Immortality and Cultivation: Starting with Improving Spiritual Root Aptitude

A few days later, it was the end of the month again.

Wu Fan has delivered all the pills for this month, including several high-quality Qi-Inducing Pills.

Meeting Bai Ruanqiu's somewhat astonished gaze, he clasped his hands in a salute, then turned and left.

As expected, Bai Ruanqiu came to the door again that night, saying that the eldest daughter of the Bai family invited him to meet in the elegant room on the second floor of Baidan Hall to explore the Dao of Alchemy together.

"Does the young lady want to see me?"

This was within Wu Fan's expectations, but he did not expect that this young lady would be so anxious as to summon him overnight.

Moreover, it was already late at night, and a man and a woman alone in a room together. If rumors were to spread, he would have no way to defend himself.

......

Fifteen minutes later, Wu Fan followed Bai Ruanqiu to the private room on the second floor of Baidan Hall.

Bai Ruanqiu gently knocked on the door, and a clear, melodious female voice immediately came from inside: "Is this Master Wu Dan? Please come in."

Wu Fan pushed open the door and entered. He saw Bai Ruanyu dressed in a moon-white ruqun (a type of traditional Chinese dress), with a gentle figure and elegant demeanor.

Perhaps due to a busy day, her makeup was slightly oily, but instead of looking disheveled, it added a touch of warmth and approachability. Unlike her usual capable and decisive demeanor, she appeared more down-to-earth at this moment.

"Master Wu, please have a seat. Try my light tea; it's not particularly expensive, but it's refreshing and delicious."

Bai Ruanyu smiled and invited him, personally pouring him a cup of tea.

The aroma of tea wafted through the air. Wu Fan took the teacup, his fingertips lightly brushing the rim, but he didn't drink from it. Instead, he placed it on the table beside him.

Bai Ruanyu observed this without saying much, and went straight to the point: "I heard from Ruan Qiu that Master Wu refined several high-quality Qi-Inducing Pills this month?"

Wu Fan smiled slightly and nodded frankly: "Reporting to Miss, I had a sudden inspiration while refining medicine at the beginning of next month, so I opened the alchemy furnace again and tried it out. By chance, I refined a few high-quality pills, and then successfully refined a few more batches."

"Master Wu is too modest."

Bai Ruanyu smiled and said, "There is no room for luck in the path of alchemy; it relies entirely on talent and diligence. In this light, Master Wu's attainments in alchemy are truly remarkable."

Upon hearing the praise, Wu Fan blushed slightly, but couldn't hide a hint of pride. He waved his hands repeatedly and said, "Miss, you flatter me. I don't deserve it."

Seeing his expression, Bai Ruanyu's smile deepened. She changed the subject and got to the point: "I wonder what Master Wu's success rate is in refining high-quality Qi-Inducing Pills? Is it possible to refine them in large quantities in a short period of time, like ordinary Qi-Inducing Pills?"

Upon hearing this, Wu Fan frowned slightly, pondered for a moment, then looked up at Bai Ruanyu with a solemn expression: "There is currently no data to support the success rate of producing high-quality Qi-inducing Pills on a large scale. However, based on my experience, I estimate that there is about a 10% to 20% chance of success."

As soon as he finished speaking, a hint of uncertainty appeared on his face.

A fleeting, almost imperceptible hint of disappointment flashed in Bai Ruanyu's eyes, but it vanished in an instant. She then pressed on, "Is Alchemist Wu confident that he can further improve the success rate of the pills?"

"A high success rate in pill formation? This..."

Wu Fan looked troubled and hesitated, saying, "If we don't pursue quantity and focus on refining the quality of pills, the success rate of pill production can be improved. However, the amount of ordinary Qi-Inducing Pills that need to be handed over each month is not low. It's really impossible to have both and concentrate on refining high-quality pills."

Upon hearing this, Bai Ruanyu laughed instead. Wu Fan's words proved that he was indeed confident in refining the high-quality Qi-inducing pills; it was just a matter of a few conditions.

She immediately pressed further, "If we reduce the quota for ordinary Qi-Inducing Pills that Master Wu is required to produce, allowing you to focus on refining high-quality pills, can you increase the success rate to 40% within six months?"

Wu Fan did not answer immediately. He lowered his eyes and pondered for a moment before looking up at Bai Ruanyu, his tone firm: "I dare not say that I am completely confident, but I am willing to give it a try."

