A cultivator at the Third-Layer of Qi Cultivation surpasses ordinary people physically. Though the bronze furnace is heavy, it can be moved with some effort.
It's just a bit cumbersome.
Qin Gengyun finally managed to move the bronze furnace into the kitchen, leaning on his waist and gasping for breath.
He looked outside and shouted:
"Taoist Friend Qiu, today I not only bought a bronze furnace but also spent one Spirit Stone to buy four Pill Stones and one Spirit Stone to buy a stalk of Clear Spirit Grass. Tonight, with the bright moon in the sky, it is an excellent time for alchemy. How about I refine the 'Clear Wind Powder' tonight?"
A moment later, there was no response from outside.
Qin Gengyun walked out of the kitchen, only to see Qiu Zhihe already in bed, with her back turned to him.
Qin Gengyun sighed helplessly and said, "Taoist Friend Qiu, you can sleep first. I'm going to do alchemy."
Having said that, he returned to the kitchen.
In bed, facing the wall, Qiu Zhihe opened her eyes, stretching her slender arm from under the blanket, holding a stalk of Clear Spirit Grass brimming with Spiritual Energy.
This was cultivated by her over the past two days using her Spiritual Power.
Qiu Zhihe was silent for a moment, then took out a Storage Bag, placed the Clear Spirit Grass inside it, and closed her eyes again.
In the kitchen.
Qin Gengyun used a Spiritual Broom to sweep the Pill Furnace, opened the bottom, and placed a Pill Stone into the fire chamber.
He then activated his Spiritual Power on the Pill Stone, and soon, it ignited.
Qin Gengyun hurriedly picked up the Fire-Control Spirit Fan, gently fanning it twice, causing the Pill Fire to gradually blaze.
There are seven steps to alchemy, the first being cleaning the furnace to leave no impurities.
The second is to light the fire, putting a Pill Stone into the furnace and using Spiritual Power to ignite the Pill Fire.
Having completed the first two steps, Qin Gengyun proceeded to add the medicinal ingredients. He picked up the Clear Spirit Grass, opened the side door of the furnace, enveloped the grass with Spiritual Energy, and placed it in the furnace.
Cleaning the furnace, initiating the Pill Fire, and incorporating the medicine, the first three steps are simple, but the following steps test the alchemist's realm and experience.
The fourth step is Medicine Transformation, using the Pill Fire to melt the ingredients into a medicinal liquid.
Normally, a Spirit Fan Medicine Officer would assist, fanning the Fire-Control Spirit Fan according to the alchemist's instructions to control the Pill Fire's intensity.
However, Qin Gengyun couldn't afford to hire a Spirit Fan Medicine Officer, so he had to do it himself.
He maneuvered the Spirit Fan to control the Pill Fire while focusing his Divine Sense into the furnace to check on the ingredients' refinement.
Fortunately, Clear Spirit Grass, a First Grade herb, is easy to refine. After an hour, it had turned into a medicinal liquid in the furnace.
Then came the most challenging step—Refinement.
Refinement involves using Divine Sense to separate the essence from the impurities within the liquid, leaving the essence in the main part of the furnace and channeling impurities into the Pill Poison Room.
This ensures only the most refined part of the medicinal liquid remains in the main furnace.
This step demands a high level of Divine Sense control from the alchemist.
It's as difficult as peeling a raw egg with one hand or engraving letters on a grain of rice.
This is the distinction between an alchemist and an ordinary cultivator.
Many cultivators aspiring to become alchemists are blocked at this step and have to give up.
As an alchemy apprentice, Qin Gengyun often practiced refining his Divine Sense to microscopic levels, but back then, his Divine Sense wasn't strong enough to actually perform a refinement.
Now, for the first time as an alchemist, he was attempting this crucial step.
In the Pill Furnace, Qin Gengyun's Divine Sense penetrated the melted medicinal liquid, slowly segregating the essence from the impurities.
Yet, lacking proficiency, the process was slow, and after two hours, only half of the impurities were separated.
