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    Starry Sky Professional Directory 136

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    “Right, Fang nephew…”

    Zhou Yuantong held a name card in his hand, “This time… you want to refine Foundation Establishment Pills? Did you really gather the main ingredients?”

    “Naturally, please see…”

    Fang Xing took a box from his storage pouch and casually tossed it over.

    Zhou Yuantong opened it and saw the second-order vulture demon core, his eyes immediately lit up. After a brief inspection, he nodded repeatedly: “Indeed, it’s a second-order demon core. Nephew, you’re very lucky… In my younger days, I once went deep into the wildlands with a friend, killing seven second-order demonic beasts, but ultimately gained nothing… I wonder, this second-order demon core of yours…”

    “What? Now refining pills requires questioning the source of the main ingredient?” Fang Xing chuckled, “It was naturally obtained by a fortunate coincidence.”

    “Haha, what a fortunate coincidence, it seems heaven itself wants you to obtain a Foundation Establishment Pill.”

    Zhou Yuantong laughed heartily, but a sense of awe filled his heart.

    This Qi Refinement cultivator, is his confidence a bit too high? Ordinary scattered cultivators who obtain valuable treasures usually hide them, how could he so directly give a second-order demon core to him?

    “Alright, let’s talk about the pill refinement process…”

    Fang Xing asked, “Senior, when can you start refining the pills?”

    “This… only one second-order demon core is insufficient to start the furnace, it also needs Azure Dragon Ginseng, Moonlight Dew, and other supplementary materials…”

    A troubled expression appeared on Zhou Yuantong’s face.

    “That’s simple, spread the word, and won’t we have them then?” Fang Xing smiled.

    “So nephew, you plan to refine pills in partnership?” A flash of brilliance appeared in Zhou Yuantong’s eyes as he stroked his beard, “With my skill, I can’t guarantee that I will definitely produce two or more pills…”

    Fang Xing was speechless.

    According to the *Wanfa Danjing* (Ten Thousand Methods Pill Scripture), using a demonic beast inner core as the main material to refine Foundation Establishment Pills, the success rate will be slightly lower than using orthodox materials. But if a Grandmaster Pill Refiner makes it, it can guarantee five perfect pills per batch! If it’s a Pill Master, they can barely guarantee four or five pills per batch, with a mix of regular and perfect quality.

    Yet, with Zhou Yuantong, he couldn’t even guarantee two pills.

    ‘Sure enough… are the cultivators here too weak?’

    Fang Xing smiled, “Anyway, I can choose first. I have a little wealth that’s enough to compensate… Besides, perhaps senior’s alchemy skills are superb, and two or even three pills will be produced, wouldn’t that be the best of both worlds?”

    He thought for a moment, and continued, “However… according to the rules of refining precious pills, we must observe from the side.”

    “Naturally, please keep this demon core, nephew. I will spread the word and look for other cultivators…”

    Zhou Yuantong openly returned the demon core to Fang Xing and asked a servant to take Fang Xing to a guest room to rest.

    “Ancestral Master?”

    Zhou Xin, observing this, was thoughtful.

    “Hehe…”

    Zhou Yuantong waved his hand, and a light curtain restriction appeared, isolating the inside and outside.

    “This kid seemed imposing and magnanimous before, giving off the impression of a noble family background. He almost fooled me… But if he truly had a strong background, why would he seek me out to refine pills? What’s more, he couldn’t even gather the supplementary herbs for Foundation Establishment Pills?”

    Zhou Yuantong stroked his beard and chuckled.

    “Ancestral Master means…?” Zhou Xin’s eyes lit up.

    “Our Zhou family must produce another Foundation Establishment cultivator to ensure stability… Your Sixth Uncle has already reached the peak of Qi Refinement, but he’s just short of a Foundation Establishment Pill…”

    Zhou Yuantong said, “The family should have an Azure Dragon Ginseng… As for Moonlight Dew, let’s find the Zheng family to exchange for some. Gathering the supplementary materials shouldn’t be a problem. You immediately take my order, go to the family to prepare the herbs, and by the way… bring your Sixth Uncle and Twenty-Seventh Uncle here.”

    “Yes!”

    Zhou Xin stood at attention, curtsied, and gracefully withdrew.

    Looking towards the guest room where Fang Xing was staying, she silently shook her head, sighing, ‘This is just bad luck… If Ancestral Master refines two perfect pills, there might still be a glimmer of hope, otherwise…’

    Several days later.

    Fang Xing was invited to the living room again: “Oh? Your Zhou family is preparing to cooperate with me?”

    Zhou Yuantong chuckled, “That’s right… After much thought, publicizing this matter would be detrimental to you, so it’s better to do it privately… It just so happens that my Zhou family has some accumulated herbs. After checking them, we can still take out a set of supplementary materials, what do you think!”

    Beside Zhou Yuantong, two Qi Refinement cultivators stood.

    One was a burly man, his cultivation having reached the peak of Qi Refinement. He patted his storage pouch, revealing a jade box. Opening it revealed a verdant ginseng root, faintly shaped like a dragon.

    The other Qi Refinement cultivator was a middle-aged scholar, his appearance refined and cultured. He similarly took out a jade bottle from his storage pouch; inside, a drop of dew, faintly exuded the shape of a full moon.

    “Azure Dragon Ginseng, Moonlight Dew…”

    Fang Xing nodded.

    “This Azure Dragon Ginseng is five hundred years old… The Moonlight Dew is also top-quality. The remaining twenty-seven types of ordinary supplementary materials are all complete in my manor. Nephew, what do you think?”

    Zhou Yuantong chuckled.

