The Path of Immortality: Starts With Creating Water Bear Gu-Chapter 416: The Tea Appreciation Gathering

"Could you explain this pill in detail, including any side effects?"

Shui Lao suppressed the joy in his heart and finally shifted his gaze away.

He remained calm, not losing his rationality over this pill. The more heaven-defying a pill was, the greater its limitations. Without fully understanding it, he wouldn't dare to take it recklessly.

"This pill is called the Bone-Regrowing Blood-Merging Pill. It can create a physical body out of nothing. However, this body is an embodiment of a spiritual herb and is extremely afraid of fire."

"Anyone who consumes this pill will have a lifelong weakness against fire. Other than that, there are no additional drawbacks."

As soon as Long Xuan finished speaking, Shui Lao couldn't help but say eagerly, "Such a side effect is acceptable. I'll just avoid provoking fire-attribute Gu cultivators of the same level in the future."

"How does the body created by this pill compare to my original one? What about its compatibility?"

Long Xuan answered truthfully, "The compatibility is naturally perfect. This pill has two modes. The first mode is direct consumption—once swallowed, the Bone-Regrowing Blood-Merging Pill will restore the consumer's body to exactly how it was before."

"The second mode, however, is truly heaven-defying. You can freely choose your aptitude, attributes, appearance, and physique..."

"And no matter what you choose, the compatibility between this body and your soul will always be perfect."

"However, I suggest you choose the first mode and swallow the Bone-Regrowing Blood-Merging Pill directly to restore your previous body as it was."

"Due to the pill’s grade limitations, the second mode has significant restrictions, and you likely won’t be able to select the highest-grade aptitude."

"Additionally, no matter what you choose, the body you obtain will not be at the peak Gu King realm. You will have to cultivate from the beginning."

"But starting over will come with no bottlenecks. As long as you have sufficient resources, it won't take you more than a few years to regain your former realm."

Hearing this, Shui Lao was still in shock. The fact that the second mode allowed one to freely design their own body was simply heaven-defying.

Wouldn't it be amazing if he could create a two-meter-tall body, become the most handsome man alive, and return to the youthful age of eighteen, with a perfect physique?

His original body was old and hideous—something he had despised for a long time.

A conflicted expression appeared on Shui Lao’s face.

Every advantage came with a drawback. While his original body had top-tier aptitude, it was undeniably old and decayed.

On the other hand, choosing a new body would grant him youth and strength, but due to the pill’s grade limitations, he wouldn't be able to freely select the highest-grade aptitude. This was a frustrating dilemma.

Finally, Shui Lao raised his head and asked:

"Can your Bone-Regrowing Blood-Merging Pill freely select special constitutions? Can it recreate my Heavenly Water Physique?"

Long Xuan shook his head and replied, "If it were a Twelve-Grade Bone-Regrowing Blood-Merging Pill, then yes—you could freely select everything, including the top ten most heaven-defying aptitudes."

"But this is only a fourth-grade Bone-Regrowing Blood-Merging Pill, so choosing a special constitution freely is impossible."

"If special constitutions could be freely chosen, the tribulation it would attract wouldn't just be a mere Reincarnation Thunder."

Hearing this, Shui Lao showed a look of disappointment. He sighed and said, "Since that’s the case, there’s nothing left to hesitate about. I choose the first mode—to restore my original body."

"Aptitude is the most important factor. If my body has to remain old, then so be it."

Long Xuan nodded. This was indeed the best choice.

If one were a talentless cultivator, then choosing the second mode would bring the greatest benefits.

However, for someone like Shui Lao, who possessed a rare top-tier aptitude, the first mode was undoubtedly the optimal choice. There was nothing to struggle over.

"I can give you the Bone-Regrowing Blood-Merging Pill at any time. Now, about my Heavenly Water..."

