Clan Rise: Starting as a Grandfather

Chapter 1251: Chapter 819: Lotus Heart Valley (Part 2)

First, he occupied the Ancient Relic Array and gathered the herbs needed for the Foundation Establishment Pill from it.

Secondly, he also obtained the alchemy inheritance from the Ancient Relic Array, which came from the Ancient Sun True Sect. Although it was just a Second-Order alchemy inheritance, it was enough to make Yang Zhenshan a Second-Order Alchemist.

The last factor was the Golden Crow Eight Trigrams Furnace. Without this furnace, Yang Zhenshan could never refine a Foundation Establishment Pill; he would have to destroy at least dozens of furnaces before succeeding.

Therefore, Yang Zhenshan was not surprised that the value of a Foundation Establishment Pill was several tens of thousands of low-grade Spirit Stones.

Actually, what Yang Zhenshan does not know now is that the Foundation Establishment Pill is not only precious but is also an unattainable existence for Loose Cultivators.

Yang Zhenshan only considered the difficulty of refining the Foundation Establishment Pill, without considering the significance it represented.

With successful foundation establishment, one steps onto the path of immortality, no longer an ordinary person.

Foundation establishment is the first hurdle for Immortal Cultivators, and once you pass this hurdle, you are truly an Immortal Cultivator.

Countless Qi Refining Cultivators are willing to give up everything for a Foundation Establishment Pill, only seeking to step onto the path of immortality.

Danxuan Pavilion.

"Greetings, fellow cultivator!"

As Yang Zhenshan and Yu Qingyi entered Danxuan Pavilion, a young man at the Qi Refining Middle Stage came forward to greet them.

This person wore a black-and-blue robe adorned with the Wyrm pattern. The Wyrm resembles a four-legged lizard without a tail, dragon-headed and fish-bodied, commonly used for palace corners, ridges, and roofs. In the Qingli Dynasty, it symbolizes the royal Lin family.

"I am Lin Wanli. May I know what fellow cultivators need?"

Lin Wanli greeted them warmly while observing Yang Zhenshan and Yu Qingyi.

Yang Zhenshan and Yu Qingyi wore simple and unadorned black attire, appearing more like Martial Artists than Immortal Cultivators.

However, Lin Wanli could discern some clues, such as the fine Snow Silkworm silk satin their clothes were made of, which was meticulously crafted with tight and even stitches, showing no errors.

Just by looking at their clothing, one would know their origins were not simple, and since Snow Silkworm silk was unique to the Sea of Spirit, Lin Wanli naturally guessed they came from there.

It was not unusual for Martial Artists and Cultivators from the Sea of Spirit to come to Lotus Heart Valley; the Sea of Spirit’s Three Sects were prominent forces in this region.

"Do you have elixirs that enhance cultivation here?" Yang Zhenshan looked at the shelves behind the counter, filled with many porcelain bottles, each labeled.

"May I know what level of elixir you require?"

"Uh, late-stage Qi Refining!" Yang Zhenshan did not reveal his cultivation.

Upon hearing this, Lin Wanli promptly fetched a porcelain bottle, "This is a First-Order Mid-grade Jade Marrow Pill, ideal for late-stage Qi Refining!"

Yang Zhenshan opened the porcelain bottle and took a sniff; it was indeed a Jade Marrow Pill, but just of mid-grade!

"What’s the price?"

"Forty-eight Spirit Stones per pill!"

Yang Zhenshan nodded slightly; this price was close to his estimate.

"And for high-grade?"

"For high-grade, it would be one hundred and twenty Spirit Stones per pill! However, we currently have no stock. Fellow cultivator might need to wait for half a month if you require it!" Lin Wanli said.

Yang Zhenshan wasn’t looking to buy Jade Marrow Pills; he simply wanted to understand the market for Immortal Cultivation elixirs.

The Jade Marrow Pill price here was not much different from the valuation in the Clan Hall.

Since Yang Zhenshan included the Jade Marrow Pill in the merit exchange list, the Clan Hall had appraised them five years ago.

One point of merit equals one Spirit Stone.

According to the Clan Hall’s assessment, a low-grade Jade Marrow Pill is valued at twelve merit points, a mid-grade at thirty-six, and a high-grade at ninety-two.

The Clan Hall’s valuation is based on the cost of ingredients multiplied by two, six, and twelve, with the excess profit being Yang Zhenshan’s alchemy fee.

Yang Zhenshan needs none of these alchemy fees; such evaluations were preparations for the future.

