Unbyeok Village
Now that he'd made the soul spirit pills, Yuseong decided to consume them right away. As he opened the jade box, a denser spiritual energy than that of the flood tide pills poured out from the soul spirit pills.
He took one out and popped it into his mouth. The moment the soul spirit pill touched his tongue, it melted smoothly, and the pill's energy began spreading from his throat.
Crossing his legs in meditation, he circulated the Yin-Yang Art to guide the soul spirit pill's energy to his dantian. The energy gradually converted into mana and began to accumulate.
After a full day of meditation, he'd fully transformed the pill's energy into mana. It still wasn't quite enough to reach the peak of 9th star.
He took a short rest and swallowed the remaining soul spirit pill. Crossing his legs again, he resumed his meditation.
Though not as potent as the first one, a considerable amount of mana was still building up. After another day, as his meditation ended, he could feel he'd reached the peak of Qi Refining 9th star.
Looking down at his abdomen, the ninth qi node glowed a deep blue. Once he hit Qi Refining 10th star, the final tenth node would form.
After that, at the peak of 10th star, he'd attempt Core Formation by drawing all ten qi nodes into his dantian to form a seed. He didn't know exactly how to do that yet, but he figured it'd come naturally once he reached the peak of 10th star.
Having fully absorbed the soul spirit pill's effects, he left the cave and headed to the spirit herb field. The flood tide fruits, bloomed during the flood tide, had grown nearly enough to serve as the main ingredient for flood tide pills.
It was about time to gather the auxiliary ingredients for flood tide pills: Korean ginseng over 50 years old, black herbs over 50 years, and shadow yin roots over 30 years.
As he checked on the spirit herbs' growth, So Mu came looking for him. Yuseong took out his black disc and allowed So Mu to enter past the barrier formation.
"Senior Brother Yuseong…."
So Mu looked like he was on the verge of tears.
"So Mu, what's wrong?"
After hearing the story for a bit, it turned out to be nothing serious. So Mu had broken up with his girlfriend, a fellow disciple.
Yuseong patted his shoulder and said, "So Mu, the world's vast, and there are plenty of beautiful women out there. Women make up half the world, after all! Besides, as cultivators, we should focus on training rather than chasing skirts."
So Mu left with a dejected expression after hearing him out. Heh heh, he'll understand what his senior brother means when he grows up.
After consoling So Mu, Yuseong flew to Mibong Shop to buy the auxiliary ingredients for flood tide pills.
On the way, he sensed a powerful wave of spiritual energy from behind and turned around. Seong Yuhyang was soaring through the sky with her escape art.
As she drew closer, he greeted her politely. "Greetings, Hall Lord."
"It's been a while. Your cultivation has advanced greatly in the time we haven't seen each other. And you've already reached 9th stage in the Iron Skin Art I taught you."
Seong Yuhyang saw right through his cultivation at a glance.
"It's thanks to you, Hall Lord, that I'm still alive."
Seong Yuhyang smiled. "I only helped a little. It's all the result of your hard training. And with Iron Skin Art at 9th stage, you've formed a golden body to some extent."
"…Does that mean the golden body I've achieved isn't perfect?"
"You can only call it a true golden body once you've mastered Iron Skin Art. And a golden body isn't something unique to Iron Skin Art. Any body refiner can achieve it through relentless effort."
Iron Skin Art mastery for a true golden body!
"Then, what body refinement art should I pursue after mastering Iron Skin Art?"
"You'll have to seek out a new body refinement method suited to your body. I hear Pangcheon Nation excels in martial and body arts, producing many outstanding body refiners and dual martial-magic cultivators. So, once you master Iron Skin Art and can't find a suitable follow-up, it might be worth visiting Pangcheon Nation."
Pangcheon Nation lay southwest of Takga—not too far. If he mastered Iron Skin Art without finding a new body art, he'd follow Seong Yuhyang's advice and head there.
"Thank you for the guidance."
"It's just advice from a senior in the cultivation world. I have urgent business, so I'll be off."
After Seong Yuhyang departed, Yuseong flew toward Mibong Shop.
Inside, Hwang Danha was reading a book without a title. He was curious about the contents but couldn't see them from where he stood.
"Greetings, Junior Sister Hwang."
Hwang Danha closed the book. "What brings you here today?"
She couldn't still be Nae Cheonha in disguise, could she?
"How many times have I suffered your mental attacks?"
