Who Let Him Cultivate?! (WX)-Chapter 221: Phoenix Blood Stone

On the streets, a group of men and women drew the attention of passers-by. The two women, one mature and the other younger, were particularly striking. Each radiated the unique charm of her age, as if embodying the peak of their respective stages of life, stirring the imaginations of those around them.

The one who drew the most envy was the man walking between the other two women. Despite his nondescript appearance and mere Foundation Establishment cultivation, the older beauty was clinging to his arm.

Li Haoran kept his face devoid of expression. Don’t be fooled by how weak and delicate Su Yiren appears. She’s a bona fide Fusion cultivator. If she wants to cling to me, there’s no way I can break free.

He calmly turned his head to meet Su Yiren’s gaze. “I know you’re excited about strolling the streets with me, but please control your strength. This is the third time you’ve broken my arm.” Li Haoran swayed his arm a little to signify the severity of his injury.

Su Yiren hastily retrieved a healing pill from her storage ring and began setting his bones back in place.

At Su Yiren’s cultivation realm, she shouldn’t have lost control of her strength; Li Haoran could only attribute it to her being overly thrilled to be with him.

“Your bones broke, yet you didn’t even make a sound?” Qin Yanyan stared at Li Haoran in shock. Does this man not feel pain?

Li Haoran chuckled dryly. “Ever since I spent a year soaking in lava, I haven’t known what pain is.” Reminded of the time his master had thrown him into lava upon joining the sect, Li Haoran felt that he had survived due to pure luck.

“La-lava? Soak? A year?” Qin Yanyan’s eyes widened. Are you still human?

Li Haoran replied in a wistful tone. “Back when I first entered the lava, I screamed my lungs out because the pain was too unbearable for any human. By the end, my voice was hoarse, but it still hurt.

“My shifu didn’t allow anyone to help me and demanded that I endure it by myself. At that time, Senior Sister Zhou Lulu couldn’t bear to see me suffer and secretly snuck me a cup of water infused with rare natural treasures, saying that it could alleviate my situation.”

Upon trying to imagine what it was like soaking in lava, Qin Yanyan shuddered. She couldn’t help but ask, “Did it help you adapt to the lava faster?”

“It was century-old arhat fruit[1] water. She noticed that I had gone hoarse from yelling, so she brought it to soothe my throat.

Qin Yanyan, “...”

Ever since Lu Yang learned that Fifth Elder Zhou Xin had made Li Haoran soak in lava for a year, he no longer felt that Yun Zhi giving him a boiling water bath was any big deal.

That said, if Li Haoran hadn’t had a Fire Spirit Root, Fifth Elder wouldn’t have dared to toss him inside the lava. This was a training method unique to those with a Fire Spirit Root.

Each Single Spirit Root of the five elements had its exclusive cultivation method. For example, those with a Fire Spirit Root would soak in lava or get burned by fire, allowing them to comprehend spells or abilities related to fire. In Li Haoran’s case, he comprehended the art of refining artifacts.

Those with an Earth Spirit Root would be buried in the earth, enabling them to comprehend the Earth Escape Technique.

Those with a Water Spirit Root would comprehend the Water Control Technique.

However, there were also exceptions.

For instance, Lu Yang heard that Dai Bufan possessed a Water Spirit Root. First Elder had hurled him into a pool to prevent him from breathing, hoping that he would comprehend the Water Control Technique or water-breathing spells through this life-and-death situation. Unfortunately, things didn’t go according to one’s wishes. Dai Bufan comprehended a spatial spell and drank all the water from the pool.

“Good niece, see anything you like? Your uncle will buy it for you,” Meng Jingzhou teased Qin Yanyan. I might not have much of anything else, but I certainly have much money.

When Qin Yanyan heard Meng Jingzhou calling herself “niece,” she stomped her feet furiously but couldn’t do anything about it.

“What is this?” Qin Yanyan tried to shift the topic and randomly pointed to stones peddled at the roadside.

The stones were blood-red, bright, and lustrous as if they were naturally formed, refracting mesmerizing rays under the sun.

“Oh, this? They’re Phoenix Blood Stones, a specialty of Luofeng Commandery.”

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“Phoenix Blood Stone?” Everyone present, except Su Yiren, had never heard of such a stone.

