darknovel Chapter 37 The Ten-Thousand-Year Spirit Milk and the Soul-Nourishing Wood
Chapter 37 The Ten-Thousand-Year Spirit Milk and the Soul-Nourishing Wood
Following the faint sound of flowing water and the fragrance of herbs, Wang Tianlong walked along the winding corridor for about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn. The spiritual energy ahead became increasingly dense and pure, even forming a thin layer of spiritual mist.
He concealed all his presence, and like a falling leaf, silently drifted to the end of the corridor. Suddenly, a natural grotto appeared before him, not too large, yet brimming with spiritual energy.
In the center of the grotto, there was a spiritual spring with a diameter of about three zhang and a bottomless depth! The spring water was a deep blue color, and wisps of milky white spiritual mist were rising continuously from the depths of the spring, making the concentration of spiritual energy in the entire grotto reach an astonishing level. Even a breath of it would invigorate one's spirit.
However, what attracted Wang Tianlong's attention most was not the Spirit Eye Spring itself, but a naturally formed white jade groove at its center. Within the groove, about half a bowl of crystal-clear, milky-white liquid, exuding a rich fragrance and abundant spiritual energy, had gathered!
"Ten-thousand-year-old spiritual milk!" Wang Tianlong was shocked, and a hint of surprise flashed in his eyes.
This substance is the essence of heaven and earth's spiritual energy, taking ten thousand years to form even a single drop. For cultivators, it is an unparalleled sacred item for restoring mana! Especially for Nascent Soul cultivators, whose mana is as vast as the sea, ordinary qi-restoring pills have little effect. But this ten-thousand-year-old spiritual milk, just one drop, can restore about one-tenth of a Nascent Soul cultivator's mana in an instant! The amount in the groove before him is roughly estimated to be no less than a hundred drops, enough for him to recover more than ten times in a short period of time! In the perilous and fiercely competitive Void Heaven Palace, this is tantamount to having a dozen extra lives!
Wang Tianlong suppressed his excitement and carefully scanned every corner of the grotto with his divine sense. After confirming that there were no other living beings or hidden restrictions, he cautiously stepped forward. He took out a mutton-fat jade bottle that he had prepared beforehand, engraved with spirit-sealing runes, and gently collected every last drop of the ten-thousand-year-old spiritual milk from the groove. The jade bottle felt slightly heavy in his hand, and its inner spiritual light flowed, its value immeasurable.
After collecting the spiritual milk, Wang Tianlong's gaze returned to the Spirit Eye Spring. Such a rich spring, if it could be moved entirely, would have countless uses, both for opening cave dwellings and nourishing spiritual herbs. He attempted to probe the spring's foundation with his divine sense and cast a probing spell.
However, when the incantation touched the edge of the spring, a gentle yet incredibly resilient invisible barrier quietly emerged, gently repelling his power. At the same time, he felt that the entire spring, the spiritual veins below, and even the surrounding stone cave walls were all perfectly integrated, as if they had grown there naturally and were closely connected to the origin of this space.
"As expected... such a spiritual object cannot be moved so easily." Wang Tianlong shook his head, giving up the idea of taking the Spirit Eye Spring. The mountain and river spiritual veins within this Void Heaven Palace are self-contained, and this spiritual spring is one of the core nodes. Forcibly taking it would likely trigger a backlash from the entire space, resulting in more harm than good.
Just as he was feeling a little regretful and preparing to turn away, his gaze inadvertently fell upon the dark corner of the Spirit Eye Spring near the rock wall.
In the damp crevices of the rocks, nourished by the spring water, grew a strange little tree, no more than three feet tall, its body jet black and glossy, its branches and leaves displaying a warm, white jade-like luster! The little tree stood quietly, its branches and leaves moving without wind, emitting a strange and refreshing fragrance that could soothe the soul.
"This is... a ten-thousand-year-old Soul-Nourishing Wood?!" Wang Tianlong's pupils shrank, and his breath caught in his throat!
