Chapter 262: Tier 6 Pill Alchemist
Translator: Dragon Boat Translation Editor: Dragon Boat Translation
Primordial Sword Sect stood atop a mountain peak, with Chen Fei holding the Qianyuan Sword, its tip buried in the soil. In the next moment, the Zhongyuan Force Field descended, black energy layers stacking up, enveloping an area of several dozen meters in all directions.
“Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh…”
Sword beads flickered within the formation, crisscrossing at lightning speed. Upon close examination, one would notice that the number of sword beads within the formation had increased from the original ten to twenty.
Moreover, whether it was speed or strength, the sword beads were much stronger than before.
This was the most visible change that occurred when mastering the Zhongyuan Sword Technique. In addition to the significant increase in combat power, Chen Fei’s daily absorption of vital energy had also seen a slight increase.
For a practitioner at the Aperture Tempering realm, opening apertures and filling them with vital energy, as well as the level of comprehension of the martial technique, were crucial. A complete and advanced martial technique was definitely superior in terms of cultivation speed compared to beginner-level ones.
Therefore, for martial practitioners, resources were important, as was the level of comprehension of their martial techniques. It was like walking with two legs; lacking either one would make the journey much more difficult.
Chen Fei gazed at the whizzing sword beads within the formation, and his spiritual power in his sea of consciousness gradually boiled. With the Thousand Origin Heart Locking Technique in operation, the sword beads within the formation began to transform into sword threads.
Refining swords into threads, the twenty sword beads transformed into sword threads, completely shrouding the formation.
A faint light shone in Chen Fei’s eyes as he sensed the changes within the formation. After a moment, a smile appeared at the corner of his mouth.
Back on the road to Qinhai City, if Chen Fei had possessed this level of strength, Dai Fangxuan from Rain Tower would have had no chance of breaking through the sword formation; he would have been worn down and defeated by the formation itself.
After a while, the formation that had enveloped the front dissipated, and the surroundings returned to calm.
Chen Fei stood in place, calculating the consumption of sword beads and sword threads, as well as the expenditure of vital energy within his body.
With his current level of cultivation, he could maintain the sword beads for quite a long time during high-intensity saturation battles.
However, when transforming the sword beads into sword threads, although his combat power increased significantly, the burden also became much heavier. The strain on his spiritual power was one aspect, and the slight shortage of vital energy was also becoming apparent.
“Cultivation realm is the most fundamental thing,” Chen Fei looked ahead and thought to himself.
Having returned to the sect for so long, his first aperture had been half-filled with vital energy from the beginning, and now it was approaching completion. In about two more months or so, he would be able to finish the cultivation of his first aperture.
At that time, he could begin preparing to open the second aperture, which would somewhat alleviate the situation of insufficient vital energy during high-intensity battles.
The next morning, Chen Fei appeared at the residence of the Alchemist Alliance.
After nearly four months of effort, he had finally upgraded the formula for the Spirit Snow Pill to perfection. According to the initial plan, he was now ready to practice alchemy with it.
Over the past four months, Chen Fei had received one Spirit Snow Pill from the sect each month, and each time, he had directly consumed it to increase his cultivation while nurturing his spiritual power.
Alchemy was a matter of perseverance. The sect provided twelve Spirit Snow Pills in a year, and consuming all of them could save at least a little over a month of rigorous cultivation.
If he combined the allocated elemental stones and refined them together with the pills, it would save nearly two months of time.
Saving two months in a year, over ten years, that was more than a year’s worth of time saved. In terms of the lifespan of a cultivator in the Aperture Tempering realm, this kind of savings was significant.
Because in the end, you might find that you were just a little short of time. Or during crucial moments, having that extra bit of cultivation could help you overcome certain challenges.
Chen Fei had put in a lot of effort to upgrade the Spirit Snow Pill formula to perfection to make this efficiency even higher. On the path of martial arts, every moment counted.
“Young Master, you’re here!” Qin Jinglan saw Chen Fei and warmly greeted him.
Although it had been several months since Chen Fei’s last visit, Qin Jinglan was genuinely delighted every time she saw him.
“I’d like to take an alchemy task,” Chen Fei said to Qin Jinglan, his face showing a gentle smile.
“Please follow me, Young Master!” Qin Jinglan made a slight bow to Chen Fei and led him to the counter.
The women behind the counter also recognized Chen Fei. After all, seeing such a young cultivator in the Aperture Tempering realm who was also an alchemist was indeed a rare sight.
“Young Master, which task would you like to take?” Qin Jinglan spread out the task list in front of Chen Fei.
Chen Fei carefully examined the list and quickly spotted the task for crafting Spirit Snow Pills.
“How common are tasks like this one?” Chen Fei pointed to the Spirit Snow Pill task and asked in a hushed tone.
“They are quite common, but not available every day. If a alchemist completes the task, it usually takes a few days before a new one is posted,” Qin Jinglan replied with a smile.
Chen Fei nodded slightly, aligning with the information he had gathered.
Spirit Snow Pills were suitable for cultivators at the Aperture Tempering realm, especially effective for those in the early stages.
After the mid-stage of this realm, the effectiveness of Spirit Snow Pills diminished.
In the early stages of the Aperture Tempering realm, there were typically more practitioners, as seen in the Primordial Sword Sect and other sects. Elders in the mid-stage and later stages of this realm were relatively rare.
