Free Web NovelChapter 327: Complete Recovery of Injuries
The azure spirit boat flew steadily at low altitude, with Fang Hao sitting cross-legged in the cabin, his expression calm.
It had been several days since he left that desolate riverbank downstream of the Golden Sand River.
He steered the flying boat westward, heading toward the inland mountain regions, deliberately avoiding several larger Cultivator cities along the way and choosing to weave through desolate mountains and wild ridges.
Although his injuries had stabilized, they were far from fully healed.
His Meridians were like porcelain covered in cracks; though barely held together by Chaos Spiritual Power, they remained fragile and unable to withstand the circulation of high-intensity spiritual power.
The Chaos vortex in his Dantian had only recovered about thirty percent, and his spiritual power was thin.
The trauma to his Sea of Consciousness was even more troublesome; his Divine Sense was less than half of its Peak strength, and using it still caused faint stabbing pains.
The golden puppet was nearly scrapped, the silver light shuttle was completely destroyed, and the trump cards he could currently use were pitifully few.
The top priority was to find a place that was absolutely safe and rich in Spiritual Qi to go into closed-door cultivation to heal, fully recover his state, and attempt to repair the golden puppet.
Only when the golden puppet recovered some of its combat power would he have basic self-preservation strength in this crisis-ridden hinterland of the Western Region.
After flying for about half a month, a range of rolling, cloud-shrouded, verdant mountains appeared ahead.
The Spiritual Qi in this mountain range was significantly denser than in the Flowing Cloud Plain.
The mountains were steep, covered with towering ancient trees and babbling streams.
He could vaguely sense some Demon Beast auras, but most were not strong—at most Tier 3—and they were scattered in various places, without the terrifying pressure of any Demon Beast above Tier 4.
Fang Hao steered the azure spirit boat and landed outside an inconspicuous valley.
He did not enter immediately but instead carefully scouted the surroundings for several days.
Confirming there were no powerful Demon Beast lairs or traces of Cultivator activity, only some low-tier Demon Beasts and ordinary wild beasts, he finally set his mind at ease.
This valley was in an excellent location, surrounded by mountains on three sides with only a narrow entrance, making it easy to defend and difficult to attack.
There was a spiritual spring in the valley; the water was clear and contained faint Spiritual Qi.
The surrounding vegetation was lush, and the environment was quiet, perfect for closed-door cultivation.
Fang Hao set up several layers of concealment and protective Formations at the valley entrance, completely isolating the valley from the outside world.
Subsequently, he opened a simple Immortal Cave next to the spiritual spring and set up a Spirit Gathering Formation to collect the Spiritual Qi from the spring, making the concentration of Spiritual Qi inside the Immortal Cave several times higher than outside.
With everything prepared, Fang Hao sat cross-legged in the center of the Immortal Cave and took out a Tier 3 High Grade "Meridian Nourishing Pill" obtained from Mo Yunhe’s storage ring.
Once the Medicinal Pill entered his abdomen, it turned into gentle and pure medicinal power, slowly nourishing his damaged Meridians.
He closed his eyes slightly and operated the Chaos Derivation Art, guiding the rich Spiritual Qi inside the Immortal Cave to blend into his Dantian thread by thread, strengthening the slowly rotating Chaos vortex.
This time, Fang Hao was more patient than ever before while healing.
He no longer sought speed but strove for stability.
Every circulation of spiritual power was cautious, like walking on thin ice, for fear of aggravating his unhealed hidden injuries.
The Chaos Spiritual Power was like the finest silk thread, bit by bit repairing the invisible minute cracks on his Meridians and nourishing his damaged internal organs and Sea of Consciousness.
Time passed quietly in the tranquil cultivation.
Inside the Immortal Cave, there was only the sound of the spiritual spring dripping and Fang Hao’s steady, long breathing.
A month later, the cracks in the Meridians within Fang Hao’s body had basically healed.
Although not restored to their original state, they could now withstand stronger spiritual power circulation.
The Chaos vortex in his Dantian had grown to about fifty percent, and his spiritual power was increasingly pure.
The stabbing pain in his Sea of Consciousness had also greatly diminished, and his Divine Sense strength had recovered to sixty percent of its Peak.
He stopped cultivating and took out the golden puppet.
The golden puppet’s massive body stood silently.
The huge dent on its chest, blasted out by the Golden Horned Thunder Python’s lightning, was still shocking.
Its originally dark-gold shell was dull and lusterless, and the core driving Formation was nearly dormant.
Fang Hao’s Divine Sense probed into the golden puppet’s core, and his brows furrowed slightly.
The situation was worse than he had expected.
The core driving Formation had many shattered runes, and the energy circuits were broken.
Although the precious "void crystal" was not completely destroyed, it was covered in fine cracks, and the spatial power was chaotic.
