Chapter 510: Chapter 510: Origin

The bamboo outside the courtyard grew quickly.

One rainy night, Bai Mo, buried in a pile of ancient texts, was startled by a series of grating, woody sounds.

Opening the window, he saw the bamboo leaves outside rustling and trembling.

In the darkness, long, dark-green shadows were slowly rising.

By tomorrow, they would likely have shot up a good deal.

After all, having accumulated energy in silence for so long, a good rain was the perfect time to unleash it.

That’s just how these things were.

Rainwater splattered onto the pages of a scroll. Bai Mo closed the window with a sigh and placed the book beside the oil lamp.

Bathed in the lamp’s glow, the pages would probably be dry in an hour.

Leaning back in his recliner with his fingers interlaced, Bai Mo sank into thought.

The door to the room creaked open softly.

Ah Er tiptoed in, glanced at Bai Mo, but paid him no further mind.

It found an interesting biography in the pile of books, then quietly slipped out, pulling the door shut on its way.

Nearly two months had passed. Aside from confirming that the two words "Tian Weng" referred to some method of guiding medicinal power, Bai Mo had made no other progress.

The experiences of the predecessors recorded in the books hadn’t been much help.

They had all relied on fortuitous coincidences or other miraculous encounters, uncovering secrets through factors beyond their control.

There was little that could be learned from them.

Bai Mo had sent a letter to the White-Haired Elder, but unfortunately, the man was in seclusion and had not emerged.

It was his second disciple who replied. The letter was respectful and explained the White-Haired Elder’s current situation.

「The next day.」

The green-robed steward came again.

Bai Mo helplessly explained the situation.

"Those two words, ’Tian Weng,’ not only helped that group of non-humans refine the Pill, but they also seem intended to prevent anyone else from cracking the Pill Formula."

"It must have come from a place where the Alchemy Dao is extremely advanced. I have no leads at present."

The green-robed steward didn’t seem surprised at all.

He took a collated dossier from his sleeve and handed it to Bai Mo.

"Regarding ’Tian Weng,’ the Hall has also gathered a great deal of information after looking into it."

"Junior Brother, now that you’ve reached Core Formation, you’re qualified to know some of this..."

Bai Mo took the thick stack of files and began flipping through them, one by one, right in front of the green-robed steward.

The contents of the files were varied and extensive, covering all sorts of aspects.

The more Bai Mo read, the more alarmed he became.

Traces of ’Tian Weng’ had appeared not only on the other side of the Celestial Barrier Mountain range, but also within the sect, and even among Loose Cultivators.

There were signs of it in both the Alchemy Dao and the Array Dao, with remarkable achievements in each.

And at the back of the dossier, there was a new page.

It recorded a special prisoner who, according to rumor, was captured and brought back five hundred years ago when the old ancestors collectively emerged from their seclusion.

At the time, the individual had killed the guardian of a certain Sea Eye and was attempting to destroy a Heaven’s Path with an Array.

The old ancestors, filled with hatred, struck out. They used world-suppressing techniques to capture him, breaking his spine and sealing his limbs.

Unfortunately, that Heaven’s Path was ultimately destroyed by the Array, an irreversible loss.

The green-robed steward added details that weren’t written in the file.

"It took two thousand years of accumulated fortune, plus the Spiritual Qi gathered by the Sea Eye, just to create that one Heaven’s Path."

"Who knows how long we’ll have to wait for another one. The old ancestors don’t hold out much hope."

Bai Mo nodded. He could well imagine the old ancestors’ towering rage at the time.

Reading on, it said that the person who destroyed the Heaven’s Path, seeing he was outmatched, had tried to activate a brand in his mind to summon reinforcements.

Before he could succeed, a sect ancestor had slapped him on the forehead, shattering both his consciousness and the brand.

The green-robed steward said, "Afterward, the man was brought back to the sect, but he was muddle-headed and foolish, and has been imprisoned in the Refining Wilderness Tower."

"When spoken to, he just says he came to this world to find opportunities, accumulate resources, and other nonsensical things."

