzed remarkable changes across his most critical attributes. Yet, despite these extraordinary gains, a sour expression quickly replaced his initial shock.
If only his junior sister had simply handed him the physical pill instead of transferring it through that kiss! If he could have analyzed its composition, he might have unlocked the secret to creating spirit root enhancement pills. Such a breakthrough would have set him on the path to true invincibility. What an incalculable loss! Still, what was done was done. He could only lament this missed opportunity silently in his heart for all eternity.
The benefits themselves were still substantial, even without access to the pill’s formula. His body refining had increased by a full thousand points. His qi gathering had grown by another five hundred points, which, when combined with the four hundred gained after his spirit root advancement, brought his total to forty-five hundred. If he could accumulate just five hundred more points during the day, he would be poised to enter the Foundation Building stage after the next reset—saving an entire day of cultivation time.
His spiritual root had also gained a significant boost, accumulating one hundred points of experience. At this rate, he could potentially upgrade to the Superior level in just a week, finally attaining the status of a genuine cultivation genius.
Perhaps most surprising was the thousand-point increase to his soul statistic. This indicated the pill must have some connections to soul cultivation. Too bad it was gone now. Both his Transcendent Dao Body and Chaos Body had received one hundred experience points each, while his dragon and phoenix bloodlines had each gained three hundred points, bringing their total to five hundred.
Though genuinely grateful for his junior sister’s gift, a tinge of frustration still lingered. To channel this complex mixture of emotions, Xiang Yu retrieved his weapon-refining tools and began crafting spiritual weapons.
...
Although crafting mid-level spiritual weapons demanded considerable skill and energy, Xiang Yu managed to produce an impressive array before dawn. He gathered these artifacts as he departed the spirit vein.
As the first rays of sunlight touched his face, a wry thought crossed his mind—he had successfully survived the night. Now the question remained whether he would live to see another evening.
When he arrived at the main peak, approximately five Soul Formation experts had gathered, including Wang Jian. They greeted him formally, addressing him with respect due to his position as Grand Elder. Their eyes quickly noticed the spiritual weapons he carried, examining them with undisguised interest that bordered on covetousness.
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Xiang Yu smiled inwardly at their reaction. This was precisely his intention—he had deliberately carried the weapons by hand rather than storing them in his spatial ring, specifically to showcase his craftsmanship to these powerful cultivators. Though he generally preferred avoiding attention, this calculated display served a greater purpose.
If their sect could establish trade partnerships with all five major sects of the region, their prosperity would increase exponentially, providing resources that would accelerate his own cultivation.
"It seems the rumors that the Grand Elder is a genius artifact refiner are true," one of the experts remarked, his eyes not leaving a particularly exquisite sword with dancing flame patterns along its blade.
Xiang Yu offered a humble smile. "You’re flattering me. It’s just a few simple tricks, nothing worthy of the seniors’ recognition," he responded, his tone perfectly balancing modesty with quiet confidence.
The experts laughed appreciatively at his response. "As the Grand Elder, calling us seniors is a little inappropriate," one commented. "Just address us as fellow daoists," they suggested with cupped fists.
"Then I won’t be polite," Xiang Yu replied, returning the gesture. Inwardly, he noted how easily he could navigate these social waters—his previous life’s experience as a salesman serving him well in this cultivation world’s political landscape.
Meanwhile, in another chamber, the Empress addressed Li Yao, who was reluctantly managing administrative documents. [Your senior brother is quite impressive,] she observed, noticing how skillfully Xiang Yu handled the powerful cultivators.
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"Of course he is," Li Yao replied with undisguised pride, glancing at Xiang Yu through the doorway, her eyes softening momentarily before returning to her work.
As the conversation with the experts turned toward resource trading, Xiang Yu gracefully redirected them. "Fellow daoists, you can discuss these matters with Sect Master Wang Jian. We’ve already established an alliance with the Golden Edge Sect," he explained.
Xiang Yu knew that it wasn’t good to abandon the old for the new. Since Wang Jian was his first trade partner, it was good to give him some face. Wang Jiang smiled, recognizing Xiang Yu’s intention.
"Fellow daoists, there’s no need to burden the Grand Elder with these matters," Wang Jian interjected smoothly. "Please direct your inquiries to me," he offered.
Having successfully navigated this situation, Xiang Yu excused himself from the conversation, departing to seek out his martial aunt while leaving the experts to continue their discussions with Wang Jian.
"Sect Master Wang Jian, allow me to pour you a drink," one of the remaining experts offered as they settled into more detailed negotiations...