A single Red Blood Grass could be divided into roughly three doses.
Su Chen had also prepared roughly three doses of the other ingredients, so he had about three chances to make the medicine.
If he failed, he could only go out and buy more ingredients.
Soon, Su Chen began preparing the medicine. This was different from mixing remedies at a medical clinic; it was more like alchemy.
He had to boil water while adding the ingredients one by one as it boiled. Getting the timing right was crucial.
After measuring out all the ingredients, Su Chen divided them into three portions, then began preparing the medicine according to the steps in the recipe.
Once the water came to a boil, Su Chen watched closely as he added the various ingredients one by one.
After about the time it took an incense stick to burn, the kitchen was filled with the pungent, unpleasant smell of medicinal herbs.
Just as expected, Su Chen had failed on his first attempt.
Looking at the pitch-black medicinal broth he had ended up with, Su Chen could only start over.
The recipe said that if the medicine was prepared successfully, the broth should be pale red.
Any other color meant failure. It could not be consumed and had to be disposed of properly.
After pouring out the residue and black broth, Su Chen reviewed what had gone wrong, then began his second attempt.
This time, he was more careful, and his movements were a little more practiced. He no longer seemed as flustered as he had on his first try.
Unfortunately, he failed again. The broth had turned yellow.
"I must have added the Yellow Hemp Grass too late. That's why it failed."
Su Chen shook his head slightly and sighed. "I've only got one attempt left."
Su Chen didn't begin the third attempt right away. Instead, he took a short rest, going over the failures of his first two tries in his mind.
Once he had rested enough, Su Chen finally began. His eyes gleamed. "This time, I feel like I can do it!"
After giving himself a few words of encouragement, Su Chen began his third attempt: heating the water, bringing it to a boil, adding the ingredients in orderly fashion, observing...
"Fine, my instincts were wrong!"
Looking at the pale yellow broth, Su Chen gave a bitter smile. There was no greater illusion in life than that.
"Hm? Wait, the color seems to be changing."
Suddenly, Su Chen's eyes shifted as he noticed a change in the medicine pot.
Under his gaze, the broth gradually changed from yellow to pale red, then settled into its final color.
Seeing this, Su Chen's face lit up. He lifted the pot and looked at the light red broth, clicking his tongue in admiration. "One word: perfect!"
After waiting the time it took a cup of tea to cool, Su Chen poured out the broth. There was about a bowlful, which he drank down in one go.
After finishing it, Su Chen looked at his panel. As he watched in anticipation, just as expected, he saw it change:
Martial Arts: ...Iron Cloth Skill Fragment 0 times (9.3/10 portions of Qi and Blood Medicine/time)
Just as he had expected, this recipe could indeed boost his qi and blood, and its effects were in no way weaker than Hong Ming's Qi Blood Powder.
"Too bad. One more bowl and I'd have filled the progress bar!"
After his excitement came a pang of regret, but Su Chen soon let it go.
He had money now, and a recipe. Wasn't it only a matter of time before he made progress?
"Tomorrow. I'll buy more ingredients tomorrow, and I should be able to fill the progress bar!"
That was what Su Chen thought. Although he was excited that night, he still had to read and study.
The next day.
"I'm terribly sorry, but our shop is out of Red Blood Grass."
"Very sorry, we don't sell Red Blood Grass here."
"We're so sorry, the Red Blood Grass sold out long ago, and we haven't had any more come in."
"..."
After buying most of the other ingredients, Su Chen received the bad news.
Just like the day before, most of the medical clinics were still out of Red Blood Grass. It made Su Chen's heart tighten with unease.
Feeling rather apprehensive, he went to the clinic where he had bought Red Blood Grass last time and asked, "Do you still have any Red Blood Grass for sale?"
"No."
Sure enough, Su Chen got the disappointing answer.
"When will you have more?" he asked, unwilling to give up.
The shop assistant thought for a moment. "I'm not sure. Probably not for a while."
"Why is that?" Su Chen's expression turned serious.
"Apparently, the Medicine Gang bought up all the Red Blood Grass on the market and won't let the herb growers sell any either. The one we sold a customer yesterday was the very last one," the assistant replied.
Hearing this, Su Chen's expression changed. He took some silver from his pocket and asked, "Could you tell me where else I might be able to buy Red Blood Grass?"
The assistant glanced around, then pocketed the silver and lowered his voice. "If you want Red Blood Grass, you'll have to try your luck over in Medicine Town. I do have a way to get some, but..."
"We can discuss the price!" Su Chen understood what he meant and replied at once.
The assistant shook his head. "That's not what I mean. Never mind, I'll give you the other person's address. But I don't know if they have any, so you'll have to ask them yourself."
"Thank you!" Su Chen said gratefully.
The assistant said nothing more. He wrote down an address for Su Chen, who took it and turned to leave.
On his way back, he passed the Martial Hall again.
This time, he learned from Li Mo that Hong Ming had returned. After thinking it over, Su Chen walked into the Martial Hall.
When Hong Ming saw that it was Su Chen, he paused in surprise, then asked with concern, "You weren't hurt when you went with the Fang Family's caravan last time, were you?"
Clearly, he had also heard about the Fang Family caravan being attacked.
Su Chen shook his head. "Thank you for your concern, Master. I'm fine."
"Mm." Hong Ming nodded. From Su Chen's appearance, he could tell he was unharmed. Then he said, "All right, what do you want from me this time, you rascal?"
"Uh." Su Chen was at a loss for words. It made him sound like he only ever went to see Hong Ming when he needed something.
Seeing this, Hong Ming glanced at him and snorted. "You never come to the Three Treasures Hall without a reason. If you didn't need something, why would you come to the Martial Hall to see me?"
Su Chen gave an awkward grin. For some reason, he thought he heard a faint note of resentment in Hong Ming's words. It must have been his imagination.
"There is something I'd like to ask you about, Master," Su Chen said with a smile.
Hong Ming said nothing, simply looking at Su Chen. Su Chen continued, "Master, I'd like to ask you a few things about Practice Force."
"Practice Force?" Hong Ming raised an eyebrow and looked at Su Chen in surprise.
Before Hong Ming could speak, Su Chen continued, "It's like this. On the caravan trip, I saw how formidable Practice Force Warriors were, so I wanted to learn about them in advance."
Hong Ming nodded thoughtfully after hearing this. "With your talent, there's no harm in learning about it early. But that level is still a long way off for you."
Hearing this, Su Chen chuckled. "It's not that far away. Maybe I'll reach it in a few years."
"You rascal, don't make big claims without thinking about where you are. If you really reached that level, your master here would be grinning in his sleep!" Hong Ming joked, an unusual sight.
Su Chen grinned without confirming or denying it.
Hong Ming's expression turned serious. "Since you want to know, I may as well tell you. Breaking through to Practice Force requires three conditions."
Before you continue