The more nervous Yang Hao became, the happier the Hun Yuanzi seemed to get. “Exactly! Exactly! The meridians in your hands are about to open up. Push a little harder!”
With a soft popping sound, Yang Hao felt as if two corks had been removed from his palms. Two streams of red energy burst forth from his hands and merged into the flame of the burner in front of him.
An even more amazing sight followed. As the streams of true energy entered the flame, the originally blue fire suddenly expanded several times in size, its color shifting from blue to red. The temperature inside the cauldron rose sharply, and even the two people standing nearby felt a surge of energy wash over them.
Inside the cauldron, the herbs, subjected to temperatures exceeding 2000 degrees, quickly condensed and were refined into a small black pill, about the size of a fingernail.
Reminded by Hun Yuanzi, Yang Hao finally stopped releasing his true energy and extinguished the flame beneath the cauldron. At this point, Yang Hao still didn’t realize how significant this moment was—for him, it marked a major breakthrough. Not only had he successfully created his very first pill, but he had also truly opened the channel for releasing true energy externally, an incredible achievement for a cultivator.
After everything had stopped, Yang Hao, drenched in sweat, finally had time to observe his surroundings. To his surprise, when he looked up, he met Amanda’s astonished gaze.
He suddenly remembered that just moments ago, he had been muttering to himself while releasing his true energy—something that must have seemed utterly bizarre to Amanda. No wonder even this fearless woman had been startled. Yang Hao quickly tried to explain, “When I get nervous, I like to talk to myself. It helps me relieve stress.”
“Then… what were you doing just now?” Amanda mimicked the motion of releasing true energy with both hands.
“This?” Yang Hao scrambled for an excuse, “It’s my Force.”
“Force?”
“Yeah, yeah. A few days ago, I suddenly discovered that my Force has a combustion-enhancing effect, so I thought I’d test it out today.” Yang Hao offered a terrible excuse.
“Can the Force be used like that?” Amanda’s Force training had been poor, and for a moment, she didn’t see through the lie, “Then next time, you should help me ignite too, so I won’t have to keep fetching nuclear fuel.”
“Sure, sure, no problem,” Yang Hao readily agreed, relieved to have passed the test. He looked at the now-cooled cauldron. Inside, the pill was small and lonely, hardly resembling the result of all the herbs he had burned.
Yang Hao carefully picked up the pill—the first he had ever created in his life—Dragon and Tiger Great Replenishing Pill.
The warmth from his palm caused the pill to suddenly emit a smell—an indescribably foul stench. It was worse than the lingering odor of a bathroom after someone hadn’t flushed.
“Whoa!! That’s disgusting!” Yang Hao cried out, throwing the pill back into the cauldron.
Amanda had also caught the smell. She immediately covered her nose and took several steps back before steadying herself. She stomped her foot angrily, “You big-headed idiot, what the heck did you make? It’s so stinky! How can I live in this house anymore? Do you want to die?!”
Yang Hao felt deeply wronged—he had followed Hun Yuanzi’s instructions precisely, never expecting to end up with a stinky pill. This thing didn’t look like medicine at all; it seemed more suitable for poisoning enemies. Even if it couldn’t kill someone, it could certainly suffocate ten or more people with its stench.
“Hey, Old Master Hun Yuanzi, looks like I really have no talent at all,” Yang Hao said gloomily. “Why don’t you find another apprentice? I can’t even make something this simple.”
Hun Yuanzi had been lost in thought until Yang Hao spoke. Then he suddenly snapped back to attention, “Is what you made extremely smelly—so smelly it could kill someone?”
“Exactly! Can’t you smell it?” Yang Hao felt even more discouraged.
“Then that’s perfect!!” Hun Yuanzi rolled with delight inside Yang Hao’s belly, “Good apprentice, you did it! The Dragon and Tiger Great Replenishing Pill is supposed to be a stinky thing. It’s the foundational pill of our Dan Ding Dual Cultivation Sect.”
“What!!! You mean this is the authentic pill? And you expect me to eat this kind of thing every day from now on?”
“Don’t underestimate this smelly Dragon and Tiger Great Replenishing Pill! It’s the basis of all auxiliary pills. Back in the days of our founding ancestor, this was actually our sect’s most treasured treasure. Later generations of masters added various ingredients during the refining process to eliminate the stench, eventually evolving into thousands of different auxiliary pills, each with its own side effects.”
“I don’t care how important this thing is,” Yang Hao had completely lost faith in Hun Yuanzi’s so-called aphrodisiac sect, “I’m not going to eat this. It’s no different from eating poop.”
“You actually compared our sacred pill to poop!!!” Hun Yuanzi was practically hopping mad, “Fine! Don’t eat it if you don’t want to! But don’t forget—if you don’t take it, your life will be in danger.”
As soon as he finished speaking, Hun Yuanzi angrily retreated and went to sleep, refusing to come out no matter how much Yang Hao patted his belly.
Although Yang Hao was deeply reluctant to take the Dragon and Tiger Great Replenishing Pill, Hun Yuanzi was absolutely right—this wasn’t a matter of whether the pill smelled nice or not. If he didn’t take it within the next three days, he would die. In fact, this fate had been sealed the moment Hun Yuanzi entered Yang Hao’s body.
Though extremely unwilling, Yang Hao hesitated for a long time before finally picking the pill back up and placing it in his palm. Truthfully, the black pill felt slippery and greasy, resembling a lump of mud. Even holding his breath, the foul smell still managed to invade his nose.
“Are you really going to eat it?” Amanda seemed even more nervous than Yang Hao. Watching him slowly raise the pill toward his mouth, she couldn’t help but warn him, “Could it be poisonous?”
Though his heart was full of resistance, Yang Hao’s mind remained clear. He knew very well that although the pill looked strange and smelled terrible, it couldn’t be poisonous. He had personally gathered all the herbs himself, and none of them were toxic. Even if the combination wasn’t ideal, it wouldn’t kill him.
Realizing this, and knowing that his life was already at stake, Yang Hao closed his eyes tightly, pinched his nose, and threw the pill into his mouth.
Surprisingly, although the pill smelled awful, it transformed into something pleasant once inside his mouth. The entire pill dissolved instantly upon contact with his saliva, turning into a sweet liquid that naturally flowed down his throat.
Yang Hao smacked his lips, barely managing to taste it before it vanished. Soon afterward, as the medicinal liquid flowed into his body, waves of heat rose around his digestive system—this was the true energy Hun Yuanzi often spoke of. Countless streams of true energy emerged within Yang Hao’s body, flowing through his entire being, making him feel completely unblocked and filled with immense strength.
Even more miraculously, it felt as if every pore in Yang Hao’s body had opened, releasing a fragrant aroma that was so intoxicating it made one feel as if they could melt into it.
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