Bachelor [EN]: Chapter 551

Old Man Bu flicked his fingers, sending out dark green fireballs in all directions.

*Puff puff puff!*

Each time a fireball burst, a green mist would rise and then vanish instantly.

Han Li confirmed with his spiritual sense that faint fluctuations of a restriction were indeed present. Although he didn’t know the nature of the restriction, he was impressed by how easily Old Man Bu had set up the barrier.

Not only that, but the other cultivators also scanned the barrier with their spiritual sense, and their gazes toward the old man changed slightly.

“This matter is something I’ve been planning for 30 years. Has anyone here heard of an ancient pill called the Nascent Soul Pill?”

“Nascent Soul Pill?”

Bai Yaoyi and the giant had never heard of such a name, but Han Li was different.

“Fellow Daoist Han, do you know what kind of pill the Nascent Soul Pill is?” the giant asked, noticing his expression.

“Yes, I have heard of it. The Nascent Soul Pill is a unique elixir from an ancient sect of the Great Desolate Era. It is said to be beneficial for the Nascent Soul [a cultivator’s core of spiritual energy] of Nascent Soul cultivators, making it easier to overcome cultivation bottlenecks. It can be considered a miraculous medicine for cultivators like us.

However, that ancient sect has long since disappeared, and the method of refining the Nascent Soul Pill has also been lost. That’s why very few people in the cultivation world know about this elixir,” Han Li explained, recalling what he knew. Although he wasn’t a pill refiner, he had learned about this pill while reading numerous ancient scriptures. The giant and Bai Yaoyi were delighted to hear Han Li’s words. The giant immediately asked the old man,

“Brother Bu, have you perhaps found the whereabouts of the Nascent Soul Pill?”

Pills that could help overcome cultivation bottlenecks after reaching the Nascent Soul stage were extremely rare in this world. Over the long years, most of them had been lost, and the remaining half could not be made due to the changing environment of the cultivation world, making it impossible to find the necessary ingredients.

“Hehe, it’s unexpected that Brother Han knows about the Nascent Soul Pill. You’re right. The reason I invited you all here is because of that. I’ve had the recipe for the Nascent Soul Pill for over a hundred years.”

“Fellow Daoist Bu has the recipe for the Nascent Soul Pill?” The giant was so excited that his dark cheeks turned red. Bai Yaoyi and Han Li also showed their joy upon hearing those words.

“Moreover, I am skilled in pill refinement, so as long as all the ingredients are gathered, refining the Nascent Soul Pill will be no problem,” Old Man Bu replied without delay.

“Judging from your tone, Brother Bu, it seems you haven’t gathered all the ingredients yet. Is that why you invited us here?” Han Li asked cautiously, raising an eyebrow.

“Indeed, Brother Han is very perceptive. If one of the main ingredients wasn’t missing, I would have refined the Nascent Soul Pill long ago. I’ve gathered you all here to ask for your help in obtaining that ingredient this time.”

“If it’s an ingredient that you, Elder Bu of the Guyu Sect, haven’t been able to obtain for so long, it must not be an easy task,” Bai Yaoyi said, narrowing her brows.

“That’s right. I originally thought that the main ingredient had disappeared from the human realm, so I had given up on refining the Nascent Soul Pill. But I happened to discover it by chance.”

“Stop beating around the bush and tell us what it is and where it is,” the giant urged the old man impatiently.

“What we need is the flesh and blood of the Yin-Earth Horse.”

“The Yin-Earth Horse? Is such a spirit beast still left in the human realm? Where did you find it?” Han Li asked, narrowing his eyes in surprise. Bai Yaoyi and the giant exchanged glances, both looking clueless.

“I also thought that the Yin-Earth Horse had become extinct in the human realm. But 30 years ago, I happened to find traces of it. In the Southern Border, to be exact,” the old man said with a smile and a strange expression.

“If you already know where the Yin-Earth Horse is, then you wouldn’t need our help. What’s the problem?” Everyone fell into thought, and the giant, Yuan, was the first to speak.

