Book 2: Chapter 256: Who’s Uninformed? The Union of Heaven and Earth
Vol 2 Chapter 256: Who’s Uninformed? The Union of Heaven and Earth
“Taishang True Spirit Pill…” Old Yuan furrowed his brows, deep in thought, then shook his head after a while. “Never heard of it.”
Could it be that Zhenren Chengkong was bluffing?
Ancestor of the Blood River sneered. “This is one of the secret pills of Taishang Dao.”
“Taishang Dao is renowned for its pill techniques. Aside from their peerless alchemy, they also have several secret pills.” He pointed at the culture dish containing the Tranquility Bamboo. “For example, the Taiyi Spirit Pill—it nourishes spirit wood and is unmatched in the world.”
“There’s also…”
He seemed quite knowledgeable about the pills of Taishang Dao and even listed out several of their sect’s secret pills.
Names, effects, applicable users…
All clearly detailed, without a single omission.
What caught everyone’s attention even more was that he spoke with such animated expression, even showing a hint of pride on his face. It was as if those pills belonged to his own family...
There was just one problem—you’re from the Great Freedom Demonic Sect, the mortal enemy of Taishang Dao. What are you so proud about?
Zheng Fa just looked at him, saying nothing, expression full of doubt.
Ancestor of the Blood River seemed to realize something was off too. He awkwardly shut his mouth, gave a light cough, and mumbled, “Just a personal interest, just a personal interest.”
You really do keep your work and hobbies separate...
Ancestor of the Blood River seemed to realize he was revealing too much and quickly changed the subject: “Speaking of the Taishang True Spirit Pill, it’s said to be the most suitable pill for Golden Core cultivators. Not only can it nourish the divine soul, but it also helps with Nascent Soul formation... I’ve heard that taking the Taishang True Spirit Pill can raise the success rate of forming a Nascent Soul by as much as ten percent. Even in Taishang Dao, very few batches of this pill are ever made.”
“Forget outsiders—even within Taishang Dao, few disciples ever get to see this pill.”
Zheng Fa actually believed him.
There’s no way Ancestor of the Blood River would hype it up just to help Zhenren Chengkong boast. If he’s praising it this much, then the pill must truly be remarkable.
No wonder Zhenren Chengkong, a Soul Formation cultivator, treated the gifting of the Taishang True Spirit Pill with such significance—and even seemed quite proud of it.
Zheng Fa put the pill bottle away and turned to ask Zhenren Qian, “How’s the Tranquility Bamboo doing?”
Zhenren Qian reported, “We can begin the transplant. The medicine garden is also prepared.”
The cultivation of Tranquility Bamboo requires patience, but with the help of the Jiushan Spiritual Vein, the bamboo in the culture dish had grown rather smoothly.
...
“The Tranquility Bamboo has been returned?”
Zhenren Chengkong slowly widened his eyes, looking at the speaking Head Seat Mingde.
Head Seat Mingde let out a cold laugh.
“Head Seat?”
“If I didn’t say that, how would others understand how precious Tranquility Bamboo truly is? How do you know he wouldn’t feel resentful when returning it?” R̃𝖆Ŋ𝐎ᛒЕʂ
“...”
Zhenren Chengkong hadn’t expected the Head Seat to think like this.
“You think my traitorous disciple turned against Taishang Dao for no reason?”
Zhenren Chengkong shook his head. That was something from the previous generation, a scandal within the sect.
How could he have known?
“That Qin Mu had extraordinary talent. Naturally, I placed high hopes on him, granting his every request, even violating many rules to secretly bestow him with sect-exclusive techniques and treasures.”
“Later, he asked me to teach him the Supreme Yin-Yang Truth…”
Zhenren Chengkong was shocked. “Didn’t he know that the Supreme Yin-Yang Truth is a top secret of the sect, only passed down by the Head Seat?”
“He knew. But he couldn’t wait. And I had been too indulgent before—he... got used to it.”
Head Seat Mingde slowly shook his head, his face a mixture of sorrow and anger. “I later found out that he had learned the techniques of the Great Freedom Demonic Sect and couldn’t control himself anymore. He wanted to merge both paths using the Supreme Yin-Yang Truth.”
“When I refused, he felt the sect owed him. Fearing I would catch on, he outright defected.”
“I’m reminding you—no matter how highly you regard someone, the rules must not be broken!”
“Sometimes, trying too hard to win someone over only leads them to become insatiable.”
“When you show grace, they must understand the value of that grace.”
Only now did Zhenren Chengkong understand how complicated the betrayal of the Netherworld Immortal had been.
“That Zheng Fa... he wouldn’t do the same, would he?”
After a long pause, Zhenren Chengkong hesitated to defend Zheng Fa.
