I Have An Infinite Cultivation Resource
Chapter 89: Moved
"Go ahead and eat it. Before this serpent egg was even cooked, it had already lost its life energy. The great serpent and I have our own separate agreement."
Lu You took out another raw serpent egg from his storage ring and handed it to Lu Xiao'e.
"Look, it's this kind." Lu You thought for a moment, then added, "When I was teleported into the secret realm, I happened to discover a cave full of serpent eggs. I figured it might be some kind of opportunity, so I collected them. Only afterward did I run into the serpent monster. It doesn't know I have the eggs, so be careful not to let it slip. That cave was blown apart by the Golden Core elders, so the serpent probably thinks all the eggs were destroyed by them."
"You actually obtained a lot of these?"
Lu Xiao'e looked at the stone bowl in her hands and refused once again.
"No, Lu You. You still don't understand how precious these serpent eggs are. These serpent eggs contain the bloodline of demonic beasts. Eating even one can improve your meridians. If you consume several, they can even enhance your physique. Especially eggs from a beast like that serpent monster—at minimum it's a Golden Core demonic beast. Used properly, these are even more valuable than heavenly treasures."
Lu Xiao'e didn't take advantage of Lu You's ignorance. Instead, she carefully explained things to him.
"The bodies of demonic beasts are completely different from humans. Comparing two beings of the same cultivation level is like comparing an ordinary adult human to a fully grown tiger. In Verdant Cloud Sect, a Golden Core cultivator can already become an elder. Just imagine how valuable a Golden Core demonic beast is."
"Sects as powerful as Mount Shu do raise demonic beasts, but it's more accurate to call it cooperation than domestication. Every demonic beast possesses intelligence and thoughts just like humans. Their eggs are equivalent to their children. No matter how powerful a sect is, a demonic beast would never casually hand over its children for humans to eat."
Lu Xiao'e spoke seriously. "So now do you understand how precious those beast eggs in your hands are? Even the strongest sects in the world can only cooperate with demonic beasts, they can't treat them like chickens or ducks and simply expect them to lay eggs for food."
The serpent eggs contained demonic beast bloodline. If someone continuously consumed them, they could gradually obtain the beast's bloodline as well. Out of everything Lu Xiao'e said, this was the part Lu You truly absorbed.
He possessed the Cauldron of Cornucopia, meaning the serpent eggs were effectively endless.
If that was the case, then by consuming them long-term, wouldn't he gradually obtain the power of the serpent monster? Even without spiritual energy, his physical body alone might eventually display the strength of a Golden Core cultivator.
Lu You's heart burned with excitement.
His aptitude was poor—a mixed spiritual root cultivator. Foundation Establishment cultivators only had a lifespan of two hundred years. He genuinely wasn't certain he could break through into the Golden Core realm within that time.
But with the serpent eggs, he could just keep eating them. If he transformed his physical body itself into the equivalent of a Golden Core body, he would naturally gain a thousand-year lifespan. Then he could cultivate slowly afterward. And if his cultivation realm also eventually reached Golden Core, wouldn't the two stack together, giving him twice the lifespan of an ordinary Golden Core cultivator?
Lu Xiao'e also noticed the change in Lu You's emotions. She immediately smiled sweetly and placed the stone bowl back onto the table.
"Now you understand just how enormous this opportunity is, right? Hurry and eat it. My injuries can be repaired slowly after we leave the secret realm, but a chance to fundamentally improve your physique like this must absolutely not be wasted."
Huu—
Lu You let out a long breath, calming his excitement. He looked at Lu Xiao'e and said:
"Even a trash mixed spiritual root cultivator like me successfully reached Foundation Establishment after eating one. If you eat several, repairing your Golden Core will definitely only be a matter of time. Now I can finally relax. Hurry up and eat already. Stop trying to push it back and forth. Once you recover your cultivation, you can think of a way to repay me later."