“Although the Yin-Earth Horse is very skilled at concealment, if I had enough time, there’s no way I wouldn’t be able to catch it. The problem is that the spirit beast’s habitat is inside the Yin-Yang Cave of the Myriad Poison Valley. The spirit beast is so intelligent that it only roams around the entrance of the cave and never comes out,” Old Man Bu finally revealed the problem that had been tormenting him for decades.

“The Yin-Yang Cave…”

This time, even the giant was surprised, and Bai Yaoyi’s face turned pale for a moment, while Han Li looked completely clueless.

“…Is the Yin-Yang Cave that dangerous?”

“Fellow Daoist Han, you don’t know about the Yin-Yang Cave? Ah, I almost forgot. Brother Han is a cultivator from overseas, so it’s understandable that you might not know! The Yin-Yang Cave is one of the seven recognized perilous places of our Great Jin. Ordinary cultivators cannot come out alive from that place,” Bai Yaoyi explained to Han Li.

“Is there a specific reason why it’s so dangerous?”

“The Yin-Yang Cave is a place where the yin and yang energies are completely isolated the moment you enter the cave. Putting aside everything else, if you are hit by the yin wind that blows all year round, even the Nascent Soul of a Nascent Soul cultivator will be scattered. Moreover, it is a place where the yin energy of the Xuan Yin land located in the cave gathers, so powerful ghost creatures are often born. If a living cultivator enters that place, even if they can block the yin wind, they will be torn to pieces by the numerous ghost creatures!” Old Man Bu explained in detail.

“Hmph, is that all? The Yin-Yang Cave is thousands of feet underground, and there are countless large and small passages and caves. Even the cultivators who were lucky enough to go down to the lower levels before could not figure out the overall structure of the cave. That’s because the spiritual sense is blocked by the yin wind the moment it is released. Moreover, someone said that there is a powerful ghost king in the cave,” the giant added with a snort.

“In fact, it was previously thought that there was nothing special inside the Yin-Yang Cave except for a vein of ore, so it was only speculated to be an abandoned ore cave from the ancient era. That’s why no one dared to risk their lives to explore it,” Bai Yaoyi raised her dark eyebrows.

“Judging from the fact that Brother Bu hasn’t been able to catch the Yin-Earth Horse for so long, it seems to be a very dangerous place. No matter what’s inside, we’ll have to risk our lives to go in,” Han Li said coldly, recalling his experiences in places like the Void Sky Palace and the Chuma Bone.

“That’s why I’ve spent the last few years refining treasures that are the nemesis of ghost creatures. Moreover, I’ve brought the Purple Nether Pearl of our Guyu Sect to block the yin wind. If you carry this pearl on your body, you won’t be able to completely block the yin wind, but you can weaken it by about half.”

“The Purple Nether Pearl?” The giant and Bai Yaoyi showed interest in the Purple Nether Pearl, one of the three treasures of the Guyu Sect.

“What do you think? I’ve already made sufficient preparations, and if the three of you help with all your strength, there’s nothing we can’t handle in the Yin-Yang Cave! If we catch the Yin-Earth Horse, I will immediately refine the Nascent Soul Pill and give each of you one.

This kind of pill only has an effect once, so no matter how much we refine, each of you only needs one. And who knows, we might find something else inside the Yin-Yang Cave?” Old Man Bu finished speaking leisurely. The other cultivators were silent for a moment, and even the talkative giant had a troubled look on his face.

“If Brother Bu has already completed all the preparations, then why do you need the three of us? There must be Nascent Soul mid-stage cultivators in the Guyu Sect as well,” Bai Yaoyi asked, fiddling with the blue cloth covering her forehead. This was what Han Li and the giant also wanted to know.

