Mountains and giant beasts, cabins in the woods

Liu Xingmo slammed the money bag onto the table with a flourish, the clinking of gold, silver, copper, and iron creating a crisp and pleasant sound.

"Give me a little of everything, so I can try it at home."

"Okay, just a moment." The receptionist stood up quickly.

She now knew that the young man in front of her, who was renowned throughout the village, had a substantial family fortune.

"Wait a minute!" Liu Xingmo called out to her. "Let me inquire again. Do you have any bones from blood-path beasts? Second-tier is fine, but higher quality would be even better."

"Well, are you sure it's bone? Or blood?" The receptionist looked troubled.

"That's right, the spine is best."

"Well, you should know that low-level magical beasts don't leave behind any remains, while high-level magical beasts generally have long lifespans. Therefore, we cannot fulfill your request."

"Do you have any similar materials?"

"There's a lot to it. Shed fur, trimmed claws, shed carapaces, even deer antlers and cow antlers. The quality varies, and there are even materials from fifth-tier innate beasts of the Blood Path."

Liu Xingmo realized that she was referring to the small trinkets that had fallen from the elder's body, which had transformed into a beast.

According to the diagram, the ritual artifact, the Spine Chain, requires grinding the spine of a mythical beast into powder, mixing it with metal in a specific ratio, and finally casting it into a chain.

I'm not sure if other components will work; it's probably not feasible. However, if the material quality is high enough, it might make up for the shortcomings.

Liu Xingmo made a decision: "I need a sample to test it out when I get back. Listen carefully..."

The money I finally saved up has been squandered again. But these are necessary expenses; there's no other way.

You must develop yourself first before you can earn more money. You can't get rich just by saving money.

As for the unplanned expenditure on the magical artifacts and alchemy furnace, it will be covered by the compensation for improving the iron blast furnace at Silver Money Mountain.

Having a blueprint for an industrial steelmaking furnace in hand, doing this shouldn't be difficult.

……

A busy day has come to an end.

Liu Xingmo carried his things home.

Tonight, there is neither wind nor cloud.

Liu Xingmo sat in the bus, clutching his bundle, his emotions churning.

In recent days, a steady stream of opportunities has fallen into their laps like pies from the sky. But beneath the surface of peace and tranquility in the village, undercurrents have begun to stir.

A premonition grew stronger in my heart: the world had been stagnant for too long, and a great era of unpredictable change was about to begin.

Liu Xingmo unconsciously clenched his fists.

I can ride the waves and soar to the crest of the tide of the times!

Outside the car window, the bright full moon hung in the sky, and the sparse stars seemed frozen, neither blinking nor flowing.

The howling north wind has subsided, and the mountains are covered with a thick blanket of snow, softening even the sharpest edges.

The moonlight spilled over the snow and was carelessly reflected back into the sky, turning the night into a hazy silvery white.

As a result, the entire world was filled with a serene and peaceful atmosphere.

"Ring ring—!"

The driver shook the copper bell; we had arrived at the station.

Liu Xingmo pushed open the car door, and the cold air silently invaded his warm flesh and blood.

Fortunately, the last stop was at the mine entrance. All I had to do was scan my face, and the groundhog instructor guarding the gate let me through.

The mine is strictly managed because naive fools who try to take advantage of the situation can really cause terrible accidents.

If we can pass the inspection and settle down there, we can spend a warm winter.

Liu Xingmo ran home quickly.

Bao Hei lazily guarded the gate, while Su Mali read a book by the oil lamp.

Business as usual.

Liu Xingmo laid out all the various medicinal herbs he had collected from his backpack on the table.

"Mary, look, are these things usable?"

"So many! No wonder you're called Black Dragon Stronghold, the largest medicinal herb production base in the Central Plains. Add to that your secretive and well-connected caravans, and you've practically gathered rare medicinal herbs from half the world!"

"Actually, I was also shocked. These seven kinds of spiritual herbs, plus the seven-colored coral, if consumed freely, could directly get a person to the first level of perfection."

"Xingmo, although the farmers in the village seem very simple and honest, they are actually extremely valuable talents. Objectively speaking, your woodworking tradition has a value that surpasses that of the bloodline tradition."

"Is that so? I heard that the Mountain Goddess deduced it by analogy. It seems that the previous spies targeted the Wood Path Technique for theft."

Liu Xingmo's gaze fell upon the various colored medicinal herbs on the table.

Their restrained aura is like a vortex, possessing a powerful compressive force. While their quality may not be as high as that of the seven-colored coral, it is still quite excellent.

Especially the three portions produced by Black Dragon Village itself, which are of medium to high quality of Xuan grade, would be the envy of any level of strength.

"Mary, try to refine the first-class Philosopher's Stone with them. If you can, add them all to your natal alchemy furnace. If we're going to do it, we should do it to the best of our ability. Maybe you can even advance to the fifth rank."

"I've been looking forward to this for a long time; I've been preparing for it for many years."

Sumali smiled confidently, then said no more and began to busy herself with the Philosopher's Stone.

Scrape the sample into powder and place it in a special reagent for testing. Record the data, design the method, and perform cyclical validation.

A palm-sized leaf was repeatedly cut into pieces with tweezers and a knife. Its properties were confirmed through complex experiments. Then it was boiled and calcined with various powders, finally yielding a slightly cloudy stone about the size of a fingertip.

Liu Xingmo's eyes narrowed.

The feeling of this stone is similar to that of colorful coral, only not as pure.

They really forged the Philosopher's Stone!

Sumali looked somewhat tired, but her dark eyes shone brightly.

Liu Xingmo brought over a cup of hot tea: "That's enough for today, we'll try the rest tomorrow. And I'll help you with simple calculation tasks that don't involve underlying principles."

"Hmm? It seems that your arithmetic curriculum in the Central Plains doesn't include this kind of knowledge, does it?"

"Just because the school didn't teach it doesn't mean I can't! I'm the most humble and eager-to-learn person; I've read quite a few books in the library."

"Xingmo, you've become a true man."

"No, no, Mary. You shouldn't say such things. It's usually a father saying that to his son."

"Oh, you have too many rules as a storyteller."

The following days were spent busy at home.

The primary task at present is to create Sumali's natal alchemy furnace.

This furnace, depending on the direction of cultivation, can be used for both alchemy and weapon crafting, and can continuously be supplemented with materials, growing stronger along with its owner.

The essence of the divine-level alchemy inheritance, the "Honglu Jing," lies in this.

Sumali needs to first refine a first-level alchemy furnace.

The plan involves adding various types of first-class Philosopher's Stones to raise the quality to the perfect level. Then, second-class Philosopher's Stones will be incorporated to raise the quality to tier two.

Translate ancient books, organize cultivation methods, conduct experiments, and create materials.

After five days of working in one go, Sumari used seven kinds of elixirs to create seven Philosopher's Stones.

By fusing them with specific metals, an alchemical furnace can be forged.

……

Deep inside the mine, beside the rented steelmaking blast furnace, everything was ready.

The firelight illuminated Liu Xingmo and Su Mali's faces.