The more you believe me, the more real it becomes.

Chapter 177 Begging for Life Pill (4k)

Looking at the cold pine mountain where the strange phenomenon had dissipated.

Some of the mountain dwellers who had never been able to figure it out finally couldn't help but look at it more closely.

After they understood what Du Yuan was saying, they were completely bewildered.

Why bother refining elixirs?
Aren't the prescriptions for elixirs simply about explaining the proportions of the precious ingredients, the timing of refining, and the method of fusion?

Isn't the principle of elixirs written down and passed down orally?
Why would we need to open a furnace to refine it?!

Not to mention, is it something to be presented to Heaven for all to see?
This...this is simply...
Unheard of!

That defies common sense!
Extremely weird!

Everyone was overjoyed, while the immortals were utterly bewildered.

Du Yuan ignored the prying eyes of the immortals and gods on the mountain, and simply held the pill formula made of gold and stone in her hand and examined it carefully.

Then, he swept his hands to the left and right.

He bent down to dig up the soil and grass.

The disaster victims stared intently, as did the gods and immortals.

They desperately wanted to see through the pill formula, but Du Yuan's imposing aura now appeared to them as an abyss and a prison. No matter what methods they used, they felt a chilling cold as soon as they got close, and could only spy and eavesdrop from afar.

Moreover, the formula for the pill is the lifeblood of the alchemist; if the attempt to investigate is discovered, it could lead to a fight to the death.

This Taoist priest is extremely fierce and not to be trifled with!

Du Yuan held up the ordinary soil and withered grass, looked up at the sky, and prayed aloud:
"I beg for my life now, and appeal to Heaven!"

"Please grant me the elixir; I will surely repay you in the future!"

The prayer was clear and resonant, echoing through heaven and earth. As he devoutly rubbed his hands together, a perfectly round, earth-yellow pill quietly took shape in his palm, shimmering with a faint light!
Looking at the pill in her hand, Du Yuan smiled and held it up to show the disaster victims, saying:

"Gentlemen, this elixir is what I, this humble Taoist, requested from Heaven with this formula!"

Finally, Du Yuan looked at the surrounding disaster victims and asked:
"May I ask, does anyone here feel hungry?"

Is it to test the elixir?

Upon hearing this, disaster victims immediately volunteered.

Although it looks like it was just made of mud and dry grass, it must have been made by a celestial being!
It must be quite remarkable; eating it will definitely be beneficial!

The generals watching felt their hearts pound and their throats bobbed.

Who wouldn't want to taste the flavor of an elixir? Haven't we seen countless emperors throughout history die because of a single 'elixir'?
If even emperors who ruled the world were like this, how could they possibly escape the common ways?

Since the immortal had clearly stated that the disaster victims should be put first, even though they were itching to get involved, they had no choice but to suppress their impulses and wait and see.

As Du Yuan casually pointed to a disaster victim and asked them to step forward, he handed the pill in his hand to the victim:

"Eat, eat."

The man looked at the pill in his hand, which seemed to have a medicinal fragrance, for several reluctant glances before finally tilting his head back and swallowing it whole.

Before I could even savor the taste, I felt the pill had already entered my stomach.

The next moment, the disaster victim touched his stomach and exclaimed in surprise:

"Hey, I'm not hungry anymore, I have energy again?!"

These words immediately drew gasps of alarm from the surrounding disaster victims.

Du Yuan nodded and smiled, then pointed to a disaster victim and said:

"Come, please step forward."

The disaster victims pointed out by Du Yuan stepped forward in disbelief.

He asked, slightly trembling:
"Immortal Master, I've arrived. What...what do you need me to do?"

Du Yuan handed over the prescription and said:
"It's not difficult. Just follow the instructions above and try to make a pill like me."

These words almost made the disaster victim burst into tears:

"My lord, I... I can't read!"

Du Yuan chuckled, then comforted her:

"It's alright, it's alright. Did you see what I did before? You saw it? Okay, then just do what I did!"

The disaster victim then shakily squatted down, groping in the dark, cracked earth to dig out a clod of soil, picked up a few withered grass clippings, and nervously looked at Du Yuan: "Immortal Lord, am I really starting?"

Du Yuan nodded, indicating that he could do so at any time.

The disaster victims took a deep breath and, imitating Du Yuan, whispered devoutly to the vast sky:

"Begging for survival, past and present..."

As he clumsily rubbed the mud and withered grass in his hands, the disaster victims felt as if something indescribable had appeared in the mud balls in their hands.

When he stopped moving, he opened his palm—the dark mud ball had transformed into a yellow pill similar to the one the immortal had held earlier! It was just a bit rougher and not as round and pleasing.

After glancing at Du Yuan, he saw the Immortal Lord encouraging him:
"Try it and see?"

