Earthcore Firestone Acquired

"Waaah! I don't want it. I want the Ice Spirit Fruit!"

"The other medicinal herbs were either bitter or astringent, they tasted awful. This Ice Spirit Fruit was something I specifically saved to counteract the bitterness after eating the other unpalatable herbs. And you just took it from me!"

"I don't care, you have to give me the Ice Spirit Fruit. Otherwise, don't even think about asking me to find medicinal herbs for you again. Humph!"

Zi Yan's final harsh words put Elder Huo in a dilemma.

The high-grade medicinal herbs currently used by the academy were mostly found thanks to Zi Yan's talent. If Zi Yan really went on strike, how could their Alchemy Department possibly continue refining High-Grade Pills?

Dream on! Without the right medicinal ingredients, even a Pill Emperor couldn't refine it, let alone people like them.

However, Elder Huo also desperately needs this Ice Spirit Fruit. Because he has found an ancient pill formula, Elder Huo now has all the necessary ingredients and is ready to start Pill Refining.

If this Ice Spirit Fruit is returned to Zi Yan, who knows when another one will be found? So it's impossible to get Elder Huo to give up this Ice Spirit Fruit now.

Seeing the two locked in a stalemate again, Lin Ming knew his chance had come. Lin Ming knew that Zi Yan was a princess of the Ancient Void Dragon Clan, but she had mistakenly eaten an immature Form-Shifting Grass, which was why she was in the form of Little Girl.

In order to grow up, Zi Yan had to eat these medicinal herbs that contained energy. However, most of the raw medicinal herbs were bitter and astringent, and very unpalatable. This is why Zi Yan had such a long argument with Elder Huo over a single Ice Spirit Fruit.

Lin Ming also knew about the Ice Spirit Fruit. Besides its medicinal value, it had another characteristic: it tasted very delicious.

It tastes cool and sweet, and its deliciousness ranks among the best of all medicinal herbs.

It was precisely because of its delicious taste that Zi Yan kept pestering Elder Huo, refusing to give up the Ice Spirit Fruit, even though Zi Yan herself knew that the chances of getting it back were slim.

If I solve this problem now, I'll be able to help Elder Huo soon, and I'll be able to obtain the Earth Heart Fire Stone more safely. More importantly, I can use it to bind Zi Yan to myself.

Not to mention that Zi Yan's father, the Dragon Emperor, is currently the pinnacle of combat power on the Dou Qi Continent, Zi Yan herself has been a tremendous help to Lin Ming. Her talent for finding medicinal herbs could save Lin Ming countless hours of effort. Therefore, Lin Ming now needs to take action to solve this problem.

"Elder Huo, Zi Yan, I have a solution that will definitely satisfy both of you," Lin Ming said during the stalemate between Elder Huo and Zi Yan.

"Oh! Lin Ming, do you have a method?" Elder Huo asked Lin Ming after Lin Ming said he had a way to satisfy both him and Zi Yan.

He and Zi Yan have been entangled here for quite some time. If Lin Ming really has a way to satisfy both of them, that would be wonderful. Although Elder Huo is unwilling to hand over the Ice Spirit Fruit, Elder Huo also doesn't want Zi Yan to be sad.

After hearing Lin Ming's words, Zi Yan didn't ask any questions, but her big eyes were fixed on Lin Ming, which showed that Zi Yan was also curious about the method that Lin Ming had suggested that would satisfy her.

Seeing the three people staring at Lin Ming —yes, all three. Steward Yang was also staring at Lin Ming — Lin Ming smiled and said, "Elder Huo, although I don't know why Zi Yan wanted to eat the medicinal herbs directly, the problem is that Zi Yan found the herbs unpalatable, which is why she came to Elder Huo to ask you for this delicious Ice Spirit Fruit."

"Elder Huo, what do you mean? We can refine the medicinal herbs that Zi Yan wants to eat before feeding Zi Yan, wouldn't that solve the problem? Isn't refining medicinal herbs exactly what we Alchemist excel at?" Lin Ming explained his solution.

After hearing Lin Ming's words, all three showed expressions of disappointment. However, Elder Huo still said to Lin Ming, "Lin Ming, your idea is good. Indeed, we Alchemist can Pill Refining; that's not a problem."

"But this method is a bit unrealistic for Zi Yan. Due to special circumstances, only Zi Yan of 4th Grade or higher can work on her."

"To refine a 4th Grade Alchemist -Tier 4 Medicinal Pill, you now know how difficult it is, even if a Tier 4 Medicinal Pill -4th Grade Alchemist works day and night without making any mistakes."

"But even if all the 4th Grade Alchemist in the academy worked together to refine the Tier 4 Medicinal Pill Zi Yan could consume in a day, it still wouldn't be enough for Zi Yan."

"So Lin Ming, the method you suggested isn't suitable for Zi Yan."

Elder Huo's words were a tactful way of telling Lin Ming what was going on. If Steward Yang had brought it up directly, he would probably have been scolded.

Judging from what Elder Huo said, he probably thinks that Lin Ming's method is to refine the medicinal herbs into Pill Formation and then give Zi Yan!

If it were truly refined into Pill Formation, then it would probably be just as Elder Huo said, that even 4th Grade Alchemist in the academy would be too busy to feed Zi Yan. Lin Ming, of course, didn't think that way. Not to mention having read the original work and knowing how to do it, even without having read the original work, Lin Ming, who had cooked in his previous life, could think of the same method.

