Chapter 230 Azure Lotus Fiery Cloud Furnace

By the cold pond, Xia Yuhan was drying tea leaves.

The green leaves are used to stir-fry Yunding Yinhao, and the white leaves are used to stir-fry Yulu Jinya.

Both types of tea need to be kept out of direct sunlight during drying, otherwise it will affect the taste and effect. Therefore, they should be withered in the shade of the stone house.

To prevent any sunlight from shining directly on the tea leaves, the two sisters took turns watching over them, each for two hours during the day.

To improve their tea-making skills, the two sisters put in a lot of hard work. They not only borrowed a large number of jade slips on tea-making techniques, but also visited experienced tea-making disciples within their sect on several occasions.

Xia Yuhan looked at the white leaves with golden patterns on the tea leaves, her heart filled with joy.

The finest Jade Dew Golden Sprout is a highly coveted item that even late-stage Foundation Establishment masters would fight over.

As a disciple of Crimson Flame Peak, she felt honored.

Two jade trees, one of which has been cultivated to the highest grade, and the other is of superior grade.

The master asserted that this top-grade tea tree had great potential to be cultivated to a mid-grade second rank.

Those are high-level spiritual items that only cultivators in the Chaoyuan stage can enjoy. With such resources, my uncle's network of connections can be extended even further.

Ji An walked over with his hands behind his back, picked up a handful of tea leaves to feel their moisture content, and said:

"Shouldn't it meet the standards for the next step of stir-frying?"

Xia Yuhan answered with a smile, revealing two shallow dimples on her cheeks.

"It's still a bit short of perfection. I think it won't reach the standard until sunset today."

Ji An nodded slightly and changed the subject:

"How many more years will it take you to obtain the Foundation Establishment Pill?"

"About four and a half years."

"Time flies," Ji An sighed, "The Crimson Flame Peak remains unchanged, but its disciples come and go."

Xia Yuhan and several other disciples obtained the Foundation Establishment Pill four years later. They received more resources than Liang Qiu and Huang Feihu, so breaking through to the Foundation Establishment stage should be no problem for them.

It's time to put the recruitment of a new generation of disciples on the agenda.

Ji An was thinking that in the future, it would be better to choose some disciples who had no hope of reaching the Foundation Establishment stage.

Those spirit farmers who have just passed the late stage of Qi Refining and meet the requirements to stay in the sect for a long time are the best choice.

Ji An waved his hand, "You go ahead with your work, I'll go wander around somewhere else."

He walked along the cold pool and saw Xia Yulian feeding the spirit fish.

The Azure Water Turtle joined the fray. It was still at the fourth level of Qi Refining, but its size had increased significantly, and no spirit fish could compete with it.

"Uncle-Master!"

Xia Yulian greeted them, but in her heart she thought that her martial uncle had a lot of free time these past few days and was no longer going out to practice magic.

Aside from making talismans and extracting essences at the mountaintop, he spends almost all his time wandering around.

Ji An waved his hand as a greeting.

He watched for a while, then strolled away.

"Suddenly having free time feels so boring."

Ji An chuckled self-deprecatingly. In the past, he would cultivate for six hours every day, and spend the rest of his time tending to the spirit field and practicing spells.

Now that they no longer need to practice spells, they are suddenly idle.

I need to find something else to do!

It's impractical to spend all of one's time practicing the exercises; other things must be done.

Ji An returned to his cave, took out the jade slip containing the golden jade bone, placed it on his forehead, and extended his divine sense to read the information.

He carefully studied the cultivation technique, and was captivated by its underlying principles, exclaiming in admiration:

"Following me is like a pearl being buried in dust."

He only glanced at this technique once back then, focusing mainly on the shortcuts and tricks within it.

Since mastering the Silver Armor, he has never touched this jade slip again.

The philosophy of this exercise is to refine the body like refining a weapon, regulating qi and blood, nourishing the internal organs, and using one's own essence, qi and spirit to polish the body into a "treasure".

Unfortunately, he wouldn't focus on mastering such a technique; he would only use it as a supplement.

Time is fair to everyone, but cultivators have limited energy, making it difficult to cultivate both their physical body and spiritual power.

In addition to the characteristics of the stone turtle, choosing to cultivate magic was the most correct choice for him, and body tempering could only be used as an auxiliary means to increase his 'life points'.

There's not much to do right now, so I can use this time to train my body.

Ji An then took out the jade slip given to him by his master and found the alchemy inheritance.

Alchemists have requirements for controlling flames, and the basic spell is the Fire Control Technique.

He couldn't help but grin. His initial purpose in learning the Fire Control Technique was to be more composed when encountering fire environments in the future, and he would also need it for alchemy and weapon crafting.

Looking back now, I realize how farsighted I was.

He carefully read through the inheritance of refining basic pills and pondered it in his mind.

Finally, Ji An decided to spend his free time refining pills and cultivating his body.

