Under the pressure of the terrifying Blade Momentum, the Crimson Pill Flame trembled, and Su Yun easily caught it in his hand.
After examining it closely, Su Yun mused to himself.
"This Pill Fire is rather average in quality. At most, it's Yellow Grade superior."
The Mystic Blade Sect naturally had all kinds of records about Pill Fire, as well as detailed information.
Yellow Grade Pill Fire might not seem to be of a high grade, but it still had great uses at present.
Of course, Su Yun wasn't particularly impressed by this Pill Fire.
He planned to give it to Su Ling, so she could quickly refine all kinds of pills, accumulate a large number of Contribution Points, and exchange them for various resources.
"There's nothing else valuable here. Let's go back."
Su Yun searched the area carefully but didn't find a second Pill Fire.
So he subdued the Pill Fire, put it in his Spatial Ring, and prepared to leave.
Before long, he returned to Su Estate and saw Su Lin waiting anxiously.
"Big brother, it's all taken care of."
Su Yun said with a smile.
"Third brother, as long as you're okay!"
Su Lin looked Su Yun over from head to toe. When he found no injuries, delight spread across his face, and he let out a sigh of relief.
"By the way, where are Father and Mother? Why haven't I seen them?"
Su Yun glanced around.
"Ever since you opened up the trade route, business at Su Estate has been getting better and better."
"This morning, Father and Mother went to the Wang Family together to discuss business."
Su Lin replied with a smile.
After chatting with his big brother for a few moments, Su Yun went to the rear courtyard of Su Estate.
Before long, he found the place where Su Ling lived.
As for Su Ling, he had only told them that he'd rescued her from a sinister Daoist nun while opening up the trade route, and that she was skilled at refining pills.
He hadn't said anything more.
During this time, Su Ling had done nothing but cultivate and refine Body Tempering Pills, earning a great deal of wealth for Su Estate.
As a result, everyone at Su Estate had gradually accepted Su Ling and come to regard her as one of their own.
At that moment, Su Ling's residence was quiet and still.
Only a faint breeze stirred the fallen leaves, making them rustle.
Creak!
At one point, Su Yun pushed open the door.
"Huh? Big brother! You're back?"
Su Ling was sitting cross-legged in the room, breathing in and out spiritual energy.
When she saw Su Yun, her face lit up. She quickly stood and hurried over to him.
She had been doing very well at Su Estate lately, living in peace and stability.
It was far better than when she had followed Daoist Blood Origin.
She cherished this life dearly, and was afraid of losing it.
"Not bad! You've been fairly diligent in your cultivation."
Sensing that Su Ling's aura was stronger than before, Su Yun nodded.
Su Ling beamed foolishly for a moment after receiving his approval, then asked curiously,
"Big brother, what brought you back?"
Su Yun briefly explained, then asked, "Has your cultivation reached Qi Refining Second Layer?"
"Mm, I broke through a few days ago!"
Su Ling nodded.
"Now that your cultivation has advanced and your spiritual energy has increased, you should be able to refine more pills each day, right?"
Su Yun guessed.
Previously, Su Ling had been refining Body Tempering Pills for Su Estate and could manage only about one batch a day.
After that, she had to breathe in spiritual energy to restore her reserves and couldn't refine any more pills.
But things were different now.
"Mm!"
Su Ling counted on her fingers. "I should be able to refine two batches of pills each day now."
Two batches!
Su Yun's eyes lit up.
That was quite a good number.
It was double what she could manage before.
"Take this."
Su Yun took out the Crimson Pill Flame and suppressed it with his Blade Momentum.
That would keep the Pill Fire from flaring up and hurting Su Ling.
However, what surprised Su Yun was this:
The Pill Fire, which had resisted him fiercely before, became much more docile as soon as it saw Su Ling.
It even looked a little fawning!
"Big brother, what kind of flame is this? It feels so familiar."
When Su Ling saw the Pill Fire, she felt a sense of familiarity too.
She timidly touched it. Its warmth was gentle, and she asked in surprise,
Seeing this, Su Yun understood.
Pill Fire had a spirit!
It had a special connection with alchemists.
To put it simply, it could sense an alchemist's talent!
If their talent was strong enough, they could earn its recognition.
Coming back to himself, Su Yun explained, "This is Pill Fire. Once you refine it, it can greatly improve your efficiency at refining pills."
As he spoke, he willed the Pill Fire to merge into Su Ling's body.
Hum!
