Mid-Grade Jade Marrow Pill

Early the next morning, amidst the sharp, resounding crowing of a rooster, Luo Chen opened his bleary eyes. Stepping out into the courtyard, he drew well water and quickly washed up. Duan Feng was up even earlier than him, tinkering with a flying sword in the yard. "What are you doing?" "My artifact is damaged. I'm cleaning it up and preparing to buy materials to make repairs." "You know how to repair artifacts?" Luo Chen was thoroughly astonished. Then, as if recalling something, realization struck him. "Right, of course. You're from the Duan family. I heard the Duan family possesses an Ice-Fire Spiritual Spring and excels at artifact crafting." At the mention of the Duan family, Duan Feng's expression visibly darkened. The atmosphere in the courtyard turned somewhat chilly. Luo Chen realized that his relationship with the Duan family might not be harmonious. It made sense. If things had been good, he wouldn't have needed to leave his family to struggle alone in Dahe Market. For a ninth-layer Qi Refining cultivator without the backing of a faction or a specialized craft of his own, earning spirit stones was actually far from easy. One could tell as much from how Duan Feng not only fought on the Dao Discussion Platform, but also had to venture into the mountains to hunt demon beasts. Offering a brief chuckle, Luo Chen deliberately changed the subject. "That Yangwu chicken of yours lays eggs, so by all rights it's a hen. Why does it crow every morning?" "A trace of its bloodline has reverted to its ancestor, so it's a hermaphrodite." At that, a flicker of longing surfaced in Duan Feng's eyes. "Back then, my mother searched high and low for all sorts of miraculous elixirs, wanting to raise this Yangwu chicken to the second rank so it could fully awaken into a Phoenix-Cry Yangwu chicken. Unfortunately, it fell short in the end." Pills capable of inducing ancestral bloodline reversion in spirit beasts were immensely precious. How could an ordinary family possibly manage such a feat? Moreover, Luo Chen had previously heard Big Brother Qin mention that Duan Feng's branch was ostracized within the Duan family, so the resources at their disposal were likely even slimmer. After sighing with sympathy, Luo Chen chatted with Duan Feng a bit more. Before leaving, he hesitated, then asked, "You really know how to repair artifacts?" "Simple patch-ups are no problem." "Then can you fix this blade?" Luo Chen took a small wooden blade from his storage bag. It was one of the sub-blades of his Jasper Saber set. It had been damaged during his battle with the gray-leaf wolf the day before. At the time, he had assumed that simply nourishing it with spiritual power would restore it. He had not expected that after a night, its spiritual luster would grow even dimmer. If left unattended, his Jasper Sabers would lose a sub-blade, and the power of the saber formation he could assemble in the future would be vastly diminished. Taking the wooden blade, Duan Feng examined it closely, then said flatly, "I can fix it, but I'll need to patch it with a piece of jasperwood heart. Currently, jasperwood heart sells for five spirit stones apiece on the market." Luo Chen was overjoyed. "Then I'll leave it in your hands!" With that, he took out five spirit stones. After a brief pause, he drew out another five. "Hm?" "The extra is compensation for your trouble." Duan Feng fell silent for a moment before accepting the extra five spirit stones. Seeing this, Luo Chen patted Duan Feng on the shoulder. "You might be older than me, but I definitely have more experience surviving in the market. Sometimes, you don't need to fight and kill to earn spirit stones. That line of work is too dangerous." Duan Feng nodded, but a moment later, he took a deep breath. "No, you don't understand." With that, he closed the courtyard gate and walked straight away. Watching his solitary, stubborn back, Luo Chen scratched his head. What didn't he understand? The guy carried an expression of deep-seated vengeance; he was probably dreaming of mastering peerless combat arts to avenge some ancient grudge. The targets of that revenge might very well be certain members of his own Duan family! Luo Chen understood cliché plotlines like that all too well! *** Inside the Pill Hall. A team of twenty medicine apprentices, ten fire tenders, and the pill curers trained some time ago stood in several neat rows, waiting as if facing battle. In front of them stood Gu Caiyi and Sikong Shoujia. And standing at the very fore was none other than Hall Master Luo Chen. At that moment, Luo Chen walked through the three pill chambers alone. A short while later, he stepped out. "The refurbishment of the pill chambers is complete. They can now handle the upcoming refinement of Jade Marrow Pills." "However, I must warn you all—especially the fire tenders, listen carefully." "I am still not entirely familiar with refining