Alchemy!

"Hm?" What happened next caught Zhang Qingxuan somewhat off guard.

Faced with the violent charge of the Nine Profound Divine Thunder, the Yin-Yang Creation Fire showed no reaction at all.

It simply floated quietly in another corner of his dantian, its icy blue and crimson cores slowly rotating, neither dodging nor yielding.

The lightning surged to within three feet of the flame, only to seem as though it had crashed into an invisible mire. Its speed plummeted, and its power rapidly dissipated.

By the time it truly reached the fire, only a few tiny sparks remained. They crackled across the flame's surface before vanishing without a trace.

The fire neither counterattacked nor retreated. It simply burned in silence, as though wordlessly declaring: Cause as much trouble as you want. It has nothing to do with me.

The Nine Profound Divine Thunder seemed to have thrown a punch into empty air. Frustrated, lightning flashed wildly as it crackled and exploded inside his dantian, making Zhang Qingxuan's meridians ache faintly.

It launched several more probing attacks. Each time, its power greatly diminished as it approached the flame, and it could only retreat resentfully in the end. Even so, arcs of lightning still burst forth from time to time, as if asserting its "sovereignty."

"Phew..."

Zhang Qingxuan let out a breath, then fell into thought.

"Looks like this condensation method is anything but simple!"

Although this Creation Fire had been born from the fusion of ice and fire, possessing the all-encompassing nature of yin and yang and naturally neutralizing the blazing, fierce yang energy of lightning!

It had only been born recently, and its spirituality was still insufficient. It had no real offensive power at all, so the Yin-Yang Creation Fire's ability to withstand the Nine Profound Divine Thunder's attacks was most likely due to the power of the condensation method!

It had raised its strength to an entirely new level.

Having figured this out, he still did not dare let down his guard. With a thought, the Yin-Yang Taiji Diagram he had been nurturing in his sea of consciousness slowly descended into his dantian, hovering between the Nine Profound Divine Thunder and the Yin-Yang Creation Fire.

With it acting as mediator and suppressor, even if the two truly clashed in the future, he would be able to bring them under control in time.

After dealing with the "hidden danger" within his body, Zhang Qingxuan rose to his feet and began arranging defenses.

He walked slowly around the valley. Every seven steps, he used his finger as a brush to carve an intricate purple lightning rune into the air, the rock walls, or the ground.

These lightning runes appeared scattered, but they were actually linked to one another, faintly forming a massive formation that covered the entire valley.

"Heavenly Thunder Array, rise!"

Upon reaching the final formation eye, Zhang Qingxuan gave a low shout, bit his fingertip, and flicked a drop of golden blood essence into it.

Buzz—!

The void trembled!

At the valley entrance, along the rock walls, and in midair... countless purple lightning runes lit up at once, weaving into a vast thunderous net that blanketed heaven and earth.

A violent aura of lightning spread through the air, carrying even a faint scent of scorching.

Any ordinary Soul Beast that approached would be reduced to ash in an instant. Even a powerhouse at the level of a Title Douluo would have to think twice before forcing their way through and consider whether they could withstand the lightning filling the sky.

With this great formation guarding the area, Zhang Qingxuan could finally refine pills without worry.

Over the following days, the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well became his private pill-refining chamber.

During the first few days, he merely harvested the younger, lower-grade herbs from the outer region for practice.

Blood-Stopping Grass, Qi-Replenishing Flowers, Spirit-Calming Leaves... these herbs, precious even in the outside world, flowed from his hands into a furnace formed from Yin-Yang Creation Fire.

For the first few batches, his success rate was pitifully low. Successfully refining one or two furnaces out of ten was already fortunate, and the pills were rough in quality, with muddled medicinal effects.

But Zhang Qingxuan did not care. After every failure, he would sit quietly and review the process, searching the vast inheritance of the Alchemy Canon for the source of the problem.

Gradually, his techniques became more and more proficient.

When controlling the fire, the icy blue and crimson flames moved as easily as his own limbs, at times blazing like the sun and at times cool like the moon. When adding herbs, the quantity and timing of every ingredient were precise to the slightest fraction. Melting, condensing, collecting... every step flowed smoothly, carrying a mysterious rhythm.

Seven days later, Zhang Qingxuan's pill success rate had stabilized above seventy percent. Every pill he refined was of excellent quality, and he occasionally even produced a few supreme-grade pills bearing faint pill patterns.

