Advancing to the fourth stage of Dou Qi in half a month, and then to the fifth stage in the next half month—this cultivation speed was truly extraordinary. Even the former Xiao Yan would probably have found it impossible to match.
Although the difficulty of advancing increased with each stage of Dou Qi, looking at his current speed, Xiao Yan believed that reaching the seventh stage within a year would not be too difficult of a task.
Of course, the prerequisite was having an abundant supply of Foundation Elixir. Otherwise, before Xiao Yan could even reach the seventh stage of Dou Qi, he would have been beaten to death by Yao Lao's brutal training. After all, without the healing properties of the Foundation Elixir, and relying solely on Xiao Yan's current fragile bones, the accumulation of internal blood clots would have killed him. There was simply no other outcome.
Therefore, the most urgent task at hand was to buy more ingredients and refine more Foundation Elixir. While it sounded simple enough, Xiao Yan had run into a rather significant problem... He was almost out of money.
Sitting on his bed, Xiao Yan wore a bitter smile. He had never expected to be pushed to such financial straits. He did some quick calculations. After his last purchase, he had a little over nine hundred gold coins left. This amount was clearly not enough to buy ingredients of the same quality as before.
Resting his chin in his hand, he pondered for a moment. His eyes darted around before he suddenly asked, "Teacher, can we use Violet Leaf Orchid or Bone Grooming Flower with a slightly lower age?"
"You could, but the medicinal efficacy would be much weaker. The recipe for the Foundation Elixir I gave you is the most optimal for refining," Yao Lao's voice drifted out from the ring.
Rolling his eyes, Xiao Yan smiled and said, "It doesn't matter. This time, let's just use the lowest-grade ingredients to refine it."
"The lowest-grade? With such poor efficacy, it might take you half a year just to break through to the next stage of Dou Qi," Yao Lao said, his voice tinged with disapproval as he frowned.
"Are you short on money? Go find that little girl. Given her background, giving you tens of thousands of gold coins would be a trivial matter. If not her, then go to your father. Why weaken the medicinal efficacy and delay your own cultivation?"
Hearing Yao Lao's suggestion, Xiao Yan shook his head helplessly. "Do you think my pride is so cheap that I can just repeatedly ask a girl for money? As for my father, I've been avoiding him for two months now. If I suddenly ask him for money, he'll definitely investigate, and wouldn't that risk exposing you, Teacher?"
"Teacher, can anyone else concoct this Foundation Elixir?" As if suddenly remembering something, Xiao Yan frowned and asked.
"Hehe, kid, on the Dou Qi Continent, the number of medicinal herbs is countless. To concoct pills with different effects, one must carefully select from countless ingredients to neutralize the violent energy within the magic cores. Only then can you successfully refine the pill you need. If you just mix things randomly, a ruined cauldron or ruined pills would be the least of your worries. If you suffer a backlash, hehe..."
At this point, Yao Lao chuckled before continuing, "This Foundation Elixir is a recipe I perfected after years of experimentation. Of course, someone else might stumble upon it by sheer dumb luck, but the probability of that happening is practically zero."
“Furthermore, during the refining process, the proportions and fusion level of the three ingredients, as well as the intensity of the flame, all require countless experiments and an incredibly strong soul perception to master. Otherwise, why do you think every alchemist needs hands-on guidance from a master? To become a powerful alchemist, it is practically impossible without the guidance of a renowned teacher. Otherwise, just experimenting with a single formula could cost you a lifetime.”
“Therefore, while I wouldn’t dare speak for the entire Dou Qi Continent, I can bet that within this Jia Ma Empire, no one can refine a Foundation Elixir like mine!” Speaking to this point, Yao Lao’s voice carried a hint of pride.
Slightly shocked by the complexity of this Foundation Elixir, Xiao Yan instinctively licked his lips. When he had watched Yao Lao refine it earlier, it had seemed so simple. Only now did he realize that what he had seen of medicinal refinement had merely scratched the surface.
The world of alchemists was indeed unfathomable; no wonder it was the most noble profession on the Dou Qi Continent.
Once his shock subsided, Xiao Yan felt a surge of joy. Licking his lips, he said instinctively, “Teacher, I don’t plan on using this low-grade Foundation Elixir for my own training. I intend to take it to the auction house. My pockets are a bit empty right now. Once we get the money, we can buy the best ingredients. After all, refining the Foundation Elixir is nothing more than an effortless task for you, right?”
“In that case... do as you please. It’s not unusual for alchemists to auction their own medicinal pills. Besides, that Foundation Elixir is merely a low-level nurturing medicine anyway; there’s no harm in selling it.” After a brief silence, Yao Lao spoke nonchalantly.
Hearing Yao Lao nod in agreement, Xiao Yan chuckled, quickly gathered his things, and eagerly left the room.
Since he didn’t need high-quality medicinal herbs this time, Xiao Yan casually selected five of the lowest-grade Violet Leaf Orchids and Bone Washing Flowers from the stalls. As for the wood-attribute magic core, after some browsing, he purchased a Green Wood Rat magic core at the cheapest price.
Having acquired the necessary ingredients, Xiao Yan found an inn and hid inside, letting Yao Lao refine the Foundation Elixir.
This batch of Foundation Elixir was not only far weaker in medicinal potency than the previous one, but its translucent emerald green color had also turned into a dull green...
Pouring the half-fist-sized amount of Foundation Elixir into the small white jade bottle he had bought last time, Xiao Yan finally let out a sigh of relief.
Carefully tucking the jade bottle away on his person, Xiao Yan left the inn.
He walked swiftly toward the largest auction house in Wutan City.