I Pick up a Lost Godhood-Chapter 44 - 42: Moistening Yin, Nourishing Yang

Lingyin Hall had solved half their problems in one fell swoop, which greatly reduced Zhang Xiaojiang’s pressure. A good start is half the battle, after all.

"Oh, right, I almost forgot. Little Jing, I had an unexpected find on this trip. I discovered a ruined immortal’s abode. There wasn’t much good stuff inside, but the Spirit Grass growing there was quite old. I took a look, and there’s probably enough to refine a batch of decent Strengthening Foundation and Nourishing Essence Pills."

Looking at the pile of Spirit Grass that Wang Meng took out, Hu Jing and Zhang Xiaopang were stunned once again. Even when she’d seen a pile of Spirit Stones, Hu Jing had never been this pleasantly surprised.

"Oh my god, this is hundred-year-old Dragon Beard Grass! This stuff is so hard to find!" Hu Jing’s face lit up with a brilliant smile. For a Pill Cultivator, what could possibly be more important than ingredients?

Every sect had to cultivate Pill Cultivators, but being a Pill Cultivator was also the most extravagant form of cultivation. A huge amount of treasures could be consumed with nothing to show for it, but without using good ingredients, you could never train a good Pill Cultivator.

This was why the Zhou Family held such a special status in the Holy Hall. No matter how much infighting there was, no one was willing to provoke the Zhou Family. Who doesn’t have a run of bad luck? You can be short on anything, but you can’t be short on Pills.

Besides, the Zhou Family also controlled several Pill Formulas that were famous throughout the Small Thousand World.

Suddenly, Hu Jing sighed. "We should give them to Master. She has a much higher chance of success. Such fine ingredients might just be wasted in my hands."

Wang Meng shook his head. "Little Jing, you couldn’t be more wrong. The most precious thing in this world is failure. The experience it brings is something no success can ever provide. This stuff is all external. One day, when you become a powerful Pill Cultivator, life will be better for the two of us. Right, Master Zhang?"

"That is one hundred percent correct! Jingjing, you should listen to Brother Meng. A master can open the door, but you have to walk the path yourself. You can’t rely on Elder Zhao your whole life, can you? I support you too!"

"You two troublemakers!"

That’s what she said, but in reality, the ever-composed Hu Jing was touched. She had never cared much for material possessions, which was why she was able to become friends with Wang Meng and Zhang Xiaojiang in the first place. There may be many who can endure hardship together, but how many can share prosperity?

It had been some time since they came to the Small Thousand World, and friends were still friends!

"Don’t worry. A mere batch of Strengthening Foundation and Nourishing Essence Pills won’t be enough to stop me!"

Wang Meng and Zhang Xiaojiang gave her a thumbs-up in unison. *This* was the Hu Jing they knew—the ever-confident Fairy!

This would be a crucial step forward for Hu Jing on her path as a Pill Cultivator.

In the Holy Hall’s Wind Cloud Pavilion, Zhang Liang had been pondering something for a while now. ’There’s something fishy going on here.’

Lingyin Hall had posted that controversial mission, but it was completed very quickly. Almost everyone thought Lingyin Hall was just being needlessly mysterious, but Zhang Liang didn’t think so.

While his own cultivation wasn’t anything to write home about, he had a knack for reading people. Li Tianyi was definitely not the kind of person to pull such stunts. He was a natural-born, domineering powerhouse.

If they weren’t just being mysterious, then they had truly found the person they were looking for. For the past few days, his buddies had been trying to dig up information at Lingyin Hall. Although Lingyin Hall was tight-lipped, he had still managed to find a few clues. The word was that they had found the person, but had reached some sort of secret agreement.

Zhang Liang was itching with curiosity. He didn’t practice cultivation to ascend and attain the Dao; he knew his own limits and that he wasn’t fated for it. But digging up the secrets of the powerful gave him an immense thrill. Moreover, these secrets could often be sold for a very good price, and he had made a small name for himself in his circle.

He had even established contact with major figures like Senior Sister Yang Ying and Senior Brother Liangyuan. Of course, these people wanted valuable intelligence, and as long as he delivered, they were never stingy.