Even more troublesome, the area where the golden puppet’s shell fused with the "ten thousand year ironwood heart" had also loosened and developed fine cracks due to the terrifying impact.
"The repair difficulty is immense..." Fang Hao pondered.
With his current Artifact Refining level and state, it was almost impossible to fully repair the golden puppet.
However, if it was just to let it recover some mobility and basic combat power, it might be worth a try.
He took out the rare Artifact Refining Materials from Mo Yunhe’s storage ring and selected several Materials suitable for repairing metal Puppets and Formations, such as fragments of "geng metal marrow," "Millennium Earth Milk Glue," and "stardust sand."
He also took out several High-Grade Spirit Stones to use as driving energy.
The repair work was extremely tedious.
Fang Hao first used the Earthly Fiend Golden Flame to carefully burn and soften the Materials around the dent on the golden puppet’s chest, bit by bit restoring it to its original shape.
Subsequently, he used "Millennium Earth Milk Glue" mixed with "stardust sand" to fill the shattered areas of the Formation runes and carefully re-delineated the energy circuits.
As for the damaged "void crystal," he dared not touch it easily, only using Chaos Spiritual Power to nourish it and temporarily stabilize its spatial fluctuations.
The whole process was mentally exhausting.
Fang Hao had to stop several times to consume Medicinal Pills to restore his Divine Sense and spiritual power.
It took a full twenty days before he barely repaired the basic functions of the golden puppet’s core driving Formation, enabling it to absorb energy from Spirit Stones and maintain the most basic operation.
"Let’s test it."
Fang Hao embedded several High-Grade Spirit Stones into the energy core on the golden puppet’s chest and pinched a seal with both hands, injecting a stream of spiritual power.
Hum—!
The golden puppet’s massive body trembled slightly.
In its eyes, a faint red-gold light flashed and disappeared, then dimmed again.
It clumsily raised its arm, moving stiffly like a rusted iron Puppet, no longer having its former agility and might.
"As long as it can move, that’s fine."
Fang Hao breathed a sigh of relief.
Although the current golden puppet probably had less than ten percent of its combat power, barely reaching the level of the Late Golden Core Stage, and could not fight for long, at least it was no longer a piece of scrap metal.
With it, he had a layer of protection against ordinary dangers.
Storing the golden puppet into his storage ring to nurture it, Fang Hao continued his closed-door cultivation to heal.
Another three months passed.
Inside the Immortal Cave, Fang Hao slowly opened his eyes.
His gaze contained inner brilliance, and his aura was deep and heavy.
He had completely recovered his cultivation to the Perfected Golden Core, and because of this life-and-death tempering, his spiritual power was even purer, and his Foundation was increasingly solid.
The injuries to his Meridians and internal organs had completely healed, and the trauma to his Sea of Consciousness was ninety percent better.
Although his Divine Sense strength had not fully recovered, it was no longer a major issue.
He rose to his full height and stretched his muscles and bones.
The blood and Qi in his body surged like mercury, and his bones emitted a low, metallic humming sound, like gold and jade clashing.
The Physical Body of the Hundred Refinements Golden Body Art’s fourth stage, "Golden Qi Marrow Cleansing," seemed to have become a bit tougher after this severe trauma and repair.
"Finally recovered."
Fang Hao felt the surging power within him, and his heart settled slightly.
This healing process took nearly half a year, which was long, but worth it.
He walked out of the Immortal Cave, removed the Formation at the valley entrance, and took a deep breath of the fresh mountain Spiritual Qi.
Sunlight spilled through the gaps in the leaves, creating sparkling ripples on the spiritual spring, and a few low-tier spirit birds jumped and chirped on the branches—a scene of peace and tranquility.
However, Fang Hao knew in his heart that this tranquility was only temporary.
He took out the map Jade Slip and reconfirmed his position.
He was now deep in the hinterland of the Western Region.
At the speed of the azure spirit boat, it would take about two more months to reach the Myriad Laws Immortal City at full speed.
"Myriad Laws Immortal City... nascent soul pill formula..."
Fang Hao’s gaze was firm.
After experiencing countless hardships and escaping death several times, he was finally about to reach his destination.
As long as he could obtain the nascent soul pill formula, he would have the confidence to refine the nascent soul forming pill and charge toward the Nascent Soul Stage!
He did not delay any longer, summoned the azure spirit boat, and flashed into it.
The flying boat slowly ascended, identified the direction, and sped off toward the Myriad Laws Immortal City.
This time, he no longer deliberately hid and pushed the speed of the azure spirit boat to the limit.
With his cultivation fully restored and the golden puppet having basic combat power, he would be safe from danger as long as he did not encounter anyone above the Late Nascent Soul Stage.
The azure spirit boat turned into a green light, piercing through clouds and mist, and soon disappeared into the horizon.
The valley below returned to silence, as if no one had ever been there.
