Chapter 43 – 42 Observing Alchemy_1
The next day, Lin Tianming opened his tightly shut eyes from the night before, as did Ye Pinghai.

Lin Tianming took the initiative to step forward and pay his respects, waiting for Ye Pinghai’s instructions.

“Today, I will begin refining Minor Foundation Building Pills. You can watch for a few furnaces, then you’ll be able to leave my cave abode and return to your cultivation,” Ye Pinghai said.

Lin Tianming replied calmly, “I will follow Senior’s orders without any objection.”

Ye Pinghai nodded, took out a fiery-red Pill Furnace from his storage bag, and laid out a set of Spiritual Medicine Materials, ready for refining, on a stone platform beside him.

The entire Pill Furnace was fiery red, its surface densely covered with runes, exuding a powerful Spiritual Energy—clearly, it was a Second Order Superior Pill Furnace, two minor grades higher than the Four Symbols Furnace he normally used.

However, Lin Tianming was only momentarily surprised before he quickly regained his composure. After all, Ye Pinghai was at the Foundation Establishment Late Stage and also a Second Order Medium Grade Alchemist. With many years of Alchemy under his belt, his wealth was likely astonishing and far beyond what Lin Tianming could compare with.

After Ye Pinghai took out the Pill Furnace from the storage bag, a faint fragrance filled the Alchemy Room—evidence that the Pill Furnace, after long-term use in pill refining, had been imbued with the scent of elixirs. This was the result of extensive alchemic practice.

With a flick of a Law Decree, he struck the Pill Furnace, which instantly inflated dozens of times from the size of a palm to that of a water tank, hovering above the vent of the Earth Fire, motionless.

Ye Pinghai sat on a cushion and began to channel his energy. Half an hour later, Earth Fire erupted, and a large flame as thick as a water bucket blazed directly onto the Pill Furnace. The temperature of the Pill Furnace climbed steadily, and the color of the Earth Fire had turned from fiery red to include a hint of gold. The temperature in the Alchemy Room had risen by dozens of degrees, and Lin Tianming was dripping with sweat. Any ordinary person would have found it difficult to endure even half an hour there and would likely have been roasted alive.

As time progressed, and half a day passed, Ye Pinghai felt that the time was about right and began to throw a Spiritual Medicine into the Pill Furnace, using all his might to channel Spiritual Power and Divine Sense to decompose and purify the medicine, finally turning it into a clump of green-yellow liquid suspended in the furnace.

Lin Tianming sat beside him, watching carefully and earnestly, not daring to miss the slightest detail.

Seeing that Ye Pinghai had spent half a day just preheating the furnace—a process tens of times longer than his own—it was clear that refining Second Order Pills was indeed incomparable to First Order Elixirs. He estimated that the consumption of Spiritual Power and Divine Sense must also be enormous, Lin Tianming thought to himself.

One by one, he decomposed and purified over a dozen types of Spiritual Medicine Materials, turning them into over a dozen clumps of various colored Spiritual Liquids. This single step alone had taken three days’ time.

Ye Pinghai began to Infuse Spirit. His face contorted with veins throbbing on his forehead, exhibiting a look of strain.

Lin Tianming didn’t know that Ye Pinghai had been decomposing and purifying Spiritual Medicine continuously for three days without replenishing his Spiritual Power. Most of his energy had been depleted, and the process of Infusion of Spirit for refining the Minor Foundation Building Pill was extremely draining. If not for deep cultivation, the task would have been even more arduous.

After more than ten breaths, Ye Pinghai felt his infusion of Spiritual Power had reached its limit and suddenly let out a roar as loud as thunder.

“Solidify Pill!”

Following the roar, he manipulated the power of the Earth Fire, which instantly surged several times in strength. The flames that had been steady beneath the Pill Furnace spread out to cover the entire furnace. The temperature in the Alchemy Room rose another notch, and it was clear that the moisture in the air was evaporating speedily; Tianming’s soaked blue shirt dried almost immediately.

