MTLNOVEL Chapter 539: Yellow Millet
Luandu County, Qiluo Mountain City Divine Temple.
Chen Mu wandered around the Lock Dragon Well, looking with interest.
"How intriguing..."
The layout of the courtyard inside the Divine Statue Cave Heaven almost perfectly resembled the exterior of the City Divine Temple.
The well in the East Straddling Courtyard of the City Divine Temple was called Lock Dragon Well. A similarly positioned well existed in the Cave Heaven, named the Jade Dew Well.
There was no water in the Jade Dew Well, only Netherworld Jade Dew, which was the food of Yin Spirits.
Previously, he thought that the Lock Dragon Well was just an ordinary well, but now it seemed it was anything but ordinary.
With a thought, Chen Mu's Divine Thoughts projection leaped into the Lock Dragon Well.
The well opening wasn't big, but the area close to the water surface was as large as two living rooms, resembling an upside-down suona.
Below the water, it was pitch black, and the bottom was nowhere in sight. The surface was smooth, like a mirror. The bright moon in the sky reflected in it as if it was right before one's eyes.
At that moment, a black gourd was standing not far under the water.
The gourd stood upright in the center of the well, as if it was being held up by an invisible force. It didn't look like it was floating in the water but rather firmly placed on solid ground.
Chen Mu stared at the gourd with interest. Its surface was laced with patterns of silver threads, exuding a strange sense of beauty.
But as he watched, his gaze was drawn to the seemingly bottomless depths of the well, and the longer he looked, the more he felt an eerie sense of familiarity.
"Is this... the Bottomless Pool?!"
The Bottomless Netherworld Pool was a special Ghost Artifact that harnessed the power of the River of Oblivion. Due to different construction methods, its abilities varied. The Bottomless Pool required for the Ghost Gate, for instance, could refine the essence of Divine Demons and Monsters, assisting with the ability to teleport through the void.
"The City God Dojo was constructed by the Netherworld, so having a Bottomless Pool connected to the River of Oblivion isn't out of the question."
Chen Mu looked down, lost in thought as he stared at the black gourd.
Li Buxian was undoubtedly an expert of the Underworld God Transformation.
Yet, such an expert had stayed in the remote small county town of Luandu for three years.
Even before Chen Mu took on the mantle of Living God, Li Buxian had already begun guarding Qiluo Mountain.
Tired of worldly battles? Wishing for a pastoral retreat?
Nonsense!
Based on the information he had gathered before, although Underworld God Transformation Warriors couldn't live forever like Qi Cultivators, they could still extend their lifespans significantly, easily living up to a hundred and fifty or sixty years.
Li Buxian was at most under sixty, in the prime of life; how could he possibly retire to the countryside?
"This black gourd must be no ordinary item!"
Chen Mu's gaze turned towards Li Buxian's room.
When he had sent Sun Ke away, it was this troublesome old man who had blocked his path.
After giving him a thrashing and promptly fleeing, he didn't even have time to fight back.
"If that's the case..." Chen Mu squinted his eyes, once again showing a mischievous smile.
...
The next evening, at the base of the Cave Heaven Gate Tower.
Chen Mu lay in a rocking chair, staring at the gray wall in front of him.
"This wall seems to have gotten a bit taller and larger."
Before, in his attempts to leave the Divine Statue Cave Heaven, he was busy conducting experiments and, upon reaching Perfection in his Divine Orifice, only noticed obvious changes like the expansion of the Jade Seed. Other subtle changes to his body, such as his sense of smell and vision, he hadn't paid much attention to.
He had not expected that the familiar gray wall had also undergone some minor changes.
"It's not that the wall has become taller or bigger, but rather that my line of sight has become higher and farther."
"Before, it was like standing right at the base of the wall, looking forward, only able to see an area about a person's height in front of me."
"Now that my Divine Orifice has transformed, it's as if I have stepped back two to three paces, and my height has increased slightly, dramatically changing my field of vision."
Chen Mu observed the gray wall with interest, probing its top, bottom, left, and right.
"Interesting!"
"Is it because I've completed Condensing Aperture, and my vital energy and spirit have undergone a thorough transformation, that I can now see higher and farther?"
"If I complete Divine Orifice Refinement and forge my Daoist Foundation, will the true appearance of the gray wall unveil even more?" A sense of anticipation arose in Chen Mu's heart.
"Indeed, the only way forward is to continue Qi Cultivation and Cultivate Immortality."
Chen Mu chuckled, and after observing a while longer and discovering no further changes, he stopped looking.
There was still a lot of time ahead, and as his Cultivation improved, he would be able to see the full picture.
With a thought, the wall, which seemed further away, shot back close to him, and the Secret Technique entries, which seemed smaller due to the increased distance, became clear and visible once again.
