Amid the spreading fragrance of pills, a batch of six Mortal Rank Upper Grade Healing Pills was complete!
Bu Wuchen glanced at them. "Hmm, only a little under half the ingredients turned into pills this time?"
"Looks like the yield drops proportionately as the grade of the profound pills rises. That makes sense."
In fact, Bu Wuchen's achievement was already enough to turn countless fellow alchemists green with envy!
"Not tired yet. I can still refine more. Keep going, keep going..."
When people immersed themselves in something, time always passed quickly.
In the blink of an eye, night was approaching.
By now, Song Hechuan's broad, blade-like brows were tightly knitted, and he looked thoroughly anxious and agitated.
Xia Nuoyi found it amusing to watch from beside him and deliberately kicked him while he was down. "What? Feeling the pinch from all those batches of ingredients you've sent over?"
Song Hechuan smiled with some embarrassment. "Ahem, of course not!"
"Though Master Bu is young, he possesses talent unmatched in this world."
"I imagine his repeated requests for more herbs don't necessarily mean his pill refining failed and he urgently needs more ingredients to start over."
"There could be some other reason..."
That was what he said, pretending to be composed.
But inside, he was truly panicking!
He wondered to himself, Did I misjudge him?
He was already beginning to suspect that Bu Wuchen's full yield of Mortal Rank, Low Grade profound pills on his very first attempt might have been sheer dogshit luck.
Otherwise, why would he keep asking for pill fire and herbs over and over?
In Song Hechuan's experience, when a profound alchemist did this, nine times out of ten, the refining had failed.
And it was the kind of failure that happened midway through.
Otherwise, there was simply no explaining why he requested ingredients so frequently...
Wait, could that fellow have been brought here by this demoness to deliberately swindle me out of my pill-refining ingredients?!
Just as Song Hechuan was fretting, another shopkeeper knocked and entered.
With a miserable expression, he said, "Workshop Master, Master Bu said... said he still needs eight jin of pill fire, plus thirty sets each of ingredients for Mortal Rank Upper Grade Healing Pills and Qi Recovery Pills."
"What do you think?"
"Mother of mine, again?!"
Song Hechuan felt every hair on his body stand on end.
His earlier suspicions grew stronger, and he instinctively glanced at the girl in green silk.
"Hmm? What's that look supposed to mean?"
"Don't tell me you're suspecting me?!"
As she spoke, a glint of cold light appeared in Xia Nuoyi's narrowed, beautiful eyes!
Song Hechuan shuddered.
Only then did he remember just what sort of person she was!
If she really wanted to swindle him out of his pill-refining ingredients, she most likely wouldn't use such a lousy trick.
"Hehe, of course not! My dear young lady, you're overthinking it."
Song Hechuan wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and forced himself to muster a smile.
Then, feigning nonchalance, he waved at the shopkeeper. "Give them to him!"
"However much Master Bu wants, we'll give it to him!"
Xia Nuoyi took a leisurely sip of tea and said unhurriedly, "If I ever see that look in your eyes again..."
"I wouldn't mind wiping the Song Clan Pill Workshop's name from Blood Dragon City!"
She said those words lightly.
Yet Song Hechuan's expression changed drastically upon hearing them, and he repeatedly begged forgiveness.
Just who was that girl in green silk?
How could she make the Song Clan, which all but monopolized Blood Dragon City's most lucrative profound pill business, fear her to such an extent?
Song Hechuan now looked utterly woeful.
In his heart, he couldn't stop pleading, Master Bu, my dear little ancestor! Please, I'm begging you, come out of seclusion already!
If you keep staying in seclusion like this, you'll squander an entire year's income for my Song Clan Pill Workshop...
As he waited in dread, even time seemed to work against Song Hechuan, passing ever more slowly.
By the dead of night, even the girl in green silk was beginning to lose her composure.
She wondered to herself, Could that fellow have overdrawn his soul power and fallen unconscious?
Just as she was about to investigate, a creak rang out, and the door to the room next door swung open.
Immediately afterward, several maidservants walked gracefully into the reception hall where Xia Nuoyi and Song Hechuan waited.
Each pretty maidservant held a tray.
Small porcelain bottles bearing the words "Song Clan Pill Workshop" were neatly arranged on the trays.
Behind the maidservants followed a young man who kept yawning. It was Bu Wuchen.
He rubbed his bleary eyes and gave a long yawn before saying, "Sorry. It was my first time refining pills, and I got so carried away trying my hand at it that I couldn't stop. I spent a little too long."
Song Hechuan sprang to his feet.
His heart aching painfully, he thought, You got carried away and couldn't stop, but you made my Song Clan Pill Workshop waste so many fine, precious medicinal ingredients...
What a huge loss. I've really suffered a huge loss!
Bu Wuchen was so sleepy he could barely keep his eyes open and didn't notice anything unusual in Boss Song's expression.
He simply continued, "Boss Song, inspect the goods!"
Though Song Hechuan was displeased, with Xia Nuoyi right beside him, he couldn't very well flare up.
Feeling the misery of having to swallow his own broken teeth, he offered a smile that never reached his eyes, said, "All right," and approached listlessly.
He thought, I'll just go through the motions!
Once I've inspected them, no matter how lousy that brat's pills are, for Xia Nuoyi's sake, I'll still have to say, "Thank you for your hard work, Master"...
How stifling!
By now, Song Hechuan no longer held any expectations for Bu Wuchen!
He even silently warned himself that, in the future, he must never offer anyone such generous terms merely because of a single full-yield batch.
Who knew whether they might be like this "Master Bu" and merely have stumbled into dogshit luck once?
However-
When, with his heart like dead ashes, he opened the first little porcelain bottle...
A pure medicinal essence, mingled with a rich pill fragrance, instantly made his eyes widen!
"Th-this couldn't be..."
Song Hechuan hurriedly poured the pills out of the little porcelain bottle.
Holding them beneath his nose, he carefully sniffed and appraised them. His pupils contracted, and he shrieked in shock, "Th-th-these are actually perfect-quality, Mortal Rank Middle Grade Qi Recovery Pills?!"
"Four pills in one bottle, and every single one is perfect quality?!"
It was no wonder Song Hechuan lost his composure like this.
After all, even profound pills of the same grade could differ in quality due to tiny discrepancies.
And perfect quality was indisputably the highest level!
It had already been quite some time since Song Hechuan's alchemy techniques broke through to the Seventh Layer of the Mortal Realm.
Yet he had never once successfully refined a perfect-quality, Mortal Rank Middle Grade profound pill!
Song Hechuan's outcry startled the already bleary-eyed Bu Wuchen.
He grumbled irritably, "What's all the fuss about? You've scared away all my sleepy bugs..."
Song Hechuan smiled sheepishly and impatiently opened another little porcelain bottle-
"Hiss! Mother of mine!"
"Per-per-per... perfect-quality, Mortal Rank Upper Grade Qi Recovery Pills?!"
Song Hechuan felt as though the whole world had burst into brilliant bloom!
Bu Wuchen, however, gritted his teeth in frustration. "Perfect, my ass! Can you stop making such a fuss? My sleepy bugs..."