Luo Chen claimed he would go all out refining medium-grade Jade Dew Pills for the Unfeeling Lineage.
In reality, he did not need to exert himself to the utmost at all.
In fact, he would not even be concocting them anytime soon.
For no other reason than that he had already amassed a sizable stockpile of Jade Dew Pills.
He would not have to worry about the matter for at least a year or two.
During this time, his focus would be directed toward the Blood Fiend Pill.
This was the medicinal pill Wang Yuan had longed for to elevate his body refinement.
Luo Chen had promised to concoct it for him back when they were still in the Qi Refining stage.
Over the years, he had studied the pill recipe for the Blood Fiend Pill countless times, and his understanding of it had long become second nature.
He had even relied on his own insights to deduce a recipe for the tier-one Blood Burning Pill.
Yet across all these years...
Concocting the Blood Fiend Pill had never been put on the agenda.
For no other reason than the difficulty of procuring the materials.
The auxiliary herbs were simple enough and had been gathered long ago.
However, each of the three main materials was more sinister and harder to obtain than the last.
Only recently had Wang Yuan finally secured the last of the three main ingredients.
“Everything is prepared, with nothing overlooked.”
“With my current alchemical attainment, I wonder if I can succeed without relying on the panel to achieve entry?”
This time, he intended to test his skills.
It was not that he was stingy with his achievement points.
He currently possessed plenty of achievement points; spending a few on a single pill recipe was negligible.
He simply wanted to see whether, with his present foundation in alchemy, he could break free from the system’s constraints.
Moreover, there was no trial pill he felt more confident about than the Blood Fiend Pill.
“Hopefully, everything goes smoothly!”
Taking a deep breath, Luo Chen began processing the various types of cultivator essence blood.
The moment he uncorked the Wave-Swallowing Sea-Ingesting Pot, a pungent stench of blood surged out.
Luo Chen’s brows furrowed.
“This isn’t the blood Wang Yuan harvested back in the Guyuan Mountain Range, is it? I hope it hasn't spoiled after all these years.”
He poured out all the essence blood.
It flowed into a frost-chilled basin emitting plumes of cold air.
Then, retrieving various auxiliary herbs from the medicine rack, he cast them inside.
It took half a day to add all the ingredients.
Luo Chen circulated his spiritual power, causing the ice basin to radiate dense frigid mist.
Gradually, stimulated by the cold, the flowing essence blood congealed into a single, translucent mass.
It resembled blood curd, or perhaps gelatin.
Strands of crimson thread laced through it, looking remarkably like human meridians.
“Moving on!”
……
Processing the various primary materials took Luo Chen ten full days.
Only when everything was in place did Luo Chen channel tier-two earth fire and commence refining the Blood Fiend Pill.
Cutting away a small dollop of the essence-blood gelatin, he tossed it into the Ice Emperor Cauldron.
Luo Chen slowly calcined it with the earth fire.
Throughout the process, he steadily added the other ingredients.
“The most difficult step in refining the Blood Fiend Pill lies in introducing the Underworld Yin Fiend.”
“The Underworld Yin Fiend is dense with the aura of death and stillness—the polar opposite of the surging vitality within a cultivator’s essence blood.”
“Under such circumstances, it must be neutralized using purple river chariot imbued with innate qi.”
The so-called purple river chariot was nothing more than human placenta.
It was commonly sold in mortal realms as well.
This item hovered between life and death; cultivators used special techniques to preserve the conflicting vital energy within it.
Only thus could it gain a rank and become a tier-one medicinal ingredient.
What Luo Chen needed to do now was mobilize its medicinal properties to balance the clash between the Underworld Yin Fiend and the cultivator's essence blood.
Under his focused control, the medicinal liquid inside the Ice Emperor Cauldron slowly began to transform.
……
“First failure, cause unknown.”
“Fifth failure, the potency of the purple river chariot was insufficient to harmonize with the tier-two Underworld Yin Fiend. Drawing on my experience from refining the Blood Burning Pill, Heavenly Sun Fruit should be added to supplement the innate qi.”
“Seventh failure, the heat was deficient. Why was the heat deficient?”
“Eleventh failure, still an issue with the heat. What is going on? Can even tier-two earth fire not satisfy the refining requirements of this pill?”
When the count reached fifteen failures, Luo Chen paused his movements.
He stepped out of the alchemy chamber, retrieved the beast-skin parchment, and reviewed the pill recipe once more.
In truth, he had committed every line of this recipe to memory long ago.
Yet failing so many times genuinely made him doubt himself.