His Divine Sense was already severely depleted.
However, having progressed this far, stopping would mean the medicinal liquid's Spirit would dissipate, so he had to press on.
One more hour passed, with sweat pouring and his face pale.
The impurities were finally mostly separated, but his Spiritual Power was nearly exhausted.
BANG!
Finally, his Divine Sense became chaotic inside the furnace, and the essence, which had been enveloped by Spiritual Energy, exploded with a burst, scattering throughout the furnace.
Refinement failed.
The Clear Spirit Grass, bought at the cost of one Spirit Stone, was completely wasted.
Qin Gengyun collapsed to the ground, arduously wiping the sweat from his forehead with his hand.
There is a saying among alchemists:
The ones who succeed in alchemy on the first try are absolute prodigies; those who succeed on the second are geniuses; those succeeding on the third are extraordinarily gifted.
Those who succeed after four or five attempts are the majority, the average ones among us in small towns.
It seems this saying holds true; the chance of succeeding on the first try in alchemy is even harder than passing a major exam in a previous life.
Qin Gengyun was mentally prepared for this. If he were an absolute prodigy, he wouldn't have been at the Second-Layer of Qi Cultivation at age thirty-five, not even a genius.
Living in a small town, failing two or three times is really normal.
It's just that a single stalk of Clear Spirit Grass costing one Spirit Stone is quite painful.
Qin Gengyun extinguished the Pill Fire in the furnace, freshened up, and stepped out of the kitchen.
Having exhausted his Divine Sense today, he'll attempt again tomorrow.
Walking over to the bed, he saw Qiu Zhihe still facing the wall, with her back towards him, presumably asleep.
Qin Gengyun took off his outer garment, climbed into bed quietly, and turned his back to the delicate figure, closing his eyes.
With his Divine Sense completely depleted, he was extremely tired and soon fell into a deep sleep.
...
3 a.m.
Willow Smoke Lane.
Three black-robed men were guarding a bronze furnace, shivering in the cold wind of the early morning.
Zhao Yi peered towards the lane entrance, murmuring:
"Why isn't the senior here yet?"
According to the senior's request from last night, the three of them had brought the bronze furnace to Willow Smoke Lane by 1 p.m. today.
But even after an hour of waiting, the senior still hadn't shown up.
All three were injured last night and were suffering from Heart-devouring Pill poisoning, unable to withstand the cold wind of a winter night, yet they dared not leave.
They could only endure in the cold wind, waiting longingly.
Three people hugged their almost numb bodies, yearningly waiting.
Another hour passed, around 3 p.m.
At last, a tall red figure appeared.
"Welcome, senior!"
Zhao Yi, Qian Er, and Sun San immediately kneeled and respectfully shouted.
Zhao Yi wore a flattering expression, pointing to the bronze furnace beside him: "Senior, this is the Pill Furnace you requested."
Qian Er smiled broadly: "Senior, this bronze furnace was cleaned meticulously all night last night, guaranteeing no impurities inside!"
Sun San respectfully added: "Senior, I also put four Middle Grade Pill Stones in the furnace, please accept them."
Zhao Yi and Qian Er turned and glared at him.
Damn, letting this kid take the credit!
However, as soon as the three finished speaking, they heard the ethereal voice respond:
"I don't need the Pill Furnace anymore, take it back."
Surprised, all three raised their heads to look at the red-haired female cultivator: "Huh?"
But the red-haired female cultivator had already turned and walked out of the alley.
The three looked at each other in confusion, Zhao Yi said: "What should we do?"
Qian Er said helplessly: "Didn't you hear the senior? She told us to take it back!"
Sun San said bitterly: "Brothers, ordinarily, I could carry this small Pill Furnace by myself, but now, heavily injured, cold, and hungry, I really have no strength left."
The two glared at him: "Aren't we in the same boat? Stop whining, move quickly, or someone might see us!"
Thus, the three black-robed men struggled to lift the heavy bronze furnace and trudged their way towards Narrow Rain Lane.