The Crimson Pill Flame's scorching aura coursed through Su Ling's body, then headed straight for her dantian, where it settled.
"How amazing!"
Su Ling was stunned.
She felt as though the spiritual energy within her had doubled.
Her mind also felt much sharper.
"Su Ling, take a look at this pill formula. Can you refine it?"
At that moment, Su Yun brought out the Jade Marrow Pill formula.
Su Ling took it and examined it carefully.
After reading it through, she replied confidently, "Don't worry, big brother. I can refine the Jade Marrow Pill."
But soon, her brow furrowed, and she added with some unease,
"Refining this pill takes more time and spiritual energy, though. With my Qi Refining Second Layer cultivation, I should only be able to refine one batch a day."
"One batch? That's already enough."
Su Yun nodded. He wasn't hoping for more.
After chatting for a while, Su Yun left.
Then he found his big brother, Su Lin.
"Big brother, I have a pill formula here that requires these ingredients. Help me gather as many as you can!"
"Some of them are quite rare, so you may have to buy them in other cities."
With that, Su Yun handed over a list of ingredients.
"Sure. Leave it to me!"
Su Lin took the list and smiled as he nodded.
Su Estate had accumulated a great deal of wealth by now, so buying these alchemy ingredients wouldn't be difficult.
After arranging everything, Su Yun returned to his room.
There, he took out a golden jade bottle.
As soon as he opened it, a rich, fragrant scent poured out.
"One drop of Profound Yang Essence costs five thousand Contribution Points."
"I wonder if it works well."
Su Yun mused, then took out a drop of Profound Yang Essence, swallowed it, and began refining it.
Boom!
In an instant, a violent surge of fiery energy erupted inside Su Yun, rushing through his meridians like an ocean current.
The Great Sun Profound Heaven Technique sensed a surge of Yang energy. It grew excited and began absorbing it, greatly increasing cultivation efficiency!
As that voice rang out in his mind,
A faint golden light spread from Su Yun's body, as if flames were burning all around him.
The aura he gave off grew stronger and stronger.
At last, the energy within Su Yun was completely spent.
The Great Sun Profound Heaven Technique perfectly absorbed the Yang energy. It was invigorated, and current cultivation progress increased by ten percent!
A single drop of Profound Yang Essence had increased his cultivation progress by ten percent. That was pretty good.
Su Yun continued refining the Profound Yang Essence.
Two hours later.
Su Yun perfectly refined the remaining nineteen drops of Profound Yang Essence and successfully cultivated the Great Sun Profound Heaven Technique to the second layer!
He was also very close to reaching the third layer.
By then, Su Yun's physical strength had increased considerably.
A casual swing of one arm carried at least a hundred thousand jin of force.
Over the next few days, Su Yun stayed at home, enjoying his leisure.
With Pill Fire and a plentiful supply of ingredients, Su Ling managed to refine several batches of pills during those few days.
Su Yun took all the best-quality pills for himself.
He planned to refine them to improve his cultivation.
Some of the remaining pills would be sold to earn silver and buy more ingredients.
Su Yun kept the rest, planning to hand them over to the sect in exchange for Contribution Points.
Meanwhile,
Word of the Pill Fire spread far and wide.
The Mystic Blade Sect was the first to hear about it.
The sect's leadership immediately dispatched an elder to investigate.
Screee!
High in the sky, a White-Robed Elder stood atop a giant white eagle, flying toward Glaze Prefecture.
The character for "Pill" was embroidered on the elder's back.
He was an elder of the Pill Hall!
The giant white eagle beneath his feet was a spirit beast carefully bred by the Mystic Blade Sect, known as the White Ghost Eagle.
Only elders were qualified to exchange for one, and it was incredibly fast.
A short while later, the elder reached the Fire Origin Mine.
"Just as I thought. The Pill Fire is gone."
The elder wasn't surprised that someone had taken the Pill Fire.
After all, if word had gotten out, the information was already outdated.
That meant the Pill Fire must have been taken long ago.
He searched the area but didn't find anything.
So he prepared to return to the sect.
Suddenly, the lingering trace of Blade Momentum caught his attention.
"Hm? This Blade Momentum..."
The elder mused to himself, then couldn't help but guess,
"Could Su Yun have taken the Pill Fire?"
After all, he knew Su Yun's home was nearby.
And the Blade Momentum here was remarkably similar to Su Yun's.
That was how he arrived at his guess.
"Hmm. I can go ask him."
"If he really did take the Pill Fire, we could work together."
The White-Robed Elder mused.
Before you continue