[Creation]

[Creation] Wonderful Pill Workshop.

"Whoosh!"

"Whoosh!"

"Whoosh!"

At that moment, Ning Ri was practicing his blade like mad.

Kong She stood to the side in silent watch.

After Ning Ri had finished reading all the jade slips, he told Kong She that he wanted to practice his blade for a while.

The reason he gave Kong She was—

Practicing the blade was a down-to-earth thing to do.

That way, he could temper his Heaven Defying Heart.

When he practiced his blade, he could empty his mind of distractions. Only then could he feel every subtle, exquisite sensation brought by the alchemy knowledge flowing through his heart...

Only then could he better consolidate his understanding of alchemy!

As he said this, Ning Ri did not forget to mention last time. He said that when he had been learning the art of refining tools, he had not practiced his blade, so he had learned too hastily and had not consolidated it well enough...

Upon hearing that, Kong She immediately told Ning Ri to go outside and practice his blade.

Then, Ning Ri took his blade out of his Disciple Token and began practicing at the entrance to the alchemy room.

Fortunately, not many people passed by the third floor of Wonderful Pill Workshop's mushroom house. Otherwise, they would have seen someone crazily practicing his blade here...

But in truth.

Ning Ri did not need to explain so much. If he wanted to practice his blade, he could have simply started.

Ning Ri thought that practicing his blade after reading about alchemy was a strange thing to do.

But to Kong She, it was already commonplace, something he saw every day.

There were even more godlike people in the Inner Sect than Ning Ri imagined.

Many had not truly set foot on the path of defying Heaven, nor had they received the title of "Grandmaster" like Ning Ri, yet they were equally heaven-defying.

Who knew how many of them merely pretended to defy Heaven, while actually using the opportunity to do things their usual selves would not dare do.

But no matter what, in the Heaven Defying Sect, as long as one did not harm others, one could defy Heaven however one wished.

That was precisely why Kong She did not care much either.

At this moment.

Ning Ri stood before the door, diligently practicing his blade.

The reason he had come outside to practice, aside from gaining some Skill Points, was that he had just discovered a change in his skill panel.

After reading all the jade slips, he found that ten new skills had appeared on the panel.

It was very similar to what had happened when he learned tool refinement last time.

But unlike before, this time he had a hundred Skill Points remaining, enough to max out every skill directly!

Although Kong She thought Ning Ri was highly gifted, he had not taken out alchemy techniques that only Foundation Establishment alchemists could learn.

Whether Foundation Establishment alchemists or Foundation Establishment tool refiners, the prerequisite to learning techniques of that level was possessing Foundation Establishment cultivation.

Otherwise, one could not even ignite the fire.

Thus, each of these alchemy techniques only required ten Skill Points to master.

And as Ning Ri shoved all his Skill Points in and maxed out every alchemy technique, he suddenly found that what he had been waiting for had happened...

After receiving points, all the alchemy techniques swiftly folded together, just like the tool-refining techniques had last time, ultimately forming a new skill:

10. [Creation]: 100 (Maxed) (Points refundable)

Free Skill Points: 0

When Ning Ri saw this, he was overjoyed.

This was exactly the same as Heavenly Craftsmanship!

In other words, this meant his opportunity to farm points had arrived!

So Ning Ri found an excuse to come outside and practice his blade.

Because he remembered that people were refining pills outside.

When he had first entered, he had noticed that the entire second and third floors of Wonderful Pill Workshop were alchemy rooms.

The sound of furnace fires rumbled nonstop, pill fragrance permeated the air, and there were even sighs and cries of extreme excitement drifting out from the alchemy rooms...

Clearly, people were refining pills.

Last time, Ning Ri had obtained a hundred Skill Points because people around him had been refining tools.

By the same logic, if people were refining pills nearby at this moment, he should naturally be able to obtain Skill Points as well!

That was why he started practicing his blade.

But after practicing for most of the day, [Mortal Blade Technique] had even increased by one point, going from 8 to 9, while [Creation] had not budged at all.

It was still 100.

If you can't find it by searching the book title, try searching the author—it may have simply been renamed!

And Free Skill Points likewise remained at 0.

This made Ning Ri slow his blade practice, his expression turning silent.

Why had nothing changed at all?

Had he guessed wrong?!

