Immortal Cultivation: Starting from a Pharmacy Apprentice

Chapter 299: Chapter 299: Opening the Furnace

Divine Dao Mountain was shrouded in mist.

This was likely because some of the Dharma Protectors and Divine Generals preferred not to be disturbed.

Bai Mo avoided the thickest patches of fog and continued his ascent. Before long, he spotted two disciples washing fruits and vegetables.

The two disciples were at the seventh or eighth stage of cultivation. They seemed young and weren’t considered exceptional on Divine Dao Mountain, so they were tasked with various menial chores.

When Bai Mo approached to ask for directions, their eyes lit up in recognition.

"Oh, it’s Brother Bai!"

"What brings you here today?"

Bai Mo was taken aback for a moment. It was the first time someone in the sect had called him Brother.

"Ah, greetings, Junior Brothers."

"It’s like this. I’d like to ask a fellow disciple here on Divine Dao Mountain to perform a ritual for me. It needs to embody the concept of the thundering ’Awakening of Insects’."

Hearing this, the two disciples smiled.

"Brother Bai, you’ve certainly come prepared."

"Most of the senior disciples on the mountain have gone to the Jade Plate Secret Realm. We’re the only two left behind to watch over the mountain and tend to the many Dharma Protectors."

"We’re new initiates, but as it happens, we’ve just learned the very ritual you mentioned, Brother."

"If you’d be willing to trust us..."

Bai Mo’s eyes lit up, and he nodded at once.

’It’s not a major affair, after all,’ he thought. ’I don’t need anyone too powerful to handle it.’

’Having two enthusiastic junior brothers to help is perfect.’

"Please, follow us."

The two disciples picked up their baskets of fruits and vegetables and led the way.

Judging by their cultivation level, yet seeing how young they were, it was clear they were talented individuals.

But talent meant little on Divine Dao Mountain. The Dharma Protectors and Divine Generals were known for their tempers, and this attitude permeated the whole mountain. As a result, the two young disciples received no special treatment.

"Many of us new disciples wanted to serve Kunwu True Monarch, but not a single one has succeeded."

"He was a great Nascent Soul cultivator, after all, and a renowned figure in the Demon Dao."

"Brother Bai, could you tell us how you managed to subdue him?"

Bai Mo couldn’t help but smile.

"Subduing him? That had nothing to do with me. If anyone deserves credit, it’s the senior disciples from Divine Dao Mountain..."

Yin Zhen, walking alongside them, had been wondering about the disciples’ enthusiasm for Bai Mo. Now, he understood.

Even Divine Dao Mountain didn’t have many accomplished Nascent Soul True Monarchs.

A favor of that magnitude was more than enough to earn the goodwill of the Divine Dao Mountain disciples.

They arrived at a platform. The area had been specially prepared; the ground was flat and etched with lines, bearing numerous scorch marks from smoke and fire.

It appeared to be a training ground where new disciples practiced their ritual offerings and sacrifices.

"Brother, please tell us the purpose of this ritual first."

Bai Mo explained, "It’s to awaken a sliver of divine essence within a cicada’s shed skin and a piece of withered wood."

As he spoke, he took out a cicada slough half the size of his palm and a piece of jet-black wood that had been struck by lightning and gave off a woody fragrance.

The two disciples from Divine Dao Mountain exchanged a puzzled look.

They often did similar things for practice or even for fun, but it never had any real effect.

They hadn’t expected this senior brother to seek them out for such a task. Recalling the rumors about his prowess in the Alchemy Dao, they didn’t dare ask any more questions.

"Brother, please wait while we summon two of our friends."

A short while later, four recently initiated disciples appeared before Bai Mo, dressed in fresh ritual robes.

They all wore masks with green faces and bared fangs. Yet, amid the chaotic, colorful lines painted on them, there was an air of solemnity.

Bai Mo recognized it at a glance; they were likely imitating an ancient ritual to worship the Lord of the Clouds.

They set out incense, candles, fruits, and vegetables, along with the three traditional sacrificial animals, which they must have procured from somewhere.

The four disciples began to move with somewhat clumsy steps, murmuring incantations that were as indistinct as words spoken in a dream.

The piece of withered wood and the cicada slough rested upon the central altar.

