6: Chapter 6 Purification

Deep in the night, the snow had stopped.

The charcoal fire in the room had long since died out, leaving only a few dark red embers.

Gu Shen sat cross-legged on the couch, clutching a rough porcelain bottle in his hand.

He pulled out the stopper, and a faint medicinal scent drifted out, but upon closer inspection, this aroma was mixed with a hint of a burnt smell and an earthy odor.

This was a Low Grade qi gathering pill he had bought at Baicao Pavilion for one Spirit Stone.

"Every medicine has its toxicity."

Gu Shen poured out a Medicinal Pill.

The Medicinal Pill was dark red, its surface pitted and uneven. Not only was it not perfectly round, but one could also see specks of unrefined black Impurities.

In the Great Yu Cultivation World, Medicinal Pills are categorized into classified (Low Grade, Medium Grade, High Grade, Top Grade) and unclassified (waste pills).

This kind of Low Grade Medicinal Pill, while called a pill, is actually mostly Impurities.

After a Cultivator consumes it, while it can increase cultivation, that "pill toxin" also deposits within the Meridians and organs.

If one does not spend a great amount of effort to refine and expel it in time, over the long run, the Meridians will become clogged, cultivation will stagnate, and not only will there be no progress, but there is even a risk of regression.

With Gu Shen's Five Elements mixed Spiritual Root Aptitude, consuming this kind of medicine usually meant spending three days refining Spiritual Qi, only to spend seven days expelling toxins.

It was not worth the loss.

But today is different from the past.

"Whether this succeeds or not depends on this one attempt."

Gu Shen took a deep breath, guided by his Divine Sense, and the [Heaven and Earth Furnace] between his brows trembled slightly.

Swish.

The dark red Low Grade qi gathering pill at his fingertips vanished into thin air, drawn into the Great Furnace within his Sea of Consciousness.

This time, Gu Shen did not rush to order the refining, but instead focused his attention inward, nervously observing the changes within the furnace.

He saw the Medicinal Pill floating in the center of the furnace fire (which was actually an illusory fire of rules).

[Detected low-tier Medicinal Pill, containing 70% Impurities.]

[Refine?]

A line of ancient-looking text appeared.

"Refine!"

Gu Shen moved his mind.

Boom!

The furnace body shook, and the Medicinal Pill spun rapidly within the "fire."

Wisps of black smoke were forcibly stripped from within the Medicinal Pill; these were the ashes of herbs and the poison of fire baleful qi. Immediately following were gray mists, which were the conflicts in medicinal properties caused by crude refining techniques.

After these Impurities were stripped away, they did not dissipate but were directly swallowed by the Great Furnace, turning into fuel.

The originally thumb-sized Medicinal Pill shrank by a circle at a speed visible to the naked eye.

Ten breaths later.

The furnace lid opened.

A round, translucent Medicinal Pill, resembling a red agate, was spat out and landed steadily in Gu Shen's palm.

There was no burnt smell, no earthy odor.

There was only a refreshing medicinal fragrance that seeped into the heart. Upon smelling it, the dormant Spiritual Qi in his body began to stir.

"This..."

Gu Shen widened his eyes, examining it carefully by the moonlight.

The surface of the Medicinal Pill was as smooth as a mirror, and one could faintly see a cloud pattern flowing across it.

"Cloud pattern? Top Grade Medicinal Pill?!"

Gu Shen's hand trembled.

In the Cultivation World, one who can refine Medium Grade Medicinal Pills can be called a qualified Alchemist; one who can refine High Grade is a Great Master; as for Top Grade... that is an Opportunity that can be met but not sought. Often, one might not even produce a single one in a furnace of pills, and they are mostly in the hands of True Disciples of Golden Core Sects.

And now, the trash he bought for one Spirit Stone had turned into a Top Grade Medicinal Pill worth at least ten Spirit Stones.

This isn't Alchemy; this is clearly robbery!

"Hoo..."

Gu Shen forcibly suppressed the excitement in his heart.

He knew very well that this thing must never see the light of day.

If a Qi Refining Level 2 Loose Cultivator dared to take out a Top Grade Medicinal Pill to sell, the next day he would be swallowed whole, bones and all, leaving not even a scrap.

"I can only use it myself."

Gu Shen did not hesitate any longer, tilted his head back, and swallowed the Top Grade qi gathering pill.

The Medicinal Pill melted the moment it entered his mouth.

Boom!

It felt as if he had swallowed a ball of raging fire, but unlike the burning pain of the past, it was a gentle, heavy, warm current.

The massive medicinal power exploded in his abdomen instantly, rushing along the twelve main Meridians.

Without the obstruction of Impurities, this medicinal power was pure to the extreme. Wherever it passed, his parched Meridians were like a long drought meeting sweet rain, greedily devouring every wisp of Spiritual Qi.

Gu Shen quickly held his breath, focused his mind, and circulated the Longevity Art.

This was a common, dime-a-dozen Cultivation Technique, which had the advantage of being balanced and peaceful, making it difficult to suffer Qi Deviation.

First cycle, second cycle...

The barriers that were once obscure and difficult to pass were, under the impact of such pure and majestic medicinal power, like paper, breaking through with unstoppable force.

Crack.

It felt as if something inside his body had shattered.

The Bottleneck that had blocked him for a whole year was pushed open just like that, with ease.

Spiritual Qi poured back in, and his Dantian expanded.

The Dantian, which could originally only hold a bowl of water, had now expanded by more than double. The Spiritual Qi vortex rotated slowly, several times more condensed than before.

