Zhang Zhongyi had all the non-essentials dispersed.
Soon, only he, Zhang Zhongyi, Ning Zhuo, and Sun Lingtong were left in the tent.
Zhang Zhongyi began selecting herbs.
Around the circular tent, there was a large semi-circle of medicine cabinets.
Each of these medicine cabinets was of Magic Treasure Grade, possessing the powerful ability to store specific herbs.
Zhang Zhongyi was extremely familiar with these medicine cabinets; from the hundreds or thousands of drawers, he swiftly selected the herbs he sought.
They were Living Earth Vine, Stone Breaking Grass, Fire Spirit Flower, Thousand-Year-Old Bitter Wood Root, and Dragon Scale Vine.
The Living Earth Vine was yellowish-brown all over, buried deep in the earth, with a warm nature; it could soften stone layers, turning them into mud.
Stone Breaking Grass often grew alongside Living Earth Vine, and true to its name, its sharp leaves could break through rock.
The Fire Spirit Flower absorbed Fire-attribute spiritual energy; when in full bloom, it would self-immolate, and its ash would fall to the ground, turning into nutrients for the next year's growth and flowering.
The Thousand-Year-Old Bitter Wood Root was extremely cold in nature, but deep within it contained a touch of tenacious vitality—classic medicine against petrification.
Dragon Scale Vine's surface seemed layered with dragon scales, which were closely packed and covered the entire vine. It had a strong respiratory ability and was more commonly found in ancient mines, where it could purify the air.
Each herb required a different processing method.
Zhang Zhongyi soaked the Living Earth Vine, Stone Breaking Grass, and Fire Spirit Flower in water; chopped up the Thousand-Year-Old Bitter Wood Root, and crushed it into fragments with a medicine pestle.
As for the Dragon Scale Vine, he employed a Finger Technique, using Fire Refining to burn off the vine's core, causing the scales to fall off one by one, collecting them all.
In the end, Zhang Zhongyi precisely measured these herbs, performing alternate soakings and mixing.
He would occasionally stop to use a Spell for testing; if he found that certain portions were lacking, he would add some more of the respective herbs.
In the end, he activated the Hundred Herbs Harmonization Technique, using specific mana to blend it all, finally creating a basin of medicinal juice.
The medicinal juice was thick, yellowish-brown in color, with a surface dotted with specks of green light.
Although it didn't look appealing, the juice was very hot, emitting steam and giving off a strong, peculiar scent of soil.
Upon successful creation, Zhang Zhongyi immediately called Sun Lingtong over.
Sun Lingtong approached Zhang Zhongyi, who then mobilized his Divine Sense to evenly apply the medicinal juice to Sun Lingtong's Stone Arm.
The powerful medicine quickly spread and penetrated, softening the petrified outer layer, causing the Stone Skin to wrinkle and crack.
Zhang Zhongyi took out a bag of Silver Needles.
He took out a slender Silver Needle from the bag, holding it in his hand and remaining motionless for a long time.
Only when he observed the Stone Skin to have softened to a certain degree did he insert the Silver Needle into Sun Lingtong's arm.
His hand movements appeared slow but were actually fast and very steady.
After a dozen breaths' time, he had inserted hundreds of Silver Needles into Sun Lingtong's Stone Arm.
Zhang Zhongyi executed a Finger Technique, drawing mana.
The tails of the Silver Needles trembled slightly, condensing a faint silvery light.
Threads of this silvery light drew out, steadily rising, floating in the air, moving towards Ning Zhuo.
Zhang Zhongyi instructed, "Ning Zhuo, just expose your wrists."
Ning Zhuo did as told.
These silvery light threads were almost weightless, wrapping around Ning Zhuo's wrists.
Zhang Zhongyi continued, "Ning Zhuo, in a moment I will withdraw my mana, and you must immediately take over, infusing mana along the Silver Line, reaching the Silver Needles, then using the needles to continuously resonate with the Dao and reasoning within the Stone Arm."
"I am not an Earth Element Grandmaster; this step can only depend on you."
"Whether you can comprehend the principles involved is most critical."
Ning Zhuo's face was grave as he took a deep breath and slowly infused his mana.
When the mana reached the Silver Needles, he immediately had a vague sensation.
He closed his eyes, and at that moment, it was as though his consciousness had sunk deep into the earth.
"I feel it!"
Almost instantly, he comprehended the underlying principles of the Earth Element.
It involved the principles of congealing and binding; there were also elements of nurturing and storage intermingled.
Zhang Zhongyi silently calculated the time, revealing a worried expression.
He noticed that on Sun Lingtong's Stone Arm, the medicinal juice was gradually hardening. Even the base of the Silver Needles had begun to show a layer of grey Stone Skin.
Zhang Zhongyi's heart sank slightly: "Where exactly did this youngster incur such a Dao Injury? The damage runs deep, much more serious than it appears on the surface."
"We must be quick!" Zhang Zhongyi couldn't help becoming anxious.
He looked at Ning Zhuo.
"The injury is more serious than anticipated; you only have the time it takes half an incense stick to burn."
Zhang Zhongyi dared not disturb Ning Zhuo and could only shout in his heart.
But the next moment, Ning Zhuo abruptly opened his eyes: "Lord Zhang, I've comprehended the principles involved; what do I do next?"
Zhang Zhongyi: ?!
Isn't this a bit too fast?
Zhang Zhongyi found it hard to believe: "Ning Zhuo, you can't be careless about this. You must realize that if we miss this opportunity, the next time we achieve the same level, we'll have to change the herbal formula, pay a greater price, and even then, the time for comprehension will further shorten."
Ning Zhuo nodded, smiling: "Senior Zhang, how could I possibly joke with my friend's life? Indeed, I've already comprehended all the principles."
Zhang Zhongyi was skeptical.
Sun Lingtong chuckled: "I trust Ning Zhuo; Senior Zhang, let's proceed to the next step."
He knew many of the details and understood that Ning Zhuo's Five Elements Realm abilities were not as simple as a mere Grandmaster Level.
Therefore, it made sense for Ning Zhuo to penetrate the principles in such a short time.
"Alright," Zhang Zhongyi, seeing both of their confidence, chose to temporarily believe.