Cultivation: I Can Solidify Equipment Attributes

Chapter 351: Chapter 340: Upper Element Pill

On the second day, inside the stone house, a fine, deep-green Pill Furnace sat in the center. The heat-dissipating grooves on its surface glinted coldly in the lamplight.

On the table, all the ingredients required for the Upper Element Pill were arranged in a row, in the order they were to be added.

He Zongming stood in a corner of the stone house, hands clasped behind his back, staring nervously at the Pill Furnace.

Li Yuan had let him watch the alchemy process, firstly so the client could personally confirm the use of the ingredients, and secondly to prevent any potential disputes later on.

"I’m starting."

Li Yuan sat cross-legged before the Pill Furnace and retracted all five of his Divine Sense Lines, no longer allocating them to any task outside of the alchemy.

He ceased monitoring the Spirit Vein. He deactivated the perimeter wards. He shut down the talisman-crafting process.

All his focus was now on this single batch of pills.

Spiritual Power surged from his Dantian, transforming into a crimson Pill Fire that coalesced into a stable Fireball at the base of the furnace. The temperature of the Pill Fire was controlled within an extremely narrow range—not too high, not too low—perfectly preheating the chamber to the foundational temperature required for the medicinal liquids to fuse.

The first supplementary ingredient went in, quickly followed by the second and third.

Fusing the first six supplementary ingredients was the simplest stage of the process. Li Yuan’s execution was flawless, his movements fluid and without hesitation.

An hour later, the base liquid from the supplementary ingredients was complete.

Li Yuan’s expression grew serious.

Next came the first primary ingredient.

He reached out and picked up a stalk of Foggy Grass. With a gentle twist of his fingers on the stem, he infused it with Spiritual Power before tossing it into the furnace.

The medicinal liquid in the chamber churned violently. A biting chill rose from the base liquid, clashing directly with the heat of the Pill Fire. Li Yuan immediately diverted a wisp of his Spiritual Power to suppress the spreading chill while simultaneously increasing the Pill Fire’s temperature by two precise increments.

Two hours passed.

He Zongming stood in the corner, fine beads of sweat dotting his forehead—not from heat, but from sheer tension. He watched Li Yuan, who had not once opened his eyes, his hands resting motionless on his knees as he controlled everything inside the furnace solely with Spiritual Power. That degree of precision and stability in fire control far surpassed any Pill Master he had ever witnessed.

The second primary ingredient: Earth Spirit Fruit.

Two fruit cores were dropped into the chamber, one after the other.

The liquid’s reaction was far more violent than it had been with the Foggy Grass. The properties of the Earth Spirit Fruit were of the earth element—heavy and stable—which created an intense elemental tension with the crisp, cold nature of the Foggy Grass.

Four hours passed.

The remaining eleven supplementary ingredients were added one by one, each fusing with the primary liquid at the exact right moment and temperature.

The final primary ingredient.

A three-hundred-and-twenty-year-old Jade Marrow Mushroom.

The instant the last rootlet of the Jade Marrow Mushroom submerged into the medicinal liquid, its color underwent a final transformation.

A faint, ethereal glow emerged within the milky-white liquid, like moonlight shimmering on the surface of a lake. The Spiritual Power inside formed a perfect, self-circulating loop, locking in every iota of medicinal essence, allowing none to escape.

The pill was about to form.

An hour later, Li Yuan abruptly drew back his Pill Fire. It transformed from a flat disc into a uniform, ring-shaped wall of flame, simultaneously applying pressure to the medicinal liquid from all sides.

HUMMMMM.

The Pill Furnace shuddered violently, letting out a low, muffled drone.

Li Yuan slapped the lid of the furnace open with his right palm.

Two perfectly round, full-bodied pills shot out from the furnace, trailing a soft white light before landing gently in his outstretched palm.

The pill’s fragrance was elegant and lingering—neither strong nor overpowering, but with a gentle warmth that seemed to seep into one’s very bones.

The two Upper Element Pills were a uniform milky-white, their surfaces shimmering with an incredibly faint halo—a sign of their quality. The halo’s luster was subdued and steady, and its thickness and uniformity indicated that the medicinal power was perfectly sealed within, without the slightest bit of loss.

Their quality was upper-mid grade.

For his first time attempting a Tier Two High Grade recipe, this was an outstanding result.

He Zongming was staring, completely mesmerized, from his corner. He didn’t snap out of his daze until Li Yuan turned to look at him. He then rushed to the table in a few large strides, his eyes glued to the two pills in Li Yuan’s palm.

"It’s a success?"

"Success. I made two." Li Yuan handed one to him. "This one is yours."

He Zongming accepted the pill with both hands, cradling it in his palm to admire it. The smile on his face grew wider and wider. He carefully placed the pill into a jade vial he carried, sealed it tightly, and tucked it away inside his robes.