Qi Refining Level 3!

Gu Shen opened his eyes, and a sharp light flashed through the darkness.

He raised his hand and flicked his finger gently.

Swish!

A pale cyan wind blade whistled out, striking the leg of the wooden table in front of him. It cut three inches deep as if it were tofu, the cut perfectly smooth.

"Externalizing Spiritual Qi, this is Qi Refining Level 3."

Gu Shen looked at this scene, his heart filled with mixed emotions.

For those Prodigies, Qi Refining Level 3 was merely the starting point of cultivation; but for a bottom-tier Loose Cultivator like him, this step had blocked countless people.

Only at this level did one have the qualification to stand a little taller in the market, and could take on some slightly more decent tasks, such as... being an assistant to a real Alchemist, rather than just a fire-tender.

Gu Shen stood up, stretched his stiff muscles and bones, and his joints emitted a series of crisp, popping sounds like beans exploding.

At this time, the sky outside the window was already turning a pale white.

Dawn had broken.

Gu Shen did not get carried away by the Breakthrough. He walked to the water vat, scooped up water to wash away the greasy grime expelled from his body, and then changed into a clean set of gray cloth short-garb.

He looked at himself in the bronze mirror again.

Because his nutrition had caught up and he had made a Breakthrough, his complexion was much better, and his originally sallow face had a bit of color.

"No, I look too energetic."

Gu Shen frowned.

He thought for a moment and circulated the Qi Concealment Technique—this was originally a minor trick used to avoid Yao Beasts, but now it was used by him to disguise his cultivation.

Suppressing his aura to the Peak of Qi Refining Level 2, messing up his hair a bit, and slightly hunching his back, Gu Shen nodded with satisfaction.

"Time to go to work."

Besides being a corpse collector, he had another identity—a fire-tending apprentice at "Baicao Pavilion" in Qingyun Market.

Baicao Pavilion was located in the eastern district of the market and was an industry affiliated with the outer Sect of the Danding Sect, specializing in the refining and sale of low-tier Medicinal Pills.

It was filled with the fragrance of medicine all day long, but it was also the place with the strictest rules.

As soon as Gu Shen walked into the Alchemy room area in the backyard, a wave of dry heat hit his face.

The massive Earth Fire Formation was roaring, dozens of Pill Furnaces were operating simultaneously, and dozens of gray-robed apprentices were shuttling back and forth like worker ants, moving herbs, cleaning up medicinal dregs, and controlling the heat.

"Gu Shen! Where the hell have you been?"

A sharp scolding came.

A young Cultivator in a blue robe with an arrogant expression pointed at Gu Shen and cursed: "What time is it now? Have you cleaned the ashes in the Earth Fire Room? If you delay Alchemist Chen from opening the furnace, selling you wouldn't be enough to pay for it!"

This was Manager Wang Tong, Qi Refining Level 3, the managing Disciple here, who loved to bully apprentices like them who had no background.

"Manager Wang, please calm your anger. The snow was heavy on the road, so I was delayed for a moment."

Gu Shen did not refute. He lowered his head, acting timidly, walked quickly to the corner, picked up a shovel and a dustpan, and ducked into the stuffy Earth Fire Room.

Manager Wang Tong snorted coldly, seemingly finding it boring to show off in front of a reticent person like Gu Shen, and turned to scold others.

The temperature in the Earth Fire Room was extremely high; an ordinary person would become dehydrated after staying for a quarter of an hour.

Gu Shen, however, looked calm.

While skillfully cleaning the fire baleful qi ashes from the fire outlet, he observed a Pill Furnace not far away with his peripheral vision.

That was Alchemist Chen's exclusive Pill Furnace.

At this moment, Alchemist Chen was frowning, tossing herbs into the furnace one by one, muttering to himself; he was clearly refining a furnace of qi recovery pills.

"The heat is too high."

Gu Shen glanced at the color of the Earth Fire and thought to himself.

If it were before, he certainly wouldn't have been able to tell.

But ever since he used the [Heaven and Earth Furnace] to refine the Medicinal Pill last night, he seemed to have gained a nearly intuitive sensitivity to changes in medicinal properties.

That was the perspective granted to him by the Great Furnace—to perceive the structure of matter at its essence.

Sure enough.

Half an incense stick later.

Boom!

A muffled sound came from the Pill Furnace, and a plume of black smoke emerged.

"Bad luck!"

Alchemist Chen slapped his thigh in exasperation, "The furnace exploded again! Is there something wrong with this Earth Fire? It's fluctuating!"

He turned his head and glared viciously in this direction: "Who is tending the fire? Deduct two Spirit Stones!"

The few apprentices responsible for controlling the fire were pale with fright, kowtowing repeatedly to beg for mercy.

Gu Shen watched this scene silently from the corner, his eyes clear.

It wasn't the Earth Fire's problem.

It was because one ingredient, Dead Wood Grass, was not old enough and had too high a water content, causing it to explode the moment it entered the furnace, disrupting the Five Elements balance.

"If I could take these discarded medicinal dregs back..."

Gu Shen watched as the apprentices dumped dustpan after dustpan of black medicinal dregs into the waste bin, and his heart stirred slightly.

In Alchemist Chen's eyes, this was trash.

But in Gu Shen's eyes, these were all semi-finished products that could be turned into treasure just by passing through the Great Furnace.

"I must find a way to take on the job of dumping the trash."

Gu Shen tightened his grip on the shovel, and the corners of his mouth curled into an imperceptible arc.

His old trade as a corpse collector seemed to be able to shine here as well.