At once, Lin Changheng suppressed the urge to fire a [Fire Bullet Art] at the pond in the middle of the night. Instead, he circulated the Proficient Level [Flowing Fire Art] and settled down to cultivate.
He quickly discovered that completing one circulation was a full thirty percent more efficient!
The step of drawing fire spiritual energy into his body had become much easier and simpler.
And when refining it, it was no longer as difficult to command or transport as before. Following the circulation of the cultivation art, thread by thread, it was refined into mana.
This was tremendous progress.
Lin Changheng could not help thinking that if someone possessed a Heavenly Spirit Root, would spiritual energy actively and automatically burrow into their body? Would it even shamelessly run through their energy channels and meridians on its own, refining itself the moment it was cultivated?
Early the next morning.
Lin Changheng rose early and came to the courtyard.
Facing the morning sun, he formed a hand seal and cast his art. A fist-sized ball of fire immediately took shape in Lin Changheng's palm, its flames flickering.
The next instant, with a shift of his gaze, the fireball abruptly swelled without any warning. It continued expanding until it was as large as an infant's head before stopping.
Had anyone witnessed this scene, they would surely have bitten their tongue off in shock. How had he done that? Could this still be called a "fire bullet"? It was practically a "fireball"!
Then the fireball suddenly contracted, returning to the size of a fist. Yet its power rose by several degrees, sparks bursting like oil in a boiling pan as it shot straight toward the pond ahead.
"Sizzle!"
The fire bullet whistled through the air. With a thunderous boom, scarlet-orange waves of flame spread like the gaping jaws of a ferocious beast, devouring everything around them. The scattered sparks and water droplets contained terrifying heat, enough to melt gold and scorch iron!
"Though the speed hasn't increased significantly, its power has improved so much that it's plain to see!"
Lin Changheng was faintly excited.
What he did not know was that, empowered by the Double Fire Crow Treasure Seed's Fire Control enhancement, the might of this technique had already surpassed that of a Small Success [Fire Bullet Art]!
At the same time, Su Shuangjiang next door, who had been exhausted from hunting demons and was still asleep, was jolted awake by the disturbance.
Yet she had clearly activated a first-tier low-grade [Sound Isolation Array], and still it had failed to completely block the outside interference.
After some assessment, she still pinpointed the source to next door, where the disturbance had originated.
"Brother Lin? How did he do that...?"
A trace of astonishment surfaced in her beautiful eyes as she fell into thought.
Lin Changheng knew nothing of his female cultivator neighbor's surprise. He had already hurried out the door and arrived at the Xu Family Apothecary.
Inside the pill room, he was just about to light the furnace.
"Master Lin."
Seeing activity in the pill room, Xu Liucai hurriedly bowed respectfully, intending as usual to wait outside.
"So it's Liucai. Mm, I've gained something from alchemy and need to verify it. You needn't tend the furnace or watch the fire today. Take the day off and do as you please."
Lin Changheng smiled.
"Thank you, Master Lin." Xu Liucai's face lit up. He immediately bowed and left, not forgetting to close the pill room door behind him.
By then, Lin Changheng had already gathered his thoughts and focused completely. "This time, I'll test out [Fire Control Art: Agility]!"
Once the furnace had heated up and the medicinal ingredients had entered it...
Even by nightfall, the pill room doors remained tightly shut.
Yet no heat leaked out at all.
At this moment, Lin Changheng's expression was calm, though faint fatigue showed between his brows as he completed the final pill seal.
"Buzz..."
Five pills flew out in rapid succession.
With a sweep of his eyes, Lin Changheng's pupils suddenly contracted. Among the five, one was clearly different from the other four.
Perfectly round like red jade, it seemed to carry flowing spiritual radiance.
His nose twitched. Its medicinal fragrance was crisp and refreshing, soothing the heart and clearing the mind, while its scent lingered thickly without dispersing.
"A 'Premium Grade' [Crimson Flame Pill]?"
