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"Brother Chen, your immense kindness will never be forgotten in my lifetime."
After receiving the pill recipe, Yan Jinye excitedly emptied all the spirit stones from her storage bag, her face alight with excitement.
Chen Mobai still wore a troubled expression.
As if he had suffered a great loss, he swept Yan Jinye's dozen or so medium-grade spirit stones and a pile of low-grade ones into his own storage bag.
"Sister, the price of this pill recipe means you must ponder and refine it alone; you must never pass it on to anyone else."
Chen Mobai gave a stern reminder, and as an insider, Yan Jinye immediately swore a solemn oath of the Dao heart.
Her master, Zhen Woyou, had done the same. Although he had received all the pill recipes from the Shenmu Sect, he could only ponder and speculate on them himself.
Therefore, if Yan Jinye wanted any pill recipes, she had to buy and trade for them herself.
In the Tianhe Realm, knowledge was this precious.
***
After sending off Yan Jinye, who was full of gains but empty of spirit stones and eager to ponder the newly acquired three pill recipes, Chen Mobai turned with a smile and picked up the jade box on the table.
Upon opening it, he saw a fist-sized fruit with a gray shell and a white streak.
This was the fruit of the Tree of Longevity.
As he picked up the fruit, Chen Mobai felt as though he was holding a mass of extremely dense and majestic energy.
According to the description of the Binary Rotation Technique, a white streak indicated it was a small fruit.
Perfectly suitable.
If he consumed it now, he could break through to the mid-stage of Foundation Establishment in a very short time.
But naturally, Chen Mobai wouldn't be so rash.
As long as the shell wasn't broken, the fruit could be preserved for a long time.
He placed the Tree of Longevity fruit back into the jade box, satisfied.
A towering building rises from the ground; having the first fruit was at least a good start.
If he could really collect a set of three fruits, then he would consider consuming them. If not, it would be like collecting a rare and exotic treasure.
However, now that he had the first fruit, he also had to start considering replenishing his lifespan.
Naturally, he wouldn't look for a solution in the Tianhe Realm.
The Chicheng Cave Heaven had a Lifespan Extension Academy, a university specializing in this field, and it seemed there was some event in the second half of the year that all universities in the cave heaven would participate in.
He could try to represent the Weaponry Dao Academy and exchange ideas with students from the Lifespan Extension Academy then.
It was a pity that Kong Feichen had gone to the Ascension Sect, otherwise, he could have asked him to consult relevant materials at the Medical Dao Palace.
However, the source of alchemy in the Immortal Gate was the Jumang Dao Academy. Perhaps he could also ask Qing Nv.
Thinking this, Chen Mobai left a message talisman for Zhuo Ming about his closed-door cultivation and once again sealed off the peak of Xiao Nanshan.
After obtaining the Tree of Longevity fruit from Yan Jinye, he had achieved his goal in the Tianhe Realm and could return to the Immortal Gate to busy himself with the matters he had considered.
Amidst a flash of silver light.
Chen Mobai opened his eyes, already back in the Wanbao Grotto.
He first called Qing Nv to deepen their friendship and also to ask if she was free at the end of the year.
He was about to run out of Qingmu Bamboo Spirit Dew and wanted to commission Qing Nv to refine two more batches.
Since Zhu fruits could only be exchanged with academic credits at the end of the year, he wanted to schedule Qing Nv's time in advance.
He also took the opportunity to inquire about replenishing his lifespan over the phone.
However, the call didn't go through, and he received an automated text message instead.
It turned out that Qing Nv recently felt that her opportunity had arrived, vaguely grasping the threads of the Dao, and had already begun her closed-door Foundation Establishment.
Not just Chen Mobai, but no one could reach her by phone.
After reading the message, Chen Mobai felt genuinely happy for Qing Nv.
After all, he didn't have many friends along the way.
And Qing Nv was one of his best friends.
If he really could form his Golden Core in the future, the friend who would likely still be by his side was Qing Nv, the one with the Heavenly Spirit Root.
【You will definitely succeed.】
After sending a text message, Chen Mobai left the Wanbao Grotto.
***
Since he couldn't rely on Qing Nv for the time being, Chen Mobai had another good brother, Wang Xingyu.
As the top alchemist of the 5012 class and a certified second-tier alchemist, he was a genuine genius.
Last year, it was Wang Xingyu who helped Chen Mobai select a high-quality Zhu fruit, and Qing Nv's successful refinement of the Qingmu Bamboo Spirit Dew owed him some credit.
However, thinking of the three bamboo fruits he had but not enough academic credits to exchange for three Zhu fruits at the end of the year, Chen Mobai felt a bit worried.
