Simultaneous traversal: All Abyss difficulty.

Chapter 809 Using a Sow for Alchemy

In the quiet room, the fragrance of herbs wafted through the air, and the light, cut into strips by the window latticework, lazily fell upon Nangong Wan's focused profile.

Before her, the crimson alchemy furnace, half the height of a person, was already slightly hot. The flames inside the furnace were precisely controlled to a nearly transparent bluish-white color, emitting a low hum, like some ancient beast grinding its teeth while dozing.

"Three pieces of Concentrating Grass, each at least twenty years old. Any more than that and the medicinal properties will be too harsh; any less and the treatment will be insufficient."

Nangong Wan murmured to herself, her fingertips gently pinching a few lush, verdant herbs, her movements as delicate as if she were defusing a bomb fuse.

She carefully placed it into the pre-drilled hole on top of the furnace, then made a hand seal, her fingertips shimmering with spiritual light. A fine yet condensed thread of spiritual energy precisely probed into the furnace, carefully guiding the herb to sink and avoid the core area where the fire was strongest.

(Jin Chen's portrayal of Nangong Wan in the TV series)

Fang Yu huddled in the shadows of the corner, his back against the cold wall, his empty sleeve dangling down.

His eyelids were half-closed, as if he were asleep but not asleep. However, his Rinne Sharingan was like a precision scanner, disassembling, analyzing and reconstructing every subtle movement of Nangong Wan and every wisp of spiritual energy flowing within the alchemy furnace.

'The fire temperature was too high, and the spiritual energy guidance was too conservative, taking a long detour. The third turn of this fire control technique was a beat too late, causing the medicinal effects to accumulate in the southwest corner.'

"The steps are cumbersome and inefficient, the flow of spiritual energy is like an old ox pulling a broken cart. If we follow this method, using divine thought as a guide and spiritual power as a needle, directly piercing the 'spiritual pivot' where the medicinal properties are combined, why bother with such a winding and circuitous path?"

What Fang Yu considered a very easy Foundation Establishment Pill to refine was extremely difficult for Nangong Wan.

Although the Foundation Establishment Pill was not a top-tier pill for her, refining it to a superior grade still required complete concentration.

She was trying to add a small pinch of "chalcedony crystal powder" to neutralize the dryness of the calming grass. She held the powder between her fingertips, hovering it above the furnace mouth, her divine sense like the most precise probe, repeatedly sensing the extremely subtle temperature threshold inside the furnace.

Soon, the powder will burn instantly.

If it's too slow, the medicinal properties will be difficult to fully activate and fuse.

This requires absolute tranquility and precise control down to the millimeter.

Just then, the spiritual energy inside the furnace suddenly stagnated, followed by a faint, heartbreaking smell of burning.

Nangong Wan froze, and a few drops of crystal powder fell from her fingertips.

She slowly withdrew her hand, watching the wisp of smoke rising, carrying an air of defeat. A barely perceptible hint of annoyance and weariness flashed across her cool eyes.

The firelight reflected off her slightly furrowed brows, her irritation almost tangible.

"Another embryonic core was wasted."

She sighed softly, her voice carrying the frustration unique to alchemists, as she prepared to clean up the residue and start over.

"Tsk, what a waste of this chalcedony powder."

A voice suddenly rang out, carrying a tone of regret that seemed to express concern for you.

Nangong Wan turned around in surprise and saw that Fang Tiezhu, the one-armed disciple who should have been in the background, had stood up at some point. He casually patted the dust off his buttocks with his remaining hand and strolled over to the alchemy furnace.

His steps were as light as if he were strolling in his own backyard, and his face even had a hint of nonchalance about letting me come.

"You?! How dare you!" Nangong Wan's eyebrows shot up, her anger rising.

Has this kid lost his mind or something?

In this sacred place of alchemy, with the furnace fire blazing, how dare this outer disciple in the Qi Refining stage so arrogantly approach and offer his critique? And with that infuriatingly infuriating "what a pity" tone?
However, before she could finish her rebuke, Fang Yu's intact right hand shot out like lightning!

No hand gestures were used!

I wasn't focused!

There wasn't even much noticeable spiritual energy fluctuation!
The hand moved so fast it left afterimages in the air, its five fingers tapping rapidly across several specific spots on the furnace body, like playing the piano!
Benedict! Benedict!
Benedict! Benedict! Benedict!
Each click landed precisely on a specific spirit rune node on the furnace wall, the force varying unpredictably, producing a dull and short sound.

The movements didn't resemble alchemy; they were more like performing the most precise troubleshooting and restart on a volatile machine. Inside the furnace, the chaotic and turbulent spiritual energy, originally disrupted by the burning of the elixir embryo, was forcibly regulated and restored to its proper order by these seemingly casual yet profoundly rhythmic clicks!
The stagnant medicinal power was cleverly dispersed and remixed by an invisible force, as if it had been instantly stirred up by an invisible hand.

The wisp of burnt smoke, representing failure, suddenly paused and then mysteriously dissipated by more than half!
Nangong Wan's rebuke was stuck in her throat, and her beautiful eyes widened instantly, filled with disbelief and horror!

