Fasting Pill

"Hold it." Li Ditu did not let Li Qianqing continue. "At such a young age, you've already learned how to flatter people. Do you think your Second Grandfather can't see through your little scheme?"

Li Ditu rose to his feet and walked over to Li Qianqing.

"You're interested in Alchemy, aren't you?"

Li Qianqing nodded, excitement gleaming in his eyes.

Li Ditu had not particularly wanted Li Qianqing to pursue Alchemy. His planting skills were excellent; one could see as much from the White Corn harvest. Becoming a Spirit Planter in the future would have been quite good. Yet the look in Li Qianqing's eyes immediately changed his mind.

Back then, he had been the same—filled with love for Alchemy. Relying on his fairly decent Alchemy Talent, he had become the Lineage's Alchemist.

When he had not wanted Li Qianqing to practice Alchemy, if Li Qianqing's Alchemy Talent proved inferior to his talent for planting, Li Ditu would certainly not have agreed to let him become an Alchemist. If it surpassed it, he would have raised both hands in support. But once he acknowledged Li Qianqing in his heart, even if Li Qianqing's Alchemy Talent was inferior to his planting talent, so long as the gap was not too great, he would support Li Qianqing in continuing with Alchemy.

"Yes! Second Grandfather." Li Qianqing nodded vigorously.

"Then here's the question: how much do you know about Alchemy?"

"I read some of the most basic books on Alchemy when I was on Changqing Mountain," Li Qianqing answered truthfully.

"Good. I'll give you a simple test."

"Please ask, Second Grandfather."

Li Ditu began giving Li Qianqing a simple assessment.

The questions and answers were much as Li Ditu had expected. Li Qianqing answered every question he posed with ease, without the slightest pause.

This was entirely within his expectations. How could the sincere look in the boy's eyes deceive him?

"Very good." Li Ditu nodded in satisfaction. "It seems you've put quite a bit of effort into Alchemy."

As he spoke, Li Ditu took out a cyan-gray Alchemy Furnace and a yellowed book.

"This Alchemy Furnace is a Low-Grade Magic Tool, very suitable for beginners learning Alchemy. Your Second Grandfather will lend you this furnace for now. If your Alchemy Talent is good enough, I'll give this furnace to you."

Magic tools were divided into low, middle, and high grades, from lowest to highest. They were also one of the main means of attack and defense for cultivators in the Qi Refining stage.

Li Qianqing hurriedly thanked him. "Thank you, Second Grandfather!"

"Don't be in such a rush to thank me. Didn't you hear what I just said? This furnace will only be yours if your Alchemy Talent is good enough. If your talent is poor, I'll take it back. Then you'll honestly become a Spirit Planter. At least your talent in that area is quite good."

In Li Ditu's eyes, the Hundred Crafts of Cultivation had no distinction of high or low, noble or humble. Masters of every profession were revered. After all, White Corn had not originally ripened once a year, nor had its yield been as impressive as it was now, casually reaching over a thousand jin per mu. That was all thanks to the Spirit Planters of old.

"Fourth Uncle taught me that no matter what I do, I must have confidence in myself. Otherwise, I've already lost before I begin."

"Mm, that does sound like something Fourth Child would say." Li Ditu voiced his approval. He first handed the yellowed book to Li Qianqing. "These are some insights I gained while refining pills in my youth. They should be very helpful to a beginner. Read them after you return."

Li Qianqing excitedly accepted the yellowed book and nodded repeatedly, then received Li Ditu's Alchemy Furnace.

"Lastly, here are one hundred jin of White Corn. Refine Fasting Pills in batches of ten jin. Come find me again once you've used up all the White Corn."

"Alright."

As the most basic type of pill, the Fasting Pill was the best choice for beginners refining pills.

Some basic Alchemy books included methods for refining Fasting Pills. This was also the pill that the authors of those books strongly recommended for beginners.

After Li Ditu recorded everything once more, he allowed Li Qianqing to return.

The hundred jin of White Corn had not been given to Li Qianqing by Li Ditu, but by the Lineage as Li Qianqing's initial talent test.

Li Ditu was one of the Lineage's elders, so he naturally possessed some authority.

After returning to his residence.

Li Qianqing first needed to refine the Low-Grade Magic Tool Alchemy Furnace before he could begin refining Fasting Pills.

Fasting Pills were the most unusual kind of pill, because all Fasting Pills required only one type of refining material. Fasting Pills of different grades used different Spirit Rice.

The Fasting Pills refined from White Corn were the most ordinary kind, not even qualifying as Rank 1 Low-Grade Pills.

That was because White Corn ripened once a year, meaning its main ingredient was at most one year old, whereas Rank 1 Low-Grade Pills required the main refining ingredient to be at least two years old.

The most unusual pill had the most unusual refining process. There was no stage of turning spirit herbs into liquid or blending medicinal properties. The most important thing was simply completing the compression step, and the process rarely failed.

A tiny pill contained immense energy, and compressing that energy was an indispensable step in pill refining.

Ten jin of White Corn could be refined into one most ordinary Fasting Pill.

For beginners, it was best to refine Fasting Pills one at a time. Although the efficiency was pitifully low, it could greatly reduce costs.

When beginners first started out, their main concern was controlling costs, not pursuing efficiency.

Naturally, Li Qianqing would not truly refine only one Fasting Pill per furnace. He was no beginner.

One hundred jin of White Corn could be handled in a single furnace.

For an Alchemist of Li Ditu's level, eighty jin of White Corn was best for one furnace. This allowed him to refine pills efficiently, and he would produce either eight or seven Fasting Pills per batch; there was basically never a case of only six.

"An Alchemy Furnace... it feels like I haven't used one in a long time."

More than three years had passed since his rebirth. At his current level of life, his perception of time made it feel quite long indeed.

After a brief sigh, Li Qianqing began refining the Low-Grade Magic Tool Alchemy Furnace.

A cultivator at the Qi Refining Fourth Layer only needed less than half a day to refine a Low-Grade Magic Tool. Afterward came becoming proficient in its use.

The moment he finished refining the Low-Grade Magic Tool Alchemy Furnace, he began using it.

First, he brought in the stalks from the White Corn plants outside. They would be used to start the fire.

Having cultivated the Verdant Wood Engulfing Flame Art, he possessed the Verdant Wood Flame. In truth, he did not need to use the White Corn stalks at all; he could directly refine pills with the Verdant Wood Flame. However, that consumed more spiritual power and required him to divide his attention to control it, so using readily available materials was still best.

The Alchemy Furnace was above, and the White Corn stalks below.

Li Qianqing sent in a stream of flame, and the stalks began to burn as the furnace temperature rose in a straight line.

When the time was right, he placed all one hundred jin of White Corn into the Alchemy Furnace.

This Low-Grade Magic Tool Alchemy Furnace could refine at most two hundred jin of White Corn at once.

Refining Fasting Pills was meant to let novice Alchemists properly master the compression step in pill refining. It was the foundation, and the most crucial part of all.

If the energy was not compressed sufficiently, the pill could not take shape.

When the Fasting Pill refining process was one-third complete, the furnace had to be sealed to prevent energy from leaking out.

White Corn had little risk of energy leakage, but with some spirit herbs, a single moment of carelessness at this step could see all their energy leak away in the span of a breath. Naturally, the pill refinement would then fail.