Chapter 5: Lord Guan, Please Bless My Alchemy Success

Early the next morning, before the sky had even brightened, Luo Chen crawled out of bed.

Outside, it was misty, and if one listened carefully, the occasional roar of a beast could be heard from within the Million Mountains.

However, none of that had anything to do with him.

He was going to be very busy today, or rather, for the foreseeable future.

First, he had to sort and process various medicinal herbs.

Most of the herbs he had bought from the stalls of rogue cultivators were processed quite crudely; some hadn't even been dried yet.

He placed these items onto winnowing baskets, waiting for the sun to come out so he could set them out to dry.

Next were the jade lotus seeds.

They had to be peeled; only the kernels were needed, and the skins were definitely to be discarded.

By the light of an oil lamp, Luo Chen peeled them one by one, only stopping when his eyes felt dry.

"I wonder if this will make me nearsighted?"

"But I'm a cultivator now; surely I can't get nearsightedness!"

By the time he finished processing the large pile of lotus seeds, the sky was already bright.

After soaking the lotus seeds in chicken blood diluted with Red Sun chicken blood, Luo Chen took the baskets outside to dry.

Living on the edge of the outer city had its drawbacks in terms of safety, but it also had a relative advantage: there was plenty of usable space.

Usually, when refining Bigu Powder, one step of the process produced a very pungent odor. If he were refining in a crowded area, he would likely be reported.

Old Daoist Chen, who tanned talisman skins at home, had been reported more than once; he only managed to smooth things over later by slipping the administrators a few good talismans.

Luo Chen didn't have that worry.

The Yushan herbs had to be diced, and some had to be sliced; this portion was reserved for refining Bigu Powder.

Luo Chen was not the type to put all his eggs in one basket.

He anticipated many failures during the initial refining of Zhongmiao Pills.

It was entirely possible that he would fail every time and lose his entire investment!

After all, he was only at the entry-level of proficiency.

Under these circumstances, he absolutely could not cut off his original source of income.

The worst-case scenario was losing his capital, but at least he could rely on the profits from the Bigu Powder to sustain his life and make a comeback later.

By the time he finished processing the Yushan herbs, it was already noon.

At this hour, it was time to eat!

Feeling the hunger in his stomach, Luo Chen curled his lip.

They say cultivators don't eat the grains of the mortal world, but in reality, when you're hungry, you're hungry!

After washing his hands, Luo Chen went into the kitchen.

He scooped a small bowl of crystal-clear rice from the rice jar and poured it directly into a small pot without washing it.

This was spirit rice, costing one spirit stone for ten catties!

He couldn't bear to wash it, fearing he would wash away some of the spiritual energy.

He went to a hidden compartment next to the kitchen and pressed it. A large hole appeared in the floor, revealing a small, three-foot-square underground storage room.

Hanging inside was half a side of beef!

A first-tier monster, the Yellow Ox!

This stuff was also expensive, costing about one low-grade spirit stone for ten catties.

The reason Luo Chen had these hundred-plus catties of meat wasn't because he was a glutton, but because yellow beef was one of the main ingredients for Bigu Powder.

One catty of meat, plus an appropriate amount of ginseng, angelica, and other medicinal herbs, could produce five bottles of Bigu Powder, which then sold for one spirit stone!

He always tried to buy as much as he could at once—buying in bulk was cheaper—and stored it with ice.

Looking at the half-side of beef, Luo Chen swallowed hard.

He used a kitchen knife to cut off about two taels of meat, then took some ordinary vegetables from the ice cellar.

He washed the meat and vegetables thoroughly, diced the vegetables, sliced the meat very thinly, and finally threw everything into the small pot.

Add firewood!

Light the fire!

He formed a seal with both hands and muttered an incantation. After about two breaths, a small fireball appeared in his palm.

Go!

With a *poof*, the firewood in the stove ignited instantly.

"That went smoothly. The days of the stove exploding like when I first transmigrated should be over for good!"

Luo Chen smiled slightly, feeling quite proud of himself.

