Chapter 5

Some say Muxian is a perfectionist, others say he is a fanatic, and still others say he is a patient with obsessive-compulsive disorder.

In the first seven years of his involvement in the study of spirit medicines, Muxian almost never slept as he continuously formulated the Xiaoyuan Elixir, completely ignoring all other elixirs, to the point where he was not even noticed by the sect.

During these seven years, no one knew how many times Muxian had failed, nor how many materials he had consumed. The Dan Ding Sect, as the top power on the continent, not only had a large number of disciples but also an abundance of resources in its warehouses. Thus, Muxian was fortunate enough to avoid being noticed or disturbed by anyone.

Seven years later, Muxian participated in the sect's grand competition for the first time. In a short incense stick's time, he swept through the twenty-eight questions set by the sect's elders.

At this point, the other sect disciples had only completed two questions, causing him to attract the attention of all the sect elders and participating disciples. This grand competition became Muxian's personal show.

When Muxian reached the twenty-ninth and final question, all the sect elders and participating disciples subconsciously held their breath, hoping to see if the miracle would continue.

The final question was the formulation of the Xiaoyuan Elixir, and each participating disciple had only three sets of backup materials. If they failed to formulate the elixir after using all three sets, they would be considered to have failed.

Since its establishment, the Dan Ding Sect had never had anyone completely pass the grand competition. The purpose of setting the final question was merely to motivate the sect disciples.

Muxian merely paused for a moment at the twenty-ninth question, then closed his eyes. His hands moved like dancing butterflies, leaving trails of illusions in the air, making it impossible to see his actions clearly.

After ten breaths, Muxian stopped his movements, and the entire grand competition venue fell into a deathly silence.

Both the elders and disciples of the Dan Ding Sect were completely stunned. Muxian had become a monster in their eyes.

Muxian's sudden display of skill at the grand competition left the sect elders utterly defeated. It took them several months to recover from the shock, and then, with a sly grin, they pushed Muxian forward to further humiliate others. Muxian did not disappoint, thoroughly defeating the old monsters in the spirit pharmacist circle.

The phrase "If a bird does not fly, it flies to the sky; if it does not sing, it sings to surprise" perfectly describes Muxian. His terrifyingly perfect divine sense allowed him to formulate every elixir to the highest quality, and he earned the nickname "Textbook" in the spirit pharmacist circle.

After his rebirth, Muxian was pleasantly surprised to find that his divine sense control ability had come with his soul. Therefore, he was confident that his success rate in formulating the Xiaoyuan Elixir could reach over 90%.

Moreover, as long as his spiritual power improved, his success rate in formulating any level of spirit medicine could reach 90% or even 100%, with the highest quality.

However, Muxian's current spiritual power was only at the First Stage Soul Stabilization Realm, and he could only formulate a few spirit medicines, with almost no self-defense capability. He had no top-tier power like the Dan Ding Sect to rely on, and he was surrounded by danger, facing life-threatening situations at any moment. Therefore, Muxian did not dare to easily reveal his greatest reliance for survival.

As the saying goes, "An ordinary person is not guilty, but one who possesses a treasure is." If he revealed his alchemy skills without sufficient self-defense capability, it would not bring him any fame or profit but would only land him in trouble.

"In the end, it's still because my spiritual power is too low," Muxian sighed inwardly.

Upon learning that the Xiaoyuan Elixir was not easy to formulate, Ling Tian did not feel too disappointed. Instead, he thought it was normal. If the Xiaoyuan Elixir were that easy to formulate, it would not be so highly priced on the market.

"Xian'er, stay here for a moment. I'll go check the forest to see if there are any dangers," Ling Tian said gently, seeing that Muxian had recovered.

Muxian's eyes lit up, but after his lips moved slightly, he did not speak, only nodding slightly to acknowledge Ling Tian's words.

If Muxian were only at the initial stage of the Physical Body Realm, Ling Tian would not dare to leave him alone in the carriage. However, knowing that Muxian was a Spirit Master, Ling Tian felt that Muxian could protect himself outside the Shen Duan Mountain, especially since the mountain, with its traps and fierce beasts, was more dangerous for Muxian.

Ling Tian used his divine sense to thoroughly check the surroundings, confirming there was no danger. Then, his towering figure plunged into the dense forest, and the deafening roars of beasts soon followed.

