Half a month passed in the blink of an eye.
Lu Changfeng had spent this time keeping Xiao Xun'er company at the residence, occasionally sitting down to cultivate. His days were very leisurely.
On this day, Lu Changfeng left the residence and visited the Mittel Auction House again.
He had only just stepped through the auction house's doors when Mittel Tengshan received word and came out to greet him, his manner even more respectful than before.
"Lord Lu, you're here. I've gathered all the medicinal ingredients you asked me to collect. Please see if anything is still missing."
As he spoke, Mittel Tengshan presented a Storage Ring with both hands, an ingratiating smile on his face.
Lu Changfeng took the Storage Ring and inspected it with his soul power. He noted that every kind of medicinal ingredient was present, and all were of excellent quality. Clearly, Mittel Tengshan had put considerable effort into this over the past half month.
He nodded and put the Storage Ring away. "Good. Everything is here."
"I'll start refining it now. Consider it payment for those medicinal ingredients from before."
Hearing this, Mittel Tengshan nodded repeatedly in excitement. "Thank you, Lord Lu! Thank you, Lord Lu!"
"Once that pill is ready and Elder Hai takes it, he'll be able to break Queen Medusa's seal and regain his peak strength. This is an enormous kindness to our Mittel Family!"
Seeing how excited he was, however, Lu Changfeng waved a hand to indicate that he need not say more, then followed Mittel Tengshan to a dedicated pill-refining room at the back of the auction house.
After closing the door, Lu Changfeng took the medicinal ingredients out of the Storage Ring and began preparing to refine the pill.
The pill he was refining this time was a Seventh-Tier Pill specifically meant to break the Snake Seal. Although its tier was high, it posed little difficulty for him now.
He then deftly lit the pill furnace and added the medicinal ingredients one by one in order, precisely controlling the flames' temperature with his soul power.
The entire process flowed in one seamless breath, without a single unnecessary step.
Before long, the pill-refining room's door opened again. Lu Changfeng emerged holding a pill that radiated a gentle light and handed it straight to Mittel Tengshan.
"The pill is ready. Just have Hai Bodong take it."
At the sight, Mittel Tengshan accepted the pill with both hands, so excited that his hands trembled slightly. He cradled it carefully, as though holding a rare treasure, his eyes even reddening a little.
"Lord Lu... the Mittel Family will never forget your great kindness! Whatever you command in the future, I, Mittel Tengshan, will walk through boiling water and fire without hesitation!"
Lu Changfeng waved a hand dismissively. "There's no need for that. Consider the cost of those medicinal ingredients settled. If there's nothing else, I'll be leaving."
With that, Lu Changfeng turned and headed out of the auction house. Mittel Tengshan hurried after him and escorted him all the way out.
Only after Lu Changfeng's figure disappeared at the end of the street did Mittel Tengshan turn and return to the auction house, still clutching the pill tightly.
Once he returned to the reception room, he carefully placed the pill in a jade box for safekeeping, still immersed in immense excitement.
Not long after Lu Changfeng left, Pill King Gu He and Fa Ma arrived at the Mittel Auction House together.
Fa Ma was the president of the Alchemist Guild and an old acquaintance of Mittel Tengshan's. As the most renowned alchemist in the Jia Ma Empire, Pill King Gu He also had considerable business dealings with the Mittel Auction House.
After the two entered the auction house, Mittel Tengshan hurried out to greet them.
"President Fa Ma, Master Gu He, what brings you here?"
At this, Fa Ma smiled. "Gu He spent some time in seclusion refining pills, hoping to break through to become a Seventh-Tier Alchemist. Unfortunately, he failed in the end."
As soon as he finished speaking, Gu He's expression turned somewhat unpleasant beside him. Clearly, this failed attempt had dealt him quite a blow.
After a moment of silence, he asked, "President Fa Ma told me that a Seventh-Tier Alchemist has appeared in the Jia Ma Empire?"
"I find that unlikely. The entire Jia Ma Empire has never produced even one Seventh-Tier Alchemist. How could one suddenly appear?"
"So I wanted to come and verify it myself, to see whether what President Fa Ma said was true."
At that moment, Mittel Tengshan's expression grew somewhat subtle upon hearing this.
He glanced at Gu He, then at Fa Ma. After a moment's hesitation, he decided to tell the truth.
"Master Gu He, what President Fa Ma said is indeed true. A Seventh-Tier Alchemist has indeed appeared in our Jia Ma Empire. In fact, that lord refined a Seventh-Tier Pill for me just now."
At these words, Gu He froze.
"You're saying he refined a Seventh-Tier Pill for you? Is that really true?"
Mittel Tengshan nodded, then carefully took the jade box from inside his robes and opened it, revealing the pill within.
The moment the pill appeared, a rich medicinal fragrance spread through the air. A lustrous sheen flowed across its surface, making it clear at a glance that it was far from ordinary.
Gu He was dumbstruck. He stared fixedly at the pill, his lips trembling slightly, unable to speak.
After all, he was a Sixth-Tier Alchemist and had an exceptionally keen ability to judge a pill's quality and tier.
The presence and fluctuations this pill gave off undoubtedly belonged to a Seventh-Tier Pill!
Moreover, the refining technique was extraordinarily exquisite, far surpassing that of any Sixth-Grade Pill he had ever seen!
Gu He swallowed with difficulty, utterly overwhelmed by shock.
"This pill... was really refined just now?"
Mittel Tengshan nodded. "That's right. That lord personally refined it just now. From start to finish, it took less than two hours before it came out of the furnace."
Fa Ma also leaned over at this point to examine the pill carefully, an equally stunned expression appearing on his face. As an alchemist, he had a discerning eye, after all, and even he was startled by the pill's exceptional quality.
Gu He, in particular, remained silent for a long time before finally letting out a long breath.
"That Seventh-Tier Alchemist... how old is he?"
Seeing his astonished reaction, Mittel Tengshan glanced at him and answered honestly, "He looks to be in his early twenties."
Hearing this, Gu He was thoroughly shaken.
He stood there without speaking for a long time, his expression gradually filling with shock.
A Seventh-Tier Alchemist in his early twenties?
He had cultivated painstakingly in the Jia Ma Empire for decades and prided himself on being its foremost alchemist, yet he was only at the sixth tier.
Yet a young man of twenty had already reached the seventh tier he had dreamed of but could never attain. At the thought, Gu He gave a bitter laugh and shook his head, feeling somewhat dazed.
Beside him, Fa Ma patted his shoulder and said nothing more.
Mittel Tengshan then carefully put the jade box away, still planning how to find Hai Bodong as soon as possible and have him take this pill!