Longevity: Starting with an infant's innate growth potential

Chapter 204 [Sword Qi Transforms into Core Qi] and a Battle Power Contest
The meditation room was bathed in the soft glow of a crystal chandelier.

Zhou Ling sat cross-legged in meditation, with the Purple Sun Cauldron and some pre-processed materials for refining Soul Essence Pills placed in front of him.

Xin'er helped him process all these materials.

Xin'er was already able to refine Soul Essence Pills, but it wasn't stable enough.

In addition, Zhou Ling also wanted to try to see if he could refine a second-tier pill with the help of the Azure Wood Sword Intent.

After all, the Qi-Harmony Pill that was refined last time was only a first-tier pill, which was relatively simple.

Zhou Ling stopped thinking about it and took out the Five Elements Profound Yang Sword to prepare to refine the Soul Essence Pill.

Now, he has become even more proficient in mastering the Green Wood Sword Intent.

In addition, the Azure Lotus Spirit Flame has been helping Wang Xinhan nourish her spiritual body these days, and she has also absorbed the spiritual flame returned by her spiritual body, making her much stronger, and she is already close to the third rank.

In addition, his own spiritual cultivation was not low.

It can be said that he still has great confidence in refining the Soul Essence Pill.

On the wooden table in front of him, the materials for refining Soul Essence Pills had been processed and prepared.

Wang Xin was very meticulous; she arranged them neatly on the wooden table.

Zhou Ling exhaled lightly, first placing a portion of materials into the furnace, then channeling wood-attribute spiritual energy into the Five Elements Profound Yang Sword.

Arouse the sword intent of the green wood.

The sword light then whistled as it fell into the cauldron, beginning to cut the spiritual herbs.

Along with the Azure Lotus Spirit Flame, it also fell into the furnace.

Sword energy whistled, and the shadow of the green wood sword gradually condensed.

Then it begins to absorb the medicinal power.

Gradually, green leaves began to form.

But not long after, there was a "poof" sound.

The illusory image of the Green Wood Sword Intent dissipated and disappeared.

Inside the cauldron, the medicinal herbs transformed into a cyan spiritual liquid, with faint sword energy shimmering on it.

"Failed!"

Zhou Ling's gaze sharpened, and he quickly stopped.

[Growth Talent, Sword Qi Transforms into Elixir Qi: Sword Qi is used in elixir refining, assisting in the transformation of sword qi into elixir qi, greatly increasing the success rate of elixir refining. Requirement: Condense sword qi ten times in elixir refining.]

At this point, a prompt appears on the panel.

"A new talent: Sword Qi transforms into Core Qi!"

Seeing the prompt that appeared on the panel, Zhou Ling was stunned for a moment, after all, it had been quite some time since a new talent had appeared.

The sudden appearance of the [Sword Qi Transformation into Elixir Qi] talent still surprised him somewhat.

"call!"

"With this talent assisting in alchemy, the success rate will be even higher. Moreover, it's sword energy transforming into pill energy. I wonder if other five elements of sword energy can be transformed?"

Zhou Ling murmured.

If we could also transform sword energy of other attributes into pill energy, then the path to alchemy would be much broader.

His gaze then swept over the medicinal liquid inside the furnace, trying to figure out where the problem lay in this failed alchemy attempt.

Although I have some spirit stones now, the materials for a single Soul Essence Pill cost more than two hundred spirit stones.

One failure and more than two hundred spirit stones were wasted.

He can't afford to come a few more times.

[You are analyzing the medicinal liquid. Intermediate Analysis +1, Sword Qi Alchemy Proficiency +1]

With the help of the [Intermediate Analysis], Zhou Ling quickly understood the reason for the failure of this refining attempt.

The coordination between Qingmu's sword intent and his divine soul is not yet in place.

Having learned the reason, Zhou Ling adjusted his breathing to recover.

Then clean the spiritual liquid in the cauldron and put the materials back in.

