Chapter 19 Master, please teach me

As the lid of the furnace was lifted, a thick white Pill Qi billowed up like fog.

Yang Ji took a deep breath, and the rich Pill Fragrance instantly refreshed his spirit.

"I wonder what the quality of the Medicine Pill is?" His eyes flashed with anticipation.

If the pills were successfully formed, they could be classified into three grades based on the impurities contained and the preservation of medicinal power: inferior, medium, and superior.

Although all were inferior Spirit Pills, the price varied greatly with the quality.

The superior quality Medicine Pills, containing pure Spiritual Energy and fewer impurities, and offering a faster Cultivation speed, were therefore more expensive, usually costing around five hundred Spirit Stones per bottle.

Conversely, the inferior quality Medicine Pills were cheaper, typically costing around two hundred Spirit Stones per bottle.

By now, the mist had dissipated, and in the Pill Furnace lay quietly ten Medicine Pills, each the size of a thumb.

Their surface exhibited the luster of white jade, each round and full, an excellent product that was rare to come by.

Yang Ji slightly smiled, reached out to grab nine of the Medicine Pills to stow away in his pouch, leaving one out to examine.

He opened his palm to take a look, "The quality of this Medicine Pill..."

"The quality of this Medicine Pill..." Just at that moment, Huo Yuan walked in, eyes wide, staring intently at the Medicine Pill in Yang Ji's hand.

"Is this? My alchemical ancestors, is this actually a superior grade inferior Spirit Pill?"

Huo Yuan was so shocked that he nearly bit off his tongue. Leaning in to smell the Medicine Pill intensely, his small eyes suddenly bulged and he cried out as if mad,

"No, no, this luster, this rich Pill Fragrance, it far surpasses the superior grade inferior Spirit Pills, could this possibly be... a Supreme Spirit Pill?"

He abruptly raised his head, his beard sticking up, took a deep breath with a voice lacking strength and questioned, "This, is this Medicine Pill truly refined by you?"

The Medicine Pill was still warm, the truth laid bare before him, yet Huo Yuan was still unwilling to believe, maintaining an attitude of skepticism.

Because it overturned his pride, overturned his understanding, overturned the efforts of his decades, overturned everything he knew.

Various emotions burst forth in his heart, Huo Yuan's expression extremely complex, looking at Yang Ji, he resembled an aggrieved old child, longing to hear that this was not true.

Huh? Seeing Huo Yuan's pitiful state, Yang Ji cleared his throat and said simply, "It should be made by me, I suppose."

Huo Yuan took a deep breath and said with dejection, "Young friend, is this really your first time doing Alchemy?"

"Should be, is not." Yang Ji glanced at him and smiled. "Actually, I have been studying Alchemy for many years."

"At such a young age, already a Peak Alchemy Master, truly a genius," Huo Yuan sighed with regret, amidst his disappointment, he seemed to age a decade in an instant.

Watching Yang Ji, he struggled with a pang of pain in his eyes before it turned into a resolute gleam filled with hope, then suddenly bowed deeply, calling out,

"Master, please teach me, teach me how to become a Peak Alchemy Master."

Hm?

This deep bow truly took Yang Ji by surprise.

He had absolutely not expected Huo Yuan, such an old relic who held himself in high esteem, to make such a gesture and utter such words in such a brief moment.

He seriously underestimated Huo Yuan's dedication and longing for the path of Alchemy.

"Master Huo Yuan, there is no need for this. I am a mere novice, how could I possibly teach an elder like yourself?" Yang Ji responded half laughing, half crying, as he helped lift Huo Yuan's hands.

"Master, this old fool is dull and has not been able to reach the status of a Peak Alchemy Master after decades of effort. I implore you to teach me," Huo Yuan begged in a low voice.

Noticing the earnest thirst for knowledge in Huo Yuan, Yang Ji felt somewhat moved and said, "The path of Alchemy is vast and boundless, we can discuss and progress together."

"Ah, thank you, Master!" Upon hearing this, Huo Yuan's face brightened, his beard sticking up again as he quickly bowed again.

"The title of 'Master' is too much for this young man to bear, you should stop calling me that. We both use the same Earth Fire, so we can still discuss it when we have time," Yang Ji said.

"Yes, Master," Huo Yuan nodded excitedly, his old face flushing with a crimson glow.

