After returning to his room, Ning Xiaochuan took out the ten Nourishing Heart Grass plants, placed them on the bronze table, and arranged them in a row.
Having refined Nourishing Heart Grass twice before, Ning Xiaochuan now had a deeper understanding of how to grasp its medicinal properties more precisely.
"The ratio of Profound Qi to Nourishing Heart Grass vapor should be controlled at one to ten. Only then will the refined Heart Nourishing Elixir be purer. It can also save more Profound Qi and medicinal power from the Nourishing Heart Grass."
The first time he had refined Nourishing Heart Grass, it had taken an entire hour.
But this time, he completely refined one stalk in only half an hour, turning it into three drops of pale green Heart Nourishing Elixir. There was even some medicinal vapor left inside the Heart Nourishing Cauldron, enough to refine another half-drop of Heart Nourishing Elixir.
Ning Xiaochuan did not pause. He immediately grasped the second stalk of Nourishing Heart Grass, crushed it into vapor, guided it into the Heart Nourishing Cauldron, and continued refining.
Sure enough, this time he refined four drops of Heart Nourishing Elixir, and the speed had become even faster.
Ning Xiaochuan pressed on with renewed vigor, entering a state of complete self-forgetfulness. He refined four stalks of Nourishing Heart Grass in one breath. The Martial Dao Profound Qi within him was reduced to barely one-tenth, sweat covered his body, his face was crimson, and he panted like an ox from exhaustion.
Yet he did not stop. He intended to challenge the limits of his body.
The closer one came to the limit, the more rapidly the human body's potential could be awakened.
A vast amount of Earth Martial Essence Qi left behind by the Old Marquis lay hidden in his blood. Now, as though squeezing water from a sponge, the Earth Martial Essence Qi was constantly forced out and transformed into Ning Xiaochuan's own Martial Dao Profound Qi.
In the end, Ning Xiaochuan finished refining the fifth stalk of Nourishing Heart Grass. Only a thread of Martial Dao Profound Qi remained in his bloodline, on the verge of snapping.
"Haha! Five stalks of Nourishing Heart Grass actually yielded eighteen drops of Heart Nourishing Elixir. That's equivalent to one hundred and eighty thousand Small Coins." Ning Xiaochuan was beside himself with excitement, but he did not immediately move the eighteen drops of Heart Nourishing Elixir out of his body. Instead, he began cultivating the Heaven and Earth Profound Qi to restore his cultivation.
Just now, he had wrung out his body's potential and nearly exhausted all the Martial Dao Profound Qi within him. He was worn to the point of collapse, and sweat had soaked through his clothes.
Following the explanations in Heaven and Earth Profound Qi, he began absorbing the Profound Qi between heaven and earth.
That Profound Qi was fine as silk threads, drilling into his pores and seeping into his blood.
Boom!
Suddenly, Ning Xiaochuan's body doubled its speed of absorbing Martial Dao Profound Qi.
The Profound Qi between heaven and earth surged into his body like rain threads. His blood vessels, sinews, bones, and five viscera all trembled lightly as they crazily breathed in Profound Qi.
"I've reached the second level of Heaven and Earth Profound Qi. My speed of absorbing Heaven and Earth Profound Qi has doubled."
Heaven and Earth Profound Qi was spread throughout every corner of Great Ning. It was a foundational guidebook on Profound Qi, used only by impoverished commoners who could not obtain advanced cultivation arts.
Thus, almost everyone who cultivated Heaven and Earth Profound Qi was an ordinary person of poor aptitude. Those with good aptitude had been recruited by powerful factions and naturally possessed more advanced cultivation arts.
Those who could cultivate Heaven and Earth Profound Qi to the second level were few and far between, while those who could reach the third level could be counted on one hand.
Ning Xiaochuan had now cultivated Heaven and Earth Profound Qi to the second level, doubling his absorption speed.
Ning Xiaochuan did not think it was anything remarkable. After all, the first level of the Sword Pavilion Marquis's Mansion's Heart Furnace Divine Canon had ten times the absorption speed of Heaven and Earth Profound Qi.
He was only absorbing Heaven and Earth Profound Qi at twice the normal speed, while among the Sword Pavilion Marquis's Mansion's fourth-generation descendants, at least eighty had cultivated the first level of the Heart Furnace Divine Canon.
Boom!
Another low hum sounded from within Ning Xiaochuan's body. His Martial Heart Palace swayed gently, and countless streams of Martial Dao Profound Qi erupted forth, transforming into a misty little lake.
This time, he was truly overjoyed. He had reached the Profound Qi Fifth Level!
Through refining the Nourishing Heart Grass, squeezing out his body's potential, and stimulating the Earth Martial Essence Qi in his bloodline, he had finally entered the Profound Qi Fifth Level as naturally as water flowing into a channel. The Martial Dao Profound Qi within his body had increased by another large margin.
When he had been at the Profound Qi Fourth Level, the Martial Dao Profound Qi within his body could only support him in refining five stalks of Nourishing Heart Grass.
But now, even if he refined ten stalks of Nourishing Heart Grass in one go, the Martial Dao Profound Qi in his body might not be exhausted!
Having reached the Profound Qi Fifth Level, Ning Xiaochuan naturally became even more exhilarated. Not a trace of sleepiness remained in him, and he hurriedly refined the remaining five stalks of Nourishing Heart Grass.
With his cultivation improved, his control over Profound Qi became more exquisite as well. When refining the tenth stalk of Nourishing Heart Grass, he actually refined four drops of Heart Nourishing Elixir from a single stalk.