Truthful Listening Technique: 9009/10000/Eighth Rank;
Point Ground into Steel: 280/10000/Third Rank;
Giant Spirit Divine: 1296/10000/Sixth Rank;
Lesser Frost Method: 3222/10000/First Rank;
Mechanical Technique: 7315/10000/Fifth Rank;
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Soul Capturing Return to Origin Technique: 8475/10000/Fourth Rank;
Heavenly Demon Armor: 6345/10000/Third Rank;
Ten Directions Hand: 3/10000/First Rank;
Kui Water Yin Thunder: 3361/10000/Third Rank;
Minor Tri-essence and Light Law Prohibition: 8806/10000;
Nine Cups Calculation Scripture: 8664/10000/Second Rank;
Spiritual Treasure Pivot Scripture: 8160/10000/Fourth Rank;
"I need to carefully plan how to proceed with my cultivation."
"The current priority is definitely the Spiritual Treasure Pivot Scripture, as it may very well become the key to breaking free from the restraints of Cave Heaven."
"I need to practice the Kui Water Yin Thunder as well."
Thinking back to Sun Jian's overpowering and domineering posture, his heart brimmed with anticipation.
If others were to act so arrogant before him, he would of course find it utterly distasteful, but if he could become the Overbearing Thunder and Lightning Method King himself, tsk!
The feeling of anticipation filled him to the brim.
As for the strength enhancement secret technique, Giant Spirit Divine...
That thing is good, it's just too brute and not refined enough for a cultivator.
"With your style, I can only afford to give you half a day at most," Chen Mu pursed his lips.
"The Truthful Listening Technique is nearing perfection; I can spend a bit more time diligently practicing it."
"Hm... should I pick another secret technique to serve as a leisure distraction?"
As he contemplated which secret technique to use as a pastime, Li Buxian's figure appeared on the water screen at the door, immediately drawing Chen Mu's gaze.
...
Qiluo Mountain City Divine Temple.
Li Buxian sent off the last worshipper, closed the main gate, and headed to the East Straddling Courtyard.
He looked up at the dimming sky and then went back to his room to fetch a chair, sitting at the doorway to watch the Lock Dragon Well at the center of the courtyard.
"Twelve years!"
"I've been stuck at the Seventh Rank of the Underworld God Transformation for a full twelve years; how many twelve years does one get in a lifetime!" Li Buxian's face was calm, but his eyes were filled with cold determination.
Born into poverty, he started his martial arts practice with Great Strength Divine Demon Transformation, a widely accessible but hard to master path. The higher one climbed, the harder it became.
To practice on his own was too slow; only with special medicinal soups could he cultivate rapidly.
"Oh, millet wine, oh millet wine, for your sake, I've been scheming for twelve years; you must be effective."
Millet wine was a secret of Lock Dragon Courtyard meant to strengthen Superior Fetal Divine Origin and reduce risks for the Underworld God Nine Transformations.
If one belonged to a great family, such resources would be naturally supplied by the clan. However, without any backing, he had to desperately fight and wage wars everywhere, earning a great deal of military merit, only to secure guarding the City Divine Temple for five years.
During this period, he could make use of the Lock Dragon Well to brew millet wine to aid his cultivation.
Unfortunately, since the Qiluo Mountain City Divine Temple was newly built, the conditions for brewing weren't met, forcing him to wait here for three years.
Only recently had the conditions become perfect, allowing him to start brewing and refining the millet wine.
To ensure success, he strictly followed the brewing steps. To minimize disturbances, he even dared not approach Lock Dragon Well for fear his own energy might interfere with the brewing process.
Time passed by every second in his memories until the moon reached the peak of the sky, and midnight approached.
Li Buxian took a deep breath and abruptly stood up.
"It's time!"
He took two steps to the edge of Lock Dragon Well and his right hand suddenly reached forward.
Like a rubber whip or a retractable rod, his right arm stretched out and rapidly reached down into Lock Dragon Well, but then his expression suddenly changed.
"Nothing?"
"How is that possible?"
He hurriedly stepped forward, leaning halfway over the well's edge, continuously groping and searching the well's depths.
"Where's the gourd?"
"Where did my millet gourd go?"
Li Buxian, flustered with anger, stood up, and with a leap, he plunged directly into Lock Dragon Well.
Meanwhile, Chen Mu, who had been watching from the side from beginning to end, had eyes curved like crescent moons from smiling.
"Jumping into the well? Heh..."
"Getting impatient, aren't we?" Chen Mu said with glee as he peered down the well.
"Who am I but the Living Netherworld God? How could I allow you to snatch ghosts from right under my eyelids?"
"Taking away your black gourd is purely doing my duty; there's not a single hint of personal vendetta in it whatsoever!"
Stay tuned for updates on My Virtual Library Empire
"Ahem... I'm doing all this to protect the Netherworld!"
"Ha ha!"
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