Chapter 315: The Sword God Battle in the Holy Land

"You've just recovered, so it's best to rest and avoid moving around too much." The white-bearded elder advised kindly.

"Mhm," Li Hao nodded.

He could feel the state of his body at that moment, worse than it had ever been. After staying in the void for too long, his battle body had shattered, and the erosion of the void power was too deep. These powers seemed to condense within his body, piercing viciously and constantly destroying his flesh, counterbalancing his self-healing abilities.

He could only rely on his inconspicuous and subtle self-healing to slowly recover.

A lot of the converted Dao power had also dissipated, causing his cultivation to drop to the early True Immortal stage, and he needed to condense Dao power again.

This injury was severe; the only consolation was that he had managed to keep his life.

To escape from the hands of a Saint was nothing short of a miracle.

Thinking of the Void Saint and the Yang Saint, Li Hao couldn't help but feel a murderous intent rise within him, but he quickly suppressed it. He put those thoughts aside and decided to focus on healing his injuries first.

"From your accent, I can tell you're not from the Canglan Realm, are you?" The white-bearded elder asked gently.

Canglan Realm? Li Hao's heart stirred, and he secretly breathed a sigh of relief that it wasn't the Yunxia Realm.

Otherwise, being under the eyes of his enemies, his current strength would be too weak.

"I was chased by my enemies and fled here. Thank you, Senior, for taking me in," Li Hao said, bowing his head. This was an honest statement, although he didn't mention that those chasing him were Saints.

The white-bearded elder's eyes flickered, and a smile appeared on the corners of his mouth as he said, "When you're entangled in the affairs of the world, it's hard to stay clear of trouble. I won't ask about your enemies, but you can stay here and heal peacefully in the Sword Ancestor Holy Land."

"Thank you," Li Hao said gratefully once more.

The white-bearded elder didn't say anything further but picked up some medicinal herbs from the side and began to grind them into a fine powder.

In the courtyard, the breeze was gentle, and the woman's sword techniques seemed to draw energy from the air. At the tip of her sword, strands of white qi gathered like silken ribbons, graceful and elegant yet containing a sharp offensive power. Her techniques embodied the profound way of extreme softness.

Li Hao sat on the straw mat, watching, and realized that the woman's sword techniques were quite profound and not inferior to his own.

Currently, his Sword Dao was at the 6th level, and he had not yet comprehended any other art to the Spirit level, preventing him from breaking through to the 7th level.

After consecutive battles, his realm had continuously risen, but his sword techniques and fist techniques had gradually lagged, leaving him with a feeling of inadequacy during battles. Now, during this period of recuperation, he could take the opportunity to find a way to improve his Sword Dao.

Li Hao's thoughts stirred, and he summoned the panel to check his current attributes:

Body Cultivation: 9th level

Control Cultivation: 7th level

Movement Techniques: 6th level

Sword Dao: 6th level

Fist Dao: 6th level

Arts:

Chess Dao: 6th level

Music Dao: 4th level

Poetry and Calligraphy Dao: 4th level

Sculpting Dao: 4th level

Cooking Dao: 9th level

Painting Dao: 7th level

Fishing Dao: 5th level

Remaining Art Points: 5 points

States of Mind:

Poetry and Calligraphy State of Mind

Sculpting State of Mind (Available)

The two States of Mind that he had exchanged for 200 merit points in the Merit Treasury had allowed Li Hao to smoothly reach the 4th level in Poetry and Calligraphy and Sculpting, enabling him to continue gaining experience.

If he had tried to comprehend them on his own, he would have needed to ignore everything else and devote himself fully for at least two to three months before he could have understood them, so he had indeed saved several months' worth of effort.

Currently, for the third art, it would be best to choose the 6th level Chess Dao.

After playing against Emperor Yu, Li Hao had already vaguely touched upon the spiritual level of Chess Dao and now only lacked that final step.

At that moment, a distant bell rang out.

The bell's toll was like a evening drum, resonating and giving people a sense of comfort, as if sweeping away all the random thoughts in their minds.

"Grandfather, I'm going to practice my morning exercises in the Holy Land."

In the courtyard, the woman finished her sword practice and turned towards the pill room, her gaze sweeping over Li Hao as she spoke to the white-bearded elder.

"Mhm," the white-bearded elder responded, focusing on grinding the medicinal powder and not lifting his head.

Li Hao watched as his lifesaver flew away on her sword and disappeared into the horizon.

