Nine Evolutions of the True Spirit
chapter-361-30041322

Upon entering the alchemy room, all the people inside paused mid-discussion and looked at Lu Ping following behind Xuan-Dian.

Lu Ping openly received their gazes and even looked back calmly without any sign of uneasiness. Xuan-Dian found himself admiring the other man’s courage a little.

Then, Xuan-Dian introduced him to the crowd, "This is Senior Sister Liu Tian-Ling’s ninth disciple, and the sect’s newly promoted Master Alchemist, Junior Nephew Lu Xuan-Ping."

He politely directed Lu Ping’s attention to an old man in his fifties. "Nephew Xuan-Ping, this is my teacher, Great Ancestor Tian-Lu."

Lu Ping bowed respectfully and greeted, "This disciple, Lu Xuan-Ping, greets Great Ancestor Tian-Lu!"

Great Ancestor Tian-Lu had a stoic and serious face, but he still smiled and replied happily when he saw Lu Ping. "Not bad, not bad at all. Come, have a seat. Xuan-Sen’s condition requires all of us to come up with the best solution. As one of the five Master Alchemists in the sect, we urgently need your expertise. Take a look at his situation first before joining the discussion."

Lu Ping nodded politely, then turned his gaze towards the middle-aged man standing beside Great Ancestor Tian-Lu.

At first glance, the most eye-catching thing about him was his calm and unflinching demeanor. Despite being the center of discussion and at the edge of impairment, Xuan-Sen appeared unaffected by any negative emotions.

When Lu Ping looked at him, Xuan-Sen who was initially meditating in silence, opened his eyes and met his gaze, then gave a gentle smile.

Lu Ping quickly bowed slightly to greet the honorable senior who had devoted his life to the sect and ended up in this state.

Behind Xuan-Sen, there was an Enlightened Master, and a Peak Blood Condensation Realm disciple with a similar appearance to Xuan-Sen. They were probably Xuan-Sen’s disciple and descendant.

The pair were also looking at Lu Ping with pleading eyes filled with hope. Lu Ping nodded softly in response.

He extended his divine revelation out to inspect Xuan-Sen’s condition, who in turn didn’t resist this intrusion.

Meanwhile, the alchemists in the room had resumed their discussion. However, most of them only shook their heads with a sigh; they clearly didn’t think Xuan-Sen could recover from his injuries.

Behind Xuan-Sen, the two cultivators looked gloomier as the conversation went on. But they didn’t dare to interfere and could only watch Lu Ping who was meticulously checking Xuan-Sen’s injuries.

Xuan-Sen didn’t seem to mind what was happening, showing perhaps, the toughest and most resolute spirit Lu Ping had ever seen.

In his first round of inspection, Lu Ping looked solemn and serious like the other alchemists, as he soon arrived at the same bleak outcome as them.

However, after another examination of Xuan-Sen’s injuries, an odd expression crossed his face. A moment later, he was done with his checkup. He opened his eyes, his head lowered and seemingly mulling over something, all while quietly listening to the others’ discussion.

The alchemists here were all in the Core Forging Realm, and though not all of them were Master Alchemists, most were Quasi-Master Alchemists who had practiced alchemy for a very long time.

They weren’t as proficient in alchemy as Lu Ping, but their knowledge and insights were profound and vast, with some even excelling him in this aspect. Hence, Lu Ping listened quietly and actually learned a thing or two.

Throughout the discussion, the alchemists were all debating how to maintain and lighten Xuan-Sen’s injuries. Many solutions were suggested, yet they couldn’t reach an agreement yet.

As time went by, Great Ancestor Tian-Lu’s expression became grimly dissatisfied. He suddenly interrupted and said, "I asked you here not to discuss how to maintain Xuan-Sen’s condition, but to bring him to a full recovery.”

"According to all of your suggestions, yes, Xuan-Sen will live, but he will be left crippled for the rest of his life. If fortunate, he will retain a small portion of his cultivation base, if not, he will lose it all. At this age, how many more years can he live without his cultivation base?"

As Great Ancestor Tian-Lu spoke, the alchemy room fell silent and everyone looked embarrassed.

At this time, Xuan-Sen suddenly said, "Junior Uncle, please go easy on these junior brothers. I know my condition the best. No one expected the monster race to have a special divine ability that can shatter a cultivator’s bloodline. If I hadn’t cast out my Golden Core and blocked the attack directed at my heart, my heartspace would have shattered too, and I wouldn’t have survived."

The alchemists’ expression turned better after hearing that, but Great Ancestor Tian-Lu still sneered coldly and said, "The Zhen Ling Sect is powerful, but we are not so extravagant that we can excuse these Late Core Forging Realm disciples so easily.

"This is not the time to hide any tricks up your sleeves. Tell me, what do you have in mind? Don’t be afraid even if you’re wrong, voice out any method which has even the slightest possibility. Don’t worry about the spirit herbs or resources required, the sect will take care of all that. It can’t be any worse than being left crippled."

