The influence behind the pavilion hid well, but to move even the Royal Family it had to be ranked at least the same or higher than the Brave Clan, perhaps even second-ranked. Inside the Cloud Province, the Brave Clan was a third-rank influence. In the entirety of the continent, the Royal Family of the Soaring Country was a second-rank power, only behind those ma.s.sive powers from other empires.

This meant that, in order to be sure that the Forest Clan could disrupt their plans safely, they needed a backing of at least of the third rank. Had the Clan brought out some amazing pills directly they would also become targets to the greed of others. Therefore, the Clan needed something that could befriend a third-rank influence.

While they were competing for the Pill Market, both the Bright Clan and the Sunflower Pavilion used an Initial Stage First-Step Human Qi Recovery Pill. When the Sunflower Pavilion brought out the Middle Stage First-Step Human Qi Recovery Pill, it instantly pressured the Bright Clan and took away its market share.

Ten years later the pill was still the same. In fact, even if the Sunflower Pavilion managed to get their hands on better pills they would not be able to produce many of them and the costs would also be sky high. Lowering the production costs and improving a Pill Recipe could take hundreds of years.

The Dao of pills was complicated and full of pitfalls. An alchemist able to produce an Initial Stage First-Step Human Pill was considered a First Rank Alchemist. This is the position Yu Ming, Ming Ren's mother, had at the Bright Clan together with the Chief Alchemist.

To produce a Middle Stage First-Step Human Pill a Second Rank Alchemist was needed. Since the Sunflower Pavilion managed to bring out this type of pill it was safe to say it had one within their ranks. To the third-ranked influences, this was already their limit.

Once a Late Stage First-Step Human Pill came into play, a third Rank Alchemist was needed, and even first and second-ranked powers would be extremely interested. All those pills were equivalent to the Body Tempering and Spirit Sea Realms.

An Initial Stage Human Pill usually referred to the initial and middle layers of the Body Tempering realm, while middle-stage Pills worked for both the late stage body tempering and initial Spirit Sea layers. Late Stage Pills worked on both middle and late-stage Spirit Sea cultivators.

As for the steps, they represented quality. The higher the step, the greater the quality. Someone that could produce an Initial Stage Second-Step Human Pill was still a first rank alchemist, only better than those at the first step.

Ming Ren gave the Elder three different pill recipes for Human Middle-stage, and one for a Late Stage Pill recipe. The recipes were a middle-stage Qi Recovery Pill, Injury Recovery Pill, and Body Tempering Realm Breakthrough Pill.

Those recipes were all his creations after pondering for a while. Ming Ren didn't bother naming them, and he chose common and abundant herbs, simplifying the pill forging process to the minimum skill needed, sacrificing the quality instead. The Forest Clan didn't need any Greater Step pills, but only enough to steal the market share.

None of those three were extremely rare or heaven-defying, but they would surely cause a stir, especially the breakthrough pill. The Qi Recovery Pill was enough to fight head-on with the Sunflower Pavilion, while the other two were just overkill.

The Late Stage recipe, however, would be a tremendous a.s.set to any third or second-ranked influence. It was a Late Stage Breakthrough Pill, capable of working on both middle and late stage Spirit Sea cultivators. Which clan could resist rising an entire realm of their Spirit Sea cultivators?

For those at the peak of the Spirit Sea Realm, it increased their chances of reaching the Spirit Gate Realm. It was truly a marvelous recipe. However, in order not to draw too much attention, Ming Ren used rare herbs as material and disguised the entire recipe as an ancient recipe.

The Elder staggered. How could he not recognize the value of these recipes in his mind?

He suddenly felt as if he was a walking treasure trove. From Cultivation Laws to Pill Recipes and Secret Arts, his mind was currently most valuable than entire third-ranked clans!

Before his dizziness ended, Ming Ren explained to him the ideal course of action: first, the Elder would meet with the Patriarch and explain the situation, transcribing the Late Stage Recipe as an ancient scroll.

Second, they would find a suitable influence, preferably second-ranked and outside the Soaring Country, and trade them the recipe in exchange for a part of the profits, protection, help with alchemy, and a few other low ranked recipes, saying their clan acquired the ancient recipe by chance while exploring the Thousand Gates Secret Realm.

The Late Stage recipe was too big of a thing to be kept and used by the Clan.

After that was done, the Forest Clan could start circulating the other pills and strike at the market. It wouldn't be too strange since they got the recipes from a higher ranked power. Even if the Silver Clan and the Sunflower Pavilion counterattacked, with the proper backing, they wouldn't dare be reckless.

This would a.s.sure the Forest Clan could use its new foundation to grow together with a lot of resources the Pills would bring in. As for whether the Patriarch would follow his advice or not, Ming Ren couldn't really care or control it. Those things were worthless to him. There was also a chance that the influence they chose would take the recipe and not fulfill its part, but not many were willing to lose face like this.

