As the pressure within the blood was expelled, the medicinal properties of the Dragon Blood Grass and other ingredients began to slowly release. Gradually merging with the enormous power in the blood, they started a slow fusion… With Zi Yan’s assistance, Xiao Yan narrowly managed to pass this hurdle. Although it had been exceedingly perilous, he was not left without gain. The energy contained within this mixture of medicinal fluids was now immensely strong. After all, it not only held a drop of magical beast blood but also a drop of Zi Yan’s own essence blood. Even though no one knew what kind of magical beast she truly was, from the fact that she could suppress such a powerful aura, it was clear that she was no ordinary being. If this alchemy succeeded, this Heavenly Soul Integrating Pill would likely be the most advanced secret technique ever used by the Snake-People Clan…
After aiding Xiao Yan in overcoming the pressure, Zi Yan did not linger to disturb him. She cast a somewhat envious glance at the boiling mixture in the pill cauldron, then licked her lips and disappeared from the vicinity of the stone platform.
Su Qian and the others breathed a slight sigh of relief upon seeing Zi Yan emerge. They naturally understood that the little girl had rendered significant help to Xiao Yan.
“Since the problem is now resolved, I assume the next stages of refinement will merely be a matter of time? Hehe, if this boy can indeed refine a Tier 7 medicine in one go, that would truly be something. As far as I know, even for some Tier 7 alchemists, the success rate when refining Tier 7 pills is not very high.”
Su Qian stroked his beard, watching Xiao Yan, whose face had once again become stern, as he smiled. Hearing Su Qian’s words, the surrounding elders also nodded in agreement. A Tier 7 medicine was almost akin to a legendary level for them. In their lifetime, they had seen it but a few times, and even fewer had taken it. In the Black-Corner Region, an alchemist capable of refining Tier 7 medicines had not appeared in many years. Even Han Feng in his heyday had never succeeded in refining a Tier 7 pill…
As everyone felt relieved, Xiao Yan’s mind once again focused on the contents of the pill cauldron. His spiritual strength flowed entirely into it, carefully sensing every reaction that occurred during the fusion of the various liquids and the heat control of the flames.
Inside the cauldron, a bluish-green flame enveloped a globule of fluid roughly the size of a small fist. This globule’s color was somewhat mottled, yet predominately dark red. Within the red, there seemed to be several hues of energy continually fusing slowly.
As Xiao Yan sensed the calmness within the globule of fluid, he too, let out a faint sigh of relief. After the previous incident, the subsequent processes became much more stable. It seemed that once all the medicinal properties were fully integrated, they would gradually coalesce into a pill.
Of course, this was a rather long process. By Xiao Yan’s estimation, the fusion phase alone would take at least five days.
Drawing a deep breath, Xiao Yan closed his eyes, dedicating a portion of his mental force to the Burn Decree while absorbing the natural energy around him. His spiritual strength still circled inside the pill cauldron, meticulously controlling the intensity of the flames and the fusion of the medicinal components. All he needed to do now was wait quietly.
And so, they waited. For six full days.
In these six days, the gathering crowd at the Inner Academy gradually dispersed. Yet, almost every day, whenever they emerged, their gazes would inevitably turn towards the stone platform, gazing at the unwavering figure, each harboring a sense of admiration.
Within these six days, nearly everyone had grown accustomed to the scene on the stone platform. While they didn’t know how long such pill refinement would last, after witnessing this, they couldn’t help but marvel at the rarity of Tier 7 medicines. It was no wonder why they were so precious. The process of refining them was so intricate and troublesome.
During these six days, Su Qian and Little Healer Immortal often found themselves lingering in the sky, only to leave when they saw no movement from Xiao Yan.