“I too thought that traitor respected his master and focused solely on the Dao. In the end, he truly abandoned everything for his so-called Dao.” Seeing his doubtful expression, Head Seat Mingde waved his hand, seemingly unwilling to say more. “Since the Tranquility Bamboo is safe, I won’t bother dwelling on it.”
He looked at the Tranquility Bamboo, no longer than a forearm, with some heartache. From his sleeve, he took out a spirit pill. With a flick of his finger, the pill turned into specks of green light that landed on the Tranquility Bamboo.
The bamboo surged with wood-attribute spiritual energy, vibrant and alive, trembling slightly in midair—it was beginning to grow anew.
Zhenren Chengkong’s expression turned solemn. “This is... the Taiyi Spirit Pill?”
“Yes. It took great effort for the sect to refine this one batch—just to heal the Tranquility Bamboo.”
The two of them stared at the bamboo, both faces showing anticipation.
Slowly, the Tranquility Bamboo sprouted three new branches and lifted ten new leaves, as if coming back to life.
But that was its limit.
No matter how much wood spiritual energy they poured into it, it didn’t grow another branch.
“What a pity…”
Zhenren Chengkong’s tone was filled with disappointment.
“There’s nothing to pity. Even the Taiyi Spirit Pill didn’t help. Not even an immortal could save this Tranquility Bamboo.” Head Seat Mingde reached out, grasped the bamboo, his voice icy. “It’s enough to clean house.”
...
In the Jiushan Realm, everyone gathered at the medicine garden. The seeds of the Tranquility Bamboo were buried into the soil, forming a small mound.
Senior Sister Zhang made a slight motion with her fingers, and the Mountain and River Seal hovered about ten feet in the air. Spiritual energy from the Jiushan Spiritual Vein flowed like a radiant waterfall, gently nourishing the tiny mound of earth.
Ancestor of the Blood River watched for a while and suddenly sighed. “If we could truly grow Tranquility Bamboo, then what’s a Taishang True Spirit Pill worth?”
His tone carried a sense of disinterest.
The Tranquility Bamboo still needed time to grow, and with Senior Sister Zhang guarding it, he didn’t need to monitor it every day.
Zheng Fa simply returned to his courtyard, preparing to take the Taishang True Spirit Pill.
His divine soul was extremely powerful—comparable to Golden Core level even when he was still in Foundation Establishment.
Compared to other early-stage Golden Core cultivators, his soul should have long surpassed the mid-stage already.
But his Golden Core was also exceptionally strong—visibly dozens of times larger than others!
As a result, his divine soul actually became his weak point...
He had lingered at early Golden Core for quite some time—though truth be told, he wasn’t any slower than others, just no longer advancing at a miraculous “form-a-Nascent-Soul-in-one-year” pace.
Zheng Fa sat cross-legged in the quiet chamber and uncorked the wooden plug on the jade bottle. A fresh fragrance wafted out, instantly clearing his head.
Inside were three light-golden pills—presumably the Taishang True Spirit Pills.
He poured out one, tilted his head back, and swallowed it.
As soon as it entered his mouth, it felt like drinking ice water. A chill surged down his throat, making him shiver all over.
Strangely, the cold didn’t descend into his belly but rushed straight to his head, flowing into his Mud Pill Palace, leaving his forehead numb with cold.
Zheng Fa felt his divine soul falling into a silent frozen cavern—utter darkness, no movement, no heaven or earth.
But gradually, he seemed to adapt.
With each breath, his soul seemed to slip into hibernation, growing quiet and unaware.
When he came to again, his divine soul had grown noticeably.
Back in late Foundation Establishment, his divine soul could already cover over 110 miles—comparable to typical Golden Core.
After forming his own core, it expanded to about 300 miles.
Now, after taking the Taishang True Spirit Pill, it expanded even further.
He tested it—the rustling of wind and grass within 550 miles couldn’t escape his divine soul.
According to ancient records, early-stage Golden Core souls typically span 100–300 miles, mid-stage is 300–600, and late-stage is around 600–900.
Reaching 1,000 miles marks the peak of Golden Core, and only after fully forming the Nascent Soul does it surge again.
Zheng Fa had nearly reached mid-Golden Core from the start.
Now, he was approaching the upper limit of mid-stage. But...
When he tried to merge his soul with his core to break through, it still wasn’t quite enough!
Gritting his teeth, he swallowed another Taishang True Spirit Pill. This time, the growth was disappointing—barely from 550 miles to 620.
“Resistance? That’s a serious drop in effect…” Zheng Fa muttered, suddenly understanding why Zhenren Chengkong only gave him three.
Looks like this stuff loses effectiveness after three pills.
Zheng Fa glanced at the last one, thought for a moment, and replugged the stopper—while one more pill might push his soul further, saving it might allow him to study and understand it later.
Between one and countless, Zheng Fa chose the latter!
He focused his divine soul and directed it toward his dantian again.