Or did the requirement of having someone refine pills beside him mean he had to enter someone else's alchemy room and stand right next to them?

As Ning Ri fell into thought and began acting strangely, Kong She sharply noticed. He asked in a deep voice, "Grandmaster Ning, what is wrong?"

Ning Ri immediately said, "Oh, Elder Kong, it's nothing. I was merely considering an alchemy problem I encountered. I've already resolved it."

Kong She nodded slightly and did not ask what alchemy problem Ning Ri had encountered.

He had always advocated for his disciples to solve problems independently.

They should not ask, ask, ask whenever something happened. Self-study and independent thought were the true path.

Only after thinking it over countless times and still failing to understand should they come ask. That was the only way to travel farther on the path of alchemy.

That was why he rather appreciated Ning Ri's attitude of relying entirely on self-study from beginning to end.

But Ning Ri glanced at the skill panel. Since his blade technique had increased by one point while Free Skill Points had not changed at all, he would stop practicing for now.

Using his divine sense to control the Disciple Token, he put away his blade.

After putting away the blade, he entered the alchemy room and asked, "Elder Kong, this disciple has more or less finished reading the alchemy techniques just now, and I've thought them through as well!"

"However, I see that quite a few people in Wonderful Pill Workshop are refining pills. I would like to watch others refine pills. Would that be possible?"

"That way, I can verify what I have in mind. So, Elder Kong, would it be convenient?"

Hearing the first half of Ning Ri's words, Kong She first revealed a look of approval. He understood the unspoken meaning behind Ning Ri's "more or less"—

Ning Ri had already learned it all!

Kong She had already interpreted the subconscious implication reflected in Ning Ri's words. That was precisely why he could not help but praise him...

Grandmaster Ning truly was heaven-defying!

In that case, reaching the Golden Core Realm was promising!

He could begin informing Xun Zang and Joyful Union Courtyard to prepare a "Nascent Soul" for Ning Ri.

But after Kong She heard Ning Ri out, his expression tightened slightly, and he said in a deep voice, "It is not convenient."

Ning Ri had expected to be refused. He immediately said, "Then forget it! Sorry for the trouble, this disciple was presumptuous!"

Pill refinement was, after all, someone else's secret. It was normal that he could not watch.

Ning Ri pondered it. Should he see if someone could refine pills for him to watch? Or hire someone?

But Kong She then added, "It is not that I won't let you watch others refine pills. It is because no one in Wonderful Pill Workshop is refining pills right now."

"There is simply nothing for you to watch."

Ning Ri: "?"

He froze slightly...

Was that for real?

But...

The doors to the alchemy rooms were not closed. Ning Ri could clearly hear the roaring of pill fires coming from the corridor outside, while pill fragrance and the smell of scorched pills drifted over from time to time...

And that meant no one was refining pills?

Ning Ri could not help turning his head and pointing outside. "But... isn't someone refining pills out there?"

"There's even pill fragrance and the sound of furnaces."

But Kong She shook his head. "Those sounds and smells are fake."

Ning Ri was dumbfounded. "Huh?"

Kong She said in a deep voice, "They are merely fake sounds and fake fragrances that I set up."

"If you open the alchemy rooms and take a look, there will be nothing inside."

Ning Ri: "?"

Perhaps because Ning Ri had learned alchemy, Kong She did not hide it from him and seriously explained, "This is a method of attracting customers."

"The Heaven Defying Sect's Wonderful Pill Workshop is very famous in the Cultivation World. There are also Wonderful Pill Workshops established in many cities outside the sect. To attract customers, we came up with this method."

"It creates the illusion for those entering Wonderful Pill Workshop that the alchemists are all busy and hardworking."

"Moreover, I carefully adjusted the proportions of the strong pill fragrance and the scorched-pill smell mixed within it. Nine parts fragrance, one part scorch. It makes people feel that it is real while also letting them sense our standards."

"That way, customers will naturally trust Wonderful Pill Workshop!"

"But in reality, how could pill refinement possibly go on like this every day? Stopping for a while, cursing for a while, then staring blankly for a while, and finally seeing that time is running out and hurriedly refining pills—only to blow up the furnace and start all over again—that is the real situation."

At this point, Kong She gave a stiff smile. "Haha, the furnace exploding was a joke. That is not the real situation."

Ning Ri: "..."

Could the Cultivation World really fake things like this?!