Alchemy Brings Spirit Stones Fast

Inside the Pill Hut, Li Chengjie shut the courtyard gate tight, slid home the bolt, then dragged over some clutter to brace it. Only then did he let out a slight sigh of relief.

Li Chengjie took the newly acquired Azure Edge Sword from his back and leaned it against the wall within easy reach. His fingers brushed over the icy blade, sensing the faint spiritual glow contained within.

"Seventy-five Spirit Stones... I hope it was worth the price." He murmured to himself, then turned his gaze toward the three portions of materials he had just traded for at the herbal shop, along with that bundle of scraps. "The Family Fortune has been completely emptied. Success or failure rests on this one move."

He walked over to the familiar dark-red Alchemical Furnace and gently pressed a palm against its slightly cool wall.

"Old friend, now it's just you and me, relying on each other to survive. You'd better pull through."

He delayed no longer. Skillfully cleaning the Alchemical Furnace, he activated the Earth Fire Array. Amid a low hum, steady heat began baking the furnace walls. Li Chengjie held his breath and focused, bringing himself into peak condition before picking up the first portion of ingredients.

"Azure Mist Grass, remove the dross and retain the essence, slowly roast over a gentle flame..."

As he muttered the steps under his breath, a trace of spiritual power flowed from his fingertips, stripping away impurities. He tossed the prepared Azure Mist Grass into the furnace, formed hand seals with both hands, and activated the Basic Fire Control Art. His spiritual sense stretched out like threads, closely monitoring every change within the furnace.

Time slipped by in silence, accompanied only by the steady hum of the earth fire and the nearly imperceptible Spiritual Power Fluctuation whenever Li Chengjie adjusted the Heat Control.

"Dew Condensing Flower, the moment has come—melt and extract with fierce heat!"

The fragrance of medicine gradually spread. Under his precise control, the various medicinal properties merged and reacted within the furnace.

"Stone Marrow Powder in, balance the medicinal properties... Now! Withdraw the fire, condense the pill!"

His hand seals abruptly drew together, and the furnace fire went out. Li Chengjie took a deep breath, lifted the furnace lid with a trace of anticipation.

A rich medicinal fragrance rushed toward him. At the bottom of the furnace lay seven round, plump, dark-green pills of even color.

"Seven pills formed, and every one is up to standard!" A flicker of delight flashed through Li Chengjie's eyes. He carefully removed the pills and placed them into a Jade Bottle. "Very good. A winning start."

He did not stop. After briefly recovering his breath, he began refining the second batch. The process remained smooth, while his fire control grew ever more exquisite.

"Condense!"

When he opened the furnace again, the medicinal fragrance was even purer. Eight pills lay conspicuously at the bottom. Seven were no different from before, but one was darker in color, with a faint sheen seemingly flowing across its surface.

"Eight! And... one of them is a superior-quality pill?" Li Chengjie picked up the slightly different Qi Condensation Pill and examined it carefully. The spiritual power within was indeed somewhat purer and denser than that of the others.

"It seems breaking through in Cultivation level and repeated practice have also improved the quality of Pill Formation. Unfortunately, there's only one."

Li Chengjie stored that superior Qi Condensation Pill separately and placed the other seven standard pills into another Jade Bottle.

"There's only the last portion of materials left." Li Chengjie looked toward the final bundle of Azure Mist Grass and Dew Condensing Flower, his gaze focused. "I need to hold steady and form at least another seven pills."

He handled the final batch of materials with even greater care, pushing his spiritual sense to its limit and striving to make every detail flawless.

"Melt the herbs... condense the pill... formed!"

When the furnace lid opened, seven standard Qi Condensation Pills were once again lying quietly at the bottom.

"All three furnaces succeeded—twenty-two standard pills and one superior pill in total." Li Chengjie counted his results, unable to hide his satisfaction despite the exhaustion on his face. "At least I didn't lose my capital."

He divided all the pills into separate bottles. Looking at the Jade Bottles in his hands, he began calculating.

"Twenty-two standard pills. At the current market price, even if I sell them cheaply for a quick deal, each bottle should fetch at least thirty, perhaps even forty Low-grade Spirit Stones. That would be sixty-six to eighty-eight Low-grade Spirit Stones.

That superior pill might sell for another two or three more.

After deducting the thirty Spirit Stones spent on materials, I'll make a net profit of thirty to fifty Spirit Stones. This profit is far greater than when I used to secretly skim off supplies."

Li Chengjie tucked the Jade Bottles close against his body, slung the Azure Edge Sword across his back, and left the little courtyard once more.

The Marketplace streets remained deserted, but he could sense more ill-intentioned gazes sweeping over the pedestrians from the shadows.

He arrived at the same herbal shop as before. The shopkeeper was still dozing behind the counter.

Li Chengjie rapped his knuckles against the counter. "Shopkeeper, do you buy pills?"

The shopkeeper jolted awake. Seeing that it was Li Chengjie, he immediately piled on a smile. "Oh, fellow cultivator, so soon... you've already formed pills?"

"Yes, they just came out of the furnace." Li Chengjie did not reveal the exact quantity. He took out a Jade Bottle containing ten standard Qi Condensation Pills and set it on the counter. "Take a look."

