131: Didn't my father-in-law think of anything else?

While Lu An'an was packing her medicine box, Feng Ming checked the System rewards.

Not to mention the Inverting Dragon and Phoenix Art.

This thing only provided a simple speed boost; for a qualitative change to occur, he had to wait until Lu An'an's favorability reached a perfect score.

The Encyclopedia of Immortal Grade Medicinal Pills was indeed the advanced version following the heaven grade.

It recorded detailed information on the refinement of known Medicinal Pills from the seventh to the ninth rank.

In other words, Feng Ming could now be considered a Ninth-Rank Alchemist.

As for what others thought or whether they believed it, that wasn't his concern.

Mainly because there were currently no testing methods for a Ninth-Rank Alchemist.

Because anything judged to be a Ninth-Rank Medicinal Pill was undoubtedly a treasure.

Therefore, the corresponding herbs were also extremely precious.

Gathering a full set of herbs to refine a Ninth-Rank Medicinal Pill could take anywhere from several years to several decades.

These Medicinal Pills were even more priceless; once they appeared, they would be sold for astronomical prices.

But those who possessed these Medicinal Pills likely weren't short on money.

Much less would they sell them to the public.

The reason the Provincial Martial Arts Tournament attracted so much attention was this.

Besides the opportunity to become an official in the Bright Moon Dynasty, one could also obtain precious Spirit Medicine.

It was said that within the trial grounds, Rare and Exotic Herbs of the seventh rank or higher appeared every year.

Rare and Exotic Herbs were different; obtaining even one meant windfall wealth.

Put it this way: many people went to the trials specifically for the herbs. After all, why would those who Cultivate care about mundane official positions?

Of course, besides these, the Pill Formulas for Medicinal Pills of the seventh rank and above were very cheap.

In the Dao of Alchemy, there had always been a saying.

First to third rank, the Pill Formulas are expensive; fourth to sixth rank, the Medicinal Pills are expensive; seventh to ninth rank, the herbs are expensive, but you can buy a heap of Pill Formulas!

This situation occurred mainly because Alchemists were scarce, and the medicinal materials were even scarcer.

Alchemists of the seventh rank and above were basically the top Alchemists in the Bright Moon Dynasty.

At this level, those who could seek them out for Alchemy were definitely powerful figures in their own right.

If they had enough herbs, they would certainly bring the materials to an Alchemist to perform the refinement.

The problem was that throughout the year, few people could actually get a seventh-rank or higher Alchemist to act.

The key issue was still the herbs; it was too difficult to gather all the ingredients for a single Pill Formula.

Most of the time, they could only be obtained by trading other precious items.

But those herbs were so precious that only a fool would want to sell them.

To put it bluntly, there were more seventh-rank Alchemists on the market than there were medicinal materials.

As Feng Ming was thinking, Lu An'an returned with a tray of snacks in her hands.

After sitting down, she handed him a piece of pastry and asked, "The shop is almost ready. When can you supply the Medicinal Pills?"

"As long as the Medicinal Pills are in place, we can open for business."

Feng Ming took the pastry, took a bite, and said, "Let's open tomorrow. The Alchemists should be in place today. I'll personally supervise them tonight and refine the Medicinal Pills overnight; there won't be any delay."

Lu An'an frowned.

"You can't refine enough Medicinal Pills in just one night. I'm afraid it won't be enough; many shopkeepers have contacted us recently, and the demand is huge."

Feng Ming nodded. "It's fine if we can't meet it. Once we hire more Alchemists in the future, we'll naturally be able to satisfy their needs."

"For now, I actually think it's better to keep them 'hungry.' Let those who are waiting and watching see how sought-after our Feng Family's Medicinal Pills are."

Lu An'an was stunned, recalling the content of the book Feng Ming had given her. She asked, "Is this what the book calls 'Hunger Marketing'?"

Feng Ming looked appreciative. "Not bad, you've learned to apply it so quickly. That's exactly it."

Lu An'an said no more.

Feng Ming asked, "Are seventh-rank Pill Formulas very cheap?"

Lu An'an nodded. "They are indeed very cheap. Our family has many, which my father got for my mother..."

Halfway through, Lu An'an stopped.

Feng Ming felt something was off and quickly asked, "You... I've never heard you mention your mother. What kind of person is she?"

Hearing this, Lu An'an fell silent.

Feng Ming saw a trace of helplessness and sorrow in her eyes.

Actually, there were some rumors in the streets, but opinions were divided.

Some said he lost his wife in his early years, while others said he was abandoned by her.

Whether any of these claims were true or false was unknown.

Even Uncle Zhong hadn't been able to find any specific information in Qingyang City.

Seeing Lu An'an like this, Feng Ming quickly changed the subject. "My apologies for being presumptuous. If it's inconvenient to say, then never mind."

Lu An'an shook her head. "It's not inconvenient. I really should tell you about my mother."

"My mother is still alive, it's just..."

"She was abandoned by your father?"

Feng Ming blurted out instinctively.

Lu An'an gave Feng Ming a helpless look. Given her father's feelings for her mother, how could he possibly abandon her?

"My father and mother's relationship is very good, but she has been in a coma all this time."

Now, Feng Ming was a bit confused. How did a perfectly fine City Lord's wife end up in a coma?

Lu An'an briefly recounted the story of her parents.

After listening, Feng Ming understood.

To put it simply, Lu An'an's parents were two people of the Jianghu who met, got to know each other, and fell in love during a trial.

However, their path of love was not smooth. During the trial, Lu An'an's mother encountered danger; she narrowly survived but was severely injured.

Not only was she unable to continue improving her strength, but her physical condition also grew worse and worse.

In order not to affect her beloved's career, she forced herself to go to the Royal City to accompany Lu Zhenfeng for his investiture.

On the night before the investiture, Lu Zhenfeng, who was ranked in the top ten of the trial, should have at least been appointed to a position like a Provincial Governor.

But because his lover collapsed, for her sake, Lu Zhenfeng ultimately chose to return to Qingyang City.

King Haoyue was moved by his devotion, granted his request, and appointed him as the City Lord of Qingyang City.

This matter was considered a beautiful story back then.

The story that followed was that Lu Zhenfeng took meticulous care of her, searching all over the country and nourishing his beloved with Rare and Exotic Herbs.

But she only barely managed to hold on for five years. After giving birth to two daughters, she fell into a coma.

During those five years, Lu Zhenfeng exhausted all his connections and spent his entire fortune to obtain a seventh-rank Tranquil Breath Pill.

After his beloved fell into a coma, he fed it to her, barely managing to keep her alive.

Hearing this, Feng Ming quickly checked the information on this Medicinal Pill in his mind.

When he saw the words "sustaining life and condensing breath," he knew that what Lu An'an said was true.

However, this Medicinal Pill had a time limit; it could only sustain life for thirty years.

In other words, his Mother-in-law was now a living dead person, her life being forcibly sustained by a single breath.

Calculating by the ages of Lu An'an and her sister, the remaining time was only six or seven years.

Feng Ming thought that since Lu Zhenfeng loved Anan's mother so deeply, he must have thought of other ways, so he quickly asked:

"Then has Father-in-law ever thought of any other methods?"