Lu Bu: I Actually Don't Know Alchemy, I'm Just Exceptionally Gifted

However, in merely a moment, under the scorching heat of the transparent, invisible Spirit Fire, all twelve herbs had been refined. The speed left Xiao Yan utterly dumbfounded.

Alchemy was not simply a matter of refining medicinal ingredients. They had to be refined to the precise degree specified in the pill formula.

But that was not the end. Refining the ingredients alone was not enough to make a pill; their essences also had to be divided according to specific proportions before being fused in the proper order. That was the truly difficult stage.

Yet with a flick of Lu Bu's fingertip, the twelve portions of ingredients, wrapped in flames, split into thirty-six portions. They swiftly rearranged and combined, and before Xiao Yan could react, a pockmarked pill embryo appeared within the flames.

Thanks to the transparent Spirit Fire, Xiao Yan could see everything clearly. The pill embryo spun and rolled through the flames, and within a few breaths, its pockmarked surface became plump and smooth. A strange fragrance immediately spread through the air.

Lu Bu beckoned with one hand and examined a fiery-red pill the size of a longan between his fingers. A faint ring of markings circled its surface. Smacking his lips, Lu Bu sighed.

"Seems... not that difficult?"

"Fuck..." Xiao Yan rolled his eyes, so irritated that his liver hurt. Comparing people really could piss someone to death.

With a flick of his finger, Lu Bu tossed the Qi Burst Pill into his mouth, bit down, and swallowed it. Under the pill's effects, the Dou Qi within his body began to swell and churn.

This was meant for Dou Zhe. It still worked on a Dou Master like him, but not very well, and the side effects were relatively mild.

"Let's continue."

With a wave of Lu Bu's hand, another dozen or so medicinal ingredients floated into the air.

"Evergreen Flower, Ice Crystal Fruit, a second-tier ice-element magic core... This is an Ice Heart Pill." Yao Lao nodded slightly. He had created this formula himself.

Lu Bu glanced at the old man. The formulas Yao Lao had given him were all obscure and rarely used ones, such as the Ice Purity Pill for easing fire poison, the Turtle Breath Pill for feigning death, or the Appearance Altering Pill for changing one's looks.

In any case, there was not a single proper pill for assisting cultivation. There were not even pills like the Dou Ling Pill or Huang Ji Pill that increased strength. They were all obscure pills, and all of them were extremely troublesome and difficult to refine.

This old bastard really was an obnoxious old bastard.

While his thoughts wandered, a snow-white, perfectly round pill had already been successfully refined.

Xiao Yan looked at Lu Bu enviously. When would he be able to refine pills so effortlessly?

"There's no need to envy him," Yao Lao said. "His soul force is powerful, so it's only natural that his alchemy improves quickly."

Ignoring the master and disciple, Lu Bu took out more ingredients and proceeded to refine a third-grade Turtle Breath Pill and a fourth-grade Clear Heart Pill. The ease with which he did so made Xiao Yan green with envy... cough, cough, made his eyes turn red.

"This kid..." A trace of surprise flashed through Yao Lao's eyes. No matter how powerful his soul force was, alchemy was still delicate work. Lu Bu's display of fourth-grade alchemy in one go was truly surprising.

After all, just a few days ago, this boy had never received any systematic education in alchemy.

What Lu Bu had accomplished was actually perfectly normal. In his previous life in the Profound Region, he had cultivated both Yuan Power and spiritual power. Not only was he adept at overwhelming opponents with brute force, but he was also skilled at using formations to bully people.

Setting formations was also delicate work and no easier than alchemy. Lu Bu's control over soul force was no weaker than that of alchemists at the same level.

"Could he be an alchemy genius?" A sharp gleam flickered in Yao Lao's eyes.

However, at that moment, Lu Bu flicked his Ring again, and several more medicinal ingredients flew out. Unlike the previous batches of dozens of ingredients, there were only three this time.

"Blood Lotus Essence, a third-tier magic core, Ice Spirit Flame Grass... This is a Blood Lotus Pill?!" Xiao Yan exclaimed in shock. That was a fifth-grade pill.

And... Xiao Yan had been searching for these three items for a long time. He had to prepare a Blood Lotus Pill before swallowing a Heavenly Flame, or he would turn to ash before even touching it—not even leaving a corpse behind.

"This guy..." Xiao Yan's face twitched. For some reason, he had the strange feeling that someone was cuckolding him right in front of his face.

"If I'd known, I wouldn't have given him this formula..." Yao Lao's mouth twitched. Almost no one used an obscure pill like the Blood Lotus Pill, but how could he have expected Lu Bu to have already gathered the ingredients?

