Pill Refining

Mosquito Immortal City was divided into three areas: the outer city, the inner city, and the core district. Each had a different concentration of Spiritual Qi.

Even the outermost district had First-Tier Superior-Grade Spiritual Qi, while the inner city had second-tier Spiritual Qi. The core district was where the Golden Core patriarch, Daoist Mosquito, cultivated.

Fang Yu wandered around the outer city and found quite a few familiar shops, including large chain establishments such as the Hundred Treasures Pavilion, the Listening Wind Pavilion, and the Spring Revival Hall.

There were also many shops opened by cultivation forces from other countries that he had only read about in miscellaneous books and travelogues.

Mosquito Immortal City truly lived up to its reputation as a holy land for Rogue Cultivators. It stood at the border of three countries and was a lawless territory in every sense. All kinds of shops and spirit materials could be found for sale here.

After wandering for a while, he entered a shop.

"Do you have any Foundation Establishment Pills for sale?"

"You must be joking, honored guest. Foundation Establishment Pills are so precious-how could a small shop like ours have any in stock? However, there are certain to be Foundation Establishment Pills at the auction held once every ten years!"

"Then do you have a Pill Formula for Foundation Establishment Pills?"

"That we do!"

"..."

When Fang Yu came out of the shop, he had acquired a Foundation Establishment Pill Formula and a second-tier pill-refining inheritance.

As the saying went, with Spirit Stones in hand, there was no need to worry.

With a million Spirit Stones in hand, he naturally had to buy, buy, buy.

"Just as I thought, the essential main ingredient for a Foundation Establishment Pill comes from a second-tier Demon Beast. The higher its quality, the greater the chance of successfully forming a pill."

"I'll check a few other shops too!"

Fang Yu then visited several other shops, buying a few more Foundation Establishment Pill Formulas and different second-tier pill-refining inheritances.

The Foundation Establishment Pill Formulas were not particularly expensive, costing only ten thousand Spirit Stones each. The second-tier pill-refining inheritances, on the other hand, were relatively expensive, with prices starting at over a hundred thousand Spirit Stones and some costing more than two hundred thousand.

After comparing the different Foundation Establishment Pill Formulas, Fang Yu determined that there probably was nothing wrong with them. They were all essentially the same, with only slight differences in some of the supplementary ingredients.

"Now I have the Foundation Establishment Pill Formula, and I have the main ingredient too. Once I buy all the supplementary ingredients, I can refine Foundation Establishment Pills myself. Although I've never refined pills before, as a master of the External Alchemy Technique, I know that artifact refining and pill refining have things in common: both require control over the heat and an understanding of the materials. With two second-tier pill-refining inheritances to consult, refining a Foundation Establishment Pill is only a matter of time."

As Fang Yu pondered this, he made several more rounds of the city. Only after confirming that no one was following him did he go to the cave abode rental office and find an agent to rent him a cave abode in the outer city.

Given his current wealth, he could easily have rented a cave abode on a second-tier Spirit Vein in the inner city.

But his cultivation was only at the Qi Refining Eighth Layer. If he lived next to cultivators who were often at Qi Refining Great Perfection or even Foundation Establishment, he would stand out too much.

Although Mosquito Immortal City strictly forbade cultivators from fighting within the city, he still needed to be careful. Only then would he avoid attracting unwanted attention.

Outer city, Qian District, courtyard number eighty-six.

Fang Yu followed his cave abode token to the address and found a three-courtyard residence. The surrounding cave abodes were all of the same size and layout.

He entered through the main gate, passed through the ornamental inner gate, and came to the main courtyard. After checking the surroundings and the restrictions in the courtyard, Fang Yu nodded in satisfaction.

The courtyards in Qian District could be considered the best in the outer city. The concentration of Spiritual Qi was already comparable to the second tier, more than enough for his current cultivation.

He immediately got to work, setting up restrictions throughout the courtyard. Although it already had restrictions, they could only block the view, which was far too limited a function.

Besides, he could not completely trust Mosquito Immortal City. It was better to arrange such matters of security and privacy himself.

Several days later.

Fang Yu sat at the tea table in the courtyard, looking at a portion of spirit medicine before him. He held out his palm, and scorching Flowing Flame True Fire appeared.

Pill refining is different from artifact refining. The true fire can't be too fierce; it needs to be gentler and milder.

