Chương 98: Chapter 99: Refining the Hundred-Beast Venom Core

Deep within the hollowed-out mountain that housed the medicinal garden, Reyn sat cross-legged, his breath steadying as the silence of the valley settled around him. He had just fled the presence of Dan Chenzi and the Sect Leader, having flatly refused their offer to move him to a superior, high-grade garden. Even now, a lingering sense of dread prickled at his skin. The sheer, unbridled madness of Golden Core cultivators who had been pushed past the brink of joy was a spectacle he never wished to witness again.

"Sister, what in the world just happened?" Reyn asked, his Divine Sense rippling with confusion.

"I know for a fact I don't possess a Hidden Spirit Root. Why did the Sect Leader and my Master react like that?"

"Hahaha! Oh, this is too much! It's absolutely priceless!" A shimmer of light flickered as Yu Meiren manifested outside Reyn's body. She was doubled over, laughing with such abandon that her usual ethereal grace was replaced by a raw, infectious mirth. The sight made Reyn blink in surprise, a faint flush creeping onto his face.

"Those two old fools... their lack of vision is staggering. That Testing Orb I had you use—it does indeed detect spirit root aptitude, but you don't have a spirit root at all. No matter how much essence they poured into that trinket, it would never change. To think they took that absolute void of a reaction as the ultimate proof of a 'Hidden Spirit Root'... Hahaha! This is the funniest thing I've seen in centuries!" Reyn stood frozen, a wry smile eventually tugging at his lips.

He hadn't expected such a bizarre misunderstanding to work in his favor. He shook his head, but the heavy weight that had been pressing on his chest finally lifted. Previously, he had to move with extreme caution to hide his cultivation; now, he could walk openly under the prestigious banner of a 'Hidden Spirit Root' genius. No one would dare question his rapid progress again.

Once Qingxiaozi and Dan Chenzi had convinced themselves of his legendary status, their doubts regarding his Tier 3 alchemy skills—achieved in a mere year—vanished instantly. In their minds, a Hidden Spirit Root was a creature of myth; for such a being to possess heaven-defying talent was not only possible but expected. It spared Reyn the need for any elaborate lies.

As for his inability to reach Foundation Establishment, the two elders had spent hours agonizing over it, subjecting Reyn to a battery of tests that yielded no answers. While Reyn was disappointed, he hadn't pinned much hope on them anyway. The elders, however, looked as though they wanted to tear the world apart. To them, Reyn was the future of the Xuanxiao Sect. They would not—could not—allow a once-in-ten-millennia genius to be permanently stalled at the Qi Condensation realm.

Reyn walked deeper into the garden, the echoes of the elders' frantic movements still ringing in his ears. They were currently ransacking the sect's ancient archives, their teeth grinding and eyes bloodshot with obsession. They were determined to find a way for him to break through, no matter the cost. A thin smile played on Reyn's lips. This was a stroke of luck. Having the entire sect search for a breakthrough method on his behalf was far more efficient than wandering blindly on his own.

He suppressed all distracting thoughts, focusing his mind on the path ahead. The journey of cultivation was a solitary one, and in the end, he could only rely on himself. He was no longer that insignificant registered disciple; his status and strength had evolved. Now, his only goal was to stabilize his state and seize the opportunity to reach Foundation Establishment, solidifying his foundation once and for all.

Once his heart reached a state of absolute stillness, Reyn reached for his storage bag and retrieved a palm-sized jade bottle. The vessel was plastered with several Sealing Talismans, their golden scripts glowing faintly to contain the volatile contents. With a focused expression, he traced a mudra in the air, murmuring a command that caused the talismans to peel away.

Immediately, a wisp of obsidian mist curled from the mouth of the bottle, carrying a bone-chilling, sinister aura that began to seep into the surrounding air. Reyn's internal alarms blared. This was the raw extract of a hundred different beast toxins, a cocktail of lethal potency. Even in its unrefined state, a single drop of this liquid could cause catastrophic damage if it touched the skin.

Had Yu Meiren not instructed him in the specialized techniques of the Hundred-Beast Venom Core, teaching him how to suppress and mold this toxicity, he would never have dared to break the seals.

"Refine!" Reyn barked, his voice cutting through the heavy air. He pointed a finger, and the black mist instantly froze in place before churning violently. It did not dissipate; instead, an invisible force acted like a cage, binding the venomous vapor to a fixed point in space. With a sharp flick of his wrist, Reyn tossed the jade bottle upward and shattered it with a precise bolt of Qi. A globule of Hundred-Beast Venom Liquid, roughly the size of a child's fist, hovered before him.

The thick black clouds were emanating directly from this concentrated mass. Reyn dared not be careless. He visualized the refining process one last time, ensuring every detail was etched into his mind, before his hands began to move in a blur of complex seals, hammering spiritual mudras into the liquid. The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.

