I Still Want More

Qingyue carefully placed all the herbs into the pill furnace. Then she circulated her spiritual energy and began refining pills in silence.

Li Ping'an whispered from the side, "Be careful to control your spiritual power!"

Qingyue obediently nodded and cautiously fed her spiritual energy into the pill furnace.

Standing beside her, Li Ping'an selected some old firewood and tossed it into the pill furnace, making the flames inside burn even more fiercely.

Qingyue refined the pills with utmost concentration, a sheen of fragrant sweat appearing on her forehead.

When Li Ping'an saw how seriously Qingyue was refining pills, his heart suddenly clenched.

Good heavens! This girl isn't actually going to succeed, is she?

She absolutely can't!

It hadn't been easy for me to find such a perfect sucker!

Only if she produces useless pills can I use those useless pills to raise my strength.

If she succeeds, where am I supposed to find another sucker?

Bang!

Just as Li Ping'an was worrying inwardly, a familiar scent suddenly wafted out from the pill furnace.

Li Ping'an quietly let out a breath, and a smile flickered across his face.

Not bad, not bad! It's still the same old smell!

Qingyue failed again and again and again!

Wonderful! As long as she fails, I can keep reaping the benefits!

Qingyue slowly opened her eyes and sighed at the sky.

"Ah... why did this happen?"

"I clearly succeeded last time, didn't I? Why did I fail again? Could it be that I really was just lucky last time?"

"Ah, forget it, forget it. Maybe I really wasn't cut out for this!"

Qingyue muttered to herself. When she turned her head, she saw that Li Ping'an had already shoved half his body into the pill furnace and was fiddling with something inside.

"Junior Brother, don't waste your effort. This batch definitely failed. There's no hope."

"I'm gradually coming to terms with it now. I know I'm simply not cut out for this. I've already given up!"

Qingyue pursed her little lips. She knew this batch had failed beyond all hope; there could not possibly be a miracle.

However, Li Ping'an's muffled voice sounded out.

"Quick, Senior Sister, look what I found in here."

Then she saw Li Ping'an seemingly perform a magic trick, pulling two glittering golden pills out of the charcoal-filled pill furnace.

The pills were perfectly round and naturally formed, radiating a faint glow. At a glance, they were clearly top-grade Body-Tempering Pills.

"Th-this-this..."

Qingyue could not believe it. Her little mouth hung wide open, her face filled with delight.

"It succeeded again? Really?"

"Really."

Li Ping'an grinned, revealing a mouthful of gleaming white teeth.

"See? You succeeded again! I told you that you have talent for pill refinement. Don't give up so easily."

"Really?"

Qingyue still found it a little hard to believe as she accepted the two Body-Tempering Pills Li Ping'an handed her.

This was the second time!

The first time, pills had still been produced after the pill furnace exploded, and she had thought it was simply good luck. Yet the same thing had happened a second time!

Could it be that I can only produce pills after an explosion when refining pills?

Qingyue muttered, her little head spinning rapidly as she immediately summed up a set of pill-refining principles.

To successfully refine pills, I must first burn the herbs black and blow up the pill furnace before I can successfully refine Body-Tempering Pills!

"Yes, that's it. I understand now."

Qingyue seemed to have found the trick. She immediately pulled a small notebook from her pocket and began writing in it.

"To refine pills, one must burn the herbs black and char them to produce Body-Tempering Pills."

When Li Ping'an saw the pill-refining insights she was recording, he nearly spat out a mouthful of blood.

But it did not matter!

As long as Qingyue could steadily provide him with a few batches of useless and defective pills every day, he could steadily provide her with two or three Body-Tempering Pills!

Looking at it this way, it was simply beneficial to both sides!

Hahaha!

Li Ping'an merely stood to the side and chuckled, not interrupting Qingyue as she summarized her pill-refining experience.

"Alright, I'm very happy today!"

Qingyue put away her little notebook of pill-refining insights. Overjoyed, she patted Li Ping'an on the shoulder and said,

"Junior Brother, your contribution to my success in pill refinement cannot be overlooked!"

Li Ping'an said modestly,

"Not at all, not at all. I merely helped tend the fire. The most important part was you, Senior Sister. You truly have the makings of a pill refiner."

"Of course I do!"

Qingyue proudly raised her head, then pulled a magical artifact emitting a faint glow from her pocket.

"Hehe, Junior Brother, I can sense that your aura is steadily growing stronger. You should be about to reach the Qi Refinement realm, right?"

Li Ping'an's heart jolted. He had never imagined Qingyue could see through his cultivation!

A trace of vigilance instantly rose in his heart. This girl isn't nearly as innocent as she looks!

Qingyue suddenly blinked and said with a smile,

"Junior Brother, hurry and break through to the Qi Refinement realm, okay? That way, you'll be able to cultivate spells. I have a magical artifact here, and I'll give it to you as a reward. You'll be able to use it very soon."

As she spoke, Qingyue casually handed the magical artifact to Li Ping'an.

After taking it, Li Ping'an found that it was quite heavy and seemed to be something used for clashing.

"Th-this... what kind of magical artifact is this?"

Holding the pair of cymbals, Li Ping'an was somewhat baffled.

Qingyue smiled.

"Don't underestimate this magical artifact. On the surface, it's a pair of cymbals, but actually... it really is a pair of cymbals!"

Pfft!

Hearing that, Li Ping'an nearly spat out a mouthful of blood.

No, Big Sister, are you messing with me?

Qingyue then giggled again.

"I'm joking! Though it is a pair of cymbals, it's actually a spiritual-type magical artifact!"

"A spiritual-type magical artifact?"

Li Ping'an was puzzled.

"That's right! When you strike these cymbals with force and pour spiritual power into them, the spiritual attack they release will shake your enemy's mind and spirit!"

"How about it? Impressive, right?"

It could do that?

Li Ping'an was startled when he heard this.

This was a good thing indeed!

Spiritual magical artifacts were even more formidable than ordinary physical magical artifacts, because enemies found them much harder to guard against.

He just did not know whether these cymbals were as extraordinary as Qingyue claimed!

Still, the material and patterns of these cymbals were clearly on a completely different level from ordinary cymbals. They probably did have some real power.

"Thank you, Senior Sister!"

Li Ping'an did not stand on ceremony. After putting away the cymbals, he cupped his hands in thanks.

"What's the big deal? I told you, you're my Junior Brother! And you helped me refine so many pills, so of course I have to thank you!"

"In that case, may this old man shamelessly ask for one more thing?"

Li Ping'an suddenly spoke up.

"Huh? You still want something?"

Qingyue had not expected Li Ping'an to be so thick-skinned. After giving him a spiritual attack magical artifact, he still wanted more.

Li Ping'an said quietly, "I... I want a storage bag. Is that okay?"

A storage bag was what he needed most right now.

He had a huge bag of spirit stones on him now, and carrying them around without a storage bag was terribly inconvenient.