170: Chapter 170 Senior Brother, Please Speak

The medicinal power was distributed in a perfect concentric circle structure, with the core being the brightest point and decreasing layer by layer outwards, with no gaps or shifts.

High Grade.

Immortal Master Elder Lu Yuan's expression didn't change much as he placed the Medicinal Pill back into the jade box and picked up the second one.

The second pill's reflection in the Pill Appraisal Mirror showed it was also High Grade; the uniformity of the halo was even half a notch better than the first.

The third one was still High Grade.

Immortal Master Elder Lu Yuan set down the Pill Appraisal Mirror, and the Alchemy room fell silent for a long while.

The six assistants plus Chen Yuan, who was observing, all stared at those three jade boxes without even daring to breathe loudly.

All three were High Grade.

The quality standards for third-rank pills were extremely harsh, and the gap between Low Grade and High Grade was much larger than that of second-rank pills.

When a Golden Core Cultivator refined third-rank pills, the normal standard was two to three Low Grade pills, or one Medium Grade if they were lucky.

Producing a single High Grade pill in one furnace was enough to brag about for years in the circle of Third-Rank Alchemists.

All three were High Grade.

This result alone spoke volumes of Elder Elder Lu Yuan's strength.

Immortal Master Elder Lu Yuan looked back at Su Cheng.

The performances of the six assistants were all above standard: Wei Tian's exotic fire tempering, Lin Xuewei's low-temperature stabilization, Song Yu's medicinal property activation, and Han Jing and Zhou Ping's auxiliary energy supply—every step had been executed as it should have been.

However, what truly created the quality gap were the two medicinal ingredients handled by Su Cheng.

The azure soul flower and yuanling grass.

The purity of the extracted liquid from the azure soul flower was twenty percent higher than the standard, meaning the effect of the 'harmonization' phase was amplified, significantly reducing the Fusion loss of all subsequent ingredients.

The purity of the yuanling grass extraction was thirty percent higher than the standard, which directly determined the upper limit of the huayuan pill's core medicinal power concentration. Once this limit was raised, the ceiling for the pill's quality followed suit.

To use an imperfect analogy: for the same dish, if the quality of the ingredients is raised from eighty to ninety-five while the chef's skill remains the same, how much better will the final taste be?

That was where the difference lay.

"You all did well."

Immortal Master Elder Lu Yuan gave his evaluation.

Han Jing finally exhaled the breath he had been holding. He knew his Revered Master too well; when Revered Master said 'well,' it translated to 'very satisfied.'

"The contribution points for the six assistants will be issued as originally planned, at one thousand contribution points per person."

Immortal Master Elder Lu Yuan stood up, walked to the medicine table, and placed the three High Grade huayuan pills into a sealed spirit-jade box.

"Furthermore..."

He took six jade bottles from his sleeve and lined them up on the table.

"This is an additional gift of thanks. One bottle of Qi Gathering Pills for each person; they are useful for a Foundation Establishment Cultivator to stabilize their Foundation."

The market price for Qi Gathering Pills in the Danding Sect was about six hundred contribution points per bottle, so six bottles totaled three thousand six hundred points.

Combined with the initial one thousand contribution points, each person received a total of one thousand six hundred points, nearly doubling the reward originally announced.

The six people cupped their hands in thanks and each took a jade bottle.

Wei Tian took a lingering look at Su Cheng as he received his bottle.

He didn't speak, but that look was quite complex. During the sect entrance selection, he had thought Su Cheng was a minor character with some skill in purification and Fusion but too low a cultivation level.

In the following six months, they had gone their separate ways with almost zero interaction.

Having personally witnessed the entire process of Su Cheng handling the yuanling grass today, Wei Tian was certain that if he had done it himself, he wouldn't have done as well.

"Junior Brother Su, you have truly made me see you in a new light."

Wei Tian took the initiative to cup his hands as he walked over. He didn't say much, but his tone was different from the polite pleasantries on the stairs of the Dharma Transmission Pavilion.

Su Cheng returned the gesture. "Senior Brother Wei is too kind."

"Let us encourage each other." Wei Tian said no more, turned, and left.