Jade Marrow Pills, and there is a high likelihood of danger. If any signs of a cauldron explosion appear, run immediately, understood?" "Why are you staring blankly? Did you hear me clearly? If you die in the pill chambers, I won't take responsibility!" "Understood!" That last sentence was delivered with fierce severity. No one had expected the usually gentle Luo Chen to speak with such harsh authority. Consequently, they were all startled. Sikong Shoujia raised an eyebrow. He noticed that at some point, a subtle air of authority had gathered around Luo Chen. Perhaps holding high position naturally cultivated one's presence. "All right. Medicine apprentices, first bring in all the materials needed for the Jade Marrow Pills. Remember, lay them out one by one in the exact order I distributed beforehand." As the apprentices busied themselves, Luo Chen couldn't help but rub between his eyebrows. He glanced at his attribute panel. After a month of various failures and a handful of successes, the proficiency of Jade Marrow Pill had now reached [Jade Marrow Pill: Skilled 101/200]. Truth be told, launching large-scale alchemy at merely the Skilled tier gave Luo Chen zero confidence. Yet he had no choice. Mi Shuhua was clearly growing impatient. After investing so much into him—even offering a Foundation Establishment cultivator's reflections on Qi Refining—Mi Shuhua would certainly hold it against him if he saw no results. Luo Chen did not want to face the wrath of a Foundation Establishment cultivator. Therefore, he had to drive ducks onto the perch, forcibly ramping up the pace of Jade Marrow Pill refinement. Yet deep down, he was a decent person shaped by nine years of compulsory education; he understood that human life was paramount. Even when forced to rush, he would ensure that production came second and safety came first. "I hope everything goes smoothly!" Luo Chen muttered under his breath, gave a flick of his wide sleeves, and strode into the largest pill chamber. *** "Increase the flames, increase the flames! The temperature isn't high enough!" "You idiot! Where did all your practice with the Flame Manipulation Incantation go? Don't you know how to split a Fireball Art in half?" "Hall Master, chamber number two smells burnt!" "Maintain the original heat over here. Wait for me to come right back." "Ruined. This batch is ruined. Clear out the dregs! Mi Li, have someone scrub the cauldron and prep for the next batch." "Hall Master, the cauldron in chamber number three is vibrating violently!" "What are you standing there for? Tell them to get the hell out of there!" After a whole morning of refining, every single batch was a failure. Not one had succeeded. Luo Chen's face was frightfully dark. The others dared not provoke him, keeping their heads down and sticking to their duties. After lunch, Luo Chen adjusted his mindset. Instead of continuing with Jade Marrow Pills in the afternoon, he directed Mi Li, Tang Quan, and the others to refine Fasting Powder. This time, he had the apprentices handle the work personally. He merely stood by, offering occasional pointers. Strangely enough, doing so improved his mood. Indeed, one could only find a sense of accomplishment and joy in the domain where they excelled the most. With many hands making light work and multiple cauldrons in use, that afternoon saw plenty of successes despite a few failures. Looking at the freshly rolled Fasting Pills, not only Luo Chen, but everyone else felt their spirits lift. The morning's failures had not only affected Luo Chen; the others had felt even more terrified. "All right, that concludes today's alchemy. We will resume tomorrow." "The quality of these batches of Fasting Powder is average. The pill curers don't need to store them in the pill-curing chamber. Take them straight outside and distribute them to our brothers in the combat halls!" Luo Chen spoke impassively, showing not a shred of heartache. According to Mi Shuhua, Fasting Powder was to be treated as a gang benefit, handed out to members from time to time. Of course, that applied only to low-grade Fasting Powder. If it were mid-grade or high-grade, they would still have to purchase it at internal discounted rates. Having handled these matters, Luo Chen slipped back into a pill chamber. Gu Caiyi stood outside the door. "Aren't you going home today?" "No, I won't be returning." "Then I'll head out first." "Right, if you run into Duan Feng, ask him if my artifact is repaired. If it's fixed, just bring it back for me. I'll probably be staying in the Pill Hall for an extended period." Listening to his calm, measured words, Gu Caiyi felt that Luo Chen seemed slightly different from before. She couldn't put her finger on what had changed. It was just that focused attitude that naturally surfaced when someone truly committed their heart to a task. *Could it be that he wasn't truly committed to the Pill Hall before?