    “Everything is up to senior. But… if only one perfect pill is produced?”

    Fang Xing surveyed the surroundings, his voice slightly low.

    “Naturally, the nephew chooses first, and we will compensate you with 3,500 low-grade Spirit Stones…”

    The burly man and the middle-aged scholar exchanged glances and looked at their Ancestral Master.

    “Good!”

    Fang Xing nodded, suddenly asking, “Do you have a second-order Spirit Contract? For such an important matter, it’s better to sign a contract first for peace of mind…”

    “This…”

    The burly man and middle-aged scholar exchanged glances and looked at their Ancestral Master.

    “Haha, of course!”

    Zhou Yuantong, with a businesslike manner, took out a second-order Spirit Contract and wrote down the conditions one by one: “I’ll sign first…”

    For such contracts, names were insignificant; what mattered was the cultivator’s magical power imprint. Even more stringent would be adding a bloodline imprint.

    Zhou Yuantong flicked his sleeve, a circular mark formed on the contract, and he handed it to Fang Xing.

    Fang Xing looked at it, nodded, and similarly left a magical power imprint, forming a white-gold sword mark.

    “Done… Please come with me to the alchemy room.”

    Zhou Yuantong chuckled, taking Fang Xing and the others to the alchemy room.

    “Everyone, do not approach within ten feet, I’m about to begin.”

    Zhou Yuantong’s expression turned serious, and he cast a spell. A crimson ancient beast head on the wall opened its mouth, spewing out bursts of intense earth fire. His hands moved like butterflies among flowers, beginning to warm the alchemy furnace.

    Zhou Xin’s eyes brightened: “Ancestral Master’s fire control spell is even more refined.”

    She knew, however, that her Ancestral Master’s spell was of extraordinary origin. His movements were extremely fast, unlike usual, when he would deliberately slow down to allow her to observe.

    Fang Xing pretended to be a novice alchemist, widening his clear eyes as if he couldn’t understand at all. In reality, he could still see a bit of the method, feeling that although it was not as good as the techniques in the *Wanfa Danjing*, it was still insightful. He also had a camera hidden on his person which could record the process for frame-by-frame review.

    While the cultivation world had ‘Shadow Stones’ and ‘Sound Recording Symbols’, they all had magical power fluctuations. Zhou family’s ancestor never imagined there was a mundane mechanism that didn’t require magical power to record, and now fully focused, putting various herbs into the furnace, refining them into different medicinal liquids and powders…

    Then, the second-order demon core and the two main supplementary ingredients…

    The refinement of the Foundation Establishment Pill took more than three days. During this time, Fang Xing and the Qi Refinement cultivators sat cross-legged, occasionally taking a Fasting Pill.

    Finally…

    “Open!”

    Zhou Yuantong cast a spell, and the crimson alchemy furnace opened with a loud bang, releasing an amazing medicinal fragrance. A blue stream of light shot out like lightning and was caught by Zhou Yuantong.

    He glanced at it, and an awkward expression appeared on his old face.

    “How did the pills turn out?”

    Fang Xing casually asked, seemingly unconcerned.

    “Alas…”

    Zhou Yuantong sighed, opening his hand to reveal a blue pill; its medicinal properties were restrained, like a sapphire. However, there was a black line on the gem.

    “I’m ashamed, this batch only produced one inferior Foundation Establishment Pill…”

    Zhou Yuantong looked at Fang Xing, but seeing Fang Xing’s calm expression, he was somewhat surprised: “This… dare I ask, nephew, do you still need it? If you take this inferior Foundation Establishment Pill, you still need to pay the Spirit Stones for the supplementary materials…”

    “That’s not urgent.”

    Fang Xing suddenly smiled, “I heard that among pill refiners, there’s a ‘Concealing Pill Technique’ that can hide the finished pills in the furnace. I wonder if it’s true or false? May I inspect the furnace?”

    “Audacious!”

    The two Zhou family Qi Refinement cultivators immediately shouted angrily, “The alchemy furnace is a private item, how can you inspect it?”

    “I’ve been refining pills for many years, my integrity is unquestionable… Besides, little friend, do you not believe me? There’s the second-order Spirit Contract!”

    Zhou Yuantong looked serious.

    “Foundation Establishment cultivators can break contracts if they are willing to pay a heavy price… What’s more, I’ve seen a true second-order Spirit Contract. The one you gave before, although it looked similar, was slightly off… It was probably a defective product, the price to break the contract is much lower, isn’t it?”

    Fang Xing stood with his hands behind his back, the demeanor of a master.

    Seeing this, Zhou Yuantong became doubtful.

    A silver token appeared in his hand; with a wave, the manor was enveloped in a layer of earthy yellow light.

    After doing this, Zhou Yuantong felt relieved and looked at Fang Xing, a ferocious expression on his face: “Since you’ve seen through it, wouldn’t it be better to take the inferior Foundation Establishment Pill and leave?”

    He had played a trick, the second-order Spirit Contract was indeed defective, but it still required a certain price to break. If Fang Xing took the inferior pill and left, it could almost be considered fulfilling the agreement, and he wouldn’t suffer backlash.

    What’s more… this person might have some background, perhaps he even told a friend before refining the pills. If an accident happened and it was publicized, it would greatly affect the reputation of the Zhou family’s ancestor.

    Therefore, he was preparing to fool him with an inferior Foundation Establishment Pill, even if this person went out and spread rumors, at most it would be said that his performance was poor this time. It was worth it for a Foundation Establishment Pill!

    Unexpectedly, this person directly pointed it out… What support did he have?

    (End of Chapter)

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