Only then did he begin using the immortal herbs at the core of the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well.

For the first furnace, he chose Heaven Spirit Grass and Red Sun Vermilion Fruit.

Supplemented by over a dozen auxiliary ingredients such as Earth Vein Ganoderma, Bone Tempering Flower, and Marrow Cleansing Vine, Zhang Qingxuan set up his furnace at the core of the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well.

The Yin-Yang Creation Fire flickered in his palm, its icy blue and crimson cores slowly rotating as he tossed one immortal herb after another into it.

The herbs rapidly melted in the flames. Their impurities were removed and their essence extracted, until they finally became a fist-sized mass of golden-red medicinal liquid.

Zhang Qingxuan's expression turned solemn. His hands formed seals, and his divine sense spread like a net, enveloping the entire Void Pill Furnace.

"Fuse!"

The golden-red medicinal liquid churned and contracted within the flames, gradually taking shape. Crimson clouds gathered above the pill furnace, and the faint roar of a dragon echoed through the valley.

Three days and three nights later.

"Open!"

Zhang Qingxuan gave a low shout, and the Void Pill Furnace burst open!

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh—!

Nine rays of golden light shot into the sky. Within each ray was a pill the size of a dragon eye, gleaming with flowing crimson gold.

Three cloud patterns formed naturally across the surfaces of the pills. Their fragrance spread through the air, and merely breathing it in made one's blood surge and one's entire body feel at ease.

"Creation Pills, complete!"

Using a prepared white jade bottle, Zhang Qingxuan collected all nine pills.

The pills felt warm and smooth in his hand, faintly pulsing as though they were alive.

This pill could temper one's bloodline and promote evolution. For human Soul Masters, it had a chance of causing beneficial mutations in their martial souls, even allowing them to evolve. For Soul Beasts, it was an unparalleled opportunity to awaken ancient bloodlines and advance their own.

The first furnace was a success, greatly boosting Zhang Qingxuan's confidence.

Over the next several days, he refined batch after batch, turning the immortal herbs and spiritual medicines around the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well into bottle after bottle of miraculous pills that seized the fortune of heaven and earth.

Countless top-grade pills emerged one after another!

Origin Spirit Pills. As long as one still had a breath left, taking one could preserve their life. It could also instantly restore most of their depleted Qi and Soul Power, making it a true life-saving treasure.

Divine Soul Pills. These pills specialized in treating injuries to the soul. They could nourish the divine soul and strengthen one's spiritual power, making them invaluable to spiritual-type Soul Masters.

Body Tempering Pills. They tempered the body, equivalent to ten years of bitter cultivation in body-refining arts.

Youth Preserving Pills. Eternal youth, ageless beauty.

Hundred Herb Pills. They could neutralize every poison in the world.

Wind Walker Pills. After swallowing one, the body became as light as a swallow and speed surged dramatically.

Great Strength Pills. They doubled one's strength for a short period...

Furnace after furnace, pill fragrance filled the valley and lingered for a long time.

When Zhang Qingxuan finally stopped, thirty-six white jade bottles had been neatly arranged before him. Every bottle bore a label noting the pill's name and effects.

The bottles were smooth and warm, and the glimmer of the pills within could vaguely be seen flowing through them. Their fragrance seeped through the jade, refreshing anyone who smelled it.

"Hahaha, what a harvest! What a harvest!"

Looking at these pills, Zhang Qingxuan could not help throwing back his head and laughing again.

With these pills, his foundation would become unimaginably deep.

Whether for his own cultivation, building a faction, or trading and exchanging, he now had more than enough capital.

His laughter echoed through the valley, thoroughly waking the White Flood Dragon, which had been dozing nearby.

The White Flood Dragon raised its massive head, its vertical pupils immediately drawn to those jade bottles.

Its gaze locked especially tightly onto the bottle labeled "Creation Pills," and it could no longer look away.

It was a summons from the deepest part of its bloodline.

The White Flood Dragon flicked its tongue. The fragrance of the Creation Pills filling the air made the blood throughout its body boil, as though countless ants were crawling beneath its scales.

It could clearly sense that the pills contained a mysterious, ancient power that resonated with the thin yet genuine dragon blood within its body.

Evolution! Transform into a dragon! Soar through the nine heavens!

The desires buried deep within its bloodline were completely ignited at this moment.