"Out of nowhere? Twice."
"What did I once praise your hands as?"
"Slender jade hands."
It was indeed Hwang Danha.
"I had to check, just in case Elder Nae was disguised as you again."
Hwang Danha shook her head in disbelief. "You're awfully suspicious, Junior Brother. So, what do you need?"
"Ahem, I need Korean ginseng over 50 years old, black herbs over 50 years, and shadow yin roots over 30 years."
"Auxiliary ingredients for flood tide pills."
"Yes. The flood tide fruits in my spirit herb field are growing well, so I'm planning to refine another batch of flood tide pills."
Hwang Danha pulled three jade boxes from the shelf. "The ginseng is at least 70 years old, and the black herbs and shadow yin roots are over 60. Better than your specs."
"How many spirit stones for all of it?"
"100 low-grade spirit stones."
100 low-grade spirit stones was a fair price. With ingredients exceeding flood tide pill standards, the quality would improve.
"Got it. Could you throw in a bit of wood life powder as a bonus?"
Hwang Danha's eyebrow arched. "……."
He took out 105 low-grade spirit stones from his storage ring and handed them over. He received the flood tide pill auxiliaries and wood life powder, storing them in his ring.
"Thanks, Junior Sister Hwang. I'll be going now."
"Yeah. Come shop more often."
Hwang Danha waved him off dismissively and returned to her book.
After the transaction and a farewell, Yuseong left Mibong Shop, boarded his flying artifact, and headed back to the spirit herb field.
Upon arrival, he planted the Korean ginseng, black herbs, and shadow yin roots at proper intervals. As he waited for the flood tide fruits to ripen, he considered focusing on cultivation—but he'd used up a lot of spirit stones lately, so it was time for a mission.
A decent amount of time had passed since the battle with the foreign spies, and the sect leader and other Nascent Soul cultivators had mostly recovered from their injuries. External missions were ramping up again.
Staying cooped up training in the sect made his body itch for action, and he'd need plenty of pills for Qi Refining 10th star. Better to earn spirit stones in advance.
He flew straight to the Mission Hall on his flying artifact.
A crowd of disciples waited for missions. Besides Park Eung, other seniors handled assignments, but Yuseong headed to his friend.
Soon, the disciple ahead took a mission and left—it was his turn.
"Senior Brother Park, long time no see."
"Junior Brother Yuseong, good to see you. Your cultivation progress is incredible. Did you take some miracle pill?"
"I got lucky refining soul spirit pills and consumed them."
"Congratulations. At this rate, I'll fall behind."
"Haha, with the Mission Hall Lord's support, you'll catch up in no time, Senior Brother."
Park Eung shook his head. "Mission Hall work is easy and safe, but the rewards are meager."
As Park Eung said, the Mission Hall handled inner sect chores—very safe. Steady spirit stones without risking death outside. The downside was the time sink.
"No plans for external missions, Senior Brother?"
"I don't plan to stagnate at Core Formation initial forever. I'll join high-reward ones when they come."
After some chit-chat, Yuseong asked about suitable missions.
"Hmm, at Qi Refining 9th star, how about this? Infiltrate Choguk and gather intel on sects hostile to Unkak Sect in the Gaun Mountains."
Are you telling me to die?
"Too much of a joke, Senior Brother."
"Not all sects in Choguk are hostile to Unkak Sect. Disguise yourself well as a wanderer, and you won't get caught. Choguk's land is vast—bigger than the Gaun Mountains."
Still, operating in another country at his level was suicidal.
"Any other high-reward but safer options?"
Park Eung flipped through the ledger and paused. "This is confidential—an assassination mission. Details provided if you accept."
"…I'll take a safe one, even with low rewards."
"How about this? 3rd-grade demon beasts frequently appear around Unbyeok Village's spirit stone mine. Guard the area."
At his current strength, 3rd-grade beasts were easy prey.
"I'll do it. But doesn't Unkak Sect have people guarding the Unbyeok Village mine?"
"It's not just one or two beasts. Unlike typical 3rd-grades, these excel in spiritual sense and stealth, avoiding cultivators to target mortals, per the report."
"Understood."
He received the mission token from Park Eung and accepted it. Unbyeok Village was a day's flight north.
The later he went, the more mortal casualties. Yuseong set off for Unbyeok Village immediately.
Thinking even of mortal lives—am I not a truly compassionate cultivator?