As the Great Ancestor promised that they wouldn’t be held responsible for their opinions, the alchemists grew relaxed and voiced their suggestions again.

However, after a few of the suggestions were rejected by Great Ancestor Tian-Lu and the Master Alchemists for their difficulty or absurdity, the alchemists gradually lowered their voices and the discussion came to a dead end again.

A moment later, Xuan-Yan said, "Teacher, Junior Brother Xuan-Sen’s condition is serious, but the most crucial injuries are his shattered bloodlines. This weakened his cultivation foundation and brought his heartspace to the edge of collapse. We don’t know how much his body can take in this state. If we exceed his limits by even a little, it might very well be the straw that breaks the camel’s back. His heartspace will shatter before the pellets can heal his injuries."

The alchemists nodded in agreement, while the alchemist beside Xuan-Yan added, "Right now, we need to stabilize his shattered bloodlines above all else. After that, Junior Uncle Tian-Lu can concoct a Health Prosper Pellet for Senior Brother Xuan-Sen. This way, Senior Brother can still recover most of his cultivation base. But therein lies the problem; the monster’s vicious divine ability has not only shattered Senior Brother’s bloodlines, its left them fragile. A small touch could shatter them all to the point of no return!"

From the seating arrangement, Lu Ping guessed that the one who spoke was one of the sect’s Master Alchemists, Enlightened Master Xuan-Yue.

As a Master Alchemist, Xuan-Yue wasn’t Great Ancestor Tian-Lu’s disciple, but a self-taught alchemical genius. Even though he wasn’t affiliated with Great Ancestor Tian-Lu’s heritage, he had received the Great Ancestor’s guidance in the past.

Suddenly, a goading voice spoke up from the side, "Junior Nephew Lu Xuan-Ping, aren’t you also a Master Alchemist? Why so quiet? Hah, well, that’s fine, I can understand if you have nothing to say given Senior Brother Xuan-Sen’s complicated condition."

Lu Ping was surprised at this provocation; he looked over and saw Xuan-Jing staring down at him.

And although Xuan-Jing was specifically aiming at Lu Ping, his words also offended others in the room as they insinuated how helpless the alchemists were in this situation.

Hence, Xuan-Sen’s disciple and descendent both looked furious, and the alchemists themselves were visibly displeased. It was only due to Great Ancestor Tian-Lu’s presence that no one stormed up and took action.

Great Ancestor Tian-Lu’s expression darkened, while Xuan-Yan quickly glared at Xuan-Jing and rebuked, "Third Brother, quit talking nonsense!"

By now, Xuan-Jing had noticed the change in atmosphere and realized his misstep; he awkwardly lowered his head in embarrassment.

The alchemists turned their gazes from Xuan-Jing to Lu Ping, while Great Ancestor Tian-Lu also seemed to be interested in Lu Ping’s opinion. "Xuan-Ping, what do you have to add about Xuan-Sen’s condition? Speak up, and do not fret about being wrong."

Since Lu Ping’s arrival in the alchemy room, he could already feel the disdain coming from his fellow alchemists. It was just that some were kind enough to remain friendly with him, while others didn’t care to hide their contemptuous looks at all.

This couldn’t be helped, as Lu Ping had never proven himself to them since the beginning. Even if he was a Master Alchemist, it might only signify that he was good at concocting pellets and practicing his skills to perfection.

However, diagnosing injuries and planning for recovery requires a certain level of knowledge and insight in alchemy, which takes years of experience and study to slowly accumulate. As someone who had been cultivating for less than fifty years, Lu Ping’s experience surely fell short compared to them.

Hence, it wasn’t a surprise that they would intentionally or inadvertently underestimate him.

Under Xuan-Jing’s mocking gaze, Lu Ping mulled it over for a second, then slowly said, "Junior Uncle Xuan-Yue is correct; the crux of Junior Uncle Xuan-Sen’s injuries lies in his shattered bloodlines. They must be treated before we can fix his cultivation base."

As soon as he said this, Xuan-Jing was quick to snicker mockingly. "Regurgitating another’s words. How uninspiring!"

This time, not only was Lu Ping annoyed, the other alchemists were also a little bothered by his remarks.

Great Ancestor Tian-Lu glanced at Xuan-Jing and replied sarcastically, "Xuan-Jing, it sounds like you have an inspiring idea—why not share it with the rest of us? This is a good time to display what you’ve learned from me all these years. Hm?"

Xuan-Jing’s expression changed at his teacher’s suggestion, and he silently lowered his head in embarrassment. However, Lu Ping still sensed something was brewing inside Xuan-Jing’s mind from how he glared at him.

Even though Lu Ping was annoyed, he chose to stay silent since Great Ancestor Tian-Lu had already reprimanded the other. He could only ignore his taunts.

Calming down, Lu Ping paused before looking at Great Ancestor Tian-Lu and asked, "Junior Granduncle, have you heard of water alchemy?"

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