To those top-ranked influences, face was worth too much, and they couldn't risk the other top-ranked powers banding together with an excuse to punish them.

If everything worked out, this would bring tremendous financial pressure to their enemies, perhaps even cause a lot of damage!

The Elder deeply admired Ming Ren. Not only he gave away those recipes as if they were nothing, but also warned them to be careful and take the proper precautions. How he got hold of those recipes, he had no idea, but right now it didn't matter.

Seeing as the Elder understood everything, Ming Ren nodded his head in approval, "Good!"

Time had pa.s.sed quickly and the sun would soon rise again. Ming Ren didn't have time to rest properly, but it wouldn't affect his condition since he was already at the fifth layer. He had no more reasons to stay there and planned to go on his way when he suddenly remembered something.

"There's still one thing I'd like to warn you about."

The Elder clasped his hands and lowered his head in a deep sign of reverence, "Benefactor, please say!"

"That green-haired girl…" Ming Ren pointed to the sleeping lady.

"Qiang'er?" The girl's name was Lin Qiang.

"She should be treated as your greatest hope and talent. Never force her to marry against her will, never displease her in any way, never wrong her. Resources, Arts, especially beast summoning and taming arts, teach her them all," Ming Ren did not plan to tell him about Spiritual Beast Oracles or the Jade Spirit Beast Token, but that didn't mean they couldn't focus on her without that knowledge.

Right now her cultivation would seem lacking and talent average, but as soon as she broke through the Spirit Sea Realm and found True Elements and Rare Energies, cultivation and strength would soar like a dragon.

The Elder was surprised but he didn't dare question Ming Ren's judgment after everything that happened, "It shall be as benefactor said!"

The others would wake up soon, so Ming Ren also decided it was time to leave and clasped his hands politely, "Take care, Elder. May we meet again."

Elder Lin Dong deeply bowed in utmost reverence. In his heart, Ming Ren already occupied an unshakeable position. As soon as his benefactor was gone, the elder planned to leave and go straight to the Forest Clan.

Ming Ren didn't waste any more time and left. He didn't need to talk to the others again and wasn't too fond of goodbyes. Without looking back, he rushed through the woods, avoiding Spirit Beasts and trying to cross the forest quickly.

He didn't know when exactly it started but he felt a small resonance from somewhere deep in his soul and a place located much further into The Wandering Wood. It was as if a piece of his soul was located far away from his body.

Full of curiosity, Ming Ren ventured a bit deeper, always taking care not to find any powerful Spirit Beasts. There was a part of the forest that somehow seemed disconnected to the world, and he noticed instantly. Extending his Spirit Sense, his eyes shone.

"A formation! Not only that, an extremely advanced formation. This is… above Spirit Gate Realm!" Ming Ren crossed his arms and his curiosity got the best of him. He kept prodding and testing the formation.

"On the outer perimeter, a concealment formation. There is also an aura containing formation, multiple defensive arrays, and a powerful illusory array. The formation itself is very high grade and full of defense mechanisms and systems, but it seems to be weakened…" He activated the Bright Eyes several times to learn more about it.

"This formation… was created to hide the existence of something, but it was somehow damaged. if I had to guess, from the inside. It won't last much longer." While not impossible for him to fix it with his knowledge, his cultivation was lacking and therefore he could not try. However, if he wanted to go inside it would be very easy to open a path through the damaged parts. The formation also had a huge area, and if it worked normally no one would be able to go inside.

He didn't feel any danger coming from it, but when Ming Ren was deciding whether to go in and take a look or not, his body shook vigorously.

Suddenly, his mind went to another place, another world.

He wore a long white robe again, his hair fluttering in the wind. b.l.o.o.d.y all over, everywhere around him was a battlefield. What was he fighting?

Were they humans? Spirit Beasts? Demons? It was too blurry to tell.

All around him several figures stood proudly and also bloodied. They protected his back, conquered all around, cut their enemies to pieces.

But he couldn't see their faces, except for one.

The Green Haired beauty surpa.s.sed anything he had ever seen by far. She looked like Lin Qiang, except at that moment she was a True Fairy, a beauty capable of toppling not only kingdoms but entire worlds.

All around her dozens of legendary beasts took to the sky, roaring and following her every whim.

She noticed Ming Ren's gaze and smiled. He didn't know whether it was a smile of friends.h.i.+p or something else, but he knew for sure she was one of the companions that braved through h.e.l.lish times with him.

She was someone very important. Too much to describe in words.

Ming Ren's body shook once again, and a strong sense of worry and danger overcame his entire being.

Without wasting any time, his body flickered in the air and the Flash Step exploded at maximum power, crossing a great distance with each stride.

Somehow, he knew Lin Qiang and the rest would soon be in mortal danger.