Five Injuries Rejuvenating Liquid

A week has passed since Shi Li was accepted as Huo Shenshou's disciple, allowing him to step into the world of alchemy. It was also a week since he had done his first attempt at concocting a batch of Three Injuries Recovering Liquid, ending up with a substandard yet marketable batch. During that time, Shi Li made sure to head to the God Fire Alchemical Pavilion everyday to learn from Huo Shenshou, aiming to become more proficient in alchemy. Naturally, he focused on the concoction process of the Three Injuries Recovering Liquid, specifically the part where he would need to use the mortar and pestle, as well as the flask and burner.

Alongside that, he made sure to memorize the contents of the book Huo Shenshou had given to him. Although he wondered at times as to why he had been given such a book so early on in his path to becoming an alchemist, he just thought that it was his master giving him the opportunity to solidify his foundations early on.

Of course, he did not neglect his cultivation while he was busy learning alchemy, breaking through the 3rd Stage of Acupoint Breaking at the night of his first attempt. Surprisingly, once he had broken through to the 3rd Stage, he felt like there was a bit more strength in his body. This strength showed great importance when he used the mortar and pestle, seeing that he could now squeeze out more juice from the Recova Grass. Within the duration of a week, he had opened an additional 8 acupoints. Adding the 61st acupoint he had opened that night, he now had a total of 69 acupoints open.

Last but not least, he also told his mother of the fact that he had obtained a job, but did not tell her what job he had taken exactly. Even though his mother could not help but worry for his safety, seeing the content smile on his son's face that was as sincere as it could be, she could not help but think that it was better seeing her son this way.

…

Sanshan Town, inside the God Fire Alchemical Pavilion.

As Shi Li placed all of his concentration on the batch of Recova Grass he was grinding up in the mortar and pestle, a tap on his shoulder stopped him from continuing, prompting him to place the instrument on a nearby table as he looked at the person that called for him.

Tilting his head in slight confusion, Shi Li asked, "Is there anything you need from me, Master?"

Hearing Shi Li's question, Huo Shenshou lightly grinned before asking Shi Li to extend one of his hands out. Naturally, Shi Li did what he was told, but was still confused as to what was happening. However, at the moment two coins dropped on his extended hand, it did not take too long for him to find out why his attention was called.

Chuckling at Shi Li's surprised reaction, Huo Shenshou told him, "Although I told you a week ago that I would be able to sell half of your batch of Three Injuries Recovering Liquid by the time you came back the next day, the truth is that I wanted to sell your entire batch first before giving you the profit from it. Fortunately, that day has arrived, which is today."

He then continued, "A normal vial of Three Injuries Recovering Liquid sells for 50 copper coins. With that in mind, I sold yours for 30 copper coins. Since your batch made 10 vials, that means you made a profit of 3 silver coins. Of course, I took 1 silver coin, given that you used up the pavilion's materials."

"With that being said, from now on, whenever you successfully concoct something, you would get two-thirds of the profit from it while I would get the remaining one-third as a way to pay for the materials you used," he concluded. With that, Shi Li stared at the two silver coins on his hand for a bit before clenching it tightly, placing it into his pocket as he lightly nodded.

"Thank you for taking me in as your disciple, Master," Shi Li could not help but say sometime later, to which Huo Shenshou laughed in response. "I should say the same to you as well. Thank you for becoming my disciple."

Feeling as if the conversation wouldn't end if the two of them didn't stop, Shi Li went ahead and lightly smiled, picking up the mortar and pestle once more with the slightly grounded Recova Grass in it. After a while, he had ground the Recova Grass enough where a ton of juice was squeezed out, but almost no dregs had mixed in. Seeing how proficient he had become with the grinding process, he took in a deep breath before saying all of a sudden, "Master, I want to try concocting the Three Injuries Recovering Liquid again."

Hearing that, Huo Shenshou nodded in response, bringing all of the necessary ingredients to concoct the medicinal liquid near Shi Li. In the meantime, Shi Li grabbed a flask and a burner from a shelf, lighting the burner before the placing the flask above it using a stand.

