Chapter 207
Su Jing's fingertips traced the walls of the manganese crystal alchemy furnace, her Qi Refining Level 2 spiritual energy flowing along the furnace walls, precisely sensing the temperature inside—
The flame is kept at a stable temperature of 800℃, which is just enough to melt the inner core of the Flamewing Beast without destroying its heat-resistant factors.
She picked up a handful of pale green plant powder, an extract of "heat-resistant grass" collected from an abandoned botanical garden, which could neutralize the dryness of the inner elixir. She slowly sprinkled it into the stove in a 1:3 ratio.
The moment the powder came into contact with the flame, it turned into a wisp of green smoke, intertwining with the red light of the inner elixir.
The workshop was filled with a faint aroma of burnt wood and fresh herbs. Little Jin squatted by the stove, its little paws gripping the edge, staring at the bubbling red liquid inside, sniffing it every now and then: "Su Jing, this medicine smells much better than the previous potions, is it more potent?"
Su Jing didn't turn around. She gathered ice-type power in her left hand and gently pressed it against the side of the furnace wall. The temperature inside the furnace instantly dropped by 100°C, and the churning of the red liquid slowed down.
Tiny crystals began to precipitate: "Hmm, the heat-resistant factor of the Flamewing Beast's inner core is five times that of ordinary raw materials. Combined with heat-resistant grass and manganese crystal powder, the 'Flame Breath Heat-Resistant Pill' can withstand a high temperature of 70°C, and the duration is three times that of the previous potion."
Her communicator sat on the metal table beside her, its screen lit up with unread SOS messages:
[Chen Yang's base: Heat-resistant potions have been out of stock for 3 hours, and 8 people have suffered heatstroke and fallen into a coma. Urgent replenishment is needed! We are willing to exchange 2 Tier 1 demon cores for 1 heat-resistant potion!]
[South City Official Base: Frontline ability users have run out of heat-resistant supplies. Three Tier 3 ability users are unable to participate in combat due to the high temperature. We request priority supply. Tier 3 manganese crystal fragments can be exchanged for them!]
[A small-time investor in the western part of the city: My mother is dying from the heat. Is anyone willing to sell her heatstroke medication? I'll trade half a bag of compressed biscuits for it!]
Su Jing glanced at the message, her fingertips still moving, and picked up a piece of crushed second-order manganese crystal powder, sprinkling it into the furnace.
When heated, the manganese crystal powder turns into silvery-gray droplets, which are evenly integrated into the red liquid. The liquid in the furnace instantly becomes more viscous and has a faint silver sheen.
She didn't react much to these requests for help. To her, medicine was a survival resource, not a charity. If she wanted it, she had to exchange it for equivalent resources, and there were no exceptions, even in official bases.
"Messages from official bases can be replied to first."
While adjusting the temperature inside the furnace, Su Jing said to Xiao Jin, "They have third-tier manganese crystal fragments that can be used to upgrade the laser cannon. The cookies from retail investors are worthless; let them figure it out themselves."
Little Jin nodded and touched the communicator with its little paw, but accidentally pressed the voice button, making a soft "meow". Fortunately, no one noticed.
Su Jing activated her communicator and quickly typed a reply to the official base: 【“I am the God of Wealth”: The newly refined “Flame Breath Heat Resistance Pill” has entered the condensation stage. One Tier 3 Manganese Crystal Fragment can be exchanged for 5 pills, or three Tier 2 Demon Cores for one pill. Priority will be given to frontline ability users. It will be available in the system shop in one hour, limited to 50 pills, first come, first served.】
Less than a minute after the message was sent, the official base replied: [South City Official Base: Exchange rules agreed! We have prepared 10 Tier 3 Manganese Crystal Fragments to exchange for 50 Heat Resistance Pills. Please expedite the refining; we will send someone to pick up the goods outside the workshop!]
Su Jing did not reply, but instead sped up the process of condensing the pill.
She condensed her lightning-based power into a fine needle and gently inserted it into the furnace. The red liquid was instantly divided into dozens of uniform small balls, which spun and condensed in the flames.
The paralyzing effect of the lightning-type ability allowed the crystals to form faster. In less than half an hour, dozens of round, red pills appeared in the furnace, their surfaces gleaming with a faint silver light. Each pill was about the size of a thumb and emitted a rich heat-resistant energy.
"The pill condensation is complete." Su Jing shut off the energy fire under the furnace, wrapped the pill in her spiritual power, and slowly took it out, placing it on a metal plate covered with heat-resistant cloth. As soon as the pill came into contact with the air, a thin layer of white frost condensed, which was the residual ice-type energy that had not yet dissipated, temporarily locking in the medicinal effects.