Do not underestimate the difference of just one drop. It was the goal countless Heart Nourishers strove toward, a massive hurdle for any Heart Nourisher.
Only an Intermediate Heart Nourisher could refine four drops of Heart Nourishing Elixir from one stalk of Nourishing Heart Grass! Of course, Ning Xiaochuan's current level was still far from that of an Intermediate Heart Nourisher.
This was because an Intermediate Heart Nourisher not only needed to control medicinal principles to an incomparably exquisite degree, but also had to refine Mysterious Medicine into a "Mysterious Pill." Only then could one be qualified to be called an Intermediate Heart Nourisher.
The value of every Mysterious Pill was beyond what ordinary people could imagine. They could only be seen in the auction houses of major trading firms.
Therefore, the status of an Intermediate Heart Nourisher was beyond reach. The price earned from selling a single Mysterious Pill was already enough for an ordinary family to live on for a lifetime.
For Ning Xiaochuan, an Elementary Heart Nourisher, to refine four drops of Heart Nourishing Elixir meant that he possessed the talent to become an Intermediate Heart Nourisher.
If Yu Qianqian learned of this, she would surely consider him a monstrous genius in Heart Nourisher cultivation and offer even more generous terms to win him over. It would no longer be as simple as a monthly salary of five hundred thousand Small Coins!
Ning Xiaochuan spent the entire night completely refining all ten stalks of Nourishing Heart Grass, producing a total of thirty-seven drops of Heart Nourishing Elixir.
"Thirty-seven drops of Heart Nourishing Elixir—that's three hundred and seventy thousand Small Coins." Ning Xiaochuan felt as though he had become rich overnight, trembling with excitement.
He had struck it rich! The sky had yet to brighten, and the gates of the Sword Pavilion Marquis's Mansion had not opened. Otherwise, Ning Xiaochuan would certainly have sold the thirty-seven drops of Heart Nourishing Elixir without delay and first repaid the thirty thousand Small Coins he owed Ning Xiner.
Ning Xiaochuan hated owing others anything, whether money or favors.
Of course, he now felt a faint sibling-like affection toward Ning Xiner and regarded her as his first family member in this world. Once he became strong in the future, he would definitely protect her properly rather than remain under her protection forever.
"There's still half an hour until dawn. I'll use this time to try refining a stalk of Blood Accumulation Grass."
Heart Nourishing Elixir was used to nourish a martial artist's heart and strengthen their Martial Heart Palace. If a martial artist consumed one drop of Heart Nourishing Elixir every day, their cultivation speed would far surpass that of others.
Blood Accumulation Elixir was used to nourish a martial artist's bloodline, raise the grade of their blood, and increase the strength of their blood vitality. The stronger one's blood vitality, the stronger one's physical body, and the greater one's explosive force and endurance in battle. Consuming one drop of Blood Accumulation Elixir every day had even more astonishing effects, leaving others of the same generation far behind.
The value of a drop of Blood Accumulation Elixir was slightly higher than that of Heart Nourishing Elixir. It could sell for roughly ten thousand Small Coins.
However, Heart Nourishing Elixir and Blood Accumulation Elixir were simply too expensive. Very few people could afford to consume one drop every day.
Ning Xiner was a genius of the Sword Pavilion Marquis's Mansion, yet she could only receive ten drops of Heart Nourishing Elixir and ten drops of Blood Accumulation Elixir each month. She had to spend her own money to buy anything else.
Thus, only the specially nurtured descendants of kings and marquises could barely manage one drop of Heart Nourishing Elixir and one drop of Blood Accumulation Elixir per day. Ordinary people could forget about even dreaming of it.
It was no wonder the descendants of kings and marquises were stronger than children from poor families.
Ning Xiaochuan had become thoroughly familiar with refining Mysterious Medicine. Though it was his first time refining Blood Accumulation Elixir, he was as practiced as driving a familiar carriage down an old road. Soon, he condensed four drops of Blood Accumulation Elixir within his Martial Heart Palace! Just as a smile appeared on Ning Xiaochuan's face, the Blood-Colored Small Sword in his Blood Aperture suddenly flashed fiercely. A streak of bloody light shot into his Heart Aperture, actually attempting to seize the four drops of Blood Accumulation Elixir within the Heart Nourishing Cauldron.
Boom!
Ning Xiaochuan's heart trembled violently.
The Blood Aperture and Heart Aperture began fighting each other, rapidly circling around his heart.
The small sword within the Blood Aperture wanted to seize the Blood Accumulation Elixir in the Heart Aperture. The Heart Aperture actually moved, evading the Blood Aperture's attack.
The two chased one another faster and faster. In the end, they formed two rays of light, one red and one white, creating a wondrous Taiji Pattern that revolved around Ning Xiaochuan's heart.
Only when the Heart Aperture and Blood Aperture settled down and returned beneath the left and right ventricles did Ning Xiaochuan finally let out a breath of relief.
The Heart Nourishing Cauldron in the Heart Aperture became still, and the small sword in the Blood Aperture fell silent as well.
"Something's wrong. The four drops of Blood Accumulation Elixir in the Heart Nourishing Cauldron are gone. Could the small sword have absorbed them? What a scam! That was forty thousand Small Coins."
"No, the Martial Dao Profound Qi in my Martial Heart Palace has increased. I... I've reached the Profound Qi Sixth Level."
Ning Xiaochuan clutched his scalp with both hands, utterly stunned.
Before you continue