28: Earth Vein Spirit Milk

Three days later, you have gathered the Materials for the Body Tempering Pill: Ziyang Flower, Blood Pattern Grass, Iron Bone Ginseng, and over a dozen other medicinal herbs.

You strictly follow the Pill Formula to operate:

Use morning dew to wash each medicinal herb, crush, sort, filter, grind into powder...

Then add the medicinal powder into the copper cauldron according to the ratio, add morning dew and simmer, control the heat, boil into a sticky ointment, and spread it on a cold jade plate...

Finally, slowly roast it with charcoal covered in damp sand, make it into pill blanks, soak them in morning dew water, and finally put them into the pill cauldron for slow roasting...

Bang!

The Pill Furnace exploded, and the room was filled with a burnt smell.

With a blackened face, you stomp your feet in anger: "Damn it, is even the Body Tempering Pill this hard to refine?"

"Which step went wrong? Was the ratio wrong? Was the heat too high?"

You refuse to accept defeat, roll up your sleeves, and continue working: "I don't believe this!"

After three months of tossing and turning, you finally refined a batch of Body Tempering Pill.

In the ninth year, you mastered the Muscle and Bone Pill and the Heart Protection Pill.

In the tenth year, you learned the Meridian Opening Pill.

In the eleventh year, you finished the True Essence Powder.

This day, you rub your hands together, ready to challenge the obstacle breaking pill.

When you put the pill blanks into the cauldron for slow roasting...

Boom!

With a loud noise, the entire room was swallowed by black smoke.

You walk into the courtyard with a dark face, thinking: "If this were someone in the Body Tempering Realm, they would have been blown to death long ago."

Erya and Sanwa from next door run over upon hearing the sound.

Erya claps her hands and mocks you: "Brother Chen is stupid, Alchemy is silly, pop goes the sound, you turn into the Kitchen God!"

Sanwa drools and giggles to the side.

The neighbors are already used to your furnace exploding every few days, and these two little brats treat you as entertainment.

Looking at Erya, you suddenly think of Xue Miaoyun—her parents will die in a border conflict next year.

White Emperor City is also a target you want to win over, so you pack your bags and set off.

With your strength, it only took you ten days to arrive at White Emperor City.

Wearing a mask, you break directly into the City Lord's Mansion—the Xue family.

White Emperor City Lord Xue Yuntao leads a group of guards to surround you.

Trespassing into the City Lord's Mansion is a capital offense, so they attack you without saying a word.

You stand still without moving, raise your hand and wave, and the majestic True Essence turns into a phantom, knocking down over a dozen guards with one move.

Xue Yuntao is only at the Grandmaster Perfection, so naturally, he is no match for you and is kicked to the ground by you.

At this moment, Xue Miaoyun suddenly strikes, her long spear like a silver Dragon leaving its cave, stabbing straight at your throat.

This girl is in the prime of her eighteen years, her heroic bearing revealing the vitality unique to a young girl.

Seeing the long spear in her hand, you immediately confirm that she is Xue Miaoyun.

You nonchalantly extend two fingers and steadily clamp onto the spear tip. She turns bright red from the effort, using all her might to thrust forward, but the spear shaft does not move an inch.

"Let go of my daughter!" A charming middle-aged woman thrusts her sword at you.

You slightly release the pressure of a Great Grandmaster, and the air in the entire courtyard seems to freeze. Everyone acts as if they have been hit by a freezing spell, and even breathing becomes difficult.

This beautiful woman is Xue Miaoyun's mother, Shen Yingyue. Her sword tip is three inches away from you, but it is blocked by an invisible layer of True Essence shield, unable to advance even a fraction.

"Can we talk properly now?" you ask slowly and deliberately.

Xue Yuntao is worthy of being the City Lord; he immediately signals everyone to withdraw.

He knows clearly in his heart: for a Great Grandmaster, destroying the City Lord's Mansion is easy, and since you didn't kill anyone, you must have other motives.

After everyone withdraws, you swagger into the living room and sit down, while the family of three stands nervously opposite you.

"Senior, what brings you here?" Xue Yuntao gets straight to the point.

"To make a deal," you say straightforwardly. "I will protect you, and you provide me with the Materials for refining the obstacle breaking pill. For one year."

"Just that simple?" Xue Yuntao is skeptical.

