Chapter 306: ck Wind


    The art of the Soul Pill, while greatly aiding in the formation of the Golden Elixir, is not an easy feat to master. In fact, it can be said that its difficulty rivals that of forming the Golden Elixir itself. Condensing a Soul Pill requires an immense amount of soul power, which means that only soul cultivators can attempt it. However, soul cultivators are few and far between in the entire cultivation world, and in many regions, their existence is considered taboo. Even among soul cultivators, sess is not guaranteed. ording to the jade slip, Xi Cangqiong achieved sess by cultivating the Heart Cleansing Form to an extremely high level and using the Soul Calming Jar to refine arge amount of soul power. Yuan Ming, despite having cultivated the Death Moon method to the fourth level, stillcks sufficient soul power. Since embarking on the path of soul cultivation, the Stealing Heaven Cauldron has been of great help, mainly in restoring soul power, but itcks the ability to refine others'' souls and feed back to oneself like the Soul Calming Jar. In other words, if he wants to cultivate the Soul Pill, he needs to find a way to enhance his soul power.


    After a moment of contemtion, Yuan Ming gradually calmed down. Despite his mediocre aptitude, he has a high talent for soul cultivation. Using soul power to condense the elixir could be a promising way to sessfully form the Golden Elixir in the future. Yuan Ming withdrew his soul from the white jade slip, which once again emitted a faint white light, hiding the secret technique of the Soul Pill. He put the jade slip back into the wooden box and began nning his future cultivation. Since he decided to cultivate the Soul Pill technique, he needed to increase the time spent on the Death Moon method, produce arge amount of Nourishing Soul Incense, and see if the willingness collected by the Stealing Heaven Cauldron could be directly absorbed and integrated with his spiritual consciousness. If possible, the cultivation of the Death Moon method could be greatly elerated.


    With this in mind, Yuan Ming instructed Lei Yu to continue heading north while taking out the Stealing Heaven Cauldron and holding it in his arms, starting to operate the Death Moon method. As soon as he activated the Death Moon method, he could more clearly sense the willingness gathering around the Stealing Heaven Cauldron. Yuan Ming extended his soul power from his sea of consciousness, enveloping a strand of willingness, attempting to draw it into his sea of consciousness. The process was unexpectedly smooth. Under the pull of his soul power, the strand of willingness was sessfully drawn into his sea of consciousness. Yuan Ming operated the Death Moon method, and a vortex of soul power appeared in his sea of consciousness, enveloping the willingness and beginning to refine it. Soon, it waspletely absorbed, and his soul power increased slightly. He felt a surge of joy, but then a shock followed. The absorbed strand of willingness contained a strong andplex mix of emotions, including fear, unease, despair, and worship. Yuan Ming felt a throbbing pain in his forehead, and the various emotions lingered in his heart, unable to dissipate for a long time.


    "Ah, so willingness carries emotions? Of course, willingness is inherently mixed with various emotions." After a long while, Yuan Ming finally recovered and exhaled a breath of turbid air. The willingness flowing from the Stealing Heaven Cauldron, however, did not carry any emotional burden. It seemed that the Stealing Heaven Cauldron had some secret that could refine these willingnesses. Yuan Ming spected silently. Although the willingness from the outside was difficult to refine, using this method to enhance soul power was much faster than simply cultivating the Death Moon method. Yuan Ming steadied his mind and continued to try to draw willingness into his body and refine it.


    Under the azure sky, the scorching sun hung high. The endless yellow sand covered the ground, with undting dunes resembling waves in the sea. From a distance, they appeared exceptionally smooth, like a ssy mirror without any ws. In the caravan, a dark-skinned man named T tightened the white cloth wrapped around his head, his gaze climbing along the bright yellow sand. Seeing the distant horizon where the yellow and blue met, the sky and the sand seemed to blend yet remain distinct, he breathed a sigh of relief.


    "Everyone, let''s push on while the weather is good and try to reach Quicksand City as soon as possible!" he shouted to those behind him. The others in the caravan responded weakly, their voices uneven, and their steps did not quicken. Although avoiding a sandstorm was a relief, the cloudless sky and the scorching sun were also unbearable. After nearly a day of travel, most of the caravan members were physically and mentally exhausted, their feet burning on the hot sand as if walking on a red-hot iron te, leaving them with no energy to hasten their pace. Not everyone could be like T, the caravan leader, riding a camel. However, riding a camel was not exclusive to T. In the caravan, four others also sat atop camels, showing no signs of fatigue. The others in the caravan dared not show any dissatisfaction towards them, as these were esteemed cultivators. If not for their duty of escorting the goods, they would have flown to Quicksand City on their magical artifacts, rather than wasting time with these mortals.