“Where exactly did it go wrong?”
“I followed every step described in the recipe to the letter.”
“Why does the fire lack intensity? Even after adding my Foundation Establishment True Fire, it still isn't right!”
For a moment, Luo Chen felt tempted to use the system to gain entry.
A lack of confidence was one factor.
Another was the finite quantity of Underworld Yin Fiend and cultivator essence blood.
If he failed too many times and wasted excessive materials, he would have a hard time explaining himself to Wang Yuan.
Even though Wang Yuan would likely never blame him, Luo Chen could not forgive himself.
After all, he had spoken with absolute confidence before.
Opening the status panel, Luo Chen stared silently at the 31 achievement points.
He had gained one more point from the Turtle Spirit Armor spell; having mastered both Turtle Breathing and Armor Covering, he had advanced the entire technique to the Proficient level.
That was not what occupied his mind, however.
Rather, he was debating whether to use points to achieve entry.
He had a hunch that he was definitely capable of achieving entry on his own without relying on the system!
Among tier-two alchemists, he was confident that he stood out as exceptional.
After all, for most alchemists, the hallmark of reaching tier two was merely concocting a single type of tier-two pill.
Yet Luo Chen had refined tier-one pills countless times, producing an abundance of superior and supreme grades.
He also possessed rich experience with tier-two pills.
Coupled with the diverse alchemical knowledge he had amassed over the years, he had essentially synthesized the strengths of various schools, even if it lacked a unified lineage.
If he could not succeed under such conditions, it would defy all reason.
Were the other alchemists of the cultivation world monstrous freaks?
“Then where does the problem lie?”
“An issue with heat control? My fire-control technique is unequivocally top-notch!”
“A lack of fire intensity? Whether tier-two earth fire or Foundation Establishment True Fire, it should be enough to refine any tier-two pill!”
Luo Chen vaguely realized that what caused his failure was not software, but hardware.
Acquiring entry through the system was also bound by the limits of his own capability.
If something inherently exceeded his bounds—such as concocting Emperor Flowing Liquid beyond his rank in the past—it could not be mastered in a single breath.
Instead, it required pouring in a great deal of achievement points.
If his ability was sufficient, even refining above his rank would cost fewer achievement points.
Everything depended on Luo Chen's own foundational hardware!
“Fire…”
Luo Chen closed the panel and set aside the parchment recipe.
With a shift of intent, a visible droplet of spiritual liquid coalesced at his fingertips.
Circulating his cultivation art, he drove it to its absolute limit in an instant.
Abruptly, pure spiritual energy erupted before Luo Chen with violent force.
Fierce, domineering, wildly scorching.
This was “True Fire.”
“Perhaps I overlooked something!”
Luo Chen rose to his feet, cast a Cleansing Art over himself, and stepped out of the immortal's cave, heading straight for Danxia Peak.
……
“President, what brings you here?”
“Am I not allowed to come?”
“Uh…”
“Just teasing you.”
Luo Chen smiled as he looked toward the sky. Several young feather-plucking eagles circled above Danxia Peak, their outstretched white wings looking majestic.
Turning his gaze back, he looked at Sima Huiniang.
“How has Xu Huanzhen been performing lately?”
Xu Huanzhen was the beast tamer Tantai Jin had recommended to Luo Chen.
His cultivation was extraordinary!
He had reached the formidable sixth layer of Foundation Establishment.
Coupled with his extensive experience in beast taming, he had the confidence to demand a monthly stipend of four thousand spirit stones.
He wanted nothing else—only spirit stones!
His motive had also been stated plainly when Luo Chen spoke with him.
Nothing more than saving up spirit stones to lease a tier-two high-grade immortal's cave on Tianlan Peak, aiming for the late Foundation Establishment stage.
For that reason, he had capped his service at ten years.
Not long ago, Luo Chen had found time to finalize terms with him.
Beyond raising spirit beasts for Luo Chen, he had agreed to train an apprentice cohort of beast tamers.
By now, he was already the master of the Luotian Association's Spirit Beast Hall.
Sima Huiniang replied, “Since he took charge of the Spirit Beast Hall, the previously chaotic beast breeding has been thoroughly reorganized.”
“At present, we mainly raise feather-plucking eagles, jade cattail silkworms, and green-scaled dragonfish.”
“Hall Master Xu suggests expanding our breeding of silkworm spirit beasts by introducing green gold silkworms and amber silkworms. At the same time, the Agricultural Plant Hall should plant corresponding golden light mulberries and amber mulberry trees.”
Luo Chen asked in surprise, “What is the reasoning behind that?”
