Chapter 206 The Kid Learns Alchemy
But as Junior Brother Zhong said, this was Junior Brother's heartfelt wish, and both Junior Brother Zhong and Junior Brother Wu were willing for him to pay on credit first... Xuan Bing didn't want to be too sentimental.
Xuan Bing then said, "In that case, thank you both, junior brothers."
After speaking, he took out a talisman for swearing an oath, intending to put the IOU into practice.
Zhong Cai chuckled, then took out something else and placed it in front of Xuan Bing.
·
In an instant, a thick mist rose from the surrounding area, which quickly spread and permeated the entire mansion in an instant.
As the mist seeped into the nose, a cool sensation arose, and this coolness seeped into the internal organs, growing colder and colder, as if it would freeze the cultivator's blood in an instant—as if the cultivator's life would be held in the hands of this mist.
It's a terrifying water-attribute treasure.
Moreover, the speed at which its power spreads and the strength of the threat it poses indicate that this is another level eight resource!
Upon closer inspection, this object resembles a Udumbara flower.
Countless water droplets are released from the flower's stamen, making the "Udumbara flower" appear dreamlike and ethereal, as if it were floating in clouds and mist.
This medicine may look precious, but it is not actually a precious medicine; rather, it is a rare and precious natural treasure.
Watery Udumbara
It is named after its form and its function.
·
Zhong Cai, Wu Shaogan, and Wu Dongxiao immediately activated their profound energy to sweep away the invading water mist.
Even so, it still took a little effort.
On the contrary, Xuan Bing, upon sensing the mist, also felt that the various secret techniques he had learned were drawing power from it, and their power immediately increased by an extremely subtle amount. One can imagine how terrifying the improvement would be for him if he refined such a rare treasure or cultivated within the range of the mist spewed out by the Water Spirit Udumbara!
Yes, Xuan Bing recognized it immediately, precisely because this treasure was the cultivation treasure he had long wanted to find after his strength improved, and it would be of great use to him.
Compared to this treasure, the Soul Fusion Treasure that could alleviate pain seemed less important.
·
Xuan Bing's summoned companion treasure is a water-attribute spear, the Xuanhuang Spear, and it is also accompanied by water-attribute cultivation methods. Naturally, the resources required for all the secret techniques he practices are also of the same attribute.
Meanwhile, Wu Dongxiao is of the fire attribute, and the Black Dragon Halberd he summons bursts forth with blazing flames when he uses it.
In the original book, the reason why the two are both enemies and friends is that the "enemy" aspect mainly comes from their master, and at the same time, it also comes from the clash of water and fire, and the mutual restraint during the battle.
But the aspect of "friendship" goes without saying. The two are compatible in temperament and have been through life and death together several times. Of course, since both of them use black long weapons and their spear and halberd techniques have some similarities, their encounters have been beneficial to each other.
Now the two have become true brothers. Xuan Bing can actually give Wu Dongxiao a lot of guidance in spear techniques; while Wu Dongxiao's combat talent is too high. He becomes stronger when facing stronger opponents, and every time they fight, Xuan Bing can also gain a lot of experience.
Xuan Bing knew that in a few years, his junior brother's strength would catch up with his own, and at that time, the battles between him and his junior brother would be of greater help to each other.
At the same time, Xuan Bing also felt a sense of crisis.
His junior brother's aptitude was top-tier Earth-grade, while his own was top-tier Heaven-grade. Even so, his junior brother's catching up was too fast. Furthermore, because his junior brother had an even faster-progressing uncle above him, his junior brother worked even harder. As the senior brother, he could expect his junior brother to catch up with him as soon as possible, but he couldn't let his junior brother catch up with him too quickly because of his laziness.
Xuan Bing is now cultivating several times harder than before.
There was also some baggage involved, perhaps from being a senior student...
·
The moment Xuan Bing saw the Water Spirit Udumbara, he changed his mind. He paused, glanced apologetically at Wu Dongxiao, and then said, "Junior brothers, I have a favor to ask... I wonder if it would be possible to exchange that level eight Soul Fusion Treasure for this Water Spirit Udumbara?"