Lin Xuewei, on the other hand, showed no extra emotion. After receiving her jade bottle, she gave a slight nod and left the Alchemy room cleanly.

Song Yu and Zhou Ping each cupped their hands and took their leave. Han Jing stayed until the end to help his Revered Master clean up the remaining Materials on the table.

Su Cheng and Chen Yuan walked out of the Alchemy room one after the other.

The wind at the mountain peak was much stronger than on the mountainside, blowing against their faces with a chill.

Chen Yuan hadn't spoken since leaving the room, remaining silent until they descended the stone steps, turned a corner, and confirmed no one else was around. Only then did he stop.

"Two hours."

Su Cheng also stopped. "Hmm?"

"From the moment Immortal Master Elder Lu Yuan ignited his pill fire until he finished, it was exactly seven days, and the temperature fluctuation was zero." Chen Yuan's voice was very low, as if talking to himself. "He switched through no fewer than thirty hand seals, and the transition between each seal didn't pause for more than a single breath.

The output precision of the Golden Core pill fire was pushed to the limit, yet his total spiritual power still had at least forty percent remaining after seven days. This means his spiritual power distribution efficiency is over ninety percent."

Su Cheng looked at this Senior Brother's profile.

Chen Yuan's expression wasn't one of excitement or agitation, but a very quiet, if one had to find a word: hunger.

A hunger for a higher level of understanding and control.

"I've been at Qingmu Peak for over fifty years." Chen Yuan gazed at the distant clouds. "I've been refining pills for over thirty years and dabbling in Artifact Refining for seventeen or eighteen. I always felt I was about there, that I'd seen all there was to see and practiced all there was to practice. Today I realized I haven't even found the door."

Su Cheng didn't respond; some things required neither comfort nor encouragement.

Chen Yuan wasn't complaining; he was positioning himself.

Only when a person clearly realizes where they stand can they possibly go further.

After a silence of about ten breaths, Chen Yuan turned back.

"That skill of yours for soothing Spiritual Plants..." His tone returned to its usual casualness. "How about teaching me a few tricks when we get back?"

"I can't. Talent isn't something that can be taught." Su Cheng was very honest. "But I'm always welcome to exchange thoughts on the pharmacology of Spiritual Plants. Your understanding of ingredient compatibility is much deeper than mine, Senior Brother."

Chen Yuan gave a "tch," but didn't argue.

"Let's go, down the mountain."

The two walked side by side toward Qingmu Peak, returning to the Immortal Cave by evening.

Su Cheng put the Qi Gathering Pills into his Storage Pouch, sat on his prayer mat, and recalled everything he had learned from Immortal Master Elder Lu Yuan today, point by point.

The zero-fluctuation output of the pill fire, the seamless transition of hand seals.

The deceleration of thrust when ingredients entered the furnace, the temperature gradient control during the deep Fusion stage of the medicinal liquids, and the precision of the sudden temperature change when finishing.

Every point was practical experience that couldn't be learned from books. Su Cheng internalized and stored them in his own way.

He wasn't in a hurry to imitate them because his cultivation wasn't enough. The total spiritual power and Divine Sense strength of the Early Foundation Establishment Stage were fixed; he wouldn't even be able to manage the first step of copying Immortal Master Elder Lu Yuan's techniques.

But this experience would become seeds buried in his mind, naturally sprouting once his cultivation increased.

Just as he was pondering, a knock came from the door of the Immortal Cave.

Su Cheng extended his Divine Sense; it was Han Jing.

He opened the door.

Han Jing stood at the entrance with a very appreciative look on his face.

"Revered Master sent me to deliver a message."

"Senior Brother Han, please speak."

"Revered Master said, 'That kid's methods are not bad; have him come over often when I'm refining pills in the future.'"

After repeating the words exactly, Han Jing grinned. "Revered Master rarely praises anyone. You're the first in nearly ten years."

Su Cheng cupped his hands. "Many thanks to Elder Lü for his high regard."

Han Jing smiled gently. "This is also due to your own ability."

He turned to leave but then stopped, speaking after a moment's consideration. "There's one more thing. Revered Master didn't tell me to say this; I wanted to say it myself."

"Senior Brother, please speak."