The First Venerable of All Paths

"Earth core inflammation?"

Upon seeing the fire, Fang Xuan's doubts were resolved.

Earth Core Flame is a special flame born from the fire veins at the Earth's core.

This fire is formless and intangible, yet it can captivate the mind and stir up negative emotions within people.

To be honest, this fire isn't very powerful.

It's not even comparable to some powerful beast fire.

The reason it ranks among the earth's fires is because of the special effect of the Earth Core Flame, which can subtly improve a person's state of mind.

Mindset is different from spirit; it is a person's most essential and innermost essence.

No wonder, even when faced with the Undying Phoenix Flame, Old Man Jiang only felt pure envy, without the slightest covetousness or greed.

Even Chen Qing was the same.

Perhaps he has some flaws in his personality, but it's only because he cares too much about Xiao Jinyu that he doesn't speak ill of Fang Xuan like others do.

"Back then, I suffered a great deal in order to subdue this fire."

Old Jiang chuckled and said, "Even if I had to do it again, I wouldn't dare to refine it a second time."

"There are countless martial artists and alchemists, but very few who can possess flames."

Fang Xuan said, "It is also fate that Elder Jiang was able to obtain this flame."

In Fang Xuan's view, Old Man Jiang and the Earth Heart Flame were quite compatible.

"You brat, don't flatter this old man."

Old Jiang rolled his eyes and said, "If I could, I would rather exchange it for your Phoenix Fire."

Fang Xuan decided to take back what he had just said.

"Let's begin."

Of course, Old Man Jiang was just saying that.

Even if Fang Xuan were willing, he wouldn't dare.

Subduing the Earth Heart Flame alone nearly killed him; if he were to refine the Heavenly Fire, his old bones wouldn't be enough to burn through.

Fang Xuan nodded.

Xiao Jinyu waved her jade hand, and more than twenty kinds of medicinal herbs were placed in front of the group.

They come in various varieties, but all are of the highest quality in terms of appearance and age.

Clearly, Xiao Jinyu had selected only the finest materials in order to refine the Three Fire Mystic Pill.

Next, under Old Man Jiang's arrangement, the two began to refine these medicinal herbs one by one.

At first, Old Man Jiang simply gave Fang Xuan some common medicinal herbs to refine, and then quietly observed from the side.

Soon, Old Man Jiang discovered that the medicinal liquid refined by Fang Xuan was so pure that it contained no impurities whatsoever.

And it's fast.

Old Man Jiang thought that Fang Xuan was able to be so fast and good because he was relying on the power of the Heavenly Fire.

But then, Old Man Jiang put the idea aside.

Because when he handed a Vajra Blood Vine to Fang Xuan for refining, the other party's speed did not slow down.

In less than half an hour, the blood vine, which was said to be comparable to gold and iron, was refined into a pure medicinal liquid and stored in a porcelain bottle, without losing any of its medicinal power.

"This kid's alchemy skills are even better than mine were back then."

In the end, Old Man Jiang came to this conclusion.

Which master taught this kid?

That seemingly ordinary but actually incredibly ingenious refining technique was something Old Man Jiang had never even heard of, let alone seen.

At first glance, it seems ordinary, but the more you delve into it, the more you realize that Fang Xuan's techniques are incredibly profound and mysterious.

Could it be that this kid is a disciple of a grandmaster?

Only those who reach the fifth rank in alchemy can be called grandmasters.

Old Man Jiang is currently only a fourth-grade alchemist.

Even so, he was already the number one alchemist in Mingyang County.

At first, Old Man Jiang would occasionally glance at Fang Xuan.

But as time went by, the quality of the extracted medicinal materials became higher and higher, and even Old Man Jiang had to treat them with caution.

He manipulated the Earth's Heart Flame, meticulously refining each medicinal herb.

Fang Xuan's pace did not change despite the improvement in the grade of the medicinal herbs. He silently put the herbs into the Heart Refining Cauldron and began to refine them with the Undying Phoenix Fire.

With nothing to do, Chen Qing and Xiao Jinyu kept glancing back and forth between Old Man Jiang and Fang Xuan.

