The Art of Pill Refining

"This fellow cultivator's path of cultivation is truly peculiar, leaving one at a loss for words."

Yunzi was thinking about her conversation with Fang Zelin, and for a moment she didn't know what to say.

"Speaking of which..."

Fang Zelin suddenly spoke up at this moment, "I wonder if any of our fellow Daoists in Northern Liang have anyone skilled in alchemy?"

We've planted so many medicinal plants; we can't just eat them all when the time comes.

Fang Zelin thought about it and decided that he should also learn the art of alchemy.

Once I learn alchemy, all those medicinal plants I have will finally have a use.

Even if alchemy is difficult to learn, he should have plenty of time to study it.

"The art of alchemy?"

Yunzi was slightly taken aback upon hearing this. This fellow Daoist has cultivated so many medicinal plants, yet he hasn't learned the art of alchemy?

"Yes, there are, but none of the cultivators in Northern Liang are proficient in this art."

Even the best-made pills made from common herbs won't have much effect on cultivators.

Perhaps only the pills refined from the medicinal plants that Fellow Daoist Fang cultivates himself would be effective for them cultivators.

"It's alright, I can figure it out myself when the time comes."

Fang Zelin was delighted upon hearing this.

Yunzi meant that the fellow Daoists of Northern Liang were unable to offer Fang Zelin any guidance.

However, Fang Zelin didn't care. He would go back and experiment with more medicinal plants, and he was confident he could succeed.

"If that's the case, then please come with me, fellow Daoist. Fellow Fuqing should have quite a few books. If you need them, please copy a few and take them with you."

With that, he led Fang Zelin toward Fellow Fuqing's side room.

A moment later, Yunzi led Fang Zelin to meet Daoist Master Fuqing.

The other person was currently holding an ancient book and looking at it, as if they were consulting some information.

Upon seeing the two arrive, Fellow Daoist Fuqing put down the ancient book in his hand. "Fellow Daoists, what brings you here?"

"I would like to borrow a few books on alchemy, is that alright?"

Before Yunzi could speak up for him, Fang Zelin went straight to stating his purpose.

"Alchemy books? That's fine. Do you have an interest in alchemy, fellow Daoist?"

Upon hearing this, Daoist Master Fuqing did not refuse, and directly asked one of his disciples to bring over all the books on alchemy.

I lent it to Fang Zelin for a look.

"Fellow Daoist, what's wrong? Why do you want the art of alchemy?"

After sending his disciple to fetch the books, Daoist Master Fuqing asked with some doubt.

This reminded him of something: in the past, there were some Daoist Sect at the foot of the mountain, and some emperors who wanted to achieve immortality.

They encouraged Daoist Daoist Sect to refine elixirs in pursuit of immortality.

However, that happened a long time ago.

"I've gathered quite a few herbs, and it seems a bit wasteful to just eat them like this, so I'd like to try refining them into pills."

"I see."

Upon hearing this, the Daoist Master Fuqing nodded slightly.

"Fellow Daoist, is there a problem with this alchemy technique?"

Fang Zelin asked, somewhat puzzled.

"There's nothing wrong with it, it's just that in the early years, some alchemy techniques fell into the mortal world and were obtained by some Daoist Sect practitioners."

"Later, some emperors sought immortality, and it was through these alchemical techniques that Daoist Sect gained the favor of the royal family."

Daoist Master Fuqing gave a brief explanation.

"Fellow Daoist, you must be careful in the future. These alchemy techniques must not fall into the mortal realm. If they are accidentally leaked out, they may attract the covetous eyes of the royal family, thus severing the dynasty's fortune."

Without prior cultivation, these alchemy techniques would be of little use even to those Daoist Sect practitioners.

If this attracts the attention of the royal family, it could lead to neglect of state affairs and ultimately cause trouble.

Fang Zelin suddenly realized what was going on and, upon hearing this, said, "Fellow Daoist, rest assured, this matter is handled by Fang Zelin."

As long as the alchemy technique isn't revealed, it's fine.

As they were talking, the disciple returned with several books on alchemy.

One book is Introduction to Pills, another is Introduction to Medicinal Substances, then there's the Fire Control Technique, and finally the art of alchemy.

Several books were handed to him, and after glancing at them casually, Fang Zelin quickly cupped his hands in thanks.

"Fellow Daoist, there's no need for such politeness. I was grateful for your escort earlier, and I've been wondering how to thank you properly. Now that I finally have the opportunity, there's no need for further thanks."

After saying that, a smile appeared on his face.

"When I have achieved some success in alchemy, I will send some over for you to sample."

Fang Zelin didn't continue to thank him, but instead said that he wanted the other party to taste it.

The other party was quite pleased to hear this.

There aren't many cultivators in Northern Liang who practice alchemy, and even fewer who are considered experts.

If Fang Zelin succeeded in alchemy, he would like to see just how far Fang Zelin could go, so he immediately nodded in agreement.

"In that case, I, Fang, will go down and ponder it for a while."

Having mastered the art of alchemy, Fang Zelin wanted to go back and examine it more closely first.

After saying goodbye, I went to a side room and found an empty room to go inside.

To Fang Zelin's surprise, Yunzi also walked in at that moment.

Seeing Fang Zelin turn around and look at her with some surprise, Yunzi immediately said, "I have also studied the art of alchemy before."

"If you don't mind, fellow Daoist, let's study this together."

"Of course I don't mind. With you here, I can avoid taking some detours."

Upon hearing this, Fang Zelin immediately invited the other party in and then set out his alchemy techniques.

"The art of alchemy is not something that can be easily learned. Fellow Daoist, you will need to learn the Fire Control Technique first. As for the basics of Introduction to Pills, you can learn about them gradually."

"These are all essential things to learn. If you don't understand the yin and yang properties of these medicines, you're prone to making mistakes when refining pills."

Yunzi stretched out her slender hand and brushed it across several books on alchemy, separating them into sections.

The first thing to learn is the Fire Control Technique.

Only after mastering fire control can one then use it to refine elixirs.

The Fire Control Technique is extremely important, as it relates to the control of the fire level in future alchemy.

Furthermore, once alchemy begins, it cannot be stopped.

Therefore, this requires continuous and uninterrupted fire control, which is a great test of a cultivator's ability.

If the process is stopped halfway, the entire batch of pills will be wasted.

Therefore, the Fire Control Technique must be learned first. Only after mastering it to perfection can one consider starting a furnace to refine pills.

Fang Zelin nodded repeatedly upon hearing this, and picked up the Fire Control Technique in front of him to examine it carefully.

Yunzi smiled upon seeing this, and then picked up the Introduction to Medicinal Herbs.

Pointing to the herbs, he began to explain, "Furthermore, the Introduction to Medicinal Herbs is extremely important; fellow Daoist, you should carefully memorize it."