Gou Zai Sect Beast Taming Longevity

Chapter 24 Slow Alchemy (Please continue reading)

I acquired three sets of materials for the Qi Gathering Pill, which cost a total of twelve low-grade spirit stones.

Adding in the cost of purchasing the pill formula, Yu Changsheng now has forty-one low-grade spirit stones in his pocket.

There are many pills that can aid cultivation during the Qi Refining stage. Among them, the Spirit Gathering Pill, Qi Gathering Pill, and Spirit Enhancement Pill are relatively common. The Spirit Gathering Pill is the cheapest, with a small bottle of six pills costing just over one hundred spirit coins.

The Qi Gathering Pill is an enhanced version of it, and it is more expensive. A small bottle of six pills can sell for more than twenty low-grade spirit stones.

As for the Spirit Enhancement Pill, one pill is worth more than ten spirit stones.

Therefore, with three sets of materials, as long as one set is successful, the cost of the materials can be recovered, resulting in a profit of more than five times!

This made Yu Changsheng sigh, "Alchemists really make a lot of money."

Of course, if your alchemy skills aren't up to par, then it's really a money pit.

If you don't have a pill-refining furnace, you can rent one from the Pill Refining Hall on the main peak. It costs three low-grade spirit stones a day and comes with its own array and earth fire. When you run out of mana or are tired from pill refining, it will automatically activate the array to stabilize the flame.

Normally, cultivators who come to rent the alchemy array will run out of mana after two hours of alchemy. This array gives them a second chance to use it, otherwise they would have to find someone else to help them with alchemy.

This is also the awkward state of a Qi Refining stage alchemist.

However, the Three Fires Alchemy Technique is different. Unlike other alchemy techniques that emphasize speed and urgency, it does not require much magical power; it is simply "slow".

Yu Changsheng found the blue-robed steward, handed over the spirit stones, and entered a pill-refining room.

The alchemy room was simply furnished, with a pit in the center surrounded by a small array. Inside stood a bronze alchemy furnace, and judging from the embers and the faint medicinal aroma emanating from the furnace, disciples often used it to refine elixirs.

Yu Changsheng summoned the Crimson Serpent King and instructed, "If I don't have enough mana to refine pills later, you can take over and spew a few flames. Remember not to spew too strong, just a small flame."

"?"

The Red Serpent King's eyes widened, as if a question mark was about to pop out of his forehead.

Although it can breathe fire, isn't it a bit inappropriate to have a demon beast as your alchemy apprentice?

Yu Changsheng saw through its thoughts, patted the snake's head, and said.

"It's alright. You are already a mature Crimson Serpent King. You should learn to assist your master in refining pills."

"Once it's finished being made, I'll let you have two more."

Upon hearing this, the Crimson Serpent King became much more interested, raised his head, nodded, and stood guard beside the alchemy furnace.

Yu Changsheng took out the materials one by one, laid them out in front of the alchemy furnace, sat down, feeling somewhat nervous.

"It's okay, everyone has a first time."

Even if the alchemy fails, it's only a few spirit stones.

He made a hand seal and used the Three Fires Alchemy Technique to send a flame down into the furnace.

"First, add the auxiliary ingredients and slowly melt them into a medicinal liquid."

With a flick of his hand, Yu Changsheng sent several herbs flying into the alchemy furnace. Once the fire was almost ready, he added the main ingredients, closed the lid, and carefully controlled the flames with his eyes closed.

"Wait, don't rush it."

"Empty your mind and let the medicinal properties of the elixir combine naturally."

Beside him, the Crimson Serpent King stared for three hours, his eyes almost aching, but the alchemy furnace seemed to remain motionless.

Then I turned to look at my owner, who was resting with his eyes closed.

Is this alchemy? Or is he just dozing off?

It lay down somewhat listlessly, glancing around every now and then.

This alchemy process is really slow.

Two hours later, Yu Changsheng slowly opened his eyes, made a hand seal, and the flames under the alchemy furnace turned from a slow fire into a raging fire.

"By applying the principles of analogy and refining the elixir, one can penetrate all barriers through the permeation of water and fire."

"The elixir is complete!"

As the incantation ended, the medicinal liquid inside the furnace gathered together and took shape, shining brightly in the blazing fire, and a rich spiritual energy wafted over.

