Inside the Nihility Devouring Flame, two types of herbal liquids roiled and churned. Thin threads of yellow impurities were gradually extracted. Under Goku's terrifying spiritual control, those impurities were completely removed, leaving behind a refined, crystal-clear liquid.
With a wave of his hand, the two fused liquids floated into his palm. Looking at the glowing, lustrous essence in his hand, Goku smiled faintly.
"Refining ingredients isn't too hard after all. If that's the case, concocting the pill itself shouldn't be a problem either."
With a thought, the cauldron beside him rose into the air. Goku tossed a ball of eerie, black flame into it—the Nihility Devouring Flame. Instantly, the fire flared up inside the cauldron, rising in a fierce jet of heat and flame.
Watching the black flames rapidly surge, accompanied by faint crackling sounds, Goku couldn't help but shake his head. Though the cauldron was of extremely high quality, it wasn't quite able to withstand the might of the Nihility Devouring Flame when used by someone of Goku's power. Even before adding the ingredients, the cauldron was already showing signs of instability.
Acting quickly, Goku suppressed the flame's temperature and enveloped the cauldron with his overwhelming spiritual power, preventing it from exploding.
Thanks to the intense heat, there was no need for the usual "warming phase" of the cauldron. Rubbing his hands, Goku grabbed several rare herbs—including Fire Spirit Root and Earth Core Flame Ganoderma—and tossed them into the cauldron, followed by the previously refined liquid.
The pill he intended to make was a Rank Six Tongling Pill, a spiritual communication pill. Truthfully, refining a Rank Six pill on his very first attempt would sound insane to most people—if the rumor spread, people would either call him a fool or a lunatic.
But what if he succeeded?
If Goku managed to successfully refine a Rank Six pill on his first try, even the most respected alchemists in the continent would probably slam their heads into a wall in despair.
Once the herbs entered the cauldron, the black flames consumed them like hungry wolves. In an instant, the ingredients began to wilt.
Though the flame looked ferocious, its temperature had been carefully suppressed by Goku. Otherwise, the moment any herb came into contact with the Nihility Devouring Flame, it would've been incinerated to ashes.
Thin beads of moisture began to sweat from the surface of the herbs. The droplets slid down and merged into the flame with the refined liquid, swirling and tumbling within the fire.
As the flames roasted the contents, streams of liquid essence seeped from the herbs, which gradually withered to husks. Their medicinal essence had been completely extracted and fused into the mixture, while the leftover residue was reduced to useless waste.
Under Goku's spiritual control, that waste was instantly removed, leaving behind a dark red herbal liquid, about the size of a fist. As the flames continued to refine it, the liquid condensed further. Residual impurities were removed layer by layer, until only a small bead of gleaming crimson liquid remained—no larger than a thumb. A faint red glow flickered across its surface.
Just then, a childish voice echoed from the courtyard outside.
"Goku-nii! Where are you? Come out and tell us a story! You haven't told us one in forever!"
It was Alice's sweet voice.
"That room! There's a really powerful energy fluctuation inside—Goku must be in there!" came Zi Yan's excited shout. From the sound of the footsteps, the little girls were already running toward the room.
"Wow! What a strong medicinal aroma! What is Goku doing in there?" Zi Yan's tone was filled with curiosity and anticipation.
Creak—
The door slowly opened, and Zi Yan poked her adorable head inside. Her eyes lit up the moment she saw Goku, but when her gaze landed on the floating cauldron, she froze. She had been about to call out loudly but wisely held her tongue. She wasn't an ignorant child—she knew full well how important concentration was during pill refinement.
Unfortunately, just because she knew, didn't mean the other little girls did.
Seeing Zi Yan blocking the doorway, Karin immediately squeezed in through the gap. "I can feel Goku-nii's presence in here. Zi Yan, don't block the way! I wanna hear a story!"
"Don't go in—Gokui is refining a pill. We mustn't disturb him!" Zi Yan immediately grabbed Karin's arm.
At that moment, Alice also squeezed in, her eyes going wide. "It's so hot in here! What's Goku-nii doing?!"
"He's making pills! Be quiet, all of you!" Zi Yan quickly covered their mouths, but the two little girls squirmed and mumbled in protest, trying to break free.
