Chapter 8: Alchemy

Ginseng-stewed chicken, crystal braised pork, wine-marinated shrimp, five-treasure soup... Twenty-seven recipes unfolded before the eyes of the two, with prices ranging from one hundred to five hundred spirit stones.

"Ah Rui, which recipes do you think we should buy?" Li Shiren asked via secret voice transmission.

"Ginseng-stewed chicken, crystal braised pork, wine-marinated shrimp, five-treasure soup, three-mystery fish balls..." Li Zhirui listed over a dozen recipes in one breath. These were carefully selected based on the eight types of spirit beasts the clan was currently raising.

Li Shiren nodded inwardly; these were much the same as what he had in mind. He looked up and asked, "Do you have any first-tier spirit wine recipes?"

The cultivator’s smile deepened, and he replied repeatedly, "Yes, yes, please wait a moment, Senior."

"Wait, please help me get one more thing. I would like to see the pill formulas for water-method alchemy," Li Zhirui said quickly upon seeing this.

"Certainly!" With that, the man walked out of the room.

Li Shiren frowned slightly and said with disapproval, "I have no objection to you choosing alchemy, but why must you choose the most difficult water-method alchemy?"

"Uncle Ren, have you forgotten that I don't have a fire spirit root?" While lacking a fire spirit root didn't mean one couldn't practice alchemy, Li Zhirui happened to have water and wood dual spirit roots!

One countered fire, and the other feared it, which meant Li Zhirui could not control flames well. Since alchemy required high precision with fire, this path was essentially blocked for him.

"Then why not consider other crafts? You have a high talent for beast taming," Li Shiren’s brow remained furrowed; clearly, he did not approve of Li Zhirui's decision.

Alchemy was never a simple matter, and water-method alchemy was even more difficult and obscure, with high-tier formulas being extremely rare.

If Li Zhirui followed this path, he would have to modify the formulas himself after reaching higher realms, which would be a massive waste of time and energy!

Li Zhirui fell silent. He could not tell a second person about his portable space, not even someone with whom he had an excellent relationship!

Li Shiren felt a headache coming on. His nephew was clearly a thoughtful and cautious person, yet he could be incredibly stubborn about certain things.

"Two honored guests, here are the wine recipes and pill formulas." Fortunately, the cultivator returned at that moment, dispelling the awkward atmosphere between the uncle and nephew.

Li Zhirui couldn't wait to check the jade slips to see if he could find the formulas he wanted.

Seeing his eagerness, Li Shiren sighed silently to himself.

Yellow Bud Pills and Jade Spirit Pills for increasing mana, Spirit Nourishing Pills for nourishing the soul, Blood Replenishing Pills for restoring vitality... There were thirty-six types of first-tier water-method pill formulas in total. Li Zhirui’s eyes shone, and he wished he could take them all.

Unfortunately, after many years of cultivation, Li Zhirui only had a little over three hundred spirit stones on him, enough to choose at most two formulas.

Fortunately, Li Zhirui knew his priorities. He selected two formulas from the list that were most beneficial to him at the moment and for which he had the corresponding spirit herbs in his space: the Jade Spirit Pill, which could be consumed by both cultivators and spirit beasts, and the Spirit Replenishing Pill, which had high market demand.

The former could speed up his and Da Qing’s cultivation, while the latter could be sold to earn spirit stones.

After the transaction was completed, Li Zhirui had only a few dozen spirit stones left.

Li Shiren didn't concern himself with Li Zhirui's choices. He picked out the Turbidity-Clearing Wine and White-Braised Wine recipes from the spirit wine list. Adding the previously selected spirit food recipes, Li Shiren paid a total of five thousand five hundred spirit stones.

However, before they left, the shop gifted Li Zhirui a few packets of first-tier spirit seeds, worth less than twenty spirit stones in total.

After leaving the shop, Li Shiren did not rush to depart. Instead, he led Li Zhirui toward a corner of the market. Neither of them spoke on the way, walking in silence.

Soon, a scene filled with street stalls on both sides of the road came into view.

"Didn't you want to learn water-method alchemy? The spirit herbs and spirit water here are cheaper than in the shops, though you'll have to rely on your own judgment to tell the real from the fake," Li Shiren said calmly.

Li Zhirui’s face lit up, and he said, "Thank you, Uncle Ren!"

"The clan has a few pill furnaces, so you don't need to buy one." As he spoke, he handed over a storage bag and said, "There are one hundred spirit stones here. Remember to pay me back early."

Li Zhirui thanked him again, then walked with a light step toward a stall displaying a large quantity of spirit herbs.

"Jade Root Grass, Hidden Spirit Fruit..." It took five types of spirit herbs to refine the Jade Spirit Pill. A set cost twelve spirit stones in the shop, but here it was only eleven.

Li Zhirui spent one hundred and ten spirit stones to buy ten sets of herbs and another twenty spirit stones to buy a gourd of spirit water.

In truth, such a small amount of materials was nowhere near enough for practice. Li Zhirui bought them mainly to provide cover for the spirit herbs in his space; after all, he couldn't possibly master alchemy just by looking at the formulas, could he?

At the same time, Li Zhirui noticed several gazes following him ever since he bought the herbs, but when he returned to Li Shiren’s side, those gazes instantly retracted.

Li Zhirui kept his expression neutral, but he noted the incident in his heart, warning himself that if he came alone next time, he must not be so conspicuous.

"Are you done?" Li Shiren asked. If not, they could still wander the market a bit more.

Seeing Li Zhirui nod, Li Shiren led him out of the market.

Upon returning to Dayong Island, the two handed the food and wine recipes to the clan leader. "Do you have any thoughts on your trip to the market?"

"There are many cultivators coming and going in the market, and it is very lively. Although there are already several restaurants in the market, I noticed they are mainly for lodging, so there is a large market for selling spirit food. Moreover, the clan raises spirit beasts, which is our advantage." Li Zhirui spoke eloquently, sharing everything he had observed and thought of.

Li Shiqing did not express an opinion, but instead said, "Hmm, I see. You’ve had a tiring day traveling, go back and rest first."

Li Zhirui bowed to the two elders before turning to leave.

"Do you agree with Zhirui's words?" Li Shiqing asked.

Li Shiren nodded. "Zhirui observed very carefully, and everything he said is correct."

Li Shiqing had a plan in mind. He changed the subject and asked, "You know the current situation of the clan; the resources for training spirit chefs are limited and must be concentrated. Which clansmen do you think are suitable?"

Li Shiren thought seriously for a moment, mentioned a few names, and then explained, "The requirements for a spirit chef are no lower than those for an alchemist, so the most important things are divine sense and control over heat."

The clansmen Li Shiren mentioned either had fire spirit roots or were in the late stage of Qi Refining with relatively strong divine sense; in any case, they all met at least one of the criteria.

"Hmm, let it be them." Li Shiqing thought about it and agreed they were suitable. As for the two spirit wine recipes, they were easy to handle because the Li family had a winemaker.

Li Zhizhun, the eldest of the 'Zhi' generation, had a second-tier Wine Monkey as his contracted spirit beast. To satisfy his spirit beast's needs, he had tried using the only wine recipe the clan possessed, and in the end, he had actually succeeded!

The reason the clan hadn't trained Li Zhizhun to continue on the path of a winemaker was mainly because the price the Beast Taming Sect paid for spirit wine was too low, leaving almost no profit, so the clan had shelved the idea.