Eternal Life from the Golden Needle Technique

Chapter 352: Chapter 349: Fraught with Difficulties

In reality,

the current Shen Changchuan had practically reached his limit when it came to improving his strength.

The strength of a Soul Emergence Realm Cultivator was comprised of several components:

Namely, their Realm, Magic, Treasure Artifacts, Talismans, and Elixirs.

Among these, their Realm, Magic, and Treasure Artifacts played the most crucial roles.

And as it happened,

in terms of Magic and Treasure Artifacts,

Shen Changchuan was already well-equipped.

For offense, he had several Tier Two Attack Skills; for defense, the Treasure Bronze Bell and the White Jade Heart-Protecting Mirror; and even for escaping, he had a Perfection-level Tier Two Body Technique like Thunder Shadow Swift Movement.

Cultivating a few more similar Tier Two Magic skills or pursuing other Treasure Artifacts wouldn’t increase his strength by much anymore.

Unless,

he were to cultivate those Tier Two High Level Magic skills.

But the consumption of High Tier Magic was also astonishingly high.

Shen Changchuan had considered this before.

But their power was inferior to Divine Techniques,

while their consumption was even greater.

They were hardly worth the effort.

As for Treasure Artifacts more powerful than the Bronze Bell and the White Jade Heart-Protecting Mirror,

he knew without even thinking that their prices were far beyond what he could currently afford.

Instead of spending Spirit Stones on those Treasure Artifacts, it would be better to spend them on grinding his Magic. At least grinding Magic came with the added benefits of stabilizing his foundation and rapidly increasing his Cultivation Realm.

Besides, they might not even be as useful as a Perfection-level Tier Two Magic skill.

So that was out of the question.

Thus,

Shen Changchuan’s progress in strength had hit a bottleneck.

Only by advancing his Cultivation Realm,

breaking through this bottleneck,

could he find more room for improvement!

But raising one’s Cultivation Realm was not something that could be accomplished overnight.

In fact,

by grinding massive amounts of Magic and constantly depleting and replenishing his Magical Power,

Shen Changchuan was using a method that was practically a cheat. His Cultivation speed had already surpassed that of countless other Soul Emergence Realm Cultivators!

From his ascension to the Soul Emergence Realm,

to now being on the verge of reaching the Soul Emergence Second Layer Middle Stage, only two years had passed.

The progress he’d made in two years

was what other Soul Emergence Realm Cultivators might only achieve after ten, or even twenty, years of arduous Cultivation.

To try and accelerate his Cultivation speed even further,

beyond what he had already achieved,

usually required one to be fabulously wealthy, with countless Spirit Stones to purchase Tier Two Spirit Pills,

and to possess a Secret Technique to purge the Elixir Poison that accumulated in the body from consuming so many Elixirs.

But clearly, this was not a viable option for Shen Changchuan.

Although he had already become an Alchemist,

he had only mastered Tier One Alchemy and could only refine a few types of Low Tier Elixirs for Qi Introduction Realm Cultivators to consume.

Tier Two Elixirs,

for him, were still something far beyond his reach.

In that case,

the only remaining option was the Golden Wind Jade Dew Gu.

’Over the past six months, by relying on the few Gu Techniques I collected from Dawan Village, plus the Dragon Cloud Sect’s collection, and with the help of the progress bar panel, I’ve gained some small understanding of these Gu Techniques.’

’The chances of this Golden Wind Jade Dew Gu having a hidden trap are slim.’

’It’s undoubtedly a great tool for increasing my Cultivation speed, and it’s perfectly suited for my current situation.’

’It’s just... refining this Golden Wind Jade Dew Gu is not going to be easy...’

Gazing at the Jade Slip in his hand,

a worried expression appeared on Shen Changchuan’s face.

Gu Dao Secret Techniques were mostly the methods of the Demon Dao and other unorthodox paths.

The collection in the Dragon Cloud Sect’s Scripture Pavilion wasn’t extensive, containing only records of basic knowledge, principles, and so on.

Their only purpose was to broaden the Disciples’ horizons, so that they would have some means to counter such enemies in the future.

The Low Tier Gu Techniques collected from Dawan Village were of even poorer quality.

Because of this,

on Shen Changchuan’s progress bar panel,

the entry for Gu Dao Secret Techniques was merely labeled "Basic Gu Technique."

And its progress bar was only at about 20%.

He was still a long way from being able to refine the Golden Wind Jade Dew Gu.

After all, judging by its materials, the Golden Wind Jade Dew Gu was a Tier Two Top Level Gu Insect!

And that,

was only the first hurdle!

Even if his Gu Dao Cultivation improved,

obtaining the necessary materials would be another enormous challenge.

’Ten Thousand Year Spirit Jade nurtured in a Spirit Stone Vein for over ten thousand years; a Tier Two Gold-Devouring Spirit Butterfly born from Geng Metal Qi; Rootless Spiritual Water, Spirit Void Grass, Star Dew Flower, Ghost Dream Spirit Root...’

’Wearing Ten Thousand Year Spirit Jade at all times can nourish one’s Dantian Meridians and improve one’s Cultivation Talent. It’s valuable enough to be the heirloom of a Soul Emergence Clan.’

’A Tier Two Gold-Devouring Spirit Butterfly can absorb Geng Metal Qi from the metal and stone deposits between heaven and earth, which can be used to directly increase the power of a Treasure Artifact... ’

’These two main ingredients are both Heaven and Earth Treasures that one can only stumble upon, not actively seek out. The difficulty of gathering them is practically insurmountable!’

’What’s more, even if I managed to gather all the materials, with my current progress in Gu Dao Secret Techniques, the chance of a successful refinement would be less than ten percent!’

’Taking a shortcut isn’t so easy, it seems...’

Shen Changchuan couldn’t help but sigh to himself.

But despite the incredible difficulty of refining the Golden Wind Jade Dew Gu,

Shen Changchuan had no intention of giving up on the idea.

He knew very well that

if he could successfully refine the Golden Wind Jade Dew Gu,

it would remain useful to him throughout the entire Soul Emergence Realm.

It might even continue to provide some assistance after he advanced to the Divine Travel Realm.

The effects

would be far, far greater than those of ordinary Cultivation Elixirs!

If it was at all possible,

he was determined to refine it.

’This goal is difficult, but just as a meal is eaten one bite at a time, a large goal can be broken down into smaller steps.’

’First, I’ll do my best and see how many of the materials I can collect on my own.’

’For any that I really can’t find, I can always ask my master for help at worst.’

’Some Heavenly and Earthly Treasures might be beyond my reach, but for my master at the Divine Travel Peak Realm, they might not be such a big deal.’

’Only a fool wouldn’t use the backing he has.’

’Of course, my master isn’t a nanny. Unless it’s an absolute last resort, I can’t just burn through all the goodwill I have with him...’

Shen Changchuan returned the Jade Slip to his Storage Bag.

He already had a rough plan in mind.

He rose and left the courtyard,

ending his seclusion.

With several new batches of entry-level disciples having joined, the Dragon Cloud Sect was much more populated and no longer looked as deserted as before.

As he walked past the External Affairs Hall,

he could see many Disciples bustling in and out.

It was much livelier now.

At the same time, however,

Shen Changchuan noticed

that some of the Disciples were wounded and bloodstained, clear signs that they had just returned from battle.

The Disciples coming and going all hurried along, their faces taut with tension.

Some were travel-worn,

and he overheard them saying they had just returned from completing a mission in the Nanyue Kingdom.

A grim, tense atmosphere hung over the Mountain Gate.

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