Chapter 148: Divine Body-Refining Pill (1)

Every day, aside from cultivation, Yue Kai devoted his time to alchemy. As his strength grew, the variety of pills he could refine increased, though unfortunately, most had to be abandoned due to a lack of raw materials. The enhancement of spiritual power was undoubtedly a tremendous aid to alchemy; the stronger the spiritual power, the greater the control, making manipulation naturally much easier. The general process of alchemy remained largely similar, with only minor differences in specific steps—such as when to add a certain spiritual herb, or when to infuse mystic energy to seal the pills. It was entirely thanks to Yue Kai’s extraordinary memory that he could manage this; if it were an ordinary person, simply remembering these steps would likely be an agonizing ordeal.

Currently, the "Illusionary God Art" had reached the subtle perception realm of "Spirit Absorption," having grown countless times stronger than when he first began. Now, with just a single thought, Yue Kai’s eyes could emit a peculiar force. If an ordinary person were to merely glance at them, they would likely become lost within, their spirit and consciousness thoroughly sucked away, ultimately turning them into a fool.

Having attained this realm, Yue Kai had also comprehended two offensive techniques recorded in the "Illusionary God Art." The first was "Phantom Soul Destruction"—with formidable spiritual power, a single glare could induce hallucinations in the opponent and easily annihilate them. Of course, this was only effective against targets whose spiritual power was inferior to his own. The second technique was the "Phantom Strike." Yue Kai had been using this move from the very beginning, though previously it lacked real power. By utilizing the origin point of the ancestral meridian to provide spiritual power, it passed through the eyes to form a substantial spiritual shockwave that directly impacted the opponent's brain. For someone of profound strength, it could even form a solid phantom, killing invisibly—a terrifying capability.

Such a method of attack was utterly impossible to guard against. In the War Wolf Empire, where spiritual cultivation was generally weak, this would undoubtedly become one of Yue Kai’s ultimate trump cards. Mastering one technique meant mastering a hundred; the attack method depended entirely on the practitioner's micro-control of their spiritual power. The attack could manifest as a shockwave, tiny needles, or a sharp awl—everything depended on the user's strength.

The "One-Heart Return Manual" had also made tremendous progress. The color of the mystic energy appeared much deeper; previously it was only a faint fiery red, but now it possessed the imposing aura of real flames. The greatest change was not merely the color, but the drastically enhanced power. If the previous manifestation was like a small flame from a burning match, the current version was akin to a high-concentration flame shot from a blowtorch. Although their sizes were roughly similar, their destructive power was worlds apart.

As the foundation of Yue Kai’s combat, the "Game Tactics" naturally appeared more perfected as his physical strength, mystic energy, and mental cultivation method all advanced. What surprised him the most was the metamorphosis of his consciousness. After entering the one-star level, his consciousness seemed to have undergone a baptism of fire, growing closer and more harmonious with heaven and earth. When constructing the nine virtual nodes, the sensation of resonating with a certain hidden base point within the universe was exceptionally distinct. Under this sensation, executing the Return-Step movement had completely reached the realm of following one's heart, looking almost indistinguishable from teleportation.

Amidst the army of beasts, Yue Kai’s spiritual power spread directly, enveloping the entire battlefield. His figure moved like a ghost, darting back and forth across a hundred meters in an instant, unpredictable and utterly untraceable. Out of the more than one hundred berserk mutated beasts, not a single one could keep up with his movements. He could truly be described as moving freely and dashingly through the midst of a million troops.

Such results were naturally gratifying, but Yue Kai was not satisfied. Because the defeated "Blood Scar Saber" possessed a peculiar function capable of forming a sea of blood—within which all energy changes were under his command, even allowing him to anticipate the enemy's moves in advance—it surpassed his own Return-Step movement. So far, Yue Kai still had not figured out a way to break it. If he could not crack it, he would be forced into a direct head-on clash with his opponent. However, in terms of sheer physical strength, Yue Kai’s realm still seemed somewhat lacking. Twenty thousand Ankes of strength fell far short compared to Li Xiuxiang, let alone Xie Bao, the rogue cultivator who had seized a body and been reborn.

It seemed he had to elevate his physical body's strength first.

After pondering through various options, Yue Kai decided to begin refining a pill that enhanced physical strength... the Body-Tempering Tribulation-Crossing Pill!

This type of pill was specifically used by ancient cultivators to temper their bodies and could only be successfully made by a Tier 2 alchemist. It was universally applicable below the spiritual strength realm—meaning anyone below the Golden Core stage could use it. Above the Golden Core stage, once spiritual aura transformed into spiritual power, ordinary pills ceased to be effective; at that point, true elixirs were required.

Yue Kai’s current mystic energy was on the verge of transforming into spiritual aura, making him the most suitable candidate to consume this "Body-Tempering Tribulation-Crossing Pill." However, this body-refinement process was somewhat perverse: unless the body's meridians and bones were pushed to their absolute limits, consuming the pill would be completely useless. In other words, it only exerted its tempering effect after the body had sustained severe damage.

This was tantamount to self-torture. Ordinary people would never choose this method to increase their strength, for they neither possessed such miraculous pills nor such indomitable willpower.

"Boss, I'm back! Today our beast legion pushed forward another thousand miles! At this rate, it won't be long before we conquer the entire wasteland!" Although his strength had skyrocketed, Lamb still found it hard to shake his boisterous personality. As soon as he and Wu Meitian entered the cave, he shouted as if claiming credit, brimming with excitement.