A second-tier Zhu fruit cost 20 academic credits each, and if he hadn't freeloaded ten semesters' worth of credits in the Sword Control Department this year, he probably could only exchange for one at the end of the year.
After flying out of the Wanbao Grotto, Chen Mobai immediately called Wang Xingyu.
"Old Chen, what a rare call?"
Wang Xingyu's surprised voice came through the phone.
"Brother, the merchant who grows bamboo has matured three bamboo fruits. Could you help me pick out three high-quality Zhu fruits?"
"No problem, but do you have enough credits?"
"Enough for two."
Wang Xingyu was a loyal friend. After ending the call, he immediately asked Chen Mobai to come to Building Three and took him to a Zhu fruit tree with thick, knotted branches and lush foliage.
On the thickest brown branch, there were three fiery red fruits that looked like red jade from afar, brimming with vitality.
"These three fruits are definitely of high quality."
Chen Mobai nodded and then asked Wang Xingyu if he was confident in refining Qingmu Bamboo Spirit Dew.
"I can refine it, but to say I'm fully confident would be lying to you. This thing is quite niche; unless a third-tier alchemist or a specialist takes on the task, the toxicity of the refined product is usually above the standard."
As good brothers, Wang Xingyu spoke honestly.
"What if I add Lingcui?"
"With that treasure, I could try, but there's still a fifty percent chance the toxicity will exceed the standard."
In other words, there wasn't much confidence.
Not as good as Qing Nv, who succeeded on her first attempt.
Chen Mobai silently compared the two in his mind.
But even if there was toxicity, as long as it wasn't too excessive, he wasn't afraid.
His newly refined Lamp Lighting Technique would have a use then.
"I happen to have some Lingcui on hand. Could you help refine it? Name your price."
Chen Mobai was always straightforward, discussing the matter on the spot.
"You have it? That's rare. Our instructor said it's to train our alchemy under extremely harsh conditions, and we hardly ever get Lingcui. Isn't it just that they're keeping our share for themselves?"
Wang Xingyu complained, seeming to imply that their alchemy instructors were not as close-knit with their students as those from other departments.
"By the way, where did you get your Lingcui? Isn't it supposed to be exclusively for our alchemy department each month?"
Chen Mobai listened and calmly gave the excuse he had prepared earlier.
"You know I'm from the Puppetry Department. Spirit stones, as a power source, often fail after being recharged too many times."
"That makes sense." Wang Xingyu nodded, thinking of Chen Mobai's bamboo fruits, and asked, "By the way, Old Chen, do you have a lot of Lingcui?"
Chen Mobai hesitated at this question.
He had more Lingcui than he could use.
The pill recipes from the Immortal Gate and the Lingcui from the Tianhe Realm were his inexhaustible treasures.
But wealth shouldn't be flaunted, even if the person across from him was a good brother, he still needed to keep some things reserved.
"I have some, but not much."
Hearing this, Wang Xingyu shook his head regretfully.
"If you had more, I could help you make connections."
"One of our senior alchemists exchanged for a Zhu fruit at the end of last year, intending to refine a Fire Yuan Pill. But because one of the key main ingredients was poorly cultivated by the merchant and didn't meet the efficacy standards, the Zhu fruit has been left unused."
"If you're willing to trade with Lingcui, he would definitely be interested."
After hearing this, Chen Mobai's tone changed.
"I don't have much on me, but my teacher has saved quite a bit."
"Director Che!?"
Chen Mobai's apprenticeship under Che Yucheng was known to everyone in their cohort.
Wang Xingyu didn't doubt it.
"Brother, you ask first. Zhu fruits can be preserved for a year or two after being picked. It's a win-win if I can take over and he can let go."
Chen Mobai's words made sense, and Wang Xingyu immediately made a call.
With both parties interested, a deal was quickly struck.
Pretending to have visited Che Yucheng's office, Chen Mobai handed over a bag full of Lingcui to Wang Xingyu, who, as the middleman, left confidently with the treasure.
Half an hour later, Chen Mobai looked at the Zhu fruit brought to him and was very satisfied.
This way, he wouldn't have to go without the medicine.
He could continue using Qingmu Bamboo Spirit Dew until the end of the year, then exchange for two more Zhu fruits, securing a year's supply.
However, with the two main ingredients secured, he still needed to go to the Tianhe Realm to buy the auxiliary ingredients.
Chen Mobai hadn't expected to get the Zhu fruit so quickly.
Having had one experience and having learned to identify medicinal materials this year, he could accurately translate the names of all twenty-four auxiliary ingredients into those used in the Tianhe Realm.
