62: Chapter 62: The Alchemy Furnace Opens for the First Time, Forming the Medicine Embryo; Three Pills for Stabilizing the Beast Garden

The thick smell of burnt herbs in the pharmacy had not yet dissipated. Looking at the dark lump of medicine dregs in the Pill Furnace, Li Qingfeng felt a rare sense of embarrassment.

He couldn't help but mock himself, "This stuff is much harder than fighting Zhao Mingyue."

Standing beside him, Su Qingyue did not show the slightest impatience despite his two consecutive failures. She used a slender silver pick to lift a bit of the black medicine dregs, brought it to her nose to sniff gently, and then rolled it between her fingertips.

Her body had recovered extremely well after childbirth; her fingertips were rounded and fair, creating a stark contrast as she rolled the black dregs.

“The medicinal properties are still there,” Su Qingyue said softly, her tone certain. “It’s just that the fire was too intense. The medicinal properties of the clear heart herb and soul-calming flower didn't fuse in, but were instead dispersed by the fire's Evil Qi. Aren't you usually very steady when keeping accounts? Why do you lose your patience the moment you stand before this Pill Furnace?”

Hearing her gentle teasing, Li Qingfeng replied solemnly, "Maybe it's because this Pill Furnace doesn't pay me back."

The several female managers of the New Courtyard waiting nearby couldn't help but lower their heads, their shoulders shaking as they held back their laughter.

Li Qingfeng decided to start a third batch.

This time, Su Qingyue did not just watch from the side. She rolled up her sleeves, revealing a snowy-white wrist, and personally sorted the medicinal ingredients for him. Her fingers were long and slender, her movements skilled and elegant, separating each Spiritual Plant according to its medicinal properties, as if she were not handling ingredients but arranging delicate pieces of art.

“Put in the soul-calming flower first, and once the furnace temperature rises to thirty percent, add the clear heart herb,” she directed softly.

Li Qingfeng did as he was told. When channeling the furnace fire, his spiritual power subconsciously sped up by half a fraction.

Just then, a soft hand gently covered the back of his hand, pressing down on the speed at which he channeled his spiritual power.

“Slower by half a breath,” Su Qingyue's voice sounded right next to his ear. “The heat must be fed in bit by bit; you can't pour it all in at once.”

With their hands pressed together, the warmth of her palm transmitted through his skin. The slight impatience in Li Qingfeng's heart caused by the consecutive failures instantly calmed down. The flames at the bottom of the furnace also became stable and gentle.

He couldn't help but laugh softly, "The touch of your hand is much more effective than the System's prompts."

Su Qingyue shot him a glare, her cheeks heating up slightly, but her tongue remained sharp: “Cut the sweet talk, the Pill Furnace can't understand love words.”

With Su Qingyue's help, Li Qingfeng was finally able to calm his mind. He closed his eyes and immersed his entire consciousness into his Vitality Perception.

In his perception, the medicinal liquid inside the Pill Furnace was no longer a chaotic mass of energy, but had turned into a nebula composed of countless green and blue points of light. The medicinal property of the soul-calming flower was a gentle blue, that of the clear heart herb was a bright green, while the other auxiliary ingredients shone with specks of yellowish-brown light.

Following the remedy provided by the System, he carefully extended his Azure Wood Spiritual Power into the Pill Furnace like a fine needle, gently nudging those points of light to strip away the excess fiery Evil Qi, then guiding the blue and green points of light to slowly fuse together.

This process was extremely mentally draining. Half an hour later, fine beads of sweat had already broken out on Li Qingfeng's forehead.

Finally, as the last wisp of fiery Evil Qi was stripped away, the medicinal liquid inside the Pill Furnace suddenly shrank inward, condensing into a ball.

“Open the furnace,” Su Qingyue softly reminded him.

Li Qingfeng opened the furnace lid as told, and a medicinal fragrance, not very strong but extremely pure, drifted out. Three dusty-looking, very ordinary-looking pills lay quietly at the bottom of the furnace.

It was a success.

Almost at the exact moment the pills took shape, the System panel lit up with a crisp chime in his mind.

[Ding! The host has successfully completed the medicine embryo preparation task for three batches of 'Tier 1 Low-Grade beast-calming pills'!]

[Sub-profession: Alchemy, officially unlocked!]

[Current Alchemy Attainment: Novice Apprentice Alchemist.]

[Task Reward: Deduction of the complete Pill Formula for low-grade beast-calming pills; host cultivation infusion (small amount); increase in proficiency in identifying medicinal properties.]

A stream of pure, warm current surged into his Qi Sea, making his mid-stage Qi Refining Stage 9 cultivation a bit more solid. More importantly, out of nowhere, a vast amount of basic knowledge regarding ingredient identification, heat control, and pill toxin separation appeared in his mind.

When he looked at the half-man-high brass Pill Furnace before him again, his gaze had completely changed. This thing did not just burn Spirit Stones and medicinal herbs; it was the moat protecting the Li Family's industries.

Just as Li Qingfeng finished refining his first batch of Medicinal Pills, Wang Qingluan arrived at the Spirit Beast Garden with the batch of Spirit Beast cubs that had been brought in with great difficulty.

She had handled the confrontation outside the town gates swiftly and decisively.

The Loose Cultivators hired by the Chen Family wanted to use the excuse of "inspecting for diseases" to stall for time, and even tried to take the opportunity to tamper with the Spirit Beast cages.