The venomous extract began to boil like molten lead, erupting with endless black miasma that formed a dark, roiling cloud nearly ten feet wide above his head. Reyn's wrists twisted with predatory grace, his fingers dancing through a sequence of refined, dark seals that streaked through the air to strike the churning liquid. His arms were as steady as ancient stone, his soul strained to its limit as he used his own True Essence as a furnace and his Divine Sense as a lock, forcibly tempering the rampaging toxins.

Under the crushing pressure of his power, the viscous black sludge began to collapse and condense. The boiling waves subsided as impurities were violently stripped away, leaving behind a heavy, deathly mass of obsidian煞气 (shàqì) suspended in the air. He curled his fingers, locking the煞气 into a restrictive array. The dense black fog thrashed against his control, echoing with the phantom shrieks of countless dying beasts.

It was as if ten thousand predatory spirits were clawing at the interior of the cloud, desperate to break free and devour him. With a sharp tug of his fingers, the cloud tore apart into dozens of smaller, concentrated clusters of venomous煞气, each hovering at a specific node within the formation. Thin, needle-like threads of black energy extended from each cluster, weaving together into an intricate, lethal cage that bound the malevolent spirits.

"Poison-Beast Manifestation!" Reyn's voice was a cold, steady chime. The speed of his hand seals tripled, leaving behind a trail of flickering afterimages. He poured his Divine Sense and spiritual energy into the array without reservation, using his raw power to domesticate the chaotic toxins and force them into physical forms. The smallest cluster of miasma, barely a few inches wide, suddenly erupted into a violent boil.

Reyn's gaze narrowed, his fingers weaving a blur of seals as he poured his essence into the formation to stabilize the shape. The twisting black fog coalesced with terrifying speed, knitting together phantom bone, flesh, and iridescent feathers. In a heartbeat, a variegated monstrous bird tore through the darkness. Its plumage was not a sign of beauty but a warning—each feather was a jagged blade saturated with ancient toxins.

Droplets of corrosive dew fell from its wings, hissing as they ate pits into the stone floor. Its emerald vertical pupils burned with a cunning that far surpassed ordinary beasts, locking onto Reyn with murderous intent the moment it took form. It let out a piercing, jagged shriek that carried a toxic wind across the garden. The bird threw itself against the Divine Sense cage, its wings battering the invisible walls in a desperate bid for freedom. Reyn's brow furrowed, his grip on the mudras tightening.

His mental barrier remained unshaken, absorbing the bird's frantic assaults. Every collision sent a jolt of bone-chilling poison through his soul, making his meridians tingle and his blood churn, yet he stood his ground. He was a mountain against the storm, refusing to yield a single inch to the phantom predator. With the first manifestation successful, Reyn's technique shifted again. His fingers moved in a continuous, fluid motion, driving the array forward.

The remaining dozens of clusters began to boil in succession. One after another, the roiling roars and predatory cries of beasts filled the mountain chamber as the sky-high煞气 flooded the refining circle. He moved with calculated precision, his every gesture dictated by the ancient alchemy laws. Within moments, dozens of unique, lethal poison-beasts had taken form, each one a nightmare of toxicity, all trapped within the web of black threads and mental chains.

The sheer intensity of the process began to take its toll. A sickly pallor crept over Reyn's face, and fine beads of cold sweat broke out across his forehead. Refining a Hundred-Beast Venom Core was infinitely more perilous than any standard pill; the combined backlash of these manifested spirits threatened to tear his mind apart. Had his Divine Sense not been tempered to the level of a Late Foundation Establishment cultivator, he would have been consumed long ago.

He reached out with his free hand, flicking several Spirit-Restoring Pills into his mouth. The medicinal power surged through his limbs, replenishing his drained essence and allowing his complexion to recover slightly. He stared at the thrashing beasts within the array, his eyes cold and focused.

"Only the primary trunk of the煞气 remains," he whispered to himself.

"There is no room for error now." Reyn took a deep breath, forcing down the turbulence in his blood as he switched to the final, most complex set of seals. His movements slowed, becoming heavy and deliberate. Every mudra now required a monumental effort, and the stinging pain in his soul grew sharper with every passing second. The risk of a total collapse pressed down on his shoulders like a physical weight.

Obsidian, esoteric runes began to spiral from his fingertips, glowing with a faint, suppressive light that carried the profound weight of the Dao. One by one, they struck the final three clusters—the largest and most silent masses of the black fog. The moment the runes touched the煞气, the three masses exploded into a frenzy. They thrashed with a violence that shook the entire mountain, and low, guttural growls echoed from the depths of the mist.

A transformation far more dangerous than anything that had come before was now beginning to unfold.