Yuan Ming, upon thinking this, continued to take inventory of the spoils of war.

In Elder Hai's storage bag, two jade scrolls detailed the Transplanting Technique and a cultivation technique named "Yin Luo Skill."

Unlike the Transplanting Technique Yuan Ming had previously acquired, the one from Elder Hai's possession was not only more complete but also included many insights and experiences that he had personally noted.

The complete Transplanting Technique could not only place a demon core into a human's Dantian to assist in breakthroughs, but also enhance a cultivator's strength by performing beast body transplants.

However, the latter came with many drawbacks. Firstly, there were issues with rejection. According to Elder Hai's research, forcibly transplanting a demon beast's torso onto a human body would cause a strong rejection reaction, leading to the death of the transplantee, so special elixirs and techniques were needed to achieve a certain rate of success.

In addition, there seemed to be a special correlation between the person receiving the transplant and the demon beast, though the exact patterns weren't clear. One thing was certain, the Spirit Root was definitely the most critical influencing factor.

Secondly, after a successful transplant, the cultivator's Divine Soul would often be influenced by the remnants of the demon beast's consciousness. This influence was somewhat similar to the side effects of consuming an Insect Pill, with the difference being that the former could not be eliminated and would recur after a period of time even if temporarily erased.

Last was the fact that after the transplant, one's cultivation would no longer be able to advance. Even if only the body and not the demon core was transplanted, it would prevent the cultivator from making any further progress in this lifetime.

Between the lines, Yuan Ming noticed that Elder Hai often mentioned a person with a tone of resentment. It seemed that it was due to this person that he had no choice but to resort to the Transplanting Technique.

He might have had his own story, but with his death, Yuan Ming might never learn of it.

The other jade scroll from Elder Hai contained the "Yin Luo Skill," his primary cultivation technique.

This technique, which he had obtained during an exploration of a secret realm, was a rare yin attribute skill with six levels, capable of being cultivated up to Core Formation.

Yuan Ming skimmed through it and discovered it was not immediately useful to him, so he set it aside for now.

This time, in the battle at the mine, the physical items such as magic artifacts Yuan Ming obtained were few. His greatest gain was the Desire Power produced by the monk slaves.

Besides, the remaining spoils were the mortal believers on the Flying Boat and a shipload of ores.

The appearance of Xu Che was an unexpected bonus. Yuan Ming could assign him many future tasks. As long as he continued to provide Desire Power, there was no need to worry about betrayal.

Yuan Ming did not plan to bring back these mortals to Sandtrap City. Firstly, the influx of thousands of mortals would attract too much attention; secondly, the Black Wind Desert was by no means a kind place. He could not save these believers from the tiger's den only to send them into the wolf's lair.

Therefore, he planned to take these people away from the Black Wind Desert and find a hidden location in Zhao Country to settle them.

Although every mortal in the Black Wind Desert was branded, Yuan Ming had the means to erase it effortlessly.

Thus, during the journey that followed, Yuan Ming quietly developed a medicinal solution, which could simply be applied on the branding to erase it.

After the Flying Boat left the Black Wind Desert, Yuan Ming sent Xu Che to Zhao Country's Market to purchase enough medicinal ingredients, helping all the mortals to remove their brands.

Latter, Yuan Ming found a secluded valley for the mortals and spent a considerable amount of time helping them clear the land, build houses, and eventually establish an embryonic village.

Of course, not all mortals wished to stay; for those who wanted to leave, Yuan Ming didn't hold them back and provided them with enough gold and silver to return home, letting them go on their own.

After the construction of the village, Yuan Ming appointed Qiao Saibei as the village head, Bai Qi as the leader of the village guards, and Rong Zhuang as the temple priest of the Moon God Sect. He asked them to take charge of the village affairs, decide on major and minor matters through discussion, as he would occasionally send someone to inspect the situation.

Qiao Saibei and the others were grateful, and over the past few days, the other mortals had witnessed the Nether Moon God assisting them in building their homes, which deepened their devotion.

To prevent chaos, Yuan Ming only left them with essential supplies like rice, cattle, and sheep for subsistence, intentionally avoiding gold and silver. As for the Flying Boat and its ores, he found another valley to hide them, creating a disguise so he could come back to retrieve them later.

...

After Yuan Ming settled everything, he left with Xu Che and Zuo Qinghui under the worshipful gaze of many mortals and soon returned to Sandtrap City.

Although he hadn't been away from Sandtrap City for very long, he had encountered so many things during that time. Seeing the familiar underground city again felt like he had crossed into another world.

Yuan Ming shook his head and entered the city with the other two.

The security at the city gate had been significantly heightened, and surveillance of those entering the city had intensified. A few wanted posters were also posted near the gate, featuring Liao Zhong, Fang Dafu, and others.

Yuan Ming wasn't surprised. Liao Zhong, as a steward of the City Lord Mansion, had conspired with Guiyuan Sect to hunt down Sandtrap City cultivators, especially targeting Yue Rong, and naturally, the City Lord of Sandtrap would not stand idly by.

Zuo Qinghui had met Yue Rong and had also revealed his true identity during the mine vein battle. Just in case, Yuan Ming immediately operated his Divine Sense to cover the three of them, casting an Illusion Technique to adjust their appearances and allowing them to enter Sandtrap City smoothly.

Yuan Ming arranged for Xu Che to stay in the outer city, coordinating with Hu Ji, and acting as an envoy of the Moon God Sect to oversee the Sect's affairs there.

"Xu Che, in the days to come, make life as smooth as possible for these believers and encourage them to pray to the Nether Moon God." He instructed.

