"The medicinal residue in the cauldron can still be refined; there's plenty of potency left," Lin Fan remarked, glancing back at the cauldron. He summoned his dao fire to continue the process.
He and Yue Chan had used nearly a hundred spiritual herbs in their cultivation. Discarding the remnants would be a waste, no matter how wealthy one might be.
Before long, the cauldron glowed with brilliant golden light. The leftover herb fragments had coalesced into form.
Roar…
A resonant cry, like the combined howl of dragon and tiger, echoed from the black cauldron, accompanied by a rich, fragrant aroma that filled the air.
Three golden pills rose from the cauldron, radiating dazzling light. Mist swirled around them, their glow vibrant, imbued with an ineffable charm of the dao.
Lin Fan retrieved a jade vial and stored the three pills. Smiling, he turned to Yue Chan and asked, "Want one?"
"No way, that's disgusting!" Yue Chan scoffed, rolling her eyes with disdain.
The thought that these pills were refined from the "baptismal" residue of their cultivation made her stomach churn. Her face flushed crimson, her delicate features glowing with embarrassment.
Lin Fan frowned, sensing a hint of sarcasm in her tone.
Soon after, the two dismantled the protective array and stepped outside. Stone Village remained unchanged—simple, unadorned, and brimming with warm hospitality.
The villagers greeted them eagerly as they emerged, their faces kind and welcoming. A feast was prepared to celebrate their return from seclusion.
A group of young children, buzzing with excitement, swarmed Lin Fan, pestering him to hunt for beast cubs. Their familiarity warmed the air.
"Xiao Fan Ge, I found something strange in a collapsed mountain range to the west!"
A voice called out suddenly. It was Xiao Budian, riding atop the Green Scaled Eagle, soaring toward Stone Village with urgency.
"Oh, really?" Lin Fan's interest piqued. After hearing Xiao Budian's explanation, he wasted no time and followed him to investigate.
The wind roared as they sped onward. An hour later, they arrived at the collapsed mountain range and began to survey the area closely.
At first glance, it appeared to be a basin, but it was actually a dried-up lake. The surrounding peaks had been deliberately flattened by some great tool, leaving the mountains as mere stumps. The lake, altered by the changed terrain, had drained completely, its once-vibrant scenery now desolate and lifeless.
"Xiao Fan Ge, look! There's a creature down there!" Xiao Budian pointed to the lakebed, his voice tinged with shock.
Peering down, they spotted a creature lying motionless, its golden fur glinting faintly. It was less than half a meter long, partially buried in the earth, as if sealed within stone. Without close inspection, it could easily be overlooked.
"Whoa, it's a monkey! It's alive, but… why does it have three heads and six arms?" Xiao Budian exclaimed, stunned by the bizarre creature.
Had it not been for the glow in its eyes, they might have mistaken it for a corpse.
"Hahaha! Xiao Nai Hao, you're truly a lucky star! What I've been searching for is right here!" Lin Fan burst into laughter, recognizing the creature as Zhu Yan, the monkey that had seized the Mountain Treasure.
"Really?!" Xiao Budian's eyes lit up with delight.
"Let's go down. That monkey is the Zhu Yan that Xiao Hong said stole the Mountain Treasure."
Lin Fan circled the sky a few times, darting into the clouds and then swooping low, testing the situation before finally descending to the ground.
He also retrieved a defensive treasure, just in case. Though Zhu Yan was known for sparing lives, when it came to treasures of great destiny, all bets were off. This was a contest of the dao, and caution was warranted.
As they approached, the golden monkey stirred weakly, its movements feeble before it slumped back down, clearly in a state of extreme frailty.
"Is it hungry?" Xiao Budian wondered aloud, leaping down from the sky and cautiously nearing the monkey.
He pulled some dried meat from his beast-skin pouch and tossed it over. Zhu Yan grabbed the food and devoured it ravenously, finishing it in moments.
Seeing no immediate danger, Lin Fan and Xiao Budian edged closer. Zhu Yan watched them, tense and bewildered, its expression as blank as an unwritten scroll, reflecting only a primal fear of the unknown.
Swish!
When they reached a certain distance, Lin Fan's arm glowed, casting a cascade of runes to probe the monkey's condition.
He confirmed that Zhu Yan was gravely injured. Its primordial bone was shattered, and nearly all the runes within its body had been extinguished. It was undergoing a peculiar form of nirvana, reduced to mere instinct, no different from an ordinary wild monkey. A layer of cocoon-like skin still clung to its body, indicating an incomplete transformation.
"It's safe to approach," Lin Fan said, stowing his treasure and striding forward.
Chirp chirp…
The golden monkey let out a few soft cries, its eyes pleading with hunger as it looked to them for more food.
"It really is starving," Xiao Budian chuckled, handing over all his remaining dried meat. "How'd you end up trapped here?"
As it gorged itself, Zhu Yan scratched its head and ears, utterly perplexed. It shook its head, ignoring the question and focusing solely on eating.
"Xiao Fan Ge, should we help it?" Xiao Budian asked, his soft heart stirred by some memory, his voice laced with pity.
"Alright," Lin Fan agreed with a nod. This monkey wasn't malevolent and would later prove helpful to Xiao Nai Hao.
He formed seals with his hands, conjuring runes that transformed into a gentle green radiance, enveloping Zhu Yan.
Crack!
Instantly, the three-headed, six-armed monkey blazed with golden light. Its body cracked, shedding a layer of old skin, its vitality visibly restored.
During the process, its extra heads and arms vanished, leaving it with a single head and two arms. Its body shrank to the size of a fist, resembling a golden furball. Yet it remained dazed, blinking its monkey eyes, its strength still unrecovered.
This was deliberate on Lin Fan's part. Fully healing it might provoke a fight, especially since both coveted the Mountain Treasure.
"I've helped you out, so let's call it even for the Mountain Treasure," Lin Fan said, tossing Zhu Yan to Xiao Budian. He had no interest in keeping pets.
"So cute!" Xiao Budian cradled it in his palm, teasing its soft fur, which shimmered with golden light.
Chirp chirp…
Zhu Yan squirmed, glaring at Xiao Budian as if to say, Don't interrupt my meal!
Xiao Budian laughed, a mischievous glint in his eyes. He grabbed the monkey's tail, flipping and twirling it, but Zhu Yan clung to its food, eating steadfastly despite the antics.
"Let's give it a name," Lin Fan suggested.
Xiao Budian's eyes sparkled as he thought for a moment, then grinned. "From now on, you're Mao Qiu!"
Lin Fan's mouth twitched at the name.
As expected of a kid raised on beast milk, he thought. His cultural literacy is… lacking. To think so long and come up with such a lame name.
But it made sense. In this era, there were no schools. Children focused solely on cultivation and studying bone texts. Who had time for culture? Compared to this, the scholarly prowess of a certain Ye from later eras truly stood out among the Three Emperors.
Lin Fan chuckled, brushing the thought aside. He had more pressing matters.
"The Mountain Treasure should be somewhere in this lake."
He began scouring the lakebed, nearly turning the earth upside down in his search. At last, near the western edge, he unearthed a square bone block from the hard, dry soil. It was snow-white, jade-like, and gleamed with crystalline luster.
This was the Mountain Treasure, its material akin to the True Primordial Record held by the old village chief, crafted with the same refining technique.
"Hahaha, it's finally mine!" Lin Fan's joyous laughter echoed across the basin.
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