Chapter 308: This Is the Normal Alchemy Process

The doors of two alchemy rooms were pushed open almost simultaneously.

Fu Yinhong’s face was utterly grim. Her luck today was atrocious!

For her first assessment, she attempted to refine the "Starfall Pill," considered a top-tier seventh-grade elixir. Its refining process was extremely complex. But Fu Yinhong was confident; she had practiced at home. Even with the Starfall Pill, if she fully focused, she had a 70% chance of success! But…

A tremor in the Pill Pagoda ruined everything she had worked for.

For her second attempt, she settled for the "Yuanyuan Pill," a seventh-grade elixir with a more moderate refining difficulty. It was a commonly used elixir, cost-effective, and highly representative. However, compared to the Starfall Pill, its refining difficulty was significantly lower. Fu Yinhong was absolutely sure of success!

She had miscalculated again. A shocking explosion from the neighboring alchemy room completely overturned all her efforts. Her mood at that moment was as unpleasant as accidentally swallowing an insect while taking a deep breath of spiritual energy.

Fu Xing cautiously followed behind her. This explosion… he knew it well! He looked towards Xu Xiaoshou's alchemy room, and sure enough, the door panel was blown through, the remaining splinters particularly striking. "What kind of competitor is this…?" Fu Xing’s heart was trembling. He suddenly wondered if he would be durable enough if he truly sought to learn the "Ten-Stage Sword Finger." Stroking the jade pendant at his waist, Young Master Fu suddenly reached into his ring and took out a second one, attaching it. He thought for a moment, still felt uneasy, and then took out a third. "Hmm, with this, I feel at ease."

The first thing Mu Zixi did upon exiting was to rush towards Xu Xiaoshou's alchemy room. As expected, a burning stench, a charred bathtub… And that skylight! She paused, shook her head, and secretly thought it wasn't too bad. "Xu Xiaoshou, where are you? Are you alright?" The young girl spoke with a hint of panic.

"I'm fine," Xu Xiaoshou's voice came from behind her. The young man looked at President Shiti behind Mu Zixi, whose beard was covered in ash, and whose face seemed even happier than a child playing in mud. He braced himself and walked over. Mu Zixi didn't care about Xu Xiaoshou at all, her big eyes scanning behind him. "I wasn't asking you, I was asking about the reception staff."

Xu Xiaoshou: "..."

Little girl, you've changed! You're actually not concerned about your senior brother first! He grumbled, "The person is fine; there's still breath." Mu Zixi grabbed her twin ponytails and let out a relieved "Oh."

Shiti was stunned. Listening to the tone of their conversation and observing their extremely familiar demeanor… "Still… breathing?" Is that something a person says? What on earth happened here? He grew a little nervous. Although Yunhe's aptitude wasn't great, he was an extremely hardworking old man, and his seniority in the Pill Pagoda was quite high. What does "still breathing" mean? Does that mean he was blown away? "Xu Xiaoshou, what exactly happened in there?" he gnashed through clenched teeth.

Xu Xiaoshou thought for a moment, then seriously said, "Actually, it's nothing; just normal alchemy. Elder Yunhe… he stood a bit too close." Shiti suppressed his anger and walked to the door of the room to look. The shattered door panel, the conspicuous skylight, the room full of smoky ash… This was clearly a furnace explosion! But if it was just a furnace explosion, how could it be so terrifying? And how could Yunhe be unconscious?

Shiti's composure was about to shatter. He was gasping for air, feeling like he had something to say but couldn't articulate it. Xu Xiaoshou had only been at the Pill Pagoda for half a day, and it seemed the President was on the verge of developing asthma. "Th-this is what you call normal alchemy?" Shiti took a long time to recover, finally managing only this single sentence.

"Yes," Xu Xiaoshou earnestly said, "Although it's a bit embarrassing, when I refine pills, the commotion might be a bit… a little bit bigger."

"Heh, a little bit?" Shiti was furious. At that moment, he desperately wanted to throw the young man in front of him out the skylight. But his immense anger still couldn't suppress his internal doubts, so the President gritted his teeth and asked, "How did you break the alchemy room's barrier? And this door, how could it be shattered? Did you turn off the soundproofing barrier? It affected other alchemy rooms!"

Fu Yinhong looked over at the opportune moment. These were also the questions she most wanted to ask!

Xu Xiaoshou felt a headache coming on and explained, "That door has nothing to do with me. I told Elder Yunhe to stay far away, but he opened it himself. I don't know why. His injury also has nothing to do with me. Before pill condensation, I repeatedly warned him, but he insisted on coming over to chat. I was refining pills; I couldn't stop him. What could I do? As for that skylight…"

Shiti's face turned green, and he roared, "That has nothing to do with you either?! Nothing has anything to do with you, nothing has anything to do with you… You didn't blow up the Pill Pagoda, you didn't hit Fu Xing, and you didn't cause the damage to the alchemy room. What exactly are you here for…?" Shiti suddenly choked on his anger, but his emotions had reached their peak; how could they be suppressed? He forcibly used spiritual energy to catch his breath and roared: "Are you here to dismantle the place?!"

The large hall was startled into silence. Everyone held their breath, fearing that breaking the silence would bring trouble upon themselves. The old men lingering behind were shocked. They had lived for decades, and this was the first time they had seen President Shiti so angry. This… This young man… Incredible!

Xu Xiaoshou felt as if he was seeing a scene similar to his first meeting with Elder Sang after becoming his disciple, reflected in President Shiti. At that time, Elder Sang, newly a master, was full of youthful ambition, capable of turning the tides. Until a few embers entered his nose, and his dignified demeanor became a thing of the past. But he didn't explode; he valued his reputation and dared not lose control in front of his disciple. Shiti was different; he couldn't care less about that now. If he didn't ask these questions, the pent-up anger in his heart would surely send him to his grave.

Xu Xiaoshou dared not provoke the old President further; he also feared that President Shiti might collapse. Seeing that he had finally somewhat suppressed his anger, the young man slowly spoke. "Mr. President, you misunderstood me. What I meant to say is that I blew up the skylight, and I will definitely compensate for it!" Xu Xiaoshou bowed apologetically, then stood up, thought for a moment, and decided to add another explanation. "Also, what you said later, you've somewhat misunderstood me." He chose his words carefully, trying to appear friendly, and then cautiously said, "I'm not here to demolish the place; I'm here to take the alchemy master's emblem assessment."

The crowd fell into dead silence again, even suppressing their heartbeats.

"Pfft!" The old President spewed out a mouthful of air. Xu Xiaoshou quickly backed away, and seeing that it wasn't blood, he immediately breathed a sigh of relief. Shiti felt a demonic force tearing at his flesh, wanting to rip him apart. Yes, he felt as if he had already shattered. He roared, "Alchemy! Is this what you call alchemy?! What kind of monstrosity did you refine? Show it to me!"

Xu Xiaoshou nodded, not daring to delay, and hurriedly ran to the small bathtub, rummaging through it. Finally, he pulled out a black, obscure pill. He took a breath, absorbing the impurities from the surface, then exhaled towards the skylight to release the turbid gas. A medicinal fragrance then diffused into the air. Xu Xiaoshou turned around and happily said, "See? I told you, this was a normal alchemy process; I succeeded!"