Immortality begin with Alchemy Grandmaster Chapter 5: Second Elder Guan, please bless my Pill Refinement to be successful_1

As dawn lingered far away the next morning, Luo Chen had already risen and left his bed.

A thick fog blanketed the outdoors, so dense that stopping to listen might catch the faint roar of a beast emerging from the vast Million Mountains.

Yet none of this mattered to him in the slightest.

For he realized that today and the days ahead would prove exceedingly demanding.

To start, organizing and preparing the diverse herbs demanded his attention.

The herbs acquired from the stalls of rogue cultivators had undergone rough handling, with several still bearing moisture.

He began by laying them in a sieve, awaiting the sun's climb to expose them to drying rays outside.

The subsequent duty involved the Jade Lotus Seeds.

Peeling was essential, extracting solely the inner kernel, as the husk served no purpose at all.

Beneath the glow of an oil lamp, Luo Chen diligently stripped each seed in turn, halting when his eyes began to tire, to grant himself a momentary respite.

"I wonder if doing this will make my eyesight weak?"

"However I am an Immortal Cultivator now, I surely won't get shortsighted, right?"

When he at last completed the Lotus Seeds, the full light of day had arrived.

He immersed the seeds in a basin of thinned Chi Yang Chicken blood, then carried several sieves forth to bask in the sunlight.

Residing on the fringes of the Outer City offered scant safety, yet it brought certain advantages, like ample space for use.

During the refining of Fasting Pills, one stage often released a foul stench. Performing this in a crowded zone would likely draw protests.

Elder Chen had faced grievances multiple times over his home-based talisman paper making, eventually placating the overseers with a handful of fine talismans.

Luo Chen faced no such issue.

The Jade Mountain Medicine required cubing, alongside slicing a share; the latter was set aside for Fasting Pill creation.

Luo Chen avoided wagering everything on a single path.

In the early stages of Allure Pill refinement, he anticipated numerous setbacks.

Even a total wipeout, forfeiting his entire stake, loomed as a real threat.

After all, his skill level remained that of a novice.

In these conditions, the reliable income source he possessed must not falter under any circumstances.

Should calamity strike and all be lost, the earnings from Fasting Pills would at least sustain his existence and enable a comeback.

Upon concluding the Jade Mountain Medicine preparation, midday had arrived.

This was the hour for his midday meal!

Sensing the emptiness in his belly, Luo Chen lips twisted in a wry smile.

Folk claim Immortal Cultivators transcend the need for grains, yet hunger strikes all the same when it comes!

Cleaning his hands, Luo Chen entered the kitchen.

He ladled a modest bowl of translucent rice from the storage jar, skipping the rinse, and tipped it straight into a small cauldron.

This was Spirit Rice, fetching one Spirit Stone for every ten kilos!

He refrained from washing it, wary of washing away precious Spirit Qi.

He approached a hidden panel beside the kitchen, triggered it, and a sizable opening yawned in the floor. A compact underground chamber, roughly one square meter, revealed itself.

Within hung half a bovine carcass!

A First Order Demon Cow!

Such flesh commanded a high price—one Lower Grade Spirit Stone yielded about ten kilos.

Luo Chen's stockpile of hundreds of kilos stemmed not from indulgence, but because Demon Cow beef formed a key component in Fasting Pills.

From one kilo of meat, blended with proper ginseng and sundry items, five bottles of Fasting Pills could emerge, marketable for a full Spirit Stone!

He favored bulk purchases for the savings, preserving it with ice blocks.

Gazing at the suspended beef half, Luo Chen gulped down his rising saliva.

Then, wielding a blade, he severed roughly two kilos of meat and retrieved some ordinary greens from the ice storage.

After scouring the meat and produce thoroughly, he chopped the veggies, shaved the meat into slender slices, and combined it all in the small pot.

Add the fuel!

Kindle the blaze!

Executing a dual-handed incantation, murmuring the chant, after about two breaths, a petite fireball materialized in his grasp.

Release!

Whoosh.

The stove's wood burst into flames abruptly.