Currently, Yang Zhenshan is the only Immortal Cultivation Alchemist in the Spirit Source Land, but other Immortal Cultivation Alchemists will surely emerge in the future.

Alchemists working for the Spirit Source Land shouldn’t work for free; the merits given should be abundant to encourage them to refine more elixirs.

The prices at Danxuan Pavilion are two or three times higher than the Clan Hall assessment, but their profits are certainly less because Yang Zhenshan’s pill yield rate greatly surpasses their alchemists.

An eighty percent yield rate with forty percent high-grade rate presents a stark difference.

Then, Yang Zhenshan inquired about the prices of other elixirs, bought a few he hadn’t seen before, and left Danxuan Pavilion.

Yang Zhenshan asked Luo San, "You mentioned an auction here earlier; how can I participate?"

Luo San replied, "The auction is hosted by the White Cloud Commerce every three years; the next one is in spring next year. Fellow cultivator can apply at the Feather Tower, which is part of the White Cloud Commerce group."

"White Cloud Commerce? Is it part of your Qingli Dynasty’s commerce?" Yang Zhenshan asked.

"No, White Cloud Commerce belongs to White Cloud Immortal City. It’s said to be the top Immortal City in the Wanhua Domain. Sadly, I haven’t visited since I’m not an Immortal Cultivator." Luo San explained.

Yang Zhenshan pondered.

White Cloud Commerce, White Cloud Immortal City, Wanhua Domain — he had heard of these for the first time.

"Is there a place selling maps around here?"

"Yes, Mountains Building sells maps of various regions in the Wanhua Domain."

"Let’s go buy a map." Yang Zhenshan thought he should first understand the world of Immortal Cultivation through maps.

Soon, they arrived at Mountains Building, where Yang Zhenshan was attended by a clerk and purchased a complete set of Wanhua Domain maps, not on paper but on a Jade Scroll.

As he guessed, their region was called the Wanhua Domain, but he hadn’t expected the Wanhua Domain to be so expansive.

The Wanhua Domain, also known as the Wanhua Mountain Domain, is a vast landmass over two hundred thousand miles wide from east to west and more than four hundred thousand miles long from north to south. The Wanhua Mountain Range runs from north to south across the entire continent, with the Yunxiao Mountains being just a branch of the Wanhua Mountains.

Yang Zhenshan also found the Stormy Sea Area on the map and the Ten Thousand Miles Sea Domain west of it.

The entire sea area west of the Stormy Sea Area was marked as the Spiritual Wilderness, with no detailed map, evidently regarded by Immortal Cultivators as barren and unworthy of attention.

As for White Cloud Immortal City, Yang Zhenshan located it northeast of the Qingli Dynasty, ten thousand miles away.

"This world is so vast?"

Yang Zhenshan looked at the Jade Scroll map, feeling like a country bumpkin.

He thought he had escaped the confines by moving from the Ten Thousand Miles Sea Domain to the Sea of Spirit, but in the Wanhua Domain, the Sea of Spirit was merely an outlying corner.

However, this seemed trivial for him; he still hadn’t fully understood the Sea of Spirit, not to mention the entire Wanhua Domain.

This map proved very useful; it was crafted for Immortal Cultivators, highlighting settlements and dangerous areas for them.

For instance, Cangyu Mountain deep in the Yunxiao Mountains, detailed with annotations and descriptions.

Cangyu Mountain is a residence of the Yun Que Clan, with the Yunxiao Mountains belonging entirely to them.

The larks are small, adept at wind control and flying, soaring above the Sky Cloud.

The Yun Que Clan has over a hundred Great Demons and three Demon Kings, being the overlords of Yunxiao Mountains.

Great Demons correspond to Foundation Establishment stage Immortal Cultivators, Demon Kings to Golden Core stage Immortal Cultivators.

The Yunxiao Mountains have three Demon Kings; after reading this part, Yang Zhenshan felt a bit terrified.

Earlier, he contemplated finding a place deep in the Yunxiao Mountains for the Spirit Source Land’s external resource base; now, it seemed like an overly ambitious idea.

Fortunately, he came to Lotus Heart Valley, obtaining this map, thereby uncovering the secrets of the Yunxiao Mountains and genuinely understanding them.

Not only the Yunxiao Mountains but also Nether Prison Sect and Hidden Sword Mountain — the map clearly marks their locations and explanations.

Information considered secret in the Sea of Spirit is readily available in Lotus Heart Valley.