Chapter Thirty-Four: The Internal Elixir

Pale blue light gleamed as the sharp, powerful sword aura shot forth from the tip of the Blue Sword, striking the giant serpent’s head. After a cacophony of howls, the serpent convulsed violently, causing the earth to tremble as if thunder had struck. Towering trees in the vicinity were snapped in half by its thrashing.

After a moment, the serpent ceased its spasms and lay still upon the ground, unmoving. “Is it dead?” Cold Iceflame wondered, cautiously approaching the serpent. She poked it a few times with the Blue Sword, and only after confirming it was truly lifeless did she relax.

Retracting the Blue Sword, Iceflame gazed curiously at the enormous creature. Its thick, massive head was terrifying even in death. Scarlet fluid oozed from its maw, and a vast, dizzying gash marred its head—the mark left by the Blue Sword’s strike. In the distance, a broken fang lay abandoned, half its length snapped. Iceflame walked over, picked it up, and weighed it in her hand; it was so large, she could barely grasp it.

“A serpent of this size must have lived for many years. Judging by its strength, comparable to a cultivator at the Heart Stirring stage, it’s become a spirit beast—there must be treasures on its body,” Cold Iceflame mused, her hands already moving briskly. The Blue Sword, which had been a saber, now transformed once more into a butcher’s knife.

A tearing sound echoed as the Blue Sword sliced through the serpent’s hide. The serpent’s skin was astonishingly resilient; as Iceflame cut through it, she felt resistance like never before, despite her strength being honed by training with heavy logs.

After much effort, she finally managed to split open the serpent. Beneath the tough green skin was tender, pale flesh; Iceflame’s eyes sparkled as she gazed upon it. The meat looked so delicious—she longed to roast and eat it! Her mouth watered involuntarily. Realizing this, she quickly wiped her lips, thinking, “It’s not my fault—your flesh just looks so delectable!”

Setting aside the tender serpent meat, Iceflame resisted the immense temptation and continued to open up the creature. As she cut away the flesh and removed the innards, she suddenly discovered a green, egg-sized orb within. “The serpent’s inner core?” she exclaimed internally.

The inner core is a rounded object formed when a beast cultivates to a certain realm. It is akin to a martial artist’s dantian—a reservoir for energy. This serpent had reached the Heart Stirring stage, so its core contained all its essence, making it extraordinarily valuable. For a cultivator, consuming such a core would be a tremendous supplement.

Without hesitation, Cold Iceflame knew this was a treasure and swallowed it whole.

The effect was not immediate; after swallowing the core, Iceflame’s eyes rolled, pondering the lack of sensation. But in an instant, a wave of heat surged from her stomach. She realized the serpent’s core was releasing its energy, and her task was to absorb as much as possible, wasting nothing.

For ordinary people, absorbing a core from a Heart Stirring stage serpent wasn’t easy. If one’s strength was insufficient to suppress the immense energy within, it could overwhelm them, causing their meridians to rupture or even death.

Fortunately, Iceflame had already reached the Golden Core stage. For her, absorbing the energy from a mere Heart Stirring stage serpent posed no real danger.

Inside her body, the Feathered Violet Qi became active once again, assimilating the serpent’s true energy as it entered her meridians, circulating ceaselessly and fusing with her flesh.

To her amazement and delight, the energy from the core contained a vast quantity of natural force—vibrant and lively, a sensation of harmony with nature itself.

“The Wood Origin!” Cold Iceflame cried out in astonishment. She hadn’t expected to obtain, so easily, one of the five fundamental elements—the Wood Origin. Was it truly fate?

Unaware of the passage of time, she absorbed the core’s energy until it was depleted, all its essence transformed. The tumultuous violet qi within her body gradually settled, then slowly dissipated.

Opening her eyes, Cold Iceflame discovered night had fallen; she had been sitting there for a long while. Inspecting herself inwardly, she found her golden core had grown larger—where it had once been the size of two soybeans, it was now nearly as big as a walnut. Faint green mist encircled the golden core, spinning rapidly.

Cultivation is all about gradual progress, with strict boundaries between realms. A Heart Stirring stage cultivator could never defeat one at the Golden Core stage, and likewise, a Golden Core stage cultivator could never best a Nascent Soul stage one. Each realm is vast; it might take less time to ascend from the Rotating Shine stage to Heart Stirring than it does to progress from early to late Golden Core.

Even a dozen early Golden Core cultivators together couldn’t rival a single mid-stage Golden Core cultivator, as this demonstrates clearly.

At present, Cold Iceflame remained in the early Golden Core stage, but her understanding of nature had deepened, harmonizing her spirit with the world.

Realizing it was nighttime, Cold Iceflame checked her body and confirmed she was still in her female form—the Feathered Body.

“Sigh…” Iceflame breathed, but she was already adapting to her new form, no longer resistant as at first.

She stood and walked to the serpent’s side, giving it a kick—it was truly enormous. Seeing the pale, tender flesh, her stomach grumbled audibly, and again her mouth watered. After all, she hadn’t eaten in over half a year, having been in deep meditation the entire time.

Technically, as a Golden Core cultivator, she had already achieved fasting, needing no food and relying solely on heaven and earth’s spiritual energy. Yet she still felt hunger; perhaps her mindset remained that of an ordinary person, unable to shed old habits—a lack of true cultivation awareness.

But Cold Iceflame cared little for such things. As long as she was satisfied, it was enough. Her fair hands now gripped the Blue Sword, glowing with soft blue light, as she sliced the serpent meat into small pieces. She then took out a large bundle from her storage ring, wrapping up the tender white meat.

That storage ring had been given to her by Mo Wuxie before she entered the Trial Forest. As its name implied, it stores items, but to Iceflame’s surprise, it also preserved freshness—food placed inside remained hot when retrieved.

She then built a fire, and soon large chunks of meat were roasting over the flames, their aroma wafting through the air. Iceflame gazed at her handiwork, swallowing eagerly, her heart full of anticipation.

She took a bite of the roasted meat, savoring the juices and basking in contentment.

Before long, several large pieces had been devoured. Patting her full belly, Cold Iceflame felt utterly satisfied. She roasted the rest of the meat, packed it all into her storage ring for later. The Trial Forest was fraught with danger—survival of the fittest. Who knew if there would be more food? If she wasn’t prey for other beasts, that would already be fortunate; she certainly didn’t want to starve.

Lifting the Blue Sword, she remembered how perilous the night could be, when beasts roamed. She had no intention of traveling after dark, so she found a giant tree, and with a flash, climbed up.

Settling herself at a forked branch, Iceflame adjusted her posture, hugged the Blue Sword to her chest, leaned her head against the trunk, and drifted peacefully into sleep…