Lu Bu did not begin refining immediately. Instead, he took a deep breath and closed his eyes to rest. A fifth-grade pill was different from a fourth-grade one; its refining process was tedious and complex, and the slightest mistake would ruin the ingredients. He did not have a second Ice Spirit Flame Grass.

After a while, Lu Bu opened his eyes again. Spirit Fire surged forth once more, enveloping the third-tier magic core. Its temperature gradually rose, and moments later, a crisp crack sounded as the magic core shattered into powder.

Lu Bu took out a jade bottle and stored the magic core essence inside. Then he picked up the Blood Lotus Essence and began the second refinement.

This refinement was much slower than the magic core's. Xiao Yan widened his eyes and watched intently as the transparent, colorless flames roiled, melting the Blood Lotus Essence into a lump of paste.

But Lu Bu did not stop there. Instead, he continued refining it for nearly half an hour, removing some yellow impurities from the bloody paste before storing it in the jade bottle.

The final refinement of the Ice Spirit Flame Grass took even longer than the Blood Lotus Essence. A full half day passed, and by the time Lu Bu had thoroughly refined all three ingredients, an entire day had gone by.

On the second day, Lu Bu began fusing the ingredients. To Xiao Yan's astonishment, he divided the three ingredients into more than a hundred portions, each with a different size and volume.

Dense clusters of medicinal liquid and powder floated beneath the small waterfall, leaving Xiao Yan completely numb.

Refining a first-grade pill already exhausted him. Wouldn't refining a fifth-grade pill make him vomit blood?

Still, shocked as Xiao Yan was, the thought that he too might someday become an alchemist of this level set his heart ablaze.

By the third day, the ingredient fusion had ended. All that remained was to nourish the pill until it fully took shape.

"You've truly done very well..." Looking at Lu Bu, who had worked hard for three days, Yao Lao finally could not help offering his praise.

If the Blood Lotus Pill were an exam worth one hundred points, Lu Bu had already completed ninety-eight points. Yet Lu Bu had only begun learning alchemy a few days earlier, and before that, he had never even encountered alchemy.

Even if Yao Lao himself refined a Blood Lotus Pill now, he might not do better than Lu Bu. At most, he could rely on a Heavenly Flame for a slight advantage and earn those remaining two points.

But Lu Bu's flame was no ordinary flame either.

Another half day passed. Xiao Yan, who had been sitting on the ground for several hours, could not help standing up and stretching his stiff limbs.

But just then, the colorless, transparent flames enveloping the blood-red pill trembled lightly. With a soft hum, a violent wave of energy suddenly burst from the flames.

"This is...?" Xiao Yan's expression changed as he cried out in alarm.

"A phenomenon that occurs when a fifth-grade pill takes shape... The pill is about to be completed," Yao Lao said, his eyes shining. What an excellent alchemy prospect.

As soon as he finished speaking, a wave of blood-red energy spread outward in an instant, rippling through the air like waves on water. At the same time, an intense pill fragrance shot into the sky. Lu Bu felt the exhaustion from three sleepless days completely vanish in that instant.

The pleasurable sensation nearly made him moan aloud.

"Haha... I finally succeeded!" Lu Bu laughed loudly and beckoned with his hand. A blood-red, round pill bearing faint markings fell into his palm.

Lu Bu flipped his hand and took out a pristine white jade bottle, placing the pill inside. He gave it a gentle shake, and an immense sense of accomplishment rose within him.

"Hahaha!"

Lu Bu laughed loudly again. He had not felt this way in a long time. It was like solving an extremely difficult advanced math problem. His entire body felt refreshed; it was simply incredible.

"Not bad, young man." Yao Lao slowly floated over, smiling as he nodded slightly. The kid had become a young man.

"Ahem, not at all." Lu Bu waved his hand modestly.

"I'm merely a novice who has only been studying alchemy for a few days. I don't really know any alchemy at all—I'm just exceptionally gifted, nothing worth mentioning."

Xiao Yan's mouth twitched. He was so damn punchable.

"Are you interested in becoming my disciple?" Yao Lao asked with a smile, but his words left both Lu Bu and Xiao Yan greatly shocked.

"Take me as your disciple?" Lu Bu's expression turned strange.

"Yes." Yao Lao smiled and nodded. He had changed his mind.

"Uh..." Lu Bu's face reddened slightly as he scratched his head bashfully.

"How could that be? How could just anyone be qualified to inherit Venerable Yao's legacy?"

Yao Lao's face immediately darkened. Brat, you haven't even learned to respect the elderly and care for the young!

With a cold snort, he transformed into a streak of light and shot back into the Ring. "Stop staring, Xiao Yan. Start cultivating!"

"Oh, okay." Xiao Yan did not dare argue and nodded repeatedly before beginning his cultivation.