There, atop the Fusang Tree, hung a tiny sun—his Golden Core. Its light came from countless particles colliding in life-and-death struggle.
Zheng Fa’s divine soul gently embraced this sun.
Hot!
Though the soul was intangible, it now felt searing pain, as if it were burning.
This pain came from the deepest recesses of his soul—inescapable, too intense even to faint from.
The sublimation of a soul in early Golden Core felt like refining pure gold with intense fire—using the immense heat of the core to temper a sliver of true spirit.
And because Zheng Fa’s core was so powerful, it unleashed even more heat—causing even greater pain.
An average person’s soul couldn’t take it.
Even his soul, comparable to a late-stage Golden Core, now felt close to incineration.
Just as he couldn’t bear it anymore, a wave of cold surged from within.
This chill had come from the Taishang True Spirit Pill—hidden deep in his soul—and now came to his rescue!
With cold and heat alternating, his soul felt like it was in a sauna amid snow and ice—not painful, but oddly comfortable...
His divine soul roamed inside the core. The fiery rays that once tormented him now felt like a scraping massage—gradually polishing his soul.
Taishang Dao’s pills...
Only now did Zheng Fa understand why a Soul Formation cultivator from the Great Freedom Demonic Sect would become a Taishang fanboy.
Give him three more pills, and he’d fanboy too!
...
Ancestor of the Blood River felt that the entire Jiushan Realm was full of personality cult. Everyone was a Zheng Fa fanboy.
At the moment, he was sitting in Old Yuan’s courtyard.
He had gotten pretty close to Old Yuan over this period...
Old Yuan was drooling over the Soul Formation knowledge in the Blood River Ancestor’s head and deliberately cozied up to him.
Ancestor of the Blood River could see that Zheng Fa seemed to care about this master, and now that he had to bide his time in Jiushan Realm, naturally he returned the favor with flattery.
Both harbored their own motives—mutual interests, burning chemistry.
Seeing Old Yuan glancing toward Zheng Fa’s courtyard from time to time, Ancestor of the Blood River couldn’t help but laugh:
“Worried about your disciple?”
“Hmm?”
“I said, Zheng Fa’s just advancing to mid-Golden Core—you’re really that concerned?”
Ancestor of the Blood River felt a little emotional inside. No wonder Zheng Fa cared about this master of his.
“Not worried.”
“Huh?”
Ancestor of the Blood River stared at Old Yuan, dumbfounded.
Old Yuan’s tone was unclear—helpless, or maybe just carefree:
“His Golden Core, and my Golden Core... they’re not even the same kind of Golden Core.”
“I can’t even understand what I’m seeing—what’s the point in worrying?”
“I’m not stressing over this.”
“...” Ancestor of the Blood River frowned, puzzled.
You’re a Nascent Soul cultivator—what Golden Core haven’t you seen?
And me? I’m Soul Formation! I’ve seen even more Golden Cores than you.
You think we’re as inexperienced as you?
“Oh right, you were killed by Zhenren Chengkong after Zheng Fa formed his core,” Old Yuan saw his expression and quickly put two and two together.
According to Ancestor of the Blood River, when he was still alive, though his life-bound flying sword was within Jiushan Realm, it was suppressed by the Sun and Moon Bell.
So, it made sense—he probably never saw Zheng Fa’s Golden Core.
No wonder he was so confused.
Ancestor of the Blood River asked again, “Then why do you keep looking at Zheng Fa’s courtyard?”
“You wouldn’t understand...” Old Yuan’s lips curved with a rippling smile. “Just the thought that Golden Core belongs to my disciple, I... hahahahahaha...”
“?”
“Sorry, sorry, Zheng Fa’s not around—I couldn’t hold it in...”
Ancestor of the Blood River’s mouth twitched. He clearly thought the former Sect Master of Jiushan Sect had a few screws loose.
Suddenly, a blinding light bright enough to illuminate the entire Jiushan Realm burst out from behind him, from the direction of Zheng Fa’s courtyard.
He whipped his head around and saw a “Golden Core” he would never forget in his life!
Staring at that sun in the sky, the flying sword under Ancestor of the Blood River even shivered twice—he’d clearly been scared.
“That’s...”
“Mm.” Old Yuan stroked the long beard on his chin, nodded with a smile, and even humbly added, “My hopeless disciple’s very average Golden Core.”
Ancestor of the Blood River didn’t even bother with his sarcastic tone. He turned back and looked at the sun in the sky again. Inside that sun was a faint shadow—like a little person waving arms and legs. Beside the little person was a phantom of the Fusang Tree.
“Mid-Golden Core...” Ancestor of the Blood River, of course, understood. This was the sign of mid-stage. But while others at mid-Golden Core were nurturing a Nascent Soul, Zheng Fa’s mid-Golden Core looked like he birthed a sun god.