He had assumed they would simply scale up the few spirit beasts they already possessed.
He had not expected Xu Huanzhen to not only increase the scale, but also introduce new species.
With a trace of excitement, Sima Huiniang explained, “He seems to have surveyed the silkworm market around Tianlan Immortal City. He mentioned that the Heavenly Robe Workshop is facing a severe shortage of amber silkworm silk.”
“If we breed them on a large scale, we can do business with the Chen family of the Heavenly Robe Workshop, and we will never lack a market.”
“As for the green gold silkworm, it is a tier-two spirit beast, and its silk is ideal for forging artifacts. Whether the Sword Sect, the Luoyun Sect, or the Yan Alliance, various sects have been purchasing it in bulk.”
Hearing the green gold silkworm mentioned twice, Luo Chen finally recalled this creature.
Its temperament was somewhat ferocious, and each silkworm had to be reared separately, making large-scale breeding no easy feat.
Yet green gold silkworms were indeed widely sought after in the cultivation world.
The Jade Cauldron Sword Sect possessed a medical art known as the Golden Silkworm Rejoining Technique.
This technique utilized the silk of the green gold silkworm as its primary material.
Back then, Luo Tianhong had used this art to reattach Qin Liangchen’s arm.
Even after all these years, the memory remained vivid in Luo Chen's mind!
Moreover, green gold silkworm silk was exceptionally resilient, making it well-suited for puppet crafting—a highly cost-effective material for joining limbs and components.
If the Luotian Association could truly cultivate them on a large scale, demand would never be an issue.
“I think Hall Master Xu’s suggestion is sound,” Sima Huiniang continued. “The growth cycle of the feather-plucking eagles is too long, requiring at least ten years to reach maturity, offering no short-term returns.”
“Aside from their scales and dung, the green-scaled dragonfish have little utility value.”
“In contrast, silkworm beasts have a short maturation period, carry low breeding risks, and generate rapid profits!”
Sima Huiniang spoke with poise and fluency.
Evidently, upon receiving Xu Huanzhen’s proposal, she had thoroughly investigated the matter and formed her own insights.
“The only downside is that these spirit beasts demand high spiritual energy and abundant food, and they require considerable space.”
“Rearing them on a massive scale would interfere with the cultivation of our people on Danxia Peak.”
It was not just about rearing silkworms.
Their food—leaves from various spirit mulberries—also had to be produced internally.
Purchasing them from outside was expensive, so cultivating their own was preferred.
Although the rear of Danxia Peak was expansive, after planting the ink mulberries, there was room for at most one additional species of spirit mulberry.
With so many spirit beasts and mulberry trees crammed together, alongside the herbs grown by the Spirit Medicine Hall and the Agricultural Plant Hall, the spirit beasts and plants would very likely compete with the cultivators for ambient spiritual energy.
Though Danxia Peak had a tier-one high-grade spirit vein, it could not sustain such consumption.
Only a tier-two spirit vein could.
Clearly, the Luotian Association could not meet that condition for now.
For that very reason, Sima Huiniang had temporarily shelved Xu Huanzhen’s suggestion.
After listening, Luo Chen fell into contemplation.
Suddenly, he turned his gaze dozens of li into the distance.
Looking down from this vantage point with his continuously tempered eyesight, he could clearly make out the scenery in that direction.
“Has anyone leased the Geng family's former grounds?”
Sima Huiniang’s eyes lit up. “President, you mean...?”
“Yes. You can consult Shi Boying about this; she should be willing to grant you a discount.”
“Understood!”
Sima Huiniang nodded vigorously, excitement brimming within her.
The Geng family ancestral lands were very close to Danxia Peak—practically neighbors.
If the Luotian Association leased that spirit land, it could be turned into a breeding base for spirit beasts.
Even the Spirit Beast Hall could relocate there directly.
As for the rent?
To the wealthy Luotian Association of today, that was nothing.
The association was currently in the phase of digesting its recent spoils of war.
Digesting did not mean sitting idly by and waiting for it to happen.
Instead, they had to move, and move aggressively!
Recruiting personnel, leasing land, expanding operations, and pouring in vast quantities of spirit stones and resources.
Only thus could they thoroughly absorb those gains.
They could not possibly wipe out four or five factions only for the Luotian Association's strength to grow by a mere fraction!
At the very least, their power had to equal the combined might of those defeated factions.
In fact, the outcome had to be greater than the sum of its parts!
Only then would it justify the brutal war of shattered peaks and exterminated clans.