The courtyard fell silent again, leaving only the sound of the stone pestle grinding the medicinal powder.

Li Hao was curious about his surroundings, but he knew that being too eager to explore would be counterproductive, so he didn't rush. Instead, he closed his eyes and rested, focusing on healing his injuries.

Time flew by.

In the blink of an eye, a month passed.

After a month of recuperation and self-healing, a third of the erosion from the void within Li Hao's body had been purified, and his complexion was improving.

At that moment, Li Hao sat in the corridor with his legs dangling outside, a small knife in his hand, and a piece of wood the length of a chopstick. The knife moved nimbly in his fingers, carving the image of an old man with a kind face and benevolent eyes.

Soon, with the final stroke of the knife, Li Hao finished his work and put down his tools, a smile appearing on his face as he saw the experience prompt on the panel.

Over the past month, he had intended to study Chess Dao and Fishing Dao to reach the Spirit level in these two arts, but since no one here enjoyed playing chess, he couldn't gain experience by playing against himself, and as for fishing, he would have to go outside the Holy Land to find a suitable spot.

With his injuries not yet healed, Li Hao didn't dare to wander around randomly, lest he ran into trouble.

With nothing else to do, he had decided to improve his sculpting skills in the courtyard.

After all, he would need to improve it eventually, and the peaceful atmosphere here was suitable for quiet sculpting.

In addition to gaining sculpting experience, he would also ponder over that last bit of insight he needed for Chess Dao, but he hadn't made any progress so far.

"Your sculpting skills are quite impressive. You must have practiced a lot," the white-bearded elder said from behind him, glancing at the old man in Li Hao's hands and softening his gaze as he recognized himself. "I just received a message that we need to refine 300 Concentrated Spirit Pills today. Come and help out."

"Yes!" Li Hao replied, putting away his knife and placing the wooden sculpture of the old man on a wooden rack next to him.

In addition to the old man, the rack also held sculptures of many other people, including Li Hao's acquaintances from the mortal world, Little White Fox, and the mighty demons he remembered.

After putting it down, Li Hao went to the pill room.

After a month of getting to know each other, Li Hao had learned the identity of the old man—Lin Shan Hai, a high-ranking alchemist in the Sword Ancestor Holy Land, second in rank only to the Demi-Saint Elder.

There were also alchemists in the Great Yu Dynasty, affiliated with and controlled by the royal family, as well as some in the martial arts sects. However, their access to pill formulas and techniques was limited, and they couldn't compare to the treatment and resources offered by the royal alchemy court.

"Let's stick to our usual arrangement. You start by stir-frying the ingredients, and then I'll take over the refinement process."

Lin Shan Hai brought over the medicinal ingredients and said to Li Hao, "Your family's secret stir-frying technique is truly remarkable. Ever since you started helping me, not only has the success rate of my pill concoction increased, but the quality of the pills has improved significantly as well. However, these trivial tasks have also increased..."

He trailed off, a hint of helplessness in his voice, but a smile still graced his face.

After all, each time they refined pills, he would receive a certain percentage of the profits, and with more work came more benefits.

"It's just a minor skill, not worth mentioning," Li Hao replied with a smile. He never imagined that his Cooking Dao would intersect with alchemy in such a way.

Previously, when he watched the old man refine pills and smelled the unusual fragrance, he had a sudden idea: Could his Cooking Dao be used to cook the medicinal ingredients into dishes that rivaled the effects of pills?

With this thought in mind, he borrowed some lower-grade medicinal ingredients that the old man had left over and began experimenting. With the core refining ability of his ninth-level Cooking Dao, he was able to extract the essence from the ingredients and create simple medicinal dishes. To his surprise, the effects of these dishes were not inferior to that of pills.

Moreover, unlike pills, these dishes didn't have any fire toxins, allowing for pure absorption. Even with Li Hao's unique situation, he could absorb the benefits without being blocked by the panel.

"This is no minor skill; it's a refining technique that countless alchemists dream of mastering. Refining is one of the core aspects of alchemy, along with ingredient ratios and concoction methods. Your refining technique is the best and most unique I've ever seen; even I feel ashamed in comparison."

Lin Shan Hai praised, "Your ancestor must have been an extremely powerful alchemist. They likely created this purification technique and disguised it as a cooking method to prevent prying eyes from uncovering its true nature. That's how it has been secretly passed down through the generations."

"Perhaps..."

