14: Chapter 14: Midterm

Bitter Water Alley, the night was deep.

The doors and windows of the house were tightly shut. Gu Shen had pasted the only Vajra Talisman he possessed on the inside of the door frame; once someone broke in, this talisman would instantly activate, buying him three breaths of time.

Gu Shen sat cross-legged on the bed, adjusting his breathing until his heart was calm and waveless.

He took out the jade bottle he had bought with his last remaining funds and poured out the "defective" barrier-breaking pill.

The Medicinal Pill was grey-brown, covered in cracks, and emitted an uncomfortable, scorching heat. This was Pill Poison. If swallowed forcefully, one might be lucky enough to break through the Bottleneck, but the Meridians would be damaged; if unlucky, the Pill Poison would attack the heart, leading to Qi Deviation.

"But in my hands, there is no such thing as a waste pill."

Gu Shen's gaze was calm, and his brow furrowed slightly.

Hum.

The remnant pill disappeared into thin air.

Within his Sea of Consciousness, the phantom of the Great Furnace slowly rotated.

[Defective Medicinal Pill detected, containing 60% fire poison, 30% Impurities.] [Refining started.]

This refining process was extremely rapid. The drug conflict in the remnant pill, originally caused by improper Alchemy techniques, was resolved under the rule-based power of the Great Furnace; the black fire poison was extracted like smoke, and the grey Impurities turned to dust.

In an instant, only a pill the size of a soybean remained at the bottom of the furnace.

Although it was half the size of the original, it was entirely azure and crystal clear, as if carved from the purest sapphire.

[Refining complete.] [Obtained: barrier-breaking pill (Pure).]

Gu Shen reached out, and the azure Medicinal Pill landed in his palm, feeling warm and cool to the touch, with an extremely pure wave of medicinal power faintly emanating from it.

"This is the power of the cheat."

Gu Shen did not hesitate and tilted his head back to swallow the Medicinal Pill.

As the Medicinal Pill entered his abdomen, there was no violent impact as imagined; instead, it turned into a cool stream, flowing slowly along his Meridians and finally merging into the Dantian Qi cyclone.

Immediately after, a sudden change occurred.

The moment the cool stream touched the cyclone, it suddenly boiled, turning into a majestic tide of spiritual power!

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Gu Shen felt as if a stormy sea had been stirred up in his Dantian. The spiritual power cyclone, which had already reached its limit, began to spin and compress crazily under the push of this external force.

It felt like continuously injecting water into a balloon that was already full.

Bloated pain.

His Meridians felt a tearing pain, but Gu Shen's expression remained unchanged. His Divine Sense tightly guided this power, rushing towards that invisible "barrier."

Qi Refining Level 3 to Stage 4 was the leap from the Early Stage to the Middle Stage.

This was not just an accumulation of magic power, but the first small leap in the level of life.

"Break!"

Gu Shen shouted inwardly.

Crack.

It was as if an invisible shackle had been shattered.

At that moment, Gu Shen felt the whole world become clear.

The cyclone in his Dantian collapsed inward abruptly, then erupted with a circle of dazzling spiritual light. The originally loose gaseous spiritual power now faintly showed signs of liquefaction, becoming viscous and thick.

Its capacity had doubled!

Not only that.

Gu Shen opened his eyes, and his Divine Sense subconsciously spread outward.

Piercing through doors and windows, piercing through the wind and snow.

Five zhang... ten zhang... fifteen zhang!

The range covered by his Divine Sense had surged from the original five zhang to fifteen zhang!

A wild cat at the alley entrance, the snoring of the old Loose Cultivator next door, and even the sounds of Ma Liu and his gang drinking and gambling further away were now clearly reflected in his mind.

Qi Refining Stage 4, success!

Gu Shen let out a long breath and slowly finished his cultivation.

He raised his hand, and with a thought.

Whoosh.

Spiritual power surged within his body, and the newly bought black turtle shield appeared out of thin air, rotating rapidly around him.

