Although he had only obtained one fire-attribute spiritual object he had hoped for, Jaekyung was satisfied. This was because he initially thought he might not get anything at all. Western Twin Lake is a large lake.
The spiritual energy of heaven and earth here was extremely skewed towards the water attribute, so it was naturally difficult for fire-element spiritual objects to be born. To have found even one was a stroke of luck. Besides the spiritual object that looked like a sea cucumber, what Jaekyung had obtained was a fist-sized orb.
It was an item called the Eye of the Great Fish, and it had the effect of purifying the surrounding spiritual energy. This purified spiritual energy could be absorbed more easily when practicing cultivation techniques, so it was an item that human cultivators would prefer over the demon races.
Therefore, Jaekyung intended to find out through Gwak Jeong-shin if he could exchange this cultivation-assisting spiritual object for another. 'This is the best I could have hoped for.' While these two spiritual objects were satisfying, what was even more satisfying was the fact that he had become acquainted with the nearby Great Spirit Beasts.
The number of Great Spirit Beasts he had contacted for this trade was nearly ten, and Jaekyung made an effort to show them he was a reasonable person by having lengthy conversations with all of them. It was not very difficult.
The Great Spirit Beasts were thoroughly intimidated, mistaking him for a flood dragon, so by simply focusing on the trade without threatening them, he could make a positive impression. It was like holding a sword but still obediently paying the price for goods.
By showing a willingness to trade in a situation where the balance of power was unequal—in other words, a situation where he did not have to trade—the other party would think of him as someone not greedy and trustworthy. 'Well, rather than thinking... they probably want to believe it.'
Isn't it the wish of all the weak for their powerful neighbors to be gentle and good-natured? In the end, because their own strength is weak, they have no choice but to seek the mercy of the strong. Ultimately, in the cultivation world, Cultivation is the foundation.
Jaekyung knew this truth well, so he always prioritized raising his own cultivation realm. 'Mid-stage of the Great Spirit stage. I'll only be able to feel somewhat at ease when I reach that level.'
Even for human cultivators, who were said to be fast in their Cultivation, it usually took several decades or more to advance one minor realm. One need not look far; just recalling how Yeo Jang-gyeong and Choi Ju-tang had been stuck in the early Foundation Establishment stage for several years now was enough to know.
Moreover, Jaekyung was of the demon races. By the standards of the demon races, Jaekyung was as good as having just entered the Great Spirit stage, so for him to already be aiming for the mid-stage was no different from dreaming a foolish dream. Jaekyung himself knew this, but his heart remained unshaken.
Setting one's sights on a destination that is too distant is often poisonous, but that was a story that did not apply to him. Because he had conviction. The conviction that his Dao Heart would not be shaken by a slight excess of ambition.
Just as Jaekyung had expected, the Eye of the Great Fish was an item in high demand among the humans. The moment Gwak Jeong-shin saw the Eye of the Great Fish, his own eyes lit up, and he promised to do his best to find the fire-element spiritual object Jaekyung wanted.
A short while later, Gwak Jeong-shin brought a spiritual object called an Erupting Stone. It was a massive rock the size of Jaekyung's head, and as its name suggested, it radiated an intense heat. Even Jaekyung could feel a noticeable warmth, so its heat was not lacking compared to an ordinary flame.
Of course, the important thing was not the heat itself, but the faint fire energy carried within it. Even if it was of the lowest grade, the Erupting Stone was a fine item that was decidedly classified as a cultivation-assisting spiritual object.
In terms of grade alone, it did not fall far behind when compared to the Eye of the Great Fish, another cultivation-assisting spiritual object. In terms of versatility, the Eye of the Great Fish was superior, but for cultivators practicing fire-attribute cultivation techniques, the Erupting Stone could be more valuable.
Jaekyung was satisfied with this trade, and so was Gwak Jeong-shin. 'To make proper use of this stone... I suppose I'll have to separate it.'
Jaekyung created a large pond inside his palace. And when he placed the Erupting Stone in the center of the pond, it soon became a hot spring. Jaekyung, in his transformed state, soaked his body in the hot spring.
As he circulated the Burning Flame Art, the subtle fire energy dwelling in the hot spring water entered through his pores, moistening his physical body and, further, his spiritual nature. The efficacy of a cultivation-assisting spiritual object was certainly remarkable. It felt as if his cultivation efficiency had improved by thirty percent... but of course, that couldn't be true.
The important thing was to believe it was so. To borrow an expression from his past life, it could be called a kind of placebo, and in Cultivation, the power of such belief had a much greater effect. This is because Cultivation is deeply connected to a cultivator's mind.
If a cultivator's mind is unstable, their cultivation also becomes precarious; conversely, if a cultivator's mind is firm and calm, their cultivation also progresses without faltering. If one believes that the Erupting Stone's effect greatly aids their cultivation, their cultivation will actually proceed more smoothly.
On the other hand, if one believes it is not of much help, at best they will only feel as if they are cultivating while wearing a few extra layers of clothing. This difference was not that large, but it was not small enough to be ignored either. In truth, Jaekyung did not know much about this principle.
However, since it was his first time cultivating with the help of such a spiritual object, he felt that the Erupting Stone's efficacy was very good. In a way, one could say he had gained a slight advantage thanks to his narrow experience.
Although it might just be an illusion inflated by his excited heart, at this moment, Jaekyung felt that the mid-stage of the Great Spirit stage was not far away.
It seemed as if he could reach that realm—a realm most of the demon races would struggle to reach even in one hundred, let alone two hundred years—with just about ten years of steady dedication to his Cultivation.
Jaekyung, who had been continuing his Cultivation for a while in the bubbling hot spring, noticed signs of his emotions wavering and his mind becoming clouded. He emptied a bottle of spirit wine in one go and re-entered the spring.
