Chapter 1009: One Core Kills Two

Although he understood their meaning, Ye Mo still offered a fist salute. "Thank you, Brother Chen, but I wish to try. Otherwise, I'll find another way."

The white-skinned cultivator sneered. "Do you know what it means to rank among the top three hundred golden core cultivators in South Peace State? Countless golden core cultivators exist here; only a select few achieve such recognition. What right do you have to claim a place? This surpasses arrogance."

Fu Rong quickly intervened. "Brother Ye, Daoist Zheng is blunt; don't mind him. However, that trial tablet is notoriously difficult. You'll understand if you attempt it. Many watch each attempt. Success brings fame, regardless of rank, but failure is a public spectacle, sometimes crippling one's confidence."

Ye Mo smiled, ignoring Fu Rong's words. "Since you know its difficulty, Brother Fu, why bring me here?"

Fu Rong smiled. "Others lack a method, but I possess one."

Ye Mo sneered. "Then you must be an elite on the trial tablet?"

Fu Rong looked awkward. "I cannot achieve a ranking."

Ye Mo scoffed. "You lack the means to ascend yet claim to help me? That's absurd."

Fu Rong quickly explained, "Brother Ye, don't doubt me. I can ensure your name appears for a month. Have you heard of the Tan Hua pill?"

Ye Mo shook his head.

Fu Rong continued, "Thirty years ago, two close friends, both solitary golden core cultivators at the peak stage, discovered a Cao Huan pill in the ruins of an ancient cultivator's dwelling. Only one pill existed, crucial to both."

Ye Mo, confident of his place on the tablet, still wanted to hear the story's conclusion.

"How did they resolve it?" Cheng Yugeng asked.

Fu Rong said, "Both were reluctant to take it, wishing to give it to the other. Another cultivator, a female golden core cultivator acquainted with both, offered a solution: let the more talented one, as determined by the trial tablet, claim it."

"Neither could achieve a ranking. However, she befriended one of the men. She became pregnant, and eventually told her partner that their child's survival in the harsh cultivation world was uncertain, requiring one parent to stay behind. Repeatedly, she urged him to obtain the Cao Huan pill for their child.

"They had already planned. The woman brought the man to attempt the tablet. Just before his attempt, she gave him a pill to boost his power. He consumed it."

Ye Mo interrupted, "That pill was the Tan Hua pill, right? He used it to achieve a ranking."

Fu Rong nodded. "Yes, his power surged, allowing him to succeed. However, the boost vanished immediately afterward."

"Such a pill temporarily enhances cultivation essence and spiritual sense manyfold."

"A happy ending; he got the pill, and his friend rejoiced," Cheng Yugeng clapped.

Fu Rong shook his head. "His name vanished after a month. His friend, believing something happened, searched for him. He found him unharmed. The friend learned he’d used a power-enhancing pill."

"Did he confess?" Cheng Yugeng asked.

Fu Rong shook his head. "He felt guilty, claiming ignorance. His friend discovered the truth and was devastated, not by the lost pill, but by the deception. He became depressed and died from a cultivation error. The man, consumed by guilt, left his possessions to the woman and committed suicide. News of the Tan Hua pill spread, its temporary nature revealed. Two friends died over this misunderstanding. A terrible pity."

"For the trial tablet, the Tan Hua pill is your best option. Its effect lasts only a month, but sufficient to spread your name across South Peace State. Your friend would learn of your presence."

Ye Mo had no need for this. He knew he could achieve top 300.

But Ye Mo sensed more to the story. He asked, "What of the female cultivator?"

Fu Rong sighed. "After his death, she mourned deeply, burying him beside his friend. She vanished afterward, likely alone."

Ye Mo sneered; many would see the flaw. The woman, knowing the friends' character, should not have used the Tan Hua pill. Her relationship with the man was too perfectly timed. Her scheme was frightening.

Seeing Ye Mo's disinterest in the pill, Fu Rong said, "Only Feng Honest, a level eight spirit pill master in South Peace City, can craft it. He's honest, except for demanding a level five, nine-foot sea snake's beast core as payment."

"I found an island with a stealth and defensive formation during a deep-sea journey. Breaking it requires assistance; four level-nine golden core cultivators should suffice. We'd make four; you'll receive a share of the island's contents, and I'll help you obtain the beast core."

Ye Mo smiled, uninterested in the sea or the Tan Hua pill.