Immortality Begins as an Alchemy Master 101

Chapter 98: Spirit Planting Master, Great Perfection Valley-Clearing Powder (Seeking Subscriptions and Monthly Tickets)

In a cramped cave, a young man sat cross-legged with his eyes closed.

His moon-white Daoist robe rose and fell with the unique rhythm of his chest’s breathing.

His face was handsome, his lips slightly upturned in a somewhat cynical yet resolute manner, as if he would optimistically persevere no matter how many hardships lay ahead.

Suddenly, he blinked and slowly opened his eyes.

In his clear eyes, a thoughtful gaze lingered.

“The spiritual energy concentration here far surpasses that of the courtyard, slightly exceeding even that of the Sky Fragrance Tower.”

“Perhaps, it’s not inferior to the main vein of the first-rank spirit vein where the Jade Tripod Sword Sect is located.”

“The enhancement this spiritual energy concentration provides to my cultivation is extraordinarily significant!”

With a brief calculation, he realized that his cultivation efficiency had doubled based on the standard of a four-and-a-half spirit root aptitude.

Five times the cultivation efficiency had already completely surpassed that of a three-spirit root aptitude; he wondered how much of a gap existed compared to a cultivator with a dual-spirit root?

Luo Chen didn’t know the cultivation efficiency of a dual-spirit root cultivator because he had no basis for comparison.

Great River City had a large number of independent cultivators, most of whom were three-spirit root or four-spirit root cultivators.

Therefore, he had no friends in this regard, not even acquaintances…

“Actually, there is one, but I’ve never met them.”

Xiao Hu—Qin Yuanjiang.

The son of Qin Liangchen and his wife, a Gold and Water dual-spirit root.

He had only heard of the child but never met him.

Now, the child was a high-achieving disciple of the Falling Cloud Sect, and future Foundation Establishment was likely within reach.

He hadn’t inquired about the child’s specific cultivation level.

Moreover, regarding matters like sect recruitment and aptitude assessment, Qin Liangchen and his wife hadn’t given their child elixirs from a young age; at most, they used medicinal baths and dietary supplements to enhance his foundation.

However, these were minor insignificant matters.

Luo Chen only needed to know that cultivating in this place was highly beneficial to him.

“It seems I need to find more excuses to stay in the Pill Hall in the future.”

“I don’t need to give up the house in the courtyard either; after all, it’s in the Inner City, and the safety is guaranteed.”

Currently, the monthly rent of ten spiritual stones wasn’t a burden for him.

It was just the equivalent of one Qi Condensation Pill!

Thinking of the Qi Condensation Pill, Luo Chen smiled.

“I can’t miss such a good place and opportunity.”

He took out a stalk of Tranquility Incense and a Qi Condensation Pill.

He lit the incense, took the pill, and began cultivating.

…

The next morning, Luo Chen woke up from his meditative state.

Standing up and stretching, Luo Chen couldn’t help but moan.

Comfortable!

This was the most comfortable cultivation experience he’d had since his transmigration.

The outside world offered abundant spiritual energy, his insides had the Qi Condensation Pill’s medicinal power constantly transforming into spiritual energy, the Grandmaster-level Longevity Skill constantly operating in perfect harmony with his body.

The fragrance of the Tranquility Incense strengthened the soul that had overcome the tribulation, making it stronger and more resilient within a short period.

Coupled with the supplementation of the Peiyuan Spiritual Liquid during this time, the accumulated vital energy in his body was also quite substantial.

With so many conditions supporting him, he felt like a starving beggar who had finally enjoyed a luxurious banquet.

He ate until his mouth was full of oil!

“After a night of cultivation, my progress bar jumped from 6 to 8, a full two progress bars!”

Based on this progress, the previously estimated three months to break through to the Qi Refining seventh layer could now be reduced to at most two months.

It’s terrifying!

No wonder those large sects constantly produced young geniuses.

They stayed in first-rank spirit veins, or even second and third-rank spirit veins, day in and day out.

Even without taking any pills, their spiritual energy could soar.

Especially in the early and mid-stages of Qi Refining, the faster the advancement, the more time they would have to prepare for Foundation Establishment in the late stages.

They wouldn’t need to worry about insufficient lifespan like independent cultivators.

“Sister Xiu said that the best age for cultivators to break through to Foundation Establishment is before sixty; after sixty, a cultivator’s qi and blood begin to decline, greatly increasing the probability of Foundation Establishment failure.”

“This alone has blocked how many independent cultivators who have spent their entire lives advancing to the Qi Refining ninth layer?”

Luo Chen felt sorry for those independent cultivators.