Over these days, Xiao Yan’s presence grew indistinct, and even his breathing became extremely faint, much like an old monk sitting in meditation. His aura was faint and uncertain. If Su Qian, with his vast experience, hadn’t known that Xiao Yan was in a profoundly mysterious state, he might have been worried about whether something had gone wrong during the refining process…
Though Xiao Yan had entered a state of Zen-like silence, inside the pill cauldron, however, there was a continuous rumbling, almost as if heavenly thunder and earthly fire were interacting. A terrifying spiritual force swirled and roared inside, under which even the Clear Lotus Heart Flame had to obey. If any high-ranking alchemist were present, they would have been dumbfounded. The state Xiao Yan was in, known as “Pill Soul Realm,” allowed his spiritual force to be infinitely amplified. In this temporary yet formidable state, the chance of failure in pill-making was nil. That is, once in this state, the refinement was guaranteed to succeed!
Unfortunately, this state was elusive and could only be encountered by chance. Clearly, Xiao Yan had been blessed by fate this time. Over the span of six days, at the dawn of the seventh, a ray of sunlight pierced the earth’s constraints, shooting from the distant forest sea to illuminate the stone platform, enveloping the black-robed young man.
Beneath the warm sunlight, Xiao Yan, who had his eyes tightly shut for six days, finally opened them, a slight tremor in his gaze.
His black eyes, under the sunlight, reflected a dazzling luster. And in this moment, the dormant aura within him, like a slumbering lion awakening, slowly diffused from his body. This aura was now even purer than before. If before, Xiao Yan was at the beginning of the Sixth Star, he was now at the peak, just a hair’s breadth away from breaking through to the Seventh Star.
This pill-refining process seemed to have greatly benefited Xiao Yan.
Sensing the aura that was emanating from his body, Xiao Yan was slightly stunned, a thoughtful expression flashing across his eyes. These past few days, he had indeed been in a profound state, where his spiritual force seemed maximized. The complex fusion of medicines in the pill cauldron, not only had he managed to condense all of it, but there was not the slightest waste.
Conventionally, the success rate for refining the Heavenly Soul Integrating Pill would have been low, considering the additional medicinal properties of the Dragon Blood Grass and Zi Yan’s drop of essence blood. Such a combination was far from following the typical recipe. But, thanks to the amplification of his spiritual force, he had managed to pull it off.
If he had not been fortunate enough to enter this state, even if he could forcibly form a nascent pill, it would have ultimately failed at the final step. Thankfully, he had been very lucky…
Turning his gaze to the pill cauldron, looking at the purplish-red nascent pill forming within the flames, a smile of relief spread across Xiao Yan’s face.
The nascent pill, roughly the size of a dragon’s eye, was entirely purple-red. Though its uneven surface was not aesthetically pleasing, Xiao Yan could feel the immense purity of the medicinal force within it. This force had the miraculous effect of improving one’s innate cultivation talent, which was notoriously difficult to enhance. But the Heavenly Soul Integrating Pill could do just that, a testament to its Tier 7 status…
With the nascent pill formed, the next and final step was nurturing it. Given that Xiao Yan had experienced the “Pill Soul Realm,” there was no risk in this final step. Inside the nascent pill, all the medicinal forces were perfectly integrated, meaning it would be quite effective even if he skipped this final stage.
Naturally, as an alchemist, he pursued perfection. Thus, Xiao Yan did not skip this final step. The bluish-green flames gradually diminished, exuding a faint fragrance, slowly penetrating the nascent pill.
The final step of nurturance did not take long—about ten hours. The uneven nascent pill completely transformed into a thumb-sized, perfectly round pill, half red and half purple.
The dual colors, resembling a yin-yang symbol, gave the pill a seemingly sentient appearance, incredibly wondrous. Just as the pill took shape, the sky above the Inner Academy suddenly turned dark. Layers of dark clouds rapidly gathered, interspersed with silver lightning, like silver snakes roaming freely.
The sudden scene in the sky immediately drew the attention of everyone in the academy. They stood staring, mouths agape, at the dense clouds. Then, as if struck by a sudden thought, their gazes shifted to where the stone platform was. There, standing with his back to them, was a black-clad figure, his unfazed gaze fixed on the anomalous sky…
“A Tier 7 pill… Is it about to be born? Did Brother Xiao Yan really succeed?” In a courtyard of the Pan Gate, Xin Lan raised her head, looking at the dark clouds, a thrill of excitement trembling in her heart.
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