Xiao Jin leaned closer, wanting to touch it, but Su Jing stopped her: "Don't touch it, it's still warm from just condensing the core, it will burn you."
She picked up a pill and scanned it with the communicator's detector. The screen displayed: [Flame Breath Heat-Resistant Pill: Tier 3, Core ingredient: Flame-Winged Beast Inner Core (containing 80% heat-resistant factor), Auxiliary ingredients: Heat-Resistant Grass Extract, Tier 2 Manganese Crystal Powder, Effect: Takes effect 10 minutes after oral administration, can resist 70℃ high temperature for 8 hours, no side effects.]
Su Jing nodded in satisfaction and divided the pills into two parts: 50 pills were put into a special manganese crystal bottle, ready to be exchanged for the official base;
The remaining 100 will be used partly for personal purposes and the other part will be put on the system shop at a price of 1 Tier 1 Demon Core for 1, which is higher than the exchange rate at the official base. This is the "regular price" for individual players and ordinary strongholds. She never does business at a loss. The official base can provide high-level resources, so it can naturally enjoy the discount, while ordinary strongholds can only exchange at the market price.
Just as he finished organizing the pills, his communicator vibrated. It was a private message from Chen Yang, his tone urgent: [Chen Yang's Base: "I am the God of Wealth," we are willing to exchange 20 Flame Breath Heat Resistance Pills at a rate of 1 for 1 Tier 1 demon core. We can pay for the demon cores now. Can you prioritize delivery?]
Su Jing replied: [Okay, the demon core will be transferred via the system channel within 10 minutes of arriving. Please check your account.]
She had just switched to the online store backend to list the pills when the official base's receiving personnel sent a message: "[Arrived 1 kilometer outside the workshop, carrying 10 Tier 3 manganese crystal fragments, requesting a meeting for handover.]"
Su Jing did not agree to a meeting, but replied: "Place the manganese crystal fragments in the manganese crystal box at the designated coordinates (117°E, 33°N). After confirming receipt, the pill will be automatically delivered; no meeting is necessary."
She never easily reveals her exact location, even to official bases, she only provides approximate coordinates. This is her survival principle—in this chaotic world, excessive trust only brings danger.
After arranging the handover, Su Jing placed 50 pills into her spatial storage and awaited confirmation of receipt. Simultaneously, the "Flame Breath Heat-Resistant Pill" appeared in the system shop, with 100 pills in stock. The exchange rules were clearly stated: [1 Tier 1 Demon Core/pill, limited to 5 per person, no bargaining, no free gifts.]
Within 5 minutes of being listed on the store, the stock had decreased by 30 units, clearly indicating that various outposts were scrambling to buy them.
Looking at the inventory figures, Su Jing then glanced at the alchemy furnace and decided to refine another batch. With the extreme heat of the polar day still lingering and the threat of the Flamewing Beasts not completely eliminated, the demand for heat-resistant pills would only increase. Stockpiling more would not only help in case of emergencies but also allow her to exchange for more useful supplies.
She took out the inner core of the Flamewing Beast from her spatial storage again, this time using the inner core of the purple leader, which was larger and had more concentrated energy.
Xiao Jin handed over the heat-resistant grass powder and asked curiously, "Su Jing, why can we exchange for more at the official base? Are the things they give us better?"
Su Jing threw the leader's inner core into the furnace, and the flames instantly shot up, the red light even brighter than before: "Hmm, third-tier manganese crystal fragments can be used to upgrade laser cannons and alchemy furnaces, which are useful to me, while ordinary demon cores can only be used to exchange for basic resources, so their value is different."
Her principle has always been clear: useful supplies can be offered at a reasonable discount;
Useless clutter, no compromise.
Just like the individual investors who refused to exchange compressed biscuits before, in her view, biscuits could not improve her strength, nor could they replenish her material reserves, so it was naturally not worth her wasting precious heat-resistant pills.
However, she was not cold-blooded and did not raise the price to an absurd level. The price of one first-tier demon core was within the range that most data points could afford. As long as they were willing to pay the price, they could have a chance to survive.
Official confirmation arrived quickly: [Manganese crystal fragments received; please send the pills as soon as possible.]
Su Jing activated her spatial ability, sending 50 Flame Breath Heat-Resistant Pills to the designated receiving point. At the same time, she received 10 third-tier manganese crystal fragments. The fragments glowed with a pale blue light and were extremely pure, perfect for reinforcing the alchemy furnace and improving the efficiency of the next alchemy session.
