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Ingredients Detected:
Nerve Leaf Resin
Commonly found in jungle regions or spirit herb gardens with high vitality Qi.
Effect: Stimulates nervous system activity. Enhances muscle twitch speed and perception reaction.
Note: Can cause tremors if overdosed. Used in low-grade speed pills.
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Mirror Fish Flake Dust
Harvested from dried scales of spirit fish that live in fast-moving, clear rivers.
Effect: Enhances sensory clarity and eye-hand coordination. Especially helpful in detecting motion.
Note: Often used by archers or close-combat cultivators.
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Gale Nut Extract
Grows on short, twisting vines in windy hills or open plains.
Effect: Temporarily improves air-step and footwork coordination. Gives the sensation of lightness.
Note: Slightly spicy to the meridians. Useful for movement techniques.
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Ashwood Charcoal Powder
Collected from trees struck by lightning or burned in controlled qi fires.
Effect: Grounds excess energy, allowing explosive boosts without qi deviation.
Note: Often used in tempering pills for body cultivators.
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Lightweight Ore Residue
Found near flowing iron streams or spirit-forging sites.
Effect: Strengthens muscular control and nerve connection between brain and limbs.
Note: Popular in lightweight physical training pills. Cheap but effective when refined well.
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Clarity Mint Grass
Grows on flat mountain tops with consistent breeze and low cloud coverage.
Effect: Calms the mind, improves multi-task awareness. Reduces mental delay when switching focus.
Note: Used in calming incense and focus-enhancing tonics.
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Side Effects:
After the boost fades, user experiences a “crash” period of about 2 hours.
During this time:
Spiritual flow slows.
Physical strength reduced by half.
Response time worsens to below normal levels
Mild dizziness and joint weakness may occur.
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[This is a clever blend, host. Extremely rare, and brilliantly combined. This pill pushes the body into overdrive. Recoil is expected. Advise against using twice within the same day.]
Hao scrolled through the system screen slowly, pretending to adjust his sleeves while his thumb tapped over the floating panel.
He kept his expression calm. If Mo Xixi or Ji Yunzhi caught him staring into thin air, they might assume something was wrong with him.
Or worse – think he was about to go insane.
He didn’t read every word. Just skimmed, letting parts of it sink in naturally.
One or two ingredients caught his attention. Something about fish scales… nuts that grew in the wind?
The more he read, the more ridiculous it felt. But in a good way.
This pill shouldn’t be possible.
And yet… Ji Yunzhi did it.
He never once asked Hao for details about Cola. No list of ingredients, no research notes. The man drank a can, tasted the flavor, and somehow reverse-engineered a pill that mimicked the effects.
It didn’t even take him a year.
Just days.
’This guy’s insane.’ Hao thought.
’Insanely talented.’
’System. What about the effects of pill on me?’
[Assessing compatibility with host’s current condition…]
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Results for host: Non-cultivator body detected.
Effects: Temporary increase in heart rate, heightened adrenaline, sharper reflexes for 3–5 minutes. May improve balance and eyesight slightly during that window.
However, severe backlash expected after peak wears off.
Side effects for host include: dizziness, nausea, muscle cramps, diarrhea, dehydration, and minor blood vessel stress. Risk of fainting or temporary sensory overload. Not fatal. Not recommended.
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Oh hell nah.
Hao blinked twice and narrowed his eyes at the screen.
He wasn’t a cultivator, sure, but even a blind squirrel could read the last two words of that report:
Not recommended.
That was all he needed to see.
He didn’t even bother reading “minor blood vessel stress” again. Why? Because it sounded way too close to “vein explosion” for comfort.
Was he in a life-or-death fight right now? No.
Was he being chased through a demonic forest by vengeful sect elders? Nope.
He was sitting in a store, half-asleep, and surrounded by amazing products.
Taking this pill now would be the equivalent of drinking six cans of energy drink, snorting chili powder, and then doing parkour across a minefield.
All for what? Five minutes of fake Spider-Man reflexes and a full-body shutdown afterward?
Absolutely not.
’This thing’s a whole death buff.’
’Side effects longer than the benefits. Sounds like a mobile game ad.’
He stared at the cute, deceptively innocent pill in his palm.
No way in hell he was taking this pill.
He still had a long life to live, okay? Preferably one that didn’t involve spontaneous combustion or collapsing in the bathroom like a failed video game speedrun.
Without hesitation, Hao extended his hand and carefully returned the pill to Ji Yunzhi.
His expression shifted – eyes narrowed, lips pursed, nodding ever so slightly.
The face of a man who had seen through the Dao.
A face that screamed, “I’ve tasted the laws of the universe and spat them out like expired yogurt.”
“I do not need to take it.”
“I have already… analyzed the pill.”
He folded his hands behind his back like some kind of alchemy elder standing atop a mountain. Totally not a guy who had just read a system screen while pretending to stretch his neck.
Ji Yunzhi blinked in awe. “You have… storekeeper?”
Hao nodded.
“It’s a brilliant concoction.”
“You didn’t rely on traditional refining methods. No… you broke past convention.”
“You innovated.”
“You used Nerve Leaf Resin for neurological stimulation, didn’t you? Bold. A bit spicy on the nerves, but good.”
Ji Yunzhi’s eyebrows lifted slightly.
“And Mirror Fish Flake Dust. That one’s not common in reaction pills. But it’s excellent for motion clarity – especially when paired with Clarity Mint Grass.”
Hao gave a slow, approving nod like he’d just tasted a fine aged tea and was deciding if it was 100 or 101 years old.
“You even used Lightweight Ore Residue to reinforce limb connection – refined enough to avoid sluggish rebound. Smart.”
“And the Gale Nut Extract? That touch of wind-drawn agility?”
“Clever layering.”
Ji Yunzhi’s mouth parted in astonishment. This… this was recognition.
Deep understanding. He was being seen.
“But it’s Ashwood Charcoal that really ties the whole thing together. Grounds the explosive energies. Keeps the user from qi deviation.”
Hao closed his eyes briefly.
“There’s still some crash backlash – two hours of weakness, reduced strength, dizzy joints… – but you’ve controlled the onset well.”
“No soul-shaking rebound, no meridian tearing.”
He nodded again, very slowly.
“Solid foundation, Yunzhi. It’s only the beginning… but a brilliant beginning.”
Ji Yunzhi stared at Hao, expression flickering between shock and admiration.
He hadn’t even finished recording all the side effects himself.
The backlash was something he suspected, but hadn’t confirmed. And yet, the storekeeper already knew?