Alchemy

Xiao Mei nodded vigorously after hearing Xiao Peng's words. "Cousin Xiao Peng, don't worry. I'll definitely cultivate diligently. You're so powerful now, so you'll have to guide me more in the future."

Xiao Peng replied with a smile, "Of course. We of the Xiao Family should support one another. If you run into any difficulties in cultivation, just come find me."

Xiao Yan watched the two of them talking from the side. Though he was happy for Xiao Peng, he could not help feeling somewhat dejected when he thought of his own situation.

He did not hope to soar to the skies in a single bound. He only wanted to regain his former talent, so that he could win the Three Year Agreement.

Xiao Peng noticed the change in Xiao Yan's mood and patted him on the shoulder. "Brother Yan, don't lose heart. I believe it's only a matter of time before you recover your strength. Starting tomorrow, I'll cultivate with you. We'll figure out a way together."

He remembered that Old Yao seemed to appear tonight, after which he would take Xiao Yan as his disciple.

He recalled reading some fanfiction before, where certain protagonists wanted to take advantage of Old Yao accepting a disciple and become Old Yao's disciple alongside Xiao Yan.

When Old Yao refused to accept them, they ended up bearing a grudge against both Xiao Yan and Old Yao.

Xiao Yan looked at Xiao Peng gratefully. "Cousin, thank you. With those words from you, I feel even more motivated."

Xiao Zhan and Xiao Xun'er watched everything with smiles, and Xiao Xun'er was the happiest of them all.

After bidding Xiao Yan farewell, Xiao Peng left the Xiao Family alone and headed for the Marketplace.

He planned to buy some Medicinal Herbs and a few Magic Cores. The inheritance his parents had left behind was enough for him to purchase quite a few Medicinal Herbs and Magic Cores.

Magic Cores for alchemy?

Not exactly. The knowledge his master had imparted included information about using Magic Cores in alchemy.

Upon arriving at the Marketplace, Xiao Peng began purchasing the things he needed.

He planned to refine the most common Rejuvenation Pill first, then move on to other pills.

According to his master, refining a Rejuvenation Pill was so easy that anyone with hands could do it.

Rejuvenation Pill: First-grade Pill. Restored a certain amount of Mana, and for half an hour after consumption, Mana recovery was accelerated.

The herbal knowledge his master had given him included knowledge from his own world as well as from the Battle Through the Heavens world, so finding the ingredients for refining Rejuvenation Pills was not difficult.

Xiao Peng bought enough ingredients for ten batches of Rejuvenation Pills, along with three Magic Cores.

As he was preparing to return, Xiao Peng remembered something. When Xiao Yan had been shopping, he had come across a black iron sheet containing a Dou Technique called the Absorbing Palm.

Thinking of this, Xiao Peng began wandering through the Marketplace.

After a while, Xiao Peng spotted a fairly decent Alchemy Furnace and bought it, spending quite a few Gold Coins.

After browsing for a little longer, Xiao Peng found that black iron sheet.

Xiao Peng bought the black iron sheet together with a Crystal Core.

Xiao Yan's idea had been right. If you showed interest in something, the owner would charge a higher price.

After buying everything, Xiao Peng returned to his room.

Xiao Peng could now be said to be utterly penniless, with hardly any money left.

There was only one way to make money quickly.

That was alchemy!

Xiao Peng took out a Magic Core and examined it. He remembered others saying that Magic Crystals were filled with extremely violent energy of heaven and earth.

Even a Dou Wang would not dare forcibly absorb such violent energy, risking an explosion of their body.

Yet from his perspective, there was simply a mass of energy inside that he could absorb directly.

But upon further thought, Xiao Peng felt that this was perfectly normal.

Dou Qi was a type of internal energy in the Battle Through the Heavens world. It could be enhanced through cultivation and comprehension.

Dou Qi was closely linked to a cultivator's spiritual world. Through cultivation and tempering, it could help cultivators strengthen their Soul Force and enhance their perception and insight.

Cultivators, on the other hand, absorbed the energy between heaven and earth. The energy within a Magic Crystal was energy between heaven and earth, so there was no problem with him absorbing it directly.

Magic Crystals were equivalent to spirit stones, but not many Magical Beasts possessed them.

One had to kill several Magical Beasts to obtain a single Magic Crystal, and sometimes one could not obtain any at all.

If this thing were placed in a cultivation world, it would not count as anything particularly valuable. It might even be somewhat useless.

With that thought, Xiao Peng took out the Alchemy Furnace and prepared to refine pills.

The flame used in alchemy was called Samadhi True Fire. Samadhi True Fire was formed by fusing Heart Fire, Lung Fire, and Kidney Fire, and was mainly used for refining pills.

It was not any special flame. Xiao Peng felt that since he had come to Battle Through the Heavens, he could get himself a Heavenly Flame to play with in the future.

Collect every Heavenly Flame?

There was absolutely no need. He might as well leave that task to Xiao Yan. If he became interested in Di Yan later, he could just ask for a wisp to play with.

Xiao Peng calmed himself, placed the Alchemy Furnace before him, and began preparing to refine Rejuvenation Pills.

First, he summoned the Samadhi True Fire. Flames danced in his palm, emitting a gentle yet blazing radiance.

Xiao Peng carefully placed the ingredients for the Rejuvenation Pills into the Alchemy Furnace one batch at a time.

As the ingredients entered, the Samadhi True Fire swiftly enveloped them, producing faint sizzling sounds.

Xiao Peng focused completely on controlling the flame's temperature and intensity, his eyes fixed tightly on the Alchemy Furnace as he did not dare relax in the slightest.

Time passed second by second, and a faint medicinal fragrance began wafting from the Alchemy Furnace.

Xiao Peng was delighted, knowing it was a good sign.

But he did not lower his guard, because the most crucial pill-condensation stage had yet to arrive.

With Xiao Peng's complete concentration and tireless effort, the pill-condensation stage was completed smoothly.

A rich medicinal fragrance rushed toward him. Unable to suppress his excitement, Xiao Peng slowly opened the Alchemy Furnace.

Eight round, plump Rejuvenation Pills, each radiating a lustrous sheen, lay neatly arranged at the bottom of the furnace. Every one of them seemed to speak of the success of his first attempt at alchemy.

"I didn't expect my first time refining pills to succeed, and the quality even looks pretty good. I really am a genius."

Xiao Peng looked at the Rejuvenation Pills at the bottom of the furnace and spoke with some pride.

If all the materials he had bought could be refined successfully, then he would be able to make quite a bit of money.

Once he made enough money, he could continue refining pills to improve his skill.

Alchemy relied on two things: first, talent; second, constant practice.

Thinking this, Xiao Peng happily continued refining pills.

After putting away all the Rejuvenation Pills at the bottom of the furnace, Xiao Peng methodically placed the ingredients into the Alchemy Furnace batch by batch.

As the ingredients fell in, the Samadhi True Fire swiftly wrapped around them, producing sizzling sounds.

Throughout the refining process, Xiao Peng kept a close watch on the flame's temperature and intensity, precisely adjusting the heat according to the properties of the different ingredients.

Time quietly passed amid the tense yet orderly atmosphere. The familiar faint medicinal fragrance once again wafted from the Alchemy Furnace, and this time, it seemed even richer.

It looks like the quality of this batch will be even better. Xiao Peng secretly rejoiced, a confident smile appearing on his face.

It seemed that he was quite talented in alchemy after all.

However, just as Xiao Peng thought everything would proceed smoothly, the Alchemy Furnace suddenly began shaking violently, and the flames started lashing about out of control.