The four performing the ritual seemed to enter an indescribable state, their movements growing increasingly frenzied.

The scent of incense filled the air.

Sensing a strange power radiating from the ritual, Bai Mo instinctively took two steps back.

’This is Divine Dao Mountain,’ he thought. ’Truly strange and mysterious things can happen here. It’s best to be cautious.’

CRACK!

A sudden thunderclap ripped through the air, startling both Bai Mo and Yin Zhen, who quickly looked up.

’Can they really summon thunder?’

But several cries of alarm from nearby snapped their attention back to the platform.

The four disciples who had been performing the ritual collapsed to the ground, crying out in pain.

The incense and candles had gone out, leaving only a single wisp of white smoke to drift upward.

The first two disciples helped each other to their feet and returned the cicada slough and the piece of wood to Bai Mo.

"Apologies for the poor display, Brother. The ritual wasn’t a complete success, but we did manage to summon a trace of thunderous will. That’s exceptionally rare."

"We believe we have not failed your request."

Bai Mo could already sense the change in the aura of the cicada slough and the wood.

It was as if an object long covered in dust had finally been wiped clean.

"It’s more than enough. Thank you for your efforts."

Bai Mo took several pill vials from his sleeve and gave one to each of the four disciples.

"These are Pills that can aid your cultivation. They’re not particularly valuable, just a small token of my gratitude."

Surprised and delighted, the four disciples eagerly accepted the vials.

With his task accomplished, Bai Mo prepared to head back down the mountain.

"There’s no need to see us off. We can find our own way."

As he and Bai Mo walked down the mountain path, Yin Zhen kept feeling as if something were watching him from within the dense fog.

He knew this place was their lair; if they didn’t wish to be seen, he would never be able to find them.

Yin Zhen decided to just let it be.

"Junior Brother, is your plan to use the cicada slough and lightning-struck wood as a substitute for the Dragon Transformation Bone?"

"The spiritual grade of those two items is a world apart from the bone’s."

Bai Mo chuckled.

"Their grade doesn’t matter."

"The Alchemy Dao has always had a tradition of turning the mundane into the miraculous. If you get too hung up on the grade of your ingredients, you’ll never accomplish much."

"This cicada, which lay dormant underground for two hundred years, naturally possesses an aura of transformation."

"And this lightning-struck wood is no ordinary piece, either. It was once a Spirit Wood, struck down by heavenly lightning. Some even say it was attempting to overcome a tribulation, though who knows if that’s true."

"Regardless, the combined auras of these two ingredients are more than sufficient for a Pill meant for human consumption!"

Back in the valley, Yin Zhen presented the materials.

There were all manner of ingredients, about two hundred in total—the finest essences gathered from every corner of the land.

Bai Mo’s hands itched just looking at them.

Even he rarely had the chance to see such things.

"Brother Bai?"

"Oh," Bai Mo said, snapping out of it.

"Refining this Pill will take me three days. I’ll have to trouble you, Senior Brother, to stand guard for me. Don’t let anything disturb me."

With that, he moved the prepared ingredients into the Stone Lodge and ignited the Earth Fire.

BOOM!

A blast of scorching Earth Fire erupted, banishing the cool air from the valley.

Bai Mo tossed all the herbs containing the essence of the five elements into the Pill Furnace and poured in water from the Spiritual Spring.

Before long, an exotic, fragrant Pill Liquid had formed. All that remained was to gradually add the other precious ingredients.

He also tossed in the piece of Dragon Transformation Bone, which quickly sank to the bottom.

As more ingredients were added to the Pill Furnace, the color of the Pill Liquid, just as the legends described, gradually turned a shimmering gold.

The Stone Lodge couldn’t contain the Pill Liquid’s aroma, which seeped out and spread.

Yin Zhen, standing guard outside, didn’t think much of it at first—not until he saw a massive, ferocious head poke out in the distance. Only then did he understand.

’So *this* is what he meant by ’don’t let anything disturb me’.’

Watching the Demon Beasts approach one after another, joined even by some cultivators’ poorly disciplined Spirit Beasts, he couldn’t help but be on alert. With their mountain-like bodies, even he couldn’t afford to be careless.

’Whether he succeeds or not,’ Yin Zhen mused, ’with this level of skill, Junior Brother Bai has already lived up to his reputation.’

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