So Lin Ming explained to Elder Huo, "Elder Huo, I think you've misunderstood me. I have no intention of Pill Refining for Zi Yan. As you said, that would indeed be too much work."

"What I mean is to refine the medicinal herbs separately, Pill Formation, because that would be much less strenuous. How about this, I'll demonstrate it for you, and you'll understand."

After speaking, Lin Ming took out the Medicinal Cauldron, lit a fire, and put a medicinal herb into the Medicinal Cauldron to begin refining. During the refining process, Lin Ming added some candy and the medicinal herb together.

In the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, Lin Ming had refined several Medicinal Pills, each about the size of a fingertip and resembling Sugar Pill. After placing these Medicinal Pill into Jade Bottle, Lin Ming gave it to Zi Yan and said, "Try them! They should taste good."

With some skepticism, Zi Yan poured a Medicinal Pill from the Jade Bottle in her hand and put it in her mouth.

The moment the Medicinal Pill entered her mouth, a sweet and sour taste assaulted Zi Yan's taste buds. This made Zi Yan, who had been eating bitter medicine all along, feel as if she had gone from hell to heaven, and she jumped up with joy.

After her initial joy subsided, Zi Yan poured another Medicinal Pill from the Jade Bottle and put it in her mouth, looking completely blissful.

Seeing Zi Yan lost in ecstasy, Elder Huo felt a mixture of surprise and delight. It seemed Lin Ming's method had succeeded. Although he didn't know how Lin Ming had come up with the idea, as long as it worked, that was good enough.

This made Zi Yan happy again, and her Ice Spirit Fruit was saved, making everyone happy.

After swallowing the Medicinal Pill, Zi Yan happily said, "Old man, I don't need the Ice Spirit Fruit anymore. But you have to get Lin Ming to help me refine these Medicinal Pills in the future."

There was no need for Elder Huo to guarantee that. After Zi Yan finished speaking, Lin Ming directly said, "No problem. From now on, I will set aside half a day each week to help Zi Yan refine Medicinal Pill of your own flavor. Just prepare the medicinal materials and give them to me."

"Ah~! Lin Ming, I love you to death!" After a loud shout, Zi Yan rushed over, grabbed Lin Ming, and said, jumping up and down.

After a while, Zi Yan released Lin Ming's hand, returned the Fire Cleansing Pill she had snatched from Elder Huo to Lin Ming, and then ran outside.

As she ran, Zi Yan said, "I'm going to get the medicinal herbs now, Lin Ming, you wait for me." Then, just before she reached the door, Zi Yan took out a Medicinal Pill, put it in her mouth, and disappeared.

Watching Zi Yan leave, Elder Huo finally breathed a sigh of relief. His Ice Spirit Fruit was safe, and it seemed he wouldn't have to deal with this trouble again. It would just be a bit of a hardship for Lin Ming.

Oh, right, Lin Ming. Thinking of Lin Ming, Elder Huo's face lit up with a smile again.

This time, Lin Ming not only resolved the conflict between the Alchemy Department and Zi Yan regarding medicinal materials, but also officially became a 4th Grade Alchemist.

4th Grade Alchemist! Steward Yang is over forty years old and is still only Third-Grade Alchemist. Elder Huo thought back to when he was also over forty years old before he became 4th Grade Alchemist.

But what about Lin Ming? The year has just ended, meaning Lin Ming has just turned sixteen and has only just come of age. To reach the 4th Grade Alchemist upon adulthood—that's unimaginable!

But now it has really happened, and the person is his own student. A sense of pride filled Elder Huo's heart, making him feel extremely honored.

"Haha! Little fellow, congratulations on officially becoming a 4th Grade Alchemist. From today onwards, you have bid farewell to the Low-Grade Alchemist group and stepped into the ranks of this old man Intermediate Alchemist." Elder Huo said happily to Lin Ming.

"I wouldn't have been able to become a 4th Grade Alchemist -4th Grade Alchemist so quickly without Elder Huo's help. So Elder Huo deserves a lot of credit for this," Lin Ming humbly replied to Elder Huo's praise.

"Haha! This is the result of your own hard work, Lin Ming. It has little to do with me. You can see that by the fact that Lin Ming were able to successfully refine Tier 4 Medicinal Pill without any guidance. So there's no need to flatter me. I'm already satisfied to have you as a student in this life," Elder Huo said.

Before Lin Ming could say anything more, Elder Huo had a thought, and a blue stone the size of a human head, with veins like roots, appeared in Elder Huo hand.

After taking the Earth Heart Fire Stone into his hands, Elder Huo said to Lin Ming, "Back then, I made a request of you, Lin Ming: if you advance to the 4th Grade Alchemist level within a year, this Earth Heart Fire Stone Lin Ming be yours."

"Back then, you, Lin Ming, solemnly promised me that you wouldn't let this Earth Heart Fire Stone stay in my hands for even a day longer. Now, you, Lin Ming, have not only kept your promise, but you've done so six months ahead of schedule."

"So now it's my turn to fulfill my promise; the Earth Heart Fire Stone now belongs to you, Lin Ming!"

Seeing Elder Huo's smiling face as he presented such a precious Earth Heart Fire Stone, Lin Ming knew that Elder Huo genuinely happy. So he didn't refuse, thanked Elder Huo, and accepted the Earth Heart Fire Stone.