"Thank you, Pavilion Master Li." He Zongming bowed deeply.

Li Yuan nodded and saw him out of the stone house.

The door and windows were sealed once more.

Li Yuan returned to the table and held up the remaining Upper Element Pill.

The moment his fingertip touched the pill’s surface, the panel appeared.

[Equippable Item Detected: Upper Element Pill (Intact)]

[Trait Preview: Foundation Fortification (Blue)]

[Effect: Greatly increases the stability of Dantian walls during a realm breakthrough; reduces the risk of meridian damage from a failed breakthrough by 50%; increases maximum Spiritual Power by 20%.]

[Permanence Condition Preview: Total Spiritual Power must reach the Late-stage Foundation Establishment limit.]

A blue trait.

Li Yuan read the description of its effects.

’Greatly increases the stability of my Dantian walls, reduces the risk of meridian damage from a failed breakthrough by fifty percent, and increases my maximum Spiritual Power by twenty percent.’

’Every one of these effects is for the breakthrough to Core Formation.’

’The condition for making it permanent is reaching the limit of the Late-stage Foundation Establishment. My Spiritual Power is already almost completely saturated, and my daily cultivation gains are diminishing. I’m just one step away from hitting that ceiling.’

Li Yuan opened his equipment screen and unequipped the Vein-Hiding Aura Seal.

’Equip.’

[Equipped: Upper Element Pill (Intact)]

[Foundation Fortification (Blue) is now active.]

The instant the trait activated, an incredibly faint tremor ran through the depths of his Dantian.

The walls of his Dantian, which had been strained to their absolute limit, felt as if they had been infused with an invisible force, causing them to expand. Its capacity abruptly increased, and the Spiritual Power that had been on the verge of saturation began to circulate freely again in the newly enlarged space. The feeling of being full instantly receded by more than half.

A twenty percent increase in his maximum Spiritual Power meant he now had significant room to continue cultivating.

Li Yuan closed his eyes, sensing the changes inside his Dantian. Its walls were thicker and more solid than before, and his Spiritual Power circulated with slightly greater fluency.

Li Yuan sat cross-legged on a meditation cushion, the resonance channel of his Spirit Vein Affinity technique wide open. Dense Spiritual Qi from the underground Spirit Vein was drawn up in a ceaseless stream, passing through rock and earth, flooding the stone house, and pouring into his meridians.

As the Spiritual Qi entered his body, it was automatically filtered by his Flawless Spiritual Power. Impurities were stripped away, layer by layer, until only the most pristine Spiritual Power flowed into his Dantian.

「On the night of the third day」

The stone house was utterly silent.

Li Yuan sat on his meditation cushion, having just completed his final spiritual circulation for the day.

Spiritual Qi poured into his Dantian.

The Spiritual Power inside his Dantian rose by a single, infinitesimal sliver.

And then... it stopped.

It wasn’t that something had blocked it. Rather, every inch of space inside the Dantian walls was now completely filled with Spiritual Power. Its density had reached an absolute tipping point; not one more wisp could be crammed inside.

It was like a water jar filled to the absolute brim, the surface perfectly level with the rim. A single extra drop would cause it to overflow.

Li Yuan opened his eyes.

The sense of saturation in his Dantian had never been so intense.

This was the limit of the Late-stage Foundation Establishment, also known as Foundation Establishment Perfection.

His total Spiritual Power had reached the absolute capacity of the Foundation Establishment Stage.

At that exact moment, the panel appeared.

[Permanence Condition for Foundation Fortification (Blue) has been met.]

[Total Spiritual Power has reached the Late-stage Foundation Establishment limit (Fulfilled).]

[Foundation Fortification (Blue) is now a permanent trait.]

In the equipment slot, the phantom image of the Upper Element Pill solidified for an instant, then vanished. The slot was now empty.

Li Yuan quietly observed the changes within his body.

Now that Foundation Fortification was permanent, the increased stability of his Dantian walls was a permanent attribute. The twenty percent boost to his maximum Spiritual Power also became a constant effect. This meant his Dantian capacity was naturally twenty percent larger than that of other cultivators at his level—an advantage that would persist all the way to Core Formation and even higher realms.

His Dantian’s Spiritual Power was now at its absolute peak. The next step was Core Formation.

’Primal Rupture Foundation provides a higher chance of success and protects against backlash. Altar of Creation gives me perfect control during the breakthrough and conceals the process. Foundation Fortification reinforces my Dantian and expands its capacity. And Tri-Origin Harmony optimizes the coordination of my essence, spirit, and energy.’

’The four traits I need for my breakthrough are all in place.’

Li Yuan closed his eyes, sinking his consciousness deep into his Dantian.

His Spiritual Power was like the placid surface of a lake—full but not overflowing, stable and serene.

The catalyst for Core Formation was now within reach.

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