They finally reached the peak of Qi Refining, only to face insufficient lifespan and the decline of qi and blood.

Even if they obtained a Foundation Building Pill, it would likely end in failure.

“I absolutely cannot end up in that situation!”

The joy of obtaining the spirit vein cave had been somewhat diluted.

Even if he could break through to the Qi Refining seventh layer in two months, the spiritual energy needed for each subsequent realm would only increase!

Especially the Qi Refining ninth layer, many independent cultivators were trapped at this stage.

Just like his brother Qin, wasn’t he in the same situation?

He clearly had a Foundation Building Pill, stored with Uncle Mi Shuhua, but he didn’t have a reason to ask for it back.

The reason was simple: Qin Liangchen hadn’t yet reached the peak of Qi Refining and wasn’t qualified for Foundation Establishment.

“Moreover, this cultivation speed isn’t normal!”

“The Tranquility Incense isn’t enough!”

Uncle Mi Shuhua had promised him one box of Tranquility Incense per month.

And one box only contained twelve stalks.

Without Tranquility Incense, he could only operate the Longevity Skill two or three times a day at most; more would lead to exhaustion.

Besides the Tranquility Incense, the number of Qi Condensation Pills was also slightly insufficient; four bottles of Qi Condensation Pills were only enough for twenty days.

Luo Chen was thinking about these things while doing something else.

He used a large, intact stone to seal the spirit vein cave, ensuring that not too much spiritual energy leaked out.

On his way out, he continuously blocked the narrow mine tunnels with stones.

Even though he knew this wouldn’t completely prevent spiritual energy leakage, every little bit helped.

“Elixirs and Tranquility Incense are probably not easy to get from Uncle Mi Shuhua.”

“Those reasons and excuses, while different each time, will become annoying if I ask for the same things repeatedly.”

“But I have a little capital now, so I can buy them myself.”

“There’s one more thing I need to consider!”

Luo Chen’s eyes flashed, and a sense of crisis arose in his heart.

That was, after perfectly solving all his cultivation resource problems, his abnormally fast cultivation speed, five times faster than normal, would easily bring trouble.

Both the system and this spirit vein cave must never be exposed!

“I need to put more effort into the Concealing Qi Technique!”

…

“Good morning!”

“Good morning, Hall Master Luo!”

“Good morning, Hall Master Luo!”

This was Luo Chen’s first day arriving at work so early.

But clearly, many people were already there.

The Pill Hall cultivators stationed here were already busy.

At the break of dawn, they were already riding their artifacts, circling low in the air.

They were performing “cloud seeding and rainmaking” over the dozen or so medicinal fields in the valley.

“Cloud seeding and rainmaking” was an exaggeration, but the scene was quite similar.

“Is this the Minor Cloud and Rain Technique?”

Luo Chen squatted on the ridge, curiously watching them cast spells to make rain.

A cultivator landed, wiped his sweat, and smiled slightly.

“Hall Master Luo is insightful. It’s indeed the Minor Cloud and Rain Technique, a spell passed down from the Merit Hall, suitable for cultivating water-attribute herbs.”

Through his explanation, Luo Chen understood why they needed to cast spells so early in the morning.

Slanted Moon Valley was a mineral vein area, far from the Lancang River, so the water vapor here wasn’t thick.

These water-attribute medicinal herbs required a large amount of water-attribute spiritual energy.

Therefore, they had to take advantage of the lower temperature to cast their spells.

“Unfortunately, the grade of the spirit fields here is too low to cultivate better herbs.”

Luo Chen curiously asked, “Aren’t there any spells to improve the grade of the spirit fields?”

The cultivator chuckled bitterly, “There are, but we don’t know them, and the sect doesn’t have them either.”

“Oh?”

“It’s said that the Five Elements Divine Sect has extensive experience in spiritual plant cultivation, and they’ve developed a large number of spells related to spiritual plants and spirit fields.”

“For example?”

“Take improving the grade of spirit fields, for instance! They have a second-rank spell called the Blazing Flame Purgatory Technique, which can burn various spirit woods and minerals into ash and then incorporate them into spirit fields. Once or twice a year, combined with the spirit vein, the grade of the spirit field will continuously increase.”

Luo Chen was taken aback, the Blazing Flame Purgatory Technique?

“It is said that the Five Elements Divine Sect has dozens of fourth-rank spirit fields, all upgraded in this way, and there’s also a huge fifth-rank spirit field.”

The cultivator shook his head, his eyes filled with longing.

“The Blazing Flame Purgatory Technique is just the tip of the iceberg. Spells like the Great Yin Wood and Medicine King Swamp Gas Technique, the Gui Water Composting Technique, the Geng Metal Grass-Cutting Sword Technique, and so on, are all improved from high-level spells.”