Learning martial arts is never a burden, and while alchemy requires a high level of talent, without enough practice, one cannot accumulate sufficient experience.

Whether he has a talent for alchemy is unknown, but he certainly has enough spirit stones to cover the cost of practicing.

If he doesn't have a talent for alchemy, he'll try crafting weapons.

Having figured out his future plans, Ji An suddenly felt that the world was much bigger and more expansive.

Three days later.

Ji An piloted the flying shuttle away from Crimson Flame Peak, with the Golden-feathered Eagle following behind, occasionally letting out joyful cries.

It rarely leaves the range of the Crimson Flame Peak's protective array, and its swift travel by wind is always so exhilarating.

As the shuttle sped up, the tamed beast could no longer keep up and cried out for help.

Ji An slowed down, released the beast into the shuttle, and then flew at full speed.

The shuttle entered Ningcui Cliff and landed at the top of the mountain.

Ji An stepped into the cave and took out two jars, each about the size of a fist.

One is a celadon porcelain jar, and the other is a mutton-fat jade jar.

"Greetings, Master! Crimson Flame Peak has produced some new tea, which I've brought for you to try. There's a jar of top-grade Jade Dew Golden Buds."

Whenever he came to share the joy of the harvest, Master was especially happy, and his heartfelt smile could be felt.

"Once the Azure Jade Tree of the Moon reaches the highest grade, it will be of great use to you."

"Very good, a strong spiritual soul is of great help in breaking through to the Origin Realm."

Ge Ying looked at her with a kind expression. She opened both jars and smelled the aroma of the tea.

She handed the white jade jar to the maid:

"I'll brew two cups and try them right now."

"Please wait a moment, Uncle-Master," the maid said, taking the teapot and leaving.

Ge Ying pointed to the chair and smiled:

"Please sit down, don't stand."

At noon, I received a letter from Liu Yu; he had broken through to the late Foundation Establishment stage!

Liu Yu is a disciple of the Enforcement Hall, and after the outbreak of the demonic disaster, he is often on the front line of battle.

Now that his cultivation has advanced further, his safety is more assured.

The quality of a cultivator's mana in the late Foundation Establishment stage is about 20% higher than that in the mid Foundation Establishment stage.

She was very happy. Liu Yu was her second disciple in the late Foundation Establishment stage, and the disciple in front of her was likely to be her third.

The output of Crimson Flame Peak is becoming increasingly abundant and high-end, which will provide more assistance to the disciples of the Emerald Cliff lineage.

"Haha, Senior Brother Liu is always one step ahead."

Ji An smiled and said that he recently felt that the bottleneck had begun to loosen.

If the other party had broken through a year or two later, he might have become the first late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator among them.

Ge Ying nodded gently and asked:

"Your sixth senior sister, Zhong Yuefei, is already more skilled in alchemy than I am. Do you have much contact with her?"

Ji An shook his head, "We've hardly been in contact. We, the disciples who joined later, don't have much contact with our fellow disciples."

The word 'almost' can be crossed out; he had no connection whatsoever with those disciples who entered the sect earlier.

He prefers quiet to activity, and with the large number of spirit fields on Crimson Flame Peak needing care, he doesn't have time to run around making connections.

"You should contact your other fellow disciples more often."

Now that we're familiar with each other, there will be someone to help you refine pills after I'm gone.

Ge Ying paused, then said:

"I feel my physical functions are declining more and more, and I can't hold on for much longer."

She felt they should find opportunities to get together more often, so that after she passed away, her disciples could take care of each other.

"Master is still in good health."

"Whether I'm still strong or not, I don't know. Alas, time waits for no one."

Ji An looked at his master's increasingly aged face and fell silent.

Time is fair to everyone, like a carving knife leaving marks on everything in the world and eroding life.

A maid brought over some spiritual tea. Ge Ying picked up the teacup and examined it closely. The tea liquor was as beautiful as the shimmering moonlight.

She took a small sip and immediately felt the aroma of tea lingering on her lips and teeth, which invigorated her.

Slowly swallow the tea, the heat followed by a sweet aftertaste, a slight coolness rising, and a clear mind.

"Jade Dew and Golden Sprouts, indeed a fine product for nourishing the soul!"

Ge Ying praised, saying that she hadn't had this kind of spiritual tea many times.

"The production of tea will increase in the future, and I will send more for Master to taste."

"I'm getting old, it's a waste to give me such spiritual tea."

Ge Ying sighed and then said:

"The situation around Mingfeng Mountain Immortal City is becoming increasingly unstable, and the demonic disaster is just around the corner."

Liu Yu really needs this spiritual tea; you can trade him more.

Ji An nodded slightly:

"This tree seed was a gift from Senior Brother Liu. I will provide him with Jade Dew Golden Buds regularly in the future."

He paused for a moment, then continued:

"I've recently been thinking of trying my hand at alchemy. I wonder if Master has any alchemy furnaces suitable for novice alchemists?"