"Snapped!"

The alchemy furnace was opened, revealing six Qi Gathering Pills inside, each one round and full, with a pill pattern on it!

Seeing this, Yu Changsheng withdrew his magic power and beamed with joy.

"This method is indeed powerful. Even with my limited magical power, I was able to complete the entire process with minimal consumption and virtually no fatigue!"

With his proficiency in the Three Fires Alchemy technique and his understanding of the second-order alchemy, refining a first-order Qi Gathering Pill was not difficult at all. It was just that he was a little nervous because it was his first time refining it. Otherwise, he could have increased the number of pills by a few more, or even reached the maximum of ten perfect pills!

"I just don't know how effective this medicine will be."

Yu Changsheng took out the jade bottle he had prepared beforehand, filled it with pills, and looked at the Crimson Serpent King beside him.

The Red Serpent King immediately swam over, blinked, and opened its mouth wide.

He had an expression that said, "Hurry up and feed me."

"Eat up, you've worked hard guarding it for so long."

Yu Changsheng smiled and tossed a Qi Gathering Pill into its mouth.

The Crimson Serpent King didn't even need to chew; it swallowed it whole. While the effect wasn't as pleasant as the Spirit Enhancement Pill, it still made it feel a little better.

[You have successfully fed a Crimson Serpent King, consuming 1 Qi Gathering Pill, and received a reward of 18 Essence Points and a small amount of Mana.]

This amount was truly minuscule, incomparable to the Spirit Enhancement Pill. Yu Changsheng didn't even feel anything after it entered.

"No wonder there's such a big price difference between Qi Gathering Pills and Spirit Enhancement Pills. Even if an ordinary Qi cultivator consumes several bottles, they might not be able to advance to the next level."

Yu Changsheng shook his head, somewhat disappointed.

In comparison, he still preferred the feeling brought by the Incremental Pill, where the increase in mana was clearly visible.

He couldn't even imagine what the effects of a lower-grade Spirit Gathering Pill would be.

After the Crimson Serpent King finished digesting, Yu Changsheng fed it another Qi Gathering Pill. This one was obtained from Luo Lesheng and was of even lower quality than the one he had refined. It didn't even have pill patterns and only brought 12 points of essence.

"Continue refining the pills. There are still six hours left."

Yu Changsheng lit the fire and focused intently on performing the incantation.

Nine hours later, he had refined the remaining two sets of materials into pills. The success rate was ridiculously high, partly due to his second-level alchemy skills and partly due to the three-stage fire alchemy technique.

After finishing everything, Yu Changsheng put the Crimson Serpent King back into his inner world and pushed open the door to the alchemy room.

Outside the door, the blue-robed steward saw him and said with a stern face, "It's been more than three hours, so I'll charge you an extra spirit stone."

"Of course, of course, thank you for your trouble, Steward." Yu Changsheng handed over two spirit stones and smiled.

Many outer disciples need to use the alchemy room, and the blue-robed manager only allowed him, a menial disciple, to use it for a day after receiving a gift. In the end, he used it for more than three hours, which offended people.

Fortunately, not many outer disciples came this morning. The blue-robed steward silently accepted the spirit stones, his expression much better, and asked.

"How was it? Did you succeed in your first attempt at alchemy?"

"Sigh, there's been no gain at all; it's all been wasted feeding the alchemy furnace."

Yu Changsheng looked heartbroken and sighed.

"That's normal. You've only been practicing alchemy for a month. If you ask me, you should attend more classes before you start practicing. If you don't master the skills, you'll easily lose everything."

"I wasn't trying to trick you last time. It's just that Master Gongsun's method is most suitable for you Qi Refining cultivators. Don't be fooled by his slow pace of teaching. If you can grasp even a trace of its essence, it will benefit you immensely for the rest of your life," the blue-robed steward said earnestly.

Yu Changsheng nodded quickly and smiled, "Master Gongsun's lessons are too profound. I still want to try more so that I can truly understand alchemy."

The blue-robed steward shook his head and said, "Never mind, go ahead."

"Anyway, you have plenty of spirit stones, so feel free to refine it if you want."

Yu Changsheng left the alchemy hall with a smile.

Little did he know that no sooner had he left than Gongsun Yang arrived at the alchemy room.

(End of this chapter)