The shopkeeper took it, poured out one pill, examined it carefully, then gave it a sniff. "The quality is good. They're standard Qi Condensation Pills. Fellow cultivator, your alchemy skills are quite impressive! In times like these, these things are hard currency. How about this—three Spirit Stones per pill, and I'll take them all!"

Li Chengjie shook his head. "Shopkeeper, we both know what things are like outside right now. Five Spirit Stones per pill. Not one less, or I won't sell. If you don't want them, I'll find another shop."

The shopkeeper's face wrinkled like a bitter melon. "Fellow cultivator, five is far too high! That's the retail price. We need to make something too; mine is only a small business..."

"Then farewell." Li Chengjie made as if to take back the Jade Bottle.

"Wait, wait, wait!" The shopkeeper hurriedly pressed down on the bottle and gritted his teeth. "Fine! Four it is! Forty Spirit Stones!" Painfully, he counted out forty Spirit Stones and pushed them toward Li Chengjie.

Li Chengjie collected the Spirit Stones, then sold the other twelve standard pills and the superior pill separately to two different, seemingly reputable general stores. The standard pills still went for four Spirit Stones each, earning him eighty-eight Spirit Stones in total, while the superior pill sold for five Spirit Stones.

At that point, the Spirit Stones on his person had risen to ninety-five once more.

When he returned to the relatively chaotic outer streets, an oppressive atmosphere rushed over him.

Li Chengjie deliberately slowed his pace, quietly spreading out his spiritual sense as he listened for movement around him and the conversations of passersby.

"Did you hear? Late last night, 'Swiftblade' Liu Mazi went down!" A thin cultivator leaning against a wall, his face full of fear, whispered to his companion.

"Liu Mazi? Wasn't he at Qi Refining Level 5, with a pretty slick blade technique? What happened?" his companion asked in surprise.

"Heh, what good is skill? When they found him in that dead-end alley on South Street, his Storage Bag had been stripped clean, and there was a huge slash across his neck. He'd bled dry! They say there weren't even many signs of fighting at the scene. He was probably ambushed!"

"My heavens... Liu Mazi counted as a capable man, and he was just gone like that? Do they know who did it?"

"Who knows! In times like these, isn't black eating black everywhere? I'd say it was probably those goods he got his hands on a few days ago that brought disaster down on him..."

Li Chengjie listened silently as he continued walking, his heart turning cold.

He had some impression of Liu Mazi. He was a lone rogue cultivator who robbed others. Li Chengjie had not expected him to be gone so quickly...

After turning a street corner, he heard two stall-owning cultivators muttering complaints.

"Brother, you're still setting up a stall today? Aren't you afraid?"

"If I don't set up a stall, am I supposed to drink the northwest wind? There are several mouths at home waiting to be fed! But I'll only stay out for half a day. I'll definitely pack up before sunset!"

"True enough... I heard Old Zhao's general-goods stall was robbed just after nightfall yesterday. He was beaten so badly he was seriously injured, and the little Family Fortune he had painstakingly saved up was all gone!"

"Sigh, Old Zhao was unlucky too... Those patrols are all huddled in the inner district now. Out here on the outskirts, we can cry to Heaven and Heaven will not answer, call to Earth and Earth will not respond! We can only pray for ourselves!"

"If only I had enough Spirit Stones. I'd go to the inner district of Qingshi Market. Why would I have to spend every day trembling with fear like this?"

"Isn't that the truth! I heard the western side is even more chaotic. A few days ago, a small family sent out some Family Disciples to purchase goods. They had two guards with them, all in mid-stage Qi Refining, yet a group still intercepted them not far from the Marketplace entrance. Both people and goods were lost!"

"Hiss... They even dared attack people with guards? Those bastards have truly become lawless!"

"Nothing to be done. Flowing Cloud Sect doesn't have enough manpower. They say the northern front is under pressure, and another batch of people was transferred away. This place is practically an unmanaged zone now..."

Listening to these fragmented conversations, brimming with bloodshed and panic, Li Chengjie's mood grew increasingly heavy.

Every piece of news was like a stone pressing down upon his heart.

The chaos and danger of the outer district were far worse, and far closer, than he had imagined.

Liu Mazi's death, Old Zhao's robbery, the interception and killing of Family Disciples... all of it told him clearly that remaining in the outer district meant facing a catastrophic disaster at any moment.

He touched the ninety-five Spirit Stones in his robes, then recalled the exorbitant rent in the inner district.

"I have to earn more Spirit Stones as quickly as possible!" A powerful sense of urgency seized him. "I can't stay in that little courtyard any longer. It's too dangerous..."

Li Chengjie quickened his pace, nearly running back to the unprotected little courtyard at the edge of the district. He shut the door tight and leaned against the cold door panel. Listening to the strange sounds outside—whether wind or human voices, he could not tell—Li Chengjie took a deep breath, and a trace of resolve flashed through his eyes.

"It seems... I can only take a dangerous gamble." He murmured, his gaze turning toward the Marketplace's inner district. "I have to find a way to move in as soon as possible!"