The Path of Immortality: Starts With Creating Water Bear Gu-Chapter 419: The Completion of Grand Thousand Wine

The black-robed man shook his head and said, "I am not an Insect Armor Master; I am a fourth-grade Artifact Refiner."

"I'm heading to the Radiant Moon Empire to participate in the Western Region Artifact Refining Tournament. Originally, this tournament is filled with monstrous geniuses, and I had no confidence in winning."

"But if I have this kind of metal to assist me, I think securing the championship is guaranteed."

Clenching his fists and standing tall, the black-robed man radiated strong confidence.

Hearing this, Long Xuan's expression turned strange.

Him? He actually thinks he can win the Western Region Artifact Refining Tournament?

This guy isn't even human—there's a high probability he's a spirit beast that has taken human form.

The fact that a spirit beast has learned human artifact refining techniques is already astonishing, yet it dares to boast about winning the championship and crushing all human artifact refiners? What audacity.

No matter how Long Xuan looked at it, he found it strange. Could a spirit beast really have a better artifact refining talent than humans? He found it hard to believe.

Since he had been running the Insect Armor shop, dealing with many customers, his information network was fairly extensive. He was aware that the Western Region Artifact Refining Tournament was being organized by the ten nations, led by the Radiant Moon Empire.

This tournament was on the same scale as the Alchemy Tournament held six months ago, attracting nearly all the artifact refiners in the Western Region. Many people from Sin City had already set off to watch the event.

Not only that, but he also heard that after the Artifact Refining Tournament, there would be a Western Region Formation Tournament, a Western Region Talisman-Crafting Tournament, and most shockingly, a Western Region Insect Armor Master Tournament.

This truly surprised him. Since when did his obscure craft become so important that it warranted a grand tournament spanning the entire Western Region?

With his mastery of the Eye of Heavenly Secret's Miniature Engraving Patterns, Formation Patterns, and Rune Patterns, if he didn't win these tournaments, it would be beyond unreasonable.

However, after some thought, Long Xuan decided to let the younger generation have their moment. He didn't need to show off—boasting too much only invites misfortune.

"You mean to say, you intend to melt down one of my shop's treasures for refining?"

Long Xuan raised an eyebrow. These alloy Insect Armors were his painstaking creations, and this spirit beast actually wanted to melt them down for refining? What a waste!

The black-robed man shook his head and smiled. "You're mistaken. I don’t want just one of your shop's treasures—I want all of them."

Hearing this, Long Xuan became wary. Did this spirit beast have thoughts of robbing him by force?

Sin City had strict rules forbidding murder and plundering, even for peak-stage Gu Kings. However, this creature was a spirit beast, unrestrained by human laws—why would it care?

As Long Xuan's thoughts raced, the black-robed man suddenly took out a pile of spiritual fruits from his storage ring and placed them on the table, laughing loudly. "Aren't you after Fire Spirit Fruits, Ice Spirit Fruits, and Wood Spirit Fruits?"

"I just happen to have all three. So, I'll take your shop’s treasures in exchange."

With that, the black-robed man eagerly picked up an Insect Armor, stroking it with great affection, his face brimming with excitement.

Long Xuan's expression froze. No wonder he had misunderstood—the three Earth-grade spiritual fruits had taken him half a year to search for, and he hadn’t found even one. Never in his wildest dreams did he expect this man—no, this beast—to possess all three.

Who exactly was this spirit beast? How could it be so wealthy? Could it be the ruler of an entire forest?

However, this beast clearly wasn't very bright. It didn't specify a quantity, meaning he only needed a single piece of each fruit.

Yet this foolish spirit beast had given him an entire pile of each! As expected, spirit beasts lacked human intelligence.

Fearing the spirit beast might change its mind, Long Xuan quickly collected all the spiritual fruits from the table.

Each fruit was fresh, seemingly just picked. If he removed the flesh and planted the seeds on his three attribute-based floating islands, he might be able to grow three Earth-grade spiritual fruit trees.

