The Eternal Saint of Alchemy

"Don't be greedy," he said. "Don't be greedy."

Xiao Fan sat down beside him and said, "The spiritual energy here is abundant, but you need to digest it slowly and don't rush to break through. First, master the last step of the basics."

Shen Xiaochuan nodded emphatically, closed his eyes again, and quietly began to cultivate.

Xiao Fan sat to the side observing his spiritual energy circulation and found that he was very cautious and steady when absorbing the spiritual energy in the pool of light. Each time he absorbed spiritual energy, it was within the range that his meridians could withstand.

On the other side, Old Lady He's training was also coming to an end. The other independent cultivators also awoke from their cultivation, each showing varying degrees of progress on their faces.

The oldest of the rogue cultivators sighed, "This pool of water can last at least six months. Why don't we note their location and come over in batches?"

Xiao Fan nodded and instructed him to record the exact location of the light pool and the method of entry into his notebook. Madam He then took a small bottle from the pool to conduct sample analysis.

As evening fell, the group packed their belongings, left the dark green square building, and headed towards the Stone Forest through the spiritual mist. Shen Xiaochuan followed closely behind; although he couldn't keep up with the others, he wasn't too far behind either.

Old Mrs. He walked to Xiao Fan's side and said softly, "This boy has a decent foundation, but he started too late. However, the cultivation environment is much better now than before, so he can definitely catch up."

Xiao Fan glanced at Shen Xiaochuan, who was struggling to keep up with the group, his shadow stretched long and thin by the setting sun. "Take your time."

After returning to the West Fire Gate, the old woman and other independent cultivators officially recorded the matter of the Light Pool in their respective sect's archives.

Xiao Fan placed the jade plate he took out of the light pool and the black token together. He found that the two items had been in the same bag for several days and had developed a subtle attraction to each other, like two magnets separated by a cloth.

He took out a disc from his waist token and placed it on the table. As he got closer to the disc, the golden patterns on the token became brighter and brighter, and the ancient characters in the center of the disc became deeper and deeper. The two auras gradually converged through the sensing of spiritual power.

Using the Thunderfire Token technique, he embedded the disc into a very shallow groove on the back of the token—the two fit together perfectly, changing the weight and texture of the token and giving it a warm and cool feel, as if filling a void.

The tokens were reassembled, and a new line of small text appeared on them: "In the far west, there are still Heavenly Ranks."

The words "Heavenly Rank" sounded like a phrase I heard when I met Elder Shen in Tingxiang Kingdom—above the Heavenly Rank, there are even higher realms.

He held the token in his hand, sensed it carefully, and confirmed that the token had a new connection with the West and was pointing to a more distant place.

He kept this discovery to himself for the time being and did not make a fuss. Instead, he took Shen Xiaochuan to the Pill Tower and let him cultivate diligently in a quiet courtyard next to Chen Yuan's library at the foot of the Pill Tower Mountain.

After Shen Xiaochuan settled down, the first letter arrived, in which he clearly explained the changes in his spiritual power after cultivating the Light Pool and his upcoming cultivation plan.

Over the next few days, Xiao Fan spent most of his time digesting his insights after advancing to the seventh rank and adapting to the token's influence on spiritual power.

Occasionally, I would go down the mountain to Chen Yuan's study to see how the "Taixu Collection" was being circulated.

The library became increasingly crowded, with some people even traveling from afar. They spent most of the day copying down a large amount of information before leaving satisfied.

Chen Yuan specially set up a room for reading "The Collection of the Great Void", and it was always packed.

In the autumn, Xiao Fan encountered two young cultivators from the far west at the library entrance. Both of them looked travel-worn and said they had been reading the "Tai Xu Collection" for the past two months.

When they recognized Xiao Fan, they were speechless and could only bow repeatedly. Xiao Fan told them that if they had any questions, they could write him a letter, and the two nodded happily.

He walked along the mountain path leading to Danta. The bright sunshine turned the trees on the mountain into golden-red hues. Wisps of smoke rose from the valley, and the voices, near and far, drifted in and out of the distance, carrying a hazy yet warm feeling.

Before winter arrived, the token once again exhibited a noticeable fluctuation of spiritual energy.

The pulse continued westward for nearly an hour before gradually subsiding. During that hour, Xiao Fan clearly felt an energy connection between the token and the distance, like an old road that had been relit.

He plans to go and take another look.

This time, he traveled light, without any personal belongings. Before leaving, he left a letter for Chen Yuan, containing all his research records on the Light Pool Space and the Emerald Disc, just in case.

He had traversed the desert several times and knew the landmarks along the way like the back of his hand. Half a month later, he returned to that black land, and the white beam of light on the stone monument was still clearly visible.

As he approached the square monument, the guardian spirit appeared once more. This time, the old man was much more solid than the previous two times, his face clearly visible, and a hint of admiration in his eyes.

"You have already taken the jade plate from the pool of light and embedded it into the token. In other words, you have completed the first half of the arrangement made by Taixu."

The old man looked at the token at Xiao Fan's waist and paused slightly. "Once you collect all the tokens, they will take you to the location of the relic left behind by the Great Void. That thing is not on this continent; to get there, you must pass through a spatial rift."

He pointed to the top of the stone tablet. "At midnight tonight, the pillar of light at the top of the tablet will temporarily disappear, and a temporary crack will appear at the base of the pillar. You can use the token to pass through the crack. On the other side of the crack..."

The old man's voice softened considerably. "They call it 'Heavenly Fire Plain'."

Xiao Fan raised his head and looked at the white light at the top of the square monument. The pillar of light remained firmly erect in the twilight, showing no signs of diminishing. But the old man's words reminded him of the "Heavenly Rank".

He thanked the guardian spirit, then retreated to the black earth and began to set up camp. The night wind blew from afar, carrying a dry, cold scent, and the stars overhead shone exceptionally brightly in this desolate wilderness far from human habitation.

As time passed, the white beam of light on the stone tablet began to narrow, and its color changed from bright white to a pale gold.

Where the beam of light meets the top of the monument, a dark slit appears, with wisps of light flowing out from its edges, as if a body of water is unfolding in the wind.

Xiao Fan stood up, held the token in his hand, and then walked to the square tablet.

As the distance drew closer, the gap widened, and the light that flowed through it became brighter and softer.

He took a deep breath and stepped into the crevice.