Chapter 94: Bug-like Pill Refining

Among the ten great peaks of the Saint Sect, there was one called the Alchemy Peak, a territory governed by the Supreme Elder Yan Chen.

Here, disciples of Alchemy Peak refined medicine, and outer or inner disciples also used the secret chambers here to refine medicine.

As Lin Fan entered Alchemy Peak, a chaotic mix of medicinal scents assailed his nose. From the rows of sealed rooms, excited shouts and bitter laughs occasionally emerged.

"I did it, I did it..."

At that moment, Lin Fan was looking around when suddenly a disciple with disheveled hair and extreme excitement ran out from a sealed room. The man appeared abnormally agitated, his bloodshot eyes clearly showing that he had overdone pill refining and was on the verge of collapse.

This sudden yell heightened his emotions even more, and he spat out a mouthful of blood, yet it still couldn't stop the disciple's excited and frenzied heart.

Lin Fan felt a pang of pity, helpless and sad for him. This guy had gone crazy from pill refining.

Then, Lin Fan found an unused secret chamber for himself. The space inside was small, with a pill furnace standing in the middle, and nothing else around.

The air in the room was rather murky, as if mixed with many kinds of herbs, giving an indescribable feeling.

Then Lin Fan looked at the pill furnace and thought, if he just touched it with his little hand, he should be able to learn it, just like when he learned artifact refining—holding a hammer allowed him to comprehend on his own.

The pill furnace was carved with many strange patterns, and even a shimmer of light flashed across it. It was clearly no ordinary object; a furnace used for pill refining must be made of special materials.

Lin Fan bent down and glanced at the bottom. There was an opening there, which should be where the fire source was.

Lin Fan had learned from a booklet that beneath Alchemy Peak lay an ancient underground volcano. The volcanic fire was an excellent flame for pill refining, allowing the medicinal properties of herbs to perfectly merge.

Lin Fan gently touched the pill furnace with his finger and silently chanted in his mind.

"Come on, my little buddy."

"Ding, congratulations on learning pill refining."

"Ding, pill refining level 1."

"Ding, the art of pill refining: refine anything, combine freely, and record pill formulas."

...

It was that simple, that fast.

For any skill or technique, what Lin Fan thought about wasn't whether he could learn it, but how long it would take to max it out after learning it.

"Pill refining."

At this moment, in Lin Fan's sea of consciousness, a pill furnace glowed with white light, wreathed in mist. A fire dragon coiled around the furnace's surface, spewing flames, looking very grand.

Lin Fan stroked his chin. Since the furnace was already open, if he didn't refine something, it would be a waste.

But there was nothing around him—what could he refine?

Lin Fan was stumped, unsure what to do. Hey, right, wasn't it about free combination? This old man could even refine a divine artifact from a brick.

Now Lin Fan's gaze fell to the ground. The floor was made of something that looked like soil but wasn't quite.

But whatever.

Lin Fan grabbed a handful of black dirt. The pill furnace in his sea of consciousness opened its lid with a rumble. Lin Fan threw the black dirt in, and the lid slammed shut with a roar.

That fire dragon began to breathe flames, as if moving clouds and dispensing rain.

In an instant, the white pill furnace flashed with light, as if some peerless treasure was about to appear.

"Ding, congratulations on successful pill refining."

"Speed Yuan Pill *1."

"Speed Yuan Pill: Yellow-grade lower-tier pill. After consumption, increases cultivation speed for one hour."

"Speed Yuan Pill formula: Dragon Flame Grass, Fragrant Wood Seed."

At this moment, a pill the size of a soybean, gleaming white, lay quietly in Lin Fan's palm, leaving him dumbfounded.

This was too damn fake. Could this black, grimy dirt really replace two herbs?

Lin Fan grabbed another handful.

"Ding, congratulations on discovering Black Mud. This is a lump of ordinary black dirt. Having long absorbed the medicinal aura from pill refining, it has gradually gained medicinal power."

"Damn."

"This black dirt has become sentient. This... this..."

Lin Fan didn't know what to say. In the hands of other alchemists, this black dirt would definitely be nothing but ordinary.

But unexpectedly, he could refine pills from it.

At this moment, Lin Fan steadied his mind. There was potential, a lot of potential.

When he refined the Speed Yuan Pill, the formula had already been recorded in his mind. In the future, if he wanted to refine it, he just needed to find the materials.

To test it out, Lin Fan grabbed another lump of dirt and threw it into the furnace.

"Rumble..."

"Ding, congratulations on successful pill refining."

"Speed Yuan Pill *1."

At the same time, Lin Fan noticed a problem: every time he successfully refined a pill, a strange current of air flowed into his body, as if it were experience that could increase his sub-profession level.

Lin Fan looked at the pill in his hand and wanted to try its effect, so he tossed it into his mouth.

"Ding, Speed Yuan Pill consumed. Convert to ten experience points, or enjoy the cultivation speed boost effect?"

Lin Fan was even more astonished. After the system update, it had become more and more user-friendly.

Before, no matter what pill he took, it only increased experience. Now he could even choose.

Not bad, not bad. It wasn't in vain that Daddy had been so devoted to you.

"Convert to experience."

After gaining ten experience points, Lin Fan already had an idea in mind. Also, the pill was a bit sweet, like a candy bean.

Then, without another word, Lin Fan buried himself in work.

Earlier, he had grabbed a handful of black dirt and thrown it into the furnace. Now, he directly dug up a whole chunk and tossed it in.

"Rumble..."

"Ding, congratulations on successful pill refining."

"Speed Yuan Pill *10."

Not bad, not bad...

Lin Fan's eyes gleamed. This black dirt was a treasure.

Although the Speed Yuan Pill was a Yellow-grade lower-tier pill, it was among the best of its kind.

Because for current martial artists, without pills to boost cultivation, how slow would their speed be?

Although the materials for refining the Speed Yuan Pill weren't anything special, pill refining had a failure rate. Ordinary alchemists had a high failure rate; being able to succeed with one batch out of ten was considered a good alchemist.

For a bug-like alchemist like Lin Fan, with a 100% success rate, no words could describe it.

Soon, Lin Fan fell into a digging frenzy, throwing whole chunks of black dirt into the furnace.

"Ding, congratulations on successful pill refining."

"Ding, congratulations on successful pill refining."

"Ding, congratulations, pill refining level increased to 2."

...

After who knows how long, Lin Fan was panting heavily, sitting on the ground as tired as a dog.

Looking at the ground around him, he had already dug a big pit.

"Can't dig anymore. If I keep digging, I'll dig through."

Lin Fan checked his backpack. Five hundred Speed Yuan Pills lay quietly there, so dazzling, so hard to look at directly.