Continue to stimulate the Green Wood Sword Intent and refine the Soul Essence Pill.

[You are currently using the Azure Wood Sword Intent to refine a Soul Essence Pill. Sword Qi Transformation into Pill Qi +1]

A prompt appeared on the panel.

Zhou Ling felt the sword energy flowing smoothly within the furnace, the condensed green wood phantom was full of vitality, and the absorption of medicinal power was without any hindrance. His soul, sword energy, and medicinal power merged smoothly, and everything went incredibly smoothly without any unexpected events.

The entire alchemy process was completed in one go, with great satisfaction.

"It's done!"

As the illusory image of the green wood condensed into two pills and gradually dissipated, Zhou Ling murmured with a joyful expression.

Moreover, there is a faint pill pattern on the surface of the Soul Essence Pill.

The first time a second-tier pill was successfully refined, pill patterns appeared.

This situation is completely different from the first one.

It seems that the [Sword Qi Transformation into Elixir Qi] technique is quite effective.

It has such power even before it has been activated.

After taking out the two Soul Essence Pills, Zhou Ling took out one and swallowed it directly.

He immediately channeled his magic power to absorb the medicinal effects.

He wanted to try it out and see if the Soul Essence Pill had any effect.

[You are absorbing the Soul Essence Pill. Herbal Stress +1, Soul Essence Pill Power +2]

In an instant, a surge of powerful medicinal energy transformed into soul energy and flowed into Zhou Ling's sea of ​​consciousness.

Zhou Ling activated the "Qinghui Nourishing Spirit Technique" to integrate his soul power into his soul seed.

"Such pure soul power!"

Half an hour later, as the medicinal effects were fully absorbed, Zhou Ling opened his eyes, his gaze bright and alert.

His spiritual cultivation has also improved.

The key point is that the medicinal power of the refined Soul Essence Pill is no less than that of the Soul Essence Pill that Wang Yu gave him.

"This Soul Essence Pill is for Brother He!"

Zhou Ling murmured as he poured the Soul Essence Pill into the pill bottle.

He then felt that his soul and spiritual power were abundant, so he took out the materials for refining the soul armor and put them into the furnace.

They circulated the beast flames and began to refine themselves.

······.

"Zhou Ling, I didn't expect you to be so fast, especially with a second-tier high-grade soul armor."

"And this Soul Essence Pill, thank you so much!"

Inside Zhou Ling's study, He Zijian accepted the Soul Armor and the pill bottle, and said to Zhou Ling with a grateful expression.

He then emptied all the spirit stones from his storage bag.

Zhou Ling hurriedly waved his hand and said, "Brother He, I don't need so many spirit stones. Just give me two mid-grade spirit stones for the materials!"

Not to mention the second-tier high-grade soul armor, just the one-dan pattern soul essence pill alone costs three or four mid-grade spirit stones on the market.

A second-tier high-grade soul armor is even more expensive, costing more than twenty or thirty mid-grade spirit stones.

If He Zijian didn't accept spirit stones, it wouldn't be right for him to be so concerned about saving face.

"Two mid-grade spirit stones? You're at a huge disadvantage!"

He Zijian smiled and said.

"Our relationship is purely based on friendship and sponsorship."

Zhou Ling said with a smile.

"All right!"

He Zijian nodded, then put the spirit stones back and said with a smile, "Since you don't want the spirit stones, then forget it."

"I need to prepare for Foundation Establishment soon and buy auxiliary items, which will cost a lot of spirit stones, and I'm short on spirit stones."

“I still have some left. How much do you want?” Zhou Ling asked upon hearing this.

He would definitely not lend spirit stones to anyone else, but He Zijian is different.

After they met, He Zijian mostly took care of him in Lingxia Immortal City.

So no matter how many spirit stones are needed, as long as he has them, he will definitely lend them to you.

Moreover, since it involves purchasing Foundation Establishment items, this cannot be taken lightly.

