Chapter 499: Chapter 499: Special Effect

When An Caiwei arrived, Ah Er, covered in golden fur, was holding up a brocade box for Bai Mo to inspect the Pills within.

Piles of wood and stone were arranged before Mi Mountain. She found the sight of the ruined walls and broken ramparts familiar.

After looking for a moment, she recognized them as the materials from the altar.

It seemed her junior brother had dismantled the altar.

The man and the beast were in the middle of the pile, muttering to each other, and she couldn’t tell what they were up to.

"And to think you were still looking forward to studying the altar, Senior Sister. It looks like you won’t get the chance now..."

Bai Mo had already noticed her arrival and called out a greeting from a distance.

"Senior Sister, long time no see."

An Caiwei walked closer and shot him a look.

"You’ve been busy with all this for quite a while. Of course it’s been a long time."

"So? Did you get what you wanted?"

Bai Mo nodded, a hint of emotion in his voice.

"So many years of cultivation, all for this day."

"Senior Sister, this Core Formation Realm... it really is different."

An Caiwei looked at him curiously.

"How so? Can you kill an ox with one punch now?"

Bai Mo glanced at her, took a pale red Pill from the box Ah Er was holding, and pressed it into her hand.

"How can we Alchemy Cultivators be measured by the standards of ordinary Cultivators? You wouldn’t understand even if I explained it."

"Take this Pill. Eat this, and you really *can* kill an ox."

An Caiwei huffed, but she took the Pill anyway.

"I’ll just consider this my fee for running errands for you."

They made small talk for a while. An Caiwei suggested hosting a small banquet and inviting some familiar sect mates, but Bai Mo declined.

"The Core Formation Realm isn’t that remarkable within the sect. There’s no need to go to all that trouble."

Bai Mo had never been one for fuss.

Knowing his personality, An Caiwei dropped the subject.

"Now that you’ve reached Core Formation, you’re someone of note in the sect."

"The Foreign Affairs Hall most likely won’t have you guarding the Black Prison anymore. They’ll want to transfer you."

She thought for a moment, then said, "There are some good posts related to Silkworm Valley, but they require disciples who are knowledgeable about Spiritual Objects."

"Are you interested?"

She had a point.

In fact, even in the various markets Ah Er frequented, the Core Formation Cultivators who set up stalls to buy and sell were considered to be of a managerial class.

They were, at the very least, not ordinary.

Silkworm Valley was a treasure trove, producing all sorts of rare and precious materials.

"Those with the best access get the first pick," as the saying goes. If Bai Mo took a position there, he could probably obtain plenty of treasures.

However, Silkworm Valley had a lot of coming and going. He worried it would be full of disturbances.

That wasn’t what Bai Mo wanted.

So, after a moment of consideration, Bai Mo didn’t answer immediately. He just said:

"Let me think about it."

An Caiwei nodded.

"If you decide you’re interested, just come find me."

"The elders at Silkworm Valley have heard about you from me, and they have a good impression."

As they were talking, Ah Er suddenly waved at An Caiwei.

An Caiwei looked down at it and saw its face full of eager expectation.

Meeting Ah Er’s gaze, An Caiwei pondered for a moment before suddenly recalling her promise to it.

"Ah, about your... situation. I asked a senior sister I’m close with to find some Purifying Water for you."

"This is water from the bottom of a deep pool, where it’s settled for a hundred years. It’s sure to solve your problem."

An Caiwei sounded very confident.

Ah Er closed the brocade box, set it aside, and took the porcelain vial, its face lighting up with surprise and delight.

"Mix it with water from a Spiritual Spring and soak in it for a good while..."

An Caiwei instructed, and Ah Er nodded eagerly beside her.

Bai Mo glanced at the vial, not holding out much hope for it.

’Honestly, I’ve heard of this stuff but never bothered to buy any,’ he thought. ’I could concoct something much better.’

’And the grade of the golden impurities on Ah Er is far higher than what this stuff can handle.’

But he couldn’t bring himself to say anything. It would be too cruel to dash their hopes like that.

"Actually," Bai Mo said with a cough, "the little rascal’s current look isn’t half bad. He looks like a rare breed. It’s quite impressive when I take him out..."