Without further hesitation, the disaster victim swallowed it whole. A moment later, the same joy exploded on his face:

"I'm not hungry anymore!"

At this point, a smile of immense satisfaction finally bloomed on Du Yuan's face, and she said loudly:
"Gentlemen, can you see clearly? This is the elixir formula I requested after presenting it to the heavens! All you need is a handful of yellow earth, a few stalks of withered grass, and a devout heart to beg the heavens for a way to live!"

One batch of pills cannot save the southwest; but a pill formula that anyone can easily make can!
As soon as these words came out, everyone was in an uproar.

Many disaster victims hurriedly bent down to search, then bent down to dig up the mud and yellow grass, trying to beg for elixirs from the heavens like the immortals.

One, two, three. In the hands of more and more people, that inconspicuous mud and grass actually shed its filth and turned into yellow pills of varying shades, radiating a faint warmth!
As the crude pill rolled into their palms, countless disaster victims were stunned. Looking at this life-saving "elixir," and then at the upright figure in the blue robe in the center of the field, the disaster victims could no longer hold back their tears.

The dense crowd shrank back like wheat fields swaying in the wind, bowing in unison towards Du Yuan's direction.

"Thank you so much, Immortal Master, for giving us a way to survive!"

"Father, Mother, there's hope for our child!"

"Thank you, immortal! Thank you, heavens!"

Du Yuan accepted this calmly, and at the same time, an indescribable warmth and excitement surged within him.

Having been here for many days, I have finally managed to carve out a real glimmer of hope for this suffering world through my own abilities!
Du Yuan didn't know how to describe this feeling; she just felt exceptionally comfortable, far surpassing any magical arts.

However, Du Yuan didn't forget to say to them:

"Please remember this: this is a loan, not a gift. Therefore, once the great calamity is over, you will all have to repay Heaven with a share of the karma!"

Upon hearing this, the people were both grateful and apprehensive, and hurriedly asked:

"Immortal Master! Then, how should we repay this debt? Should we burn paper money and light incense for the Heavenly Emperor?"

They were used to the incense offerings in temples and assumed that all gods liked these things.

Du Yuan waved her hand and said, "No, no. Heaven is most impartial and benevolent, how could it covet the pleasures of the mortal world? Since it has bestowed this 'good cause,' the reward it seeks is naturally a 'good result' as well!"

"And what constitutes 'good karma'?" Du Yuan asked, her gaze sharp as she swept over the bewildered yet anxious faces.

"This good result is the transformation of this 'borrowed' life force into a continuous stream of good deeds in the future!"

Amidst everyone's astonishment, Du Yuan quickly and loudly proclaimed:

"It can be neighbors helping each other. It can be repairing bridges and roads, helping the poor and needy. It can be cherishing plants and trees and treating all living things kindly. It can also be raising children and grandchildren with a kind heart."

"As the saying goes, 'Do not refrain from doing good because it is small! All good deeds in the world can repay this cause and effect.'"

"Because what Heaven desires is not incense and paper money, but that you, after surviving, use this borrowed life to do good deeds, accumulate virtue, make this world less violent and more warm, and make this world more 'livable' because of your 'living'!" With each sentence Du Yuan spoke, the dark mass of people knelt down even more.

They had prayed to gods and Buddhas for many years and were used to hearing about the mercy of immortals and the benevolence of heaven and earth.

They had never seen such a truly benevolent and virtuous deity standing before them.

Finally, Du Yuan looked at the sea of ​​people and said:
"Today you beg Heaven for your life, and tomorrow you should repay Heaven and Earth with good deeds. This is the cycle of Heaven, and it is also the true 'elixir guide' and 'elixir formula' of this elixir! Everyone, do you understand?"

The people did not answer; they simply kowtowed their heads to the ground.

Seeing this, Du Yuan chuckled, looked up at the sky, exhaled a long breath, and said with great pleasure:
"Good, great good!"
-
The people were filled with gratitude, while the gods and immortals were dumbfounded.

After a long while, someone finally blurted out a curse:
"No wonder it's called an alchemy formula, but what kind of alchemy formula is this? It's clearly negotiating with the Heavenly Dao, and they actually succeeded!"

"No wonder this Taoist priest is determined to gather the power of the people under the current circumstances and emulate the ancient dynasty's method of reaching the heavens. Such a great undertaking, indeed, well, I've never seen anyone succeed in such a great undertaking."

"Oh my, to actually see something like this in ancient books is such an honor, such a great honor."

"The Taoist school is full of hidden talents, but why haven't I seen this Taoist master before?"

"fierce!"

The various deities were talking to themselves, chattering away. The last time there was such a commotion was when someone had crossed the river ahead of time.

Those who placed their pieces in the southwest looked as if they had swallowed flies.

Because they had genuinely believed that this Taoist priest had come to seize the bounty of heaven and earth to enrich himself.