"Yes, my lord," Xu Che responded respectfully.

Yuan Ming gave a few more instructions, then returned to the inner city with Zuo Qinghui. After purchasing some items, they went straight back to their dwelling to prepare for the concoction of the Soul Pill.

Concocting a Soul Pill required absolute silence, without the slightest disturbance.

Yuan Ming first activated the Five Elements Illusion Destruction Array, then instructed Zuo Qinghui, Hua Zhi, and Vajra to stand guard outside while he began setting up the Beidou Star Soul Array.

Three days later, everything was ready.

Yuan Ming stepped into the Beidou Star Soul Array and began to cast the Array by forming a Dharma Seal.

With a soft "buzz", streaks of black light shot out from within the Array, enveloping the entire secret chamber and forming a black light Array.

Yuan Ming sat down cross-legged, operating the Moonlight Technique; the robust Soul Power in his Sea of Consciousness was mobilized, flowing slowly.

A massive wave of Divine Soul Power spread out, stirring up a strong yin wind within the secret chamber, but it was completely blocked by the Beidou Star Soul Array, not leaking out in the slightest.

Yuan Ming's hands moved swiftly, casting according to the steps for refining the Soul Pill, his brow emitting a faint white light, illuminating his facial features in a luminous white hue.

The flow of Soul Power in his Sea of Consciousness grew faster, converging towards the main soul and continuously compressing and condensing.

The operation of the Beidou Star Soul Array also accelerated, emitting waves of pressure that acted upon the inside of the Sea of Consciousness, assisting in the compression of the Soul Power.

Time quickly passed, and the vast Soul Power within Yuan Ming's Sea of Consciousness swiftly diminished, soon depleting by a large extent.

"Ha!" he suddenly let out a low shout, his hands forming a Dharma Seal, and he remained motionless.

Yuan Ming's face in the white light changed, showing an expression of pain, with fine beads of sweat continuously rolling down his forehead. However, the white light emitted from his brow grew brighter and brighter, becoming too intense to gaze upon directly.

In the Sea of Consciousness, Soul Power surged and gathered, as a hazy orb slowly began to take shape.

A look of joy appeared on Yuan Ming's face, as the Soul Pill had finally begun to take form; he knew that as long as he kept infusing it with Soul Power, it would eventually fully condense into a Soul Pill.

"Hmm, could it be that my Soul Power is insufficient?" Yuan Ming opened his eyes.

After the phantasmal form of the Soul Pill had consolidated, it rapidly absorbed the Soul Power in the Sea of Consciousness. Even the immense Soul Power that he had amassed after breaking through to the Fifth Level of the Moonlight Technique was proving inadequate.

However, he had come prepared and promptly summoned the Stealing Heaven Tripod in front of him.

The next moment, vast amounts of Desire Power from the Nether Moon God believers within Sandtrap City, combined with the profound Desire Power transmitting from the human monk slaves in the valley, flooded in as the split soul operated the Heart Cleansing Technique at full strength to refine all the Desire Power and inject it into the Sea of Consciousness.

Moreover, the split soul also integrated its own Soul Power into the main soul.

The door of the secret chamber vibrated, and the second split soul residing within Zuo Qinghui flew in, entering Yuan Ming's Sea of Consciousness and transferring Soul Power to the main soul.

Zuo Qinghui's Cultivation was already profound, and a short departure by the second split soul wouldn't cause a significant drop in his Cultivation.

With so much auxiliary power, the Soul Power was finally restored, and the luminescence of the phantasmal Soul Pill swiftly transformed into a material crystal glow, with the Soul Pill gradually solidifying into an actual entity.

A moment later, an orb emerged in the Sea of Consciousness, radiating bright light, rotating continuously, and gently pulsating, as if a powerful heart was beating.

Bang... Bang... Bang...

A formidable wave of Divine Soul Power emanated from within the Soul Pill, causing even the Beidou Star Soul Array to tremble persistently.

Yuan Ming's eyes showed delight, and he couldn't help but let out a hearty laugh.

After so much hard work, the Soul Pill was finally refined, marking a solid step forward for his future Core Formation breakthrough!

After briefly giving vent to his emotions, he quickly calmed down and carefully comprehended the uses of the Soul Pill.

The Soul Pill was a product of concentrated Divine Soul Power. It converged all Soul Power within the Sea of Consciousness into it, with the main soul now residing inside the Soul Pill, feeling incredibly safe.

The Soul Power within the Soul Pill was extremely stable, and if it encountered an attack like soul collision, the Soul Pill alone could withstand it. If someone cast an Illusion Technique on him, its effectiveness would be greatly reduced.

On the contrary, when he himself cast the Soul Collision Divine Ability or Illusion Technique, the Soul Pill could provide significant enhancement.

"No wonder the Great Elder values the Soul Pill Secret Technique so much. The Soul Power condensed into the Soul Pill is indeed as effective as the Mana crystallized into the Golden Core," Yuan Ming thought to himself.

The Soul Pill Secret Technique was not yet complete, and he immediately continued to operate the Moonlight Technique. The Soul Pill began to move, quickly leaving the Sea of Consciousness and traveling down the body, eventually entering the Dantian.

The Soul Pill continued to rotate, and the Mana within the Dantian, influenced by it, gathered slowly, enveloping the Soul Pill, layer by layer.

Yuan Ming nodded to himself in approval; the Soul Pill Secret Technique indeed provided substantial help in Core Formation, as the Soul Pill could rotate on its own without his control.

In the long run, all the Mana in the Dantian would adhere to the Soul Pill, forming a Void Pill, which would make actual Core Formation much easier at that time.

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