After a few more moments of intense heating, an overpowering scent spread rapidly. Lin Tianming was exhilarated—by the looks of it, the refining was a success.

Ye Pinghai also wore an expression of joy, deeply exhaled a sigh of relief, and a wave of fatigue washed over him.

He removed the lid of the furnace, and three pills hung within it, their fragrance so strong that one whiff seemed to revive the spirits, the entire pills were a brilliant golden-yellow, their surfaces marked by delicate, beautiful patterns, undoubtedly complete Minor Foundation Building Pills.

Ye Pinghai took out two Minor Foundation Building Pills, examined them repeatedly, and after confirming there were no omissions, he placed them into the prepared Jade Bottle and handed them directly to Lin Tianming.

“These three Minor Foundation Building Pills, you should first deliver them to Lin, the process of making them took too long, nearly seven days for one furnace, and it was also my first time making such pills, the consumption was not small, I need three days to recover before I can continue making more.”

“I suggest that it’s best for you to return these three Minor Foundation Building Pills to your clan immediately so that your clansmen can take them, then come back to Qianchuan Market to receive the remaining pills. There’s plenty of time for that. With such an arrangement, you can enable your Qi Refining Great Perfection clan members to establish their foundations sooner rather than later, and maybe by the time you return, some of them will have already succeeded.”

Lin Tianming nodded thoughtfully, also feeling that Ye Pinghai made a lot of sense, so he took the Jade Bottle, prepared to return to the cave dwelling in the market, and hand over the pills to Lin Shilu.

After Lin Tianming took his leave, Ye Pinghai began meditating on the spot to cultivate and recover his significantly drained state.

Upon leaving Ye Pinghai’s cave dwelling, Lin Tianming hurried back to the small courtyard rented by Lin Shilu without delay.

He cast a Law Decree, entered the small courtyard, and with a face full of joy, he seemed radiant and very excited, quickly running up to Lin Shilu and even forgetting the most basic formalities towards an elder, but fortunately, Lin Shilu didn’t mind.

“Fifteenth Grandfather, these three Minor Foundation Building Pills are from Ye’s first batch of Spiritual Medicine Materials. Ye instructed me to deliver them to you immediately.”

“Additionally, Ye suggested that you take these three Minor Foundation Building Pills and depart at once to return to our clan, so that our clansmen can take them as soon as possible. By the time we return to the clan, we may already have elders who have successfully established their foundation.”

“Now, for our clan, time is of the essence, and I also believe what Ye says makes sense. It will take at least half a year to finish making the fifteen batches of Spiritual Medicine Materials, and it would be a waste of time for you to just wait here.”

Lin Shilu listened and pondered on the side. As the saying goes, ’be wary of others,’ and though he didn’t quite believe that Ye Pinghai meant harm, one could never be too careful!

“Tian Ming, during the entire pill-making process, were you watching all the time? Did you notice anything amiss?”

“To reply to Fifteenth Grandfather, I stood by and observed the entire process of pill-making by Ye, and I did not notice anything unusual. Additionally, the pills match the records exactly, so there shouldn’t be any problems.”

“Hmm, in that case, let’s proceed with that plan. I will personally take the three Minor Foundation Building Pills back to our clan, and you stay in the market. After three days, head to Ye Pinghai’s cave dwelling to continue learning Alchemy.”

“Furthermore, focus on your cultivation and studies, and remember not to step out of the market in your free time nor stir up trouble within it. Once I’ve delivered the pills to our clan, I will return immediately to join you.”

Lin Tianming readily agreed, took out the Spirit Beast Bag and two bottles of Lingshen Pills to give to Lin Shilu, suggesting that riding the Purple Gold Eagle back to Green Bamboo Mountain could make the journey quicker and safer.

Lin Shilu took the Spirit Beast Bag and the pills, handed the Token of the cave dwelling over to Lin Tianming, and set off immediately on his journey.