Soul-Nourishing Wood is a top-tier spiritual wood that nourishes the soul and tempers the spirit, making it incredibly precious to cultivators. The one before them, judging from its color, shape, and the Daoist aura it exudes, has clearly grown for over ten thousand years! Its value might even surpass those hundred-odd drops of ten-thousand-year-old spiritual milk! Especially for a cultivator like Wang Tianlong, with his powerful spiritual sense and the cultivation of the *Spirit-Nourishing Technique*, if this material could be refined or crafted into a magic weapon, it would provide unimaginable benefits to the nourishment and strengthening of his soul!
Unexpectedly, such a treasure is hidden beside this Spirit Eye Spring! It seems that there are indeed many opportunities within this Void Heaven Palace, but careful exploration is required to discover them.
Wang Tianlong took a deep breath, suppressing his overwhelming joy. He first carefully examined the area around the Soul-Nourishing Wood to confirm that there were no protective restrictions (perhaps this wood grew naturally by relying on the nourishment of the Spirit Eye Spring), and then cautiously stepped forward, preparing to collect this unexpected treasure as well.
Just as Wang Tianlong's fingers were about to touch the dark, warm branches of the ancient Soul-Nourishing Tree—
"hiss--!"
A sharp screech, sharp enough to pierce the soul, rang out without warning from the shadows of the rock crevice beneath the Soul-Nourishing Wood!
Immediately afterwards, a thin, almost transparent shadow shot out from the shadow of the Soul-Nourishing Tree's roots with lightning speed, heading straight for Wang Tianlong's face!
The phantom was incredibly fast and completely silent. Only when it was right in front of him did Wang Tianlong, with the powerful spiritual sense of a Nascent Soul cultivator, manage to detect the barely perceptible spatial fluctuations and the chilling, deathly impact on his soul!
"A demonic soul?!" A warning screamed in Wang Tianlong's heart. In the nick of time, he had no time to cast any spells. Relying on the instinctive reaction of the "Wind-Treading Technique," his body, like a willow catkin blown by the wind, strangely drifted back three feet!
"laugh!"
The transparent phantom grazed past his nose, the chilling wind it stirred sending a shiver down his spine. Missing its target, the phantom made an extremely strange turn in mid-air, then silently shot forward again, this time aiming for his brow and the sea of consciousness!
Only then did Wang Tianlong see the attacker's true form—it resembled a slender, transparent snake, but had no physical form, consisting entirely of a highly condensed Yin energy. Its eyes were two eerie green flames, radiating an endless thirst for and malice towards the souls of living beings.
"A Soul-Devouring Yin Spirit? And at least one that has devoured countless souls and reached the Nascent Soul stage!" Wang Tianlong instantly recognized this troublesome creature. This thing is formless and intangible, specializing in attacking the soul. Physical attacks are almost ineffective against it. It moves like lightning and has extremely strong stealth capabilities. It often lives alongside spiritual objects of heaven and earth that nourish the soul, such as Soul-Nourishing Wood. It is both a guardian and a covetous creature, feeding on the souls of living beings that come near it.
No wonder my divine sense didn't detect anything unusual earlier; this thing is almost completely integrated with the shadow and the aura of the Soul-Nourishing Wood!
Seeing the Soul-Devouring Yin Spirit pounce again, aiming straight for the vitals of the soul, Wang Tianlong's eyes turned cold. If it were an ordinary cultivator, facing this sneak attack specifically designed to counter the soul, they would likely have already fallen victim. But Wang Tianlong had cultivated the "Spirit-Nourishing Technique," and his spiritual sense far surpassed that of cultivators of the same level!
"Hmph! You're asking for it!"
With a thought, the vast power of his divine consciousness instantly condensed in his sea of consciousness, transforming into an invisible yet incredibly refined spike—the Spirit Spike!
