章 19: Chapter 19

[Ding, congratulations to the host for acquiring the soul cultivation secret technique, 'Return to Origin,' from the ruins of the Great Thousand World.]

"Hiss," Xiao Se couldn't help but gasp when he heard the words 'soul cultivation secret technique.' "A technique that can temper the soul and enhance its power? And it comes from the Great Thousand World! Even a Dou Saint-level expert would be tempted to kill for something like this. Not to mention the alchemists."

Taking a deep breath, Xiao Se calmed his excitement and joy. A flash of gold appeared in his hand, and a jade bamboo slip materialized. Stroking the special runes carved on the surface, he smiled lightly. Pressing his thumb and forefinger together, the jade slip was crushed to powder.

A milky white light emerged from the shattered jade slip and transformed into a stream of information, flowing into Xiao Se's mind.

[Return to Origin: Strengthens the soul by communicating with the spiritual energy of heaven and earth.]

Feeling the new information in his mind, Xiao Se smiled in satisfaction. He sat cross-legged, forming the hand seals for cultivating the 'Return to Origin,' tempering his soul power, which was still not too strong.

Two hours later, Xiao Se slowly opened his eyes, stretching comfortably. Though his soul power hadn't significantly increased, his mental state was unprecedentedly clear, and his body felt full of energy.

"Longkui, come here," he called to Longkui, who was stitching nearby.

"Brother, what do you need me for?" Longkui looked up and saw that Xiao Se had exited his cultivation state. She immediately put away her embroidery tools and gracefully walked over, affectionately linking her arm with his, smiling.

Xiao Se gently pinched her smooth cheek and said with a smile, "I have a soul cultivation method for you. Try to see if you can cultivate it."

As he spoke, Xiao Se extended his forefinger and pressed it against Longkui's forehead, sending the cultivation method of the 'Return to Origin' into her mind with a release of soul power.

Longkui was momentarily stunned as the new and strange information flooded her mind. After a moment of daze, she regained her composure and sat cross-legged, closing her eyes while forming the same cultivation hand seals as Xiao Se had earlier.

A strange scene unfolded: blue light suddenly surrounded Longkui's body, spinning and forming a small whirlwind that spiraled around her.

Seeing this, Xiao Se smiled bitterly. "It seems like this 'Return to Origin' was more suited for Longkui all along, especially for those in a soul state."

Shaking his head in amazement, Xiao Se decided not to disturb her. He moved to another corner of the stone chamber, took out his medicine cauldron, and began concocting Foundation-Nurturing Spiritual Liquid.

Time passed, and soon it was the next morning.

Xiao Se opened his eyes and looked at the ten bottles of Foundation-Nurturing Spiritual Liquid neatly arranged in front of him, nodding in satisfaction. "I suppose I can now barely call myself a second-tier alchemist."

Yesterday afternoon, Longkui had entered a state of deep meditation. Xiao Se, having no desire to practice his combat techniques, stayed in the stone chamber to protect her while also refining pills.

When he ran out of Dou Qi or felt fatigued, he would sit down and alternate between cultivating both 'Flame Mantra' and 'Return to Origin' to recover his energy and soul power.

To his amazement, Xiao Se found that 'Flame Mantra' and 'Return to Origin' could be cultivated simultaneously. Furthermore, once 'Return to Origin' communicated with the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, the absorption rate of Dou Qi increased significantly. This discovery thrilled Xiao Se, as it was like having another cultivation cheat.

"Brother, the 'Return to Origin' you gave me is incredible! The soul power I used up to help you subdue the beast fire yesterday has fully recovered after just one night." Longkui suddenly opened her beautiful eyes, withdrew from her cultivation state, and excitedly leapt into Xiao Se's arms, her face glowing with joy.

Xiao Se nodded gently and stroked her head, smiling. "That's great. Let's head out."

"Okay," Longkui replied with a smile.

After leaving the stone chamber and cave, Xiao Se caught a fat fish from the waterfall's river, solving their breakfast problem. Then, he spent another two hours refining his body techniques and combat skills, bathed in the river, changed into fresh clothes, and headed toward the Mittel Auction House.

Miteer Auction House, Appraisal Room.

Guni, a second-tier alchemist of the Miteer Auction House, was now staring in awe, his old mouth slightly open, and his eyes fixed on the ten jade bottles in front of him, along with the hundreds of other bottles on the ground.

"The ten bottles on the table are Foundation-Nurturing Spiritual Liquid, no need to explain their effects. On the left side of the ground are 180 bottles of first-tier medicinal powder for stopping bleeding, and on the right side are 130 bottles of first-tier medicinal pills for healing injuries. I request the auction house to sell them for me. Both are for healing, with the injury pills being more versatile; they can either be crushed into powder for external wounds or taken internally to speed up the healing of internal injuries." A raspy voice snapped Guni out of his stupor.

The old man carefully picked up one of the jade bottles, sniffed it, and examined it with a silver needle. What he found left him utterly shocked. The ten bottles of Foundation-Nurturing Spiritual Liquid were of exceptionally high quality, far surpassing the one previously auctioned off by the Jia Lie Clan at an exorbitant price. Several bottles were even flawless.

Flawless—meaning without a trace of impurity, perfect.

Refining a second-tier elixir to a flawless level was something even third- or fourth-tier alchemists found challenging.

This meant the person in front of him was likely a third-tier or higher alchemist.

Taking a deep breath, Guni turned to Xiao Se with a look of reverence. "Sir, the quality of your ten bottles of Foundation-Nurturing Spiritual Liquid far surpasses the previous one. I suggest promoting them for three days before selling them. This way, your returns will be maximized. As for the healing medicines, our auction house is willing to buy them at 150 gold coins per bottle for the blood-stopping powder and 200 gold coins for the injury pills. Does that sound acceptable?"

Xiao Se was slightly surprised, his raspy voice replying, "Aren't you going to inspect them?"

As for the prices, Xiao Se had no objections. He vaguely remembered in the original novel that Yao Lao's Blood Clotting Powder sold for just over 100 gold coins per bottle, so 150 for the blood-stopping powder and 200 for the injury pills were already very generous offers.

"Haha... Of course I trust you," Guni laughed.

"How's the progress on the combat techniques I requested the auction house to collect?" Xiao Se asked, changing the subject.

"As soon as you left last time, I sent someone to the Mittel Auction House headquarters. They just arrived this morning, and I was wondering how to reach you." Guni clapped his hands as he spoke.

As soon as the sound of clapping fell, the door to the room creaked open. A woman in a red cheongsam, with an enchanting and graceful figure, entered slowly, carrying a silver tray.

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