215: Chapter 215 Iron-Eroding Insects
Yellow Dragon Branch Master Ding Guanshan felt a bit of a headache listening to Deputy Branch Master Ding Xiangtian's remarks; this younger generation of aristocratic family Disciples had never seen the days when the Dragon Snake Sect's Disciples were amicable.
From the moment they were born, it was a situation where the aristocratic families looked down on those with external surnames, and those with external surnames refused to submit to the aristocratic families. Reinforced over generations, it had long since formed an insurmountable barrier.
Yellow Dragon Branch Master Ding Guanshan stood with his hands behind his back, looking at the Mountain Snake Secret Realm, while Deputy Branch Master Ding Xiangtian's expression behind him gradually grew gloomy.
"Father, letting Zhishan first Cultivate the "Mountain Snake Art" and the "Mountain God Seal", and then Cultivate the "Yellow Dragon Art" and the "Yellow Heaven Seal", is much less difficult than first cultivating the "Yellow Dragon Art" and "Yellow Heaven Seal" and then cultivating the "Mountain Snake Art" and "Mountain God Seal"!"
This statement was not hard to understand. From the perspective of dual cultivation, the first Cultivation Technique was always the easiest. Although the Yellow Dragon Lineage possessed many Secret Manuals of the Mountain Snake Lineage, the members of the Mountain Snake Lineage had, after all, been completely wiped out. If one were to practice this from the very beginning, the obstacles would be far smaller than practicing it as a second technique.
Hearing this, Yellow Dragon Branch Master Ding Guanshan frowned slightly.
During the 'Jinshui Change' back then, the Mountain Snake Secret Realm was the first to be attacked by the Divine Snake and Black Dragon lineages. The Yellow Dragon Secret Realm was nearby, so it was naturally affected as well.
Not only was the Mountain Snake Lineage wiped out, and the Yellow Dragon Lineage suffered heavy casualties on the spot, but even the Lineage Master at the time was severely injured and passed away shortly after.
At that time, Yellow Dragon Branch Master Ding Guanshan was still only at the Core Formation stage and had not yet had the chance to dually Cultivate the "Mountain Snake Art" before this sudden change occurred.
With Gang Strength Martial Artists like Yellow Dragon Branch Master Ding Guanshan and Deputy Branch Master Ding Xiangtian to teach the "Yellow Dragon Art" and "Yellow Heaven Seal", it didn't matter if they were a bit more difficult to learn as dual Cultivation Techniques.
However, Yellow Dragon Branch Master Ding Guanshan suddenly felt a throb in his chest and a sharp pain in his heart.
Suppressing the urge to cough up blood, Yellow Dragon Branch Master Ding Guanshan shook his head. "Even if the Core Formation Late Stage is slightly more difficult, the difficulty is limited. Duan'er himself has excellent talent, and with this old man acting as his Protector, it won't be an issue at all!"
What he didn't say was that his own lifespan was running short, so it was better to choose the readily available Senior Brother Yuan Duan. After all, who knew what would happen in the future?
What's more, his two sons had their minds entirely set on the Ding Family rather than the Yellow Dragon Lineage, which clashed with his own principles.
"Father!"
"My mind is made up, there is no need to say more!" Yellow Dragon Branch Master Ding Guanshan said, his tone resolute this time.
As soon as these words were spoken, Deputy Branch Master Ding Xiangtian could only swallow the words he wanted to say, his face flushing red.
Once Yellow Dragon Branch Master Ding Guanshan made a decision, not even a hundred Yao Beasts could pull him back.
"The Mountain Snake Secret Realm has just been formed; keep an eye on things here."
Watching Yellow Dragon Branch Master Ding Guanshan's somewhat exhausted and aging figure gradually recede, Deputy Branch Master Ding Xiangtian's expression shifted unpredictably.
A barely audible voice lingered in the surroundings, only to be caught, torn apart, and gradually vanished by the whirlpool-like entrance of the Mountain Snake Secret Realm.
"This Yellow Dragon Lineage... no, the two Earth-element lineages... they both belong to my Ding Family..."
...
"You want a type of Yao Beast that can be repeatedly obtained?" Wang Honghu asked.
"Exactly, Senior Brother. According to the "Introduction to Alchemy", all Medicinal Pills generally fall into only three categories: metal-and-stone pills, herbal pills, and flesh-and-blood pills. I am particularly interested in the latter two. I have already familiarized myself with the common medicinal herbs, so next, I want to study the flesh and blood of Yao Beasts..."
Among the three types of Medicinal Pills, metal-and-stone pills, as the name suggests, use various minerals as raw Materials, making their refinement process more akin to Artifact Refining.