There was no dazzling light, no earth-shattering momentum, only a pure and sharp spiritual impact, fiercely stabbing towards the oncoming soul-devouring yin spirit!
"puff!"
It sounded like a bubble being popped.
The menacing soul-devouring spirit was struck head-on by the "spiritual thorn." Its transparent body stiffened abruptly, emitting a silent, mournful scream (a fluctuation at the level of divine consciousness). Its emerald-fire eyes dimmed instantly, and its entire soul body twisted and fluctuated violently like a punctured balloon, its aura plummeting!
It clearly hadn't expected that the soul attack from its "prey" would be so fierce!
Strike while the iron is hot! Wang Tianlong showed no mercy. Taking advantage of the moment when the Soul-Devouring Yin Spirit was injured, stiff, and its soul unstable, he joined his left fingers like a sword, gathering a wisp of pure wind spirit power at his fingertips (though it had limited damage to the soul, it could still interfere), while his right hand silently summoned the newly acquired imitation spiritual treasure—the Four Flames Fan! Although not fully refined, this fan contained four kinds of extremely yang flames, including the Earth Lung Fire Essence, which had a natural restraint on Yin spirits and ghosts!
"Wind Bind!" He pointed with his left hand, and a condensed wind rope wrapped around it. Although it could not completely bind the formless soul, it greatly slowed down its movements.
Immediately afterwards, he gently fanned the four-flame fan in his right hand toward the distorted, transparent soul shadow! Although not fully refined, this fan contained four kinds of extremely yang flames, including the essence of earth lung fire, which had a natural restraint on yin spirits and ghosts!
"Screech—!" A piercing scream (this time even the air itself seemed to vibrate) echoed throughout the cave!
The four kinds of supreme yang flames were like boiling oil poured on snow for a pure yin soul like the Soul Devouring Yin Spirit! Its soul melted and evaporated at a speed visible to the naked eye. Its emerald eyes were completely extinguished, and finally it turned into a wisp of green smoke, dissipating into the rich spiritual energy, leaving only a crystal-clear soul bead the size of a grain of rice, which fell to the side of the spiritual spring with a "ding".
Wang Tianlong breathed a sigh of relief and wiped away non-existent cold sweat from his forehead. The Soul-Devouring Yin Spirit's sneak attack was too sudden; if it weren't for his strong divine sense and quick reaction, he probably would have really suffered a loss.
He stepped forward and picked up the Soul Bead. This item was the core essence of a Nascent Soul level Soul Devouring Yin Spirit, a rare material for cultivating divine sense or crafting related magical artifacts.
After putting away the Soul Pearl, Wang Tianlong turned his gaze back to the unharmed ten-thousand-year-old Soul-Nourishing Tree. Having just experienced a close call, he was even more cautious. He first used his divine sense to carefully scan the Soul-Nourishing Tree and the surrounding rock walls several times, confirming there were no other hidden dangers. Only then did he take out a jade box specifically for storing spirit trees and carefully dug up the entire Soul-Nourishing Tree along with a large clump of spirit soil around its roots. However, some roots remained, perhaps to grow into a new ten-thousand-year-old Soul-Nourishing Tree in ten thousand years. He sealed it in the box and affixed several spirit-sealing talismans.
"Spiritual milk, soul-nourishing wood... this trip was worthwhile." Wang Tianlong put away the jade box and the jade bottle containing the ten-thousand-year-old spiritual milk with satisfaction. This Spirit Eye Spring cave was undoubtedly his first major gain after entering the Void Heaven Palace.
However, just as he was about to leave and continue exploring other corridors, his ears suddenly twitched slightly.
He heard extremely faint sounds coming from another branch of the corridor... the sounds of fighting? And the faint roars of demonic beasts and the angry shouts of cultivators!
The sound seemed to be quite far away and was greatly weakened by the complex corridor structure, but he still managed to catch it with his Nascent Soul stage hearing.