Chapter 381: Refining Instruments

"Shopkeeper Li, has my cinnabar arrived?"

The pharmacy owner, who had been calculating on his abacus, looked up and immediately saw the eccentric man in the red Taoist robe. A fawning smile instantly spread across his face; this was a very important customer. "Heh heh, honored guest, we've been waiting for you! All thirty pounds are here. Little Huzi, go help the guest deliver it to his home."

"No need, I'll take it myself." After paying the remaining balance, Li Huowang picked up the bag with one hand and turned to walk out of the pharmacy.

Little Huzi, the pharmacy apprentice, asked his boss in surprise, "Shopkeeper, why does this man need thirty pounds of cinnabar? Ordinary people, even for medicinal use, only buy a few ounces at most."

With a snap, the pharmacy owner flicked Little Huzi's forehead with a bent middle finger. "Does it hurt? Good, remember this lesson! You're just an apprentice; it's none of your business what other people buy it for. Even if he took it home to mix with rice, it has nothing to do with us!"

With a thud, the heavy bag of cinnabar was tossed onto the carriage. Li Huowang climbed into the carriage, blew a whistle, and Mantou immediately trotted over.

"Giddy up! Giddy up!" Li Huowang glanced at the cinnabar bag beside him, pulled the reins, and drove the carriage towards the West City Gate.

Just last night, Li Huowang suddenly realized he had been thinking in circles. If others could use 'Heart-Essence' to refine artifacts, why couldn't he?

Moreover, his body's healing speed was extraordinary, with virtually no side effects other than causing him pain.

More importantly, artifacts refined from 'Heart-Essence' organs possessed extraordinary abilities, greatly enhancing his strength, which would undoubtedly be a significant help in his upcoming confrontation with Beifeng.

"Clip-clop." As the horse's hooves clattered on the flagstones, Li Huowang gradually made his way out of the city.

Li Huowang did not take the main roads frequented by many people; instead, he deliberately sought out secluded paths and mountain trails.

As the sun gradually set, Li Huowang finally found a suitable spot: a flat, open area in front of several gravestones.

As soon as Mantou arrived at the location, it immediately became alert, lowering its body and baring its teeth in a trembling display of intimidation towards the gravestones.

"I humbly request to borrow the ground in front of your residences for a night; please do not take offense." Li Huowang cupped his hands towards the gravestones, then turned to retrieve items from the carriage.

Mantou suddenly pounced, flushing out several mice that scurried in all directions.

Li Huowang first took out a small alchemy furnace he had obtained from the Human Ghoul. He then placed cinnabar inside the furnace and high-quality snowflake charcoal beneath it.

As a former alchemist, refining cinnabar was easy for him. An hour later, Li Huowang opened the alchemy furnace, revealing a silvery liquid mixed with dregs.

This substance, a silvery liquid refined from cinnabar, was called 'Chanyi,' as Danyangzi had once taught him at Qingfeng Temple. In Li Huowang's original world, this substance was known as mercury.

Quickly sifting out the residue, Li Huowang picked up a bowl and collected the Chanyi. However, this was not enough; he needed more.

After further refining, Li Huowang looked at the large bowl of shimmering silver Chanyi before him, a hint of satisfaction on his face.

"This should be just about enough..."

Li Huowang turned and took out a shovel he had prepared earlier, beginning to dig a pit. He dug deeper and deeper until it was large enough for a person to stand in, then stopped.

Closing his eyes, Li Huowang took a few deep breaths. He reached into the tool-filled leather pouch at his waist and pulled out a broken dagger that gleamed with a cold light.

"Taoist, don't you want to reconsider? It doesn't have to be like this." The monk rushed over, advising him with a look of unbearable pity.

In contrast to him, Hong Zhong sat on Peng Longteng's shoulder, looking as if he was waiting for a good show.

No matter what the hallucinations around him said, nothing could shake Li Huowang's resolve. He raised the dagger high and slowly drew it across the center of his scalp. Soon, Li Huowang's scalp parted, revealing flesh interwoven with blood vessels beneath.

Next, Li Huowang stripped off his clothes and stood naked in the pit he had dug, lowering his head and continuously burying himself with earth.

Burying himself proved to be quite difficult, but luckily, Li Sui could help.

As Li Sui's tentacles relentlessly beat the earth, the soil around Li Huowang was tamped down tightly.

"Li Sui, good girl, help me again..."

At Li Huowang's command, two tentacles emerged from his neck, slowly coiling around the large bowl of Chanyi on the ground and moving it towards the wound on top of his head.

Li Huowang swallowed with difficulty, then slowly spoke. "Part it slightly before pouring; don't spill it."

Li Sui was obedient and immediately complied. The tentacles stretched the wound on Li Huowang's scalp as wide as possible.

As the large bowl tilted, a silvery stream shimmered beautifully under the moonlight. "Ugh... ah... AAHH!!"

Amidst Li Huowang's screams, the stream of mercury continuously poured into the gash on top of his head.

This process was incredibly difficult, but Li Huowang dared not waver, fearing the mercury would spill.

As a heavy metal, mercury was naturally very dense. As it continued to flow downwards, it quickly forced Li Huowang's skin and flesh to split apart.

Initially, Li Huowang felt pain, which he could endure. But gradually, the pain transformed into an itch, intensifying until his entire body was consumed by it.

As this extreme itch reached its peak, Li Huowang, buried in the earth, struggled desperately. He felt as if ants were biting him all over, a sensation that nearly drove him mad.

As he continuously shook his head, the gash on top of his head rapidly widened.

As Li Huowang twisted and wriggled, his body squeezed upwards like a snake. After considerable effort, his skinless, bloody head finally pushed through the gash in his scalp.

First his head emerged, then his left arm, followed by his right. By the time the moonlight shone brightly, Li Huowang had finally clawed his way out of the earth, leaving only his skin behind.

"Ha... ha..." Li Huowang trembled all over. At that moment, he could no longer discern which part of him hurt more; he had thought he was long accustomed to pain.

But when the freezing winds of the twelfth lunar month cut into his skinless body like knives, Li Huowang still felt so much pain that he nearly fainted.

Trembling, Li Huowang pulled out the "True Scripture of Fire Robes" and, shaking uncontrollably, began chanting the spells written within.

Burning centipedes crawled slowly over Li Huowang. Before long, Li Huowang's entire body was completely covered in charred and yellowish burn scars.

This might have made the pain worse, but at least Li Huowang, now covered in scars, could wear clothes.

Dressed, Li Huowang glanced at the skin on the ground, and with a sudden release of tension, he collapsed onto the carriage. He curled into a ball, clutching himself, and passed out.