"Not bad! Not bad! This metal is truly excellent!"

The black-robed man gripped three Insect Armors tightly and, seeing that he couldn't even leave a scratch on them, burst into laughter. "I'm leaving now! If you ever find more of this metal, come to the Radiant Moon Empire’s Artifact Sect—I’ll pay a high price for it."

"To be honest, I also have Gold Spirit Fruits, Water Spirit Fruits, Earth Spirit Fruits, Wind Spirit Fruits, and Thunder Spirit Fruits—more than just a little."

With that, the black-robed man departed with the three alloy Insect Armors.

On the street, many demonic cultivators noticed someone taking away the three prized Insect Armors from Master Song’s shop. Their eyes flickered with greed, and they slowly followed him.

The spirit beast was still caressing the Insect Armors with fascination, unaware that a crowd of ill-intentioned people was trailing behind him.

Long Xuan shook his head. He wasn’t sure whether to be worried about the spirit beast’s intelligence or to pity the group of demonic cultivators behind it.

They had no idea what kind of existence they were about to rob.

"I never expected this spirit beast to have a sect. I thought it had merely stolen artifact refining techniques. Who in their right mind would accept a spirit beast as a disciple?"

Long Xuan’s eyes gleamed with deep thought.

"If this spirit beast can see the secret of my Insect Armors, then others might as well."

"It looks like I can’t keep this shop open anymore. Now that I’ve gathered the final three ingredients for Grand Thousand Wine, Master Song’s Insect Armor Shop must close permanently—and the identity of 'Master Song' will vanish forever."

With this decision in mind, Long Xuan shut the shop doors, stored all the items inside his storage ring, and left through the Sou Gu Hut.

Shortly after he left, the Sou Gu Hut was engulfed in flames and reduced to ashes...

...

Time flowed on, and in the blink of an eye, three months had passed.

On this day, it was finally time for the Grand Thousand Wine to be ready.

On the main island, Long Xuan lifted the lid of a wine jar, and instantly, an extremely rich fragrance of wine wafted out, quickly filling the entire space. He took a deep sniff of the aroma, his face showing a look of intoxication.

"So this is the Grand Thousand Wine brewed from the World Tree’s fruit? The aroma is indeed overwhelming—just a single whiff makes one feel drunk. What would happen if I took a sip? And what if it were distilled further?"

A smile appeared on Long Xuan’s lips. Unable to resist any longer, he scooped a small amount of wine with a ladle and poured half a cup. Taking a deep breath, he raised the cup and drank it all in one go.

As the Grand Thousand Wine entered his body, its mellow and rich flavor flowed from his tongue to his throat and then into his stomach. In an instant, his entire body felt warm and comfortable.

With just one cup, he felt an extraordinary sense of relaxation, as if his very soul was floating out of his body, soaring toward immortality.

The fragrance of the Grand Thousand Wine lingered in his mouth for a long time, its richness leaving him craving for more. It was, without a doubt, the most delicious wine he had ever tasted—nothing else came close.

Long Xuan forcefully suppressed the urge to drink another cup. Even without being distilled, this wine was incredibly potent. Half a cup was already his limit.

The immense energy contained in the World Tree’s fruit had all been infused into this fiery wine. Even with just half a cup, he felt as if he was on the verge of bursting apart.

He dared not drink more and immediately closed his eyes, focusing all his efforts on refining the medicinal power that had surged into his body.

The more heaven-defying a wine was, the more astonishing its effects would be. It was never just about indulgence. The World Tree itself was a miraculous existence—how could a wine brewed from its fruit be anything ordinary?

As he refined the immense medicinal power, Long Xuan finally came to understand the special effects of the Grand Thousand Wine.

Anyone who drank it could awaken the Fire Spirit Body, Ice Spirit Body, or Wood Spirit Body.