"..." Yang Ji was helpless; he just wanted to keep a low profile, but it seemed that Huo Yuan was really not going to allow him that luxury.

"Master, you go ahead and be busy," Huo Yuan glanced at the adjacent Pill Furnace, his small eyes whirling around, cleverly making his exit.

Obviously, he saw that Yang Ji was planning to continue Alchemy.

"This little old man is indeed cunning, but since he's willing to put his pride aside, why not guide him a little in the future," Yang Ji looked at his thin figure and muttered to himself.

However, at the moment, he was out of time.

Looking at the medicine pill in his hand, it would be a lie to say that Yang Ji was not pleased.

Such ten pills could be divided into two bottles.

Pills concocted by He Gu of the lower quality but superior category of the Spirit Enhancing Pills could be sold for five hundred Spirit Stones per bottle, so the supreme quality Spirit Enhancing Pills in his hand should fetch at least seven to eight hundred Spirit Stones per bottle.

Indeed, alchemy is the true path.

However, Yang Ji was not planning to sell them now. With these pills, he could speed up his cultivation.

The dream of reaching the Tenth Layer of Qi Refining within ten years no longer seemed so extravagant.

By then, he would join a sect and obtain the Foundation Building Method.

If he succeeded in Foundation Establishment, he would transform and become a revered person with a lifespan of three hundred years, one step closer to the immortality of the Immortals.

At this thought, Yang Ji's heart surged with excitement.

He looked at the pill furnace again.

Alchemy must not cease.

Batch by batch, he continuously produced medicine pills.

Every time the sound of Pill Qi rushing out of the furnace was heard, Huo Yuan would become itchy with curiosity, always tempted to take a peek inside to witness his alchemy skills.

However, he always managed to restrain himself tactfully.

Three days flew by and Yang Ji had refined all the spiritual medicine he possessed into medicine pills.

Ten portions of spiritual medicine.

Two portions of Spirit Enhancing Herbs were ruined, the other medicines had to be put aside for now.

One portion was burnt during the fusion of the medicine liquids.

Therefore, Yang Ji managed to refine only seven portions.

A total of seventy pills.

With a terrifying success rate of one hundred percent, not even an Alchemy Grandmaster could do much better.

Yang Ji felt very content.

He then left the cave for Myriad Treasures Tower and bought another ten portions of spiritual medicine, along with two Spirit Enhancing Herbs.

He planned to refine some more and then go into seclusion for cultivation.

Seeing himpurchase spiritual medicine, Jin Dafu beamed with joy, as he had anticipated such an outcome.

When Yang Ji returned to the cave, Jin Dafu couldn't resist saying with a smile, "Take it easy, Young Brother Yang. Alchemy can't be rushed. Without a decade or so of effort, success is challenging to achieve."

"There's plenty of spiritual medicine here, brother. Whenever you need more, just come and buy. If you buy a thousand portions, I'll definitely give you a discount," he reassured Jin Dafu.

Yang Ji turned and smiled at him, without saying much.

Back in the cave, Yang Ji used the Earth Fire to refine all twelve portions of spiritual medicine once again.

At this moment, he had concocted nineteen batches of medicine pills, with a total of one hundred ninety Spirit Enhancing Pills to his name.

If valued at six hundred Spirit Stones per five-pill bottle, that amounted to a worth of more than twenty thousand Spirit Stones.

In just a matter of days, he had doubled his resources—worthy of the title of an alchemist, the undisputed leader among hundreds of cultivation arts.

Now with enough pills on hand, he could focus on cultivation.

Yang Ji packed up the pill furnace and headed out of the stone chamber.

As he approached the entrance of the cave, he was greeted by Huo Yuan, who wore a smile and ingratiatingly said, "Master, I've carved out a stone chamber for you, so you can rest here when you're tired from alchemy."

Following his gaze, Yang Ji saw a stone house to the left, opposite Huo Yuan's stone house.

The interior was simply furnished, but the four stone walls had been polished smooth and shiny, clearly a labor of Huo Yuan's dedication.

"Master, the bedding is all new; you can rest assured and use them," Huo Yuan said with a smile, resembling a mouse spirit eagerly begging for offerings.

Yang Ji understood his intention and replied with a smile, "Thank you. If I grow tired from alchemy, I shall rest here."

However, he was not planning to stay there just yet. For secluded cultivation, returning to his own cottage would be best.