Frustrating Life of an Beginner Alchemist

The next day, a sense of purpose woke Liu Feng up early. He completed his morning cultivation session, and after being fueled by a hearty breakfast, he headed straight to his alchemy workshop. Today, the 14th day of the month of Rooster, marked his official first day as an alchemist!

He had already set up his workshop yesterday, and today's focus was to refine some low-grade Healing Pills. According to the recipe, a single batch of ten pills ideally required four Golden Roots, seven stalks of Vermilion Grass, and twelve Jade Flower Petals.

Liu Feng furrowed his brow, reviewing the information repeatedly to avoid missing any important piece of information. While he had a good understanding of the basic alchemy process thanks to his studies in the royal library, those books lacked the recipe itself.

'The Beginner Grade Alchemy' notes that he had brought covered the things more in detail. It covered what alchemy was, how to set up the cauldron, and the general process of refining low-level pills, but it lacked anything specific. He felt disappointed.

"2500 gold coins for this?!" he thought. "It would have been better to open a few food stalls than this." Even if the profits will not be as high as alchemy, he thought at least he would not be throwing away his money unnecessarily!

His recent conversation with Zhang Yan had given him a new perspective on his wealth. He learned that just 3 silver and 60 copper coins could comfortably support a family of three for a whole month. That is just 0.36 gold coins! Thinking about the way he had been splurging his golds sent shivers down his spine.

However, it was important to maintain his persona. So, Liu Feng casually shrugged and replied, "It's just gold anyway." Zhang Yan's strange look of understanding felt peculiar to Liu Feng, but he just nodded in response.

Determined to avoid wasting any more money, Liu Feng decided to focus on studying and planning carefully. He spent the entire day diligently reading and taking detailed notes on the art of alchemy. Finally, the next day arrived and Liu Feng was finally ready to refine some pills.

***

The cauldron, the alchemy flame formation, the ingredients, and all of his other tools were ready. A thrill of excitement coursed through him, with a hint of nervousness.In his hand, he held the memorized recipe for the low-grade healing pill. He had enough ingredients for 10 batches, and he was confident it would be more than enough for a few successful attempts. 

Following the recipe's vague instructions, he meticulously took out the ingredients. First, the four golden roots went into the cauldron. Next, he added seven stalks of the Vermilion Grass. Finally, he placed the twelve Jade Flower Petals, into the cold Alchemy Cauldron.

With a steady hand, he channeled a small amount of Qi into the formation's eye, igniting the fire beneath the cauldron. He observed keenly as the ingredients began to break down and merge. But within moments, things took a darker turn. Literally!

The mixture transformed into an ominous black sludge, emitting a repelling odor. He quickly attempted to salvage the situation, but it was all in vain. His initial expectation of getting a vibrant green solution had been reduced to a useless, tar-like mess.

'It's fine', Liu Feng thought. He was already prepared to fail a couple of times. So brushing off his first setback, he was now ready for his second attempt. However, his initial determination was dampened, by the realization he had to clean the black goo out of the cauldron.

It seemed simple at first, but it turned into a time-consuming task.

This time, Liu Feng decided to document every step of the process before beginning his second attempt.

Unfortunately, the second batch produced results no better than the first. He tried adjusting the heat, but this time the mixture turned muddy. His frustration grew as his third, fourth, and fifth attempts all ended in failure, with each requiring the tedious process of cleaning the cauldron. He had already used half of his ingredients, and still, there were no pills!

Refusing to give up, Liu Feng continued. His sixth attempt brought a glimmer of hope. He followed the same process, adding the golden roots, then the vermilion grass, and finally the jade flower petals. This time, however, the result was not another black goo. It was a dense, dark green sludge! While not the vibrant green he was aiming for, he felt the color was a significant improvement.

"Finally, There's some hope for me after all!" he exclaimed, a surge of joy replaced his earlier frustration. He realized this was the result of using a bit too low flame as after six failed attempts, he was starting to gain a better understanding of the process.

Fueled by this newfound understanding, he approached his next experiment with renewed focus. He maintained the same ingredient order but adjusted the flame to burn hotter. Unfortunately, his excitement got the better of him, and he rushed the process, leading to yet another failed attempt. But he was not discouraged!

Taking a deep breath to calm himself down, Liu Feng analyzed his mistake. By his eighth attempt, he finally achieved the desired result of a light green paste. The color, while not the vibrant green he had hoped, hinted at progress. According to the recipe, any shade of green smooth solution was a positive sign.

Excitement coursed through him as he meticulously controlled the heat and timing throughout the remaining process. He had never reached this stage before, and success seemed just within his grasp. With careful precision, he turned off the flame and poured the hot mixture into the clean wooden pill mold.

The wait was agonizing. He was eager to open the mold quickly, but he knew he had to wait for the pills to naturally cool down. Twenty to thirty minutes felt like an eternity and finally, when the wait was over, he opened the lid.

As he opened the mold, it revealed ten round pills placed inside. A faint yet pleasant fragrance filled the room, indicating his success!

"Haha! I finally did it!" A wave of satisfaction washed over Liu Feng and a sense of accomplishment made him let out a sigh of relief.

Liu Feng compared his pills to the reference pills he had brought. While only two matched the standard quality, the rest did not. Although these dull pills lacked the luster of the other two, they still held some medicinal properties and could be sold at a lower price in the ordinary markets.

He carefully placed the imperfect pills in a separate container, then tightly sealed the other box labeled "Standard Quality Pills" with a wooden cork. 'Two tries left, huh?' he thought, glancing out the window at the setting sun. Exhaustion hit him hard, but he didn't want to lose his momentum. A quick session of cultivation invigorated his mind and body. Reflecting on his previous mistakes, and successes, he began his ninth attempt.

The ninth attempt went without any issues. He carefully poured the hot mixture into the mold, and after half an hour, the familiar pleasant scent filled the air. Two more standard-quality pills joined their brethren in the designated bottle.

His tenth and final attempt yielded a better result and three standard quality pills were added to the bottle. This progress filled him with some pride. Despite his resources being depleted completely for the day, Liu Feng was satisfied.

For this experiment, he used a supply worth 150 gold coins. Yet, his yield was only seven standard pills. Even selling them at 4 gold coins each would only bring him 28 gold coins. For this experiment, he used a supply worth 150 golds but he only produced 7 pills. Selling them at 4 gold coins, he would receive only 28 coins.

The numbers made him sad a little, but he did not lose hope. He knew that he still had a long way to go, but he was proud of what he had accomplished today. 

Gradually, he was starting to get a real taste of the frustrating life of a beginner alchemist.