Chapter 564: The Summit of Tianmu Peak

The summit of Tianmu Peak was a massive platform, strewn haphazardly with many strangely shaped rocks. Several enormous ancient trees spread their lush canopies overhead, shading most of the platform beneath them.

After arriving at the platform, Zhang Xiaohua spread out his Divine Sense and, seeing no trace of anyone nearby, immediately leapt upward and landed atop a treetop, surveying the surroundings. All around Tianmu Peak stretched a sea of clouds, with only the summit exposed, making it resemble a solitary island rising from the ocean. Faintly visible in the distance were several dark silhouettes of other islands, presumably the summits of the surrounding peaks. A few cries of “gaa gaa” rang out as several white cranes pierced through the cloud sea, stirring wisps of mist. After circling several times above the clouds, they dove back down and vanished from sight. To the east, the enormous sun cast its golden radiance across the sea of clouds. Mountain winds blew in gusts, clouds billowed and rolled, and golden serpents seemed to dance wildly across their surface. The sight left Zhang Xiaohua utterly entranced.

This must be an immortal realm.

After lingering in intoxicated admiration for quite some time, Zhang Xiaohua sighed and thought to himself: “Though it resembles an immortal realm, it is ultimately a foreign land and not a place where I can truly settle. Besides, dazzling scenery is merely an outward appearance. The corruption of human hearts is the real essence. I only wonder where a true paradise might be found.”

Without any further hesitation, he extended his Divine Sense and leapt westward.

The western side was where the alchemists of the Herb Division resided. Very few medicinal herbs were cultivated there. Although the slopes were not particularly steep, all kinds of trees grew thick and towering, while medicinal plants and wild grasses covered the ground in abundance, giving the impression that the area had never been tended.

As he traveled onward, he suddenly heard footsteps. Zhang Xiaohua glanced around, then jumped into a large tree and concealed himself among its dense branches. A moment later, two disciples walked past from the left. The attire of Herb Division disciples was identical to that of the Herb Division disciples, so Zhang Xiaohua could not tell whether they truly belonged to the Pill Division. He then heard the disciple on the left say: “This gambling match was a disastrous loss. I wagered quite a few pills just to earn a few contribution points. Who would have thought something that seemed absolutely certain would end up going wrong?”

“Tell me about it. Same here. Ah well, fortunately that junior brother from the Herb Division is a fool. He just arrived at Tianmu Peak and doesn’t know anything yet. He still thinks medicinal herbs are valuable here, just like they are outside.”

“Hehe, haven’t plenty of disciples from Spring Rebirth Valley been like that before? They desperately collect every herb they’ve never seen, but when they finally want to exchange them for pills, nobody is willing to trade with them.”

“It’s just that this blockhead made far too much commotion. He actually ended up beating all the disciples.”

“Hehe, no matter how much he wins, they’re still only herbs. How can they compare to pills?”

“Such a pity. That kid’s martial arts are pretty good. He even managed to beat the Great Vajra in Qinggong!”

“Oh, give me a break. You got fooled.”

“Fooled? What do you mean, Senior Brother?”

“You blockhead. No wonder every bet you place loses. Think about it—what kind of person is the Great Vajra? His Qinggong ranks among the very best on Tianmu Peak. Even if Chief Chen’s martial arts are formidable, purely in terms of Qinggong, he still isn’t a match for the Great Vajra. How could the Great Vajra possibly lose to some greenhorn?”

“Ah! I understand now! No wonder Senior Brother Liu said that when he watched the end of the match from the summit of Tianmu Peak that day, the Great Vajra’s expression looked very strange. They must have made some sort of deal behind the scenes!”

“Exactly. You finally figured it out.”

“Then… then let’s go find Consecrated Elder Lei and have him uphold justice!”

Though he said the words, his tone was weak and hesitant, completely lacking the firmness of someone truly seeking justice.

“Hehe, isn’t Consecrated Elder Lei in the alchemy room up ahead? Junior Brother can go by himself.”

