The Hehuan Sect cultivates alchemy; my senior sister helps me refine alchemy throughout the world.

After Li Ruolan left, Shen Yifei closed the courtyard gate and went straight into the alchemy room.

Three portions of medicinal herbs yield twenty Qi-gathering pills, averaging six to seven pills per portion.

When he tried it himself before, his best result was eight in one batch. Calculating it out, if all three batches are successful, he could get a maximum of twenty-four. Giving twenty to Li Ruolan would leave him with four left over.

This is a good deal.

The problem is, he's only just learned alchemy, and his success rate isn't that high. If he fails to refine a batch, he'll have to take twenty pills from the remaining two batches, which would mean he'd lose money.

Shen Yifei laid out the three portions of medicinal herbs, then looked at the half-person-high alchemy furnace and began to make plans in his mind.

Refining pills with the Cauldron of All Things is fast and effective. However, the pills refined by that thing are ridiculously effective. Li Ruolan was fine after taking them, but if her little Daoist partner took them and overdosed on them, he might explode and die, and she would have to take the blame.

Shen Yifei thought about it and decided to compromise.

The first one was refined using the Cauldron of All Things.

He took out the small cauldron, poured in the first batch of medicinal herbs, infused it with spiritual energy, and silently recited "Gathering Qi Pill".

The fire was lit, the medicine melted, the elixir condensed—all in one smooth motion.

The fire in the furnace went out, and at the bottom of the cauldron lay twelve pills, each the size of a longan, round and golden, emitting a rich fragrance.

Shen Yifei picked one up and examined it; its quality was even better than the one he had given to Qin Wan before.

He put the twelve beads into a jade bottle and stored them in his ring.

The second batch was refined using the Great Alchemy Furnace.

Shen Yifei sat cross-legged, drew qi into his body, and flames emerged from his palms, leading them to the bottom of the furnace.

Heat the furnace, add the medicine, and control the fire.

This time he was extra careful and dared not be negligent in the slightest.

Finally, the fire went out, and Shen Yifei lifted the lid and looked inside.

Eight pills lay at the bottom of the furnace, uniform in size and golden in color. Although they were much inferior to those refined by the Myriad Things Cauldron, they were still much better than those he had refined before.

Shen Yifei put the eight stones into another jade bottle.

The third batch was also refined using the Great Alchemy Furnace.

With the experience from before, this batch went even smoother and was completed in one go.

Lift the furnace lid, and you'll find nine Qi-gathering pills!

Shen Yifei took out the three Qi Gathering Pills he had taken before, making a total of twenty, and he even gained twelve top-grade pills for free.

Three days passed in the blink of an eye.

On the morning of the third day, Li Ruolan arrived at the door on time.

"Junior Brother Shen, is the pill finished?"

Shen Yifei ushered her into the house and took out a jade bottle containing twenty ordinary Qi Gathering Pills from his ring, handing it to her.

"Twenty, you count them."

Li Ruolan took the jade bottle, poured out the contents, counted them, then picked up one, looked at it, and smelled it.

"Junior Brother Shen, the quality of your pills is excellent, much better than any I've ever seen."

Shen Yifei thought to himself, "This is considered good? You haven't seen anything better."

"As long as Senior Sister Li is satisfied!" he said, extending his hand.

Li Ruolan quickly took out twenty spirit stones from her bosom and handed them to him with both hands.

Shen Yifei took the spirit stone and put it into his ring.

"Senior Sister Li, please come again if you need anything in the future, the price will still be the same."

Li Ruolan nodded repeatedly, then happily left with the jade bottle in her pocket.

Over the next few days, Shen Yifei began to think about ways to earn spirit stones.

Alchemy is a good career path, but you can't just rely on taking on jobs. Firstly, there aren't many jobs, and secondly, the clients provide the medicinal materials themselves, so he can only earn a small fee for his labor.

You have to buy the medicinal herbs yourself, refine them yourself, and sell them yourself.

He still set his sights on the Qi Gathering Pills refined by the Myriad Things Cauldron.

A whole pill is too suspicious. What would happen if it were crushed and mixed with ordinary pills to neutralize the effect?

Just do it.

He used the remaining spirit stones to buy herbs for refining Qi Gathering Pills, and refined eight ordinary Qi Gathering Pills.

He knew a little about alchemy, but no one had ever taught him how to "blend pills." Combining two pills without destroying their medicinal properties was a skill in itself.

He then thought of the Cauldron of All Things.

The Cauldron of All Things can refine people and elixirs. Can it refine two kinds of elixirs into one?

Shen Yifei took out the small cauldron, put in a top-grade Qi Gathering Pill and eight ordinary Qi Gathering Pills, infused them with spiritual energy, and silently chanted "fusion".

A ball of fire emerged from the cauldron.

