Obtaining a Pill Furnace, Preparing to Refine Qi-Gathering Pills

"Sister Lingyue, could you take another look for me? What is this copper furnace used for?"

Xu Taiping then lifted the copper furnace in his palm and held it out before Fairy Lingyue, his face full of curiosity.

"Little Taiping, you really are lucky."

Rather than answering directly, Fairy Lingyue looked at Xu Taiping with a smile.

"Why do you say that, Sister?"

Xu Taiping sensed that Fairy Lingyue meant more than she was saying.

"This is a pill furnace, a magic artifact cultivators use to refine pills. It happens to be just what you need to refine the Qi-Gathering Pills for your upcoming breakthrough."

Fairy Lingyue explained to Xu Taiping.

"Refine Qi-Gathering Pills? But when I listened to Purple Sun True Lord's lecture, he said that to break through to the Gate Opening Realm, I only needed to cultivate the Setting Sun Glow Art to the Ice Formation Stage, then accumulate qi in my dantian and break through all the apertures in my body in one stroke."

Xu Taiping was somewhat puzzled.

"Little Taiping, you have mortal bones. Naturally, there will be more obstacles along your path of cultivation than there are for other cultivators."

Fairy Lingyue sighed with pity.

Xu Taiping froze at her words, a flicker of resentment crossing his eyes, but his gaze quickly grew resolute again as he said:

"Sister Lingyue, please teach me how to refine Qi-Gathering Pills!"

More than two months later.

Spring lasted all year on Cloud Cottage Mountain, and its scenery remained unchanged.

Xu Taiping's life was much the same. Every day, he practiced the Setting Sun Glow Art at midnight, noon, and dusk. In between, he practiced his fist techniques and archery, chopped wood, watered the plants, hunted, and learned to refine pills. His days were full.

His only regret was that Uncle Bai had never returned after that meal. The spirit bird delivering his supplies had been replaced by a foul-tempered White-Headed Eagle.

In addition, another crop of nine-leaf white perilla had ripened in the medicine garden, and he had finally saved enough to buy the medicinal ingredients needed for Qi-Gathering Pills.

After deducting the cost of the ingredients and my expenses over the past month or two, I have ninety-six Merit Coins left. Buying a True Fire Talisman is still a distant prospect, but at least I don't have to worry about having no Merit Coins to hand over to the sect.

That evening, in the rear courtyard of the Green Bamboo Abode, Xu Taiping looked at the medicinal ingredients in the bamboo basket beside him, filled with a sense of accomplishment.

Yet Xu Taiping still faced one great crisis-

If he failed to break through to the Gate Opening Realm in half a month, his name would be erased from the Spirit Bone Stele, and he would face expulsion from the Azure Profound Sect, or even punishment.

"The moon has reached the middle of the sky. It's time to call Sister Lingyue out to refine the Qi-Gathering Pills together."

Xu Taiping glanced at the full moon overhead and murmured to himself.

As he and Fairy Lingyue had agreed, the Full Moon Day two months later was when they would refine the Qi-Gathering Pills together.

Over those two months, he had secretly tried to break through using the method Purple Sun True Lord had taught, but no matter how hard he tried, he had never succeeded.

Now only one path remained before Xu Taiping-refining the Qi-Gathering Pills.

"Sister Lingyue, it's time."

Xu Taiping stood and called softly toward the medicine garden.

"Mmm..."

Before long, a languid voice drifted over from the direction of the medicine garden.

"Whew... That was such a comfortable sleep."

A moment later, Fairy Lingyue appeared before Xu Taiping, stretching and yawning, her eyes still drowsy with sleep.

"Sister Lingyue, did you not sleep well when you were outside the mountain?"

Xu Taiping was curious.

"Spiritual energy is scarce outside the mountain. For this remnant soul of mine, sleeping is torture. Here, it's different. Spiritual energy is abundant, so sleeping does no harm and is actually beneficial. It nourishes my divine soul."

Fairy Lingyue smiled.

Xu Taiping's question had visibly chased much of the sleepiness from her face.

"Have you gathered all the ingredients?"

Fairy Lingyue asked Xu Taiping.

Before going to sleep, she had already arranged with Xu Taiping for him to prepare all the ingredients needed for the Qi-Gathering Pills during that time.

"I have."

Xu Taiping nodded and pointed to the small bamboo basket beside him, where packets of medicinal ingredients had already been sorted by type.

"They're all ordinary medicinal ingredients. The Merit Coins I saved were just enough to buy one set."

He added.

"The ingredients needed for Qi-Gathering Pills are like those for the Bone-Washing Marrow-Cleansing Soup. None are particularly precious. What matters is the refining method." Fairy Lingyue glanced at the ingredients on the ground, then looked up at Xu Taiping with a solemn expression. "But after the Gate Opening Realm, the medicinal ingredients and pills used to aid cultivation become very expensive. Taiping, you must prepare yourself for that."

"Yes!" Xu Taiping nodded firmly. "No matter how great the cost, I'll gather all those ingredients."

"Then let's begin."

Fairy Lingyue nodded in satisfaction.

Xu Taiping took the little copper furnace from inside his robes and set it on the ground. Then he pressed his other hand against it and began pouring true qi and spiritual power into it.

Boom!

With an explosive boom, the copper furnace, originally only the size of a fist, suddenly grew as tall as a stove.

Xu Taiping remained calm. After all, he had seen this many times already.

"Taiping, I'm sure you've familiarized yourself with how to operate the medicine furnace. You can begin adding charcoal now."

Fairy Lingyue instructed Xu Taiping.

"This pill furnace is also a very ordinary magic artifact. Unless something unexpected happens, its spiritual power will dissipate after refining one batch of pills, leaving it an ordinary furnace cauldron. So, Taiping, you must listen carefully to my instructions and control both the furnace's heat and the timing of adding the ingredients."

As Xu Taiping added charcoal to the furnace, Fairy Lingyue continued giving him instructions, her expression unusually serious.

"Don't worry, Sister Lingyue. Over these past two months, I've rehearsed this many times. I won't make any mistakes."

After adding the charcoal, Xu Taiping stood and looked at Fairy Lingyue with unwavering determination.

The refining process that followed went exactly as Xu Taiping had promised Fairy Lingyue, without a single mistake from beginning to end.

This little fellow has practiced such complicated ingredient timings and furnace temperature control until he's this proficient. He's every bit as good as some cultivators who've studied alchemy for years. Just how much effort has he poured into this?

Watching Xu Taiping keep his hand pressed against the medicine furnace, constantly using his own true qi to control its temperature, Fairy Lingyue's gaze grew ever more ardent.

For it was alchemy, rather than cultivation, that she excelled at most. How could she not feel eager upon seeing a boy with such a talent for refining pills?

Little Taiping, become my disciple.

Fairy Lingyue nearly blurted it out, but swallowed the words when they reached her lips.

As I am now, I can't be a proper master. And if someone recognizes the lineage of the cultivation method he practices and discovers that he's my disciple, I fear it will bring countless deadly calamities upon him in the future. Let it go, let it go...

Fairy Lingyue's expression dimmed.