You snort coldly: "As a dignified Great Grandmaster, do I need to lie to you?"

You are indeed short of money to buy Materials. If they knew the rate at which you consume resources for Alchemy, they probably wouldn't doubt you.

In the twelfth year,

After spending time together, Xue Yuntao finally believes that you are truly short of Materials for refining the obstacle breaking pill.

However, seeing the rate at which you consume resources for Alchemy, the couple feels their hearts ache—this is simply burning money!

Although it hurts, given your status as a Great Grandmaster, Xue Yuntao has no choice but to swallow his pride.

Over this year, you have almost emptied the Xue family's coffers.

Three months later, Xue Yuntao and his wife lead the army to war as expected.

You naturally follow along, disguised as Xue Yuntao's guard.

Because you wear a mask all day, you are particularly conspicuous in the army, and all sorts of gossip fly everywhere.

The commanders of the Yan Dynasty this time are Kuang Tianyou and Wu Bin—you certainly remember these two old acquaintances.

This day, Deputy General He Yu rushes over to report: "General, it's bad! Kuang Tianyou and Wu Bin have split their troops into two routes and are bypassing us to head straight for White Emperor City!"

Shen Yingyue stamps her feet anxiously: "Miaoyun is still in the city! I must take the troops back!"

"Wait!" you suddenly interrupt.

He Yu immediately glares: "How bold! A mere guard dares to interrupt?"

Xue Yuntao quickly waves his hand: "What is your brilliant opinion, Senior?"

You say leisurely: "Aren't they afraid of cutting off their supply lines by splitting their troops and taking a detour? Even if they reach White Emperor City, defending for a few days shouldn't be a problem. When the time comes, we can attack from the front and back; isn't that seeking their own death?"

He Yu draws his sword with a swish: "Who do you think you are? You dare to point fingers here! If White Emperor City is lost, can you bear the responsibility?"

As he speaks, he thrusts at you.

You don't move, clamping his long sword with your left hand and grabbing his neck with your right. With a surge of True Essence, a "snap" and a twist, he dies instantly.

The generals present are all stunned—killing a Grandmaster instantly with a casual move?

The few generals who intended to speak immediately swallow their words.

Xue Yuntao looks at the corpse with difficulty: "Senior, he was sent by Your Majesty after all..."

"He was also here to monitor you, right?" you smile. "Maybe the Emperor even wants you dead."

You kick the corpse and continue: "First, send people to investigate the routes he mentioned to see if there are any ambushes."

Xue Yuntao immediately sends out ten cavalry squads to investigate those two routes.

Not long after, only three cavalry squads return alive: "Report, General, there are ambushes on both routes!"

Shen Yingyue suddenly realizes: "So attacking White Emperor City was fake, and ambushing us was the truth!"

Xue Yuntao knows clearly in his heart—as the person closest to the Great Grandmaster in the Jin Dynasty, the Jin Emperor is trying to borrow a knife to kill!

Realizing this, he laughs instead: "Since that's the case, let the Emperor resist the Yan Dynasty army himself!"

Immediately, he orders the troops to retreat and defend White Emperor City to the death.

After returning to White Emperor City, Xue Yuntao brings his daughter to find you.

Xue Miaoyun kneels down with a "thud": "Please accept me as your disciple, Senior!"

You know full well that Xue Yuntao wants to cling to a powerful figure, but you still nod: "Fine, get up."

The little girl stands up happily and asks curiously: "Master, why do you always wear a mask?"

You smile and take off the mask.

Xue Miaoyun immediately widens her eyes, her little mouth open wide enough to fit an egg—she had always thought you were an old geezer!

Xue Yuntao is also dumbfounded, asking stammeringly: "Se-Senior... is this the legendary youth-preserving..."

You smile without speaking, saving yourself the trouble of explaining.

Xue Yuntao takes out a jade bottle and hands it to you: "Senior, this is a bottle of earth vein spiritual milk I obtained by chance. I don't have a use for it right now, so consider it as repayment for saving our lives."

When you hear it is earth vein spiritual milk, your eyes light up. You take it without a word and stuff it into your bosom: "Thanks, I owe you a favor."

You feel secretly pleased: this earth vein spiritual milk is even more precious than the realm breaking pill, and the key is that it cannot be bought even with money.