* On the way home, that thought crossed Gu Caiyi's mind without warning. Meanwhile, inside the pill chamber, Luo Chen personally refined a cauldron of Jade Marrow Pills. Looking at the twenty jade-white pills that emerged from the cauldron, Luo Chen let out a long sigh of relief. "Now that my proficiency has reached the Skilled tier, the success rate really has climbed to twenty percent." "With so many failures today, I nearly started doubting myself." Shaking his head, Luo Chen casually popped a Jade Marrow Pill into his mouth as if it were a sugar bean. Sneaking a taste? Nonsense! A cook was merely checking how his dish turned out! Exiting the pill chamber, he noticed that the hall was sparsely populated. Only outside were a few late-stage Qi Refining cultivators on patrol guard duty. Though assigned to the Pill Hall, they hailed primarily from the three combat halls, so he had little interest in courting their favor. Instead, he took out the *Qingyuan Alchemy Exposition* and read it closely at the stone table on the cliffside terrace. "Last time I only mastered the Jade Breaking Hand. This time, I need to dedicate some effort to the Pure Heart Hand." The Jade Breaking Hand was suited for processing mineral materials. It was precisely because he had learned that technique that he could handle Huanyu jade properly. The Pure Heart Hand was different; it was tailored to various low-tier medicinal herbs. Although he no longer handled raw material preparation himself, certain herbs could not be processed in advance. It was said that some high-tier spiritual herbs, flowers, and fruits had to be processed and refined the moment they were picked. Otherwise, they would be tainted by the turbid energy of the subterranean earth vents and lose all their medicinal efficacy. Jade Marrow Pills did not face this restriction for now, but there was no guarantee that Luo Chen wouldn't encounter pill formulas requiring this technique in the future. Learning it early was always wise. Once he had committed the Pure Heart Hand to memory—to the point where he could recite it backward—Luo Chen fetched some cheap, ordinary herbs from the storeroom and began practicing. Amidst failures and successes, Luo Chen was thoroughly engrossed. When patrolling cultivators occasionally stepped in and saw this, they quietly noted it in their minds. Late into the night, Luo Chen discreetly carried a Purple Cloud Bronze Furnace out of the pill chamber, returned to his stone house, and activated the formation. Ensuring no one would disturb him, he lifted the floorboards and descended deep into the mining tunnels. After winding through several turns, Luo Chen arrived back in the spirit vein cavern. *I wonder if refining Origin-Nourishing Spiritual Liquid directly here will affect the pure spiritual energy radiating from the spirit vein?* While pondering, Luo Chen had already finished his preparations. Inside the somewhat cramped cavern, the Purple Cloud Bronze Furnace was mounted, and blazing flames burned for a while. The surging heat waves made Luo Chen break into a heavy sweat, even with his defensive robe activated. Yet he paid it no mind, constantly monitoring the concentration of spiritual energy in the area. The Spiritual Eye Art rooted in his eyes served as an excellent real-time monitor. Three hours later, the fire died down, and the cauldron's temperature gradually dropped. Luo Chen breathed a sigh of relief. "No problem!" Next, he began cultivating inside the cavern. *** "He has been staying in the Pill Hall this entire time?" "Yes. Over the span of a month, he only returned to the inner city twice, and that was just to purchase daily necessities." "What are the results?" "He has devoted most of his attention to refining Jade Marrow Pills. His success rate has improved somewhat; out of ten cauldrons, he can barely manage two successful batches." "Are there any mid-grade Jade Marrow Pills?" "None so far, though it's said one cauldron almost produced a mid-grade pill. In the end, that Jade Marrow Pill only formed a cloud pattern and a half." "It seems he truly is taking this to heart!" Mi Shuhua looked gratified, his tone laced with a hint of pleasure. After a moment's thought, he said, "Ask him what assistance he needs in his daily life. If possible, the gang will purchase it for him." "Understood, I will attend to it." Sikong Shoujia agreed to the task. Today's report was just about concluded. Yet he hesitated, gritted his teeth, and cautiously asked, "Gang Leader, how has my worthless son's cultivation been progressing lately?" Mi Shuhua glanced at him and said flatly, "Yuanhong cultivates very diligently. He has already reached the eighth layer of Qi Refining." Sikong Yuanhong was Sikong Shoujia's only son. Currently thirty-five years old, he possessed three spiritual roots and had been cultivating under Mi Shuhua, effectively serving as his disciple. With such talent, reaching the eighth