Chapter 236: Ghost City’s Ghost General, A Dream of Alchemy (II)

As the discussion drifted away from Dahe Market and onto cultivation, the mood in the hall remained lively.

Most of those present were at the ninth stage of Qi-Refining. While Zeng Wen and Granny Yuan had long accepted their limits, the others still held onto hope of reaching Foundation Establishment.

With Luo Chen leading the discussion, they shared their cultivation challenges and exchanged insights. Even he found himself benefiting greatly from their experiences. Sometimes, just a single revelation could save years of struggle.

The gathering lasted until evening before everyone gradually dispersed.

Once everyone had gone home, Luo Chen returned to the alchemy room.

Today, the Alchemy Hall had been given a day off, no pills were refined, and everyone had enjoyed a rare break. Even Luo Chen himself had rested for a full day, and thanks to the meridian repair liquid, the minor meridian damage he had sustained previously was completely healed.

With a full day of lighthearted conversation and recovery, he now felt at his peak condition.

"Let’s start with a batch of Blood-Burning pills to warm up!"

Yesterday’s consecutive failures had been quite a blow. Luo Chen decided to refine some Blood-Burning pills first, not only to rebuild his confidence after yesterday’s setbacks but also to stock up for his next meeting with Tian Xingzi.

Before starting, Luo Chen glanced at his status panel.

Blood-Burning Pill: Beginner (97/100)

"One more successful batch, and I'll advance to the Skilled level," he muttered.

At that point, his pill formation rate would increase from ten percent to twenty percent, though a small but valuable breakthrough.

He clenched his fist and muttered to himself, "I've already accumulated a few failures. If I refine four sets of ingredients at once, I should succeed in at least one!"

By now, Luo Chen had developed a thorough understanding of the system.

The so-called success rate wasn’t as straightforward as it seemed. For example, at the Beginner level, it seemed like success was guaranteed once every ten attempts. But in reality? That wasn’t the case at all. If he rushed through the process carelessly, even with a ten percent probability, he might fail all ten times.

On the other hand, if he prepared meticulously, mastered the formula, optimized his techniques, and ensured ideal conditions, he could succeed on the first try! His very first time refining Blood-Burning pills had been a perfect example of this. He hadn’t needed multiple tries, he had succeeded on his very first attempt.

You must give your all in every refinement, only then will you have a guarantee of success!

Luo Chen silently encouraged himself before tossing a Qinghe demon branch into the fire pit. This demonic beast material could enhance alchemical flames, increasing the number of pills successfully refined, a valuable boost that he had no reason to ignore.

Before officially beginning, he took on a solemn expression and activated his spirit energy, sequentially stimulating eighteen acupoints in his body.

Hmm...

A muffled groan escaped him as he took a deep breath, suppressing the pain brought by channeling Divine Breaker of Malevolence.

He needed this pain! Not for refining the Blood-Burning pill, but to familiarize himself with this sensation because later, when refining the Spirit Passage pill, Divine Breaker of Malevolence might counteract the hallucinations caused by the snow fox demon’s blood.

After completing the initial preparations, Luo Chen began adding the ingredients one by one.

With that, the process of refining Blood-Burning pills officially began.

Luo Chen was already well-versed in every step of the process.

About two hours later, Luo Chen contentedly stored away fourteen Blood-Burning pills. Though they were all low-grade, his pill formation rate had improved, two successful batches out of four.

At the same time, his proficiency in refining Blood-Burning pills had advanced to Skilled level.

Not only that, but the achievement points he had spent on entering the Beginner level for the Spirit Passage pill had also increased by one.

After his Spirit Eyes reached Perfected Mastery, Earth Summit and Wave Surge advanced to Perfection, and Blood-Burning pills improved to the Skilled level, he had gained four more.

At this moment, the number of achievement points stood at, twenty-eight achievement points!

As he took a brief rest, Luo Chen stared at these points, feeling a sudden urge.

If he invested all of these points into those two complete second-tier alchemical formulas, would he be able to attain the Beginner level?

This eagerness stemmed primarily from the fact that he no longer possessed any first-tier pill formulas. Only three second-tier formulas remained, Jade Dew pill, Blood Fiend pill, and Imperial Nectar.

Among them, he was most confident in the Blood Fiend pill. Unfortunately, he lacked the necessary primary ingredients. Even if he unlocked it, he wouldn't be able to refine it yet.

The Jade Dew pill had the highest value, but its formula was incomplete. The achievement points required to deduce and complete it would likely be an astronomically high number.

Then there was Imperial Nectar...

Luo Chen shook his head. "Not yet. I'm not at that level."

Once he advanced to the Foundation Establishment Realm, whether it was unlocking new formulas or deducing them, the cost in achievement points would be significantly lower.

At that stage, the achievement points required for Beginner level mastery of second-tier formulas would be roughly the same as what he currently needed for first-tier.

After a brief rest, Luo Chen rose to his feet and stepped into another alchemy room.

Gazing at the bronze cauldron, he let out a faint smile.

"The Divine Wood Cauldron may only be a mid-grade first-tier enchanted artifact, but it provides additional benefits when refining plant-based pills.

