Because cultivators circulated spiritual energy and ingested medicinal pills, their appearance rarely matched their chronological age.
Therefore, the last thing one should do in the cultivation world was judge someone by looks alone.
Luo Chen had no idea what Gu Caiyi's spiritual root affinities were.
However, while chatting with Bai Meiling before, he had brought up the subject of age.
He recalled that Gu Caiyi was a full thirty-seven years old.
Reaching the eighth layer of Qi Refining at thirty-seven was neither great nor terrible. Her natural talent was certainly decent, though not particularly outstanding; otherwise, a sect would have recruited her long ago.
Yet, after not seeing her for just a few days, she had actually broken through to the ninth layer of Qi Refining.
This left Luo Chen utterly astonished.
"How did you pull that off? Did you take some miracle elixir?"
"Hehe, you hit the nail right on the head."
Gu Caiyi pursed her lips. "For some reason, a lot of new faces have shown up in Dahe Market recently, including plenty of Foundation Establishment cultivators."
"Zhongding House and our Tianxiang Pavilion are the places they frequent the most."
"Pills that are precious to Qi Refining cultivators like us aren't even worth mentioning in the eyes of Foundation Establishment seniors. We performed a new dance earlier and pleased a grand cultivator at the late Foundation Establishment stage. On a whim, he rewarded us with a bottle of Dust-Cleansing Pills."
Luo Chen's eyes widened. "Dust-Cleansing Pills!"
"Looks like you're not entirely ignorant, after all!"
Naturally, Luo Chen wasn't foolish enough to be unaware of Dust-Cleansing Pills.
They were top-grade pills for the Qi Refining stage, renowned for their efficacy in shedding mortality and cleansing worldly impurities.
The medicinal potency of a single pill exceeded that of a same-tier Qi-Nourishing Pill several times over, and its selling price was tenfold higher!
Low-level cultivators who couldn't find a Foundation Establishment Pill would even use Dust-Cleansing Pills in an attempt to break through to Foundation Establishment.
Although the effect paled in comparison to an authentic Foundation Establishment Pill, it still provided some marginal help.
"We received a bottle of Dust-Cleansing Pills, which worked out to one per person, and since I was the lead dancer, I got two."
Gu Caiyi smiled smugly. "Over the past two days, I holed up in Yuyi Tower and used those two pills to break through to the ninth layer of Qi Refining."
"Is Tianxiang Pavilion still hiring?" Luo Chen asked, his tone dripping with envy as his eyes burned red.
"Why would you go there? To work as a brothel runner?"
"Nonsense! I've been gifted with countless talents since I was young—a master of both song and dance!"
"Alright, joking aside." Gu Caiyi turned serious. "I really came to tell you that something might be brewing in Dahe Market lately, with so many unfamiliar cultivators pouring in. Be careful when coming and going, and don't offend anyone you shouldn't."
Luo Chen nodded solemnly.
Outsiders were always the most dangerous.
They had no roots here, nor did they care much about the local rules of Dahe Market.
If they killed someone in a fit of rage and fled a thousand li away, even the resident cultivators of the Jade Cauldron Sword Sect wouldn't be able to catch them.
***
In the quiet of the night, Luo Chen reflected on the day's events, his feelings complicated.
Others could casually breeze into the ninth layer of Qi Refining, standing only a single step from Foundation Establishment.
Meanwhile, he was still struggling desperately at the fourth layer of Qi Refining.
Such a massive gap truly made his forced smile feel a bit bitter.
Yet despite the envy, Luo Chen was genuinely happy for Gu Caiyi.
Ever since he moved here, she had taken good care of him.
She always greeted him whenever she passed by, giving an obscure nobody in the cultivation world a small sense of belonging.
When she learned of his plight regarding alchemy equipment, she had even used her own connections to find him a quality, reasonably priced furnace.
Now that she had achieved a breakthrough, he ought to feel happy for her.
"Still, I can't slack off."
"These comfortable days lately seem to have worn away my edge."
"Gu Caiyi's natural talent is definitely better than mine, yet she still works hard to earn cultivation resources. I'm merely a five-element root cultivator with only a few decades of lifespan left, and I only have one bottle of Qi-Nourishing Pills remaining."
"What right do I have to idle my days away?"
Starting tomorrow, he had to work even harder!
***
A brand-new alchemy room.
The Purple Cloud Bronze Furnace, a dedicated alchemy artifact.
The alchemy technique for Myriad Wonders Pills, already at the second proficiency tier.
He had never started with such wonderful conditions!
Everything was ready; all that was left was to kindle the flames!
With a solemn expression, Luo Chen skillfully cast a Fireball Art, igniting the firewood stacked in the fire pit.
Raging flames surged upward, quickly turning the modest alchemy room into a swirling furnace of heat.
Standing inside, Luo Chen seemed utterly oblivious to the heat as he tossed the prepared medicinal herbs into the furnace one by one.
At the same time, he formed hand seals to activate the Purple Cloud Bronze Furnace.
The simple patterns engraved upon it glowed faintly, as though breathing.
Even though the Purple Cloud Bronze Furnace was only a rank-one low-grade dharma artifact, it had nonetheless crossed the threshold of true artifacts.
It was vastly superior to the shoddy spirit-iron wok he had used before.