You… after learning how precious these serpent eggs are, you still can bear to give them to me?
Lu Xiao'e's beautiful eyes widened, and her heart clenched painfully.
The kindness she showed Lu You was built upon his talent in swordsmanship and talisman arts. Moreover, she herself was already a Golden Core cultivator. Teaching Lu You a few sword techniques was like a wealthy person tossing a few copper coins to a beggar.
But Lu You?
He had risked his life in the secret realm to seize opportunities, finally discovering serpent eggs capable of changing his fate—and yet he was willing to give them to her.
Seeing that Lu Xiao'e was still hesitating, Lu You added:
"Don't worry. I picked up a lot of these serpent eggs."
Lu Xiao'e rolled her eyes at Lu You. The longer-lived a demonic beast was, the lower its fertility—there was no way someone could just "pick up a lot" of serpent eggs. Seeing that Lu You had already made up his mind to let her eat them, Lu Xiao'e compromised.
"Fine, I'll eat them. But we split them half and half."
Lu You had already eaten his fill back in his cultivation chamber. The energy from the serpent eggs had left his meridians tingling and his dantian swollen. Even heavenly treasures shouldn't be consumed recklessly—too much was as bad as too little.
"You eat them yourself. I'm already stuffed. Stop trying to push them back to me—I really did pick up a lot. Besides, we're being hunted by Golden Core cultivators right now. Only if you recover will we have any chance to fight back."
"I understand."
Lu Xiao'e lowered her head, her fingers gently stroking the serpent egg. The warmth from the shell traveled through her fingertips and seeped into her heart.
Carefully peeling away the shell, Lu Xiao'e took a tiny bite. She wanted to chew, but discovered her mouth had gone stiff; even her teeth were trembling.
"Go outside. If you keep watching me, I won't be able to eat."
Her throat suddenly tightened with emotion. It took tremendous effort just to swallow that small mouthful. Seeing Lu You still standing nearby, Lu Xiao'e feared he might notice something was wrong, so she forcibly drove him away while suppressing her feelings.
Lu You had originally wanted to observe how Lu Xiao'e used the serpent egg in her cultivation, but since she chased him out, he could only give up.
He felt somewhat regretful that he couldn't secretly learn from her, but after another thought, he realized Lu Xiao'e was definitely using the cultivation technique recorded on the ancient map, and immediately lost interest.
The Five Elements Qi-Nourishing Technique of the Verdant Cloud Sect was balanced and orthodox, a cultivation method proven and practiced by countless people. Since Lu You didn't lack resources, it suited him perfectly.
Returning to his own chamber, Lu You cultivated methodically, refining the spiritual energy from the serpent eggs within his body as quickly as possible.
A full day and night passed in the blink of an eye.
With his current physique, Lu You could refine the spiritual energy and bloodline of ten serpent eggs per day. Eating more than that would have the same effect as taking Qi-Nourishing Pills—wasteful and ineffective.
After cultivating through another morning, Lu You cleaned his body and clothes with spiritual energy, then filled another stone bowl with a serpent egg and walked toward Lu Xiao'e's room.
"Any results? Time for another serpent egg."
Lu Xiao'e's room still had no door closed. Sensing spiritual energy fluctuations inside, Lu You stepped in. Sure enough, Lu Xiao'e was seated cross-legged on the stone bed, cultivating.
Seeing Lu You enter, Lu Xiao'e smiled brightly.
"Yes. By using the Jade Toad Swallows the Moon Technique, I can absorb all the nutrition inside the serpent egg. Not only can it repair my dantian, it can also strengthen my physique somewhat."
Seeing the stone bowl in Lu You's hands, Lu Xiao'e continued:
"Lu You, these serpent eggs are extraordinary treasures. We can't use them only to heal me. We should split them in half and eat them together."
"Huh?" Lu You answered awkwardly. "You should eat it yourself. I already ate earlier."
Lu You had already consumed ten serpent eggs and was still slowly refining them. Eating more would accomplish nothing.