However, a certain quantity was required. A mere drop or two wouldn’t be enough, nor would half a cup. If the medicinal power wasn’t sufficient, the awakening would fail.

A wine that could awaken special physiques—this was truly heaven-defying! Long Xuan’s eyes gleamed with excitement, and his breathing quickened. The Grand Thousand Wine had not disappointed him.

Unfortunately, the Ten Absolute Physique was known as the strongest and most unique constitution in the world, rejecting all weaker physiques. For him, drinking the Grand Thousand Wine was merely an indulgence; it had no other effect.

That meant this entire jar of Grand Thousand Wine would be left for Little White.

With only three World Tree fruits used for brewing, how much Grand Thousand Wine could there really be? Once Little White finished drinking and completed its evolution, there likely wouldn’t be a single drop left for him.

Long Xuan let out a bitter laugh.

Since the Grand Thousand Wine was now ready, it was time for the next step—distillation.

Taking out his distillation tools, Long Xuan personally began the process of refining the Grand Thousand Wine.

After some time, the distillation was finally complete.

The refined Grand Thousand Wine had been condensed to the extreme. Its fragrance was now several times stronger than before—just smelling it was enough to make one feel intoxicated.

With a flushed face, Long Xuan pinched his nose tightly to prevent himself from passing out. Looking at the now severely reduced quantity of Grand Thousand Wine in the jar, he felt a deep sense of loss.

There was already so little Grand Thousand Wine, and after distillation, barely a few drops remained. He wasn’t even sure if it would be enough for Little White’s evolution.

Without further hesitation, he reached into the Insect Bag, pulled out the sleeping Little White, and threw it directly into the wine jar.

The moment Little White landed in the jar, it finally woke up from its slumber.

Instinctively, it flailed about, causing the wine to enter its mouth. The moment the extreme richness of the wine spread through its mouth, its eyes instantly lit up, as if it had discovered a whole new world.

This was an unparalleled divine wine—the most delicious drink it had ever tasted, without exception.

Even the distilled Four-Flavors Wine, which carried the tastes of sourness, sweetness, bitterness, and spiciness, was nowhere near as good as this.

Being a Wine Gu, it was naturally addicted to alcohol. Now, faced with such a rare and extraordinary wine, Little White was beyond thrilled and began drinking enthusiastically.

Before long, after only a few mouthfuls, its eyes rolled back, and it flipped onto its back, floating atop the wine.

Good heavens!

This Wine Gu, supposedly known for its legendary ability to never get drunk, had once again passed out from drinking!

How many times had this happened already?

Wine Gu were said to have the greatest alcohol tolerance in the world, never succumbing to intoxication.

Yet in his hands, this one had gotten drunk time and time again.

What a disgrace. Useless!

Shaking his head in exasperation, Long Xuan sealed the jar shut, leaving Little White to soak inside.

With the Grand Thousand Wine now successfully brewed and the Wine Gu’s evolution taken care of, Long Xuan could finally settle down for some rare cultivation.

In less than six months, the Radiant Moon Empire's Tea-Tasting and Wine-Tasting Grand Event would begin.

After these events concluded, the River God’s Secret Realm would be opened. Who knew how many Gu Kings with fallen cultivation realms would flood into the secret realm?

At his current cultivation level of mid-stage Spiritual Sea, he was still too weak—he wouldn’t even be worth mentioning in front of those Gu Kings.

Even with their realms suppressed, those Gu Kings would still be at the peak of the Spiritual Sea Realm. Facing such formidable beings, his only way to ensure his safety was to break through to the late-stage Spiritual Sea Realm.

Fighting opponents two realms above him was too risky. However, challenging those one realm above was still within his grasp—at the very least, he could guarantee he wouldn’t lose.

His top priority now was to break through to the late-stage Spiritual Sea Stage before the Tea-Tasting and Wine-Tasting Grand Event.

Time was pressing, and for once, even his main body—usually uninterested in cultivation—joined in the training…