“If I could master a second-rank spiritual plant spell, even a simplified version, I could become a second-rank Spirit Planting Master.”

Spirit Planting Master, one of the most common professions in the Cultivation World.

Any force would have more or less Spirit Planting Masters.

Only those unproductive demonic sects wouldn’t cultivate or hire Spirit Planting Masters.

The cultivator in front of Luo Chen, named Yuan Dongsheng, was one of the three Spirit Planting Masters in the Pill Hall, managing several spirit fields by himself.

“Hall Master Luo, are you interested in cultivating spiritual plants? Should I teach you a thing or two?”

Luo Chen quickly stood up. What a joke!

Alchemy was already tiring enough, and now he wanted him to farm?

“No, we can discuss it another time.”

Then, he hurriedly left.

Yuan Dongsheng watched him go, quite regretful that he’d met someone willing to discuss spiritual plants with him.

But the other party didn’t really need to learn these things; what a distinguished status an alchemist held!

A hundred first-rank Spirit Planting Masters wouldn’t be as distinguished as a single alchemist.

After all, it was one of the four mainstream arts in the Cultivation World, and even among the four arts of Pill, Array, Artifact, and Talisman, it was considered the first.

If I could become an alchemist…unfortunately, I don’t have a choice!

At this moment, the distinguished alchemist, Luo Chen, was pondering in front of the Xuan Yun Ding, the largest pill furnace in the largest pill room.

“Today, I’ll use this mid-grade pill furnace to refine the Jade Marrow Pill; improving proficiency should also be faster.”

…

…

Since he had decided to put in some effort and achieve something,

He couldn’t continue with small-scale operations like before.

The Purple Cloud Copper Furnace was only a first-rank lower-grade artifact, and there were limits to the firepower and raw materials it could withstand.

In contrast, the Xuan Yun Ding, a first-rank mid-grade artifact, was of much better quality.

Usually, when refining the myriad wonders pills, he could directly use two sets of raw materials, and there was even some left over.

Regarding the refinement of the Jade Marrow Pill, after two successful attempts and more than a dozen failures, Luo Chen had become quite familiar with it.

Now, it was time to use the Xuan Yun Ding.

As the pharmacist apprentices arrived one by one, Luo Chen directed them to bring the corresponding medicinal herbs into the large pill room.

“From today onwards, all morning time will be used to refine Jade Marrow Pills.”

“Considering that you are not yet proficient in refining Jade Marrow Pills, I can only refine them myself, so during the extra time, besides processing medicinal herbs, you must also carefully read the ‘Hundred Herbs Compendium’.”

Luo Chen handed over the ‘Hundred Herbs Compendium’ he had borrowed from Mi Junping, shamelessly.

The recipient was Gu Caiyi, the Pill Hall’s attendant, in charge of the Pill Hall’s internal affairs.

She currently managed the pharmacist apprentices, fire handlers, and elixir keepers for him.

Luo Chen couldn’t personally teach everything he wanted his subordinates to learn, often delegating supervision to others.

“Make twenty copies and let them read them carefully, making sure they understand the characteristics of various spiritual herbs.”

Gu Caiyi hesitantly took the Hundred Herbs Compendium, “This is the Merit Hall’s book; is it alright for us to directly let them learn it?”

“There’s nothing right or wrong about it; if there’s a problem, I’ll handle it with Mi Junping.”

Luo Chen’s mentality had changed again.

Although he couldn’t let these people learn the true essence, he didn’t need to hide everything.

If they could learn some basic knowledge, it would better help him in his future alchemy endeavors.

“In addition, Elder Sikong, go to the Merit Hall and borrow the ‘Flame Manipulation Technique’ for our Pill Hall.”

Sikong Shougjia, standing beside him, frowned, “That’s a top-quality spell among first-rank spells; it’s not some common spell. What do you need it for?”

“What does ‘top-quality’ matter? Ultimately, it’s not an offensive or defensive spell, but just a technique for controlling magical power.”

Luo Chen waved his hand, facing the fire handlers.

“These fire handlers’ control over flames is too crude. It’s fine for refining Valley-Clearing Pills and Myriad Wonders Pills, but they can’t help me with Jade Marrow Pill refinement.”

“Letting them learn the Flame Manipulation Technique will benefit you, me, and the entire Broken Mountain Sect.”

Is that so?

Sikong Shougjia was dubious.

However, he didn’t refuse the request and immediately left Slanted Moon Valley for the main hall where the Merit Hall was located.

