Reforging the Spirit Dou Pill

"Pill King, this Ring contains ingredients for thirteen batches of Sixth-grade pills: five batches for Imperial Pills, four batches for Spirit Dou Pills, two batches for Sect Breaking Pills, and two batches for Calamity Breaking Pills." Fama picked up the Ring on the table and handed it to Gu He.

Gu He understood Fama's unspoken meaning: he was urging him to begin refining Sixth Grade pills as soon as possible.

Gu He accepted the Ring with slight excitement. Thirteen batches of Sixth-grade pill ingredients, combined with Yun Yun's twelve complete batches of Sixth-grade pill ingredients, filled more than half of his Ring. He had also basically gathered all the pills needed to raise his strength during the Dou Emperor stage. It could be said that this trip to the Imperial Capital had been a complete success. Afterward, the other major families in the Imperial Capital would certainly need Sixth-grade pills as well, especially the Imperial Family. They needed the Primal Bone-Shaping Pill to cure the Nether Sea Flood Dragon's physical ailments and face the colossal Misty Cloud Sect. As for whether the other families could gather ten batches of ingredients, that remained to be seen.

Gu He did not waste words. He put the Ring on his hand and said to Fama, "Elder Fa, it seems you can't wait either. Where is there a quiet place, free from disturbance and rich in energy? Take me there."

"It has long been prepared. We were just waiting for you." As Fama spoke, he headed outside. He led Gu He toward an inconspicuous-looking house next door.

Fama walked to the door, circulated his Dou Qi, and formed several hand seals. Only then did the door slowly open.

The room was somewhat cramped, only around a hundred square meters. Compared to the two- or three-hundred-square-meter spaces typical of alchemy rooms, it was rather shabby. Yet the energy within was extraordinarily dense, nearly several times richer than outside.

As Fama walked inside, he explained, "Pill King, don't think it is unsuitable for alchemy just because it is small. The reason we alchemists build alchemy rooms so large is, first, to leave enough space to deal with accidents. Whether it is the terrifying heat released by flames driven by Dou Qi or the energy fluctuations when pills above the fourth grade take form, a sufficiently large space is needed as a buffer."

"Second, it provides a large enough contact surface with the outside world, allowing the room to exchange energy with the outside. Energy is crucial in pill refinement. Whether during the fusion stage or the shaping stage, large amounts of energy are required. And as alchemists who control pill refinement, we need energy to fuel the flames and maintain sufficient Soul Power."

"This alchemy room, however, has no such need. Its outer walls are mixed with the hides and fur of many Fourth and Fifth Tier Magical Beasts, enough to withstand the changes in Heaven and Earth caused by a Sixth-grade pill taking form. There is no need for such a large space to handle accidents. Beneath the Alchemist Guild lies a small Spirit Vein. We spent tremendous effort to draw most of the energy it emitted into this alchemy room. This dense energy is enough to ensure everything needed for alchemy."

By the end, Fama's face carried a trace of pride. Gu He knew that the Alchemist Guild was Fama's lifelong work. This alchemy room was likely one of the Guild's foundational treasures, something created with his personal involvement. Ordinarily, aside from the old monsters of the Jia Ma Royal Family, almost no one could make Fama personally accompany them, much less show them around an alchemy room. That was why he could not help saying more to Gu He, a fellow top alchemist of the Jia Ma Empire.

Thus, Gu He joked, "Elder Fa, a place like this is practically a sacred ground for us alchemists. To be fortunate enough to refine pills here today will surely leave me with a profound memory."

Fama replied modestly, "Pill King, you flatter me. Your arrival is what brings glory to this alchemy room."

He led Gu He and Xiao Yi Xian to a pitch-black cauldron in the center of the alchemy room and introduced it. "This cauldron is the best Medicine Cauldron in our Guild. The black patterns on its surface automatically absorb outside energy when driven by Dou Qi, reducing the alchemist's burden. Its internal design can also shorten refining time and increase the success rate of pill formation."

Gu He sensed the faint flame energy coiling around the cauldron's surface and noted that its internal construction was beneficial for controlling fire. He could not help praising it. "A fine cauldron. This Medicine Cauldron is more than enough to refine Sixth-grade pills. It may even be sufficient for Seventh-grade pills."

Gu He then turned to Xiao Yi Xian. "Xian'er, while I refine the pill, stay beside Elder Fa. It will be safer that way."

"Okay, Master."

Seeing Xiao Yi Xian agree, Gu He said to Fama, "Then let us begin."

Gu He and Fama sat down cross-legged at the same time. Gu He circulated his Dou Qi and poured it into the Medicine Cauldron. Flames immediately surged within it. One by one, Gu He placed the ingredients into the cauldron. With precise fire control, he extracted the medicinal essences from the ingredients at exactly the right moment, wrapped them in flames, and moved them into a corner of the cauldron before continuing with the next ingredient. After extracting all the ingredients for the Spirit Dou Pill, Gu He said to Fama, "The fusion is about to begin."

Fama said nothing, merely nodding to signal Gu He to continue.

Gu He controlled all the medicinal essences at once, fusing each with essences of similar medicinal properties. This step was an immense test of Soul Power and fire control. The reason Fifth-grade Alchemists could not successfully refine Sixth-grade pills was that countless people failed at this very stage. Fama knew this as well, so he focused all his attention on watching Gu He's movements, hoping it would inspire him in his path toward becoming a Sixth-grade Alchemist.

After the medicinal essences with similar properties had fused together, four large and two small clumps of medicinal essence remained in the Medicine Cauldron, six in total. The final step was to fuse all six clumps together simultaneously; they could not be merged one after another.

Gu He controlled the six clumps of medicinal essence and brought them into contact at the exact same instant. Not a moment early, not a moment late. Immediately, all six clumps turned violent. The energies within them collided, forming energy ripples that spread outward. The destructive power contained within made even the flames wrapping them tremble. Gu He increased his output of Dou Qi and Soul Power, keeping the flames inside the Medicine Cauldron at the temperature most suitable for the fusion.

Since the Spirit Dou Pill was only barely a Sixth-grade pill, it required relatively few ingredients among Sixth-grade pills, only forty-five types. Extraction took merely half a day, but the medicinal fusion took nearly an entire day. Just as Gu He began to feel slightly exhausted, a jade-green pill embryo finally slowly took shape inside the Medicine Cauldron!

The instant the pill embryo formed, the surrounding Heaven and Earth energy suddenly began to fluctuate. Gu He's expression did not change in the slightest in response to the fluctuations outside. His mind remained tightly focused on the changes within the Medicine Cauldron. As time passed, the irregularly shaped jade-green pill embryo absorbed the Heaven and Earth energy in the alchemy room beneath the flames and gradually became rounder. Brilliant light radiated from it, making it resemble a green gemstone.

As the brilliant light appeared, rings of almost tangible energy ripples burst endlessly outward from the Medicine Cauldron in every direction. They slammed into the walls of the alchemy room, making them hum as though they might shatter at any moment.

Xiao Yi Xian looked at Gu He with concern. Fama reassured her, "Don't worry. When a Sixth-grade pill is successfully refined, it produces changes in Heaven and Earth. These energy ripples are merely the excess energy within the pill spilling out as it forms. With your master's strength as a Dou Wang, he can easily withstand them." Xiao Yi Xian had simply been worried out of concern. Seeing that Gu He was indeed fine, she finally relaxed.