Stepping out of the Thousand Herbs Pavilion, Xiao Yan tilted his head to gaze at the somewhat gloomy sky, and let out a long sigh. From now on, he had officially become a member of the utterly destitute! The four sets of herbs for refining the Three-lined Azure Spirit Pill not only drained all of his thirteen thousand gold coins, but in the end, he had to take out three whole bottles of twenty-seven Regeneration Pills before he could successfully take away those herbs from the astonished attendant. It should be noted that according to the market price, a single Regeneration Pill could be sold for over five thousand gold coins, and selling all twenty-seven together, even after removing the fractional parts, would still cost more than ten thousand gold coins. “So poor I can’t afford anything… I hope I don’t fail the refinement. Otherwise, I might really have to sell the Companion Purple Crystal Source.” Xiao Yan smiled bitterly. Although he had bought four sets of herbs for refining the Three-lined Azure Spirit Pill, with his current strength, it was impossible to achieve a 100% success rate. In fact, if he succeeded twice out of the four attempts, he could still make a profit. However, the problem was that he couldn’t be sure if he could maintain such a success rate. Back then, at the Alchemist Conference in the Jia Ma Empire, if it weren’t for a bit of luck, he probably wouldn’t have been able to refine the highest-grade Three-lined Azure Spirit Pill. But who could be certain that such good fortune would always accompany him? Glancing back at the sign of the Thousand Herbs Pavilion, Xiao Yan cursed under his breath about the black shop, then turned and walked down the street, searching for a place where he could refine his pills in peace. After walking slowly along the street for nearly ten minutes, Xiao Yan stopped outside an inn, hesitated slightly, and then walked in. In the quiet small room, Xiao Yan placed the previously purchased herbs one by one on the table, muttering as he did so, “Thankfully, I didn’t refuse Temir’s payment earlier. Otherwise, I wouldn’t even have the money to stay at an inn. This life is… tsk tsk… really quite pitiful.” After taking out all the herbs, Xiao Yan then took out a cauldron that wasn’t particularly high-grade. After setting everything up, he clapped his hands and said with a wry smile, “Looks like another major battle is coming… Oh well, might as well get my hand in practice.” With a light flick of his finger, a thread of azure flame appeared at the tip of his finger and was then shot into the fire mouth of the cauldron. Instantly, the azure flame turned into a raging fire, rising and burning inside the cauldron. Looking at the rising azure flame, Xiao Yan took a deep breath, suppressing all sorts of emotions in his heart, and then, with graceful fingers, swept over the table, throwing one herb after another into the cauldron. In an instant, they turned into powder… In the quiet room, the azure flame danced like a sprite inside the cauldron, its sparks reflecting on the walls, appearing fierce and formidable. One herb after another was thrown into the cauldron, and various colored medicinal powders gradually merged, beginning to show signs of fusion under the heat of the flames. An hour later. Xiao Yan stared intently at the pill in the cauldron, which was just beginning to take shape. He pulled out a purple pill from his storage ring and quickly put it into his mouth, chewing it slightly. Suddenly, the hand seals changed, and the azure flame instantly dispersed, while at the same time, he opened his mouth and a purple flame spewed out, surging into the cauldron. “Bang…” As soon as the purple flame entered the cauldron, Xiao Yan’s face slightly changed, and a faint muffled sound followed. A pile of black ashes slid out from the bottom of the cauldron. “Tsk, failure…” Looking at the black ashes, Xiao Yan shook his head helplessly. “You were too impatient when fusing the pill, and too restless when changing the flame. At this rate, your success rate is less than one in three or four…” The Elder Pharmacist’s voice echoed in his mind, pinpointing the mistakes Xiao Yan had made during the previous refinement. Silently nodding, Xiao Yan didn’t offer any explanation, standing quietly in front of the cauldron for two minutes, taking a deep breath, and instantly expelling the previous failure from his mind. His face devoid of joy or sorrow, he waved his hand, and another strand of azure flame shot into the cauldron. With a calm mind, the black pupils flickered with azure flames, and Xiao Yan’s slender hand moved across the table, sweeping the herbs into the cauldron again. The refinement continued in the quiet little room, and after another hour, Xiao Yan’s slightly squinted eyes suddenly widened. The hand seals fluttered like butterflies, colorful and dazzling, and he opened his mouth, spewing purple flames into the cauldron, while the azure flame quietly faded… Inside the cauldron, a pale green, smooth pill spun above the purple flames, with beautiful purple and green patterns slowly appearing on its surface. “Phew…” Wiping the cold sweat from his forehead, Xiao Yan let out a long sigh. He didn’t dare to risk summoning the Elder Pharmacist’s Bone Spirit Cold Flame again. If he succeeded, it would truly turn the Azure Spirit Pill into a Three-lined one, greatly increasing its value. But at this point, he wasn’t sure if he could succeed in the final step as he did at the Alchemist Conference. Right now, he was relying