Chapter 491: Gifting Pills to Ye Chonglou
Jiang Chen returned to the Rosy Valley after leaving Elder Yun Nie’s residence.
“Hello, senior brother Jiang Chen.”
“Senior brother Jiang Chen!”
The guards all greeted Jiang Chen with smiling faces when they saw him, without a hint of their former ornery attitudes. So the saying went, one did not reach out to slap a smiling face. Jiang Chen knew that these guards were all just eking out a life when they’d made things difficult for him before. The same went for why they were greeting him warmly now.They had to do this in order to survive.
He nodded without saying anything. That would suffice as a response. These people were acting this way likely because he had defeated Yan Hongtu, and he’d received Elder Yun Nie’s favor as his position rose accordingly.
Palace Head Dan Chi showed a preference for him, but obviously wouldn’t interfere with matters in the Rosy Valley. Elder Yun Nie was different. He’d gone to the level of shouting down another elder during a council meeting. When this news made the rounds, getting more embellished with the telling, it took on a completely different meaning.
Elder Yun Nie was blatantly favoring Jiang Chen. Who would dare not show respect to an honored guest of the Hallmaster of the Herbal Hall?
When Jiang Chen returned to the residence, he went into temporary closed door cultivation. He had yet to fully digest the gains from the wood spring. His physical body had been refined multiple times, greatly enhancing its original talent. The reforging from the Five Dragons Opening Heavens Pill in particular had reforged his potential to that of a “genius” level. Now that he’d been baptized in the wood spring, his potential had risen once again to that of “upper genius.”
Although his innate potential was still lower than those of the most perverse, most preeminent geniuses, the gap between him and that category had drastically decreased. “The gaps of bloodlines and physical body can likewise be decreased. Further, no one else in the Divine Abyss Continent will have the advantages that I possess.” Jiang Chen was filled with confidence. Ever since arriving at the Regal Pill Palace, his knowledge and understanding of this world had progressed, along with his confidence.
“The Sovereign Area, geniuses of the sky origin realm, Pill Battles of Mt. Rippling Mirage, Myriad Domain Hidden Dragon Rankings, the Myriad Grand Ceremony, the Paramount Realm….” All of these challenges started to ignite Jiang Chen’s fighting spirit. He knew that these challenges would be the trials by fire that would accelerate his growth. His current rate of improvement was already verging on the perverse, but he still wasn’t satisfied.
“Father left me that year with a letter and set out for the Upper Eight Realms alone. Although my cultivation level has entered the origin realm after a few years, I am still a ways off from the geniuses of the Upper Eight Realms. If I follow his steps now, father will surely be displeased.” Jiang Chen was worried about Jiang Feng, his father in this life. His father had given him so much support and care when he’d arrived in this life and won his wholehearted affection. Jiang Chen solemnly respected Jiang Feng’s loyalty and stoutheartedness.
“Sage realm… I must head for the Upper Eight Realms when I enter the sage realm. I must definitely spread my name throughout the Upper Eight Realms so that father knows I have not let him down.” Jiang Chen had originally felt that he would count as having made it once he entered the origin realm. But now it seemed that if he wanted to be able to say that he’d come into his strength in the Upper Eight Realms, the origin realm was far from enough. The sage realm was the absolute lowest possible starting point. He felt that his father would have no reason to disapprove if he entered the Upper Eight Realms after ascending to the sage realm. It was just that as the years passed, Jiang Chen grew fraught with worry for his father when he thought of the dangers in the Upper Eight Realms.
“Mm, time is of the essence. I can’t relax for a single day.” Jiang Chen began training again with an even firmer heart. Three days later, he emerged from his session.
Soon after he exited his session, Mu Gaoqi came to visit in high spirits. He was quite excited to see Jiang Chen. “Brother Chen, did you know that the Sovereign Area has released four new residences?”
Jiang Chen nodded. “Did you sign up for the competition?”
Mu Gaoqi nodded enthusiastically. “I’d actually missed out on the signup cutoff, but I went to see Elder Yun Nie. He knew that I’d out with you a while ago and agreed to put my name in. Brother Chen, there are two slots for pill geniuses this time. It’d be wonderful if both of us can make it into the Sovereign Area.”
Jiang Chen smiled, “Are you confident?”
Mu Gaoqi thought for a while. “I gave it some thought, and it occurred to me that my potential for pills is definitely comparable to the upper core disciples. Also, many pill geniuses are also martial dao geniuses, so they may go for the martial dao spots instead. Therefore, I still think that there’s hope.”
“Gaoqi, you have many good parts, but you tend to keep too low a profile sometimes. If you’re going to fight for something, pour everything you have into it and have confidence in yourself. You have an innate wood constitution and superb potential in pill dao. With the spirit pearl that I gifted to you, you’ll soon be able to control fire with more precision than ever before. And that is after discounting your baptism in the wood spring. If you still have no confidence after this, what else can we do?”
Mu Gaoqi laughed bashfully. He was cautious by nature, but actually was very confident in this time’s challenge for a spot in the Sovereign Area.
“It’s all thanks to Elder Yun Nie fighting for us this time.” Mu Gaoqi sighed.
