I'm a Genius Alchemist Too

Xiao Chen was studying the enormous, rather fierce-looking bird beast before him.

A house made of special wood had been securely built on the flying Magic Beast's back.

Inside, the house was divided into several small rooms.

Xiao Chen swept his gaze over them and found that three rooms were already occupied.

Judging by their robes, the occupants were clearly alchemists too.

"Sir, this is the flying beast bound for Mo City on the Jia Ma Empire's eastern border. It is the city closest to the Tagor Desert," the uniformed woman said respectfully, stopping before the flying Magic Beast.

"Mm."

Xiao Chen nodded slightly and tapped his toes against the ground, floating onto the giant bird's broad back.

Then, under the resentful gaze behind him, he walked into an empty little room.

Xiao Chen naturally knew that, as a distinguished alchemist, he was entitled to the luxurious treatment of personal attendance.

He also understood exactly what that so-called personal attendance meant.

Unfortunately, Xiao Chen had no taste for that.

So he simply ignored the woman's "affections."

Shortly after Xiao Chen boarded the flying beast, another alchemist came aboard.

After waiting a little longer, Xiao Chen finally felt the enormous flying beast's wings begin to beat slowly.

With a piercing cry, the flying Magic Beast shot into the sky under the Beast Tamer's direction.

Sitting by the windowsill in his room, Xiao Chen watched the wisps of cloud and mist streak past outside.

Just as Xiao Yan had said, it felt rather like riding in an airplane.

After casually watching the scenery for a while, Xiao Chen lay down on the comfortable bed and slowly closed his eyes.

I'm sleepy. I'll get some sleep first. There's something important to do tonight.

The bright sky gradually darkened.

Xiao Chen was suddenly awakened by a series of strange sounds.

He slowly opened his eyes. The Moonlight Stone in the room had begun to give off a faint glow.

Xiao Chen looked helplessly toward the room on his right.

A man's panting and a woman's sultry moans kept coming from inside.

The soundproofing is terrible!

Shaking his head helplessly, Xiao Chen sighed.

What a shame. I didn't get to wake up naturally.

But it doesn't matter.

Xiao Chen got out of bed and took the Blood Lotus Essence, Ice Spirit Flame Grass, and third-tier ice-attribute Magic Core out of his Purple-Gold Bracelet.

Then he took out a medicinal cauldron that was purple-gold all over.

"What? You really want to refine that Blood Lotus Pill the little fellow Yao Chen mentioned?" Little Gold glanced at the three ingredients on the table, the corners of his mouth twitching slightly.

"Yeah, I'll give it a try. I'm idle anyway. Becoming an alchemist has always been my dream."

"But now that I've tried doing it myself, I've realized it isn't all that difficult."

"Looks like I'm a genius alchemist too!"

Little Gold rolled his eyes. "This isn't a second-grade pill. You haven't even touched the third or fourth grade, yet you want to jump straight to the fifth?"

"I've looked into it too. This Blood Lotus Pill is a high-grade pill that ranks among the fifth grade. Are you sure you can manage it?" Disbelief was written all over Little Gold's face.

"Tch. Looking down on people through a dog's eyes." Xiao Chen curled his lips.

"Who are you calling a dog?" Little Gold's gaze instantly turned cold.

"I'm joking. Looking down on people through a dragon's eyes. Will that do?"

"Enough chatter. Hurry up and lend me your flames."

Smiling faintly at Little Gold, Xiao Chen slowly extended his hand.

Little Gold snorted coldly and turned his head away, but ultimately opened his mouth with a reluctant look and spat out golden-yellow flames.

The golden-yellow flames immediately landed in Xiao Chen's palm.

Looking at the cluster of golden-yellow flames, Xiao Chen could not help licking his lips.

These flames should be even more precious than Heavenly Flames, right?

A moment later, Xiao Chen exhaled softly, then tossed the third-tier ice-attribute Magic Core into the Pill Cauldron.

The refinement of the Blood Lotus Pill officially began.

With the dancing cluster of golden-yellow flames hovering above his palm, Xiao Chen could clearly sense the tremendous energy within it, along with an indescribably noble aura.

A little warmth stirred in his heart. He glanced at Little Gold beside him and grinned.

"Here we go!"

His gaze abruptly sharpened in concentration. His soul power surged forth, and the golden flames instantly transformed into a slender, agile fire dragon that darted into the specially designed flame inlet beneath the purple-gold medicinal cauldron.