"This casting flowed without hitch. No more mishaps like that first time here, when the fireball burst the stove!"

Luo Chen grinned lightly, a trace of smug pride evident.

He checked the system interface, noting his proficiency in the Mastery-stage Fireball Technique had advanced from 268/300 to 269/300!

Only three spells filled his repertoire.

The Water-element Cleansing Technique, the Wood-element Binding Technique, and the Fire-lineage Fireball Technique.

Of these, the Fireball Technique boasted his greatest expertise.

A purpose lay behind this.

At the outset, the allure of Immortal Cultivation enchanted him, leading to playful trials with Fireballs in idle moments.

He had tested its might. Though sluggish and Qi-draining, its destructive force was undeniable!

Upon striking, it could liquefy metals, char timbers, and reduce skeletons to cinders.

The challenge lay in landing the hit!

Typically, forming the Fireball Technique required at least three breaths from a cultivator.

In those three breaths, a foe might slay him dozens upon dozens of times over.

Luo Chen fared no differently early on, each casting draining a tenth of his full Spirit Power.

Only then did the truth dawn: why low-tier cultivators rarely deployed spells in battle.

They favored magic tools or talismans instead—swift, less taxing on energy, and equally devastating.

Aware of this, his enthusiasm for basic spells like the Fireball Technique waned.

Yet with each pill refining session, employing the Fireball Technique to start the blaze, his skill grew, revealing spells' hidden value.

As in this instance, the Qi cost held steady at a tenth, but the casting time shrank to under two breaths.

And that was merely at Mastery.

What wonders might Perfection bring to proficiency?

Or Grandmaster attainment?

Thus, whenever the need arose, he practiced the Fireball Technique once or twice.

Little gains accumulate to great rewards!

Amid his musings, the pot's rice neared completion.

Inhaling the savory scent, Luo Chen fetched a lump of preserved radish from the jar.

A hearty bowl of beef stew over rice, brimming with Spirit Qi, its vibrant hues tempting the senses, complemented by crisp, sour radish slices.

Perched beneath the eaves, with the stream's gentle breeze and warming sun, he savored every bite.

This daily ritual brought Luo Chen his deepest delight!

Were survival's burdens absent, and the quest for eternal life forsaken, relishing such a feast each day would spell pure bliss.

Alas, fate offered Luo Chen no such luxury. Bearing a system, even in the bleakest gloom, his path led inexorably to brilliance!

…

"Curses, this stuff reeks terribly!"

The man fated for glory clutched his midsection, hunched by the stream, heaving repeatedly.

He hadn't foreseen the Fire Dog Tail from Hundred Herbs Pavilion emitting such a vile odor during preparation.

Mask in place, Luo Chen summoned resolve and resumed handling the Fire Dog Tail.

As he turned the hide and dabbed the special solution, he repeated inwardly.

"This doesn't stink, this doesn't stink."

"It's Spirit Stones, pure Spirit Stones, fragrant Spirit Stones!"

Finishing one Fire Dog Tail, he dashed eagerly to the water's edge.

"Blegh!"

Raw material processing proved arduous and lengthy, yet it allowed no shortcuts!

In truth, it overshadowed even the refining method in importance.

The logic was straightforward. Possess an impeccable Pill Formula, masterful skill, and elite alchemy gear, but if the ingredients themselves faltered…

The outcome stood predetermined.

Much like erecting a towering edifice, a flawed base rendered further talk moot.

Over seven days' toil, every type of raw material reached optimal preparation, be it partial or thorough.

Luo Chen even squeezed in batches of Fasting Pills, shaped them into forms, and stored them securely.

But sales weren't on the agenda this round.

He intended to hold them until Allure Pills emerged, then market both at once.

Now, the iron cauldron holding traces of Spirit Ore required scouring for Allure Pill refinement.

Before the furnace, Luo Chen gravely donned an apron.

Bowing to the soot-streaked kitchen roof, he invoked, "Elder Guan from my homeland, the revered Supreme Elder, the regional Pill Saint, grant me triumph on the first try!"

Time to brew!

Light the flames!