As Fang Yu controlled the changes in the true fire, he went over the process of refining White Yang Pills and the precautions for handling the various spirit materials.

Before long, he had adjusted the flame to his satisfaction. Portions of spirit materials then flew out and fell into the fire.

The scorching flow of flame transformed the spirit medicine into the required spirit liquids. They mingled and fused under the flame's constant heat.

More than an hour passed in the blink of an eye, until Fang Yu cried, "Done!"

The flame abruptly contracted, revealing three white pills the size of longan fruits.

Fang Yu looked at the cracks on one of the pills and frowned slightly.

"Three pills formed: two standard quality, one inferior."

Getting two standard-quality pills on his first attempt at refining White Yang Pills was already impressive. After a few more attempts, his success rate was sure to rise rapidly.

With a slight flick of his hand, he tossed a White Yang Pill into his mouth.

The rich medicinal power dissolved within him. Fang Yu sensed its effects and nodded slightly.

The White Yang Pill he had refined himself was somewhat more potent than those he had bought from shops before. Sure enough, pills he refined personally were better, and they saved more Spirit Stones too.

The spirit materials used for the three White Yang Pills had cost less than a tenth of their market price.

"Ah! Selling medicine really is profitable!"

Fang Yu could not help but remark on it before continuing to refine the next batch of pills.

The days passed one after another.

Every day, Fang Yu refined and consumed various pills that improved cultivation, then cultivated, accumulated Law Power, and raised his cultivation.

His pill-refining skills also improved steadily with repeated attempts.

Five years passed in the blink of an eye.

At the tea table in the courtyard.

Fang Yu opened his eyes, a faint smile appearing on his face. It had been five years. After five years of cultivating by popping pills, he had finally broken through to the Qi Refining Ninth Layer.

Next, he only needed to accumulate Law Power and reach the realm of Great Perfection before he could attempt Foundation Establishment.

After refining pills continuously for the past five years, I can already refine First-Tier Superior-Grade pills. Foundation Establishment Pills are second-tier pills, so after honing my skills for a while longer, I should be able to refine them.

But I only have one second-tier Demon Beast inner core right now, so I can't use it for practice. I still need to get some more second-tier Demon Beast inner cores to practice with.

I also need to start preparing the various supplementary ingredients for Foundation Establishment Pills. Although they aren't rare, they're all precious spirit medicines. Buying large quantities could easily alert others, so I'd better collect them slowly.

Fang Yu rose as he considered this, planning to go out and look around first to see exactly what spirit materials cost now. The city's annual auction also seemed to be coming up soon, and he could go broaden his horizons.

Leaving the courtyard, he followed the street slowly toward the outer city's main thoroughfare.

As he walked, he heard two cultivators talking by the roadside.

"Have you heard? Someone escaped from Autumn Moon Mountain Market after the Cloud Spirit Sect sealed it off. He said they discovered mid-grade Spirit Stones in the market, and the Cloud Spirit Sect placed restrictions on all the Rogue Cultivators there and made them mine slaves."

"Ah, a mid-grade Spirit Stone mine? Is that true? Wouldn't the Cloud Spirit Sect have struck it rich?"

"Struck it rich? If it's false, then fine. But if it's true, the Cloud Spirit Sect is in serious trouble. How could the Golden Core sects in the surrounding countries sit back and do nothing? I heard..."

Fang Yu's steps faltered. "Mid-grade Spirit Stones!"

He finally understood why all the results he had sensed had been "dangerous; fortune or misfortune undetermined." As it turned out, mid-grade Spirit Stones had been dug up at Autumn Moon Mountain Market.

The Spiritual Qi contained in a single mid-grade Spirit Stone equaled that of a hundred low-grade Spirit Stones. Not only could it assist cultivation and make it faster, but it could also quickly replenish expended Law Power. It was extremely important even to a Golden Core patriarch.

At that thought, he sighed and inwardly lamented his bad luck. "I mined for a whole year without finding a single mid-grade Spirit Stone, and yet, just after I left..."

Fang Yu suddenly froze. He counted on his fingers to make a divination. Now that he knew the crucial piece of information-"mid-grade Spirit Stones"-it was very easy for him to calculate the relevant events.

But the next moment, an expression of regret appeared on his face. His guts turned green with remorse.

"If I'd kept digging just a little longer, I would have found a mid-grade Spirit Stone!"