In the Chu Kingdom, a Lower-grade Magical Artifact cost around a hundred spirit stones.
A Middle-grade Magical Artifact cost two hundred spirit stones, and a Superior-grade Magical Artifact four hundred.
As for Top-grade Magical Artifacts, eight hundred spirit stones was merely the starting price, and even then, they were often impossible to buy.
That was because Top-grade Magical Artifacts were generally used by cultivators in the Foundation Establishment Realm, with whom cultivators in the Qi Refining Period could hardly compete.
Meanwhile, outer disciples of the Primordial Yang Sect received only five spirit stones a month.
Apart from the standard-issue magical artifacts provided by the sect, buying an additional low-grade magical artifact would take nearly two years of saving, even if they lived frugally. A mid-grade one was even further beyond their reach.
Watching Senior Brother Wu leave, Liu Yu gathered his wandering thoughts.
And so his cultivation life in the herb garden officially began.
First, he brought the spirit herb seeds into the Immortal Mansion and planted them. After accelerating their growth to maturity, he placed the herbs in the jade boxes he had prepared.
He spent another fifteen spirit stones replenishing the spiritual energy consumed by the black spirit field.
The expense made Liu Yu wince. His Storage Bag now held only eighteen spirit stones, a drastic reduction.
Touching his Storage Bag, he let out a long breath, feeling an urgent need to earn spirit stones.
Every day, he spent four hours tending the spirit herb garden, weeding and watering the herbs.
Then he spent four hours carefully studying Basics of Alchemy, recording anything he did not understand and slowly thinking it over, examining it again and again.
Afterward, he spent two hours practicing spells and using magical artifacts.
On the road to immortality, conflict was unavoidable for all sorts of reasons.
Besides cultivation realm, magical artifacts and spells were also crucial. They were the means by which he protected his path, matters of life and death that he could never afford to neglect.
At night, he spent eight hours meditating and refining qi, cultivating with the abundant spiritual energy in the herb garden.
His cultivation realm was the foundation of everything. Liu Yu always kept that firmly in mind.
The remaining six hours were for sleep and rest.
Cultivators in the Qi Refining Period could not yet go without sleep or rest. They had to sleep to recover their depleted energy.
He followed his plan every day, living an exceptionally full life.
In the blink of an eye, more than half a month passed.
The spirit herb seeds he had planted had already been brought to maturity by the Immortal Mansion, yielding thirty sets of herbs for refining Spirit-Gathering Pills and fifteen sets for refining Pure Spirit Pills.
Sunlight streamed through the window, spilling over his body with a pleasant warmth.
It was time.
The thought flashed through Liu Yu's mind inside the thatched hut.
After more than half a month of careful study, he felt he had thoroughly grasped Basics of Alchemy and had developed some ideas about refining Spirit-Gathering Pills.
Liu Yu planned to begin his journey in alchemy with Spirit-Gathering Pills.
As pills taken by cultivators in early Qi Refining, Spirit-Gathering Pills were the easiest to refine and required one fewer spirit herb than Pure Spirit Pills.
They were the ideal choice for familiarizing himself with the alchemy process.
Working from easy to difficult was a path every alchemy apprentice had to follow.
Otherwise, no matter how astonishing their talent for alchemy, without gradual progress, failure was the only road open to them.
Liu Yu cleaned the thatched hut, sweeping its clutter into a corner and setting the Purple Copper Cauldron in the center of the room.
His current conditions were crude, so he could only make do for the time being.
Beside the Purple Copper Cauldron, he carefully inscribed a miniature formation, placing three low-grade spirit stones at several junctions between its lines.
This was a Flame-Control Formation recorded in Basics of Alchemy.
Through specific hand seals, it could consume the spiritual energy in spirit stones to produce a magical flame.
This flame could shorten the time needed for alchemy and burned very steadily, helping improve the success rate.
Generally speaking, success in alchemy depended primarily on several factors:
First, the precise proportions of the spirit herbs-the Pill Formula.
Second, the timing and order in which the spirit herbs were added.
Third, control of the heat during refinement.
Fourth, the timing of opening the cauldron to retrieve the pills.
There were also alchemy techniques and other factors.
As for the first point, the proportions of the spirit herbs, there was little to say.
Through countless experiments by generations of cultivators, these had long since been thoroughly established and compiled into various Pill Formulas.
When refining pills, following the Pill Formula would generally prevent any problems.
Of course, that applied only to ordinary alchemists.
A few master alchemists could make even finer adjustments to the proportions based on the age of the spirit herbs, further improving their success rate.
The second point, the timing of adding the spirit herbs, required some alchemy experience.
A Pill Formula was, after all, an inanimate thing. It could not account for every possible situation.
No two attempts at refining pills could ever be completely identical.
At such times, the alchemist needed to rely on their own experience to judge the right moment.