“Make your preparations! I’ll see you in the Sovereign Area.” Jiang Chen said bracingly. He himself was now fully prepared and had consolidated his gains from the trip. Although he was but third level origin realm now, he was still immensely confident in competing for a position this time.
After he sent Mu Gaoqi on his way, he decided to pay Lordmaster Ye Chonglou a visit. Jiang Chen still had a particular regard for Ye Chonglou. If he had to identify a senior who’d helped him selflessly in the sixteen kingdom alliance, then it was most likely the elder whose vision was beyond the sixteen kingdoms.
“Jiang Chen! What brings you by today?” Ye Chonglou was delighted to see Jiang Chen. As an origin realm forefather in the Precious Tree Sect, he was here to look after the geniuses from the Precious Tree Sect. But in reality, there wasn’t much of a place for him in the vast Regal Pill Palace. If it wasn’t for consideration of the alliance, those in the Regal Pill Palace wouldn’t pay him much heed at all. It was a good thing that Palace Head Dan Chi had made his position clear, so no one went too far towards Ye Chonglou.
Even so, Ye Chonglou would still run into some poor attitudes every day, and sometimes even the occasional jeer. However, the lordmaster was open minded and knew that the Precious Tree Sect had overreached itself in being connected to the Regal Pill Palace, so he greeted all those sour words with a smiling face. But in the depths of his heart, he was still a bit depressed. He’d been a proud person for more than half his life. However, his cultivation level was really nothing in the Regal Pill Palace. Even an ordinary administrator in the Hall of Spring and Autumn was comparable to him.
Jiang Chen had a sharp eye and could tell from the lordmaster’s countenance that he wasn’t having an easy time of things here. “Lordmaster, are you unhappy here?”
Ye Chonglou sighed softly and began comforting Jiang Chen instead. “Jiang Chen, what part of the human heart have I not seen at my age? It’s nothing much. What does my situation matter if you young folk are doing fine?”
However, these weren’t Jiang Chen’s thoughts. The lordmaster had been a vaunted figure in the Skylaurel Kingdom and was used to wealth and respect. If he was subjected to eye rolls everyday here, how could he be at peace? “If the lordmaster is unhappy here, why not come with me to the Rosy Valley?”
Ye Chonglou waved his hand. “Forget it, this is the time that you rise above the masses. Don’t let this bit of matter from this old man affect your mentality. Jiang Chen, I’ve heard of your matters in the Rosy Valley. Very good! You’ve made a name for the disciples of the Precious Tree Sect in that fight with Yan Hongtu!”
Jiang Chen laughed heartily. He’d actually forgotten about that minor character. “Oh right, how are the others now?”
“Tang Hong is doing well, his rate of improvement is the fastest. Of the other three, Lian Canghai is more or less acceptable. Iron Dazhi and Xie Yufan have less exceptional potential, they likely will be unable to make it into the origin realm.” The lordmaster sighed lightly, obviously not thinking highly of the latter two’s future.
Jiang Chen nodded. “Without the supplementation of resources, all is as fleeting as the winds in martial dao cultivation. Of course, if their own foundation is insufficient, even the aid of pills would only given then a fifty-fifty chance of assailing the origin realm. I’ll think of something for them for making it to the origin realm, but the road after will be up to their own making.”
Apart from his brother Tang Hong, Jiang Chen really didn’t care about the others. But as fellow disciples of the same sect, if he had the ability to help them, he would be happy to do so. This would count as repayment of Lordmaster Ye Chonglou’s aid that year. “Oh right, lordmaster, here are a hundred upper rank Origin Fostering Pills. It should be enough for you to ascend to the earth origin realm.” Jiang Chen placed a flask in front of the lordmaster.
“Upper rank Origin Fostering Pills? A hundred of them?” Ye Chonglou was thrown into disarray and kept waving his hand. “Jiang Chen, how can I accept this? You’re now of the origin realm; you can use these pills. I’m just a pile of old bones with limited potential. It’d be a waste of all these pills. Where did you get so many pills in the first place? Did Palace Head Dan Chi give them to you?”
Ye Chonglou didn’t have much status in the Regal Pill Palace and so was unaware of the detailed intelligence about Jiang Chen.
Jiang Chen smiled, “I happened to complete a mission for Elder Yun Nie of the Herbal Hall. He awarded me a few upper rank pills. Lordmaster, accept them with ease. These pills will be useful!”
Ye Chonglou gave a long sigh, admiration and approval suffusing his eyes. “Jiang Chen, the greatest accomplishment in my life was to locate your sparkle in the mundane, and befriending a genius such as you. Otherwise, I would be doomed to toil in mediocrity and die in the Skylaurel Kingdom.”
Such was fate!
“Lordmaster, you don’t need to be polite with me. To be honest, if it wasn’t for your care, I wouldn’t have made it past the Iron family in the Skylaurel Kingdom.” Jiang Chen was one who deeply valued loyalty and his relationships. He would return the slightest bit of help that others offered him in spades. In addition, he wasn’t here to just give the lordmaster a few pills.
“Lordmaster, I have something even more important to give you apart from the Origin Fostering Pills. This item must be kept a secret, lest troubles rise without end.”
Ye Chonglou trembled slightly when he heard these words, a grave look in his eyes. Something that would make Jiang Chen voice these words was an incredible item indeed.