Cultivation: Beginning with the Heart Reflecting Heaven and Earth

Just like now, if Lu Qian could find a place to fight immediately, he should be able to quickly digest the medicinal power in his body and then take the pill again.

"I think the reason I was able to take so many pills at once was also due to the fact that I fought to the death during my previous training missions."

"Once we reach the Western Continent, we can take pills while looking for opportunities to fight, and we shouldn't encounter this problem again."

However, dangers lurk everywhere in the Western Continent.

Lu Qian shouldn't need to deliberately search for them; there will be plenty of opportunities to fight, so there's not much to worry about.

After he could no longer take pills, he did not really rest. Instead, he went to the Scripture Pavilion to find some pill formulas that he could use, and to look at the methods of making spirit talismans. He also took the opportunity to read some miscellaneous notes to broaden his knowledge.

Previously, Lu Qian had been busy cultivating and had no time to go to the Scripture Pavilion, but now he felt that he needed to stop for a while to digest the medicinal effects, so he naturally had time to go to the Scripture Pavilion.

Leaving the Holy Land and heading to the Western Continent should be a matter of days. Lu Qian doesn't have much to prepare. Being all alone, he doesn't need to think about too many things.

After entering the library, Lu Qian also found other people who seemed to be cramming for something at the last minute.

You can freely browse all the contents on the first floor of the Sutra Repository without paying any Taoist merit, but there are some problems, as much of the content is outdated.

Just like some common elixir formulas, there are no problems with the ingredient ratios or the refining process, but they are still quite inferior to the elixir formulas currently on the market.

For example, a rare and precious main ingredient can be replaced by another common spiritual medicine, or a certain process can be optimized to increase the chance of successful pill formation. Such content is basically not available in the Scripture Pavilion.

Lu Qian was somewhat prepared for this. After all, you get what you pay for. He didn't spend any money, and it was good to be able to see outdated prescriptions, because outdated doesn't mean useless or wrong.

In contrast, the methods for making talismans are not updated as quickly. These are not major problems, but they are only some common methods for making Vajra Talismans, Cleansing Talismans, Crimson Flame Talismans, and Breath Concealing Talismans.

There are no methods for making rare talismans such as Escape Talisman, Concentration Talisman, and Formation Breaking Talisman.

Lu Qian has no immediate plans to learn how to make talismans, so he simply selected some common talisman traditions and imprinted them onto the prepared jade slips, which he can study in his spare time.

If this jade slip were to be circulated outside, it would certainly be considered a top-tier first-order inheritance, something that countless rogue cultivators would fight to the death for. But here, very few people would even glance at it.

If it weren't for the upcoming training mission, which would make it difficult for Lu Qian to return in the future, he probably wouldn't have bothered to look through these spiritual talisman inheritances.

Then, Lu Qian went straight to the area where the pill formulas were kept and quickly flipped through them again.

He had looked at all the common Qingling Pills, Peiyuan Pills, and Peiyuan Pills used in the later stages of Qi Refining. However, they were all common pill formulas, and the medicinal materials used were quite complicated, mostly common medicinal materials in the cultivation world of the East Sea.

For example, one of the main ingredients of the Guyuan Pill requires the nine-leaf coral from the cultivation world of the East Sea to be ground into powder.

Coral is something that comes from the sea. Where will we find it once we dive deep into the western continent?

The only options are to find them in the cultivation world of the East Sea, or to buy them from merchants in the Western Continent at a high price. Obtaining Nine-Leaf Coral in the Western Continent would be very difficult.

Lu Qian was, after all, someone who had refined pills before, so he wasn't completely without a foundation. Naturally, he could see this point. Moreover, many pills required spiritual spring water as a base, which was somewhat difficult to achieve.

The Western Continent is teeming with poisonous insects and rife with miasma. Finding poisonous water shouldn't be too difficult, but finding a spiritual spring would be a bit challenging.

Even if such a thing existed, it would surely be occupied by powerful cultivators or demonic beasts. How could Lu Qian, a Qi Refining cultivator, possibly obtain one?

I'm afraid I'll still have to buy it, and the goods transported from the East China Sea cultivation world won't be cheap at all.

"The Western Continent is a place favored by evil spirits and heretics. Of course, your orthodox alchemical formulas won't work."

A clear voice suddenly rang out, tinged with a hint of mockery, "Many people believe that medicinal formulas cannot be altered and procedures cannot be changed. This is mostly the thinking of mediocre people. The properties of medicine can vary infinitely; as long as the potency remains the same, what else matters?"

"I've always believed that alchemy should be adapted to local conditions. What do you think?"

Lu Qian raised his head and glanced at the other person. The one who spoke was Yun Shanchuan, who had a smile on his face and was wearing a gray robe. He looked like a student from a rural school, not at all like a genius disciple from the Holy Land.

When he first arrived, Lu Qian noticed the other person, but he was too lazy to talk to him. He didn't expect Yun Shanchuan to come over in public, not afraid of being seen by others at all.

If their dirty secrets were revealed, they would at least be guilty of withholding information, but Yun Shanchuan seemed completely unconcerned about the consequences, which shows that he is quite self-centered.

According to rumors, Yun Shanchuan is a rather low-key person, but his decision to pursue both alchemy and array cultivation despite advice reveals that he is actually quite stubborn, or even arrogant.

Even geniuses of similar talent to Yun Shanchuan diligently hone their cultivation, and rarely do they get distracted like Yun Shanchuan.

