Chapter 243: Nasal Mucus

Gurgling, the medicinal soup in Xu Xiaoshou's large bathtub constantly bubbled and concentrated. He leisurely watched the young girl beside him.

Mu Zixi was a little anxious. This was already her fourth batch of Vermilion Gold Pills, and it was clear that the art of pill concoction was not so easy to master.

Even with her extraordinary talent and profound understanding of herbal properties, she had already failed three times.

The reason was...

"Xu Xiaoshou, are you making soup?" Mu Zixi couldn't help but ask, glancing at the continuously bubbling large bathtub.

At any other time, let alone failing three times, even if it were thirty or three hundred times, she wouldn't have been discouraged.

But Xu Xiaoshou's method of pill concoction was the complete opposite of hers.

This guy seemed to not even need to watch; he just threw a Blazing Skyflame underneath to burn, and then rested his chin in his hand, constantly watching her.

Oh heavens, was this flame really that powerful?

Mu Zixi was envious!

She also wanted to concoct pills this way, not looking disheveled yet still having to force herself to stay focused.

Hearing this, Xu Xiaoshou just smiled. He loosened his hand from his chin and clinked his teeth, saying, "You're absolutely right. This is my self-created 'Soup-Making Method' of pill concoction. Old man, do you want to take a look too?"

Elder Sang remained silent, observing carefully.

At first, he was baffled, calling it nonsense, but upon closer inspection...

The medicinal soup was compressed as it continuously circulated, and the loss of medicinal properties was surprisingly minimal.

If this method of pill concoction could truly succeed, it might indeed be a historic breakthrough in the history of alchemy!

"Soup-Making Method..."

Thinking of that name, Elder Sang felt his eyes roll.

But Xu Xiaoshou's naming convention, just like the "big bathtub" and "small bathtub" from before, seemed outlandish but was incredibly apt!

It was simply irrefutable!

Since Elder Sang didn't speak, Xu Xiaoshou didn't pay him much attention either. He knew that the true test would be the finished product.

Currently, his various spiritual liquids seemed to have a decent shelf life, with no instances of complete loss of medicinal efficacy.

Of course, the loss of medicinal properties was indeed slightly more severe than with pills.

Whether there was a better way to preserve the medicinal properties would depend on Elder Sang's assessment of his results later.

All three fell silent. Mu Zixi also began to exert herself secretly.

Seeing that Xu Xiaoshou's batch of pills actually took so much time, she couldn't help but feel happy again.

Such a method of pill concoction might not require much effort, but it was time-consuming!

Later, even if Xu Xiaoshou succeeded in forming pills, if the potency couldn't compensate for the time spent, he would still inevitably lose.

"There's a chance!"

After calming her mind, Mu Zixi truly lived up to her reputation as a genius. After failing a few more batches and summarizing her experience, she finally succeeded in forming a pill in one go.

Several dark, shiny pills rolled out of the small bathtub. Mu Zixi didn't even glance at them; she went straight to pick out the only bright one.

Although it was a size smaller and looked a bit withered, the medicinal fragrance it emitted truly told everyone that this was a Vermilion Gold Pill!

"It's a success!"

The young girl's expression was jubilant, as she fiddled with the small "bean" in her hand, unable to put it down.

Now Xu Xiaoshou was also a little surprised. He asked, "How many batches?"

"Eight batches, and the ninth batch succeeded!" Mu Zixi said excitedly.

"That's impressive!"

Xu Xiaoshou genuinely praised her. He remembered that when he concocted pills, he seemed to have failed over a hundred times!

Although each time he was stuck on the domineering and unparalleled Blazing Radiance Pill Concoction technique, a failure was a failure; there was nothing more to explain.

When it came to pill concoction, sometimes wasting hundreds or even thousands of batches was completely normal.

For this young girl to produce a pill within ten batches was remarkable!

As if seeking credit, Mu Zixi handed the "underfed" Vermilion Gold Pill to Elder Sang. After Elder Sang inspected it, a smile couldn't help but bloom on his aged face.

"Not bad!"