“Well… sigh, it’s only a few pills after all. It’s not as though I’ve never lost before. I can always win them back later. There’s no need to offend the Great Vajra.”

“Now you understand why I’m not going to find the Consecrated Elder. Besides, Consacrated Elder Lei was present that day as well. He saw everything with his own eyes and personally acknowledged that the Great Vajra had lost. If you go and complain now, wouldn’t you be putting Consacrated Elder Lei in an awkward position?”

“I understand now. That greenhorn still has more matches to fight in the future. We can win everything back from him then. Oh right, he collected quite a lot of those worthless medicinal herbs. How is he supposed to hand them over to the Great Vajra?”

“Heh, that’s not something we need to worry about. There’s plenty of time ahead. Let’s just wait and see.”

“Mm, exactly. We should hurry up. Consecrated Elder Xu is probably getting impatient. He’ll likely start scolding us again.”

“If we arrive early, we get scolded. If we arrive late, we get scolded. Why bother going early?”

“Sigh, true enough. Why is this Small Bone-Consolidating Pill so difficult to refine? Consecrated Elder Xu has already failed so many times.”

“Listen to yourself. If it weren’t difficult to refine, how could the Small Bone-Consolidating Pill be worth so much?”

As the two disciples chatted while walking, they did not linger. By the time they reached the end of their conversation, they had already gone quite far. Looking in the direction they were heading, Zhang Xiaohua let out a cold snort. “People are always making guesses, convinced that they are right, yet they never realize that the simplest explanation is often the correct one. Still, this is for the best. It is far better than having everyone discover my secrets all at once. Consecrated Elder Xu… Small Bone-Consolidating Pill…”

After pondering for a moment, Zhang Xiaohua did not descend to the ground. Instead, like a wisp of smoke, he skimmed across the treetops, following the two from a distance. At that moment, his eyes suddenly caught sight of a small gourd embroidered near the cuffs of their sleeves. “Huh? What sort of insignia is that? Could it be the symbol of the Pill Division?”

Zhang Xiaohua was secretly surprised. Thinking more carefully, it seemed that Bai Huan and the others also had a grass-shaped emblem on the edges of their sleeves. However, Zhang Xiaohua had only been on Tianmu Peak for a short time and had not interacted closely with the disciples there. From the moment he arrived, he had been occupied with gambling matches and debt collection. How could he have noticed such details?

“If it were the Pill Division, shouldn’t the symbol be a round pill? Why would it be a gourd?”

The two continued whispering to one another as they followed a narrow path to the entrance of a cave dwelling. Exchanging glances, they stepped before the entrance and called out in unison: “Consecrated Elder Xu, this disciple has arrived.”

Immediately afterward, the sound of footsteps came from within. Sure enough, it was one of the Consecrated Elders Zhang Xiaohua had seen at the gambling arena that day. The moment Consacrated Elder Xu appeared, he began scolding them without preamble: “Did the two of you stay awake all night? Why have you only arrived now? This old man has been waiting for ages. The furnace has already been heated again and again. I only asked you to serve as furnace attendants for a few days. How can you be so negligent?”

The two disciples hurriedly bowed. “Please calm your anger, Consecrated Elder Xu. Tianmu Peak is truly very high. Our Qinggong is limited, so we had to climb step by step. Delays are unavoidable. Besides, this hour… seems… not to be late, does it?”

“You still dare talk back? Get inside and help me sort the medicinal herbs. Once this batch of pills is finished, I’ll have a word with Wu Dalang.”

Consecrated Elder Xu cast a sidelong glance at the sky. Apparently realizing he was in the wrong, he conveniently found himself a way to step down.

The two disciples no longer dared argue or delay. They quickly slipped into the cave.

Consecrated Elder Xu followed behind them at a leisurely pace.