"One of the main ingredients of the Spirit Passage pill is Phantom Shade Grass. That should enhance the refinement process as well."

This time, he abandoned the Four Symbols Cauldron in favor of the low-tier but specially enhanced Divine Wood Cauldron.

Hopefully, this time it works!

As he activated Divine Breaker of Malevolence, a sharp wave of pain surged through him once more.

Luo Chen’s expression remained unchanged, as if he felt nothing at all, as he added the ingredients one by one.

A long time passed.

Luo Chen stepped out of the alchemy room with a calm expression.

Failure. As expected.

However, he wasn’t angry. The Spirit Passage pill’s formula had been incomplete, and he had pieced it together himself. He had used the system to forcibly attain the Beginner level.

Every failure was forgivable. Yet through this failure, he had confirmed that Divine Breaker of Malevolence had a significant resistance to the hallucinations caused by snow fox demon blood. That, in fact, was the greatest gain.

"Next time, I'll definitely succeed!" Luo Chen muttered to himself.

***

The next attempt also ended in failure.

It wasn’t until five days later that Luo Chen stopped refining Jade Essence pills. He dedicated an entire day to refining Spirit Passage pills alone before barely managing to succeed once.

"Nine whole attempts before finally reaping some success!"

Luo Chen gazed at the three pristine, snow-white pills in his palm, overwhelmed with emotion.

Three pills, only three!

Even though he had mentally prepared for this outcome, he still found it hard to accept.

He was aware that while the main ingredients for the Spirit Passage pill were complete, half of the auxiliary ingredients had been missing, and he had spent a great deal of time supplementing them.

He also knew that without reverse-engineering a second-tier formula like the Blood Fiend pill, his completed pill formula might be inherently flawed.

However, he hadn’t expected the number of successful pills to be this low.

"Each batch of raw materials costs a staggering fifteen spirit stones, far exceeding the Blood-Burning pill’s eleven spirit stones and the Jade Essence pill’s five.

"And in the end, only three pills. If I calculate the true total cost rather than averaging it per batch, doesn't that mean I need to spend one hundred and fifty spirit stones on ten attempts just to obtain three low-grade first-tier Spirit Passage pills?"

This calculation made Luo Chen's composure slip once more.

He had never squandered resources so recklessly before.

"I need to see for myself if you truly have some heaven-defying effect!"

Clutching the three snow-white pills in his palm, Luo Chen entered the spirit vein cavern.

***

Luo Chen’s mind and body were in peak condition, completely unscathed.

He took a deep breath and resolutely swallowed one of the snow-white pills.

He had never dared to consume the aggressively potent Blood-Burning pill right after refining it. Since he understood its medicinal properties, he had deemed it necessary to test it first.

However, the Spirit Passage pill was designed to enhance the foundation of one’s soul. Given its exorbitant cost, he couldn’t bring himself to test it on mere animals.

If that was the case, he might as well experience it firsthand!

As soon as the pill entered his body, it dissolved instantly.

A wave of chilling sensation surged straight to the crown of his head. Luo Chen shivered involuntarily from the cold.

And in that brief tremor, his consciousness wavered.

***

In a kitchen filled with the scent of burning herbs, a young man slumped over the stove, clutching a handful of charred medicinal dregs, his expression frenzied.

"Failure?

"Failure!

"Why? Why is it still a failure! I sacrificed everything I had just to gather these ten batches of materials, yet I still can't succeed!"

"Could it be that I have no talent for alchemy?

"No, I refuse to believe it! I still have three batches left, I have to succeed!"

The young man put away the burnt remnants and went to the stream to clean his iron pot. He practiced spells and refined his techniques, constantly adjusting his mental and physical state.

And the next day, he resumed refining Myriad Wonders pills.

Failure!

On the third day, it was still a failure!

By the fourth day, he was down to his final batch of materials.

Clinging to his last shred of hope, he staked everything on this attempt, pouring his full concentration, even a hint of mania, into it.

And in the end...

"It still failed." The young man stared blankly, his voice trembling as he muttered to himself, a choked sob caught in his throat.

Fifty spirit stones, that was the entirety of his fortune. He had spent it all in his attempt to refine Myriad Wonders pills. Yet not a single pill was successfully refined, meaning years of savings had been wiped out in an instant.

In the end, it was all for nothing, an utterly fruitless endeavor.

What was he supposed to do now?

Luo Chen glanced around, his home was bare, not even half a pound of spirit rice remained in the rice jar.

Maybe... I was never meant to be an alchemist.

Was I wrong to dream of becoming an alchemist, to live a life where I’d never have to worry about spirit stones again?

He sank into a deep pit of self-doubt.

Slumped in the kitchen, he let the acrid smell of burnt medicinal dregs engulf him, as if he himself were nothing more than a failure.

He had no idea how much time had passed. When dawn finally broke, he slowly got up.

Luo Chen took one last look at his home, then discarded the medicinal dregs and tidied up the kitchen.

After a quick wash, he stepped out of his house and headed for the outer district. He arrived at a secluded compound nestled among lush mountains and flowing streams, its bamboo buildings partially hidden within the scenery.

"Who goes there?"

"Luo Chen, a rogue cultivator. I wish to join the Poshan Gang."