layer of Qi Refining at his age meant there was hope for Foundation Establishment in the future! Sikong Shoujia was overjoyed, his thoughts turning even more toward that Foundation Establishment Pill in Mi Shuhua's possession. If Yuanhong could use that Foundation Establishment Pill, he might truly achieve Foundation Establishment down the line! "Thank you, Gang Leader, for your years of guidance. Yuanhong's future path will still require your care. If he can achieve Foundation Establishment, my Sikong family will spare no effort in serving the Mi family!" Mi Shuhua smiled and nodded. Just as Sikong Shoujia was about to leave, Mi Shuhua suddenly added, "My youngest daughter remains unmarried. She is at the sixth layer of Qi Refining, but lacks a Dao companion. I find Yuanhong to be quite suitable. If we can become one family, I will surely offer him my utmost guidance." Sikong Shoujia froze, momentarily at a loss for how to reply. According to Mi Shuhua's implication, he wanted his only son to marry into the Mi family! *** On the way back to the Pill Hall, Sikong Shoujia was utterly preoccupied. He was already old and frail, his vitality waning. Even at the ninth layer of Qi Refining, Great Perfection was far out of reach, let alone Foundation Establishment. Thus, all his hopes in this life rested upon his only son. For this reason, he had willingly placed himself at Mi Shuhua's beck and call, becoming his trusted confidant within the Mountain Breaker Gang. The trust placed in him surpassed even that given to Severed Saber Xu Renke or Heart-Devouring Tiger Han Dang back then. Now, Mi Shuhua's words clearly hinted that only if Sikong Yuanhong became part of the Mi family would he fully support his cultivation. That way, his son would have a future, but the Sikong lineage would be left without a successor. The old man's mind was in turmoil! When he arrived back at the Pill Hall with a troubled frown, he found that the others were in an even greater state of panic. "What happened? What's going on?" He grabbed a fellow. If he remembered correctly, the boy was the son of a former eighth-layer cultivator in the gang named Tang, and now followed his uncle, Zeng Wen. He seemed to be called Tang Quan? Tang Quan said with terror, "A cauldron exploded! Chamber number three just blew up—one dead and one injured on the spot!" "How could this happen? Is Luo Chen all right?" Sikong Shoujia was shocked and furious. If Luo Chen was blown to pieces, how could he answer to Mi Shuhua? The gang leader had been in high spirits today, even explicitly offering to take full care of Luo Chen's daily needs. Amidst his shock and fury, enraged roars echoed from the Pill Hall's main hall. "How many times have I said it? If there are signs of a cauldron explosion, drop everything and run!" "Did you all treat my words like wind blowing past your ears?" "A bunch of fools! Are pills more important, or are your lives?!" Sikong Shoujia pushed through the crowd and saw Luo Chen pacing back and forth, his face pale with fury. Two people lay on the ground. One was a shattered corpse, the remains merely pieced together. The other was a mangled mass of flesh and blood, over which a woman was utilizing arts to administer frantic aid. With just a glance, he realized the mangled person was none other than Qu Hancheng, the elderly cultivator whom Luo Chen had personally promoted. *Cough!* A mouthful of clotted blood suddenly spat forth. Murong Qinglian stepped back, a faint smile appearing on her face. "He's out of danger. Qu Hancheng suffered internal and external shock caused by raging spiritual energy." "Although his meridians are severely damaged, his life is at least saved." "Luo Chen, there's nothing more for me to do here, so I'll take my leave. The Medicine Hall is still quite busy." "Thank you, Sister-in-Law. I truly trouble you." Luo Chen had someone see Murong Qinglian out, his gaze falling onto Qu Hancheng. Qu Hancheng had opened his eyes by now, his face pale and his body smeared with blood and grime. Cracking a grin, he lifted a hand. Resting in his palm was a red-and-white pill. The white was the color of the pill; the red was his own blood. "Hall Master... mid-grade... it's a mid-grade Jade Marrow Pill." "Damn it!" Luo Chen slapped the mid-grade pill out of his hand and grabbed the old fellow by the collar. He wanted to say something, but in the end, he merely glared at him fiercely. Turning around, he discovered that Sikong Shoujia had already nervously picked up that mid-grade Jade Marrow Pill. "Hall Master Luo Chen, you really refined a mid-grade Jade Marrow Pill!" Luo Chen paid no heed to the mid-grade pill, his eyes fixed squarely on Sikong Shoujia. "Elder, the deceased is named Zuo Xiangyu. Arrange his funeral for me. In addition, check whether he has any registered family members in the gang. The aftermath must be handled properly." Sikong Shoujia was taken aback. Hadn't you