As for the flame, its importance went without saying, since it was one of the key factors determining success or failure.
If Liu Yu used his meager magical power at the Qi Refining fourth layer to generate a flame, he would likely exhaust it before finishing the refinement.
Moreover, flames produced through magical power were not particularly stable and were unsuitable for alchemy.
Most alchemists chose to refine pills using Earthfire.
Earthfire burned at a high temperature and was steady and enduring, making it one of the best choices.
But Liu Yu had no Earthfire available at present, so he could only use a formation-generated flame, though it did consume spirit stones.
The fourth point, the timing of opening the cauldron, tested the alchemist's experience even more.
Generally, without dozens or even a hundred attempts at refinement, it was difficult to judge accurately.
Alchemy techniques were even harder to learn.
Every alchemist had their own exclusive Alchemy Technique, and they always held something back when teaching apprentices.
Under normal circumstances, they passed these down only to personal disciples or direct descendants.
Basics of Alchemy recorded only a few ordinary alchemy techniques.
If I had the chance, I had to acquire a superior alchemy technique.
Liu Yu felt rather helpless about this and silently resolved to find an opportunity to acquire a superior alchemy technique.
A short while later, everything was ready.
Clang!
Liu Yu opened the fire inlet beneath the Purple Copper Cauldron and placed it in the center of the miniature formation.
Then his hands slowly formed seals, sending several red streaks of light into the formation in succession.
Hummm...
The formation absorbed the red light, and the three embedded spirit stones immediately lit up.
Two breaths later, a fist-sized flame appeared at the center of the formation, beneath the Purple Copper Cauldron.
Radiating intense heat, the flame gradually swelled and burned fiercely inside the fire inlet.
The air in the room immediately filled with the presence of fire, and the temperature began rising rapidly.
Sitting cross-legged nearby, Liu Yu felt a wave of heat strike his face and had to form a hand seal to reduce the flame's output.
After about seven minutes, the purplish-red body of the Purple Copper Cauldron glowed faintly red, and he sensed an astonishing heat.
Liu Yu knew the preheating was complete.
He quickly formed hand seals, sending a wisp of magical power into the small cauldron, then used his Divine Sense to lift the lid and expose its round opening.
Next, I had to add the spirit herbs and separate their essence from their impurities.
With that thought, Liu Yu patted his Storage Bag.
Several jade boxes immediately appeared in his hands, containing the spirit herbs needed to refine Spirit-Gathering Pills.
He opened the jade boxes one by one, placed a spirit herb into the cauldron, then lowered the lid to seal the opening.
Sss...
Amid the red glow, the flame burned fiercely.
Liu Yu extended his Divine Sense into the cauldron, carefully adjusting the flame's size and temperature to remove impurities and extract the spirit herb's essence.
Following the Pill Formula, he familiarized himself with the alchemy process step by step.
For some time afterward, he formed hand seals continuously, adding the spirit herbs one after another according to the Spirit-Gathering Pill Formula.
He combined the extracted spirit herb essences inside the cauldron into marble-sized spheres, beginning the formation of the pills.
Time slipped by, and wisps of medicinal fragrance gradually spread from the small cauldron, refreshing anyone who smelled them.
Sweat beaded on Liu Yu's forehead, but anticipation showed on his face, and excitement stirred within him.
The next instant, he changed his hand seal, sending a streak of red light onto the formation, and the flame slowly died out.
At the same time, with a thought, he used his Divine Sense to lift the lid.
But just then, the rich medicinal fragrance gradually faded, and a strange smell spread through the air.
"Not good!"
"Could it be?!"
Liu Yu's expression changed. As though something had occurred to him, he hurried forward to look.
Several mottled pills lay at the bottom of the cauldron, looking very different from the Spirit-Gathering Pills he usually saw.
"Defective pills?"
Liu Yu's face darkened. He felt it was a pity, but also only natural.
After all, this was only his first attempt. He was no alchemy genius; he merely had a slight advantage over ordinary cultivators.
So-called defective pills were one possible product of a failed refinement.
They formed when errors in the heat or the timing of opening the cauldron caused most of the medicinal potency to dissipate. Such defective pills contained very little spiritual energy and had negligible effects.
Shaking his head with a bitter smile, Liu Yu calmed himself and casually put away the defective pills.
He emptied the powdered impurities from the cauldron and washed it clean with water. Only after the Purple Copper Cauldron had cooled completely did he begin refining pills again.
P.S. I've received the site's private message, so readers can invest in the book now.
Thanks to readers Love Left, the Wind Stopped; Carry Me, Eldest Senior Brother; An Unforgotten Thought; Reader Under Heaven 160; and Reader 140515160618205 for their recommendation votes. Special thanks to the generous supporter One Thought ＾_＾ Confounds Heaven's Secrets for casting sixteen votes!
If you think this book is decent, please support it with a recommendation vote! Changting bows in thanks!