Chapter 34: Alchemy, Expulsion

Hiss! Lu Xiaotian felt a sharp sting in his brain and hurriedly withdrew his divine sense from the storage bag.

Lu Xiaotian looked at the black storage bag with suspicion and uncertainty. Logically speaking, since he had already destroyed the black-robed elder's primordial spirit, opening this storage bag should not have been a problem. However, when he attempted to open it with his divine sense, he was still met with a cold, snake-like mental attack clinging to the bag.

Perhaps the black-robed elder held some unresolved secrets; however, now that his soul had been scattered, those secrets would likely remain buried forever.

It was a pity about that golden flying sword. Lu Xiaotian smacked his lips, but he was satisfied with the outcome of today's battle.

Now that the black-robed elder was dealt with, he could reasonably make use of the mysterious space within his body. Aside from keeping an empty storage bag on him for appearances, he sent all the remaining spiritual items into the boundary.

Having finished this, Lu Xiaotian rested his chin in his hand. Previously, he had only been at the second level of Qi Refinement; even with a sufficient supply of medicinal pills, it would have taken several years to reach the fifth level.

But now, he was already at the fifth level of Qi Refinement. The *Hunyuan Sutra* in his hands could only be cultivated up to the middle stage of Qi Refinement, making the acquisition of a late-stage Qi Refinement cultivation method an urgent matter.

A late-stage cultivation method typically cost around forty low-grade spirit stones at a merchant house. An ordinary Qi Refinement cultivator could barely afford one with their usual earnings; someone like Luo Yuan even carried a certain amount of debt. Currently, Lu Xiaotian only had eight low-grade spirit stones, and the only things of value he had left were about a dozen Essence Pills. Although this was a windfall, it would easily attract the attention of those at the late stage or even the Great Perfection of Qi Refinement. This would be extremely detrimental to his future adventures in the Wangyue Mountains to collect the spiritual items needed to join a sect. Furthermore, he would later need a vast amount of spirit stones to collect mid-to-late stage Qi Refinement pill recipes.

If he went out to find work, the spirit stones earned in a month—after deducting various expenses and cultivation costs—would likely take a long time to accumulate, which would undoubtedly hinder his progress.

However, Lu Xiaotian recalled that in Wangyue City, various workshops and merchant houses offered good prices for those who could refine artifacts, raise spirit beasts, refine pills, grow low-grade spiritual herbs, or craft talismans.

Coincidentally, there were still over a dozen Purple Spirit Grasses inside the boundary, and they could regrow, making them suitable for refining Qi Gathering Pills. After much deliberation, Lu Xiaotian decided to start with pill refining.

The consumption of medicinal pills by cultivators was a massive expense. Refining them would satisfy his own needs, and even if the effects of the Qi Gathering Pills were slightly inferior now, they were better than nothing. Moreover, selling Qi Gathering Pills under the guise of being a mid-stage Qi Refinement cultivator and a junior alchemist would not attract excessive attention.

Having thought this through, Lu Xiaotian went out again to purchase the other auxiliary herbs needed to refine Qi Gathering Pills, as well as a batch of charcoal. Aside from the Purple Spirit Grass, these auxiliary materials were not expensive; the whole lot cost only two low-grade spirit stones.

The charcoal was made by burning low-grade spiritual wood. While a cultivator could use the essence within their body to directly condense Primordial Yang Fire for refining, doing so consumed too much essence. If the essence in the dantian were exhausted before the heat could be maintained, the pill would likely become a waste.

Once the materials were prepared, Lu Xiaotian looked hesitantly at his surroundings. The room was too small and unsuitable for pill refining, but he had no other place to use.

*No choice, I'll just refine it first,* he thought, steeling his resolve.

He took out the pill furnace he had previously purchased from Luo Qing. The furnace featured alternating purple and yellow stripes—a unique pattern created by using Purple Profound Copper. Touching it felt icy to the hand, and the small tripod was supported by three curved legs.

He had already memorized the recipe for the Qi Gathering Pill. Following the steps, he started the fire. The temperature of the spiritual wood charcoal was very high, quickly turning the small tripod glowing red. Following the procedure, Lu Xiaotian added the auxiliary ingredients one by one, reducing the amount of charcoal used. When a faint fragrance began to drift from the small hole in the furnace lid, Lu Xiaotian took out a stalk of Purple Spirit Grass and tossed it in.

A moment later, a strange fragrance rose from the tripod. Lu Xiaotian’s spirit jolted; the scent was exactly that of a Qi Gathering Pill. However, according to the recipe, this was merely the stage where the Purple Spirit Grass inside the furnace was turning into liquid. The timing for opening the furnace had to be precise; if opened too early, the medicinal properties would dissipate before the pill formed, resulting in a greatly diminished potency. If opened too late, the refining process would likely result in a waste pill.

*Sizzle—!*

Suddenly, the medicinal fragrance in the tripod stopped abruptly, replaced by a choking, burnt stench.

*Damn it!* In his preoccupation with the timing of opening the furnace, he had forgotten to control the heat. The fire was too strong, the temperature inside the tripod too high, and the unformed medicinal liquid had been scorched into waste.