Wang Qingluan did not waste any words on them. She directly ordered her managing staff to hold high the alliance covenant between the Li and Wang Families, as well as the candidate supplier Family document issued by the Qingyun Sect, her cold voice echoing across the entire town gate.

“Our Li and Wang Families are candidate supplier families registered with the Qingyun Sect. This batch of Spirit Beasts is the industrial material for the Sect's assessment. Since when does your Chen Family Trading Firm have the authority to inspect for diseases on behalf of the Qingyun Sect?”

With a single sentence, she placed the Chen Family directly on the opposite side of the Qingyun Sect.

The arrogance of those Loose Cultivators instantly withered. They were just working for money and did not want to offend the Qingyun Sect for a few Spirit Stones. In the end, they could only watch helplessly as the Wang Family's convoy grandly entered Qingshi Town.

Although the Bloodlines of these collateral branch cubs transported through the secret route were not as pure as those of the pureblood Green-Horned Deer, the long, bumpy journey combined with the disturbance from the Chen Family's people made them extremely restless upon entering the Spirit Beast Garden. Several Green-furred Mice huddled shivering in the corners of their cages, and the three newly arrived White-Eared Spirit Rabbits were even banging their heads against the cages.

Li Qingfeng had his men dissolve the three newly refined beast-calming pills and mix them into the fresh fodder.

The medicinal effect was surprisingly good.

After eating the fodder, the Green-furred Mice quickly quieted down and began to move around in their cages; those White-Eared Spirit Rabbits also stopped their self-harming behavior, lying on the ground and slowly licking their paws.

Coupled with the fact that Li Changqing was held by his wet nurse and stayed outside the Spirit Beast pens for a short while, the innate Vitality Soothing aura on him made these young beasts let down their last shred of wariness.

In the inner courtyard of the New Courtyard where Li Changsheng resided, the combined effects of the Small Spirit Gathering Array and the Wood Essence Spirit Gathering talent made the wood Spiritual Qi in the entire courtyard exceptionally abundant and gentle. The Spiritual Plants used to feed the Spirit Beasts would become even more mellow in Spiritual Qi if they were left in the courtyard for half an hour before being delivered.

One used Medicinal Pills to soothe, one used talent to stabilize their spirits, and one used the environment to nurture them.

The first crisis of the Spirit Beast Garden was thus suppressed by the Family working together.

That night, under the lights of the New Courtyard, Li Qingfeng, Su Qingyue, and Wang Qingluan sat together for the first time, facing three different account books.

Su Qingyue was in charge of the recipe costs for the beast-calming pills and the fodder ratios for the Spirit Beast Garden.

Wang Qingluan was responsible for the transport costs of the secret trade route and the purchase prices of the young beasts.

Li Qingfeng was in charge of approving the master ledger and making final decisions on subsequent investments.

Pointing to the column for beast-calming pills in the ledger, Wang Qingluan said with certainty, “If this Medicinal Pill can be mass-produced, it will be at least twice as hard for the Chen Family to throttle us on young beast purchases. We can even turn things around and use the beast-calming pills to pry away the Spirit Beast sources of other small families.”

Su Qingyue immediately chimed in, “We can set aside three mu of land in our Family fields specifically to grow the auxiliary herbs for the beast-calming pills. The shortfall of the main herbs, clear heart herb and soul-calming flower, can be supplied through the Wang Family's trade route. In this way, the cost can be reduced by another ten percent.”

Watching the two women discuss back and forth, bringing a whole industry chain to life in just a few words, Li Qingfeng couldn't help but laugh, “Why do I feel like there's nothing left for me to do in this Spirit Beast Garden?”

Su Qingyue looked up with a gentle smile: “You are in charge of Alchemy.”

Wang Qingluan put down her brush and added: “And you are in charge of paying the Spirit Stones.”

Li Qingfeng spread his hands with an 'I see' expression, “Alright, it seems the position of Family Head is just that simple and unadorned.”

The news of the successful trial of the beast-calming pills quickly reached the ears of the Chen Family Trading Firm. They did not expect the Li Family to solve the issue of the restless Spirit Beasts so quickly. Seeing that their throttling strategy had failed, they immediately switched to an even more insidious tactic.

The next day, a new rumor quietly began to circulate in the market of Qingshi Town:

“Have you heard? The eldest son of the Li Family is naturally able to soothe Spirit Beasts. The Li Family is now using the child's talent as a tool, making him face those beasts every day. This is damaging the child's Foundation!”

The rumor was incredibly vivid and detailed. Early the next morning, several Li Family elders, who usually valued rules the most, arrived at the gates of the New Courtyard with dark faces, demanding that Li Qingfeng immediately stop letting Li Changqing have contact with the Spirit Beast Garden.

Before Li Qingfeng could speak, Su Qingyue, who had been quietly sitting in the inner hall reviewing the accounts, slowly stood up and gently placed a densely recorded daily logbook in front of the leading elder.

Her tone was still gentle, yet carried an unquestionable calmness.

“Uncles, I have kept a detailed record of how long Changqing interacts with the Spirit Beasts each day, from what distance, and how his complexion is afterward. If you want to review the records, you may. But if you want to use a few rumors from outside to disrupt the rules of my New Courtyard, that will not do.”