Even sitting in the carriage, Muxian could feel the ground shaking violently, imagining the intense battles Ling Tian was having with the beasts in the Shen Duan Mountain.

"This Uncle Ling is truly a human beast," Muxian chuckled, then lifted the bead curtain and climbed out of the carriage.

Muxian had no intention of waiting obediently in the carriage. After experiencing two ambushes, he clearly recognized how dire his current situation was.

To change his dire situation, he needed to improve his strength.

For others, improving strength in a short time might be extremely difficult, but for Muxian, it was relatively easy.

As the saying goes, "Ten years of cultivation are not as good as one spirit pill." Muxian would not give up his greatest advantage to enhance his strength.

Although the Shen Duan Mountain was very dangerous, danger often came with opportunity. Muxian easily found all the herbs needed to formulate the Xiaoyuan Elixir outside the mountain, making him even more eager to explore its depths.

What was a terrifying place to Ling Tian became a natural spirit medicine garden for Muxian.

Muxian originally planned to enter the Shen Duan Mountain with Ling Tian but, thinking of his many secrets, he swallowed his words.

"Father's fate is unknown, the Elder Council is forcing a coup, the collateral family is stirring, and enemies are eyeing the family's resources. There's even a mysterious rival. The previous owner of this body truly had a hard life," Muxian clenched his fists after carefully organizing his memories.

"The most urgent task is to resolve the conflict of the medicines in my body to prevent a fatal explosion. If I lose my life, everything else is meaningless."

Muxian quickly made a decision, a confident smile appearing in his eyes. His body moved like a wisp of smoke, disappearing into the depths of the forest.

The ancient trees towered into the sky, blocking out the sun. The massive roots intertwined, and green vines wrapped around them, completely shading the Shen Duan Mountain, preventing any sunlight from penetrating. The dense forest inside was a completely different world from the outside.

After entering the forest, Muxian slowed his pace. He scanned the surroundings, his eyes brightening as he took a few steps forward and carefully picked several herbs. He ground the herbs into a juice, carefully applied it all over his body, and then collected a few more dark, black leaves into his sleeve before continuing deeper into the forest.

Muxian did not walk in a straight line but constantly changed direction, skillfully avoiding several fierce beasts. As he went deeper, the forest became darker.

The deafening roars of beasts echoed around, and the terrifying aura in the forest made one's heart race. Muxian's face showed a serious expression, but his steps did not slow down.

After half an incense stick's time, Muxian suddenly stopped in front of an ancient tree, his eyes flashing with uncontainable joy, and his body trembling with excitement.

This was a dead ancient tree, unknown how many years it had been dead. The massive roots were cracked, overgrown with weeds, and the inside of the dead tree was filled with soil and dead leaves. On the trunk, palm-sized gray-brown leaves grew.

An outsider might overlook these gray-brown leaves, but for Muxian, the genius spirit pharmacist known as "Textbook," these leaves were invaluable treasures, worth a fortune.

"Who would have thought that the Shen Duan Mountain would have Ironwood Forest Leaves," Muxian murmured, then eagerly squatted down and carefully cleared the weeds around the Ironwood Forest Leaves.

In his previous life, Muxian had searched the Dan Ding Sect's warehouse for an Ironwood Forest Leaf to formulate a ninth-stage elixir but found none. He eventually bought one at an auction for a high price.

According to the auctioneer, Ironwood Forest Leaves were extinct on the continent and could only be found in some hidden mountains and deep forests.

Because Muxian had gone through great lengths to find the Ironwood Forest Leaf, it left a deep impression on him. When he saw the thing he had been searching for so long suddenly appear before him, he could not help but lose his composure.

However, Muxian soon calmed down. After 20,000 years, the earth's spiritual energy had been depleted, and many herbs had disappeared from the continent. This was not 20,000 years later, so various herbs were naturally abundant.

"Calm down, stay calm!" Thinking about how he had accidentally traveled to such a fortunate era, Muxian could not help but feel excited. He took several deep breaths and spent a considerable amount of time calming himself down.

Although the Ironwood Forest Leaf was ugly and had a bitter taste, its juice could not only strengthen the body but also gently nourish various tendons and muscles, and it had a good effect on the meridians.

Muxian originally intended to find a few herbs to resolve the conflict of the medicines in his body. Now, with the Ironwood Forest Leaf, he changed his mind. Resolving the conflict was still necessary, but it would be better to take the opportunity to absorb all the medicinal power and convert it into his strength.