Only then could Dan Yuanzi, the Geng siblings, and the rest rest in peace beneath the nine springs.
Luo Chen scrutinized the excited Sima Huiniang, his brow furrowing slightly.
“Your spiritual energy is still unsteady and leaking outward. Have you not stabilized your realm yet?”
Sima Huiniang’s elated expression faded slightly.
Dismissively, she said, “That’s not important.”
“Besides, I think my stabilization is going quite quickly. In two or three months at most, I’ll be a genuine first-layer Foundation Establishment True Cultivator!”
Sima Huiniang plainly showed little interest in cultivation.
Right now, she derived far more joy from watching the Luotian Association expand step by step.
Luo Chen could only sigh inwardly.
He did not know whether to feel relieved or sorrowful.
After a moment's thought, he retrieved a jade bottle from his storage bag.
“Here!”
Sima Huiniang took it in surprise. “What is this?”
“Medium-grade Jade Dew Pills. One bottle a month; do not take more than that.”
Luo Chen stated calmly.
It was not that he was stingy, but ordinary cultivators could not pop pills like daily meals as he did.
Overconsumption would only harm their foundation.
He himself only dared to recklessly consume pills for cultivation because of his robust physique, the Poison Harmonizing Alchemy Art, and the core cultivation method of a Nascent Soul supreme sect.
Hearing that it was Jade Dew Pills was already a shock to Sima Huiniang.
Learning that they were medium-grade left her utterly stunned.
Her voice stammered, “P-President, isn’t this far too valuable?”
A single bottle of medium-grade Jade Dew Pills would easily sell for over a thousand spirit stones!
Moreover, there was demand but no supply—they could not be bought anywhere on the open market.
On the black market, buyers would eagerly fight to pay thirteen or fourteen hundred!
One could tell as much from how a mere bottle of medium-grade Qi Harmonizing Pills had drawn bids from a crowd of Foundation Establishment True Cultivators at the Tianlan Auction back then.
Luo Chen waved his hand dismissively. “There is no such thing as too valuable. You toil for me to the point of neglecting your cultivation. It’s merely a few pills; you have earned them.”
“Not only that, but I will provide you with a batch of Jade Dew Pills every year from now on.”
With that, he winked.
“Consider it a special perk for being the director-general of the Luotian Association!”
These pills were expensive and terribly troublesome to concoct, costing considerable time and energy.
Previously, Luo Chen had only occasionally given half a bottle of low-grade ones to Gu Caiyi.
Calling it a special perk was no exaggeration.
In all likelihood, Sima Huiniang was the only person in the Luotian Association entitled to such treatment.
Hearing these words, Sima Huiniang was deeply moved, her voice choking with emotion.
“Thank you, President!”
“No need to thank me. Stabilize your realm quickly. I have yet to hold your Foundation Establishment celebration, after all.”
Sima Huiniang hesitated. “Is that really necessary? Going through internal motions should be enough.”
She believed she had no profound insights to share regarding Foundation Establishment.
It had simply been a matter of adequate preparation, decent luck, and muddling her way through to success.
Staging a grand celebration would waste wealth and energy; she would rather spend that time developing the Luotian Association.
Unexpectedly, Luo Chen waved his hand firmly.
“No!”
“It is very necessary!”
“Not only will we hold it, but we will make it a grand affair!”
“When the time comes, not only will our internal members attend, but I will also invite outside fellow daoists to observe the ceremony. Prepare yourself in advance!”
This caught Sima Huiniang even more off guard.
Amidst her stunned bewilderment, Luo Chen spoke solemnly, “You are different from Duan Feng, Wang Yuan, and Min Longyu.”
“You are the director-general of the Luotian Association!”
“If this were a sect, if I were the Grand Elder, you would be the Sect Master. Given that, do you still think a grand ceremony is unnecessary?”
Sima Huiniang was an intelligent woman.
Having presided over the Luotian Association for so long and frequently dealing with external factions, she naturally understood what a sect master represented.
Drawing a deep breath, she nodded heavily.
“I understand.”
“When the day comes, this subordinate will not bring shame to you, President.”
Luo Chen acknowledged her with a nod. After a few more words, he left the Huixin Hall.
Stepping outside, he did not hesitate and headed straight for the Scripture Transmission Hall.
His visit to Danxia Peak today was not solely for administrative matters.
He had come to resolve his perplexities regarding alchemy.
These doubts were not things he could resolve through his own experience or system cheats.
Yet he felt that among the numerous cultivation arts collected within the Scripture Transmission Hall, an answer might be waiting for him!
Chapter 306