Over the past few days, Yue Kai had altered the training method, having everyone network their consciousnesses at night to study tactical command, while assigning them mutated beast legions during the day to test their commanding abilities. Leading a pack of ferocious mutated beasts to conquer all directions, their territory had expanded rapidly and vastly.

Accompanied by King Kong, though the horde of beasts was incomparably savage, they still faithfully executed everyone's commands.

During this time, the skinny-pated, bespectacled youth's commanding talent truly manifested. He directed the beast horde in various tactical drills against wild beast packs, operating just like a true army commander, deploying various tactics in rotation. Ultimately, a radius of ten thousand miles had become Yue Kai’s domain.

Yue Kai remained indifferent to all of this, but Wu Nitian was extremely excited, secretly thrilled in his heart. His boss was truly worthy of being the savior he had chosen; now that he was beginning to display his sharp edge, the restoration of his country was within sight in the future.

"You're already at the peak of the Martial Artist realm, why are you still so loud? This is the wasteland; even if you were made a king, what use would it be?" Yue Kai said with feigned annoyance, though his hands did not stop, continuing to channel mystic energy into the cauldron. Given his current strength, multitasking was hardly a challenge at all.

Seeing this, Lamb’s eyes instantly lit up. He eagerly hurried over, fixing his gaze dead on the pill cauldron, taking a greedy sniff, and saying excitedly, "Boss, what treasure is it this time? It looks formidable. Can you let me have a taste?"

Yue Kai rolled his eyes speechlessly, then smiled and nodded at Wu Meitian as a greeting. With a sudden vibration of his hands, red mystic energy erupted fiercely, rising like a ball of flame between his palms and shooting directly into the pill cauldron. The cauldron shuddered violently and began to shake intensely. Seeing this, Lamb turned pale with fright, hurriedly grabbed Wu Meitian, and leaped far back, shouting in alarm, "Boss, you aren't going to blow up the cauldron again, are you?"

Yue Kai rebuked angrily, "Jinx! This young master can refine Tier 3 pills with ease nowadays, let alone a Tier 2 pill!" As his voice fell, he brought his palms together, and the violently shaking cauldron instantly quieted down. The next second, a fluctuation suddenly surged around them, and spiritual aura gathered madly toward the pill cauldron. This was the final stage—perfectly fusing the spiritual aura of heaven and earth with the pills, the pill-forming phase.

Yue Kai had lost count of how many times he had simulated and actually executed this process. He was thoroughly familiar with it, and the benefits of his formidable spiritual power now manifested as he handled it with complete ease.

Seeing the jade bottle suddenly appear in Yue Kai's hand, signaling that the pills were about to be harvested, Lamb trotted over with a ingratiating grin, "Boss, I'm willing to test the medicine for you."

Yue Kai looked at Lamb helplessly, a trace of reluctant amusement flashing in his eyes. "Do you really want to test the medicine?"

For some reason, looking at the smile in Yue Kai's eyes, Lamb felt a chill run down his spine and hesitated for a moment. However, knowing Yue Kai's temperament well, he couldn't rule out the possibility that the other party was merely putting on a show. The medicine smelled wonderful, and based on his consistent experience, this was definitely a rare divine pill that one could only hope to encounter—it would be a pity to miss it. Therefore, he gritted his teeth and said firmly, "Testing the medicine for Boss is my honor. I am ready to face death without hesitation."

Yue Kai said softly, "This pill is called the Body-Tempering Tribulation-Crossing Pill. As the name suggests, it is a pill that enhances physical fitness. Before achieving the union of mind and spirit, one can physically enhance their body using high-tech means in the imperial capital. However, after reaching the Martial Artist level, one can only rely on slow, gradual cultivation to grow stronger step by step. This pill possesses miraculous efficacy, enabling a person's bone toughness to increase substantially."

Lamb's eyes glowed with excitement. He stretched out his hand like a toddler begging an adult for candy, acting spoiled as he called out, "Boss, I want it! Give it to me, give it to me!"

This sight made Wu Meitian's brows twitch violently; she longed to run over and kick this wretched fellow fiercely in the rear. However, she possessed zero resistance to Yue Kai's pills, so she suppressed the impulse in her heart and stared eagerly at Yue Kai.

Yue Kai smiled with the innocent purity of a happy lamb. He pinched a golden pill between his fingers, held it beneath his nose, took a deep breath, and said ecstatically, "As expected of a heaven-defying pill utilizing over thirty kinds of spiritual herbs. Just a sniff makes my bones feel somewhat tougher."

Lamb grabbed Yue Kai's arm and pleaded, "Boss, give it to me!"

As formidable as Yue Kai was, he was still shaken to the core by this kid's mastery of the act of cuteness, prompting him to exclaim that he couldn't take it anymore. He narrowed his eyes and chuckled evilly, "Are you truly certain you want to test the power of the pill, even if it means getting injured in the process?"

A knot formed in Lamb's heart and he hesitated slightly, but ultimately, his desire for the pill conquered his worries. Throwing caution to the wind, he declared, "As long as I don't die, I will never regret it!"

"Very well, then don't blame Boss for being ruthless."

Yue Kai's smile vanished abruptly. His eyes flashed with a startling, intense light as a vortex suddenly appeared within them. Lamb froze entirely, staring blankly into Yue Kai's eyes like a soul stripped from its body.

The next second, he felt his body shudder, as if a hundred fists were landing on him all at once—heavy punches delivered with brutal force. In an instant, it felt as though his bones were about to shatter. The intense pain involuntarily forced his mouth open into a miserable scream, resembling someone whose chrysanthemum had just been ravaged by a mutated beast.