“Huh?” Meng Chong was dumbfounded.
Fei Si narrowed his eyes to slits, “You’re speaking in riddles. What do you mean? Could it be that those three demonic cultivators were summoned by you?”
“Bullshit!” Sun Lie cursed outright, “You’re overthinking it!”
He shifted his gaze to Meng Chong, “Don’t you find something strange?”
Meng Chong blinked, then slapped his forehead, “Oh, right! Elder Sun, you once told me that I mustn’t leave the Purple Sun Furnace recklessly."
"Otherwise, with the external pressure reduced and without the medicinal support, my energy and spirit would deplete uncontrollably, turning me into a cripple.”
“But here I am, I ran out of the furnace and interrupted the alchemy process, yet I haven’t felt any depletion.”
Sun Lie chuckled, “Of course that was a lie.”
Meng Chong was taken aback, “What?”
Sun Lie explained, “The art of human alchemy is a technique of demonic cultivators. How could I, a righteous path practitioner, ever use such methods?”
Meng Chong stammered, “What?”
Sun Lie revealed, “True spiritual dissipation begins with yourself. Your own unparalleled Immortal Talent is the ultimate key.”
Meng Chong blinked, “You’re talking about my Wild Sprint Thunderclap?”
Sun Lie nodded, “Exactly.”
“Wild Sprint Thunderclap is a supreme Immortal Talent, one in a million among cultivators, absolutely extraordinary!”
“But, I realized that this talent has not been fully unlocked by you. It’s a real waste, like a precious elixir hiding its properties, unused and neglected!”
“Once you fully harness this talent, you’ll be able to dispel your spiritual power quickly. Half a day may not be enough, but a full day surely will.”
“That’s why I set up this whole scheme, to push you into a life-threatening situation.”
“In such danger, if you focus entirely, devoid of all distractions, abandoning everything and charging forward fearlessly, your unique talent will be triggered!”
Meng Chong looked bewildered, “What?”
This young genius blinked, then thought of something and exclaimed, “Elder Sun, so you made me smear honey and cumin on myself as a joke?”
Sun Lie slapped his thigh in laughter, “Of course, I wasn’t lying!”
Fei Si frowned, “Young Master Meng Chong possesses supreme Immortal Talent and is the City Lord’s beloved grandson."
"Yet you used him as if he were food for roasting? And you set him up? How can you be so sure that this would trigger his Immortal Talent?”
Sun Lie cast a dismissive glance at Fei Si, “Are you a grand alchemist? What do you know?”
“All things in heaven and earth can be considered ingredients.”
“The same goes for people. For humans, human nature is like medicinal properties. Fully igniting one’s nature is akin to releasing medicinal potency.”
“In demonic cultivation, when they extract medicine from humans, they often inflict severe pain, hatred, anger, sorrow, and other emotions to stimulate the medicinal qualities.”
Explaining further, Sun Lie asked Meng Chong, “Have you ever wondered why your Immortal Talent is specifically Wild Sprint Thunderclap and not something else?”
Meng Chong was at a loss, “Huh?”
Sun Lie shook his head, “You think it’s just luck. But that’s not the case! Immortal Talent is not only a blessing of heaven and earth but is closely related to the cultivator’s own nature.”
“It is precisely because your nature is brave and fearless, with a straightforward, no-nonsense attitude, that you possess this talent.”
“Innate talent and nature reflect and complement each other.”
“So, by fully stimulating your innate nature and supplementing it with certain alchemical techniques, your Immortal Talent can be awakened.”
“The ingredients in the furnace were carefully prepared and not useless at all.”
Fei Si’s eyes narrowed, a gleam flashing within as he began to understand and guessed Sun Lie’s intentions.
Sun Lie turned to Meng Chong, “Putting you into the Purple Sun Furnace, using human alchemy methods, and applying honey and cumin were all mere diversions.”
“My original plan was to disguise myself as drunk, deeply asleep, while you were roasted for an extended time, making you mistakenly believe you were trapped in a desperate situation.”
“I wanted to force you to unleash your true nature.”
“If you emerged from the furnace, disregarding my previous threats, and shattered the pressure I created for you, your nature would explode.”
“When this nature erupts, it will merge with alchemical energy, combine with your dissipating spiritual power, and not only will it draw out your Immortal Talent of Wild Sprint Thunderclap, but its power will also increase tenfold.”
At this, Sun Lie let out a deep sigh.
“Adversity reveals true strength; life and death display one’s essence.”
“To truly understand someone’s character, observe their choices and actions in critical moments of life and death.”
Meng Chong finally understood, “So that’s how it is.”
He was suddenly enlightened.
Previously, his Wild Sprint Thunderclap talent was always inconsistent.
“Just now, all I wanted was to kill that demonic cultivator! In the critical moment, Wild Sprint Thunderclap erupted, and I was thrilled and felt incredibly lucky.”
“I was even puzzled at how powerful it was this time.”
“I never imagined it was thanks to Elder Sun’s efforts!”
Sun Lie smiled, “I never expected a demonic cultivator to attack the Purple Sun Courtyard at such a crucial moment.”
“At that time, when my life was hanging by a thread, you disregarded your own safety and broke out of the furnace to save me.”
“That kindness, I won’t forget it, boy!”
Sun Lie gave Meng Chong a thumbs-up.
After this experience, he found Meng Chong especially admirable.
Meng Chong straightened his chest and declared proudly, “I am of the Meng family, a prominent family of the Southern Bean Immortal Kingdom. How could I shrink back in a fight or watch a comrade be killed?”
“To be honest, I didn’t even think twice. All the care you showed me, Elder Sun, I tossed aside.”
“In that moment, I was filled with rage, and all I wanted was to smash that demonic cultivator to pieces, so I charged out.”
Sun Lie praised, “This is exactly the expression of your nature.”
“If you ask me, Meng Chong, with your supreme Immortal Talent, you don’t need to compete for mechanical inheritance. There are a hundred arts in cultivation, and the path of mechanics doesn’t suit you at all.”
“The best technique for you is one that allows you to charge forward freely.”
Fei Si coughed, quickly interrupting Sun Lie.
Since Sun Lie was dismissing the City Lord’s decision, as his subordinate, Fei Si naturally had to uphold it.
Fei Si said, “The Sage of the Three Sects is a Void Refinement stage powerhouse, and his palaces are not limited to just one. However, the Lava Immortal Palace is renowned for its mechanical inheritance.”
“In fact, based on the City Lord’s collected intelligence and deductions, the inheritance within the Lava Immortal Palace, while focused on mechanical arts, is not limited to them.”
“With his unique encounters, the Sage of the Three Sects achieved mastery in three distinct paths—a rarity in this world.
It is said that in his later years, he developed a unique method that integrated all three paths, and the Lava Immortal Palace was his late-life creation.”
“The Five Elements Qi Regulation Technique transmitted by the Dharma Transmission Bell only scratches the surface.
Although it is a Dao technique, it contains traces of Buddhist and Demonic thought.
The City Lord, after studying this technique, speculates that there may be two other techniques to complement it, supporting the cultivation of the remaining two dantians.”
“So, imagine cultivating with the Sage’s three-path technique. How deep and profound would one’s foundation be? How many foundation establishment techniques in the world allow for cultivation across all three dantians?”