Trouble stirred in the immortal palace just as the atmosphere was filled with joyous energy and united efforts.
Yet, within the palace, there wasn’t complete harmony; some undercurrents of discord had begun to surface.
On this day, Yu Lie was, as usual, immersed in seclusion.
Mountains of spirit ores and medicinal herbs were continuously delivered to his meditation chamber.
Day and night, great clouds of smoke and steam rose from his chamber—emanations of furnace flames and the vapor of medicinal herbs.
As Yu Lie’s seclusion deepened, outside his chamber gathered not only numerous formation experts but also many alchemists and artifact craftsmen, filling every available seat.
The charcoal fire these practitioners used daily to concoct pills and refine spiritual materials burned so fiercely that it could consume the accumulated reserves of a mid-sized clan over hundreds of years.
Meanwhile, the waste liquid used constantly to cool the furnace formed a waterway ten zhang (about thirty-three meters) wide, flowing continuously around the meditation chamber.
This waste, once discharged into Huoxing City, because it contained traces of spiritual energy, was eagerly snatched up by the city’s Daoist attendants and disciples, who believed it to be heavenly nectar falling from the sky.