“Ask me to find cultivators in the Guyu Sect to help? That’s impossible for me. It’s because I’m at odds with most of the cultivators of the same level in the sect due to a certain incident. Except for Senior Sister Shang, the other cultivators are eagerly waiting for me to die and disappear. In such a situation, if we move together, there’s no telling when I might be betrayed,” the old man said, his face hardening and revealing his anger. The three cultivators, including Han Li, were speechless. In fact, they couldn’t tell if his explanation was true or false, but it was difficult to question him further after he said that.

“It seems that entering the Yin-Yang Cave is not an easy decision to make. I need some time to think. Can I give you an answer in three days?” Bai Yaoyi said after bowing her head and pondering.

“Of course, I can wait three days! Anyway, the Yin-Yang Cave will only have the weakest yin wind in half a year, when it comes around once every 12 years. That will be the most suitable time to enter the cave. Moreover, you all need to prepare special magic treasures or treasures to fight against the ghost creatures in the cave, right?

However, before you leave, you must make an oath using your blood on this Nether River Leaf that you will never reveal this information. We can’t have any leaks about the Nascent Soul Pill and the Yin-Earth Horse, can we?” Old Man Bu said with a smile, shaking his sleeve and taking out a yellow paper with black flames burning on it.

“Nether River Leaf! Isn’t that a wicked thing that causes strange misfortune if you violate the oath written on it? I heard it disappeared from the cultivation world hundreds of years ago,” the giant exclaimed in surprise. Han Li’s heart also turned cold at those words.

“I bought this from the black market for a large sum of money for this very purpose. The effect of the Nether River Leaf may not be that great, but it will help keep the secret from leaking for the time being. Except for Fellow Daoist Han, you all know how Feng Tianxing of the Heavenly Demon Sect died, right? Feng Tianxing was also a Nascent Soul mid-stage cultivator like us, so I don’t think anyone wants to experience the effects of the Nether River Leaf by breaking their oath.”

“Alright. I can’t miss the opportunity to obtain something like the Nascent Soul Pill. I’ll see you again in half a year,” the giant finally made his decision after a long time. He reached out his hand toward the black paper, pulled it toward him, and opened his mouth to spit out blood.

He used his index finger to dab the blood in the air and began to write ancient characters on the floating Nether River Leaf. After a while, his hand stopped, and a skull with fangs bared appeared in the black flames, grinning wickedly at the giant before sucking in the blood-written characters on the paper and disappearing.

Han Li’s heart sank at that bizarre sight. Old Man Bu retrieved the yellow paper and looked at Bai Yaoyi.

Bai Yaoyi also looked reluctant, but she had no choice but to make the same oath as the giant, and once again, a skull appeared in the black flames and disappeared into blue smoke.

When the old man’s gaze turned to him, Han Li sighed inwardly. It was never a good thing to make an oath using an unknown object, but it seemed like he had no other choice.

He pointed at the yellow paper with a blank expression, and the Nether River Leaf quickly flew toward him.

After staring at the yellow paper for a moment, he bit his tongue and spat out blood, writing down that he would not reveal anything about today’s events.

The skull grinned eerily and was about to open its mouth when suddenly something inside Han Li’s body wriggled and roared. The sound wasn’t loud, but all the surrounding cultivators could hear it.

Upon hearing the sound, the skull’s face immediately contorted, and it muttered incomprehensible sounds before scattering and disappearing. It was as if it was being chased by something and was fleeing in a hurry.

The other cultivators were just dumbfounded. Han Li also let out a long breath with a strange look on his face.

“I will also agree to the promise without further hesitation. However, the Nether River Leaf and something in my body are incompatible, so it will be difficult for me to make an oath with blood. Instead, I promise not to leave the Southern Border for half a year and not to reveal anything about this matter to anyone.”

At that moment, the Nether River Leaf was pushed back to Old Man Bu by a blue aura. Old Man Bu was troubled by the unexpected situation and didn’t know what to do.

“Senior Brother Bu, just do as Fellow Daoist Han says. It doesn’t seem like he would break his word even without the Nether River Leaf,” the black-clad beautiful woman, who had been silent from the beginning, spoke up. Her voice was hoarse, but it was still captivating.

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