"Humm-"

The medicinal cauldron gave a low hum, halos of light flowing over its body.

Almost instantly, the temperature inside soared. Golden light glittered against the purple-gold inner walls, and heart-quaking waves of heat filled the air.

Little Gold casually swished his tail nearby, though a barely perceptible trace of attention quietly entered his eyes.

Xiao Chen held his breath and focused. His powerful soul power cautiously reached into the cauldron like invisible tentacles, sensing every flicker of the flames and every subtle change in temperature.

This was his first time borrowing Little Gold's Natal Dragon Flame. It was far more violent and unruly than the ordinary flames he had experimented with before, and the difficulty of controlling it increased sharply.

Still, that posed no obstacle to him.

After all, Little Gold had authorized him to use it.

The timing is about right!

Xiao Chen's gaze hardened. With a slight shift of his thoughts, the third-tier ice-attribute Magic Core, which gave off wisps of cold air, was enveloped by the blazing sea of golden fire inside the cauldron.

"Hiss-!"

Like a scorching branding iron plunged into ice water, an ear-piercing noise exploded inside the cauldron.

The instant it touched the golden flames, the ice-attribute Magic Core unleashed an astonishing surge of cold. Ice-blue mist churned and rose violently, desperately resisting the dragon flame's scorching heat.

Ice and fire, extremes of heat and cold, fought a battle to the death inside the cramped cauldron.

Under normal circumstances, a mere third-tier ice-attribute Magic Core could never have resisted such heat.

It would have been burned to ashes in an instant.

But he was refining a pill now, so naturally he could not let the flames destroy the Magic Core.

Such precise control was far more difficult than simply burning the Magic Core to ashes.

The cauldron shook wildly. Xiao Chen's expression shifted slightly, and beads of sweat instantly appeared at his temples.

Little Gold also raised his body a little.

"Refine!"

Xiao Chen growled, pouring out his soul power to forcibly suppress the icy aura erupting from the Magic Core. At the same time, his hands shifted through seals, making the golden flames at the bottom of the cauldron more concentrated and stable. They no longer merely burned, but tempered with a subtle penetrating force.

Using the dragon flame's supremely yang and unyielding nature, he enveloped the ice-attribute Magic Core's center with forceful yet meticulous control, stripping away its violent cold and squeezing out and refining its pure energy bit by bit.

This process continued for a full half day before the violent struggle inside the cauldron gradually subsided.

The ice Magic Core was no longer hard. It had become a small, crystalline droplet of liquid energy essence that gave off a gentle chill, slowly bobbing in the golden flames holding it aloft.

It retained its ice attribute while becoming utterly docile.

Xiao Chen secretly breathed a sigh of relief, only then realizing that cold sweat had soaked his back.

The first step was perilously close!

Although refining the Blood Lotus Pill required only three ingredients, the procedure was extremely complicated.

During the precise extraction stage, the slightest carelessness would burn the ingredients to ashes. Not daring to relax at all, Xiao Chen moved his fingers again, and the Blood Lotus Essence on the table flew into the cauldron.

"Sizzle!"

Upon meeting the dragon flame, the Blood Lotus Essence did not resist violently like the Magic Core. Instead, like dry kindling meeting a raging fire, it ignited instantly.

A nauseatingly thick stench of blood and violent crimson energy erupted like a volcano, attempting to contaminate the docile ice essence while lunging toward the cauldron walls with intense corrosive force.

"Steady!"

Xiao Chen focused intently. The Blood Lotus Essence's ferocity far exceeded his expectations.

He drove his soul power at full strength, splitting his attention between two tasks.

On one side, he guided Little Gold's dragon flame into a barrier inside the cauldron, firmly separating the crimson blood mist from the ice essence.

On the other, he controlled another stream of flame like the most dexterous carving knife, carefully removing the violent impurities and unpleasant baleful blood aura from the Blood Lotus Essence's energy.

The sight inside the cauldron was bizarre yet magnificent.

One half was a churning, boiling sea of blood-colored mist that exuded a bloody stench.

The other held the gentle ice-blue essence, floating quietly.

Between them stood a brilliant golden wall of fire, towering and unmoving no matter how the bloody waves battered it.

Xiao Chen's face had grown somewhat pale. The sustained, intense Soul Manipulation was beginning to strain him.

