Chapter 383: Desperate Rush

Zhang Xuan was crushed inside when he heard the prices of the medicinal ingredients.

He had spent an entire night talking, only to earn three spirit stones, which were barely enough to buy the herbs.

"You're practically robbing me!"

"Do you think it's easy for me to earn spirit stones? Do you have to be so ruthless?"

He held the brush and waited for a long time, but no message came from the other side. Clearly, there were no more issues.

"How stingy! And he calls himself a four-star master alchemist? He doesn't even want to pay this small amount. What a pauper!" Zhang Xuan threw the brush down and roared.

"What the heck! Didn't they say he was a four-star master alchemist? A big shot from the Myriad Kingdom Alliance? He's not even willing to spend three spirit stones! I've never seen anyone so cheap!"

"Pauper..." Master Alchemist Mu Yangfeng and Master Alchemist Hongyun trembled.

*Big brother, you're the stingy one, aren't you? They had no more questions; they couldn't just give you spirit stones for free! Directly calling a four-star master alchemist stingy and a pauper... not just in the entire guild, but probably in the entire kingdom, you're the only one who'd do that.*

"President Liu, the spirit stones from the main branch will arrive soon; we'll count them as payment for the herbs. I'll prepare everything for you now..." Mu Yangfeng shouted, then quickly turned to leave, fearing that the other party might do something even more extreme.

This person indeed possessed great abilities, but he was simply too bold. If it were him, even with some ability, he would still be respectful towards an alchemist of a higher rank. But this guy, if something wasn't to his liking, he'd immediately start cursing. If he continued to stay here, he genuinely worried he might be scared to death.

"We..." Just as Master Alchemist Hongyun and Jiang Chen were about to leave, they saw the young man looking at them with a smile, his eyes gleaming: "They're paupers. As soon as they heard about money, they got so scared they didn't even have any questions left... Do you two have any? Any problem at all is fine. As long as you give me spirit stones, no matter how difficult, I can help you solve it..."

"No..." Both of them turned pale with fright and waved their hands simultaneously.

"No problems? Then... sickness is fine too. I can treat you..." Zhang Xuan continued.

Master Alchemist Hongyun and Jiang Chen stood speechless.

As expected of the Alchemist Guild, the speed of collecting medicinal ingredients was incredibly fast. In less than half an hour, all the herbs needed for refining the Cold Yin Pill were gathered and brought over.

After repeatedly confirming that neither of them wanted treatment or had any problems, Zhang Xuan, not without some regret, followed Mu Yangfeng to the guild's dedicated alchemy room. This place had the finest cauldrons, and formations were set up around them, so even if a cauldron exploded, it wouldn't affect the guild's normal operations.

"President Liu, you... are you really letting me refine it?" Master Alchemist Mu looked at the arranged medicinal ingredients and the alchemical furnace before him, his face full of hesitation.

A grade-four pill, also known as a spirit-grade pill, could spontaneously absorb spiritual energy from heaven and earth without depletion, even if not stored in a jade box. Legend had it that pills of this level had been unearthed from ancient tombs. After countless years, their medicinal efficacy not only hadn't diminished but had significantly increased, with some reaching the perfected or even flawless stage. To refine a pill of this grade, one not only needed a profound mastery of alchemy fundamentals but also extremely powerful cultivation. Otherwise, any mishap could cause the cauldron to explode, leading to irreversible destruction.

For President Liu to ask him to take action, Master Alchemist Mu truly lacked confidence.

"Later, strictly follow the steps I instruct; there must not be a single mistake!" Zhang Xuan was no longer in his usual jovial state; instead, he was solemn. Having read the guild's books, he also understood the difficulty of grade-four pills. Although he could identify all errors in the refining process, it was still very difficult to have a master alchemist refine a grade-four pill.

"Alright!" Knowing the dangers of refining a grade-four pill, Master Alchemist Mu also understood that if successful, it would undoubtedly be a tremendous boost to his alchemy skills. He hesitated for only a moment before gritting his teeth. This young man before him had created too many miracles, and a sense of trust had already grown in Master Alchemist Mu's heart. If he were to refuse today and miss this opportunity, he would likely regret it for the rest of his life.

"Begin!" After adjusting for a while, Mu Yangfeng reached his optimal state. He then approached the alchemical furnace, and with a flick of his palm, the alchemical flames surged forth.

*Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!* The flames blazed, and the cauldron began to turn red and heat up.

"Add the alfalfa flower. Two and a half breaths later, add the motherwort. Fourteen breaths later, add the Cold Ice Leaf..." As Mu Yangfeng began refining the pill, Zhang Xuan continuously called out instructions.

Mu Yangfeng strictly followed, not daring to disobey in the slightest.

*Swish! Swish! Swish!* One medicinal ingredient after another quickly fell into the cauldron, perfectly fusing together.

***

Outside the alchemy room, to avoid disturbing the two, Master Alchemist Hongyun and the others did not enter.

"Do you think... they can succeed?" After a long while, Jiang Chen finally spoke.

"I don't know either..." Master Alchemist Hongyun shook his head. "It's easy to say for others, but this President Liu is truly beyond common understanding."

Others were easy enough to figure out, but this Liu Cheng was simply unfathomable. He sought alchemy formulas from the Formula Wall, managed to render the opposing alchemist speechless, and solved problems that even a four-star master alchemist couldn't. This ability was absolutely beyond imagination.