He also sincerely hoped that He Zijian could successfully establish his foundation as soon as possible, since Zhou Ling didn't have many friends, especially friends like He Zijian who he could be completely honest with.

“That’s not what I meant,” He Zijian said with a smile.

He then took out a jade box from his person and handed it to Zhou Ling, saying, "This is a sword soul stone that I obtained by chance in another world. It contains a thunder sword soul."

"I've almost grasped the basics, and I'm just one step away from condensing the Thunder Sword Soul."

"Let's exchange this for the Soul Armor and Soul Essence Pill."

"This..." Zhou Ling hesitated upon hearing this.

He Zijian directly stuffed the sword soul stone into his hand and laughed, "We're brothers, no need for such formalities."

Zhou Ling nodded, put away the Sword Soul Stone, and smiled, "Later, I'll refine the Sword Soul Stone into the sword and then give it to you."

Now, his Thunder Sword Intent has taken shape and he is not far from condensing his Sword Soul.

Having this Sword Soul Stone would undoubtedly be of great help to him.

"No need, I already have a natal sword with the lightning attribute, which is enough. There is no need to forge any other swords!"

He Zijian shook his head.

"All right!"

Zhou Ling then collected the Sword Soul Stone.

He wouldn't lose out by exchanging a second-tier high-grade soul armor for a lightning-attribute sword soul stone.

"However, Zhou Ling, you must study and refine this Sword Soul Stone on your own. You must never teach it to anyone else."

He Zijian gave some instructions.

Zhou Ling nodded and smiled, "Brother He, don't worry, in the future, I will absolutely not pass it on to anyone other than the younger generation of the family!"

Lightning-attribute sword soul stones are extremely precious, unless there is a blood relation.

It is naturally impossible to pass this on to others.

The fact that He Zijian was willing to give it to him in this way shows the trust he placed in him.

After all, this was his main sword technique.

He Zijian nodded.

Zhou Ling then inquired about the situation of pursuing the Blood Soul Cult disciples over the past two days.

He Zijian also chatted with him briefly.

According to the clues they have tracked so far, a total of four Blood Soul Cult disciples have infiltrated Qingyun Immortal City.

Two days ago, one of Wang Qingchang's disciples was killed.

Since he was on the same team as Wang Qingshang, he also earned some points, which brought him enough to exchange for a Foundation Establishment Pill.

However, he will wait until this mission is over before he prepares to exchange for it.

After chatting for a while, He Zijian took his leave.

After seeing He Zijian off, Zhou Ling returned to the hermitage.

He frowned slightly. Based on what He Zijian had just said, Wang Qingshang's strength was not low.

In the mid-Foundation Establishment stage, one can kill Blood Soul Cult disciples in the late Foundation Establishment stage.

That spiritual cultivation level is definitely no less than the late stage of Foundation Establishment.

"Xin'er is going to fuse with her family's spiritual flame this time, which will be quite difficult!"

Zhou Ling murmured.

But given the current situation, we can only do our best and deal with whatever comes our way.

He then picked up the jade box that He Zijian had just given him.

Upon opening it, one could see a palm-sized, dark sword stone inside.

This is a lightning-attribute sword stone.

As Zhou Ling reached out and picked up the sword stone, he felt as if he were holding an extremely fierce and powerful thunder sword.

Its inner thunderous sword spirit is exceptionally fierce.

As long as one can comprehend it, one can break through to the second-tier Sword Heart Realm in a very short time.

However, Zhou Ling did not dare to be careless.

The lightning-attribute sword spirit contains thunderous sword energy, which is unlike other sword energies. If you make a slight mistake, you will be injured by the sword energy instead.

He then collected the Sword Soul Stone.

Do you still have the Pure Yang Sword Soul Stone in your possession?

I've almost grasped the basics. Once I fully understand it, I'll start cultivating the lightning-attribute sword soul stone.

However, now that we have the [Sword Qi Transformation into Elixir Qi], we should first condense this new talent.

In this way, I can directly overtake others by taking a shortcut.