Li Hao felt a bit embarrassed. He hadn't expected that the story he made up on a whim to explain his Cooking Dao would lead the old man to imagine a background filled with grudges and enmity, even assuming that he was being pursued by enemies due to the exposure of this secret.

Li Hao saw no need to explain the truth... This misunderstanding was actually quite beneficial.

At that moment, he stepped forward to help, preparing the medicinal ingredients.

As soon as Lin Shan Hai opened the pill furnace, Li Hao immediately manipulated the ingredients with his palm, stir-frying and refining them in the air, using his internal energy as a spatula.

Soon, the medicinal ingredients were cooked, and a greenish juice began to ooze out.

With his experience, Lin Shan Hai instinctively opened the furnace lid.

Li Hao directed the refined juice into the pill furnace.

Lin Shan Hai's palm glowed with fire, and he began to manipulate the ingredients within the furnace for further refinement.

The two worked together seamlessly, and soon, fragrant pills were being removed from the furnace one after another.

"We're done."

After two hours, all three hundred Concentrated Spirit Pills had been successfully refined.

A smile spread across Lin Shan Hai's face, and he patted his old back, saying, "With your help, it was much easier. Since you don't have any relatives or friends here in the Canglan Realm, if you're willing, you can stay here and be my alchemy assistant from now on. Once you master those few intermediate pill formulas, you can be appointed as an intermediate alchemist and enjoy an extraordinary status. In the future, I'll also pass on to you several advanced pill formulas that I possess."

"You're too kind, Lin. It's just a small matter, and you're making it sound so formal," Li Hao replied with a shake of his head.

Lin Shan Hai smiled and shook his head as well. This wasn't the first time he had made this offer, and he was used to Li Hao's repeated refusals.

"Come, let's have some tea."

Lin Shan Hai brought over a pot of tea and invited Li Hao to join him for a cup.

Li Hao sat down at the tea table and slowly savored the tea, his eyes drifting towards the woman practicing her sword techniques in the courtyard.

Her name was Lin Qingying, Lin Shan Hai's granddaughter, and one of the ten saintesses of the Sword Ancestor Holy Land. She possessed exceptional sword talent and was believed to have a saint's bone, possibly indicating that she was a saint's reincarnation.

However, a saint's reincarnation couldn't recover their past life memories until they reached sainthood themselves.

For now, she was still Lin Shan Hai's granddaughter.

"Miss Lin truly is diligent..."

Li Hao couldn't help but feel admiration as he watched her tirelessly practice her sword day after day. Whenever he saw others cultivating diligently, he couldn't help but feel a sense of shame.

However, the thought that his sculpting could also be considered a form of cultivation made him feel slightly better.

"Soon, the Sword God Battle will be held in the Holy Land, which will determine the strongest genius within the Sword Ancestor Holy Land. The winner will represent our sect in the Battle of the Saints' Pride, and the opportunity is extremely valuable for those seeking sainthood. That's why she can't afford to slack off."

Lin Shan Hai held his teacup and smiled, but a hint of worry flashed in his eyes.

When one fought against others, there was always a risk of injury or even death.

But in a world where all things competed, one had to advance or fall behind. This path was inevitably paved with blood and tears.

During his time here, Li Hao had also heard about the various Saints' Lands and no longer felt as unfamiliar with this world as he had at the beginning.

In the Thirty-Three Realms, there were a hundred and eight saints, and for thousands of years, many saints had used their incarnations or reincarnated in the mortal world to cultivate anew.

For a thousand years, once every century, a battle spanning the Thirty-Three Realms and involving countless dynasties would be held to determine the pride of the nations.

It was said that the one who emerged victorious in this battle would gain the incense offerings of ten thousand nations and instantly achieve sainthood! This led to intense competition during the Battle of the Nations' Pride, with even saint reincarnations joining the fray.

Dong! The morning bell rang.

Hearing the bell, Lin Qingying slowly sheathed her sword and turned her head, her gaze passing over the old man and the youth drinking tea in the courtyard without any particular emotion.

After a month of living together, she had become accustomed to Li Hao's presence, and from her grandfather, she had learned that this person her grandfather had taken in was from a family of alchemists. However, due to some unknown trouble, his family had declined, and now he was her grandfather's alchemy assistant.

As she had no interest in alchemy, she didn't bother to pay much attention.

"Grandfather, I'm going to practice my morning exercises in the Holy Land," Lin Qingying said to Lin Shan Hai.

With that, she leaped onto her sword and flew away.