Little Gold's gaze finally turned completely serious. As he watched Xiao Chen concentrate utterly and desperately squeeze out his own potential, a trace of surprise flashed deep within his eyes.

Who would have thought this fellow could be so serious?

When the savage bloody energy inside the cauldron was finally tempered into docility by the golden flames and became pure crimson essence, Xiao Chen knew he had reached the final hurdle.

He drew a deep breath, fixing his eyes on the last ingredient, the Ice Spirit Flame Grass.

This strange herb was the key to balancing ice and fire and merging blood and spirit.

The Ice Spirit Flame Grass floated into the cauldron.

Something strange happened.

It neither burned violently nor froze. Instead, wrapped in golden flames, it spread its leaves slightly. Across those half-ice, half-fire leaves, ice-blue and scarlet radiance shone in mutual splendor.

A strange balancing force spread outward, seemingly taking the initiative to harmonize the sharply divided ice essence and crimson essence inside the cauldron.

"Now!"

"Condense!"

An astonishing brilliance burst from Xiao Chen's eyes. The opportunity was fleeting.

He gave a low shout, driving his soul power to its limit as his hands formed seals before him so quickly they nearly left a blur of afterimages.

The dragon flame suddenly contracted and spun, transforming into an exquisitely intricate golden vortex.

Under the vortex's powerful suction and spinning force, the ice-blue energy essence, crimson Blood Lotus Essence, and balancing force released by the Ice Spirit Flame Grass were forcibly drawn toward its center.

The instant the three energies touched, violent conflict erupted again.

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

Xiao Chen's face turned deathly white, and he clenched his teeth tightly.

"Is it going to fail?" Little Gold's heart rose into his throat.

At that critical instant, Xiao Chen took a blue-green pill out of his Purple-Gold Bracelet.

He tossed it straight into his mouth.

Instantly, pure, cool, and gentle medicinal power rushed into his mind.

Xiao Chen's soul power returned directly to its peak.

"Fuse!"

Powerful soul power surged forth, guiding the Ice Spirit Flame Grass's balancing force like the most dexterous threads.

"Hum!"

A clear hum came from the medicinal cauldron. Then the violent conflict within seemed to be smoothed away instantly by an enormous invisible hand!

The terrifying energy fluctuations rapidly drew inward.

The cauldron's shaking slowly subsided, leaving only a faint humming.

Xiao Chen swayed slightly, nearly collapsing, supported only by his powerful will.

His face was as pale as paper, and sweat had long since soaked his clothes, but unprecedented flames of excitement burned in his dark eyes.

Little Gold completely put aside his earlier disdain, his eyes filled with astonishment.

"This brat-looks like he's actually managed something? This-he can actually succeed at this?"

At that moment, his disbelief in Xiao Chen's self-proclaimed title of "genius alchemist" wavered slightly.

Perhaps it wasn't entirely boasting?

Within the little room, the clouds outside streaked rapidly backward.

After two and a half days of flame tempering, a smooth, blood-colored pill the size of a longan fruit was spinning rapidly inside the medicinal cauldron before Xiao Chen.

Judging by the sheen on its surface, it had clearly entered the final pill-condensation stage.

By now, Little Gold was utterly stunned.

He truly felt that Xiao Chen was a monster.

"The pill's almost ready!" Just as Little Gold was inwardly marveling at how freakish he was, Xiao Chen suddenly exclaimed in delighted surprise.

Hearing this, Little Gold immediately looked into the medicinal cauldron.

Xiao Chen grinned, his palm trembling slightly. An even denser golden-yellow flame blazed up and finally enveloped the blood-colored pill completely.

After the golden-yellow flames churned rapidly several times, a fierce energy fluctuation suddenly rippled out of them. In an instant, it spread from the little room like a ripple.

As the energy ripple spread, the flying Magic Beast was startled in midflight.

Its enormous body immediately trembled and swayed several times, and a sharp cry carrying a hint of fear rang out in the air.

At the same time, the blood-colored pill taking shape suddenly released waves of exceptionally rich medicinal fragrance.

The fragrance even carried a faint reddish tint as it drifted out of the house and finally wreathed this little patch of sky.

The instant the unusual fragrance emerged, a stir arose in the other rooms on the giant bird beast's back.

Pills above the fourth grade held a fatal allure for many people. Some would risk their lives to obtain one.