Greenhouse Herbs, Wholesale Fire

"Foundation Establishment Pill? What kind of pill is that?"

"Peak fourth-grade..."

Both Lin Fei and Xue Mei were puzzled. Neither had ever heard of this Foundation Establishment Pill.

Frank and Otto were different. They mulled over Xiao Cha's words, and within moments, their expressions changed. They looked at each other, their eyes filled with shock.

"Old Otto, a Foundation Establishment Pill. Could it be..."

"I think it's possible too. After all, this pill has only appeared once so far. Even if someone else wanted to refine it, they wouldn't have the formula."

Frank stroked his beard as he looked at Otto.

"So he's that mysterious alchemist."

Otto raised his eyebrows.

"Most likely. It looks like we've truly stumbled upon an extraordinary treasure! If he can refine a peak fourth-grade pill, his actual grade probably goes well beyond fourth-grade..."

While the two were discussing him, Xiao Cha had already begun refining. He tossed the Tiandu Corpse Fire in his hand into the enormous pill furnace before him. It immediately blazed up, its terrifying heat making even the edges of the room seem to warp.

"What kind of fire is that? How can it be so terrifying?"

In a mere fifteen minutes, Xiao Cha had shocked the four of them more times than they could count, leaving them somewhat numb.

Under the extreme heat of the Tiandu Corpse Fire, the furnace soon glowed red. Seeing that it had finished preheating, Xiao Cha deftly tossed the medicinal ingredients inside one after another, then casually raised his hand and released his soul power to control the ingredients and remove their impurities.

Time ticked by. Xiao Cha's hands moved as though he were performing a beautiful piece of music, every motion coordinated and seemingly flawless. Even Frank and Otto unwittingly became entranced.

After a while, Xiao Cha's previously relaxed gaze suddenly sharpened. He abruptly intensified the fire inside the furnace, continually refining a translucent pill until waves of medicinal fragrance finally wafted from it.

The fragrance invigorated all four of them. Their eyes gleamed as they looked at the pill inside the furnace.

"A peak fourth-grade pill, and it even has a medicinal fragrance. Even Pill King Gu He has probably only refined pills of this quality a handful of times."

"A true genius. A fourth-grade alchemist at such a young age. Even I couldn't manage techniques like these."

Seeing that the pill was complete, Frank and Otto began talking again, showering Xiao Cha with praise.

Once the moment was right, Xiao Cha casually beckoned, retrieving the Tiandu Corpse Fire and drawing the Foundation Establishment Pill from the furnace into his hand. He turned, walked over to Frank, and offered it to him with a smile.

"Please take a look, masters. This is the pill I refined."

"Excellent, excellent! There's no need to inspect it. Your refining techniques alone are already every bit as good as ours, young friend Xiao Cha."

Smiling, Frank pushed Xiao Cha's hand back and offered him another round of praise.

"Indeed, indeed. Your techniques truly astounded us both, young friend Xiao Cha. I wonder how you practiced. Such outstanding talent really makes me green with envy."

Otto also walked over with a genial smile. What had shocked him most throughout all this was Xiao Cha's technique. Those practiced movements looked as though he had repeated them thousands of times.

At their words, Xiao Cha smiled and rubbed his nose. Their praise did not make him particularly conceited. He knew perfectly well what he was made of.

The only reason he was so practiced was the supply of medicinal ingredients from the Little Green Bottle: greenhouse herbs, wholesale fire.

The fact that Little White and Little Jade had broken through to late second-tier was enough to show just how many scrap pills he had refined.

"You flatter me. I've simply practiced a lot. Since you've both inspected the pill, I was wondering about my..."

Frank nodded at his words, a look of realization appearing on his face.

"Just look at my memory! Don't worry, young friend. Well... Xue Mei, hurry and fetch a Third-Grade Alchemist Badge."

Xue Mei nodded, then pulled Lin Fei along as she left the refining room.

Once they had gone, Frank rubbed his hands together and looked at Xiao Cha.

"Hehe, I take it you were that mysterious alchemist in Wutan City, young friend?

"Would you be willing to sell me that Foundation Establishment Pill, young friend Xiao Cha? My disappointing disciple's cultivation isn't very high, so I was hoping..."

"Hey! You old rascal! Don't listen to him, young friend. I'll take that pill. We can negotiate the price."

Seeing them behave like this, Xiao Cha's lips curled slightly. He took another Foundation Establishment Pill out of his Storage Ring.

"Certainly. When I was in Wutan City, a Foundation Establishment Pill sold for two million gold coins. Since I feel such a warmth toward you two seniors, I'll give you a friendly price. How does one million eight hundred thousand sound?"

"Well..."

Hearing this, Frank and Otto were momentarily at a loss for words. Was two million expensive? A little, but for a peak fourth-grade pill, it was still acceptable.

Were they hesitating because they had no money? No. As fourth-grade alchemists and the president and vice president of the Alchemist Association, they could afford two million. The problem was that they could not produce it all at once.

Two Foundation Establishment Pills were worth nearly four million. Where were they supposed to scrape that together?

"Well... ahem, young friend Xiao, it's not that we can't afford it. It's just that we can't scrape together four million gold coins on such short notice.

"Could we trade pill formulas instead? We may not have much else on us, but we have quite a few fourth-grade pill formulas, and even a few fifth-grade pill recipes."

At this, Xiao Cha raised his eyebrows, placed the pills in jade bottles, and handed them to the two men.

"Of course. Since you two seniors would like to trade pill formulas, just give me whatever you think is fair."

Frank and Otto exchanged a glance, then took four parchment scrolls from their Storage Rings.

"Here are two formulas for peak fourth-grade pills: the Purple Heart Barrier-Breaking Pill and the Three-Pattern Green Spirit Pill. There's also a formula for the mid fourth-grade Blood-Burning Pill and one for the early fourth-grade Bone-Nurturing Pill.

"All of them can still be viewed twice. What do you think, young friend Xiao Cha?"

At the mention of the Three-Pattern Green Spirit Pill and the Purple Heart Barrier-Breaking Pill, Xiao Cha's eyes flickered. The two pills served the same purpose: both were used to aid breakthroughs within the Da Dou Shi realm. Their effects did not overlap, so they could be taken consecutively.

He therefore accepted the four pill formulas.

"Then you have my thanks."

"Master, I've brought the badge."

Just then, Xue Mei and Lin Fei came in with a Third-Grade Alchemist Badge and an alchemist's robe.

Frank took the badge and robe and handed them to Xiao Cha.

"Here are your things, young friend. As for your fourth-grade alchemist badge, I'll write to headquarters in the Imperial Capital later. When you get there, simply give them your name."

"Thank you. Since the assessment is complete, and I still have important matters to attend to, I'll take my leave here."

After putting everything away, Xiao Cha prepared to leave. While Xiao Yan was still preparing the Naling, he needed to hurry to Stone Desert City, check on the heavenly flame first, then go to Desert City to find Hai Bodong and check in.

"In that case, we won't keep you, young friend. The Jia Ma Empire's Alchemist Tournament is coming up soon. With your talent, I imagine you'll certainly participate. We'll see you then."

"The Alchemist Tournament? Understood. I'll take a look if I have the chance."