Finally, both of them turned their gazes to Fang Xuan.

Because Fang Xuan's extraction of medicinal herbs seemed too easy and effortless.

The fluid and graceful alchemy techniques were both pleasing to the eye and breathtaking.

"His alchemy skills are superior to mine."

Chen Qing sighed inwardly, feeling ashamed of his previous disdain.

Xiao Jinyu, on the other hand, had even brighter eyes.

"No wonder that woman, Lan Meier, speaks of him so highly."

Xiao Jinyu's phoenix eyes flickered, and a thought suddenly flashed through her mind.

"if......"

But Xiao Jinyu quickly dismissed the idea.

The gap between them is too large.

The fact that she, a person without a surname, could serve as the manager of Tianbao Tower is not only due to her special identity, but also inseparable from Xiao Jinyu's own efforts.

She wants to climb up!

We must proceed step by step to enter the true center of power within Tianbao Tower.

Fang Xuan is good, but he can only be used temporarily, not as a long-term choice.

Perhaps "utilize" sounds a bit harsh; "cooperate" would be a more accurate word.

It took a full day for all twenty-odd kinds of medicinal herbs to be extracted.

"Fang Xuan, let's recover our Yuan energy."

Old Man Jiang tossed a bottle of pills to Fang Xuan; they were Rejuvenation Pills, of extremely high quality, used to restore one's vital energy.

"Thank you very much, Elder Jiang. I would be too kind to refuse."

Fang Xuan poured out a pill and swallowed it, then put the rest into his pocket.

"Hey kid..."

Upon seeing this, Old Man Jiang's face darkened.

His bottle of Rejuvenation Pills was made with the highest quality medicinal herbs, and its value was comparable to that of a Grade 3 elixir.

Just one pill is enough to allow a Qi Gathering Realm martial artist to recover all their Yuan Power in a short time.

Even a martial artist at the Qi Condensation Realm can recover one-third of their health after taking one pill.

I only intended to give this kid one to try, but who knew he would actually keep the rest.

However, it's already been taken out.

If I take it back, what will become of my reputation?

"snort!"

Old Jiang grunted sullenly, closed his eyes, and began to recover his cultivation, trying to avoid seeing it.

Chen Qing was completely dumbfounded.

This guy has such a thick skin.

Xiao Jinyu chuckled and looked at Fang Xuan with a smile.

This guy is really interesting.

The Restoration Pill refined by Old Man Jiang was indeed extraordinary. In the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, Fang Xuan's Yuan Power was restored by more than half.

There was no other way; the Nine-Turn Golden Elixir could hold far too much Yuan energy.

To fully recover, you need to take at least two pills.

However, Fang Xuan could not bear to waste such a high-quality Restoration Pill here.

Another half hour passed before Fang Xuan opened his eyes, after Old Man Jiang had finished cleaning the alchemy furnace.

"Young man, your alchemy skills are indeed quite good."

Old Man Jiang said solemnly, "But now, the main event is just beginning, so you must follow my instructions. Any mistake will lead to failure in the alchemy process. Do you understand?"

"I understand, sir. Everything is up to you, senior."

Seeing Fang Xuan's humble attitude, Old Man Jiang nodded in satisfaction.

"Okay, let's begin."

Old Man Jiang slapped the alchemy furnace with his palm, the lid was lifted, and he casually threw a ball of Earth Core Flame into it.

Immediately afterwards, Old Man Jiang gestured with his palm, and the earth's core fire vein in the furnace was drawn over and thrown into the Wolf King Cauldron.

"Fang Xuan, throw in the Heavenly Fire; only one-tenth of it is needed."

After listening, Fang Xuan flicked his finger.

A wisp of golden-red flame shot directly into the Wolf King Cauldron.

The three fires were lit together, and the Wolf King Cauldron began to burn.

"Fang Xuan, use one-tenth of Heavenly Fire to sustain this for the time it takes to brew a cup of tea."

Old Jiang then looked at Chen Qing and said, "Chen Qing, two-tenths of the Earth Core Fire Vein, in the time it takes to drink half a cup of tea."

"good!"

"Yes, teacher."

Fang Xuan and Chen Qing responded simultaneously.