An Caiwei was surprised.

"It’s so flashy. I would’ve thought you wouldn’t like it."

"There’s no rule that says I can’t," Bai Mo said.

An Caiwei stayed for quite a while longer. Before she left, Bai Mo gave her several more Pills for her cultivation, then saw her off.

"Why are none of these Pills the same?"

An Caiwei asked this just before leaving, examining the Pills and casually popping one into her mouth.

Bai Mo shook his head.

"It’s because of my Golden Core. When I use its power, the quality of the Pills in the furnace is enhanced."

"However, the Pills also undergo unpredictable mutations. Their flavors are probably all different, too, so I gave you one of each type."

"After you’ve tried them, Senior Sister, remember to tell me what you thought..."

An Caiwei didn’t quite understand, but she nodded anyway.

"As long as it’s good stuff..."

After seeing her off, Bai Mo returned to his stone house. The fire in the Pill Furnace was burning brightly.

Bai Mo approached it and infused the flames with his Spiritual Qi.

The Golden Core in his Dantian whirred, releasing Spiritual Qi laced with wisps of a tranquil aura.

This aura seeped into the Pill Furnace and merged with the Pill Liquid.

In a few moments, a Pill formed, and Bai Mo retrieved it.

This was supposed to be a routine batch of Water and Fire Life-saving Pills—something he’d casually refined—meant to balance yin and yang.

Bai Mo took one out and examined its pale, bluish-white surface.

He called out a few times, and Ah Er came running.

The little rascal came running over, clutching the vial An Caiwei had given him as if it were a priceless treasure.

Bai Mo gave it one of the bluish-white Pills.

"This is good for you. Eat up."

Smelling the Pill Fragrance, Ah Er knew this was a rare treasure. Without a hint of suspicion, it took the Pill, chewed, and swallowed.

"GRUFFF!"

It made a few gestures, giving it a very high rating. The reason: it tasted great.

Bai Mo watched as the aura around its body shifted, growing more tranquil. Its skin took on a visibly healthy, ruddy glow.

What was more, its fur even trembled slightly and grew a tiny bit longer.

So it gained a hair and tissue regeneration effect, though the potency varied from Pill to Pill.

Bai Mo packed this batch of Pills separately, marked the container, and handed it to Ah Er.

"Send this batch of Pills to Immortal Arrival City."

Still savoring the Pill’s flavor, Ah Er put the container away as instructed.

Meanwhile, Bai Mo stole a glance at its newly grown fur.

Seeing that it was just as golden as before, his eyelid twitched.

’The medicinal power has settled into its body,’ he thought. ’With Ah Er’s current constitution, it’ll probably take more than two hundred years to fully absorb it.’

...

Unaware of Bai Mo’s thoughts, Ah Er put away the Pills, then found a Pill Furnace, heated some spring water in it, and poured in the Purifying Water.

It tested the water’s temperature and hopped in.

Bai Mo let it be and focused on studying his Golden Core.

Purifying Water was a Spiritual Object with potent effects; an ordinary container truly couldn’t hold it.

Man and beast went about their separate tasks. Just as Ah Er was starting to get drowsy from the long soak, a disciple from the Foreign Affairs Hall arrived at the door.

"Congratulations on your successful Core Formation, Junior Brother Bai!"

The disciple congratulated him the moment they met.

This was Mi Mountain, and the commotion Bai Mo had caused with his altar had not been small. It was only natural that it had drawn their attention.

"I was fortunate."

"Are you Senior Brothers here to collect a prisoner from the Black Prison?"

Bai Mo asked because he didn’t see them escorting any prisoners, nor did he see the usual transfer token.

The disciple from the Foreign Affairs Hall waved his hand.

"No, no. We’re here for you, Junior Brother."

"Now that you’ve reached Core Formation, you can’t be confined to the Black Prison. That would be a great waste of your talents."

A glint appeared in Bai Mo’s eyes, and his interest was piqued.

"Please, enlighten me, Senior Brother."

"Heh heh. Junior Brother, are you aware of the process we follow when we use prisoners from the Black Prison as sacrifices?"

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