Rapid progress! Lessons from a Peak Dou Zun

"Following the requirements you gave me that day, I collected the ten most common Grade Two Pills, made by more than a dozen Alchemists."

"Half of them came from Second-Rank Alchemists like me, and a handful came from Third-Rank Alchemists. Miss Ya Fei personally arranged their purchase."

"There is also one pill each from Mr. Liu Ling and Princess Yao Yue. Mr. Liu Ling is a Fourth-Rank Alchemist and a personal disciple of Pill King Gu He, so his refining methods come directly from the Pill King's lineage. Princess Yao Yue is a personal disciple of the Alchemist Guild's president, and her refining methods likewise come directly from his lineage."

"To get those two pills, Miss Ya Fei and I both wrote to the patriarch on your behalf. We put in every good word we could."

"Since they were only Grade Two Pills, Miss Ya Fei's and my contributions and hard work were enough to obtain them without paying much of a price."

"But if you want Grade Three Pills later, I'm afraid both the young lady and I will have to pay a considerable price."

"Of course, if you demonstrate enough value yourself, the patriarch won't treat you poorly."

"I won't ask why you're collecting so many pills made by different Alchemists, but don't let Miss Ya Fei and me down."

Recalling Gu Ni's words, Chu Zhou returned to his private courtyard with ten bottles of pills.

Ya Fei and Gu Ni treated him so well because they valued his talent and wanted to invest in him, hoping for a return.

But a person should be judged by their deeds, not their motives. He had genuinely benefited, so he needed to remember this kindness and repay it someday!

Let's try again.

Entering the secret chamber attached to his bedroom, Chu Zhou sat cross-legged again and took out a Porcelain Bottle.

It held Injury Recovery Pills made by ten Alchemists, including one made by Liu Ling, the Fourth-Rank Alchemist who was Pill King Gu He's disciple.

He swallowed them all. His Myriad Medicine Clarity Body converted their medicinal power into strength that fortified his physique. Images of the ten Alchemists refining Injury Recovery Pills appeared in his mind, along with clear information about the medicinal ingredients involved.

After digesting everything, Chu Zhou's bearing changed. He took out his Medicine Cauldron and Yao Chen again, ready for another round of refining.

This time, however, instead of injecting Dou Qi into the Medicine Cauldron to produce flames, he summoned the Mystic Yellow Azure Flame.

His Dou Qi consumption was halved, while his efficiency more than doubled. He was getting far more done with far less effort.

The liquefaction of the ingredients was perfect, the timing of their fusion was perfect, and his execution was perfect.

Before long, he successfully refined a batch of Injury Recovery Pills.

Their quality was even better than that of the pill Gu Ni had refined.

To Chu Zhou, this was only natural.

After all, he stood on the shoulders of more than a dozen giants, and there would be even more giants beneath his feet in the future.

"I'll have all of you help me cultivate and reach the pinnacle of alchemy."

After finishing his refining, Chu Zhou did not rest. He cultivated instead.

Yao Chen had taught Xiao Yan that cultivating after refining pills would improve both his Dou Qi and his Soul Force, yielding twice the results for half the effort.

He certainly had to follow the cultivation insights of a Nine-Turn Peak Dou Zun to the letter.

Seven days passed in the blink of an eye.

Over those seven days, Chu Zhou's life grew even more orderly.

He spent half the day each morning practicing the Dou Technique Mad Lion's Roar, then swallowed ten pills to master a type of Grade Two Pill.

At night, he continued studying Alchemy with the Mystic Yellow Azure Flame in his secret chamber, switching to cultivation once his Dou Qi ran dry.

He still returned to Blue Star for his three daily meals. He was in no hurry to procure Spirit Beast Meat himself, intending to finish his existing stock first.

Through this disciplined effort, he perfectly mastered the refining methods for seven types of Grade Two Pills. His cultivation rose to four-star Dou Zhe, and his soul power improved slightly as well.