Luo Chen concentrated entirely on the changing state of the herbs within the bronze furnace, having long since cast the Spiritual Eye Art over his vision.
Even with the barrier in place, he could discern the subtle shifts in the flow of spiritual energy inside.
From time to time, he cracked open the furnace lid and stirred the ingredients with a wooden rod to keep them from sticking to the bottom.
Soon, midday arrived.
It was time to open the furnace.
The fire had been extinguished for an hour, and the temperature of the furnace had gradually cooled.
"Rise!"
Forming a hand seal, he used his Attraction Art—already at the proficient level—to lift the warm lid from a distance.
A peculiar fragrance drifted out, mingled with a whiff of scorching.
Aided by the Spiritual Eye Art, Luo Chen peered inside from afar, his brows furrowing slightly.
The first batch of Myriad Wonders Pills had failed.
This was to be expected. Everything was new, and no matter how much preparation one did, a hundred percent success rate was impossible to guarantee.
Without a trace of dejection, Luo Chen picked up a shovel and scooped out the medicinal dregs.
After a quick cleaning, he stepped out of the alchemy room.
The moment he emerged, even under the blazing midday sun, an invigorating coolness washed over him.
The temperature difference between the alchemy room and the outside was simply staggering.
At this moment, Luo Chen felt a sudden appreciation for Sun Shou.
If nothing else, without the means to cool the room down, this reverse-facing room situated right at the center of the formation suppressing the ghost king at least provided a hint of soothing chill.
"Cook lunch, take a rinse, then continue this afternoon!"
He set the rice to steam, walked over to the corner of the courtyard, and mimicked Gu Caiyi by using the Attraction Art to draw a bucket of water from the well.
Splash!
He dumped it straight over his bare torso.
"Ah, that's the stuff!"
Luo Chen couldn't help but let out a groan of satisfaction.
When he had been engrossed inside, he hadn't noticed it, but stepping out made him realize the alchemy room was practically a giant blast furnace.
"It must be a flaw in my design and materials; otherwise, it wouldn't get this hot."
"If only a disciple of Mount Ailao could design an alchemy room for me... That would be amazing."
Indulging in the fantasy for a moment, Luo Chen shook his head with an amused chuckle.
Where would he ever get the spirit stones to hire someone from a renowned grand sect to design an alchemy room for him?
Their appearance fee alone would surely start at eight hundred to a thousand spirit stones at the very least!
After a simple lunch, Luo Chen gritted his teeth and stepped back into the alchemy room.
Time to refine the second batch!
***
"Is Xiao Luo home?"
"I'm busy right now! Did you need something, Sister Caiyi?"
"Nothing important. Keep at it!"
***
"Refining pills again?"
"Can't help it—just trying to make a living."
"Look at you, sounding so pitiful. Sister brought you a box of Azure Origin cakes. Eat them while they're warm."
"Just leave them outside for now. I really can't step away—I have to adjust the flame and add the main ingredient any second."
"Alright, I'll take off then. Come out and chat once you're done."
***
One afternoon, Luo Chen sat blankly in front of the well, looking utterly exhausted.
Gu Caiyi stepped out her door and happened to catch sight of him.
Frowning, she walked over. "Luo Chen, what's been going on with you lately?"
"Nothing much, just my regular alchemy routine." Snapping back to his senses, Luo Chen rubbed his eyes and scrambled to his feet.
"Still saying it's nothing? Take a look at yourself."
With a flick of her spiritual power, the puddles of water on the ground converged into a liquid mirror.
Luo Chen looked down, only to see his eyes red and swollen, heavy dark circles hanging beneath them, and his lips dry and cracked.
His disheveled long hair had long slipped free of its ribbon, clinging messily to his face.
At a glance, he looked just like he had in his previous life after working overtime in front of a computer for an entire month straight.
Was this caused by the excessive heat in the alchemy room?
Luo Chen wasn't entirely sure. Over the past ten days of pill refining, he had pushed himself to complete two batches a day.
The success rate was passable—it hadn't quite reached his targeted twenty percent, but it was already much better than when he was an absolute novice.
However, refining with a dharma artifact required him to constantly watch the interior with the Spiritual Eye Art.
Not only did it consume spiritual energy, but it also placed immense strain on his eyes. Maintaining such intense concentration over prolonged periods drained his mental energy terribly.
Not wanting to appear weak before a woman, Luo Chen casually steered the conversation elsewhere.
His gaze instinctively fell upon Gu Caiyi's arm, draped with a sheer, translucent white silk robe.
"Is that a newly bought artifact?"
"Good eye!" Gu Caiyi lifted the robe, her face beaming. "A Foundation Establishment cultivator named Fei Baiwen gave it to me. It's a high-grade defensive dharma artifact."
Luo Chen froze.
A high-grade artifact, and a defensive one at that?
Someone was actually willing to give away something like that as a gift?
He couldn't resist asking, "Are Foundation Establishment cultivators really that rich? An artifact like this must be worth at least four or five thousand spirit stones, right?"
Gu Caiyi pursed her lips and smiled. "Ordinary Foundation Establishment cultivators aren't wealthy at all; they might even be stingier than rogue cultivators like us. But Fei Baiwen is different."
"Oh? How so?"
Chapter 41