    However, there was an exception. A handsome young man, who seemed unweathered by hardship, scrutinized the four cultivators on camels and then quietly asked, "Hu Ji, why do we have cultivators apanying a mere mortal caravan?" The man he addressed, Hu Ji, was a middle-aged man with a rough face and a scar below his left eye. Recognizing the young man as Yuan Ming, a neer recruited within Zhao Country, Hu Ji casually exined, "The ck Wind Desert is full of dangers, with beasts that could appear at any moment. Without the protection of cultivators, no mortal would dare venture here. But cultivators have no interest in mortal gold and silver. How did the caravan owner manage to hire them?" Yuan Ming asked curiously. "Kid, remember, the ck Wind Desert is different from the outside world. Without the protection of cultivators, mortals can''t survive here. The towns in the desert are built for cultivators, and we mortals are just their servants. The real owner of this caravan is also a cultivator, so he naturally has ways to hire other cultivators," Hu Ji whispered.


    "If the conditions are so harsh, why don''t you leave and settle elsewhere?" Yuan Ming asked in surprise. "Have you ever seen a master tolerate runaway ves? And to be honest, there are only three types of mortals living in this cursed ce: those lured by high wages like you, criminals or fugitives from Qin, Zhao, or the Northern Wastes, and those captured or sold as ves. Once you enter the city, you''ll be branded, trapped in the ck Wind Desert forever, with no freedom. Even your descendants won''t escape. And even if you do get out, people will see the brand and report you to the authorities, who will send you back. There''s no escape," Hu Ji exined with a self-deprecating smile.


    Hearing this, Yuan Ming remained silent for a long time before sighing deeply. Hu Ji looked at him, expecting to see regret and fear in his eyes, but instead saw a trace of pity. Hu Ji was taken aback, muttering "strange person" to himself, and stopped paying attention to Yuan Ming. Yuan Ming also lost interest in continuing the conversation. After arriving at the Zhao Country border, he had disguised himself as a mortal and joined the caravan, entering the ck Wind Desert. In thiswless area, even if he used his real name and acted openly, no one would care, let alone the Changchun Temple.As the sun set, the sky was painted with an orange-red hue, and the sand became an extension of the sky. Standing on a dune, it was hard to distinguish where the sky ended and the earth began. On the other side of the dune, the caravan finally set up camp after a day''s journey, allowing everyone to rest. The previously exhausted members regained some energy. Yuan Ming gazed at the endless dunes, calcting that he had ventured deep into the desert and no longer needed to follow the mortal caravan. He only needed to use illusion to find out the location of Quicksand City from the caravan leader and then leave on his own. With this decision, he descended the dune, intending to find T, but ran into Hu Ji, who had spoken to him earlier. Hu Ji was carrying two wooden boxes filled with food. Seeing Yuan Ming, he immediately approached, "Where have you been? I''ve been looking for you. Here, I brought you some food." "No need, I''m not very hungry," Yuan Ming smiled, refusing his kindness. Hu Ji sighed, "I know my words earlier upset you, but since you''re here, you might as well make the best of it. Working in the caravan is already a good deal."


    Just as Yuan Ming was about to use illusion to escape, the surroundings suddenly darkened, and someone nearby shouted, "Oh no! It''s the ck Wind! The ck Wind ising!" Yuan Ming turned to see the once clear sky now covered with dark clouds, the sunset and sun gone, reced by a chilling wind. The dunes in the distance seemed toe alive, racing across thend like waves crashing against invisible reefs and shores. The ground trembled, and the sand under Yuan Ming''s feet began to jump. The caravan members were all filled with fear and despair.


    At that moment, four streaks of light suddenly appeared in the camp. The four Qi refining cultivators had simultaneously taken out their magical artifacts and were fleeing into the distance. Seeing this, Yuan Ming was shocked and, without hesitation, summoned Lei Yu and climbed on. As he prepared to take off, he noticed the dazed Hu Ji nearby. Without hesitation, he grabbed Hu Ji by the cor and pulled him onto Lei Yu''s back, then directed Lei Yu to chase after the fleeing cultivators.