The originally heavy shield now felt weightless in his hand, and it was as easy to control as pointing a finger.

"This is the Middle Stage."

A flash of joy crossed Gu Shen's eyes.

His magic power was more than twice as deep as before, and the flexibility of controlling Magical Artifacts had greatly improved. If he encountered that robbery Cultivator now, Gu Shen was confident that he could kill him head-on within ten moves without resorting to a sneak attack.

Of course, he would still choose to sneak attack if he could.

This was his Dao.

Gu Shen stood up and stretched his muscles and bones, his joints popping with a series of cracks.

He glanced out the window; the sky was brightening.

At this moment, the sound of the morning bell came from afar.

The hour of Mao had arrived.

Gu Shen tidied his clothes, tucked the black turtle shield and gold-severing saber close to his body, pushed open the door, and walked into the cold morning wind.

Although he was already a Cultivator at the Middle Stage of Qi Refining, he still stooped his back, his face sallow, coughing from time to time.

At Baicao Pavilion, he remained that humble fire-tending apprentice.

...

Just as he arrived at the Earth Fire Room, Gu Shen sensed that the atmosphere was wrong.

The usually noisy alchemy room was unusually quiet today.

Alchemist Chen stood in the center with a solemn expression, with several cold-faced Cultivators wearing the attire of the Law Enforcement Squad standing beside him.

Manager Wang Tong huddled on the side like a quail, not daring to let out a breath.

"Listen well."

Alchemist Chen looked around and said in a deep voice, "The war on the front lines is tight, and the Danding Sect has issued a death order. From today on, all Alchemists and apprentices at Baicao Pavilion will have their rest days cancelled, and we will work in shifts day and night to refine Rejuvenation Pills and Bigu Pills."

"Everyone's task quota is doubled!"

"Anyone who is slack or hides Medicinal Pills will be dealt with according to sect rules: their cultivation will be abolished, and they will be driven out of the market!"

As soon as these words were spoken, the apprentices were in an uproar, but under the icy gaze of the Law Enforcement Squad, no one dared to make a sound.

Gu Shen stood behind the crowd, his heart sinking slightly.

Doubling the tasks meant not only no time to Cultivate, but even the time to go to the Wasteland would be compressed.

Moreover, the part about "hiding Medicinal Pills"...

Clearly, the Danding Sect was strictly controlling strategic Materials.

"Gu Shen!"

Just then, Manager Wang Tong suddenly called his name.

Gu Shen's heart skipped a beat, and he quickly stepped forward, cupping his hands: "I am here."

Manager Wang Tong pointed to a pile of Materials stacked in the corner, looking at him with complex eyes: "You have been nimble with your hands and feet lately, and diligent in dumping dregs. From today on, you don't need to tend the fire anymore."

"Go and assist Alchemist Chen, responsible for extracting medicinal liquid."

Extracting medicinal liquid?

The surrounding apprentices immediately cast envious and jealous gazes.

This was a technical job! Not only was it easy, but one could watch the Alchemist's techniques up close, which was the first step to becoming a formal Alchemist.

Gu Shen, however, did not show much joy; instead, he looked terrified: "Manager, I... I am afraid I won't do it well..."

"Less nonsense! Do as you are told!"

Manager Wang Tong waved his hand impatiently, "Manpower is tight now. If you delay things, I won't be able to protect you either!"

"Yes, yes."

Gu Shen could only agree.

He lowered his head, masking the gleam in his eyes.

Extracting medicinal liquid?

This was the stage where one directly contacted the raw Materials.

As long as it passed through his hands, the most essential parts of those Materials...

It seemed that this doubled task might not be a bad thing for him.

"Ignite the furnace!"

Following Alchemist Chen's order, the earth fire rose.

Gu Shen stood before the workbench, picking up a red blood vine suffused with Spiritual Qi.

Between his brows, the Great Furnace trembled slightly, seemingly longing for something.

This overtime work might be a great Opportunity for him.