His master was a top alchemist in the sect, and he must have collected many alchemy furnaces, so he didn't need to go to a weapon refiner to buy them.

"You want to learn alchemy?"

Ge Ying's eyes immediately brightened. If this disciple were to learn alchemy, he would truly be the one to inherit her mantle.

"Yes, I've had plenty of free time lately, aside from practicing my cultivation techniques."

"Okay, I support your desire to learn alchemy."

"Wait here, I'll go to the warehouse to find the alchemy furnace."

Ge Ying stood up, went into the cave's storeroom, and took out a pill furnace the size of a human head.

The furnace body is dark red, with mottled marks of time.

It has three legs and two handles, with lotus leaves engraved on the surface and flame patterns below the leaves.

Ge Ying's eyes were gentle as she lightly stroked the furnace, as if she were reminiscing.

"This is a top-grade first-tier alchemy furnace, the Azure Lotus Fire Cloud Furnace. It has been with me for over fifty years. I started using it as soon as I became a first-tier high-grade alchemist."

It can be used to refine late-stage Foundation Establishment pills. I'm giving it to you now, hoping it will witness your growth into a second-tier alchemist.

With a solemn expression, she carefully held the alchemy furnace and personally handed it to her disciple.

In her heart, this is a continuation of tradition, filled with her earnest hopes.

Ji An stood up and caught the alchemy furnace with both hands as well:

"Thank you for your great kindness, Master."

Ge Ying sat down again and, with a smile, recounted her experience of buying the alchemy furnace, describing the unexpected situations she might encounter while refining pills and how to handle them.

"What is the first elixir you plan to refine?"

"Bigu Dan" (a traditional Chinese medicine formula for fasting).

Ji An solemnly replied that this was a decision he had made after careful consideration.

The main ingredient of Bigu Dan (a type of fasting pill) is yellow sprout rice or other spiritual rice, with added blood-nourishing and qi-boosting medicinal herbs, making its production cost relatively low.

In addition, after the outbreak of the demonic calamity, cultivators have to engage in long-term, high-intensity battles, which consume a great deal of their physical strength and mana.

Although the taste is not great, Bigu Dan can provide a strong feeling of fullness and sufficient nutrition.

After refining the Bigu Pill, it can be sold to recoup costs.

"A good choice, not overly ambitious."

Ge Ying nodded slightly. The first pill that most alchemists made was the Bigu Pill.

The lowest grade of Bigu Pills uses cheap materials, and you can tell if someone has talent by refining a large quantity of them.

She pondered for a moment and then explained some alchemy techniques.

"The jade slip I gave you contains a complete and detailed explanation. Study it several times before you start refining."

However, understanding the theory is one thing, actually refining it is another; you must be prepared for multiple failures.

She was worried that her disciple would feel disappointed after repeated failures, so she lowered his expectations first, so that he wouldn't be too discouraged even if he failed.

"Thank you for your teachings, Master."

The master and apprentice chatted for half an hour, then Ji An stood up and said:

"It's getting late, I have to leave now. I will report my progress in alchemy to my master regularly in the future."

He understood the significance of his master gifting him the alchemy furnace.

"I await good news here."

After Ji An left, Ge Ying put away the white jade jar, took out a communication talisman sword, recorded the information, and then activated it.

The talisman sword left Ningcui Cliff and flew towards Yingyue Peak.

She no longer needs to use Jade Dew Golden Bud Tea to nourish her soul; the tea that her disciples presented to her can play a greater role when passed down to future generations.

Ge Luoying is currently at the eighth level of Foundation Establishment, and is not far from breaking through to the ninth level. In the future, he will need to prepare for breaking through to the Chaoyuan stage.

Wisps of green smoke rose from Crimson Flame Peak; it was the season for burning spirit charcoal.

Ji An landed on the cold pool and arrived at the stone house where talismans were made.

He wrote down the formula for the Bigu Pill. His master's inherited jade slip contained a large number of pill formulas, and this was just one of them.

He handed the prescription to Xia Yuhan and said:

"Tomorrow, according to this prescription, go to the General Affairs Hall to purchase one hundred sets of materials."

The materials were cheap, and he was quite 'generous' with his money. It didn't matter if he wasn't very talented at alchemy; as long as he was skilled, he could still successfully refine pills.

Xia Yuhan glanced at the pill formula, carefully put it away, and said:

"Yes, ma'am. Tomorrow it's Yulian's turn to make breakfast. After we get up, I'll set off to buy spirit rice and medicinal herbs."

Although she wasn't an alchemist, she could tell that it was a pill formula.

She wondered if her martial uncle was going to learn alchemy. If so, perhaps she could buy suitable pills from him after she reached the Foundation Establishment stage.

In her memory, there was nothing her martial uncle could not accomplish if he wanted to do it.

(End of this chapter)