said before that if they died in the pill chambers, it had nothing to do with you? Why were you now handling funeral arrangements and caring for the family? "Furthermore, Qu Hancheng's injuries must be treated using the gang's spirit stones. Not only that, once he recovers, his monthly stipend will increase by another two spirit stones." "However..." "No howevers! If you have doubts, take this mid-grade Jade Marrow Pill to Gang Leader Mi and let him decide!" "Right, right." Having sorted out these matters, Luo Chen's anger subsided considerably. Yet his cold eyes swept across every medicine apprentice and fire tender present. "I will say this once more: if signs of danger appear in the pill chambers, flee immediately." "Even if that mid-grade Xuanyun Cauldron blows up, I won't blame you." "But next time, if you still die inside, see if I bother looking after you!" "Hmph!" *Damn bunch of bastards.* Luo Chen cursed under his breath as he strode into his stone house, leaving behind a crowd of old, weak, women, and children exchanging glances. The younger ones, like Tang Quan and Luo Erduo, felt differently. Paying no mind to the deceased Zuo Xiangyu, they looked with envious eyes at the severely injured Qu Hancheng. This old fellow was getting a raise for the second time! Lying on the ground, Qu Hancheng grinned foolishly, as if entirely indifferent to his injuries. Inside the stone house, the first-rank Water Wave Formation was already active. Everyone had grown accustomed to the hall master frequently activating the formation. They assumed Luo Chen simply disliked being disturbed, so normally no one would go and invite trouble. In the unwatched room, Luo Chen sat upon the soft couch and let out a sigh. In his hand was an entire bottle of mid-grade Jade Marrow Pills. As early as half a month ago, he had already raised his proficiency to the Adept tier and secretly refined mid-grade pills in private. The reason he had never announced it publicly was to conceal his alchemical ability. After all, refining mid-grade pills in such a short span of time would scare people half to death if word got out. He had not expected that today, before he could even retrieve the pills, that cauldron would explode. It had even dragged two fire tenders down with it, leaving one dead and one injured. "I didn't kill them, yet they died and suffered injury because of me!" This was the main reason for Luo Chen's sigh. The cauldron that exploded was the Purple Cloud Bronze Furnace he had bought from Miss Xiangxiang for two hundred spirit stones. As a low-grade first-rank artifact, it was versatile. However, its shortcoming was equally obvious. It could not be used frequently; it required set intervals between uses and proper routine maintenance. Yet lately, the Pill Hall's refinement work had never ceased. When cultivating in the spirit vein cavern, he had also frequently used that cauldron to brew Origin-Nourishing Spiritual Liquid. Back and forth, its "durability" had been completely worn away. Coupled with the fire tenders' negligence and improper flame control at that moment, the cauldron explosion had occurred. "Forget it. Dwelling on this is pointless. I'll just urge the gang to handle the aftermath as best they can!" After all, these people worked under him. He had genuinely put effort into them, teaching fire control techniques, sharing alchemy fundamentals, and even petitioning for the *Flame Manipulation Incantation* for them to practice. One could say this was Luo Chen's initial core team. Setting the matter aside, Luo Chen opened his attribute panel, his gaze resting on the cultivation realm entry. [Realm: Qi Refining Layer Six: 99/100] Two full months had passed by now! With his disregard for cost, sustained by the daily intake of Qi-Nourishing Pills, Jade Marrow Pills, Spirit Calming Incense, and Origin-Nourishing Spiritual Liquid, along with the superior environment of the spirit vein cavern, his cultivation had been soaring at a rate of nearly two progress points per day. Had he not spent extra effort midway on Jade Marrow Pill refinement and the Breath Concealment Spiritual Incantation, he likely would have broken through to the seventh layer of Qi Refining long ago. Even so, it was not too late. Taking a deep breath, Luo Chen reined in his eager anticipation, took out the *Insights on Qi Refining* written by Mi Shuhua, and began reading. He was waiting for the cultivators in the Pill Hall to disperse one by one. Perhaps because the explosion had upset Luo Chen, or perhaps because someone had died today, the Pill Hall cleared out earlier than usual. Sikong Shoujia had not delayed in the slightest, rushing off to find Mi Shuhua with that mid-grade Jade Marrow Pill. Late into the night, Luo Chen quietly took another Purple Cloud Bronze Furnace from the pill chambers. Then, he descended all the way into the hidden depths below. "The moment of breakthrough is today!"