242: Three times the price to pressure you

Steward Jiang led the way while talking to Feng Ming, aside from briefly asking for his name.

There were also some warnings.

Of course, Feng Ming couldn't give his real name; if he were going to do that, why bother with the disguise technique?

Steward Jiang said with a smile, "Since the Young Master has accepted the notice, I won't repeat the rules."

"But I must remind you of a few things. Our Old Master detests people with crooked intentions. Failing to refine a pill isn't a big deal, but you mustn't lack the strength and pretend to be a hero just to fool people. Otherwise, I'm afraid you won't get any benefits, and you might even lose your life."

Feng Ming nodded with a smile. "Rest assured, Steward, I won't cause any trouble."

Steward Jiang nodded. As they spoke, they arrived at a courtyard.

This place was quite different from the Jiang Family Mansion Feng Ming had imagined.

There wasn't a single flower or plant in this courtyard; the entire place was bare.

The most conspicuous thing was a massive Pill Furnace sitting in the middle of the courtyard!

Feng Ming's gaze swept across and saw an old man with disheveled hair in a corner of the courtyard. Shelves filled with various herbs stood beside him.

At that moment, he stood there with a blazing fire burning before him. This posture was clearly that of someone refining pills.

And it was of a very high level. According to Feng Ming's understanding, only those whose Pill Dao had reached the Control Realm could refine pills without a Pill Furnace, just like this old man.

In the Pill Dao, entry is to condense Pill Fire, and Control is to discard the Pill Furnace!

That is to say, only upon entry can one condense Pill Fire, thereby abandoning original ordinary flames.

Reaching the Control Realm allows one to discard the Pill Furnace, but those who can reach this Realm must be at least above the level of a Seventh-Grade Alchemist.

The old man before him was at least a Seventh-Grade, or perhaps even higher.

In the path of the Pill Dao, the Great Dao is simple; the higher the Realm, the less external help is needed.

For Alchemists who can refine pills with their bare hands, there is no need for a Pill Furnace, nor do they need to consider changes in heat.

Feng Ming watched for a while, feeling a bit envious. His current Realm was too low to reach the point of discarding the Pill Furnace, so he could only follow the operating instructions.

Seeing Feng Ming's interest in the man, Steward Jiang introduced him: "He is known as the Pill Obsessive. He has been obsessed with Alchemy his whole life, but unfortunately, he has been stuck at the level of an Eighth-Grade Alchemist and cannot achieve a Breakthrough."

"Old Master had no choice. He tried several Ninth-Rank Alchemists, but none could refine the Medicinal Pill he needed. So he invited this man here, providing him with a vast supply of herbs to refine pills, hoping he could make a Breakthrough. But it is too difficult."

Steward Jiang shook his head. "Wait here. I'll go call the Old Master. By the way, you must not disturb him. Disturbing his Alchemy has very serious consequences."

Feng Ming nodded. After watching the steward leave, he turned back to continue watching the Pill Obsessive refine pills.

Although Feng Ming was only at the Mastered Realm, his talent was not low. Combined with the Encyclopedia of Medicinal Pills he possessed, he could naturally tell that the pill being refined was an eighth-grade testing pill: the two elements pill!

As the saying goes, Taiji produces the two elements. Naturally, the pattern of the Yin-Yang fish was distributed on this two elements pill.

This was a type of pill that every Eighth-Grade Alchemist would choose to refine. Only by refining this two elements pill well could an Alchemist prove they had reached the pinnacle of the Eighth-Grade Alchemist Realm.

Only then could they continue to refine ninth-rank pills. If they couldn't refine a perfect two elements pill, they couldn't be considered a qualified Eighth-Grade Alchemist. Therefore, refining a good two elements pill had become an obsession for many Alchemists.

To succeed in this, the requirements for the Alchemist's mindset, technique, and timing were extremely harsh. Sometimes, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say it required a bit of luck.

After watching for a while, Feng Ming realized that the Pill Obsessive's Alchemy skills had long surpassed the eighth grade. However, it seemed he had also developed an obsession with this two elements pill, immersing himself in his own world of Alchemy and ignoring everything outside.

Moreover, it appeared he had been refining this pill for a long time, and so far, none had satisfied him.

Suddenly, the Pill Obsessive abruptly withdrew his Qi, and a pill floated before his eyes.

Feng Ming followed his gaze and saw that the pattern on the two elements pill was messy and disorganized; it was clearly a failure.

Seeing the other party about to start refining again, Feng Ming spoke calmly, "Your direction in the Alchemy process is wrong. No matter how many times you refine it, it won't succeed unless you get lucky and happen to encounter a two elements pill with balanced Yin and Yang."

Hearing this, the Pill Obsessive was stunned. He turned around, about to lose his temper, but when he saw that Feng Ming was a young man, he immediately looked disdainful. "Where did this brat come from? How are you worthy of instructing me?"

"I don't care who you are. If you dare to open your mouth again, don't blame me for being heartless."

Having been warned by Steward Jiang earlier, Feng Ming wasn't too surprised. He could only say that this guy really had a bad temper.

But Feng Ming wasn't angry either. He said with a smile, "I'm just giving a kind reminder. If you don't believe me, you can try. At the very end, slowly release your control over the pill and pick the right moment to finish. The result will definitely be better."

The Pill Obsessive snorted coldly. "Hmph! I don't need you to teach me!"

After saying that, he ignored Feng Ming and went back to his refining.

Feng Ming didn't say more. He turned and saw Steward Jiang coming out from the backyard with a white-haired old man.

"Old Master, this is Feng Er. Young Master Feng is the one who accepted the notice."

The old man nodded upon hearing this. "A hero truly comes from the youth. I didn't expect Young Master Feng to be so young."

Feng Ming said with a smile, "You're too kind, sir. May I ask how to address you?"

The other party laughed. "Just call me Big Brother Jiang."

Alchemists held a high status, so Old Master Jiang's words weren't out of place.

Feng Ming went straight to the point. "May I ask what Medicinal Pill the Jiang Family Mansion needs to refine?"

"Ninth-rank qing bo pill."

Feng Ming was taken aback.

"This pill doesn't seem to have much use, does it? The Materials used could be chosen to refine other more precious pills instead! Why is this?"

The other party gave a bitter smile. "To tell you the truth, I have a granddaughter. There is a trace of Qi in her body, and I can't identify the substance. I need this pill to identify it so I can deal with it."

Hearing this, Feng Ming understood. "I see. Shall we begin then?"

Old Master Jiang didn't nod immediately but said, "Young friend, it's not that I don't trust you, but the Materials for this pill are hard to find. I only have two sets in my hands. Do you have the herbs to compensate in case of failure?"

Feng Ming shook his head. "I didn't bring any, and I don't have them."

Upon hearing this, the man looked shocked, and his expression immediately soured.

That Old Master Jiang also frowned, clearly somewhat angry.

Feng Ming laughed. "Old Master Jiang, there's no need to be angry. I didn't bring them because I don't need them; I can succeed in one try. Of course, to ease your doubts, I can deposit three times the price of a set of herbs with you."}],