In the future, relying on sword energy to refine pills, he might even surpass Xin'er by a few points.

However, there is a major problem: his basic skills in processing medicinal herbs still need improvement.

Thinking of this, he took out his communication jade and sent a message to Wang Xin, asking her about some pill formulas with different attributes.

Wang Xin quickly replied, "Brother Ling, what do you need these pill formulas for?"

"If you need these pills, I can refine them for you!"

"I want to try and see how good my sword qi alchemy skills are!" Zhou Ling didn't hide anything.

Of course, his main goal was to quickly develop the [Sword Qi Transformation into Elixir Qi] talent.

With this talent, refining pills using sword energy will be a piece of cake.

The quality of the pills refined from them will also be better.

Wang Xin didn't ask any more questions and then told Zhou Ling the recipes for various pills, which were mostly second-tier pills, such as Fire Essence Pill and Water Essence Pill.

Later, Zhou Ling asked her to come to the hermitage that evening to prepare some medicinal herbs for her.

After chatting with Wang Xin, Zhou Ling left the hermitage and prepared to go to the workshop to buy medicinal herbs.

······.

But as soon as Zhou Ling stepped out the door, he received a telepathic message from his master, asking him to come over.

Zhou Ling immediately headed towards the courtyard where his master lived.

Generally speaking, his master rarely transmits his voice to him.

After all, the cultivation techniques Zhou Ling is currently practicing are already sufficient for him to reach the Golden Core realm.

If Zhou Ling has any questions, he will take the initiative to ask.

Of course, every time his master calls him, it's always something good.

Therefore, Zhou Ling was filled with anticipation throughout the journey.

Upon arriving at the courtyard, I saw my master lying on a bamboo chair, leisurely drinking wine.

"I've met the master!"

Zhou Ling bowed with his hands clasped in greeting.

"Hmm." Zi Ling nodded, then sat up and said to Zhou Ling, "I called you here today because there's something I need to tell you."

Zhou Ling listened quietly.

"Next year, there will be a competition among the inner disciples of the four major academies, which will mainly be a competition of combat strength."

"Originally I wasn't interested, but I'm a new instructor at the academy and I need to complete some tasks."

"Furthermore, you need to practice the Five Elements Sword Technique you've been cultivating."

"Therefore, in ten days, the academy will hold a competition for the spots in next year's competition among the four major academies. You should go and participate then."

Upon hearing this, Zhou Ling realized why his master had called him over.

Originally, Xuan Yuan Dao Academy focused on techniques and did not place much emphasis on combat strength competitions.

However, in recent years, Tianxia Taoist Academy has continuously surpassed Xuanyuan Taoist Academy in various techniques.

Therefore, the higher-ups of Xuan Yuan Dao Academy have gradually begun to pay more attention to combat strength, hoping that their disciples can make progress together and improve their combat power as well.

To bring glory to the Taoist temple.

Therefore, disciples who achieve good results in combat power competitions will also receive generous rewards.

With his current cultivation level, Zhou Ling was naturally not afraid of such a competition.

Moreover, since it was his master who asked him to participate, he felt even more obligated to do so.

"However, don't be careless. This competition is attended by inner court disciples, including some late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivators."

Zi Ling reminded her.

"Yes, Master!"

Zhou Ling nodded and replied in a relaxed tone.

As long as he doesn't encounter a late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator, with his current combat strength, he should be able to achieve good results.

Thinking about the next three months, at the end of the month I will help Xin'er seize the family's spiritual flame, and at the end of the year I will compete with my colleagues from the Heavenly Crafts Bureau for a spot as a Heavenly Craftsman Golden Guard.

Now they also have to participate in the Taoist Academy's combat strength competition.

"Sigh, this is destined to be a busy end of the year!"

Zhou Ling thought to himself.

Then he asked his master about the specifics of the competition, but to his surprise, his master knew nothing about it.

He could only bid farewell to his master and go to the affairs office to find out the truth.

(End of this chapter)