Goku glanced over at the door and sighed. "Either come in or go play somewhere else—I don't have time to tell stories right now."
Fortunately, his spiritual power was immense. He didn't have to worry about being distracted during pill refinement. If it were anyone else, they would've long since gone into qi deviation with all the chaos.
Hearing Goku speak so calmly, Zi Yan finally relaxed. Confident in Goku's strength, she let go of the two girls.
Freed, Alice ran up to the cauldron, peering into the swirling flames with wide eyes. "So this is alchemy? So cool!"
Zi Yan and Karin followed behind her, curiously observing the cauldron and the flickering black flame within it.
"Goku… is that a Heavenly Flame?" Zi Yan asked, stunned.
Goku nodded with a smile. "Yeah, it's the Nihility Devouring Flame—ranked second on the Heavenly Flame list."
As he spoke, he tossed another herb into the cauldron. It immediately shriveled, and threads of medicinal essence were extracted and drawn into the mixture. With his immense spiritual power, Goku had no trouble chatting with the girls while simultaneously refining a high-level pill.
"Nihility Devouring Flame?!" Zi Yan's jaw dropped. She clearly understood how terrifying that flame was.
"Wow! That herb just dried up instantly! So cool! Goku-nii, let me help!" Alice's eyes sparkled as she grabbed a herb from the table and threw it into the cauldron.
"No—!" Goku shouted, but it was too late.
However, to his surprise, the moment the herb entered the cauldron, the glowing pill liquid inside seemed to develop a will of its own. A mysterious suction force emerged and wrapped around the herb, gently pulling its essence into the mixture.
Goku paused, surprised.
The essence extracted flawlessly and merged into the rest of the liquid. At once, a brilliant glow flared up from within the cauldron, and an intoxicating medicinal aroma filled the room. The flames roiled, and the concoction seemed to come alive with spirit and vitality.
At that exact moment—the skies over Jia Nan Academy darkened.
Clouds gathered rapidly. Thunder rumbled. A storm brewed with blinding speed. A Pill Lightning Tribulation was forming.
Across the city, panic and excitement spread.
---
Thick thunderclouds quickly amassed above Jia Nan Academy. The sun had already set, but under the looming Pill Lightning Tribulation, the sky turned pitch black—so dark one couldn't see their own hand. Only the occasional flash of silver lightning illuminated the sky, briefly casting light over the academy below.
"What's going on? Why did the sky suddenly turn so dark?!"
"Look! Above the academy—those clouds! That's a thundercloud!"
"I know what that is! That's a Pill Tribulation! Someone must've refined a pill above Rank Seven! Only pills of that level or higher can trigger a tribulation!"
"And the lightning is gathering right above that Residence... Could it be someone there refined a Rank Seven pill?!"
"There's no doubt! Don't you smell it? That intense medicinal fragrance—someone in that Residence must've refined a Rank Seven pill!"
"What are we waiting for? Let's go check it out!"
In a flurry, students and teachers from Jia Nan Academy all rushed toward Goku's Residence. But as they reached the gates, they were stopped by several instructors. The disturbance had, of course, caught the attention of Vice Dean Hu Gan, who immediately ordered teachers to seal off the area, keeping students from rushing in blindly.
He knew very well who was staying inside Residence—an extremely powerful guest. There was no way he'd let a bunch of students interfere.
But Hu Gan himself, along with his granddaughter Hu Jia, quietly entered the residence.
At the same time, various influential figures from Jia Nan City began to arrive near the academy, all drawn by the rare phenomenon. But out of respect for Jia Nan Academy, most of them only watched from a distance. Only a select few experts with ties to the academy dared step inside.
In the sky above, the thunderclouds continued to grow, as if responding to the surge of powerful pill fragrance wafting from the residence. The very energy of heaven and earth in the area began to tremble, pulled in by the birth of a rare pill.
"Such intense resonance… Could this be a Peak Rank Seven pill?" Goku narrowed his eyes at the crimson-gold liquid swirling in his cauldron.
He had originally intended to refine a simple Rank Six Pill, but thanks to Alice unexpectedly adding a Purple Orchid Grass, the mixture had evolved beyond his expectations. Somehow, by chance, it had triggered the formula for a brand-new pill—one that had now reached the peak of Rank Seven.