Before Long Xuan could finish, Shui Lao immediately interjected, "I can also give you the Heavenly Water at any time. But you’re just a Spiritual Sea Realm Gu Cultivator—you have no chance of subduing the Heavenly Water."

"Even I nearly lost my life to it. Do you really think that, as a mere Spiritual Sea Stage Gu Cultivator, you have the ability to control the Heavenly Water?"

"Don’t say I’m going back on my word. If I release the Heavenly Water Seed right now, it will kill you instantly."

Shui Lao spoke seriously, showing no signs of joking.

Hearing this, Long Xuan frowned. Shui Lao wasn’t wrong—at his current level, he indeed had no way of subduing the Heavenly Water.

Did this mean he had to wait until he reached the Gu King Realm to obtain it? That could take an indefinite amount of time.

After a moment of thought, Shui Lao continued, "I'll give you two choices:

"First, you wait until you break through to the Gu King Realm, then come find me again for the Heavenly Water."

"Second, we make another deal—I’ll assist you in devouring the Heavenly Water, but in exchange, you must kill Shui Wuqing for me."

"I'm extremely familiar with this Heavenly Water. With my help, you will have a very high chance of successfully subduing it."

"Other Spiritual Sea-stage Gu Cultivators would have no hope of doing this, but you are different. I can tell—you possess an undying body."

"Since you were able to subdue Heavenly Fire at the Spiritual Sea-stage, with my help, you should also be able to subdue the Heavenly Water at the same level."

"Of course, you won't succeed on your own. Without my assistance, you have zero chance of subduing the Heavenly Water at your current stage."

"The Heavenly Fire Seed you managed to devour was only a remnant seed, far weaker than my Heavenly Water."

Long Xuan wasn’t surprised that Shui Lao knew about his Heavenly Fire. The Heavenly Fire and Heavenly Water naturally repelled each other, and when in close proximity, they would sense one another.

Since he had sensed the Heavenly Water's power earlier, it was only natural that Shui Lao had detected the Heavenly Fire in him as well.

Long Xuan shook his head helplessly and said, "Come on, I’m just a Spiritual Sea-stage Gu Cultivator. Killing Shui Wuqing is only possible once I reach the Gu King Realm."

"And once I become a Gu King, I can simply choose the first option—taking the Heavenly Water on my own. Why would I need to kill Shui Wuqing for you?"

Shui Lao’s lips curled into a smile as he said, "I know that with your current cultivation level, it is impossible for you to kill Shui Wuqing. However, in one year, the He Clan of the Radiant Moon Empire will host both a Tea Tasting and a Wine Tasting event."

"These two events feature sacrificial ceremonies—one for wine and one for tea. The best wine and tea selected from the competitions will be offered as tributes to the two River Gods of the Poro River."

"One River God favors wine, while the other prefers tea. If the quality of both offerings is high enough to satisfy them, the River God's Secret Realm will open. Otherwise, if either of them is dissatisfied, the opportunity to access the secret realm will be lost."

"The River God's Secret Realm is filled with treasures, and the quantity of these treasures will depend on the quality of the tea and wine offerings. Once the secret realm is opened, all Gu cultivators who participated in the Tea and Wine Tasting events will enter to search for treasures."

"Although the secret realm has no cultivation level restrictions, it will suppress a Gu King’s cultivation down to the Spiritual Sea stage. Furthermore, all Gu insect carried by a Gu King will be forcibly reduced by one rank."

"If a Gu King and his Gu insect are simultaneously downgraded, he will be no stronger than an ordinary Spiritual Sea stage Gu cultivator."

Upon hearing this, Long Xuan immediately understood the implication before Shui Lao even finished speaking. It was not difficult to deduce that there was an eighty percent chance Shui Wuqing would enter the River God's Secret Realm. Once inside, where his cultivation would be suppressed, it would indeed be a perfect opportunity to kill him.

"But how can you be so sure that Shui Wuqing will definitely go? What if he decides not to?" Long Xuan asked immediately.