[Name]: Chu Zhou

[Age]: 22

[Attributes]: Fire with Wood Attribute

[Talents]: Void Perception / Myriad Medicine Clarity Body

[Realm]: Four-star Dou Zhe (Dou Qi), early Mortal Realm (soul), mid-first tier (mortal body)

[Cultivation method]: Azure Flame Soul-Refining Art (High Xuan Tier)

[Dou Techniques]: Azure Slashing Sword Aura (Mid Xuan Tier / grows with the soul), Mad Lion's Roar (High Xuan Tier), Explosive Flame Step (Low Xuan Tier), Fire-Pushing Palm (High Yellow Tier)

[Secondary profession]: Alchemist (first rank)

[Equipment]: Storage Ring / Azure Steel Sword (Low Fourth-Rank Dou Weapon)

[Location]: Wutan City (Jia Ma Empire, Northwest Continent, Dou Qi Continent)

[Identity]: First-Rank Alchemist

Still not second rank. Does that mean I need to master the refining methods for more than ten types of Grade Two Pill?

Chu Zhou pondered this, then left the Dou Qi Continent with a thought.

Sending his soul power outward, he sensed Meng Ziwei busy in the kitchen.

"Hm?" He walked out of the study and into the kitchen with a smile, but his expression shifted slightly. "You've been crying. What happened?"

"I wasn't crying. The smoke just got in my eyes," Meng Ziwei said, making an excuse.

"Do you really need to hide things from me?" Chu Zhou's expression turned serious. "If something happened, maybe I can help you resolve it."

Meng Ziwei turned to look at Chu Zhou, and her eyes instantly filled with tears. She opened her arms and hugged him. "Chu Zhou, something happened to my second brother."

Chu Zhou frowned slightly as he listened to Meng Ziwei explain.

Her second brother, Meng Zichen, had been injured during an operation to hunt down a spirit beast the previous day, damaging the meridians around his Dantian.

Anyone who knew anything about cultivation understood how important the meridians were during the Dou Qi cultivation stage. This had practically ruined him.

Treating him might require special second-tier Spirit Medicine, or even third-tier Spirit Medicine, which was extremely scarce at present. The Meng family could not buy it even if they had the money.

Jiang Tianhao of the Jiang Family had offered to obtain a stalk of second-tier Spirit Medicine for Meng Zichen's injuries, but the Meng family would also have to show their sincerity.

When Meng Shanhe had someone deliver Spirit Beast Meat to the villa, he personally told Meng Ziwei about this.

No decision had been made, but sometimes things did not need to be spelled out.

"I see. You're the sincerity they want." Chu Zhou patted Meng Ziwei's back and chuckled. "That's easy enough to handle."

"Huh?" Meng Ziwei raised her tear-streaked face, confusion in her eyes.

"Did you forget I'm an Alchemist?" Chu Zhou chuckled, released Meng Ziwei, and returned to the living room, where he took out a Medicine Cauldron.

Though ordinary Medicine Cauldrons like this were not cheap, Chu Zhou had recently been refining Grade One Pills for the Mittel Auction House to sell. Asking for another one or two was a small matter.

He had also obtained a Storage Ring for himself. After all, it was essential for life at home, travel, murder, and plunder.

"Refining pills?!"

Meng Ziwei came into the living room, her beautiful eyes wide as she stared fixedly at Chu Zhou's hands.

So this was pill refining?

His movements flowed smoothly, possessing a unique beauty.

Just a quarter of an hour later, the fragrance of pills wafted from the Medicine Cauldron.

Meng Ziwei leaned closer and took a sniff. She immediately felt refreshed, and even her meridians seemed to grow more active.

"What kind of pill is this?" Meng Ziwei asked curiously.

"A Grade Two Pill called the Pulse-Protecting Pill. It protects the meridians from damage." Chu Zhou took out a jade bottle and put all the pills he had refined inside, then stood up and explained to Meng Ziwei, "When taking pills with particularly potent effects that can strain the body, or absorbing natural treasures with powerful destructive properties, you use Pulse-Protecting Pills alongside them."

"You said your second brother's meridians could be repaired with certain second-tier Spirit Medicines. In that case, the medicinal power of a Pulse-Protecting Pill should definitely help him."

"If the Pulse-Protecting Pill can't help, second-tier Spirit Medicines won't work either. You don't need to sacrifice yourself to beg anyone for help. Just wait until I can refine Grade Three Pills."

Hearing this, Meng Ziwei looked delighted. "You can already refine Grade Two Pills? That's wonderful! My second brother can be saved, and I won't have to... sob."

At that, Meng Ziwei threw herself into Chu Zhou's arms in delight.

Smiling, Chu Zhou reached out and stroked her head.

But the next moment, his gaze suddenly sharpened, and he looked toward a window to one side.

"Looks like these pills really do smell good. Even the Spirit Beast Meat is delivering itself to my door!"