Emperor Pill

"A cauldron has always been the most important tool in the hands of any qualified alchemist."

"And a good cauldron can greatly increase an alchemist's chances of successfully refining pills."

"As for this cauldron in my hands..."

"Its name is rather domineering. Most alchemists on the Dou Qi Continent call it the Black Demon."

"Hehe! Even now, I still remember..."

"Back then, in order to obtain it, I nearly paid with my life!"

Gazing at the black cauldron floating in midair, Old Yao smiled with a touch of nostalgia as he sighed.

"What! This is actually the Black Demon Cauldron!"

"No wonder it looks so extraordinary!"

Hai Bodong immediately exclaimed in astonishment.

"Hehe! As expected of Venerable Yao, Old Yao! He always manages to show off his greatness when no one expects it!"

Even as he marveled, Hai Bodong thought to himself.

The reason Hai Bodong was so shocked was naturally because, decades ago,

he had learned of the Heavenly Cauldron Ranking, renowned throughout the Dou Qi Continent, from old Fama of the Alchemist Guild.

Thus, he knew perfectly well

that the imposing name Black Demon Cauldron

held an almost fanatical allure for every alchemist on the Dou Qi Continent.

Seeing Hai Bodong's astonished expression,

Old Yao asked somewhat curiously, "Oh? It seems you know something of this cauldron's origins!"

In response to Old Yao's question, Hai Bodong spoke frankly. "Hehe! Old Hai, it's like this."

"By chance, I once learned of the Heavenly Cauldron Ranking while speaking with President Fama of the Jia Ma Empire Alchemist Guild."

"According to that old Fama..."

"Just as there is a Heavenly Flame Ranking, the alchemy world of the entire Dou Qi Continent also has a Heavenly Cauldron Ranking."

"And your Black Demon Cauldron, Old Yao, ranks eighth among the thirteen cauldrons on the Heavenly Cauldron Ranking."

Old Yao paused at those words. Then, with a nostalgic smile, he said to Hai Bodong, "Hehe! No wonder!"

"So it was that little Fama who told you. What a coincidence!"

"Though that little fellow and I only met once, he can barely be considered an honorary disciple of mine, Yao Chen!"

"Oh, right! Hai Bodong!"

"Let me ask you this. Since that little Fama is now the president of your Jia Ma Empire Alchemist Guild,"

"do you know what grade alchemist he is now?"

"Oh! You mean old Fama!"

"Uh... as far as I know, he has remained at the Peak Fifth Grade for many years."

"However, his own dou qi cultivation is quite high. It seems to be two stars higher than mine."

Hai Bodong paused.

Then he added rather smugly, "Of course, that old fellow still can't beat me in a fight!"

Old Yao smiled as well. "Hehe!"

"Alright, alright!"

"I know you, Hai Bodong, are good at fighting!"

Immediately afterward, Old Yao said,

"Enough joking around with you, brat!"

"Now, I'm going to start refining the pill!"

Old Yao's palm trembled slightly.

A terrifying pale-white flame

swiftly curled around his palm.

Then, Old Yao slowly pressed his right palm against a diamond-shaped fire vent on the Black Demon Cauldron.

With a light flick of his finger,

the pale-white Bone Spirit Cold Flame swiftly surged within the Black Demon Cauldron.

Finally, Old Yao skillfully swept his palm over the wooden table Hai Bodong had hastily made.

One precious medicinal ingredient after another needed to refine the Emperor Pill was easily drawn into his hand.

Then, those rare medicinal ingredients

were all tossed directly into the fiercely burning Black Demon Cauldron by Old Yao.

Afterward, Old Yao calmly sent more than a dozen tiny clusters of Bone Spirit Cold Flame flying from his withered palm.

He swiftly injected them into the Black Demon Cauldron.

Then, using these dozen or so

tiny offshoots of Bone Spirit Cold Flame,

he tightly wrapped each of the many precious medicinal ingredients he had just thrown in.

Next, within the entire small valley, a black cauldron slowly spun in midair.

Clusters of pale-white Bone Spirit Cold Flame roiled violently within it, distorting the space around it.

During this rather lengthy process,

the pitch-black Black Demon Cauldron

continuously released one ring-shaped ripple of faint energy after another.

Fortunately, Hai Bodong had long since set up a sturdy energy barrier around the area with his own dou qi.

Otherwise, before long,

the magical beasts around this small valley,

upon hearing the commotion here,

would have begun swarming over.

The next morning,

within the flame-tossed Black Demon Cauldron,

a thumb-sized crimson pill embryo

slowly took shape

under the burning of the Bone Spirit Cold Flame.

A moment later,

a rich crimson pill fragrance

suddenly wafted out of the Black Demon Cauldron.

It then began to spread around Old Yao and Hai Bodong beside the cauldron, lingering for a long time.

"Is the pill about to form?"

Smelling that crimson pill fragrance, Hai Bodong asked Old Yao excitedly.

Old Yao nodded with a smile.

Then, his withered palm swept again.

The pale-white flames inside the Black Demon Cauldron

immediately intensified considerably.

In an instant,

within the Black Demon Cauldron,

the Bone Spirit Cold Flame, whose power had suddenly surged,

completely enveloped the crimson pill embryo inside.

Then, the Bone Spirit Cold Flame within the Black Demon Cauldron began its final round of fierce burning upon the pill embryo.

The pale-white Bone Spirit Cold Flame only flared for the span of a blink before swiftly extinguishing.

Then, a thumb-sized

crimson pill that emitted a faint glow

spun rapidly out of the Black Demon Cauldron before finally floating quietly at its center.

At the instant this crimson Emperor Pill appeared, an extremely violent ripple of energy

suddenly burst forth from within the pill.

Although part of this energy ripple was intercepted by the Black Demon Cauldron's unique properties,

a large portion of the energy

still seeped directly through it.

Then,

this special energy carrying the pill fragrance

violently surged in all directions.

Watching from the side, Hai Bodong saw what was happening.

If he allowed it to spread,

the little house he had just built in this small valley would likely collapse at once.

But what Hai Bodong had not expected was

that, based on Old Yao's many years of experience,

his worries were entirely unnecessary.

Old Yao's withered palm

merely gave a casual sweep.

An invisible wave of soul energy

in the blink of an eye

formed a transparent energy barrier

around them.

Under the protection of this special energy barrier

condensed from soul power,

the energy ripples triggered when the crimson Emperor Pill

formed

quickly vanished without a trace.

Seeing that the Emperor Pill had stabilized, Old Yao withdrew the energy barrier condensed from soul power.

Then, Old Yao's palm

beckoned lightly toward the Black Demon Cauldron before him.

The crimson pill

was expelled by the black cauldron.

It then obediently fell into Old Yao's palm.

Holding the crimson pill,

Old Yao merely turned it over and examined it.

Then he nodded slightly.

After casually remarking that it was not bad,

he tossed it toward

Hai Bodong, who had been patiently waiting nearby.

After catching the pill, Hai Bodong curiously examined the crimson Emperor Pill in his hand.

His heart was surging with excitement.

After all, this was the first time he had personally seen an Emperor Pill, a high-grade sixth-grade pill surpassed only by the Sect Breaking Pill.