Advancing to Grade Eight Alchemist

Tang Chen closed his eyes and adjusted his breathing. After bringing himself to peak condition, he willed it, and light flashed across his Storage Ring. A massive, ancient crimson cauldron appeared before him.

One glance was enough to tell that this cauldron was no ordinary item. Several Magical Beast totems roaring toward the heavens were carved upon its body, lifelike and immensely imposing.

This cauldron was precisely the spoils Tang Chen had seized after killing Han Feng—the Ten Thousand Beast Cauldron, ranked thirteenth on the Heavenly Cauldron Ranking.

Tang Chen had never refined a Grade Eight pill before. He had specifically brought out the Ten Thousand Beast Cauldron this time to ensure success in a single attempt.

"First, I'll refine some Grade Six and Grade Seven pills to get my hand in." Tang Chen's expression remained calm, but he had already made up his mind.

He was not in a hurry to directly challenge Grade Eight. Instead, he chose to refine several Grade Six and Grade Seven pills first to warm up.

For instance, the Imperial Extreme Pill, a peak Grade Six pill that could help a Dou Emperor expert rise by one or two stars.

No sooner said than done.

Tang Chen brushed his Storage Ring, and stalks of medicinal ingredients appeared at his side. With a sweep of his sleeve, the ingredients flew into the cauldron one after another in order under his precise control.

With a flip of his palm, Heavenly Flames surged forth. He then struck the cauldron with one hand, sending terrifying flames flooding into it as he began crazily extracting the medicinal essences.

With Tang Chen's current alchemy skills, Grade Six and Grade Seven pills were practically effortless.

With the aid of the Heavenly Flames and the Ten Thousand Beast Cauldron, he formed pills extremely quickly, and their quality was exceptionally high. In only a few days, all the Grade Six and Grade Seven pills he needed had been refined.

Among them were the Bone-Growing Blood-Melting Pill and the Life-Extending Restoration Pill. Both were top-tier Grade Seven pills, though the Bone-Growing Blood-Melting Pill was even better, faintly touching upon the threshold of Grade Eight.

There was no need to mention the Bone-Growing Blood-Melting Pill; it had been prepared to revive Sky Fire Venerable. As for the Life-Extending Restoration Pill, it was intended for Lu Yan.

This pill could not only extend one's lifespan, but also restore bodily deficiencies and eliminate hidden internal ailments. It could not have been more suitable for Lu Yan in her current state.

With this pill, Lu Yan might even be able to advance further. However, given her talent, she would at most reach the level of a four- or five-star Dou Venerate in the future. After all, her age was what it was.

But that was enough.

Tang Chen could not remain on the Northwest Continent forever; sooner or later, he would leave. Lu Yan could serve as his eyes and ears on the Northwest Continent, handling anything he needed and sparing him the trouble of constantly traveling back and forth.

His warm-up was more or less complete, so Tang Chen struck while the iron was hot and began preparing to refine a Grade Eight pill.

The Grade Eight pill he intended to refine this time was a Humanoid Pill tailored specifically to Zi Yan's physical condition.

Zi Yan was an Ancient Void Dragon, and her physique was far too powerful. Ordinary Humanoid Pills would basically have no effect on her.

Thus, based on his own understanding and Zi Yan's physical condition, Tang Chen specially formulated a Humanoid Pill unique to her, meant to solve her inability to grow up and transform freely.

As for its name, Tang Chen had not decided on one yet.

Since he had just finished refining the Bone-Growing Blood-Melting Pill and his touch was still sharp, Tang Chen had gained a little more confidence in this Grade Eight pill.

He tossed all the medicinal ingredients into the cauldron, then activated the Heavenly Flames and began refining with complete concentration.

In the blink of an eye, more than twenty days passed. Tang Chen had been in seclusion refining pills for over a month in total.

Even with Heavenly Flames and the Ten Thousand Beast Cauldron, refining this Grade Eight pill had taken Tang Chen more than twenty days.

During Tang Chen's seclusion, thunderclouds frequently gathered above the Heavenly Snake Mansion. Bolts of lightning as thick as bowls struck down from time to time, and the sight of heavenly punishment descending from above deeply shocked everyone in the Heavenly Snake Mansion.

The nearby factions were also drawn by the successive strange phenomena. Though curious, they only dared watch from afar, for no one wished to provoke the colossal force that was the Heavenly Snake Mansion.

That was precisely why Tang Chen had chosen to refine pills at the Heavenly Snake Mansion. With Lu Yan and the others stationed there, he could avoid many unnecessary troubles.

Three more days passed before activity finally emerged once again from Tang Chen's place of seclusion.

A heart-palpitating energy fluctuation spread from where he was in seclusion. Even an expert like Lu Yan could not help but feel her heart tighten at that wave.

Above the Heavenly Snake Mansion, thick layers of black clouds began to gather wildly. Furious thunder churned within them, carrying an extraordinarily terrifying aura of destruction.

"This aura... could the pill my lord is refining this time be Grade Eight?" Feeling the destructive power within the clouds, Lu Yan's heart was thrown into stormy waves.

Then, beneath her horrified gaze, a green pillar of light shot into the sky and plunged straight into the clouds. Wherever it passed, the silver lightning within the clouds rapidly retreated, clearly separating itself from it.

As the green pillar entered, the range covered by the thunderclouds abruptly more than doubled. Soon, two entirely different colors could be seen churning within the clouds—green and silver, reflecting each other.

"Two-colored thunderclouds. Not bad." Looking at the two-colored thunderclouds above, the corners of Tang Chen's lips rose slightly.

Boom!

Thunder rumbled endlessly through the heavens. When the energy accumulated to its peak, a two-colored Pill Lightning shot violently from the thunderclouds, transforming into a two-colored lightning dragon that tore through space and struck viciously toward Tang Chen.

There was no fear in Tang Chen's eyes as he watched the terrifying two-colored lightning dragon—only excitement.

"Come!" Tang Chen shouted. He stomped violently on the ground, and rather than retreating, he charged directly toward the two-colored lightning dragon.

The lightning dragon crashed onto Tang Chen's body. In an instant, his clothes were blasted into ashes, exposing his lean, muscular physique.

As lightning entered his body, Tang Chen resembled a thunder god descending into the world. His entire body was bathed in lightning, while a field of thunder brimming with destructive power formed around him.

The power of Grade Eight two-colored Pill Lightning could not be underestimated. Even with Tang Chen's unusual physique, it caused him some discomfort.

At that moment, his entire body felt swollen, as though he were about to split apart.

Tang Chen endured the discomfort and circulated his cultivation method, beginning to crazily draw the remaining lightning outside his body into himself, unwilling to waste even the slightest bit.

With the cultivation method and his special physique, it did not take long for him to absorb all the scattered lightning power. It surged through the meridians throughout his body along the cultivation method's route.

Tang Chen did not rush to refine it. Instead, his figure flashed as he hurried over to the pill first.

A Grade Eight pill had already developed rudimentary intelligence, essentially gaining life. Tang Chen did not want the pill he had worked so hard to refine to run away.

Sure enough, the moment he approached, the spiritual energy around the pill rapidly gathered and transformed into a tiny spiritual energy dragon. Upon seeing Tang Chen, the little dragon twisted its body and fled into the distance in panic.

Tang Chen had been prepared. He reached out with one hand and directly caught it in his palm. Once it condensed back into a pill, he swiftly sealed it within a jade bottle.

Looking at the jade bottle in his hand, Tang Chen could not suppress the excitement on his face.

"From today onward, I, Tang Chen, am a genuine Grade Eight Alchemist!"