104 Chapter 104 of "New Urban Farmers": Old Man Yi's Explanation (10,000 words) - Completed. Requesting monthly votes.

Zhu Ran decided to let Zhang Guodong handle the matter. Old Yi completely let go and started grinding other medicinal herbs. Anyway, there were only so many steps; success depended on luck and controlling the heat.

Zhang Guodong first took down the medicine furnace and then ran out of the alchemy room, leaving Elder Yi astonished. What was this kid doing? Just refining pills, and he was overjoyed? Ha. You'll be crying later!

Old Yi shook his head, smiled, and then stopped caring.

Zhang Guodong provided some high-quality medicinal herbs. Elder Yi wanted to try refining other elixirs; it was a long-held wish that excited him just thinking about it. Since his grandfather passed down the art of alchemy, Elder Yi had only ever refined the Snake Spirit Elixir. He hadn't tried refining more than ten other elixirs, such as the "Hemostatic and Muscle-Regenerating Elixir," "Qi-Replenishing Elixir," "Longevity Elixir," and "Spirit-Nourishing Elixir." This was undoubtedly a regret!

Now, the medicinal materials for refining the elixir of immortality are almost all collected.

There are 108 medicinal herbs, and each one must be of medium quality. For ordinary herbs, only aged herbs are allowed, otherwise failure is very likely.

The main ingredient is black oyster, which is generally considered best when it is over a hundred years old; the older the oyster, the higher the chance of it being successfully refined into an elixir. Other elixirs, for example, have different main ingredients, resulting in elixirs with different emphases, but generally speaking, they are medicines that are highly beneficial to the human body and have no side effects.

In short, alchemy is like a window to a mysterious world that has been opened, and most of it needs to be explored and tried by people.

Zhang Guodong quickly ran back to the alchemy room, carefully carrying a small cup in his hand. Looking up, he saw that Elder Yi had already left.

"I'll go check on the patient's injuries. You can practice slowly and take your time!" Old Yi said to Zhang Guodong.

Wow, he just left like that?

Zhang Guodong watched Elder Yi leave, then reluctantly entered the alchemy room. Elder Yi certainly trusted him; the precious medicinal herbs and pills inside were incredibly valuable. They were all treasures!

Of course, the people in this mountain village are quite simple and honest, and almost no one picks up lost items on the road. Moreover, the villagers are old and respected, so there is really no need to worry about losing anything.

He just went out to retrieve something. Space Water!

During the alchemy process in the furnace, Zhang Guodong's ready-made pills need to absorb external spiritual energy; only this magical substance can make the pills more excellent.

However, the water in this space contains a large amount of spiritual energy. This spiritual energy is easily absorbed by plants, but its effect is less pronounced in higher-level animals, unless they indirectly absorb it through means such as consuming plants or aquatic products. The wonders of alchemy are beyond description.

Zhang Guodong was certain that the spiritual energy within this pill should be able to be absorbed in large quantities by the human body.

What if we add space water to the medicine powder?

Could this increase the success rate of the elixir? Or even improve its quality?

Of course, there's also the possibility of the oven exploding!

The high temperature of the medicine furnace is more likely to cause an explosion when it comes into contact with cold water, but Zhang Guodong doesn't understand this at the moment. Should I add less space water first?

Without further ado, the medicine furnace was removed from the heat source for a while. After it had cooled down, Zhang Guodong added a little water to the furnace, not daring to add too much.

The spiritual energy contained in this water is many times greater than what the medicine furnace absorbs from the outside world!

The medicine on the shelf is ready to be heated!

The purple jade sand shimmered with a purple light, each grain like a diamond. Elder Yi had already prepared four portions of purple jade sand, which together amounted to no more than a small fingernail-sized clump, yet its effects were miraculous.

After preheating, Zhang Guodong added the purple jade sand and then the medicinal powder, his movements rather clumsy. Just then, Zhang Guodong noticed that the purple jade sand, upon contact with the medicinal powder, suddenly transformed into a rapidly expanding purple mist, like demonic energy, attempting to spew out of the furnace.

"Such a quick reaction!" Zhang Guodong hurriedly slammed the lid of the medicine furnace shut.

The leisurely and composed alchemy of the old man in black and white is a completely different concept from what I'm seeing.

Zhang Guodong realized the importance of the alchemy experience repeatedly advocated by Master Yi, which was accumulated through hundreds and thousands of alchemy experiences.