Lu Qian could roughly guess what the other party was thinking. Because he had shown his talent too early, everything came too easily, so he wanted to show his personality and treat the world as a game.

However, no matter what kind of person you are, it is difficult to control the whole situation. There will always be some unexpected events that are beyond human control, and then you can only leave it to fate.

Seeing that Lu Qian didn't intend to talk to him, Yun Shanchuan didn't press the matter further. He went to the place where the array formation books were kept, picked up a book explaining ancient array formations, and began to read it.

After considering it for a while, Lu Qian felt that Yun Shanchuan's words made a lot of sense. In places like the Western Continent, orthodox alchemy formulas might not be of much use.

Even if it's just to be on the safe side, Lu Qian is prepared to look at more prescription formulas.

Yun Shanchuan is known as a master of both alchemy and formations. Regardless of how much hype there is in his reputation, he is still a young genius. Since he said so, it shouldn't be unfounded.

Thinking that Yun Shanchuan must have spent more time in the Sutra Repository than he had, Lu Qian naturally gained more confidence. After searching for several hours, he finally found a type of pill formula called the Heretical Alchemy Method in a corner.

The heretical path, also known as the evil path, is thus divided into demonic alchemy and evil alchemy. In short, neither is a proper path, but rather a deviant approach that uses poison to refine pills.

Some unorthodox alchemical formulas produce pills that are indistinguishable from poisons, forcibly stimulating the body's potential to achieve rapid results, but also causing those who take the pills to die young.

Some of these are also unorthodox alchemical formulas, using the same methods of refining poison to make medicine, but the final effect is even better than that of orthodox elixirs. This is a different path.

"Based on poison, guided by yin, and aided by evil..."

"Instead of using pure yang herbs, we exclusively use yin-cold, highly poisonous, and evil-natured medicinal herbs. Instead of removing their own poisonous and yin energy, we use alchemical principles to harmonize them, to control yin with yin, and to nourish with poison, transforming the potent toxins and evil yin energy into positive medicinal power that strengthens the foundation, stabilizes the spirit and soul, and tempers the body..."

The main ingredients in the formulas of unorthodox alchemy methods are mostly poisonous herbs and fruits, such as bone-rotting flowers and soul-severing vines, which are enough to be used directly as poisons, but they can be used to refine pills, and even pills for cultivation.

"However, these are all unorthodox alchemy methods. Demonic alchemy methods and evil alchemy methods are also different."

"The pills produced by the demonic alchemy method are all potent, effective, and quick to produce, but they do not take the future into consideration. They have a strong sense of short-sightedness and will leave many hidden dangers, which will not be conducive to the future path of cultivation."

"In the treacherous and dog-eat-dog world of the demonic path, there is indeed no need to consider the future, because it is hard to say whether we can even survive today. This demonic alchemy method is just in time."

As Lu Qian looked at the formulas, he analyzed them. These formulas did not appear out of thin air, and they did not seem to be the work of the cultivation world in the East Sea. He suspected that the Holy Land had long coveted the Western Continent and had collected these inheritances.

"As for the unorthodox alchemy method, the selection of materials and techniques are relatively milder than the demonic alchemy method. The key is that it has a deep understanding of pharmacology and can turn waste into treasure. Its efficacy is better than the pills popular on the market. However, it is too niche. Both the spiritual materials and the techniques are a bit strange and different from the orthodox alchemy method."

The heretical alchemy methods are not all created by evil cultivators. Rather, many unaffiliated practitioners engage in practices that are neither purely righteous nor purely evil, hence the term "heretical" or "heretical." This is how the heretical alchemy methods got their name.

Because they are different from the orthodox sects, rogue cultivators are naturally considered to be of the evil path. In reality, they are not necessarily that evil. Those who can survive even if they are called evil by sects are almost all geniuses among rogue cultivators, and it is not surprising that they can create some pill formulas.

Especially those independent cultivators with names and identities, who can still make a name for themselves despite the sect's overt and covert suppression, must have some skills, and most of them have one or two unique techniques.

After a brief moment of surprise, Lu Qian quickly began searching among them and soon found the pill formula he needed.

"The Corpse Mushroom Blood Nourishing Pill nourishes the body's essence, maintains its foundation, gently heals hidden injuries, and can also be used to treat internal injuries..."

"The Myriad Poisons Qi Condensation Pill can enhance cultivation, the Taiyin Nourishing Pill replenishes qi and blood as well as the spirit and soul, and the Cold Fiend Cultivating Essence Pill can temper the meridians, break through bottlenecks, and neutralize the dryness and heat in qi and blood..."

The pill formulas he selected were all top-quality formulas from unorthodox sects, and they happened to be suitable for him.

If the effects are truly as good as the formula claims, and the pill can be successfully refined, Lu Qian's cultivation will undoubtedly improve even faster.

"These pills would be considered top-quality even in a sacred land, perhaps only slightly inferior to those on the battle merit list."

Lu Qian not only copied the few specially selected pill formulas, but also copied other unorthodox pill formulas that seemed somewhat useful, just in case they might come in handy someday.

Having achieved his goal of coming to the Scripture Pavilion, Lu Qian originally intended to leave immediately, but then he suddenly remembered that he still had ten points of Daoist cultivation, so he stopped in his tracks.

"I don't know when I'll be able to come back again. Keeping these ten points of Dao cultivation isn't going to help. I'll see if I can exchange them for a useful secret technique!"