Although he didn't say anything definitively, his statement "I'm willing to give it a try" already revealed his confidence.

Looking at the handsome face before her, Bai Ruanyu found it increasingly pleasing to the eye. She raised her hand to tuck a stray strand of hair behind her ear and smiled gently, "In that case, I'll trouble Master Wu."

Wu Fan quickly stood up, cupped his hands in greeting, and replied in a deep voice, "It's my duty, I dare not accept the word 'thank you'." After discussing the important matters, the atmosphere between the two became more relaxed.

Although Bai Ruanyu did not practice alchemy, she grew up in a family of alchemists and had extensive knowledge of alchemy.

After their conversation, she felt that Wu Fan was exceptionally articulate and had many unique insights into alchemy. She became increasingly convinced that this man was no ordinary person.

Another quarter of an hour passed, and Wu Fan got up to take his leave. Watching his departing figure, Bai Ruanyu stood quietly by the window, her red lips slightly parted, and she sighed softly, "This Wu Fan, in terms of speech, ability, and temperament, far surpasses the younger generation of the Bai family. It's just a pity... his cultivation level is too low."

......

Six months later.

The main hall of Baidan Hall.

"Wanmei, the premium Qi-inducing pills I mentioned to you last time were bought at this Baidan Hall."

A handsome man dressed in white, with an elegant demeanor and the air of a refined young master from an ordinary family, spoke to a girl in a light blue ruqun (a type of traditional Chinese dress) beside him.

The girl had a delicate oval face, willow-leaf eyebrows, and almond-shaped eyes, and looked mischievous and clever.

At this moment, she had a charming and bright look in her eyes. If Wu Fan were here, he would be very surprised that this woman could look like this.

This person was none other than his cousin, Wu Xiaowan.

The man and Wu Xiaowan were very intimate. His gaze swept over her curvaceous figure, which resembled a ripe peach, and a hint of passion lurked in his eyes.

This person is Zhou Jing, the blind date that Wu Yuanshan arranged for Wu Xiaowan.

Zhou Jing's spiritual root aptitude is not outstanding, but the Zhou family behind him monopolizes the cultivation business of a lot of low-grade spiritual soil near Yunxi Market.

High-grade spiritual soil is mostly formed by the convergence of spiritual energy from heaven and earth and cannot be artificially cultivated, while low-grade spiritual soil can be cultivated using a substrate containing trace amounts of spiritual medicinal ingredients and fertilizer extracted from the excrement of spiritual beasts.

Although this profession is time-consuming, laborious, dirty, and tiring, and is considered low-class by most cultivators, the demand for maintaining low-grade spiritual soil is extremely high, making the profits quite considerable.

"Brother Zhou Jing, is this premium Qi-Inducing Pill you're talking about really as good as you say?"

Throughout the journey, Zhou Jing praised the exquisite Qi-Inducing Pills of Bai Dan Tang to the skies, but Wu Xiaowan still remained somewhat skeptical.

After all, she had taken a high-quality Qi-inducing pill when she was sixteen, and it didn't have the miraculous effects that Zhou Jing described.

"Of course, how could I deceive Yu Wanmei?"

As Zhou Jing spoke, he turned and called out to the counter, "Shopkeeper, do you still have any premium Qi-Inducing Pills for sale?"

"Of course there are."

A young-looking servant in blue robes stepped forward to answer.

"Then please get me a bottle," Zhou Jing said.

"this......"

The servant in blue paused upon hearing this, then explained with a troubled expression, "Esteemed guest, premium Qi-Inducing Pills are no longer sold individually. You will need to purchase a bottle of regular Qi-Inducing Pills, which will contain two premium Qi-Inducing Pills as a complimentary gift."

"What? Why is this happening?" Zhou Jing's expression changed drastically.

Before he came, he assured Wu Xiaowan that this premium Qi-Inducing Pill was far more effective than the ordinary one, absorbing 20-30% more spiritual energy and having less toxicity, making it an excellent auxiliary pill for low-level cultivators.

He even boasted that he would buy a bottle (ten pills) and give it to Wu Xiaowan, but according to the bundling rules, buying a bottle of premium pills would require adding five bottles of ordinary Qi-inducing pills, which would cost nearly a hundred spirit stones.

Thinking of this, Zhou Jing's lips twitched involuntarily.