On the communicator, Chen Yang's demon core had arrived. Su Jing sent 20 pills as agreed, and also replied with a message: "[During the continued high temperatures, 100 heat-resistant pills will be replenished daily. Redeem according to the rules; no additional discounts.]"
Chen Yang quickly replied: [Thank you! We're willing to give up any number of demon cores as long as we can get the medicine!]
Su Jing stopped looking at the communicator and focused on refining the second batch of Flame Breath Anti-Heat Pills.
The leader's inner core had even more energy, so she adjusted the heat to 900℃, added more heat-resistant herb powder to neutralize the dryness, and increased the ratio of manganese crystal powder to 1:2 to ensure the stability of the pill. The red liquid inside the furnace shimmered with a deep purple halo, its energy more concentrated than the previous pills, clearly indicating a higher quality.
Outside the workshop, the scorching heat of the polar day still baked the earth. Occasionally, sporadic roars of monsters could be heard in the distance, and new distress messages would pop up on the nearby communicator from time to time. But Su Jing remained unmoved, simply refining medicine, listing it, and exchanging it at her own pace.
For her, the core of survival is her own strength and sufficient resources. Helping others is just secondary, provided that it does not harm her own interests and there is an equivalent return.
When the second batch of pills was being condensed, the official base sent another message. This time, it wasn't a request for help, but a cooperation proposal: [South City Official Base: "We are the God of Wealth." Currently, the various outposts are scattered, making the exchange of heat-resistant supplies inconvenient and vulnerable to being robbed by monsters or villains. We propose jointly establishing "Cooling Storage Points." The base will provide the venue and security (for beast and robbery prevention), and you will provide the Flame Breath Heat-Resistant Pills as the core exchange material. The exchanged monster pills and supplies will be split 3:7 (you get 70%, we get 30%). Do you agree?]
Su Jing paused, her fingers moving as she looked at the message. The joint-construction of the supply depot had both advantages and disadvantages for her: the advantages were that she wouldn't have to worry about security, she could reliably exchange supplies, and she could expand the exchange network by leveraging the power of the official base.
The downside is that she would need to share profits with the base and bear the risk of mismanagement. But then she thought again, the demand for heat-resistant pills is currently huge, and relying solely on her own workshop and the system store would be inefficient. Cooperating with the official base would save her energy and allow her to obtain more high-level resources, which might not be a bad thing.
She didn't agree immediately, but replied: "Cooperation is possible, but there are three conditions: 1. The cooling point must be built with a Tier 3 manganese crystal support frame, equipped with heat-resistant canvas and simple defensive fortifications to prevent attacks from the Flamewing Beasts;
2. The base must dispatch at least 5 Tier 3 ability users to guard the area in shifts, responsible for preventing beasts from attacking and robbery. If the pills are lost due to inadequate security, the base shall compensate for the loss.
3. The profits will be divided 80/20, with me receiving 80% and you 20%. The base will only be responsible for the site and security, while I will provide the core supplies, so I should rightfully receive the lion's share.
After the message was sent out, the official base fell into a brief silence.
Su Jing didn't wait and continued to take out the second batch of pills. This time the pills were a deep purple color, of higher quality than the previous red pills. She named them "High-Grade Flame Breath Heat Resistance Pills" and planned to price them at 1 second-tier demon core for 1 pill, exclusively for official bases and high-level ability users.
Shortly after, the official base replied: [Your conditions are agreed! We will complete the construction of the first three cooling stations within three days. The locations will be in densely populated, easily defensible areas. We will notify you upon completion, at which time you will exchange supplies as agreed and jointly manage the cooling stations.]
Su Jing put away the communicator, her eyes flashing with calculation as she looked at the deep purple and red pills on the metal plate. Establishing a joint cooling point was a new endeavor for her—
They could avoid directly confronting the greed of the refugees and the threat of monsters, obtain resources steadily, and consolidate their position by leveraging the power of the official base.
She never does anything without a profit. This collaboration, seemingly a concession, is actually a win-win situation, and she is always the one in control.
The pills in the workshop accumulated more and more, and the inventory in the system store was also replenished. The help requests on the communicator were gradually replaced by notifications of successful redemptions.
Su Jing categorized and stored all the pills into her spatial storage. The residual heat of the alchemy furnace hadn't yet dissipated, but she was already planning her next move—
Using the Tier 3 manganese crystal fragments provided by the official base, upgrade the tracking laser cannon, and prepare the pills needed for the cooling point to ensure the smooth progress of the cooperation.
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