Even after the first uninvited guests, Seo Mu-so and Yang Yu-wan, had stormed in, unwelcome visitors came to Black Flood Dragon Island a few more times. Fortunately, their level was such that Jaekyung could handle them, so he fought back fiercely. However, he could not capture or kill all of them.
This was mainly because he lacked the means to restrain them. Luring them to the island and trapping them with a formation was effective, but it did not work on everyone.
It would not work at all on someone who was very suspicious, and if he encountered someone unnecessarily cruel, he could not guarantee the life of the worker acting as bait. And above all, the harvest time for the spirit rice was approaching, so Jaekyyung did not want to fight on the island.
Thanks to his choice to fight outside the island, he was able to protect the spirit rice and harvest it safely, but in return, he ended up letting a few plunderers escape. Those who fled while burning even their vital blood were impossible to catch, no matter what he did. However, letting them escape actually turned out for the better.
Those who had survived by the skin of their teeth spread ominous rumors about Black Flood Dragon Island. When Jaekyung first heard the story from Gwak Jeong-shin, he was worried that powerful experts who heard the rumor of a flood dragon might storm the island out of curiosity, but fortunately, that did not happen.
Rather, because of the existence of those who had returned alive, the rumor about the flood dragon was considered to be false. If the spirit beast that had settled on Black Flood Dragon Island was a real flood dragon, the early Foundation Establishment cultivators who encountered it would never have been able to return alive.
He had managed to unintentionally shake off the interest of the powerful, but the mediocre ones still could not abandon their greed. They were ignorant, and for that reason, they were brave. Jaekyung did not fear such people, but he did not welcome them either.
It would certainly be good if he could luckily capture or kill them and obtain their storage pouches, but if he developed a taste for such blood-stained luck, he might find his own tongue cut at any moment. A couple of early Foundation Establishment cultivators were not scary, but what if five or six of them came in a group?
Before such an unmanageable situation could occur, Jaekyung leaked some information through Gwak Jeong-shin. His identity as a Guest Elder of the Whale King Palace. Just as it was with the humans, for the demon races too, the standing of a wandering mountain sect cultivator versus a cultivator belonging to a great power was as different as heaven and earth.
Moreover, the Whale King Palace was the only demon race power in Western Twin Lake, so not only the demon races but also the humans had to be wary of them. Sect cultivators, mountain sect cultivators, and even demonic cultivators who chased profit like it was instinct, all hesitated before the name of the Whale King Palace.
And so, peace came to Black Flood Dragon Island.
Clang!
With a loud noise, the lid of the alchemy furnace flew off. At the same time, smoke thick with the fragrance of herbs blanketed the surroundings.
"Ugh."
Jaekyung meticulously examined, one by one, the dozen or so intact medicinal pills and the twenty or so crushed or cracked pills inside the alchemy furnace. 'Tsk, I didn't even salvage half.' A success rate of roughly thirty to forty percent could not be called good, but it couldn't be called that bad either.
If one had to say, it was a level slightly below average, but still, this was enough to pass oneself off as an alchemist in a small market square.
However, to act as an alchemist, one needed to have mastered at least five or six pill recipes, so Jaekyung, who could only make three types of medicinal pills at most, could not yet be called an alchemist. If one had to say, perhaps a skilled apprentice? 'What was the problem?'
While examining the intact pills, Jaekyung slowly reviewed the entire alchemy process—the amount of ingredients, the fire's temperature, the time allocation, and so on. This review process was as important as the alchemy process itself. After taking ample time to finish his review, Jaekyung collected the medicinal pills.
Warm Qi Pills. These were cultivation pills consumed by Qi Refining cultivators, and they could be considered a specialty of Western Twin Lake in their own right. They were mainly consumed by mid-stage Qi Refining cultivators, and late-stage cultivators who were not well-off also took them.
However, once a cultivator reached the Foundation Establishment stage, no matter how poor a mountain sect cultivator they were, they would not consume such pills.
This was because when a Foundation Establishment cultivator consumed a Qi Refining Stage pill, the effect of increasing spiritual power was minimal, while the pill toxins accumulated just as they would during the Qi Refining Stage.
Pill toxins were poisons that gradually accumulated when one consumed medicinal pills; the higher the grade of the pill and the worse its quality, the greater the amount that accumulated. Even for a supreme-grade medicinal pill, pill toxins were always present, and as these toxins accumulated, various problems, both large and small, would arise.
Therefore, one had to properly regulate the amount of medicinal pills consumed during cultivation.
'Not bad.'
The quality of the pills Jaekyung had just refined was mostly medium-grade, with a few high-grade ones mixed in. Lowest-grade are treated as waste pills, and low-grade as miscellaneous pills. Medium-grade and above pills are traded at a standard price anywhere, so this was a pretty decent result.
'I should be able to get more than five hundred low-grade spirit stones for these.' Jaekyung placed the medicine vial containing the pills into his storage pouch and went outside. As he left the alchemy room, a refreshing breeze brushed past the tip of his nose.
After being cooped up in the alchemy room for over three days, coming outside felt as if both his body and mind were being cleansed.
"Dragon Lord. Everything is ready."
Han Cheong-yu, who had been waiting outside, bowed respectfully. The image of the boy from the past was completely gone. From him, now a dignified young man, a faint ripple of spiritual energy comparable to the late Qi Refining Stage could be felt.
"Yes. Let's go."
Jaekyung, who habitually drank some spirit wine, headed to the docks with Han Cheong-yu. At the small dock, which would be full with just three or four boats, a large ship bearing the flag of the Prosperous Treasure Guild was moored.
"We greet the Dragon Lord!"
The Prosperous Treasure Guild cultivators who were outside bowed their heads in unison towards Jaekyung.