Cultivation: From Menial Laborer to Immortal Venerable Section 39

Lin Xueying also had a courtyard in Danbao Pavilion, not far from Zhou Xun's place.

Zhou Xun brought the refined Pigu Pills and arrived outside the courtyard gate.

"Knock, knock—"

He knocked on the door knocker.

A moment later, a maidservant dressed in a green dress and shoes emerged. She had fair skin, long legs, and a delicate, lovely appearance.

Seeing that it was Zhou Xun, the young woman curtsied slightly in greeting:

"Greetings, Alchemist Zhou!"

"Is the young lady in?" Zhou Xun returned the bow, his demeanor gentle and refined.

"She's inside, Alchemist Zhou, please come in!"

Zhou Xun then stepped through the main gate.

The courtyard was filled with spiritual flowers and exotic plants, emitting a faint medicinal fragrance. A graceful figure stood among them, diligently tending to them.

This Miss Lin not only possessed superb alchemy skills but also had considerable talent in the cultivation of spiritual plants.

"Greetings, young lady!" Zhou Xun gave a slight bow.

Hearing his voice, the young woman tilted her head, then rose to look at Zhou Xun.

"Alchemist Zhou, you're here! Have you finished refining the Fire Barrier Pills? I'm sure your pill completion rate will be the highest again this time!" The young woman smiled brilliantly, outshining all the surrounding flowers.

Zhou Xun remained composed. He patted his Storage Pouch, took out over ten bottles of pills, and handed them over.

The young woman didn't even look at them, simply storing them in her Storage Pouch.

"Fifteen bottles of completed pills. I've noted it down. The Spirit Stones will be issued along with your monthly salary, and your contribution points have already been recorded under your name!"

Zhou Xun nodded upon hearing this. Just as he was about to take his leave, the young woman called out to him.

"Alchemist Zhou, please stay a moment. Let's chat in the pavilion!" the young woman said, pointing to a pavilion not far away.

She then instructed the maidservant:

"Xiao E, brew a pot of Spirit Mist Tea!"

Zhou Xun didn't understand her intention, but he still followed the young woman to the pavilion and sat down.

"Alchemist Zhou's alchemy skills are becoming increasingly profound. I imagine in another year or two, you'll be able to enter the mid-grade ranks!" Lin Xueying opened her delicate lips slightly, her starry eyes showing admiration.

In her eyes, the man before him had a gentle demeanor, like an orchid or osmanthus tree, and his alchemy skills were quite accomplished. He had a high probability of becoming a high-grade alchemist in the future.

Perhaps even a second-tier alchemist, there was a slight hope.

Such talent was extremely rare even among the Four Great Clans.

"You flatter me, young lady!" Zhou Xun replied humbly.

"I invited you here because I need your help with something!" After a brief exchange of pleasantries, the young woman got straight to the point.

"I want to refine mid-grade Fire Barrier Pills, but among all mid-grade pills, this one is among the most difficult to refine. With my own strength, I fear I may not be able to complete it."

"Therefore, I need someone to assist me and handle some of the spiritual herbs!"

The refining process for mid-grade Fire Barrier Pills requires the simultaneous condensation of two different medicinal liquids. The properties of the spiritual herbs used to refine these two liquids are incompatible, making it impossible to refine them in the same alchemy furnace simultaneously.

They need to be processed in two separate alchemy furnaces, and then converged together during the liquid condensation stage.

Although Lin Xueying was a mid-grade alchemist, her cultivation was still at the mid-stage of Qi Condensation. She had not yet awakened her Divine Sense, making it impossible for her to control two alchemy furnaces at the same time. Thus, she needed an assistant to help her process the spiritual herbs in the other furnace.

Zhou Xun had the highest alchemy skills among the three in the Fire Barrier Pill refinement group, making him the most suitable candidate.

"Since the young lady requires it, I naturally have no objections. However, the task of refining low-grade Fire Barrier Pills..."

Zhou Xun paused. He didn't refuse, but the task of refining low-grade Fire Barrier Pills had a generous reward.

"For refining mid-grade Fire Barrier Pills, upon successful completion, you will receive fifty Spirit Essences per pill and five contribution points!" the young woman said, her face instantly turning cold, her expressionless.

"If that is the case, I will follow the young lady's command!"

This was also an image Zhou Xun had deliberately cultivated.

He vaguely felt that this Miss Lin was being a bit too friendly towards him.

Beauty is a disaster, he thought. He decided to set aside personal feelings and handle everything strictly on a professional basis.