Again. He's doing this again.
Lu Xiao'e bit her lip, her throat tightening once more.
Yesterday, in order to make her recover faster, Lu You lied and claimed he couldn't eat anymore. Today, he lied again, saying he had already eaten.
How could there possibly be enough serpent eggs for both of them?
Clearly, Lu You wasn't eating a single one himself and was leaving them all for her.
"Mm, you eat it. I just ate recently and haven't fully refined it yet, so I'm going back to cultivate."
Lu You looked at Lu Xiao'e's expression and assumed she was like yesterday—not wanting him to watch her eat. So he set down the serpent egg, turned around, and returned to his own chamber.
Afraid she'd notice, so he came up with such a terrible excuse to run away?
Watching Lu You leave, Lu Xiao'e's tear-filled eyes curved into crescents.
She had worked so hard searching for the whereabouts of the ancient maps, fighting for opportunities on the road toward immortality.
But now, it seemed she had finally found her own destined connection.
Inside the terrifying secret realm of jagged black stone that constantly devoured spiritual energy, Lu You and Lu Xiao'e suddenly began living peaceful days.
Every morning, Lu You would cook a serpent egg for Lu Xiao'e before returning to his room to cultivate. Lu Xiao'e would tease Lu You with a few jokes, then properly sit cross-legged in meditation, slowly restoring her Golden Core.
Meanwhile, after a full three days and nights had passed, most of the spiritual energy within the ice curtain and the Mount Tai Talismans had finally been drained away by the secret realm. At last, nine flying swords tore through the frozen barrier, and Huo Chuan and the others emerged from the seal in a miserable state, disheveled and exhausted.
"Elder Huo, could it be that both of those people are Dongfang Bubai?!"
"Exactly, Elder Huo! In order to break through the ice curtain and resist the erosion of the secret realm, I've consumed pills at an insane rate. Dongfang Bubai is actually two people, and they even have a Golden Core demonic beast helping them. Are we really still going to fight them?"
Having barely escaped confinement, two of the Golden Core elders had already begun backing down. They had originally thought that under Huo Chuan's calculations, dealing with Dongfang Bubai would be effortless. Instead, before the real battle had even begun, their side had already suffered heavy losses.
Useless trash!
Huo Chuan cursed inwardly, but his face remained solemn.
"Everyone, do not panic. Look carefully at the tracking compass. This Dongfang Bubai hasn't moved for several days now. Think about it, how much energy must that ice curtain have consumed? We could barely endure it ourselves. How could they possibly sustain it?"
He lifted the tracking compass in his hand.
"This compass is proof enough. Their resources are probably a hundred times more strained than ours. That's why they've hidden themselves away and don't dare act rashly!"
All the elders had witnessed the accuracy of Huo Chuan's tracking compass firsthand. After hearing his reasoning and recalling the terrifying scale of Lu You's ice curtain, the elders who had been wavering immediately became excited again.
"Exactly! If they still had enough spiritual energy, why would they stay inactive for five whole days and nights? When they trapped us, they could've simply escaped the secret realm. They're probably desperately trying to replenish their energy right now."
"Not necessarily," another elder added. "It's possible they simply didn't prepare enough resources and have already been drained to the point they can't even move anymore. Think carefully about the scale of those spells Dongfang Bubai cast, and then the fact they fled ten thousand li away immediately afterward. The expenditure must have been enormous. Maybe they haven't moved for five days because they physically can't."
"Hiss— that actually makes sense!"
The Golden Core elders all nodded one after another, then looked hopefully toward Huo Chuan.
"What everyone says is reasonable," Huo Chuan declared. "Within this secret realm, even traveling ten thousand li over five days and nights would already consume tremendous energy. Yet Dongfang Bubai reached that location on the very same day. That means they were likely already at the end of their strength. Even if they still have reserves left, they must have less than ten percent remaining."
