A Windfall, Alchemy

After making his preparations, Lu Nan did not begin immediately.

Instead, he closed his eyes and reviewed the alchemy knowledge he had learned.

He also revisited the alchemy techniques in his Inherited Memory until he felt he was ready.

Only then did he pour spiritual power into the Alchemy Furnace and wait for flames to rise within it.

He then took out the Beast Luring Pill formula and began following its steps.

"Refine the Soul Guiding Flower and Beast Luring Fruit together. Once they turn into medicinal liquid, wrap them with spiritual qi.

Add the Qi Condensing Grass in sequence, along with a wisp of Earth Vein Qi. Once everything has turned into medicinal liquid,

add the Aggregation Fruit... increase the heat..."

Lu Nan followed the formula with meticulous care, not daring to be careless in the slightest.

The tangled bushes in the dense forest suddenly shook twice, and then a large, pale hand abruptly reached out.

Immediately afterward, a red-haired head poked out from the bushes.

"Uh..." The red-haired man held his dizzy head, carefully recalling what had happened.

"What happened to me???"

He suddenly remembered that before his vision had gone dark, he seemed to have seen a handsome young man??

Only then did he realize that he had been ambushed.

Thinking of this, he hurriedly looked toward his waist. Sure enough, the Skull Pouch containing the Earth Vein Qi had vanished without a trace.

"Who was it? Who ambushed this... Hiss..." The pain in the back of his head made him suck in a sharp breath halfway through his roar.

When he reached up to touch it, his expression changed at once.

Two towering bumps met his hand, telling him exactly what had happened.

"You damned bastard, don't let me find out who you are.

Otherwise, I, Chi Hun, will tear you into eight pieces! Aaaah!!!!" Chi Hun threw back his head and roared in fury.

His bloodshot eyes swept over the surroundings, until he spotted the Blood Shadow beside him, split cleanly in two.

His pupils contracted. This Blood Shadow was not his strongest, but it still possessed Qi Condensation Perfection strength.

After examining it closely, his expression turned incomparably grim.

At the same time, he formed a rough guess in his heart. The one who had ambushed him was at least at Qi Condensation Perfection.

And not an ordinary Qi Condensation Perfection cultivator, either. Otherwise, they could not have slain the Blood Shadow with a single sword strike.

"Cough, cough, cough..." Lost in thought, he could not hold back a few coughs.

Subconsciously, he reached for the index finger of his right hand, intending to take out some pills from his Storage Ring.

Only upon touching it did he discover that his Storage Ring had also disappeared.

There was no need to think about it—it had definitely been taken as well. "You... I... Cough, cough..." Chi Hun began coughing again.

It took him quite a while to steady himself. After gritting his teeth and taking a deep breath, he scanned the surroundings and shouted, "Chi Er, are you dead?? If you're not dead, make a sound."

"Squeak..."

Chi Hun froze and looked toward the sound.

There, he saw Skinny, who also had two huge bumps on his head, looking at him timidly.

He looked no better than Chi Hun himself. Seeing this, Chi Hun could not help but snort coldly. "Chi Er, did you see who attacked this Young Master?"

"It was a handsome youth dressed in black robes. His strength is at least Foundation Establishment!!" Chi Er hurriedly replied.

Chi Hun's eyes lit up. "You saw that thief's face?? Do you still remember what he looked like??"

"I remember!! I remember!!"

"Good!! Find a way to contact the others first. Once we return, draw that bastard for me!"

Chi Er nodded repeatedly. "But sir, that kid took all our belongings... We..."

Chi Hun fell silent at once. Only after a long while did he sigh. "Recover first!!!"

"Yes!"

Unaware that Chi Hun had already awakened, Lu Nan was currently examining the pill in his hand with excitement.

"According to the description in the Inherited Memory, a single batch can produce at most nine pills.

For an ordinary person's first attempt at alchemy, producing even one finished pill makes them a genius.

By that measure, my talent isn't bad."

"Of the pills in my hand, one should be First-grade Superior.

Not bad!"

Lu Nan contentedly took out an empty porcelain bottle and placed it inside.

"Now I can be considered a first-grade alchemist!"

Brimming with delight, he took out the materials for inscribing Spirit Talismans again.

He intended to inscribe a few Spirit Talismans in case of emergencies.

After arranging the materials one by one, Lu Nan pondered for a moment before deciding to inscribe some defensive Spirit Talismans.

After all, he currently lacked no offensive methods. Recalling the Talismans he had mastered,

"With my current spiritual power, I should be able to inscribe Second-grade Talismans."

After thinking for several seconds, he ultimately decided on the second-grade Golden Body Talisman and Divine Speed Talisman.

The Golden Body Talisman could enhance his defensive strength, while the Divine Speed Talisman could increase his speed.

Combined with his powerful offensive methods, this greatly reduced the danger.

Having made his decision, Lu Nan began inscribing them.

Perhaps because the grade of the materials was insufficient, out of two hundred sets of materials,

only fifty were successfully inscribed.

The two types of Talismans accounted for half each, making Lu Nan ache with heartache.

"I'll have to pay attention to the grade of materials in the future!!!"

After putting everything away, he planned to leave.

After all, he had not yet collected enough Earth Vein Qi. To be safe, it was best to finish collecting it early.

With a thought, his figure appeared inside the Cave.

Hmm! The warning had not been triggered!!

He crawled out of the Cave. "This Secret Realm has day and night too???"

Lu Nan raised his head and looked at the pitch-black sky in surprise.

Looking at the darkness around him, he thought for a moment before crawling back into the Cave.

It was not suitable to move about at night. Better to wait until dawn!!

After entering the Cave, he began sitting in meditation to cultivate.

Though his efficiency at converting spiritual qi was pitifully low, every little bit counted.

Before he knew it, the night passed in the blink of an eye. The instant the sun rose, Lu Nan opened his eyes.

He crawled out of the Cave, gazed at the newly risen sun, and could not help taking a deep breath.

He then leaped onto a hill, chose a direction that looked agreeable, and set off.

As he wandered aimlessly, he searched for Erosion Beasts.

He walked for eight or nine days. During that time, the Erosion Beasts he encountered were pitifully few.

After searching for eight or nine days, he was still short of one-tenth of the Earth Vein Qi he needed.

After winding around and around, he returned once more to the Central Jungle.

Sigh!! Why are there so few Erosion Beasts?

Sitting atop the branch of a towering tree, the secretly watching Lu Nan thought gloomily.

His gaze was fixed tightly on the groups below, who were confronting one another.

The reason for the confrontation was that two groups had set their sights on the same Erosion Beast nest.

Lu Nan released his Divine Sense to investigate. There were more than ten Erosion Beasts within.

Lu Nan recognized both groups. One belonged to the Soul Refining Sect, while the other belonged to the Azure Lotus Sword Sect.

That's right! It was Su Wan's group. However, the Azure Lotus Sword Sect now had fewer than a thousand people.

When they had first entered, there had been over three thousand.

As for the remaining two thousand or so, it was unknown whether they had perished or simply failed to regroup.

The leader on the Soul Refining Sect's side was a Tall Woman dressed in a long robe.

She was also a rare beauty, her appearance no less stunning than Su Wan's.

The two women were currently locked in a confrontation.

"This Erosion Beast nest was discovered first by our Sword Sect. Please leave!!"

Su Wan stared coldly at the Tall Woman standing opposite her.

The Tall Woman gave a soft, alluring smile. "You say it is, so it is???"