The Journey of Immortal Cultivation-Chapter 587 - 336: Baby
This Chi Ru fish had been dead for almost a month, its fatal wound being a large hole at the front of its chest. This hole was so large that it could fit Ning Xiaoxian lying sideways, clearly not a natural injury. The wound was irregularly shaped, not caused by a sharp weapon, and didn’t even seem like a blow from a blunt object, but rather resembled a hole left after corrosion. Moreover, on the body of the Chi Ru, this was the only wound. It seems that its opponent used just this one technique to kill it directly.
The Lake God’s internal organs were all intact, but its heart had shrunk to nearly half its size. Recalling the behavior of the Plague Seeds, Changtian deduced that this Chi Ru’s corpse was used as a cultivation vessel for the Plague Seeds, specifically cultivated inside the heart. Once the Plague Seeds mature, they take on the seed shape they saw. The medicine man from Xinghuang Village must have run into some misfortune, as he was precisely attached by one of the Plague Seeds – he had to pass through this Sky Lake when returning home from the mountains, and the Plague Seeds are naturally aggressive towards humans, evident from their recent collective attack on Tu Jin. 𝓯𝓻𝒆𝙚𝒘𝓮𝙗𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝒍.𝙘𝓸𝙢
Since the Lake God Chi Ru has died, its scales no longer have a deterrent effect on the fierce beasts and demons nearby, leading to many strange incidents around the village. Also, because the Plague Seeds grew within its body, that was what triggered the massive outbreak of the epidemic. All the abnormalities in Xinghuang Village can be explained up to this point.
But then, who killed the Chi Ru?
With little information at hand, after much speculation, no one had any clue. Ning Xiaoxian first put the Chi Ru into the God Demon Prison, handing it over to Changtian for processing. Besides the wound on the corpse that needed further examination, this ancient mutant demon was a treasure all over. Its fish skin was very tough, not even a Divine Weapon could scratch it; not to mention the fish meat, consuming it would prevent illness, what great medicinal value! If a mortal got a piece of this meat, they’d probably wake up laughing from their dreams. Only those who have lived with disease and spent years bedridden understand that the most precious things in this world are not gold, silver, or strange treasures, but health, being free from diseases and disasters.
Furthermore, a substance called "Fish Wax" remained in the intestines of the Chi Ru. This substance, similar to ambergris, was secreted by its intestines when it swallowed hard-shelled fish whole, sometimes injuring its gut, and this oily substance was the medicine that healed its wounds. Over time, this oily substance congealed into chunks, forming Fish Wax.
If used to make Soul-saving Incense, the results would be phenomenal, extending the life of a dying person from thirty minutes to about an hour. Moreover, if used to make fragrance, similar to Earth’s perfume, that scent would not disappoint...
And also the eyes of the Chi Ru. While some say all fish eyes are pearls, the eyes of the Chi Ru are truly genuine "tear pearls," when ground into powder, they are an important catalyst in many Ancient Elixir Recipes. With these wheel-sized treasures, many of Changtian’s recipes could be revived, among which the most famous elixir is the "Nine-Turned Rebirth Lotus." This elixir ranks among the Immortal Pills; whether cultivators or demons consume it, it forcefully compresses their cultivation and drops it to the next lower realm. If properly refined, a person could take this pill nine times in their lifetime, compressing their cultivation each time.
The purpose of compressing cultivation is only one—delaying the arrival of Heavenly Tribulation, to deepen one’s cultivation. It is said that during the Ancient Times, some Barbarian cultivators actually compressed their cultivation up to nine times. At that time, their cultivation was not far off from an Immortal’s after Crossing Tribulation, eventually facing the Seven Heavenly Tribulations effortlessly!
Heavenly Tribulation is the most dangerous threshold for all cultivators. If passed, the road ahead promises a minimum immortal life of ten thousand years; if failed, they perish along with their Dao, even the Divine Soul cannot escape. Quan Shifang’s master, Bai Qing, is also exerting all his efforts to compress his own cultivation, trying to gain more time before the arrival of Heavenly Tribulation. If he could obtain a few Nine-Turned Rebirth Lotuses, then delaying the Heavenly Tribulation for another hundred years should not be a problem. He’s only over three hundred years old now, seldom encountering equals among human cultivators below Heavenly Tribulation, and given another hundred years, how much further could his cultivation condense?
After dissecting these treasures from the Chi Ru, everyone somewhat understood why it chose to hide in the deep mountain lake, as it was practically a moving Treasure Vault. Who wouldn’t want to take its life? The saying "the innocent must suffer for the crimes of the guilty" sums it up perfectly.