The answer came naturally to Lin Changheng. This pill was vastly superior in quality to the standard [Crimson Flame Pill]s he had refined before. There could be no other explanation.
"So it really was a matter of Fire Control ability! I'd always questioned myself before. My alchemy procedures and timing weren't wrong, yet I could never reach the realm of 'Premium Grade' pills. It left me puzzled and conflicted."
"This time, my Fire Control has improved again, and I really refined a 'Premium Grade' pill!"
"Without the Double Fire Crow Treasure Seed's enhancement, I would have needed to hone my Fire Control techniques for at least ten or twenty years—perhaps even decades—before I might have had a chance of succeeding... Master Mo once said outright that he had spent twenty or thirty years refining pills before he made his first 'Premium Grade' pill."
Lin Changheng's thoughts drifted, and a smile appeared on his face.
Refining a 'Premium Grade' pill was not merely recognition of his alchemy skills. It also meant more spirit stones in earnings and... another acceleration in his cultivation progress.
At market price, a standard [Crimson Flame Pill] cost two low-grade spirit stones, while a 'Premium Grade' [Crimson Flame Pill] could sell for three to four.
Rogue cultivators with low cultivation rarely bought them. They were not the target customers.
But Qi Refining Middle Stage cultivators, as well as juniors and disciples from cultivation lineages and sects, competed to buy them.
For the former, 'Premium Grade' pills among low-grade pills remained effective for Qi Refining Middle Stage cultivators, yet were much cheaper than mid-grade pills.
For the latter, 'Premium Grade' pills contained extremely little pill toxin—so little it could be ignored. They would not harm one's Dao Path, while still allowing cultivation to advance rapidly, making them highly favored by those who did not lack spirit stones.
"From now on, I can take two 'Premium Grade' pills every month as well. My cultivation speed can increase by fifty percent!"
"In other words, in roughly another two and a half years, I can polish my realm to completion and break through to the Qi Refining Middle Stage."
Such a reduction in time represented an expenditure of two or three hundred spirit stones.
"Fortunately, I can refine them myself. Otherwise, even if I had the spirit stones, I wouldn't know where to buy so many 'Premium Grade' pills!"
Lin Changheng shook his head with a smile.
Pills, artifacts, arrays, and talismans—the four leading arts among the hundred cultivation arts. Alchemy was faintly the foremost among them, and its value and worth lay precisely in this!
Time continued to pass.
Lin Changheng continued refining pills quietly, accumulating 'Premium Grade' [Crimson Flame Pill]s.
He did not reveal in the slightest that he could refine 'Premium Grade' pills. Otherwise, it would be far too shocking.
At the same time, the changes in Zichuan Market had become difficult for attentive people to overlook.
Many forces with shops in Zichuan Market were pulling back, especially the market's owner, the Foundation Establishment Qingfeng Ridge Wang Family, which was also slowly withdrawing its strength.
One obvious sign was that the Wang Family's patrol forces within the market had decreased in number, and their patrol frequency was dropping as well.
Along with it, all manner of rumors surged like a rising tide.
Yet the collection of the "Land Reclamation" substitute service tax had not changed. Under the Wang Family's lead, it was launched in full swing.
After all, on the surface, Land Reclamation was an undertaking led by the superior Purple Extreme Sect—selfless and impartial, meant to benefit generations to come!
It was purportedly a plan for the future of the Zhuang Kingdom cultivation world, to open a new world for all cultivators. It was a thousand-year undertaking, and every cultivator bore responsibility!
Cultivators either had to participate in Land Reclamation and contribute their strength!
Or they had to pay the Land Reclamation tax and contribute their money!
One of the two was mandatory. Otherwise, they would be condemned by all under heaven and jointly exterminated!
The dangers of Land Reclamation were equally obvious. Each Small Reclamation carried a casualty rate of around ten percent, while every Great Reclamation saw the casualty rate climb close to twenty percent!
But danger often represented opportunity as well!
The greater the storm, the more valuable the fish!
It was also the chance for rogue cultivators and lineages to leap over the dragon gate!
Before you continue