'If this gets out, pill masters across the continent are going to lose their minds…'
Tears welled up in Alice's eyes as she looked at the trembling cauldron. She feared she had ruined everything and that Goku would be angry.
"Did I… do something wrong…?" Her voice trembled as she bit her lip.
Goku chuckled softly and ruffled her hair. "No, you did great, Alice. Thanks to you, we might've just created an entirely new pill formula by accident."
"Really?! So I didn't mess up?" Alice instantly lit up, her tears vanishing as quickly as they'd come. She leaned forward to peer into the cauldron again, curiosity and joy shining in her eyes.
Meanwhile, Zi Yan rushed to the door, staring up at the sky, her face flushed with excitement.
"Whoa! That's a Pill Lightning Tribulation, right?! That means Goku refined at least a Rank Seven pill! Wait—there are so many people gathering here now… Even Grandpa Hu Gan came!"
Sure enough, Hu Gan appeared at the gate with a gorgeous young woman beside him—his granddaughter Hu Jia. Both wore expressions of excitement and awe. It had been a long time since anyone had witnessed the descent of a pill tribulation. How could they not be thrilled?
Back inside the residence, Saeko, Bulma, and the others had also arrived in the courtyard. Seeing the terrifying thunderclouds overhead, they hurried toward Goku's room.
"Goku! What kind of trouble did you stir up now?" Bulma was the first to walk in, raising an eyebrow as she glanced at the floating cauldron. "What's with this massive thundercloud above the house?!"
"He's refining a pill!" Zi Yan explained excitedly, face glowing red with excitement. "Goku is making a Rank Seven pill—look at that color! It might even be peak Rank Seven! Amazing, right? His first time refining and he's already producing a peak pill!"
"For real?" Bulma and the others immediately turned their attention to the glowing pill in the cauldron. Its surface sparkled with multicolored light, and the rich medicinal aroma filled the room.
"That's beautiful… What kind of pill is it?"
"I was originally refining a Rank Six Tongling Pill," Goku shrugged. "But then Alice tossed in a stalk of Purple Orchid Grass, so now… I have no idea what we're making."
Suddenly, Hu Gan appeared at the door, clearly anxious. "Lord Goku! The pill tribulation is about to descend—if you don't stop it soon, then entire Residence is going to be obliterated!"
He was barely holding himself together. He really wanted to help, but the energy within that cloud was terrifying. It was already beyond what a Dou King could handle—maybe even a Dou Ancestor would struggle with it.
If that tribulation landed and anyone died, he couldn't bear the responsibility!
Goku calmly turned around and smiled. "Vice Dean Hu Gan, good to see you. Oh—this is Yi Xian. She'll be studying at Jia Nan Academy for a while. I'll leave the arrangements to you."
"Approved! approved! I'll handle it personally! But please—deal with that tribulation now!" Hu Gan waved his hands frantically, practically begging. That storm could kill dozens of students if it broke loose!
"A minor pill tribulation—no need to panic." Goku smiled casually, then walked out into the courtyard.
Above, thunder rumbled ominously. Jagged lightning streaked across the sky, and the clouds churned with oppressive, world-shaking power. The pressure alone made it hard to breathe.
The energy within that tribulation… was definitely on par with a full-strength strike from a Dou Venerate.
But Goku, of course, wasn't the slightest bit intimidated.
A gleaming orb of energy formed at his fingertip. With a flick, it shot into the air like a comet, slamming straight into the heart of the thundercloud.
BOOM!!!
The resulting explosion shattered the silence. A blinding light burst across the sky, and the tribulation cloud shattered with it, crumbling into nothingness. Everyone on the ground felt the tremor shake the surrounding space itself.
The Pill Lightning Tribulation was gone.
Before the onlookers could even process what had happened, Saeko's voice called out urgently:
"Goku! The pill is flying away!"
He turned just in time to see the radiant, crystalline pill shooting up from the cauldron, soaring toward the sky.
High-rank pills, once formed, often gained a trace of sentience. They would instinctively flee to avoid danger.
"You're trying to run… in front of me?"
Goku vanished in a blur. In the next instant, he reappeared in the sky, hand outstretched. With perfect timing, he caught the escaping pill mid-air.
The newly formed peak Rank Seven pill—gleaming like a gem—was now safely in his grasp.
____
T/N:
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