He swallowed hard and glanced back at Old Yuan—only to see the old man watching him with a face that practically shouted: Never seen anything like that before, have you?
... Yeah. Never have.
...
“Junior Brother advanced to mid-Golden Core.”
In the medicine garden, Senior Sister Zhang tilted her head slightly, looking at the blazing sun above, the tiny figure inside that sun, a smile spreading on her face.
The Sun and Moon Bell in the garden rang high into the sky, releasing crisp, melodious sounds—like it was celebrating.
“Zhang Zhenren! The Tranquility Bamboo!”
Zhenren Qian suddenly shouted.
Senior Sister Zhang looked down—and saw that mound of earth, which had been still just moments ago, suddenly sprouting a sharp bamboo shoot, like it had just bathed in a spring rain.
“This is... because of the Fusang Tree?” Senior Sister Zhang looked up at the sun again, murmuring a guess.
The Tranquility Bamboo wasn’t supposed to grow that fast. But Zheng Fa had just advanced to mid-Golden Core, and now the bamboo was suddenly sprouting... It was hard not to make the connection.
Zhenren Qian shook his head and just stared blankly at the bamboo shoot. He muttered under his breath, “Did we... really plant a Heaven and Earth Spiritual Root?”
...
Now that the Tranquility Bamboo had matured, Zheng Fa could feel it with exceptional clarity!
Because as that bamboo shoot took shape—growing nodes, leaves—the entire Jiushan Realm was undergoing unprecedented changes.
First was the spiritual energy.
The spiritual energy in Jiushan Realm had always been very singular. Due to the Sun and Moon Bell, the talisman patterns contained in the spiritual energy were all thunder-element talismans.
But the moment those tender bamboo leaves unfurled, everything changed!
Those few young leaves sucked in mouthfuls of the realm’s original thunder-elemental spiritual energy and then exhaled puffs of spiritual energy the realm had never seen before!
Suddenly, Zheng Fa had a moment of clarity. He had long wondered why Zhenren Chengkong said Heaven and Earth Spiritual Roots could evolve a cave-heaven world.
Now he understood—it was because such roots had a kind of photosynthesis-like ability. They could transform the single-element energy in a cave-heaven world into other types.
He activated the Void-Seeking Spirit Eyes and looked at the talisman patterns in the air’s spiritual energy. He found that among them, five or six of the basic ones he had studied were now present.
Most were elementary talismans.
This was fantastic news for Jiushan Realm—due to a lack of spiritual energy variety, the realm had always centered on thunder techniques.
Now, the Tranquility Bamboo had essentially patched that flaw—at least the more common spells could now be freely cast.
But the changes the Tranquility Bamboo brought were far from over.
It had been planted in the medicine garden, but now it was growing explosively!
Its branches and leaves rose high, forming a small canopy that seemed to hold up the sky above the Nine Islands of the Heavenly Palace!
At the same time, its root system plunged without hesitation through the bottom of the medicine garden island, heading toward the mortal realm of Jiushan.
Its roots touched the ground, pierced the mantle, and spread like a spiderweb—gripping this vast land with everything it had!
Only now did Zheng Fa understand the true meaning of “Heaven and Earth Spiritual Root”—its branches upheld the heavens, its roots anchored the abyss. This Tranquility Bamboo had naturally become one with Heaven and Earth.
Even...
Though no one else could feel it, Zheng Fa could—because through the Sun and Moon Bell, he wielded control over Jiushan Realm.
Every tiny change in the realm was crystal clear to him.
From what he sensed, the Tranquility Bamboo was still growing—and Jiushan Realm was growing along with it!
What’s more, the bamboo wasn’t feeding on the realm’s spiritual energy. Some of its nourishment... came from the outside.
Zheng Fa frowned, a new theory emerging in his mind—
If Tranquility Bamboo could draw spiritual energy from outside and strengthen Jiushan Realm, and if the total amount of spiritual energy was fixed, then... the outside world would naturally have less.
So... could this be the cause of the spiritual energy’s decline?
Then who—or what—had been absorbing the Xuanyi Realm’s spiritual energy all this time? And why?
At the moment when the Tranquility Bamboo matured and Jiushan Realm evolved, Zheng Fa couldn’t help but lift his head and look up into the sky again.
...
Zheng Fa looked skyward. In the mortal world of Jiushan Realm, Little Qing—like tens of millions of ordinary people—was also looking at the sky above.
In recent years, Little Qing had grown from a thin, tiny temple attendant into a young woman with gentle curves.
The sky in Zheng Fa’s eyes was filled with riddles.
But the sky in Little Qing’s eyes had never been so clear.
Up above, the Nine Islands of the Heavenly Palace shone like stars, surrounding the sun that was Zheng Fa himself, casting light over the vast earth.
The eternal divide between mortals and immortals in Jiushan Realm—at this moment—vanished.