"Besides that, he has no value, other than for the Sect Elders to study his physical body."

"However, when the Elders were recently investigating ’Tian Weng’ and questioned him about it, the man showed a strange reaction."

The records in the file matched his account exactly.

Bai Mo’s gaze finally fell upon the last sentence at the end of the file.

"This person is suspected to be from the Immortal Realm."

Something was very strange about all this.

Bai Mo looked at the green-robed steward.

"Why would someone from the Immortal Realm act in such a way?"

What kind of place was that? It was a place the old ancestors of this world risked their lives to pursue, a place where the world’s essence and great powers gathered, high and mighty above all.

How could it produce someone who acted so furtively?

The green-robed steward said calmly:

"But if the source of ’Tian Weng’ is the Immortal Realm, wouldn’t that align with what you said, Junior Brother?"

"What place could have a more advanced Alchemy Dao? Besides, the Immortal Realm today is likely not what you and I imagine. Otherwise, our old ancestors wouldn’t have to struggle so much..."

He had delivered the news to Bai Mo, and he left not long after.

The matter of ’Tian Weng’ had caused quite a stir within the sect.

Information was flooding in like an avalanche, and there was still a mountain of work waiting for him back at the Foreign Affairs Hall.

However, before he left, he asked Bai Mo a question.

"If necessary, the sect can level the non-human settlement to search for clues. What are your thoughts, Junior Brother?"

Bai Mo was startled. He just said he would try again and that there was no need to take such drastic measures.

This showed just how much importance the sect placed on ’Tian Weng’.

The Immortal Realm was the ultimate goal for all Cultivators in this world. Here, the cultivation of all living beings had reached its limit, unable to advance even an inch.

Any matter related to it, good or bad, was of the utmost importance.

His mind racing, Bai Mo leaned against a bamboo stalk, deep in thought.

Ah Er came out holding a hoe. It was the peak season for bamboo shoots.

The last time it went out to find bamboo nodes for cultivation, it had already scouted out a good spot.

Now, in the early morning, was the perfect time to go out and dig some up.

Shouldering the hoe, Ah Er looked out at the sparse bamboo grove, where many stalks were now as tall as it was, and was quite amazed.

It had only taken a few steps when it saw Bai Mo suddenly snap out of his daze nearby and start walking briskly.

Telling Ah Er to come back soon, Bai Mo hurried back into the house.

An idea had just struck him.

Entering the room, Bai Mo pulled out several Pill Books.

All of them came from sects that had received teachings from Immortals, and they contained superior Alchemy Skills.

Passed down through generations, they had been developed by countless Cultivators, creating numerous branches.

What Bai Mo wanted to explore was the core philosophy behind these Alchemy Skills. The minor details, even the specific Pill Formulas, were not as important.

And so, another month or so of intense work passed.

Just as Bai Mo was starting to eat the pickled bamboo shoots Ah Er had prepared, good news reached the Foreign Affairs Hall.

...

The green-robed steward was still organizing the information about ’Tian Weng’.

Joint investigations with several allied sects had produced a flood of information, but it was difficult to tell fact from fiction, and the clues were scarce.

A disciple walked into the records room, holding a letter.

"A letter from Alchemist Bai Mo. He has cracked the non-human’s Pill Formula and has temporarily named it the Black Jade Soul Pill."

The tension on the green-robed steward’s face eased slightly.

"Bring it here."

The disciple presented the letter. Inside was Bai Mo’s handwritten note, containing the Pill Formula for the Black Jade Soul Pill and one finished Pill.

After reading it, the green-robed steward handed the Pill Formula back.

"Can it be mass-produced?"

The disciple took the Pill Formula, studied it for a moment, and after a long period of contemplation, finally nodded.

"Yes, but I’m afraid it would require a team of at least thirty Pill Masters to produce it on a large scale."

The green-robed steward nodded.

"Go make the arrangements. Also, send a voice transmission to the Elders and tell them not to make a move..."

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.