Chapter 1964: Chapter 1028: Visit (Part 2)
Grandmaster Hu personally received the visit after the five avatars of Great Power arrived.
Grandmaster Hu was unaware of the alchemy matter Li Shiming handled for Sword Elder and Great Power Meng Jun, as the level of this matter was too high for him to be involved.
Thus, he didnât inform Li Shimingâs phantom avatar but tried to probe the intentions of the five Great Power avatars himself.
Li Shimingâs phantom avatar was in the midst of cultivation; a cultivatable phantom avatar was likely unique among all Great Power avatars.
After all, the phantom avatar possessed a Nascent Soul, a Peak Great Cultivator Nascent Soul.
The Peak Great Cultivator Nascent Soul hardly enhanced the phantom avatar, as it was composed of Great Power-level energy and soul energy, while the Nascent Soul was only at the Peak Great Cultivator Realm.
Yet, he was reluctant to abandon the Peak Great Cultivator Nascent Soul since, after long-term nurturing, it had become a part of the phantom avatar, akin to the Nascent Soul of an ordinary Great Cultivator.
This Peak Great Cultivator Nascent Soul enabled the phantom avatar to cultivate.
Li Shiming had a notion that if the Peak Great Cultivator Nascent Soul of the phantom avatar advanced to a half-step Great Power and formed a Cave Heaven, then his phantom avatar would become an independently powerful entity like Li Yuanba.
This idea motivated the phantom avatar to cultivate diligently whenever possible, thus ignoring exterior matters.
Moreover, Li Shiming didnât expect any Great Power to seek trouble with him on the Dongqi Continent, as his demonstrated capabilities were sufficient to deter any Great Power with ulterior motives.
Grandmaster Hu kept a brave smile facing the five Great Power avatars, despite the immense pressure.
Fortunately, the five Great Power avatars restrained their aura, sparing Grandmaster Hu from embarrassment.
In fact, the five Great Power avatars showed politeness to Grandmaster Hu, considering he was Li Shimingâs master.
A master of a Great Power is likely the only Great Cultivator-level master in the Cultivation World.
After all, the most recent Great Powerâs master had long exhausted his Life Span upon ascension.
Grandmaster Hu probed the five Great Power avatarsâ intentions, but they wouldnât disclose matters between Great Powers, so the exchange remained pleasantries without substance.
Suddenly, the five Great Power avatars retreated, and before Grandmaster Hu appeared Li Shiming.
Li Shiming used Space Movement, appearing multiple times directly in the reception hall.
"Master, Iâve returned!" Li Shiming, uncertain of the five Great Power avatarsâ intentions, feared they might harm Grandmaster Hu, hence immediately shielding him upon appearing.
"Shizhen, your return is timely; these five seniors have come seeking you!" Grandmaster Hu, slightly anxious, reminded upon seeing Li Shiming.
He worried Li Shiming might inadvertently offend the five Great Power avatars.
"Master, please rest; Iâll handle hosting these fellows!" Li Shiming replied with a faint smile.
With a wave of his hand, the formerly cultivating phantom avatar appeared and escorted Grandmaster Hu out of the reception hall.
"Mr. Li, Iâve heard much of your name; pardon our abrupt visit!" The highest-ranked avatar among the five stood and acknowledged.
"Li Shizhen greets you five fellows; what brings you here?" Li Shiming inquired directly.
The five Great Power avatars exchanged glances at his query.
"Weâre here to request your alchemy expertise, Mr. Li!" The leading Great Power avatar revealed their intention.
"Apologies, Iâve promised Sword Intent Chongxiao Pavilionâs Sword Elder and Luanyang Palaceâs Great Power Meng to craft Spirit Pills for them, and fear for the next few years, I wonât have time for other alchemical projects!" Li Shiming contemplated briefly and shook his head.
He didnât wish his alchemy to be undervalued, knowing a batch of fifth-grade Spirit Pills demanded three years for crafting.
Beyond other challenges, the three-year alchemical process demanded significant mental effort and sacrificed cultivation time, which wasnât readily compensated.
"Mr. Li, we can wait post your work for Sword Elder and Meng Immortal; as for remuneration, weâll compensate with fifth-grade Spiritual Medicine. For each Spirit Pill batch crafted, weâll offer one fifth-grade Spiritual Medicine!" The leading Great Power avatar presented his condition.
They had no choice, having already leveraged their respective sect intelligence networks to investigate Li Shimingâs circumstances prior.
Li Shiming was the Cultivation Worldâs foremost Alchemy Master since his Great Cultivator days; heâs achieved everything he desired, even possessing numerous Great Power-level heavenly treasures.
Additionally, Li Shiming crafted two fifth-grade Spiritual Treasures, and news of their Artifact Tribulations couldnât be concealed from superpower intelligence networks.
Rewards for commissioning alchemy from an affluent Alchemy Master like Li Shiming were challenging to select.
The five Great Powers understood they must swiftly negotiate with Li Shiming else on a future visit, numerous Great Powers might precede them.
Li Shiming, as a newly ascended Great Power, was bound to undertake lengthy closed cultivation.
Each closed cultivationâs duration was uncertain, with Li Shiming being a Free Great Power, destined to someday depart the Cultivation World for exploration.
This constrained the time Li Shiming could craft fifth-grade Spirit Pills within the Cultivation World, and after excluding Li Shimingâs other commitments, actual available alchemy time shrunk further.
The five Great Powers ultimately decided to present an irresistible condition to Li Shiming, namely, a fifth-grade Spiritual Medicine as compensation.
Li Shiming, upon hearing the avatarâs offer, was momentarily stunned.
Thatâs fifth-grade Spiritual Medicine, cultivatable solely within a Great Powerâs Cave Heaven, taking three hundred years to mature.
Not all Great Powersâ Cave Heavens possess environments for fifth-grade Spiritual Medicine, like the Sword Intent Cave Heaven Li Shiming obtained from the Free Sword Cultivation Great Power; it didnât support cultivating such medicines.
Conversely, the Inheritor Great Abilityâs Inheritance Cave Heaven, designed for sect inheritance, featured a complete rules system conducive for medicine cultivation.
"If youâre willing to wait, leave your contact information, and once Iâve finished Sword Elder and Great Power Mengâs Spirit Pills, Iâll reach you!" Li Shiming decided after consideration.
Satisfied with the remuneration proposed by the five Great Power avatars, he agreed readily.
He harbored another notion; since these five Great Power avatars set a standard, future Great Power requests would adhere to this criterion for remuneration.
"Mr. Li, as a newly ascended Great Power, I have a spare communication array exclusively for Great Powers, which I gift you. We can thus use this array to communicate henceforth!" The leading Great Power avatar extracted a Mustard Seed Ring and offered.
Li Shiming accepted the Mustard Seed Ring, inspected it spiritually, discovering within it an array foundation and a Jade Scroll.
The Jade Scroll detailed the formationâs setup method, a mere glance revealed the arrayâs principles.
He lauded the formationâs ingenuity, enhancing his esteemed status as an Array Master through newfound insight.
The arrayâs brilliance lies in directly linking with same-type communication arrays within Cave Heavens.
Traditionally, all Inheritor Great Abilities inhabit Inheritance Cave Heavens, requiring indirect notification via intermediary targets using standard arrays to inform sect cultivators of the Inheritor Great Power.
With this communication array, direct Great Power interaction bypasses intermediaries.
The foundation array was brand new, even Li Shiming discerned its freshly crafted aura.
This array was specially crafted for him under the pretext of this gift.
Although he understood this Great Powerâs gesture was due to the alchemy transaction, Li Shiming nonetheless fostered goodwill towards this avatar.