As for the merit points needed to exchange spells from the Merit Hall?

He wasn’t worried about that.

When the Pill Hall was established, Uncle Mi Shuhua had made it very convenient; any spells considered helpful to the Pill Hall could be provided.

Otherwise, Luo Chen wouldn’t have been able to borrow the ‘Hundred Herbs Compendium’.

It’s just that Mi Junping might need to spend some effort persuading him.

Watching his back leave, Luo Chen breathed a sigh of relief.

The extra work assigned to the pharmacist apprentices and fire handlers was indeed as he said.

But the deeper reason was that his proficiency in refining the Jade Marrow Pill was still too low.

He was still in the beginner stage.

At this stage of proficiency, he could only refine pills himself.

To have others help him refine pills, like with the Valley-Clearing Pills and Myriad Wonders Pills, was far from enough.

“In fact, most alchemists in this world, even if they have help refining pills, probably can’t reach my level, right?”

Luo Chen thought to himself.

He even had a feeling that if he were stronger, he could expand his operations further.

Letting more people help him and refining more pills at the same time.

This confidence came from the abnormal efficiency of producing high-quality pills after the proficiency of each pill reached the Grandmaster level.

“Speaking of which, what would happen if a pill’s proficiency reaches Great Perfection?”

“Top-grade pills?”

Luo Chen glanced at the attribute panel; the closest to Great Perfection was the Valley-Clearing Powder.

…

Only two batches of pills were refined in the morning.

One batch was the Jade Marrow Pill, personally refined by Luo Chen using the Xuan Yun Ding, with two sets of materials, resulting in forty failed pills.

Heh, forty more disposable items for practicing with the Primordial Pearl.

The other batch was refined after he finished the Jade Marrow Pills, while resting, guiding Mili and several pharmacist apprentices and fire handlers.

“This Valley-Clearing Pill, while called a pill, is actually just an unranked Valley-Clearing Powder.”

“Compared to first-rank pills, it’s relatively simple to refine, suitable for your entry-level skills.”

“The key point isn’t the technique and skill, but the fusion of herbs and demon beast yellow beef.”

“Remember, make sure the herb and meat are combined, becoming a paste.”

Under Luo Chen’s guidance, the pharmacist apprentices, who had been tormented by processing herbs lately, became energetic and vibrant.

Luo Chen glanced around and pulled a young man aside.

“Tang Quan, is it?”

“These are five high-grade Myriad Wonders Pills; take them home to your uncle.”

Tang Quan received the five pills, his expression slightly unnatural.

His uncle was naturally the ailing tiger, Zeng Wen.

Lately, Mr. Zeng had asked several times, saying that the number of high-grade Myriad Wonders Pills was too small, making him unsatisfied.

Luo Chen remembered this, usually setting aside a few pills when collecting the finished product to give to this old customer.

Since it wasn’t his cost, and he also needed to conceal his true Grandmaster-level alchemy skills, he simply returned the extra high-grade Myriad Wonders Pills to his old customer.

“Alright, it’s time to collect the pills.”

“I’ll still collect the pills this time; I will slowly let you operate the refining of the Valley-Clearing Powder in the future.”

Luo Chen said, using the attraction technique to open the furnace lid.

A clear and refreshing fragrance slowly wafted out.

Mili, Tang Quan, and others smelled the fragrance, their spirits lifted, as if their stomachs were full.

Luo Chen’s expression moved, and his Grandmaster-level attraction technique subtly moved.

Soon, a large mass of medicinal paste flew out.

“See? This is the true form of Valley-Clearing Powder.”

“The pill form you usually see is created when I use spiritual energy to knead it within the furnace during the pill-forming stage.”

“When I refined the Valley-Clearing Powder, I actually first obtained the paste and then personally kneaded it into pills.”

“This large mass of paste should yield fifty Valley-Clearing Pills.”

“Take it, knead it into pills while it’s hot; remember not to touch it directly, use bamboo slips to wrap it!”

Under Luo Chen’s guidance, the large mass of paste instantly flew toward Mili.

Mili quickly caught it with the prepared tools and then led the group out of the pill room.

Soon, shouts and cries came from outside.

There were shouts like “It’s so hot!” and “It’s fun!”

In the pill room, unnoticed by them, Luo Chen reached out and grabbed.

The furnace lid flipped, and a golden-yellow pill adhered to it.

“Is this the result of the Great Perfection Valley-Clearing Powder?”

Today’s update ends here; I need to catch some sleep, only slept four hours, I’m numb.

Eight chapters, 43,000 words updated, Xiaoyu did her best!

Brothers with monthly tickets, please vote!

(End of Chapter)

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