Once Huo Shenshou laid out all of the ingredients that were going to be used, he could not help but notice the Recova Grass that Shi Li had ground before asking Huo Shenshou for permission in attempting to concoct the liquid once again. Seeing how most of the juice from the Recova Grass was extracted while only a minuscule portion of the dregs that remained mixed with the juice, Huo Shenshou could not help but think that he had truly lucked out in getting Shi Li as his disciple. Of course, another thought also popped up as he thought about it, but he placed that at the back of his head.

Knowing very well not to waste good ingredients, Shi Li poured the extracted Recova Grass juice he had recently made into a small vial before wiping his mortar and pestle clean. Once he was certain that the mortar and pestle was clean, he then placed in a small bunch of Recova Grass into it, using the pestle to grind the Recova Grass on the mortar.

As he had broken through the 3rd Stage of Acupoint Breaking, which slightly increased his strength, he was able to put in more force in the grinding process, allowing him to squeeze out more juice from the Recova Grass. By the time he was done, about the same amount of juice had been extracted from the Recova Grass when compared to the previous batch he had set aside.

Carefully removing the dregs away from the extracted juice, Shi Li then grabbed a small amount of Amalgam Powder, using a stirring stick to allow the two to meld and mingle with one another. Eventually, he stopped adding more Amalgam Powder to the mixture, seeing as the mixture had now taken on the consistency of sticky rice as it formed into solidified drops.

Counting the number of drops that had formed from the mixture, he then went ahead and poured the corresponding amount of Luminous Water into the already heated flask, which quickly bubbled up within minutes.

Cleaning the stirring stick he had used in mixing the extracted Recova Grass juice and Amalgam Powder, he then went ahead and dropped the solidified drops one by one into the flask filled with boiling Luminous Water, slowly mixing the two together with the help of the stirring stick. Unlike before, he was able to drop all solidified drops without messing up, allowing him to let out an inward sigh of relief as he now made sure that everything was mixed correctly.

After stirring the Luminous Water and solidified drops together for a few more minutes, Shi Li finally turned off the burner as he allowed the flask to slowly cool down to room temperature, showing liquid that took on a vibrant green color. Raising the flask up to meet the sun's rays, Shi Li made sure that he had concocted the medicinal liquid according to the instructions, eventually becoming incredibly excited once he realized that he had successfully done it.

In fact, even Huo Shenshou was excited for Shi Li, also realizing that his disciple had successfully concocted a batch of standard Three Injuries Recovering Liquid. However, as his master, Huo Shenshou knew very well that he should control the excitement of their disciples, lest they become arrogant due to their skills. With that, he asked Shi Li to concoct another batch of Three Injuries Recovering Liquid, to which the latter had successfully done once again.

Seeing that he had successfully made two batches of Three Injuries Recovering Liquid in a row, Shi Li felt like he had finally grasped the true meaning of alchemy. Though, before he could celebrate his excitement to the fullest, Huo Shenshou surprisingly dropped a bucket of cold water on him. Literally.

"What did you do that for, Master?" Shi Li could not help but ask, trying his best to maintain politeness as his body shivered from the cold. Seeing his disciple's sorry state, Huo Shenshou could not help but apologize inwardly as he maintained a solemn expression on the outside, telling Shi Li, "Although I'm proud that you're now able to concoct a batch of Three Injuries Recovering Liquid, don't think that a couple of success is enough for you to be considered someone great."

"Just so you know, the recipe you're using right now is incomplete," he continued, seemingly letting a bomb fire off in Shi Li's mind.

After a minute of silence, Shi Li looked at his master and asked, "What do you mean by that, Master?"

"What I'm saying is that… the Three Injuries Recovering Liquid I've tasked you to concoct is considered the weakest form of the medicinal liquid I originally concocted back then. Since you're now able to successfully concoct a standard batch of Three Injuries Recovering Liquid, it's time to teach you the stronger version of the medicinal liquid," he responded.

"Its name is…"

"The Five Injuries Rejuvenating Liquid!"