Only after all three had entered did Zhang Xiaohua reveal himself from behind a nearby tree. He glanced at the cave entrance, spread out his Divine Sense, estimated the distance, formed a hand seal, and escaped into the earth.

This was a very spacious cave. At its center was a chamber about the same size as the alchemy room in Spring Rebirth Valley. Beside it was a smaller cave containing a bed, which was likely where Consacrated Elder Xu rested. Zhang Xiaohua appeared inside this smaller cave.

He saw that this alchemy room was remarkably similar to Valley Master Nie’s alchemy room in Spring Rebirth Valley. Against the cave wall was a recessed alcove supporting a massive pill furnace. Blue-yellow flames flickered beneath it, seemingly another source of earthfire.

Zhang Xiaohua carefully examined the pill furnace. Sure enough, there were palm-sized fixtures on both sides, much like those on the furnace in Spring Rebirth Valley, different in form yet similar in function. At this moment, Consacrated Elder Xu was already standing before the furnace. The two disciples crouched nearby, sorting through medicinal herbs. The herbs looked very fresh and had likely been gathered recently.

One of Consacrated Elder Xu’s hands rested against the side of the furnace while the other accepted medicinal herbs handed over by the disciples. After carefully inspecting each herb, he tossed it into the furnace. Before long, the fragrance of medicine began wafting from within. A little later, more herbs were added. Watching Consecrated Elder Xu handle everything with effortless ease, Zhang Xiaohua secretly nodded. “This is the orthodox method of martial alchemy. It is far superior to the unorthodox trial and error I’ve been relying on.”

However, Zhang Xiaohua had no interest in the methods of martial alchemy and had no intention of secretly learning them. After taking a look around the layout of the alchemy room, he formed a hand seal and escaped once more.

With a light leap, he returned to the treetops and continued drifting down the mountainside.

The alchemy rooms on Tianmu Peak likewise employed the typical methods of martial alchemy. The pill furnaces could also have their temperatures controlled through Inner Energy, though whether the method was identical to the technique recorded in the Bewildering Soul Finger was unknown. Moreover, the alchemy rooms on Tianmu Peak also used earthfire. As for how Earthfire could be drawn all the way up to such a lofty summit, Zhang Xiaohua had no idea. Of course, the Incense-Spreading Sect was an Immortal Dao sect with a ten-thousand-year inheritance; its methods were bound to be miraculous. This was probably one of the simplest among them.

After descending for a while, his Divine Sense detected another cave dwelling nearby. Firelight flickered within, so he changed direction and headed straight toward it. Yet before he could reach it, a tremendous ‘Bang!’ erupted from inside the cave.

Immediately afterward, an elderly steward whose face had been blasted black with soot and whose gray-white hair stood straight up shot out of the cave with astonishing speed. Was it not Consecrated Elder Feng, the very man who had come to demand a Jade Restoration Pill from Zhang Xiaohua that day?

The explosion startled Zhang Xiaohua. His Divine Sense could not currently reach very far, so he was unable to observe the surrounding area. Still, with such a commotion, how could it fail to attract attention? He immediately formed a hand seal and escaped underground, emerging beside Consacrated Elder Feng, who was frantically straightening his clothes and brushing soot from his hair. Zhang Xiaohua quietly concealed himself behind a large boulder.

Sure enough, before Consacrated Elder Feng could finish tidying himself up, Consacrated Elder Xu, Consacrated Elder Lei, and several others came hurrying over. Seeing Feng in such a miserable state, they all laughed. “Brother Feng, failed again?”

“Sigh~ yes. Who knows what went wrong? I followed everything recorded in the book. The steps all seemed correct, yet I simply cannot refine a Jade Restoration Pill. Even refining a Small Restoration Pill keeps going wrong.”

“What? You managed to blow up your alchemy furnace and reduce yourself to this state? Th-this… to be able to practice alchemy to such an extent, Consecrated Elder Feng ought to be proud of himself!”

Hearing those words, Zhang Xiaohua could not help but secretly admire him!