The flames licked at the nine pills, which slowly softened and melted into a golden liquid. The liquid churned and eventually transformed back into individual pills.

Shen Yifei counted them and found there were thirty-two.

With a thought, Shen Yifei sent thirty-two pills flying out of the cauldron and landing in his palm.

He took a sniff; the fragrance was rich, but not as outrageous as before.

He picked one up, took a small bite, and tasted it.

The medicinal effect is much milder, but it's still far stronger than ordinary pills. However, at this level, it's not noticeable; those who know their stuff can tell the difference.

Thirty-two stones, each worth twenty spirit stones. Shen Yifei was overjoyed at the thought. If things continued like this, he would soon become the richest person in the inner sect of the Hehuan Sect!

Six hundred and forty spirit stones isn't a huge sum for an inner disciple, but it's definitely a comfortable amount. The key is that the money came too easily, so easily that it made him feel uneasy.

If people find out he has this ability, those who are envious, covetous, or want a share of the pie will surely trample down the threshold of his yard.

But then again, if we don't sell them, these pills are just sitting there unused.

He'd tried it himself. One pill made his spiritual energy surge rapidly, but rapid increase didn't mean good increase. He'd only recently established his foundation, and it wasn't stable yet. At this rate, he might explode before even reaching the Golden Core stage.

There's a right way to sell.

Shen Yifei lay on the bed staring at the roof beams, his mind racing.

Should we take it directly to the market and set up a stall?

Not at all.

For a newcomer who has just entered the inner sect to suddenly produce so many high-quality Qi Gathering Pills, even a fool would know there's something fishy about it.

Ask Qin Wan to help sell them? Qin Wan is honest, but honest people are easily tricked into revealing information. If someone finds out where the pills came from, I'll be in deep trouble.

Or... how about going for the high-end market?

Shen Yifei recalled the mission he saw in the mission hall that day—"Cultivate with Wang Shuang three times, 20 contribution points."

Wang Shuang, a cultivator in the early stage of the Golden Core realm, was nicknamed "Dragon Sucking Water." Even those in the mid-stage of the Golden Core realm dared not touch her, demonstrating her profound skill. But the price she offered was high; one session of dual cultivation was equivalent to refining a whole batch of pills.

What does this mean? It means that there are plenty of wealthy people in the inner circle, but what they lack are good things.

His elixirs are truly valuable.

Selling this kind of elixir to ordinary disciples would be a waste. It should be sold to those who have spirit stones, high status, and discerning eyes.

How can he let people know he has good stuff without revealing himself?

Shen Yifei pondered for a long time, and suddenly remembered someone!

Li Ruolan!

The woman was willing to spend twenty spirit stones as a fee to help her young Daoist partner recover, showing that she was a generous person.

Moreover, she keeps her mouth shut. Last time, she took the pills and left without asking any unnecessary questions.

That's her.

The next morning, Shen Yifei went out for a walk and found out where Li Ruolan lived, in a small courtyard on the west side of the inner courtyard.

He knocked on the door, and Li Ruolan, seeing him, was taken aback: "Junior Brother Shen? What brings you here?"

"Senior Sister Li, is it convenient for us to talk?"

Li Ruolan let him into the house and closed the door: "What happened?"

"Nothing happened. I just wanted to ask how the Qi Gathering Pill was going for your junior brother?"

Li Ruolan blushed: "It's great, much better than before."

Shen Yifei nodded, took out a small porcelain bottle from his pocket, and placed it on the table.

Li Ruolan looked at the porcelain vase, then at him: "This is..."

"I also have another Qi Gathering Pill here, even better than the last one," Shen Yifei said in a low voice. "It's three times more effective than a regular Qi Gathering Pill, and the price is fifty spirit stones per pill."

Li Ruolan's eyes widened: "Fifty spirit stones? That's so expensive?"

"Take a look at the goods first before you decide."

Li Ruolan picked up the porcelain bottle and poured out a pill. The pill was golden, even better quality than the ones she had taken last time. She held it to her nose and smelled it, and her expression changed.

"What...what kind of pill is this? Why does it have this medicinal fragrance?"

"It's a Qi Gathering Pill, just made with better herbs and cooked more thoroughly." Shen Yifei lied through his teeth. "Senior Sister Li, go back and let your husband try it. If he likes it, come back to me. Consider it a gift from me; I won't accept spirit stones."

Li Ruolan hesitated for a moment, then put the pills back into the porcelain bottle and tucked them into her bosom: "Junior Brother Shen, where did you get these pills?"

"I made it, didn't you know that?"

"But the one you refined last time wasn't this good."

Shen Yifei laughed: "People always have to improve, right? Senior Sister Li, don't worry about using it. I'll take responsibility if anything goes wrong."

Li Ruolan left with some doubt.

Shen Yifei wasn't in a hurry and went back to continue his research on alchemy.