Shui Lao looked at him firmly and said with certainty, "He will go."

"The Shui Clan has a deep affinity for all things related to water. Their clan possesses an extensive collection of rare wines and teas, and their Gu cultivators specialize in brewing Wine Gu and Tea Gu. Shui Wuqing, in particular, is a master of both tea and wine. There is no way he would miss such a grand event."

"Once the River God's Secret Realm opens, he will definitely enter."

"Inside the secret realm, his cultivation and his Gu insect will be suppressed. That is our best chance to kill him."

A fierce glint flashed in Shui Lao's eyes as he openly released his killing intent. He said ruthlessly, "One year is enough for me to recover to the Spiritual Sea stage without any bottlenecks."

"Inside the secret realm, our cultivation levels will be the same. With the two of us working together, Shui Wuqing will have no chance of survival." Shui Lao clenched his fists.

Long Xuan glanced at him, deep in thought.

Whether Shui Wuqing lived or died was of no concern to him, but the Tea Tasting event that Shui Lao mentioned did interest him greatly. He had just decided to refine Tea Gu, and now, coincidentally, a Tea Tasting event had appeared.

According to Shui Lao, the higher the quality of the tea, the more likely it would be to open the River God's Secret Realm, and the treasures inside would also vary based on the tea's quality.

This meant that all participants in the Tea Tasting event would bring their best teas, making it a gathering of countless exceptional teas.

Even top-grade teas that were nearly impossible to find in the outside world might appear here.

The process of refining a Tea Gu involved tea insects consuming various spiritual teas, allowing them to transform into different types of Tea Gu with unique abilities.

Collecting different varieties of high-quality tea was crucial for refining Tea Gu, and there was no better place to gather such teas than the Tea Tasting event.

At that moment, Long Xuan made up his mind—regardless of whether he accepted Shui Lao’s deal or not, he was definitely going to attend the Tea Tasting event.

"I can join forces with you to deal with Shui Wuqing in the secret realm, but I have two conditions." Long Xuan looked at Shui Lao seriously.

"Speak!" Shui Lao smiled.

"First, you must help me subdue Heavenly Water before anything else. Second, I will only assist in killing Shui Wuqing if there is no risk involved."

"If at any point I sense danger or any unforeseen changes arise, I will withdraw immediately." Long Xuan stated firmly.

His proposal was clearly unfair—Shui Lao would have to help him subdue Heavenly Water first, and only a year later, when the River God's Secret Realm opened, would Long Xuan consider assisting in the ambush against Shui Wuqing.

And even then, whether he actually acted or not would be entirely up to him. If he decided there was risk involved, he could choose to do nothing.

Would Shui Lao agree to such a one-sided deal?

Shui Lao chuckled and said, "Of course. If danger arises and you choose to withdraw, that is only natural. If I were in your place, I would make the same decision."

"But don’t worry—no one understands Shui Wuqing better than I do. Life can only be lived once. If I weren’t absolutely confident, I wouldn’t make a move."

"I accept your conditions. If you have no other preparations to make, I can help you subdue Heavenly Water right away."

A wide smile spread across Shui Lao’s face. He was no fool—he knew that the deal was unfair to him.

However, he had his own plans. Those who possessed Heavy Water could sense one another. If he gave One-Yuan Heavy Water to someone else, Shui Wuqing would inevitably sense its presence. In his quest to complete his Heavy Water, Shui Wuqing would be forced to take action against whoever possessed the One-Yuan Heavy Water.

At that point, whether Long Xuan wanted to act or not would no longer be up to him.

Shui Lao smirked inwardly.

[TL: you all might remember it was One-Origin or Nine-Origin before, not One-Yuan or "Yuan" in this case. It didn't really mean ‘origin’ but In this context, "Yuan" (元) does not refer to "origin" (which it sometimes does in other contexts, like 元始 meaning "primordial" or "origin"). Instead, it represents a numerical or hierarchical level/weight]