Ch. 9 soul force

Medicinal pills are very beneficial can help you in your cultivation, reconstruct the body, regrow limbs, and can almost cure all illness but it has it's own disadvantages. For example you can't carelessly use some spiritual qi pills because some would make you so full of qi that if you don't properly guide it to your meridian to go in your dantian you could damage your cultivation or worse die by bursting your body. Some pills also require that when you take it, you must be on the same level or must be below in only two levels. Then some would slow you're cultivation if you didn't properly expel the impurities out of your body.

Reading all of that, Ling Xi decided to go in the medicinal garden, holding a book compiling all the names, pictures, characteristics, levels and uses of medicinal plants. He wants to properly study and look at the plants.

He's been outside for almost a day, looking at the different plants, consisting of level one medicinal plants to level twelve, he even seen some level thirteen medicinal flower, twenty mature and ripe medicinal fruits, most are hundred years of age. all are high level medicinal plants.

After going to bed, he memorize at least a hundred Medicinal plants that are in the Plant encyclopedia. He wants to memorize and know all the known plants in the eight realms.

"Day two." Ling Xi said to himself before studying again, this time he wants to properly form his soul force to start practicing on making a medicinal pill.

Opening the book, a bottle container drop down in his lap. The bottle has a level 'Soul stimulator' label. He just put it in his side and start looking at the book.

It says, to form a soul force, one must have a soul stimulator medicinal pill, the higher the level, the better the effect. When using it, you have to concentrate and avoid disturbance, if possible go in a secluded location full of spiritual qi. You can feel a little pain but you must endure it, losing consciousness could possibly lead to death.

After reading that, Ling Xi decided to go to his dimension. It is safer to do it. Afterward, he eagerly opened the bottle, eat up the pill. One minute, he frowns. Two minutes, scrunch his face. Three minutes, a sheen of sweat can be seen in his forehead. Four minutes, his face is now full of pain. Five minutes, he shout is now shouting. 'what little pain?' It feels like someone is stabbing his head, again and again. The pain is so excruciating. The pain almost last for thirty minutes then it stops, like he is just hallucinating, nothing can be feel, if his clothes are not damp in sweat he could pass it as imagination.

After taking a breather, he get out and change his clothes. At least he now had a soul force. He can now refine a level one medicinal pill. Getting the jade recipes, he really wants to try refining the fasting medicinal pill to avoid eating while practicing his alchemy. Then his stomach made a sound, it need sustenance and thinking about it, he did not eat for almost 2 days now.

Going to the kitchen, he sees the jams he made and the pickles all line up in the shelves, the work of Cheng Li. He decided to just make some chow mein for his lunch. Slicing some fresh vegetables and a bit of chicken to stir fry with noodles. After cooking the chow mein, Ling Xi cut some tofu in identical cubes, heat the yok and the oil before slicing some onions and sautéed it, then pours the tofu in making it golden brown in color then afterwards put it in the pot where the sauce he made is currently boiling in a small fire, he let it sit for five minutes so that the sauce would penetrate the tofu, thus making the inside of the tofu taste the same as the sauce. After the sauce has reduced, he added some garlic sprouts. Finally a plate of steamed tofu is done.

Eating his fill, Ling Xi cannot help but think about Cheng Li. Did he have something to eat in his dimension? Or drink? I mean he did says that he probably stay there for a year so.. Forget it, Cheng Li is not a child, even if his body looks like one.

After lunch, instead of refining some pill, Ling Xi spent the whole afternoon training and consolidate his soul force, this is for him to build a strong foundation to avoid complications when refining pills.

Before going to bed, holding the plant encyclopedia in his hand, he memorize a hundred plants before going to bed.

It is still dark when Ling Xi opens his eyes. Getting the cauldron inside the dimension, he decided to test his control precision, Ling Xi takes a deep breath and when his concentration at its peak, he can see a semicircle and almost transparent ball in front of him. That's the essence of his soul force, Under his control he guides his soul force bringing it to the cauldron and dropping it in, he can feel his soul force flooding the inside of the cauldron. He can see what's happening inside, Black and red in colour emitting a warmth.

Ling Xi moves his soul force around before retrieving it. Doing it again and again until he is comfortable with it. After almost an hour of practice, Ling Xi try to divide his soul force before dropping it again in the cauldron, this time he decided to hold and see how much time he can endure before retrieving his soul force. He read in one of the books that an alchemist can train his soul force by using it to its limit before meditating but the risk is high, because if you somehow overuse your soul force you can shatter your soul that leads to death or damaging your level. Ling Xi decided to do it anyway but looking that he would never overstep on his limit.

The result is really good, his soul force which is just as little as his smallest finger fingernails became a size of a small button.