Once the alchemy furnace was preheated, Old Man Jiang guided his divine soul, and a porcelain bottle containing medicinal liquid shattered, with the liquid being poured into the Wolf King Cauldron.

After half a cup of tea, just as the temperature of the earth's core fire vein controlled by Chen Qing was about to drop, Old Man Jiang coldly shouted, "Chen Qing, increase the flame to thirty percent!"

Chen Qing's expression hardened, and he formed hand seals, channeling his divine soul power into the refining furnace. He then extracted thirty percent of the flames and poured them into the Wolf King Cauldron.

At the same time, Old Man Jiang put the second medicinal liquid into the cauldron.

Just as the time for a cup of tea was up, Old Man Jiang said, "Heavenly Fire, 25% complete!"

"The fire veins have been reduced to 15%!"

Next, as Old Man Jiang continued to speak, Fang Xuan and Chen Qing adjusted the temperature of the flames accordingly.

This process was both tense and exciting.

Until the nineteenth medicinal herb...

"Heavenly Fire, 30% complete!"

"Fire vein, 50% complete!"

Fang Xuan easily controlled the Undying Phoenix Flame, keeping its temperature at an extremely perfect level.

However, Chen Qing's expression changed slightly after only a dozen or so breaths.

He was so stressed that his spiritual energy was being depleted, and he was now nearing his limit.

Seeing that the fire vein, which should have lasted for the time it takes to brew a cup of tea, was showing signs of decreasing, Fang Xuan put two fingers together and placed them between his eyebrows, drawing out his divine soul power to guide the refining furnace and raise the temperature of the fire vein to 50%.

"you......"

Chen Qing's expression changed again, and he looked at Fang Xuan with some surprise.

"Brother Chen, please rest for a moment. I'll take over for you."

Fang Xuan spoke calmly, multitasking was incredibly easy for him.

"good!"

Chen Qing didn't stand on ceremony and said, "Please bear with me a little longer, Brother Fang. I'll be done soon."

Then, Chen Qing took a pill, sat cross-legged, and began to recover his Yuan energy and spiritual power.

Old Jiang was completely focused on the alchemy furnace and did not notice this scene.

"Heavenly fire accounts for 35% and earthly veins for 45%."

Fang Xuan immediately did as instructed, and he masterfully controlled both types of flames.

Before long, just as Old Man Jiang was about to speak, Fang Xuan automatically reduced the temperature of the Undying Phoenix Flame to 30% and increased the temperature of the earth vein to 50%.

"good!"

Old Man Jiang suddenly shouted excitedly, "That's it! Qing'er, your..."

Just as Old Man Jiang was about to praise him, he suddenly saw Chen Qing sitting cross-legged and adjusting his breathing. He was shocked to see that Fang Xuan was multitasking and controlling two kinds of flames.

"you......"

"Senior, please focus on condensing the core. Leave the rest to me."

Upon hearing this, Old Man Jiang hesitated for only a moment before saying, "Alright!"

So, in the following period, Old Man Jiang was in charge of mastering the pill-condensing process, while Fang Xuan was in charge of controlling the temperature of the two flames.

Every time Old Man Jiang spoke, Fang Xuan could immediately control the flame temperature to the optimal level.

On many occasions, Fang Xuan knew what to do without Old Man Jiang even having to say a word.

This not only saved Old Man Jiang a lot of energy, but also made the entire alchemy process smoother.

The two worked together perfectly.

On the third day, a rich medicinal fragrance suddenly wafted out from the Wolf King Cauldron.

The alchemy process has reached its most crucial step.

"Heavenly Fire, 70% complete!"

"Earth veins, 90% complete!"

Old Man Jiang shouted, and the flames inside the alchemy furnace surged, completely enveloping the nearly perfect pill.

"The earth veins will recede; in ten breaths, the heavenly fire will dissipate!"

Fang Xuan did as instructed and put away the two flames.

"when!"

The lid of the cauldron was lifted, and a pill flew in an arc before landing in Old Man Jiang's hand.

Three flame patterns leapt out from the pill.

"Hahaha, the Three-Fire Mystic Pill is complete!"