Li Haoran explained, “You probably have heard of the history of Luofeng Commandery. It is said that a long long time ago, there was a pure-blooded phoenix that freely soared through the heavens and earth. However, it grew too old and could no longer fly, so it found a place to rest. It planned to sleep for a while, but it never woke up.

“The bones and flesh of the old phoenix transformed into the hills of the land.” Li Haoran pointed to the almost imperceptible mountain range that surrounded Luofeng[2] Commandery in the distance. “Look at those mountains. Don’t they look like a phoenix?

“The old phoenix’s feathers morphed into the trees, which is why there are many red-colored vegetation on the hills. Its blood also stained the stones red, and those are the Phoenix Blood Stones we see now.”

Lu Yang thought to himself, Is this a phoenix or Pangu? [3]

“When I heard this story as a child, I thought it was just a legend. It wasn’t until I came to the Dao-Seeking Sect and my shifu taught me about refining artifacts that I realized that the Phoenix Blood Stones from my hometown were truly stained with the blood of the phoenix and that these stones were excellent materials for forging artifacts.”

“Phoenix, huh...” The Everlasting Immortal Fairy seemed to be reminded of something upon hearing the term again after a long time. “Back then, it wasn’t just Qilin but also the Dragon and Phoenix tribes that had individuals who could become immortals. At that time, two demon prodigies meticulously groomed by the Dragon and Phoenix tribes demonstrated unparalleled talent. Moreover, with the support of the two big clans, their chances of becoming immortals were very high.

“In contrast, Qilin was said to be the favored child of heaven and earth, but he had no actual foundation and was left to his own devices. Most demon tribes didn’t have any high hopes for him.

“Qilin once faced many formidable enemies, but none were his match. Defeating numerous opponents that should have been impossible for him, he rapidly rose within the demon race. The ideology of his Dao Fruit was very similar to that of the prodigies from the Dragon and Phoenix tribes. If he wanted to ascend to an immortal, a deadly battle would be inevitable.

“As Qilin carried great fortune, he took on two opponents at once and defeated the two prodigies, successfully proving himself and attaining a Dao Fruit. That was how he became the Qilin Immortal.”

Lu Yang asked, “Did the Qilin Immortal kill those two prodigies from the Dragon and Phoenix tribes?” Despite the Everlasting Immortal Fairy’s impassive tone, he could sense the underlying cruelty in it. Indeed, becoming an immortal is no playing house. The winner takes all, while the vanquished loses everything, including their lives.

“No, they got married.”

“Huh?”

“Demons admire the strong. After the prodigies lost to the Qilin Immortal, they fell in love with him. In the end, the three got married. I originally wanted to attend the Qilin Immortal’s wedding, but he said that I was too pretty and that my presence would overshadow them, so he didn’t let me go.

“What a pity. I was even planning to show off a little at the Qilin Immortal’s wedding.”

Lu Yang asked warily, “What were you planning to do?”

“Prepare the banquet, of course! Let me tell you, the Qilin Immortal and the other immortals can’t even tell grains apart. I’m the only one who could cook,” the Everlasting Immortal commented with disdain, finding the other immortals too disgraceful.

Lu Yang thought, It makes sense that the Qilin Immortal didn’t invite the Everlasting Immortal Fairy. He’d definitely invite lots of guests to the wedding. If the Everlasting Immortal Fairy were to be in charge of meal preparation, there might not be sufficient antidote for everyone.

The Everlasting Immortal Fairy continued, “Later, I thought that since it was a friend’s wedding after all, it wouldn’t be proper not to send a gift, so I gave them an immortal fruit that I had blessed. I even thoughtfully included a heartfelt message which wrote ‘For the Most Beautiful Demon.’

“I heard that this gift caused quite a commotion. That was probably because they had never seen such a precious gift before.”

Lu Yang fell silent for a few seconds before questioning, “How many immortal fruits did you give them?”

“One.”

Lu Yang let out a long sigh. “You really wish for the whole world to be in chaos, huh?”

“Ah? Why?”

1. Often referred to as “monk fruit,” “luohan fruit” or “luohan-guo,” it is commonly used in Traditional Chinese Medicine. It has plenty of health benefits, but it’s most well-known for its throat-soothing properties. ☜

2. Just a reminder that “Luofeng” means something like “descending phoenix” and sounds like a place where a phoenix chose to settle. ☜

3. This was explained in the thoughts section under an earlier chapter (Chapter 16), but basically, Pangu is the “first god” in Chinese creation myths, and various parts of his body formed the land. ☜