He could satisfy his own curiosity, reap benefits, and get to know famous people. It was killing multiple birds with one stone, so why wouldn’t he do it?

He refused to believe that as long as this person was in the Holy Hall, they could escape his search.

Just then, on the Main Hall’s mission board, the seventh-ranked mission—the Double-headed Wind Thunder Roaring Python of the Thunder Pool—dimmed. Someone had completed it!

This drew a crowd of onlookers. ’Damn, am I seeing things? Who’s crazy enough to take on a monster like that?’

The crowd broke into a flurry of discussion. The Thunder Pool was a hellhole; who would willingly go there? And Snake Demons were known to be incredibly cunning, one of the types of creatures you just didn’t want to mess with.

Thunderlight Hall?

Zhang Liang suddenly chuckled. ’Even if you threw the entire Thunderlight Hall at it, it would probably only be enough for the Wind Thunder Roaring Python’s appetizer.’

Zhang Liang’s intuition told him that it was very likely the person Li Tianyi was looking for had made a move!

Excitement. Pure, unadulterated excitement!

’But I have no intention of going to Thunderlight Hall. Ten to one, this expert is from the Main Hall—perhaps an Elder, or even a new disciple of an Ancestral Master. Since the mission is done, they probably won’t stick around for long. Li Tianyi finished the ninth-ranked mission, and this person finished the seventh. Will they continue?’

’As long as one of them makes another move, I’ll be able to verify my theory!’

This gave Zhang Liang the thrill of being in the middle of a strategic battle.

Zhou Feng. An Elder of the Main Hall, the Pill Cultivator in whom the Zhou Family had placed their highest hopes for the next generation, and the designated successor of Elder Zhou Luodan.

"Elder Zhou, the Inner Core of the Wind Thunder Roaring Python you requested has been delivered."

A Pill Cultivator disciple stood respectfully outside the door. In the hearts of the disciples, Zhou Feng was second only to Ancestor Master Zhou Luodan. Moreover, Elder Zhou was the kindest of them all, always happy to help and guide everyone, unlike most Elders who looked down their noses at everyone.

"Just leave it there."

Zhou Feng wasn’t too excited. He had been trying to create this Pill Formula for over two years, but he had failed every single time. One of the ingredients was the Inner Core of a Snake Demon. It wasn’t that the Zhou Family lacked one; it was just that the Main Hall knew he needed it and posted the mission, killing two birds with one stone.

Zhou Feng was stubborn. Although the Ancestral Master had told him to give up, he refused. ’If I give up this time, doesn’t that mean I’ll just give up whenever I face a problem in the future? What’s the point of being a Pill Cultivator then?’

This Spirit Void Pill was from an Ancient Pill Formula that a disciple had stumbled upon. How could a Pill Zealot like Zhou Feng let it go? During his research, he discovered that it was a formula for a pill that could cure cultivation deviation. That made him even more determined not to give up, but every time he was just one step away from success, he would end in failure.

Any other Pill Cultivator would have given up long ago, but not Zhou Feng. Even the Ancestral Master couldn’t do anything about him.

’Heat control? Insufficient medicinal potency? Is the Pill Furnace too poor quality?’

’Over the years, he had eliminated almost every possibility, yet he still failed. Where exactly was he going wrong?’

Zhou Feng opened the jade vial. A thick wave of Elemental Qi washed over him, but it didn’t stir any particular feeling. In the past, he had acquired even stronger Inner Cores for his alchemy, but they were all useless.

"Hm... the smell... Huh? What is this scent?"

Zhou Feng looked closely and saw that inside the jade vial, there was a stalk of Fish Scale Grass and three slices of Snow Ginseng.

"Fish Scale Grass can expel Demon Qi, and Snow Ginseng can enhance the Yin supplement. Cultivation deviation requires supplementing Yin, but you must also restore Yang. The Yin nourishes, the Yang thrives..."

Zhou Feng murmured, "The Yin nourishes, the Yang thrives... The Yin nourishes, the Yang thrives... Yes! Yes! That’s it!"

(Been to a few more class reunions lately. Why is it that the first thing everyone says when they see me is: "Ah, you’ve gotten skinnier again!"... But I’ve clearly gained a jin... A whole jin!)