Refining Medicine

Not long after Ye Xiu left, the door to the VIP room opened.

A woman in a red dress walked in. It was Ya Fei. She asked with a smile, "Master Gu Ni, I heard that a senior just identified a Tier 3 medicinal pill? Where is he?"

Gu Ni shook his head with a bitter smile, "He has already left."

Ya Fei was stunned, "Left? Did you manage to find out anything?"

Gu Ni hesitated for a moment, then lowered his voice and said, "That senior is very likely a Tier 3 Alchemist, and he doesn't want his background known. It is best if we don't investigate people like that. If we offend him, the trouble will be immense."

Ya Fei raised an eyebrow and asked with a smile, "What is that senior's name? Do you know that?"

Gu Ni thought for a moment, then decided to say it, "Ye Xiu."

Ya Fei nodded, committing the name to memory.

There was a mountain behind Wutan City, and Ye Xiu found a hidden cave within it.

He took out the large Medicine Cauldron and placed it in front of him. Taking a deep breath, he flipped his palm, and a red flame of Dou Qi surged into the cauldron.

He was going to refine a Tier 3 Fire-Element Pill. This pill could increase the speed of fire-attribute cultivators, providing him with a way out should he ever encounter someone he couldn't defeat.

As the Dou Qi flame burned inside the cauldron, Ye Xiu focused entirely, using his soul power to sense the temperature changes within. He had not yet condensed a physical flame, so he had to rely on his fire-attribute Dou Qi to manifest as fire inside the cauldron.

However, he was currently a nine-star Da Dou Shi and was cultivating the high-grade Xuan-tier technique, the Burning Heaven Sword Art. His Dou Qi was far purer than that of an average person; refining a Tier 3 pill was well within his capabilities, and he could even handle a Tier 4 pill.

Once the temperature in the cauldron was right, Ye Xiu flicked his finger, and a red primary medicinal ingredient flew into the cauldron.

The materials for refining the Fire-Element Pill had all been purchased by Ye Xiu at the auction.

With a hiss, the medicinal material tumbled in the flames and quickly melted into a ball of red liquid. Ye Xiu used his soul power to envelop the liquid, stripping away the useless impurities bit by bit until the remaining liquid became increasingly pure.

This step could not be taken lightly; if his soul power wavered even slightly, the entire ingredient would be ruined.

Sweat began to bead on Ye Xiu's forehead, but his hands did not stop. He proceeded to toss the auxiliary ingredients into the cauldron one by one, refining each into liquid.

The medicinal properties of the auxiliary ingredients differed, requiring different temperatures. This demanded precise control through soul power; if anything went wrong with any of them, the entire batch would be wasted.

Time passed bit by bit, and the various medicinal liquids were prepared in the cauldron. Next came the most critical step—fusion.

Ye Xiu took a deep breath, unleashing his full soul power to carefully guide the balls of liquid toward each other. When the liquids touched, they initially repelled one another. Ye Xiu did not rush, using his soul power to gently suppress them, allowing them to fuse little by little.

This process was the ultimate test of patience and technique. Ye Xiu used a fusion method he had obtained from the memories of the Innate Medicine Body; while not particularly profound, it was effective due to his proficiency.

The balls of liquid slowly merged together, beginning to coalesce until they gradually took the shape of a pill. The surface still looked a bit pitted, but it was already seventy percent complete.

Ye Xiu did not let up, continuing to envelop the embryonic pill with his soul power while increasing his Dou Qi output, causing the flames to burn even brighter. The final step, pill condensation, was at hand.

The flames continued to calcine the embryonic pill, and the pitted areas slowly smoothed out, making the pill increasingly round and polished. A faint medicinal fragrance began to drift from the cauldron.

After the time it takes to burn an incense stick, Ye Xiu felt it was about right. He let out a sharp shout, "Rise!"

He slapped the side of the Medicine Cauldron, and the flames instantly extinguished. The lid flew off, and as five fire vents spewed light, three red pills the size of dragon eyes shot out from the cauldron.

Ye Xiu was quick-eyed and nimble; he grabbed a jade bottle and scooped them out of the air, catching all three pills inside.

He held the bottle up to the light at the cave entrance to inspect them. The three pills were round and plump, their surfaces smooth, their color a vibrant red, and their fragrance intoxicating.

Success!

Ye Xiu nodded in satisfaction and stored the jade bottle in his Storage Ring. With this item, even if he encountered a powerhouse at the Dou Ling level, he would be confident in his ability to escape even if he couldn't win!

"However, while the Medicine Cauldron is sufficient for now, the effect of using Dou Qi-manifested flames to refine medicine is still significantly lacking..."

If he used a Heavenly Flame, he would be confident in refining five Fire-Element Pills from a single set of ingredients, and the quality would be even higher!

Ye Xiu proceeded to refine a few more batches of Fire-Element Pills.

By the time the night grew deep and the bright moon hung high, he had finished.

Ye Xiu had just put away the Medicine Cauldron and was preparing to leave when he suddenly sensed someone approaching from outside, and they were moving quite fast.

He had just darted to the cave entrance when a black shadow blocked his path.

It was a youth dressed in black, looking to be about fifteen or sixteen years old, but he was already a three-star Dou Zhe.