*Bang! Bang!*

A heavy pounding came at the door. "Open up! Open the door! What is the person inside doing?"

"That smell... it sounds like a failed pill refinement."

"How ignorant. Trying to refine pills in such a cramped space—it's a miracle they didn't fail."

Several early-stage Qi Refinement cultivators staying at the same inn began to discuss the matter with mockery and sarcasm.

"Cough, cough..."

Lu Xiaotian opened the door. The burnt stench and the high heat from the burning spiritual charcoal left the inn waiter coughing violently and looking disheveled. It took him a while to catch his breath. Before he could even see Lu Xiaotian's face clearly, he shouted accusingly, "This inn is for living, not for messing around! What were you doing in there? If you burn the whole inn down, can you afford to pay for it?"

"Go! We don't welcome you in this inn. Don't ever come back!"

The commotion inside the inn quickly alerted the manager. Given the negative impact Lu Xiaotian had caused—and the fact that he had nearly burned the place down—the manager, both shocked and angry, drove Lu Xiaotian out. It was only because Lu Xiaotian was a mid-stage Qi Refinement cultivator that the manager refrained from telling him to "get lost," though the implication was much the same.

Lu Xiaotian packed up his pill furnace and emerged from the inn in a state of disarray. He shot an annoyed glance back at the inn, thinking to himself that it wasn't such a big deal since he hadn't actually burned it down.

"Just an ordinary rogue cultivator trying to become an alchemist. How overly ambitious," some passersby remarked, having stopped to see the smoke and learned what had happened, before shaking their heads and walking away.

"Eh? Isn't that Brother Lu?"

A familiar voice came from the crowd. Lu Xiaotian looked toward the sound and saw the Luo siblings walking toward him.

"Brother Lu, what happened? This shopkeeper is so unreasonable; I'll go and reason with him," Luo Yuan said loyally. However, he quickly realized something and said in shock, "Brother Lu, your cultivation... how?"

"It was my fault; I used a few tricks earlier. This is my true cultivation level now," Lu Xiaotian explained awkwardly, seeing Luo Yuan's shocked expression.

He then briefly explained the incident at the inn.

"I see. In that case, Brother Lu has nowhere to stay. Why don't you move into our place and live with us?" Luo Qing asked warmly after hearing the story.

"Live with you?" Lu Xiaotian was momentarily stunned.

"It's like this," Luo Qing continued.

It turned out that finding rental housing for rogue cultivators in Wangyue City was quite troublesome, and renting an inn alone was a poor deal. Therefore, she and several close friends had co-rented a small courtyard. For ten spirit stones a month, they had four rooms and a larger space than an inn, including a small yard. One of their friends had unfortunately perished in the Wangyue Mountains recently, leaving one room vacant. Although the price was slightly higher than an inn, it was more comfortable and lacked the prying eyes of an inn.

Lu Xiaotian was tempted, but upon reflection, he felt it was inappropriate. He had secrets he did not want outsiders to know, including the fact that he raised Shadow Ants to catch enemies off guard at critical moments. After some thought, he realized that he had quite a few talismans on him; selling some would solve his immediate spirit stone crisis. Thus, he declined, "No, thank you. I have some spirit stones left; I'd like to rent a small courtyard for myself."

"Renting a courtyard alone? Brother Lu is truly wealthy. I actually know of a courtyard not far from us; if Brother Lu is interested, you could go take a look," Luo Qing said with a playful click of her tongue.

In Wangyue City, typically only high-income alchemists, artifact refiners, or those at the late stage or Great Perfection of Qi Refinement would rent a courtyard alone. Even many late-stage cultivators lived in shared accommodations.

"Then, thank you," Lu Xiaotian said, no longer declining. Finding one on his own would have taken considerable effort.

A few hours later, Lu Xiaotian moved into his new courtyard. It had three fewer rooms than the Luo siblings' place, but cost only seven spirit stones a month. The size was sufficient for him.

Having not tended to the Shadow Ants for a while, Lu Xiaotian took out the Jade Pool and scattered dozens of Beast Spirit Pills. He released the Shadow Ants from the Jade Gourd; they had been in a dormant state within the gourd, but they had not eaten for a long time.

The awakened Shadow Ants began to feed voraciously. A few even began biting each other because they had reached for the same Beast Spirit Pill, clearly driven mad by hunger. Lu Xiaotian hurriedly separated the fighting ants.

After feeding the Shadow Ants, Lu Xiaotian released the leopard from his spirit beast bag.

"Awoo..." The leopard had been stifled in the bag for too long. It let out a complaining cry upon being released, then submissively rubbed its head against Lu Xiaotian's leg.

"Alright, go play over there. Don't leave the courtyard," Lu Xiaotian said, patting the leopard's head and letting it roam. The leopard was no longer of great use to him, but back when he was weak, he would likely be nothing but a pile of bones if not for the leopard. Therefore, even if he was just keeping it as a pet, he would not sell off his useless spirit beasts like other cultivators might.

(End of Chapter)