He glanced at his panel; the proficiency of his Fireball Technique had jumped from 268/300 to 269/300!

He currently practiced only three spells.

The Water-type Cleansing Spell, the Wood-type Entanglement Spell, and the Fire-type Fireball Technique.

Among these three, the Fireball Technique had the highest proficiency.

There was a reason for this.

At first, he just thought cultivation was mysterious and fun, so he would cast fireballs for entertainment whenever he was bored.

He had tested the effect of this spell: it was slow and energy-intensive, but its power was indeed great!

As long as it hit the target, it would melt gold, dissolve iron, and burn bones to ash.

But the prerequisite was hitting the target!

A normal cultivator casting a Fireball Technique required at least three breaths to form the seals and chant the incantation.

In three breaths, an enemy could have killed him a hundred times over.

Luo Chen was the same at first, and each cast consumed one-tenth of his total spiritual energy.

It was then that he understood why low-level cultivators rarely used spells in combat.

They either used magical artifacts or talismans; both were fast, energy-efficient, and no less powerful than spells.

Once he knew this, he lost interest in low-level spells like the Fireball Technique.

However, as he used the Fireball Technique to light the fire for every batch of alchemy, his proficiency increased, and he began to feel that spells might not be entirely useless.

Like now, the energy consumption remained the same—one-tenth—but the speed had been reduced to within two breaths.

And this was only at the "Proficient" level.

What if it reached "Perfect" proficiency?

What if it reached "Grandmaster" proficiency?

Therefore, whenever he had a chance to use the Fireball Technique, he would cast it once or twice.

Every little bit helps!

Lost in these idle thoughts, the food in the pot was almost ready.

Smelling the aroma of the rice, Luo Chen took a piece of pickled radish from the jar.

A large bowl of beef rice, brimming with spiritual energy, with its enticing red, green, yellow, and white colors, paired with a few pieces of sweet and sour pickled radish.

He sat under the eaves, facing the cool breeze from the stream and the sun, and ate heartily.

This was the most enjoyable time of Luo Chen's day!

If there were no pressure to survive, no pursuit of immortality, a meal like this every day would truly be a pleasure.

Unfortunately, Luo Chen had no choice. He was a man with a system; even in the darkest night, he would eventually shine!

"Damn it, why does this thing smell so bad!"

The man destined to shine clutched his chest, leaning over the stream and retching repeatedly.

He hadn't expected that the fire-dog whip he bought from the Hundred Herbs Hall would smell so foul during the special processing.

Donning a mask, Luo Chen gathered his courage and began processing the fire-dog whip again.

As he used his hands to peel back the skin and apply the special juice, he muttered to himself.

"This stuff doesn't smell, this stuff doesn't smell."

"It's spirit stones, it's all spirit stones, it's fragrant spirit stones!"

After finishing one fire-dog whip, he rushed to the stream, unable to wait any longer.

"Ugh!"

Processing raw materials was time-consuming and laborious, but it could not be compromised in the slightest!

In fact, it was even more critical than the techniques used during the refining process.

The logic was simple: even if your pill formula was perfect, your technique exquisite, and your alchemy equipment top-tier, if the materials themselves were flawed, the final result was predetermined.

It was just like building a high-rise; if the foundation was faulty, there was no point in talking about anything else.

Seven days passed, and all the raw materials had been semi-processed and deep-processed to the most perfect state possible.

Luo Chen also took the time to refine a few pots of Bigu Powder, rolling them into pills and storing them away.

But he didn't intend to sell them this time.

He planned to wait until the Zhongmiao Pills were refined before going to sell them all together.

For the next period, that iron pot containing a trace of spirit ore would have to be scrubbed clean to refine the Zhongmiao Pills.

Standing before the stove, Luo Chen put on an apron with a solemn expression.

He bowed to the blackened kitchen ceiling. "Guan Yu from back home, Taishang Laojun, the local Alchemy Saint, please bless me with a successful batch!"

Open the pot!

Light the fire!