"Tomorrow, you will come directly to my place, and we will begin refining the mid-grade Fire Barrier Pills!"

"Yes!"

After leaving, Zhou Xun did not return to his home in Green Willow Alley. Instead, he went to Mystic Talisman Pavilion and found Lan Song, purchasing several first-tier mid-grade Defense Talismans from him.

The Fire Barrier Pill only had the effect of resisting fire elemental power. The young lady's invitation made him feel that beneath the bright surface of Red Leaf Square, some undercurrents were surging.

Afterward, he went to Hundred Treasures Pavilion and purchased three sets of body-refining materials.

His body-refining technique had progressed smoothly during this period. With a few more attempts, he should be able to successfully master it.

However, his cultivation remained stuck at the peak of the third layer of Qi Condensation. Despite this, he hadn't stopped cultivating during this time. He had a strong feeling that the day of breakthrough was not far off.

The next day, Zhou Xun arrived at Lin Xueying's courtyard early.

Looking at the spiritual herbs filling the courtyard, Zhou Xun felt a pang of envy.

These were all spiritual herbs, and many of them were even ranked.

He had even spotted several mid-grade, first-tier spirit herbs, and this was merely Lin Xueying's separate residence.

"A first-tier, mid-grade Spirit Herb Cultivator!" Zhou Xun guessed.

"Alchemist Zhou, you're here early. Have you had breakfast?" Lin Xueying arrived at this moment.

Today, she had changed into a plain dress with a horse-face skirt and tied up her hair, giving her a somewhat heroic and spirited appearance, which made Zhou Xun glance at her a few extra times.

"I have!" Zhou Xun nodded in response.

"Then let's begin! Follow me," Lin Xueying said calmly, with a slight sense of distance in her tone.

Zhou Xun followed her.

Inside the alchemy room, two alchemy furnaces were already set up.

Unlike Zhou Xun's, these two alchemy furnaces were at least mid-grade.

Zhou Xun even guessed that Lin Xueying's furnace had reached the high-grade level.

In front of the alchemy furnaces were several sets of spirit herbs for refining Fire Barrier Pills, as well as low-grade Silver Spirit Charcoal to provide heat.

"The part you're responsible for is no different from refining low-grade Fire Barrier Pills, but the key lies in the timing of the refinement. The time your medicinal liquid comes out of the furnace needs to be exactly the same as mine,"

"Otherwise, the two medicinal liquids won't fuse perfectly when they condense, and it will be difficult to refine genuine Fire Barrier Pills!"

The young woman's delicate lips parted slightly as she earnestly explained the crucial points of refinement.

Zhou Xun listened carefully.

"It seems the key to successful refinement lies in our mutual understanding!"

"Alright, I've said enough. Let's refine a batch to try and get a feel for it!" the young woman said in a cool tone.

Zhou Xun nodded.

"Light the fire and warm the alchemy furnace," the young woman instructed.

Zhou Xun did as he was told, placing the Silver Spirit Charcoal beneath the alchemy furnace. With a casual Fire Seed Art, the Silver Spirit Wood instantly ignited, and a blue-green flame flared up.

As Zhou Xun operated, the young woman's gaze shifted towards him.

Seeing Zhou Xun's movements flowing smoothly and with a measured rhythm, she couldn't help but nod inwardly.

"Although this person is greedy, his foundation in alchemy is very solid!"

"Open the furnace lid and refine the spirit herbs!" the young woman continued to command.

Zhou Xun beckoned, and the furnace lid flew open automatically. Then, with a wave of his hand, the spirit herbs flew into the alchemy furnace, and the furnace lid closed by itself.

Seeing this, Zhou Xun began to form hand seals, casting a spell onto the Silver Spirit Charcoal.

The fire instantly surged, and the flame changed from blue-green to entirely green.

On the other side, Lin Xueying also began refining her portion of the spirit herbs.

Their progress was similar.

"Alchemist Zhou, I'll be finished in another quarter of an hour!" the young woman said, looking towards Zhou Xun's side.

"Me too!" Zhou Xun replied concisely.

As the refinement neared its end, the young woman couldn't help but remind him again.

"Alchemist Zhou, ten breaths left!"

"Don't worry, it will be absolutely precise!" Zhou Xun said calmly, his words full of composure.

During the refinement, Zhou Xun constantly monitored Lin Xueying's progress with his Divine Sense, then adjusted his own refinement pace accordingly.

At the final moment, both alchemy furnaces opened simultaneously, the timing perfectly synchronized.