The Primordial Sword Sect followed this pattern, as did other sects. In most cases, there were more cultivators in the mid and late stages of the Aperture Tempering realm, such as those in the Immortal Cloud Sword Sect.
However, in the early stages of the Aperture Tempering realm, the number of practitioners was still the largest, both in the Immortal Cloud Sword Sect and in general. This was a rule in martial arts and, in fact, a common pattern in many aspects of life—things became more challenging as you progressed, and the number of individuals at higher levels decreased.
“I’d like to take this task,” Chen Fei pointed to the Spirit Snow Pill crafting task and said softly.
“Alright, Young Master, please wait a moment,” Qin Jinglan said as she took note of Chen Fei’s serious expression.
Four months ago, she had kindly advised him not to rush things.
Now, after four months had passed, although Qin Jinglan found it hard to imagine how much his alchemy skills could have improved in that time, it was clear that Chen Fei had come to the alliance today for this task.
At this point, trying to dissuade him would be crossing boundaries.
“Young Master, this task is to craft five furnaces of Spirit Snow Pills, with each furnace requiring three pills to be produced. Once you successfully complete one furnace, you will receive the necessary spirit herbs for the next furnace, but they won’t be provided all at once,” Qin Jinglan explained after setting up the task for Chen Fei.
Chen Fei nodded, showing no objections.
Providing herbs for one furnace at a time was a precaution against alchemists with insufficient skills wasting the precious herbs. As long as you could successfully craft each furnace, you wouldn’t run out of herbs.
“By the way, if 1 successfully craft the Spirit Snow Pills, can I become a Tier 6 Alchemist?” Chen Fei suddenly asked.
If it were possible to raise his alchemist rank, he would do so without hesitation. In any case, higher-ranked alchemists enjoyed better treatment.
“Of course, you can,” Qin Jinglan nodded and said, “In the Tier 6 Alchemist assessment, there are three types of elixirs to choose from, and the Spirit Snow Pill is one of them. Are you planning to take the Tier 6 Alchemist assessment, Young Master?”
“Yes!” Chen Fei smiled and nodded.
“For the Tier 6 Alchemist assessment, you need to pay a fee of three thousand taels or one elemental stone. If you successfully craft one pill, you pass the assessment. If you produce multiple pills, the extras belong to you,” Qin Jinglan explained.
“Very well!”
Chen Fei took out an elemental stone from his pocket and placed it on the counter.
“Young Master, this way, please.”
After completing the necessary procedures for Chen Fei, Qin Jinglan led the way, and the route they took to the alchemy room was different from the one Chen Fei had visited before. It was evident that at the level of crafting Spirit Snow Pills, the Alchemist Alliance had raised its level of attention.
After a short walk, the number of alchemists coming and going had significantly decreased. Qin Jinglan led Chen Fei to a specific alchemy chamber, from which a faint herbal fragrance wafted.
Chen Fei took a slight breath. These fragrances belonged to spirit herbs and fully formed Spirit Snow Pills. It was evident that many Spirit Snow Pills had been produced here, as the fragrance persisted.
Chen Fei waited at the entrance of the alchemy chamber for a moment, and then he saw two people approaching on the corridor. One of them appeared older but radiated vitality, with a ruddy complexion.
With just one glance, Chen Fei could tell that this person had reached the Aperture Tempering realm. He was likely the alchemist who would assess Chen Fei’s skills.
The other person was a member of the alliance, holding several jade boxes, similar to Qin Jinglan.
“Sorry, I kept you waiting,” Chi Guanqing, the older man, arrived in front of Chen Fei.
He discreetly sized up Chen Fei and noticed that they shared the same Aperture Tempering realm. His face was filled with a friendly smile.
No, please don’t worry about it!” Chen Fei replied with a respectful gesture.
The two exchanged a few more compliments and then entered the alchemy chamber together. Chi Guanqing gestured to one of the attendants, who handed several spirit herbs to Chen Fei.
Chen Fei opened the jade boxes and examined the spirit herbs. Finding no issues, he nodded slightly to Chi Guanqing and approached the alchemy furnace.
He performed the customary checks on the furnace, finding no problems. This furnace, in fact, was of higher quality compared to the ones he had used before.
Chi Guanqing stood to the side, observing Chen Fei’s actions without saying a word.
From the moment he saw Chen Fei, Chi Guanqing had recognized his identity. After all, there weren’t many cultivators at the Aperture Tempering realm at this age, especially those who were also alchemists.
The recognition had made Chi Guanqing’s attitude particularly warm. Chen Fei’s cultivation level was one reason, but there was another—the task of improving the Flying Ascent Pill.
In that task, Chen Fei had displayed remarkable alchemical skills and talent. With his current breakthrough in cultivation, his future achievements in alchemy were likely to be substantial.
However, Chi Guanqing didn’t know that Chen Fei had taken on the task of crafting five furnaces of Spirit Snow Pills. Otherwise, he would have been even more surprised.
Chen Fei sat cross-legged on the ground, lit the fire, cleaned the furnace, and set it up. When the furnace was slightly heated, he carefully placed the spirit herbs into it.
Compared to crafting pills for the Body Tempering realm, Chen Fei’s movements were now more composed, and at least the flames didn’t engulf the entire furnace.
Chi Guanqing was witnessing Chen Fei’s alchemy process for the first time, so he found everything to be normal. Qin Jinglan had seen Chen Fei’s alchemy a few times before, and seeing that there were no flames engulfing the entire furnace this time, she actually became somewhat worried..