on the Two-lined “Azure Spirit Pill” to make a fortune. If he failed again and ruined it, it would be truly disappointing. “The value of a Two-lined Azure Spirit Pill might fetch around forty thousand gold coins, while a Three-lined Azure Spirit Pill could reach a high price of sixty thousand. That’s almost double the value,” the Elder Pharmacist’s voice rang out, filled with temptation. “Forty thousand is enough to recoup the cost.” Xiao Yan’s eyelids twitched, and he resisted the temptation, putting the pill into a jade bottle. He rested on the bed for half an hour, then got up again, returned to the table, and started refining again… For the entire afternoon, Xiao Yan remained in the small room, refining the remaining herbs. As the sky gradually darkened, the herbs on the table were finally completely refined. On the table, two small jade bottles each contained a smooth, pale green pill, with a faint medicinal fragrance permeating the air, refreshing the mind. In the cauldron, the purple flames burned fiercely, and the last Azure Spirit Pill, under the nourishment of the purple flames, had developed a faint purple pattern. From the four sets of herbs, he had managed to refine three Two-lined Azure Spirit Pills, a success rate that was surprisingly high. Of course, if it weren’t for the guidance of the experienced Elder Pharmacist and the effect of the different flames, no matter how talented Xiao Yan was in alchemy, it would have been impossible to achieve such a desirable success rate. The purple flames leaped slowly in the darkness, and Xiao Yan’s eyes were fixed on the Azure Spirit Pill that was about to be fully nurtured. He licked his lips, glanced at the two Two-lined Azure Spirit Pills on the table, and suddenly, his black eyes became a bit more fiery. “Heh, I knew you wouldn’t be able to resist trying to refine the Three-lined Azure Spirit Pill in the end,” the Elder Pharmacist’s mocking voice echoed in his mind, seemingly understanding what Xiao Yan was thinking. “Hehe, anyway, I’ve already made two Two-lined Azure Spirit Pills. Even if this one fails, I’ll still be in the black. People need to take risks sometimes…” Xiao Yan grinned, and with a light tap of his finger, a white flame slowly rose. As the white flame appeared, the originally hot room cooled down considerably. Xiao Yan’s face became serious, and his soul power wrapped around the white flame, carefully placing it into the cauldron. The purple flame, under another surge of soul power, withdrew from the cauldron and quietly dissipated… The white flame entered, and the purple flame left, the control over both being perfectly handled by Xiao Yan, whose mind was fully focused, even earning a soft, approving “Hmm” from the Elder Pharmacist. The white flame entered the cauldron, and under the sudden drop in temperature, the medicine trembled slightly, and tiny cracks began to spread. “Alternating between cold and heat really damages the durability… Sigh, looks like I need to get a better cauldron soon. Otherwise, I’ll always be worried when refining pills.” Glancing at the tiny cracks, Xiao Yan sighed and shook his head, but he wasn’t too disheartened. Under the control of the flames, the cauldron could still support him in completing the pill. Inside the cauldron, the white flames, like small white snakes, circled around the pill, and strange temperatures seeped into the pill at intervals. Then, a fine white pattern began to spread on the surface of the pill… “Hmm, this time, the control of the flame is much better than before…” Seeing the subtle movements of the white flame, the Elder Pharmacist nodded and gave a slightly appreciative comment. Xiao Yan’s face was tense, and sweat dripped down his forehead. No matter what, the Bone Spirit Cold Flame wasn’t his own, and controlling it was extremely exhausting. He dared not talk casually with the Elder Pharmacist, for fear that any distraction would cause the flame temperature to rise, leading to the complete failure of the Azure Spirit Pill. The final nourishment lasted for nearly half an hour. When he saw that the white pattern on the pale green pill had spread completely, Xiao Yan finally let out a sigh of relief. With a thought, his soul power wrapped around the white flame, and it quickly withdrew from the fire mouth, retracting back into the black ring. With a flip of his hand, a jade bottle appeared, and a jade-green pill shot out of the cauldron, floating in front of Xiao Yan, who then smiled and put it into the bottle. “Two Two-lined Azure Spirit Pills and one Three-lined Azure Spirit Pill, these are the foundations of my wealth.” Wiping the sweat from his forehead, Xiao Yan looked at the three jade bottles, and the rich harvest somewhat eased the fatigue in his mind. Entering the Black-Corner Region, he had only then realized how short of money he was. Refining the Revitalizing Purple Spirit Pill required a large sum, and refining the so-called Earth Spirit Pill would require even more. These debts added up, making Xiao Yan feel a bit overwhelmed. “Crack…” As he put the jade bottles into his storage ring, a faint sound suddenly came from in front of him. Xiao Yan looked up and saw that the cracks in the cauldron had expanded, and finally, with a clear sound, it collapsed, turning into a pile of fragments. “… ” Looking at the broken cauldron, Xiao Yan was speechless and smiled bitterly, “And now I need to buy a new cauldron…” “Sigh, let’s go to the auction house first…”
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