He entrusted this task to his eldest disciple, Liu Wenbo, who had just consolidated his Qi Refining ninth layer and confidently promised to complete the task within three days.
Soon, Chen Mobai handed over the two main ingredients and twenty-four auxiliary ingredients for a complete batch of Qingmu Bamboo Spirit Dew to Wang Xingyu.
As for the alchemy fee, under Wang Xingyu's strong insistence, it was changed from Good Deed to two pieces of Lingcui.
Chen Mobai wouldn't cheat his good brother. He gave three pieces of Lingcui on the spot, thrilling Wang Xingyu.
After completing this matter, Chen Mobai also brought a basket of fruit to visit his teacher, Che Yucheng.
***
Having stayed in the Wanbao Grotto for a long time, Chen Mobai hadn't attended his Puppetry class for a while, but fortunately, the knowledge was already his own and wouldn't be forgotten.
Che Yucheng had basically passed on all his puppetry techniques to Chen Mobai, and what was left was practice and crafting.
This was generally the case in the Immortal Gate.
After Foundation Establishment, due to the powerful divine consciousness, knowledge could generally be self-taught; the difference lay in whether one spent time diligently improving.
Chen Mobai felt a bit ashamed, busy honing his spells and indeed not paying much attention to puppetry.
But Che Yucheng didn't criticize him; after all, Chen Mobai had just established his foundation and had more than two hundred years ahead.
Generally, Foundation Establishment cultivators only turned to the hundred arts of cultivation when their cultivation hit a bottleneck and couldn't improve.
Although Che Yucheng didn't say it, Chen Mobai secretly resolved to practice puppetry when he had time.
"By the way, teacher, I heard there's some sort of Chicheng Cave Heaven University Alliance exchange at the end of the year?"
Chen Mobai inquired about the event he had learned of.
"Correct, are you interested?"
"I was thinking, since my Pure Yang Scroll is stuck at the peak of Qi Refining and I can't grasp the opportunity for Foundation Establishment, I thought about exchanging ideas with geniuses from other universities to see if I could get inspired."
In reality, he wanted to exchange ideas with a student from the Lifespan Extension Academy, but he couldn't reveal that he might need to consume his lifespan, so Chen Mobai didn't dare to be too explicit.
"This year's Chicheng Cave Heaven University Alliance exchange is a bit different; the Dao Academy might send some upperclassmen."
"What's different?"
Chen Mobai was a bit curious.
"It happens to be the six-thousand-year celebration of the establishment of Chicheng Cave Heaven, and some heavyweights from the Immortal Gate will come over. Besides our Weaponry Dao Academy, the other three major Dao academies might also send people to join the fun."
Hearing this, Chen Mobai felt it might be troublesome.
He thought it over and decided to give it a miss; after all, he hadn't collected all the Tree of Longevity fruits yet and could wait for the next session.
"However, since you're interested, as your teacher, I'll definitely arrange it for you. Don't worry, our academy's quota will definitely include you."
But to his surprise, Che Yucheng misunderstood that he really wanted to find an opportunity to grasp Foundation Establishment and took charge without hesitation.
At this point, if Chen Mobai refused, it would be more than just his own face he'd be slapping.
He could only grit his teeth and thank Che Yucheng with a forced smile.
After leaving the office, Chen Mobai, who had made things more complicated, felt a bit gloomy.
Thinking he hadn't contacted his good brothers for a while, he invited Ming Yihua and Yun Yangbing out for a drink.
Unfortunately, Ming Yihua didn't answer the phone.
It was only after calling Yun Yangbing that he learned Ming Yihua had also gone into closed-door Foundation Establishment.
Ever since mastering the Critical Technique, Ming Yihua had no other distractions and only thought about Foundation Establishment. Feeling that his spirit, energy, and essence were at their peak again, he plunged back into the cultivation room.
Chen Mobai knew the others from the Divine Transformation class, but he mostly interacted with Wang Xingyu, who had also turned off his phone to focus on refining Qingmu Bamboo Spirit Dew.
Thus, Chen Mobai could only drink with Yun Yangbing.
It was also an opportunity to ask about the technique of infusing arrays into the body.
He discovered that the Immortal Gate also had similar techniques.
"Look."
Yun Yangbing showed Chen Mobai his right little finger.
The nail was black, quite conspicuous.
"Did you get a manicure?"
"Nonsense, this is the technique of infusing arrays into the body. Because my cultivation is weak, I can only try out the Gathering Spirit Array in this spot. Don't underestimate my small fingernail; it can enhance a first-tier spirit vein to second-tier."
Hearing Yun Yangbing's explanation, Chen Mobai couldn't help but marvel.
The Immortal Gate truly had all kinds of cultivation systems.