This is also the most difficult method of Alchemy. Because herbs and flesh are inherently edible, Alchemy is merely about extracting, refining, fusing, and organizing their medicinal properties. Minerals like metals and stones, however, can easily turn from a 'Medicinal Pill' into a 'deadly poison' with just a single misstep!
Furthermore, the most famous among the metal-and-stone pills is a type of pill called the 'Lightning Strike Pellet'. It is inedible; one only needs to throw it, and it will explode upon impact, possessing power no less than the full-strength strike of a Huajin Martial Artist.
Aside from that, Li Qing planned to study the remaining herbal and flesh-and-blood pills.
Among them, the herbal pills corresponded to the Yuncao Insect Bloodline he had just obtained, which could accelerate the growth of medicinal herbs.
The flesh-and-blood pills corresponded to the Demon Heart itself. Li Qing could use the pretext of studying flesh-and-blood pills to openly and legitimately obtain the flesh and blood of Yao Beasts.
"Oh?"
Wang Honghu did not doubt Li Qing's intentions. Not long after he had first joined the sect, he too would often go to the Wujiao River or purchase Yao Beast flesh and blood on his own.
However, he harbored a trace of skepticism regarding the claim of 'already being familiar with various medicinal herbs.'
It was not because he suspected Li Qing; based on his understanding of Li Qing, the latter rarely spoke without foundation.
It was just that familiarizing oneself with so many kinds of medicinal herbs in a mere few months was extremely difficult to achieve without spending a massive amount of time and energy.
Thinking of this, Wang Honghu felt a spark of interest.
"Let me test you. What are the medicinal properties of Dendrobium officinale, and how is it processed?"
Li Qing did not hesitate. "Dendrobium officinale: faint aroma, mild taste. Sweet in nature, slightly cold. Prefers warm, humid, well-ventilated environments with scattered light, not cold-resistant. When processing, part of the fibrous roots must be trimmed off, then twisted into a spiral shape while heating to dry, or directly cut into sections to dry... It can be taken orally as a decoction, boiled into a paste, or incorporated into pills and powders."
"Wenshan Panax notoginseng."
"Faint aroma, bitter with a sweet aftertaste. Sweet in nature, slightly bitter, warm. Attributes to the liver and stomach meridians, must be harvested in autumn before flowering..."
"Agarwood."
"Strong aromatic fragrance, bitter taste. Acrid and bitter in nature, slightly warm. Attributes to the spleen, stomach, and kidney meridians..."
"Cistanche deserticola."
"Anoectochilus formosanus."
"Bear bile powder."
"..."
After a rapid-fire round of questions and answers, Wang Honghu's expression shifted from amused interest to seriousness, and finally to shock—changing faster than a Sichuan opera face-changer.
Back then, it had taken him at least a year and a half to fully commit all these medicinal herbs to memory, and that was already considered highly talented.
Yet he never expected that Li Qing would actually be faster than him!
Comparing oneself to others really was infuriating!
"Alright, you don't need to say any more."
Wang Honghu stopped Li Qing, who still seemed eager to continue; if they kept going, they wouldn't finish even by tomorrow.
"As for the Yao Beast you requested, I do know of one."
Li Qing's eyes lit up. "Please, do tell!"
...
Waste Sword Mountain.
This place was near Longshan City, or rather, the mountain among the peaks of the Longshou Mountain Range that was closest to the Weapon Refinement Hall.
Unlike the waste from the Alchemy Hall, which could be reused to make fertilizer or animal feed, the scrap metal from the Weapon Refinement Hall could not be easily repurposed. Thus, a nearby mountain was chosen to dump all this scrap iron.
This was the origin of Waste Sword Mountain.
Of course, this was also related to a certain kind of Yao Beast.
The Iron-eating Bug.
Looking at the hill in the distance, which was completely covered in dark red, Li Qing lamented:
"I really do have an affinity with insects!"
The Yuncao Insect was an insect, and the Water Element Snake was also long and thin, just like a worm.
In a sense, the Iron-eating Bug was also a beneficial beast. Not only could it grow and harden its body by consuming metal, but it could also excrete fairly high-quality metallic pellets, essentially refining the scrap iron in the process.
However, unlike the Yuncao Insect, Verdant Bird, and Golden Ring Earthworm, the Iron-eating Bug was extremely aggressive!
Its mouthparts were so sharp and fierce that ordinary weapons could not withstand them at all. Standard-issue weapons of the Dragon Snake Sect, like the Blue Rain Sword, could hold up, but if the user's own strength was insufficient, they would still be bitten and forced to flee in panic.
Furthermore, because of its low intelligence, even the Aura Deterrence of a Gang Strength Martial Artist had very little effect on it.
What made it even more of a headache was its rapid reproduction rate; to prevent it from turning from a beneficial insect into a pest, there was always a need for people to cull a portion of them.