Although it was a size smaller, for a first successful pill, achieving such an effect was indeed quite good.

Under such praise, the young girl immediately couldn't sit still. She grabbed her twin ponytails and began circling Xu Xiaoshou.

"Xiaoshou, your speed isn't good enough! Even if you manage to produce a pill in the end, the time you spend would be enough for others to concoct ten batches. How can you compete?"

Xu Xiaoshou raised an eyebrow. Had the little girl grown wings?

"With that 'raisin' of yours," he retorted, "never mind ten batches, what good would a hundred batches do? Would it fill you up?"

Mu Zixi immediately scrunched her delicate nose, furious.

A raisin?

Fill me up?

"Agh—"

This loud shout right next to his ear startled even Elder Sang.

However, Xu Xiaoshou had long noticed her small movements behind him, so it was impossible for his pill concoction to be interrupted.

As the last drop of medicinal liquid recirculated within the large bathtub, the "Vermilion Gold Liquid" took shape. Xu Xiaoshou beckoned with his hand, and a golden-red jelly, about the size of a fingernail, flew out.

At this, both onlookers were stunned.

"That's it?"

Mu Zixi's cheeks puffed out twice, and finally, she couldn't help but clutch her stomach and burst into laughter.

"Xu Xiaoshou, are you joking? I thought you were making soup for so long that you'd produce an immortal pill, but instead..."

"Snot?"

Xu Xiaoshou glared at her, annoyed. "Does your snot look like this?"

"Pfft, hahaha..."

Received mockery, Passive Points +1.

Elder Sang, however, picked up the "snot" and licked it. In an instant, his facial expression lost control, utterly astonished.

"You created this yourself?"

"Mm-hmm."

After receiving the affirmative answer, even Elder Sang couldn't stand still.

He paced back and forth, picked up the "snot" and licked it again, as if savoring something. Finally, he couldn't help but lift his bamboo hat and furiously rub his head.

Xu Xiaoshou: "..."

What kind of reaction was this?

Mu Zixi's heart skipped a beat as she watched. She couldn't help but say, "Your snot..."

"Vermilion Gold Liquid!" Xu Xiaoshou glared at her. "It has a name!"

"Oh, oh, this Vermilion Gold Liquid of yours, is it actually edible?"

"Nonsense!"

Xu Xiaoshou replied irritably. As he spoke, he pulled out a jar of honey from his ring. "Want to try some?"

Mu Zixi looked disgusted, but as she looked at the item, it seemed familiar.

She suddenly pulled out a jar of honey from her own ring. Shocked, she asked, "Is it this?"

Xu Xiaoshou stared blankly at the half-eaten honey. How did she have it?

Mu Zixi's face instantly went pale.

This was the only item remaining in the ring she'd received when Xu Xiaoshou had swapped her sealed ring at the Heavenly Xuan Sect.

The problem was, because she couldn't resist, she had already scooped out and eaten most of it!

Didn't that mean this snot...

"Ugh!"

Xu Xiaoshou immediately found it amusing. He said, "So you've already eaten it, and you're still calling it snot? Where did this missing half go? Don't tell me you picked it out!"

"Shut up!"

"How about it? Still calling it snot?"

"Stop it!"

"I won't! Snot, snot, snot..."

"Ugh—"

A suppressed retching sound from behind interrupted their bickering, startling both of them.

Xu Xiaoshou turned around in shock, to find a puddle of yellowish-white substance in front of Elder Sang.

Looking up further, Elder Sang's aged face was already green with anger, and a trace of clear liquid hung from the corner of his mouth.

"This..."

Elder Sang felt he could no longer look directly at the viscous droplet in his hand. He wiped the corner of his mouth and couldn't help but roar, "You two, stop—"

"Ugh!"

Just then, Mu Zixi looked at the vomit in front of Elder Sang and, unable to hold it in, also spewed.

Elder Sang was immediately interrupted; the "stop it" he was about to say also turned into a retch.

Xu Xiaoshou immediately stepped aside, watching in shock as the two faced each other, retching back and forth.

"Ugh!""Ugh!"