116 - A Farewell to Mr. Luo

Chapter 116 As the entangling spiritual energies gradually tore themselves apart, they seemed close to merging. Bai Fan hurriedly pulled her hand away. "Why do they want to become one? Is controlling alchemy fire really that hard? They say it's automatic once you reach Foundation Establishment. Why am I still clueless after forming a Golden Core?" Bai Fan withdrew her hand and rested her chin on it, contemplating a question she hadn't considered in a long time: had she really become dumber since turning into a snake? In the past, she could handle math, physics, and chemistry without breaking a sweat. So why couldn’t she figure this out now? "Where exactly did things go wrong?" While she pondered, she glanced at Hui Hao Zi, who had entered the cultivation chamber. The stone door had already closed, leaving her alone in the entire cave. With Hui Hao Zi away, she could do whatever she wanted without him finding out. Casting a fleeting glance at the spirit herbs, Bai Fan suppressed her burgeoning urge. "Better to master the use of alchemy fire first," she thought. Once she had achieved that, she could start concocting pills. Opening her palm, she watched the spiritual energy that surged forth. It was white, befitting her water-aligned spiritual root. Back then, relying on her control over water, the Little Fish Cloud Technique even got her recommended to Xuanming Sect. However, instead of learning the sect’s main focus, Xuan Heavy Water, she chose the fragmented Thunder God Technique. Now that she thought about it, she hadn’t diligently practiced the Thunder God Technique since leaving Xuanming. She was still stuck at the first level, 'Attracting Thunder.' When the spiritual energy in her hand surged out, it gradually formed a vortex, continuously rotating until it became a ball. As soon as she cut off the energy, the glowing ball dissipated. The spiritual energy in her arm flowed through a single meridian, fused with her being down to the blood and bones. Removing it now would be as agonizing as ripping out one's tendons and bones. Because this meridian wasn’t originally hers, it didn't branch out like her body's natural meridians. Thus, the reach of her spiritual energy was limited. "If these four meridians could have branchlets, each of my five fingers could form its own energy sphere, not just one in the palm." Muttering to herself, Bai Fan felt more convinced. Her inability to control alchemy fire likely stemmed from her meridians. Naturally, water coming out of a dragon's head wouldn't cause conflict. But since these meridians were not originally hers, she needed to find a way to grow their branches. With that in mind, Bai Fan started rummaging through her storage bag. It was filled with treasures looted from the Qingxu Sect, whose secrets she still didn’t fully understand. After a brief search, she spotted a familiar object: a golden ball. "Oh?" This golden ball was linked to an adventure involving a coiling dragon pillar, one of Bai Fan's fortuitous encounters. Without it, she might still be working in Qingxu's kitchen. Recalling the taste of the spirit chicken she stole from the kitchen, with its crunchy bones and tender meat, made her nostalgic. She vowed to go back and eat her fill next time, despite the troublesome head of the sect. After a moment of recollection, Bai Fan closely examined the golden ball again. On its surface, delicate golden threads wove a true dragon, intricately traversing the golden sphere. She remembered almost being unable to tear herself away from it back then. Although its allure had lessened with her increased cultivation, the attraction was still substantial. Approaching it with a calm demeanor, she found the ball seemed ordinary this time. But Bai Fan knew Qingxu's treasury never contained anything simple. Moreover, Qingxu Sect's ancestors had deep ties with the Wildlands. The spirit chicken and the vajra bracelet both came from there, as did the coiling dragon pillar. Squeezing the bracelet, she injected spiritual energy into the golden ball. It emitted a blinding light and swiftly expanded to the size of her head. Now transparent, the golden dragon coiled around it, roaring fiercely. Before Bai Fan could inspect further, the small dragon came to life, darting to her wrist and sank its teeth into her arm. Amber blood flowed as it greedily drank, insatiable. Feeling her blood rapidly being drained, Bai Fan flailed her arm, but the small gold dragon clung tightly, its grip unyielding. Panicking, Bai Fan used her other hand to try pulling it off, but to no avail. She began to feel faint, her vision darkening from blood loss. "If you don’t let go, I'll die from blood loss," she yelled, struggling futilely with the small dragon, its eyes unblinking fiercely resembling a living creature. Moments before fainting, Bai Fan could only hope she wouldn’t die, before collapsing to the ground, utterly exhausted and with no sensation of pain. As she slowly awoke in her dreamscape, she felt a heavy weight over her body. Her eyelids felt glued together, and it took substantial effort to open them. Recognizing the familiar, white space, Bai Fan realized where she was. She saw the small puppet diligently tending to the spiritual seeds. Despite the meticulous care, no sprouts had emerged from the soil. Everything was perfectly organized, prompting Bai Fan to consider planting more spirit herbs. However, these plans had to wait since her physical body remained unconscious. Getting up, Bai Fan flew through the space on a cloud, observing the surroundings. The puppet had worked tirelessly, evidently, as even the withered grass was cleared away. The surroundings were lush and green, much like when Bai Fan had first entered this space. But the flowing ink painting ambiance was now replaced by mist, reflecting her progress, such as the thundercloud over the small hill. Since consuming the lightning, the area had transformed into this state. The dragon snake grass she had planted was thriving, covering a significant patch, with leaves more plump than before. It appeared to have mutated due to the new environment. Sturdy stems with a reddish tint and lush leaves were now adorned with small white flowers. As she observed her dreamscape, a sudden physical change drew her attention. Her senses led her to her arm where the dragon had bitten, now covered in a web of golden lines resembling poison spreading throughout her body. All she could do was watch helplessly, wondering if she was going to succumb to the poison. As she pondered her fate, her affected arm began to transform. The latent dragon meridian within her seemed to react to the golden web, melding with it. Though she tried to intervene, the dragon meridian eagerly absorbed the golden lines, establishing intricate branches similar to the body's natural meridians. "Is this what they mean by good luck coming unexpectedly?" Bai Fan mused. Although Bai Fan was not entirely sure of its purpose, she realized that the newly formed meridians bore a resemblance to her other natural meridians. After three days, Bai Fan’s four dragon tendons within her body had indeed sprouted branches. When she finally woke, the small golden dragon that had injured her was gone, along with the golden sphere. She glanced around, relieved to find nothing else had changed or gone missing. If something had been lost, it would be difficult to explain to Hui Hao Zi when he came out. When she stood up, her head swam. "Definitely a severe case of blood loss; I can’t even stand straight." Stumbling slightly, Bai Fan intended to find a chair to sit down. As she reached up to touch her forehead, she discovered something new growing there. Alarmed, she quickly fetched a cloud mirror. One look at her reflection nearly caused Bai Fan to faint again. Right in the middle of her forehead was embedded a large golden bead. How hideous! In shock, Bai Fan tried to gouge out the bead but found it more painful than pulling her scales. "Damned thing! Why couldn’t it just stop at being a bloodsucking gold eel? Why is it now embedded in my forehead?" Muttering to herself, Bai Fan transformed into her demon form. Holding tightly onto the cloud mirror, she almost passed out again. In her true form, the golden bead was even larger, like a swelling bump on her forehead. Coupled with the two original bumps on her head, it now looked like the Chinese character for "mountain." "How am I supposed to meet people now? If someone mocks me for having a lump on my head, I can't even refute it." ※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※ You can guess what this golden bead might be, though I keep thinking of the blinking crystal on Ultraman’s chest. Previous Chapter Table of Contents Next Chapter Home Desktop Version Bookshelf Novel Directory Popular Novels