"It's here and it's starting to work!" Immediately afterwards, strands of spiritual energy from all directions surged into the medicine furnace.

Zhang Guodong focused intently on the medicine furnace, which itself was made of jade essence and contained spiritual energy. Zhang Guodong couldn't know what was inside. He could only wait!

A few minutes later, the medicine furnace suddenly emitted a hissing sound, and the lid was pushed open by the airflow.

This wasn't a buzzing sound, nor was it an explosion. What was going on? Zhang Guodong was also puzzled. Old Yi wasn't around either. He couldn't even ask him.

However, this might cause the spiritual energy to leak out, so Zhang Guodong hardened his heart and quickly pressed down the furnace lid.

Keep the fire burning!

After persisting for three minutes, Zhang Guodong heard a loud hum from the furnace. He was overjoyed. It was actually about to be completed?

Quickly, remove the medicine furnace and prepare to retrieve the jade box. Open the bottom of the furnace. A bright green pellet rolled out! It was so green it seemed to drip water!

"A top-grade Serpent Spirit Pill!" Zhang Guodong could tell at a glance that this pill was of the same quality as the one refined by Elder Yi.

He successfully refined the Serpent Spirit Pill! And it was even a high-grade one!

"Haha, it's so easy to gather this! And the effect of the spatial water is so great?" Zhang Guodong was overjoyed and picked up the pill, admiring it.

If there were a space of water, wouldn't every batch of pills be able to produce high-grade pills?

Zhang Guodong carefully put away the Snake Spirit Pill and confidently continued refining pills. After half an hour of refining, Zhang Guodong's overconfident heart finally calmed down. How could it be that four batches of pills only yielded one Snake Spirit Pill, and it was a low-grade one, not even reaching the middle grade? Not only that, but he also ruined two batches.

This made Zhang Guodong very frustrated.

This alchemy is really difficult!

No wonder Elder Yi was so overjoyed when he refined a top-grade Snake Spirit Pill, while his own pill, which had been refined with the addition of spatial water, was ruined. This shows how important it is to control the heat. That instantaneous control is experience, and the timing must be just right.

Just in time, Old Man Yi returned.

As soon as he entered, the old man asked with a smile, "How did it go?"

Zhang Guodong opened the jade box and said bitterly, "Master Yi, refining elixirs is truly difficult; I understand what you mean."

"Two?!" Elder Yi was startled. Two Snake Spirit Pills lay in the jade box. "One of them is of superior grade! Excellent!"

They immediately looked at Zhang Guodong with new respect.

After confirming that one of them was indeed a top-grade one, the old man sighed after a long while, "Young and promising."

Zhang Guodong sensed something was wrong, and his neck turned red. "They added spatial water; otherwise, how could it form pills? And they were lucky enough to get top-grade pills on the very first batch!"

That's too much! He's the type to talk without understanding the situation.

He sighed that even with the addition of spatial water, the failure rate was still so high, but he didn't expect that Elder Yi's failure rate would be even higher!

"I just got lucky with this old man's clothes! Hehe, Zhang Guodong said modestly."

“Luck is also part of strength, no need to be modest. However, it’s best to be proficient in pill-making, otherwise the medicinal materials will be wasted. Wait a moment, I can give you some pill formulas. Also, be careful to keep it confidential,” Elder Yi said with a shake of his head.

Opening the drawer, I found a stack of old butter papers, and the recipe was written on them. Of course, the recipe was written down just in case; the old man remembered it clearly.

"Go and make a copy. This yellowed paper is a family heirloom; I can't give it to you."

Zhang Guodong carefully accepted these treasures. He knew they were precious. To conduct countless experiments and assemble a single prescription—one can only imagine how difficult that would be.

Besides, these thirteen prescriptions!

It is absolutely a medical gem!

Zhang Guodong spent some time copying it down in front of him, checked it several times to make sure there were no errors, and then returned the yellow paper prescription.

"Master Yi, this formula is priceless, thank you." Zhang Guodong exclaimed. He felt a little ashamed. Master Yi had given him his most treasured possession; it was like receiving a disciple's gift.

"Now there's no need to thank you for the pill formula. I've also agreed to give you a piece of Purple Jade Sand, enough for over a thousand pill refinings!" Elder Yi then took out another package, already packed, containing a full pound of Purple Jade Sand.

