Improved Alchemy Method

In Song Huai's eyes, Jiang Feng had already done extraordinarily well with this batch of pills—far beyond his expectations.

Even if he failed at this final step, it would still be proof of his talent.

With enough practice, becoming a true Alchemist was all but certain.

Seeing the best moment to form the pills slipping away in an instant, he had prepared to step in and help Jiang Feng finish, bringing this alchemy session to a satisfying conclusion.

But just then, Jiang Feng did something completely beyond his expectations.

Before the pills had even begun to form, he actually stood up, walked over to the furnace, and flung open the lid.

A great cloud of white smoke billowed out, turning the entire room into a sea of white.

"Jiang Feng! What are you doing?" Song Huai's voice rose to a startled pitch.

Opening the furnace early was no different from ruining the entire batch. He had spent more than half his life refining pills, yet had never seen anyone lift the lid before the pills were done.

Jiang Feng had no time to explain. He swiftly circulated the Exquisite Breathing Method, summoned the qi and blood within him, and slammed it into the furnace. Then, at top speed, he clamped the lid back down.

Almost at the same moment, Song Huai rushed over and seized his wrist, his face so full of anger it looked ready to burst.

"You brat! You did everything right up to this point, so what in blazes are you doing at the very last moment?"

Jiang Feng had known Song Huai for a while. He knew all too well how obsessed the old man was with alchemy. He could tolerate failure, but he absolutely couldn't tolerate anyone treating alchemy like a joke.

So Jiang Feng hurried to explain.

"Teacher, don't get upset yet. Hear me out. I was trying something."

"Trying something? This is your first time refining pills, and you're already experimenting? Who gave you the nerve?"

Song Huai was so angry he nearly laughed. He even wondered if he had encouraged the boy too much earlier, spoiling him until he no longer knew his place.

He hadn't even learned to walk, and already he was thinking about flying.

But what was done was done. Losing his temper wouldn't change anything, so he forced down his anger and gritted out a question.

"Then go on and tell me—what exactly were you trying?"

Seeing that the anger in Song Huai's eyes was beginning to fade, Jiang Feng secretly breathed a sigh of relief. He composed himself and answered earnestly.

"While watching you refine pills earlier, I noticed something.

"The key to forming Blood-Qi Pills is whether you can lock in the medicinal properties at the moment the qi and blood within the ingredients reach their peak.

"If you do it too early, the medicinal properties haven't fully blended, and the pills are ruined. If you do it too late, the medicinal properties leak away, leaving you with pills of very low quality—and there's even a risk the furnace could explode.

"But every pill changes differently inside the furnace. So, to be safe, people usually have to stop the process as soon as the first pill forms. That greatly reduces the number of pills they can produce."

Song Huai listened with a furrowed brow. Without his noticing, most of the anger had already drained from his face.

He had thought Jiang Feng didn't understand how Blood-Qi Pills were made and was just blindly tinkering on his own. But hearing him out, Song Huai realized he had still underestimated the boy.

Every word Jiang Feng said was reasonable, and he had pinpointed the exact difficulty in refining Blood-Qi Pills.

Song Huai had noticed this problem long ago. He had tried to improve the process by using special ingredients, but every attempt had failed, and in the end he had been forced to give up.

But he had never told Jiang Feng any of this.

Song Huai cast Jiang Feng a doubtful glance, his tone tinged with scrutiny.

"Did you figure all that out on your own?"

Jiang Feng nodded, then shook his head. With an earnest expression, he replied.

"I figured half of it out by watching. The other half was a guess."

Song Huai nearly laughed in exasperation at that answer.

A guess? And you still dare say it with such confidence?

But after thinking it over, he didn't say anything more.

Being able to guess this much at least showed that the boy could think for himself. That was far better than those who only knew how to copy what they saw.

Without independent reasoning, an Alchemist could never make progress in the art of alchemy.

Suppressing his amusement, he asked another question.

"What you said just now was more or less right. But what was the meaning of what you just did?"

Seeing that Song Huai's anger had vanished and given way to curiosity, Jiang Feng smiled and explained earnestly.

"Teacher, I've been thinking about something.

"I was wondering whether it might be possible to draw out the process of forming Blood-Qi Pills.

"If we can delay it for just a little longer, we can preserve as many pills as possible, and the number we produce will rise considerably."

At this, he paused and glanced at Zhang Yong and Zhang Yang, who were standing nearby with their ears pricked up, eavesdropping. His tone turned firm.

"You two, go outside. I need to speak with Teacher alone."

Zhang Yong and Zhang Yang hadn't understood much, but they had been straining to listen. Just as they were getting to the interesting part, Jiang Feng abruptly shooed them away in a commanding tone. They were immediately displeased.

Just because Alchemist Song let you boss him around, you think you can boss us around too?

The two shot Song Huai a defiant look, hoping he would scold Jiang Feng on the spot.

But to their utter surprise, Song Huai immediately turned on them, his voice deep and sharp as he shooed them away like flies.

"Are you deaf? Didn't you hear Jiang Feng? Get out, both of you! You idiots!"

The two no longer dared entertain any defiant thoughts. They scrambled out of the Alchemy Room.

At last, the room fell quiet. Only then did Song Huai nod, his tone carrying an unusual gravity.

"All right, no one else is here. You can tell me what you wanted to say."

Jiang Feng nodded and continued without haste.

"Teacher, I've thought of a method. Use qi and blood as a buffer: a moment before the pills form, send it into the furnace and wrap it around the pills that haven't yet taken shape.

"That would give the unfinished pills more time, while keeping the ones that have already formed from causing an accident when their qi and blood leak out.

"The number of pills we produce should rise considerably, and forming them should become much easier."

After hearing him out, Song Huai didn't answer right away. He fell silent, murmuring to himself.

"Qi and blood share the same source as Blood-Qi Pills. They don't repel each other, so there shouldn't be any violent reaction. This method might actually make sense."

Even with more than half a lifetime of experience in alchemy, he couldn't dismiss Jiang Feng's idea out of hand. In fact, he was beginning to think the boy might truly have something there.

After pondering for a moment, he raised his head and fixed Jiang Feng with a solemn gaze.

"How can you be sure this method will work?"

Jiang Feng smiled and pointed to the large furnace, which was still radiating intense heat.

"Teacher, the pills should have finished forming by now. Open the lid, and we'll see whether it worked."

Song Huai considered it. That was true enough.

The result was right there in the furnace. There was no need to argue any further.

He strode over to the furnace and, without waiting for Jiang Feng, personally flung open the lid.

A blast of searing white smoke, carrying a strange pill fragrance, rushed toward them.

Just smelling it was enough to ease half the tension in Song Huai's heart. He could be certain that at least some Blood-Qi Pills had formed inside.

There was no doubt that this alchemy session had succeeded.

The only thing he still didn't know was how many pills had formed.