"Indeed!" Jiang Chen felt waves of frustration. He was the son of Hall Master Jiang and also a genius, always brimming with confidence. Although he couldn't compare to the two monsters, Mo Hongyi and Mo Yu, he was still considered among the top talents of his generation. He had always thought that with diligent effort, he would catch up to them sooner or later. But only after meeting Zhang Xuan and President Liu did he realize that there was still a significant gap between him and true geniuses.

A physician, relying on his mastery of medicinal properties, guiding a two-star peak alchemist to refine a grade-four pill... If one hadn't witnessed it personally, it would be dismissed as lunacy.

"However, regardless of success or failure, Master Alchemist Mu's future progress will likely be unstoppable. In time, it's not impossible for him to become a four-star master alchemist..." Master Alchemist Hongyun sighed with a face full of regret. Even if this alchemy attempt failed, the experience of personally refining a grade-four pill would greatly enhance Master Alchemist Mu's alchemy skills. All of it would convert into valuable experience, making it only a matter of time before he surpassed him. It was foreseeable that in a few years, the position of guild president would undoubtedly fall to him, not himself. If he hadn't been pretending and deliberately declining earlier, this opportunity would likely have been his. What a pity. Opportunity knocks only once, and time cannot turn back! Further regret was useless.

***

In a small, private room at Tianwu Academy, Lu Chong, drenched in sweat, opened his eyes. He wiped the sweat flowing from his body with a towel and exhaled a mouthful of stale air.

"This is the fourth cultivation session..." Lu Chong hesitated as he looked at the more than half of the medicinal powder remaining. "Teacher said that after five cultivation sessions, the power within my body would reach its limit, and the medicine would lose its effect... Through these few sessions, the effects have indeed been weaker each time. Barring any surprises, after the fifth refinement, I'll at most possess the peak strength of the Tongxuan realm. To seek revenge... it will still be very difficult!"

His teeth clenched. Teacher Liu had said that his poison physique would require approximately five temperings to be successful. These past few days, he had cultivated day and night, continuing as soon as he recovered even slightly, which indeed led to significant progress in his strength.

But he also discovered a problem. That was, the effect of the poison powder was gradually weakening, especially in the last session; the progress was very minimal, less than half of what he gained the first time. It was foreseeable that if he continued, the effect would surely become even weaker, until it had no effect at all.

"If worst comes to worst... I'll use all of this medicinal powder!" A ruthless glint flashed in his eyes. According to Teacher's instructions, only about half of the poison powder would be used after five cultivation sessions. Since the fifth session's progress would be negligible, what if he increased the dosage?

"Such deep-seated hatred must be avenged. I'll stake everything!" His eyebrows furrowed, Lu Chong gritted his teeth. He no longer used the silver needles; instead, he directly applied all the medicinal powder to his body.

Applying a bit with a silver needle was entirely different from directly smearing all the powder onto his skin. Even if Zhang Xuan were present, he would think Lu Chong had gone mad.

*Boom!* A searing pain instantly assailed him, and an intense dizziness caused Lu Chong's body to tremble violently.

"I cannot die. I must seek revenge. Father, Mother, Sister, I will surely avenge you all..." Familiar faces flashed through his mind once more. With a guttural roar, Lu Chong screamed inwardly. Of his entire family, 137 lives, only he remained. How could he die before avenging them?

*Gurgle, gurgle, gurgle!* The potent venom seeped through his skin and flowed throughout his entire body. The intense pain felt as if his body was being torn apart, plunging him into hell. If the first cultivation session had been unbearable, this time the pain was at least ten times worse! If he hadn't been enduring it for the past few days, he wouldn't have been able to last even a single breath! Even so, waves of dizziness assaulted him, and he felt as if he could die at any moment.

"Teacher has great expectations for me. My parents and others are still waiting for me to avenge them. I must endure..." With furious roars, he bit down on the tip of his tongue, filling his mouth with blood. For two years, he had diligently cultivated, not daring to speak a word. What was it all for? Defying hardship, choosing to cultivate the poison physique. What was it all for?

"As long as my great vengeance remains unfulfilled, I, Lu Chong, cannot die!"

*Boom!* After an unknown period, the pain finally slowly dissipated. Lu Chong's mind relaxed, his vision went black, and he fainted.

Just after he fainted, a stream of pure True Qi, combined with the poison powder, slowly integrated with his physical body, making his power increasingly stronger. This stream of True Qi was precisely what Zhang Xuan had left in his body the first time he helped him increase his strength. Without it protecting his heart meridians, even with Lu Chong's strong willpower, he would not have been able to withstand such a large amount of potent venom. Originally, this True Qi was not his own and was incompatible with his body, making assimilation impossible. However, for some unknown reason, under the invasion of the potent venom, it miraculously entered his body, improving the vitality and strength of his muscles. This caused his strength, which was originally only capable of reaching the peak of the Tongxuan realm, to rapidly increase.

***

Master Alchemist Hongyun and Jiang Chen waited for nearly an hour before the alchemy room door creaked open, and two figures emerged. It was Master Alchemist Mu and President Liu. At this moment, both of them were pale, their bodies seemingly drained, their clothes soaked with sweat, appearing utterly dishevelled.

"Could it be..." Seeing them in such a state, their hearts sank with a "thump," and an ominous premonition simultaneously arose. They quickly rushed forward to meet them.