But now it seems that this Taoist priest really came to save the millions of people in the southwest!

Wouldn't that be blatantly going against them?

"These damned Taoists, a bunch of mortals, are they really worth the attention of a dignified leader of the Taoist sect?"

"If he were to continue refining pills and helping others make a living, that would be fine. He could accumulate his merits, and we could do our own thing. Even if we don't talk about mutual benefit, we could still keep to ourselves. But now, he has gone too far!"

"What does a Taoist master want to do when he comes to a Confucian territory to become a sage? Is he dissatisfied with the Temple of Literature?"

Seeing their incessant chatter, someone suddenly said in a deep voice:
"So how do we deal with it?"

Upon hearing this, all the voices changed simultaneously:
"Although this Taoist priest used ruthless methods, it doesn't affect the overall situation. I think we can hold off for a while."

"It's alright, it's just giving a group of people something to eat. He simply can't handle the severe drought in the southwest!"

"That's right, as long as the drought persists, we can remain calm and collected!"

Seeing their reaction, the voice then spoke up:

"What if this Taoist priest doesn't intend to just walk away?"

This time, all the voices paused for a moment, then slowly took on a resolute tone:

"No matter how high his cultivation level is, he'll still have his bones scraped by the Heavenly Law's blunt blade. If he remains stubborn, then don't blame us for ganging up on him!"

"It's not just us in the Southwest, there are others too, everyone's watching. There's even a possibility that there aren't any powerful figures among them who can rival him!"

The crowd was filled with indignation. Suddenly, someone shouted angrily:

"That's right, if we all rush at him, he might not be able to kill us all before he runs out of magic power!"

But as soon as these words were spoken, the previously lively conversation fell into a deathly silence.

"Hmm, what's wrong with you guys? Did I say something wrong? At worst, we'll just die. There are so many of us, why should we be afraid of him?"

No one responded, and the brief connection ended unhappily.
-
On Cold Pine Mountain, watching the people constantly kneading elixir, several generals couldn't resist trying their hand at kneading soil and grass.

I want to make a few pills to try.

But once they actually tried it, they discovered that they just couldn't get it right.

Looking at the grass and soil in their hands, they all stared blankly at their companions.

They discovered that the other party was the same.

Therefore, they all asked:
"Why can't you do it?"

"Yeah, aren't you one too?"

"What's the matter?"

"Did you mispronounce it?"

"No, it's correct!"

The more I explained, the less they understood.

Down the mountain, Wang Pingzhang had already found the elegantly dressed young man.

He immediately showed the richly dressed young man the dirt and withered grass in his hands, saying:

"Nephew, please take a look at this. Is it because I, your uncle, have gone too far in my immoral ways, to the point that even Heaven can't stand it anymore?"

Wang Pingzhang's face was filled with fear as he said this.

The elegantly dressed young man frowned upon seeing it.

Wait a minute, why can't Uncle Shi do it? This was something that senior pleaded with God for.

Heaven's way is impartial and cannot possibly go wrong.

After hesitating for a moment, he ultimately did not dare to try it himself. Instead, he asked Wang Pingzhang for a few taels of silver and bought a few from the people next to him.

After examining it carefully three times to confirm there were no discrepancies, it was handed over to Wang Pingzhang, who said:

"Uncle, would you like to try some?"

Wang Pingzhang quickly swallowed it, and the next moment, his face contorted in pain, but he still forced himself to eat it and said:
"Good, good pill!"

This made the elegantly dressed young man instantly realize something, and he looked up at the mountaintop with even greater admiration.

This senior is incredibly skilled!

After nodding in approval, he patted Wang Pingzhang on the shoulder and said:

"Uncle, stop pretending. You only eat mud and grass."

Wang Pingzhang was instantly shocked:
"Ah? What's going on?"

He just said that the elixir couldn't be called bad, but he forced himself to say it was good.

Why is there mud and grass all around when I turn around?

The elegantly dressed young man simply looked at Wang Pingzhang with amusement and said:

"Uncle, this pill was obtained by our predecessors on behalf of countless starving people, who begged God for it. Tell me, are you one of those starving people?"

Wang Pingzhang suddenly realized, and then exclaimed:
"This...this pill can be divided among different people?"

The elegantly dressed young man nodded deeply and said:
"Yes, it depends on the person, and more importantly, it depends on the time. It's unlikely that this method can be used except in years of great disaster or when people are suffering from famine!"

"Why?"

The richly dressed young man glanced disdainfully at his adopted uncle and said:

"Because if we don't do this, the world will descend into chaos!"

Meanwhile, on the mountaintop, some villagers were asking Du Yuan about the name of this elixir.

Looking at the crowd that had gathered, Du Yuan thought for a moment, then looked up at the heavens and said:
"Hmm, let's call it the Begging for Life Pill!"

(End of this chapter)