She didn't even see exactly what Fang Yu did!
Fang Yu didn't even look at her, as if the valuable alchemy furnace in front of him was no different from the iron kettle he used to boil water at home.

He brought his right index and middle fingers together and lightly touched the top of the furnace. A wisp of pale golden spiritual light, thinner than a hair but extremely refined, silently pierced into the furnace—this was the core essence of the medicine formula taught by Laozi, using divine thought as a needle to pierce the spiritual pivot!
hum!
The alchemy furnace emitted a deep tremor, and the furnace fire instantly changed from bluish-white to a warm, jade-like milky white!
Inside the furnace, the remaining medicinal power, the lingering spiritual energy, and even the slight burnt smell were precisely guided and harmonized by this golden needle-like divine thought, like hundreds of rivers flowing into the sea, quickly condensing into a dazzling core of spiritual light!

Fang Yu grabbed at the air with his right hand, his movements wide and sweeping, as if he had seized an invisible medicinal force in the void and slammed it down on the core!
"Congeal!"

There are no complicated hand seals, no lengthy incantations, only a short and powerful word.

An invisible force lifted the stove lid, creating a crack.

Ding!
A pale blue pill, about the size of a longan, perfectly round, and radiating a warm, jade-like luster, seemed to have a life of its own as it lightly leaped out of the furnace and landed steadily in Fang Yu's outstretched palm.

A thin layer of spiritual mist shrouded the surface of the pill, its fragrance subtle yet refreshing, more than ten times stronger than those that Nangong Wan had previously failed to refine!
Its quality is top-notch, truly the best among Foundation Establishment Pills!
quiet!
Deathly silence!

Nangong Wan froze on the spot, as if struck by an invisible bolt of lightning.

Her exquisitely beautiful face froze, all expression gone, leaving only pure, earth-shattering horror.

Those cold eyes were fixed on the top-grade Foundation Establishment Pill in Fang Yu's palm, which was still pulsating slightly, then slowly moved to his one arm that had just completed a miraculous operation, and finally landed on his face with a slightly unsatisfied expression.

An elder of the Hidden Moon Sect? A Core Formation stage cultivator? Immersed in alchemy for many years?

All the pride and recognition brought by his identity were shattered at this moment by the Qi Refining stage outer disciple, one-armed cripple, who used one hand in an almost brutal, violent, and unbelievably precise way!
Fang Yu completely ignored Nangong Wan's petrifying gaze.

He held the freshly made, high-quality Foundation Establishment Pill between two fingers, brought it close to his eyes, and examined it from all angles as if appraising an antique. Then, he frowned, and in an extremely irritating tone, as if he were criticizing the grilling of a roadside stall, he smacked his lips and shook his head repeatedly.
"What a pity, what a pity."

Nangong Wan was brought back to her senses by his regretful words. Her throat felt dry, and she subconsciously asked, "What's the pity?"

Fang Yu casually handed the pill to Nangong Wan, as if it were a candy rather than a top-grade Foundation Establishment Pill. Then, pointing to the crimson furnace still radiating heat from its opening, his tone was full of the regret of a tech geek debugging new equipment and discovering that the parameters were incorrect.

"What a pity! It's my first time using your stove, and I didn't expect the thick walls to conduct heat so slowly, and the fire at the bottom is a bit too intense. My method is all about 'smothering,' it has to be covered tightly so that the medicinal properties can be simmered inside! You know what simmering means? Like stewing meat in a pot, locking in the aroma and essence!"

He gestured, his face showing a troubled expression: "It turns out that the seal of your stove lid is not good enough. When I lifted the lid just now, a lot of the medicinal gas escaped, and the fragrance has faded."

He paused, seemingly considering a solution, then his eyes lit up, he slapped his thigh, and added in an extremely serious tone, as if imparting a closely guarded secret:

"Actually, it doesn't matter if there's no lid! Next time, try finding a plump, strong old sow, wash its rear end clean, and have it sit on the furnace opening! The seal will be absolutely top-notch! I guarantee the pills you refine will, at the very least, be this good—"

He gave a single thumbs-up, nodded seriously, as if describing a truth verified by countless experiments: "It's incredibly delicious!"

All of Nangong Wan's shock and horror were swallowed back by this last earth-shattering solution, turning into a completely uncontrolled laugh that utterly ruined the elder's image.

puff!

Looking at Fang Yu's incredibly serious face, as if he were genuinely discussing the feasibility of using a sow's rear end to block the alchemy furnace, and then recalling his superb alchemy skills, the huge contrast and sense of absurdity overwhelmed her instantly like a tidal wave.

"You...you..." She pointed at Fang Yu, her fingers trembling slightly, "Who would use a sow to refine pills?!"

Fang Yu, however, looked completely at ease, even with an expression that suggested he was making a fuss over nothing, and pointed to his own nose:
"me!"

Nangong Wan suppressed a laugh, "Then I'd like to see how alchemy can involve using an old...old sow."

Fang Yu's eyes lit up.

Ok? !

Is it really possible to borrow a stove like this?
Tell me earlier!
(End of this chapter)