Suddenly, Huo Chuan burst into loud laughter.
"I was careless before! Think about it, everyone—if Dongfang Bubai still had the power to fight us, why run ten thousand li away? The fact they fled so far proves they can only hide now. They no longer have the strength to confront us!"
At that point, Huo Chuan waved his hand decisively.
"Strike while they're weak and finish them off! Don't conserve your pills anymore. We move at full speed, wipe them out in one sweep, force them to hand over the ancient maps, and make them reveal how to break the secret realm!"
The originally bedraggled elders instantly regained their morale. One after another, they swallowed Qi-Nourishing Pills and once again rushed through the wasteland at full speed, charging toward the location displayed on the tracking compass.
After running for an entire day and night, Huo Chuan suddenly raised his hand while staring at the compass, signaling the group to stop immediately.
"Damn it! That cursed Dongfang Bubai hid on another mountain peak again!"
The red dots on the tracking compass had overlapped once more, meaning Dongfang Bubai had once again fled to the summit of a mountain.
"No matter. Restore your spiritual energy first, then we'll climb the mountain and capture them all in one go."
Huo Chuan took out more Qi-Nourishing Pills and began recovering. The remaining elders also started pulling spirit stones from their storage rings.
As one elder continued taking out supplies, he suddenly sighed.
"Ah… from the moment we entered the secret realm until now, it's already been an entire month. Every single day, our consumption has been dozens of times higher than expected. The resources I brought with me… are almost gone."
"Yes, Elder Huo. We can't sustain this kind of consumption. If Dongfang Bubai would rather die than unlock the secret realm, what are we supposed to rely on to survive inside here?"
Now that they were finally close to capturing Dongfang Bubai, the elders found themselves worrying about a new problem.
"Rest assured, everyone. I still haven't used my true trump card."
Huo Chuan let out a cold snort before prompting them:
"Dongfang Bubai is a Golden Core cultivator. So tell me—why do you think I arranged for two hundred Foundation Establishment disciples to enter this place?"
"I understand now!"
One of the Golden Core elders suddenly realized the answer.
"Elder Huo previously gave them transmission talismans and ordered them to gather together. He even placed tracking formations on them. So it was all to make them our backup logistics supply!"
"If our resources run low, the storage rings of two hundred Foundation Establishment cultivators combined would still be enough to sustain us for quite a while."
"As expected of Elder Huo! Truly planning everything from afar. Gathering the Qi Refinement disciples was to lure out Dongfang Bubai, while gathering the Foundation Establishment disciples was to ensure we had enough supplies prepared."
"To be able to work alongside Elder Huo is truly our great fortune. Forget one Dongfang Bubai—even if there are four of them, they still wouldn't stand a chance against us!"
Tsk, tsk, tsk.
Huo Chuan nodded inwardly.
Although these Golden Core elders were all spineless cowards when it came to Dao heart and resolve, they still had their useful points.
However, those two hundred Foundation Establishment cultivators were not merely walking storage rings.
After all…
Those two hundred cultivators could also be treated as pills.
In the next moment, a cruel smile spread across Huo Chuan's face, like a king issuing a guaranteed-victory charge order to his soldiers.
"Now then—everyone, ascend the mountain. We give Dongfang Bubai no opportunity whatsoever."
The group of nine quickly found the traces left behind by the serpent monster. Upon seeing the seemingly bottomless tunnel, all of them burst into laughter.
"Hahaha! So this Dongfang Bubai is nothing special after all. The deeper the cave she digs, the more it proves how guilty and afraid she is."
"Wait."
The corners of Huo Chuan's mouth curled upward.
"We split into two groups. Six of you enter the cave and watch out for each other. The remaining three of us will stay outside on the mountain to prevent Dongfang Bubai from having a cunning rabbit's third burrow—another hidden exit."
Six against two.
Peak-condition Golden Core cultivators against a half-dead Dongfang Bubai.
None of the elders had any objections.