"I've given you everything I need. Now I'll take you to see the underground river of the Purple Jade Sand. I hope you can keep this a secret and not tell anyone."

"What? Elder Yi, you agreed to take me to see it?" Zhang Guodong asked in surprise.

Originally, Elder Yi would not have agreed to his request. But now, not only did he keep his promise and send him a pound of purple jade sand, he also agreed to take him to the burial site of the purple jade sand.

“I’ve thought it through; it’s very dangerous inside. But with the current technology outside the mountains, there might be a way to dig some out. However, only you will know about this place; remember that,” Elder Yi said solemnly.

Zhang Guodong nodded hurriedly in agreement.

So the old man and the young man, dressed in thick clothes, quietly left the village while everyone else was resting.

The name "Purple Jade Cave" was given by Grandpa Yi. It was a very hidden cave located in a sinkhole on the Stone Cliff Mountain, right below the cliff that Zhang Guodong and the others had climbed. Zhang Guodong was very surprised that the underground river actually originated from the mountain.

It is said that originally, the cave entrance could only accommodate one person crouching down to enter. It has been expanded somewhat since then, thanks to the work of the ancestor, Master Yi. Once they reached the edge of the sinkhole, Zhang Guodong realized that what Master Yi had said was not an exaggeration at all. To reach the Purple Jade Cave, one must climb down the steep cliff face of the sinkhole. There is a stone platform about six meters above the top. One must be secured with a rope to descend.

The mountain eagles overhead cried out and circled around the rocky cliff, making the space seem empty and eerie.

"The cave is just down there, be careful!" Old Man Yi tied two ropes to the large rock above. He tugged on them to make sure they were secure, then fastened them around his waist. He was the first to lead the way down.

Looking down, Zhang Guodong felt a little dizzy. He knew that coming here to dig for treasure was definitely not something he could tell outsiders about, otherwise it would be extremely dangerous.

What if someone cuts the rope and the people below are doomed?

Fearing that Elder Yi might stumble or fall, Zhang Guodong quickly followed and carefully descended the stone wall. Despite Elder Yi's advanced age, he was surprisingly agile. He nimbly reached the stone platform below without even breaking a sweat. The platform was quite small, barely large enough for four or five people to stand on.

A cave about half a person's height came into view.

Seeing Zhang Guodong's continued surprise, Elder Yi smiled and said, "The entrance is right here. It's very difficult for ordinary people to find it! My grandfather only discovered this place after finding a rare medicinal herb."

Zhang Guodong swallowed hard and said, "This place, Old Man Yi, is indeed very difficult for ordinary people."

"Haha, how could you find something miraculous if it weren't dangerous?" Old Man Yi said, completely unconcerned. "They're in. Follow them!"

"Mr. Yi, what if there are poisonous snakes in here?" Zhang Guodong hurriedly stopped him.

He knew the basic common sense.

But Old Man Yi laughed and said, "No, I've put a lot of realgar snakes in here, so they won't come in."

"Oh, so you were prepared all along." Zhang Guodong blushed slightly, feeling a little ashamed. Old Yi was a medical expert, and having lived in the mountains for several years, he naturally knew these common-sense things.

I crouched down and entered the cave; it was pitch black.

"After untying the rope, press it under the stone inside the cave entrance, otherwise it will swing away and cause more damage," Ma Yi Lao reminded him.

Zhang Guodong responded and was untying the ropes. Suddenly, the view opened up before him as Elder Yi lit a torch in the cave. The torchlight illuminated the cave, revealing a vast, multi-thousand-meter-long passageway that stretched downwards, clearly leading to an underground river, and gusts of cold air emanated from within.

Then I saw that there was a torch stuck in the wall not far away, and there were ropes, climbing claws and other equipment all prepared on the ground inside the cave!

"We need to prepare more things when we go into the Purple Jade Cave often!" Elder Yi explained.

Bi: Bonus chapter is here! I updated another 10,000 words today, but I'm a little disappointed I didn't get enough votes. The fourth update will have to be postponed. Hehe. But let's make another promise. Before 7 PM on the 11th, if we don't have many monthly votes, I'll continue with bonus chapters. I'll work even harder at the end of the month. Everyone, please remember to vote with your monthly votes! Thank you!

Thank you again to everyone who subscribed to support this book and gave me a reward!

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