In a backwater place like Wutan City, the only young male Dou Zhe with such potential was likely that former "trash" of the Xiao Clan.

"Xiao Yan?" Ye Xiu stopped, looking at him with a half-smile.

Xiao Yan's heart tightened.

He hadn't expected this person to recognize him at a glance, yet he couldn't discern the other's strength at all. If not for Yao Lao's warning and the concealment provided, he wouldn't have even known someone else was there.

What was worse, this was the back mountain of the Xiao Clan, a place where not even a ghost would normally wander. For this person to be lurking here in the middle of the night, there had to be something wrong.

"Who are you? What are you doing in the back mountain of my Xiao Clan?" Xiao Yan asked, his Dou Qi already beginning to circulate, ready to strike at any moment.

"Just a wandering cultivator," Ye Xiu said casually. "I was just passing through; I didn't know this was the Xiao Clan's territory."

A wandering cultivator?

Xiao Yan's brow furrowed even tighter. People whose origins were unknown were often the most dangerous.

Just then, an aged voice echoed in his mind: "You must be careful, Xiao Yan-zi. This guy is a nine-star Da Dou Shi."

What the hell?!

Xiao Yan's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets.

A nine-star Da Dou Shi??

The guy in front of him looked about the same age as him, yet he was actually a nine-star Da Dou Shi? What kind of joke was this!

Wait!

A nine-star Da Dou Shi, wiped out the entire upper echelon of the Jialie Clan overnight, and the methods were incredibly ruthless...

A piece of news that had been spreading like wildfire throughout Wutan City over the past few days suddenly flashed through Xiao Yan's mind.

The Jialie Clan was wiped out, and the one who did it was a nine-star Da Dou Shi!

Could it be this person?!

Now that he had appeared on the Xiao Clan's territory, could it be that he had set his sights on the Xiao Clan?!

Xiao Yan's expression changed instantly, his body tensing up as he said in a deep voice, "Senior, as a nine-star Da Dou Shi, if you have come to the Xiao Clan to discuss matters, the Xiao Clan will certainly treat you as an honored guest!"

Ye Xiu glanced at him. He hadn't actively revealed his cultivation level, and Xiao Yan certainly couldn't have seen through it on his own; it seemed this was mostly due to Yao Lao.

Ye Xiu said indifferently, "Do you know about the Jialie Clan incident?"

Xiao Yan hurriedly replied, "I have heard a little about it."

Ye Xiu: "I did it."

Xiao Yan was stunned.

He hadn't expected Ye Xiu to suddenly expose himself like this; what was he trying to do?

Did he think I know too much, and now he intends to silence me?

Brother, I beg you, you can't play like this!

"Senior..." Xiao Yan took a deep breath, trying his best not to panic, "The Jialie Clan had a grudge against our Xiao Clan. Since you wiped them out, the Xiao Clan should be thanking you with heavy gifts!"

Ye Xiu looked at him and suddenly smiled.

This smile made Xiao Yan feel even more uneasy.

"I have no interest in the Xiao Clan." Ye Xiu's tone was very flat, "Like I said, I'm just passing through."

After saying this, he lifted his foot, ready to leave.

"Senior, wait a moment!" Xiao Yan shouted instinctively, regretting it the moment the words left his mouth.

Ye Xiu stopped and looked back at him.

With just that one glance, every hair on Xiao Yan's body stood on end, as if he were being stared at by some ferocious beast.

"Do you want to stop me?" Ye Xiu's voice remained calm.

Xiao Yan's palms were covered in sweat, but he didn't shrink back.

After a while, Ye Xiu withdrew his gaze and shook his head: "Rest assured, I really have no interest in touching your Xiao Clan."

With that, his figure flashed and he vanished completely.

Xiao Yan stood where he was, and only after the person had completely disappeared did he let out a long breath, discovering that his back was soaked through.

"Teacher, what exactly is this person's background..." he asked in his heart.

Yao Lao was silent for a moment before slowly saying: "This kid is not simple. A nine-star Da Dou Shi with a bone age of only fifteen—there are few with such talent in the entire Jia Ma Empire. What's even stranger is that there is a peculiar aura about him..."

"What kind of aura?"

"I can't quite put my finger on it." Yao Lao's tone carried a hint of doubt, "But it is definitely not the constitution of an ordinary person. Xiao Yan-zi, if this person were to turn against the Xiao Clan, you would be in big trouble. However, he said he has no interest in the Xiao Clan, so he shouldn't be lying."

Xiao Yan gave a bitter smile: "Teacher, I am only a three-star Dou Zhe right now. If a nine-star Da Dou Shi wanted to kill me, he would have done it just now."

"That is true." Yao Lao thought for a moment, "This person is quite strange; perhaps... he really is just passing through?"

Xiao Yan looked in the direction where Ye Xiu had disappeared, pondering to himself.

"He wiped out the Jialie Clan, and he also killed Liu Xi. Logically speaking, this person helped the Xiao Clan get rid of a major problem, so I should be thanking him."

"Don't overthink it." Yao Lao said, "He is a nine-star Da Dou Shi; what could you possibly offer to thank him?"

Xiao Yan nodded awkwardly: "I suppose that's true."