He thought to himself that Dong Xiao had taken the initiative to inquire about the Soul Fusion Treasures before, so his two junior brothers had taken out those five items. Now that he had come to discuss the transaction, Junior Brother Zhong's offering of this water-attribute resource might be another option for him.
However, exchanging the treasures for the item in the trade still somewhat disappointed Dong Xiao, so...
Xuan Bing added, "In addition, I am also interested in trading a level 5 Soul Fusion Treasure, and I can deliver the Xuan Pearl immediately."
·
Wu Dongxiao received his senior brother's look, but he didn't feel that his feelings had been betrayed. However, he was still a little worried.
The entire fusion stage seems to break through a small realm with each fusion of a few more primordial souls, and there appears to be no bottleneck. However, the entire fusion process is extremely painful.
That kind of pain is more terrifying than when condensing the primordial soul—after all, condensing the primordial soul is a change within the soul, while the fusion realm is the fusion of the primordial soul with a foreign object—no matter how well the companion treasure is compatible with the cultivator, they are still two different things. In fact, the companion treasure is a physical entity, while the primordial soul belongs to the realm between the real and the unreal.
The difficulty involved is self-evident, and the level of pain is certainly not to be underestimated.
The fusion of three, six, nine, and ten percent of one's primordial soul represents the peak of the four minor realms of the Fusion Realm. Only at these four peak states will the pain temporarily cease.
Many cultivators remain at the peak of a certain minor realm and never advance to the next minor realm. When they go from the third to the fourth, the sixth to the seventh, or the ninth to the tenth, the pain will double.
Moreover, the deeper the fusion, the more intense the pain.
If you push yourself to speed up the fusion process, the pain will be even more intense—many highly talented cultivators also progress very quickly at this stage. Even if they don't cultivate very seriously, their aptitude will still help them improve.
Therefore, the more talented a cultivator is, the stronger their need for treasures that can alleviate pain.
Cultivators train amidst suffering. When they encounter a difficult secret technique or other training obstacle, they may fail due to the intense pain if they are not careful. Often, the success or failure of cultivation is separated by only a hair's breadth, and suffering can cause that slight deviation.
If it's just a matter of failing to master a secret technique and having to start over, that's nothing. Cultivators can hone their skills repeatedly without any problem.
However, many secret techniques are too powerful, too difficult to master, and too unpredictable to execute. If one fails to master them, it will result in a strong backlash, which can cause injury or even death!
·
Xuan Bing hasn't shown it yet because he prepared a lot of resources to reduce pain before breaking through, and he is only in the early stage of fusion, so it is still within his tolerance range.
At his cultivation speed, he will probably reach the peak of the initial stage of fusion soon—when he moves towards the fourth stage of fusion, the pain will likely double, so the resources he uses now will probably be of little use.
Wu Dongxiao had experienced many hardships since childhood. Although two uncles saved him, they couldn't see anyone else when they were together, and as a junior, he really didn't want to disturb their affection.
He was also treated very well by Xia Bo, but Xia Bo always felt guilty towards him. Moreover, because Xia Bo's aptitude was not enough to enter the academy with him, he spent very little time with Xia Bo—only occasionally could he visit Xia Bo in Canglong City.
After entering the Azure Dragon Academy, Wu Dongxiao finally had a protective and loving master like Wan Tianfeng. However, his master's strength was limited, and he was always in seclusion. It was true that he would give him a lot of guidance whenever he came out, but he couldn't spend a lot of time with him.
The only person who truly taught him, accompanied him, raised him, and grew closer to him was his senior brother Xuanbing.
Wu Dongxiao didn't want to lose this senior brother at all, even though he knew the chances were slim and that his senior brother would most likely not be affected by the pain. He hoped to reduce that chance to zero.
Therefore, Wu Dongxiao, who had never dared to ask his two uncles for anything before, took the initiative to inquire about the Soul Fusion Treasure.
Even if Uncle Zhong laughs at him for it... it's still a way for him to entertain his parents.
Currently, Uncle Zhong has brought out the Water Spirit Udumbara. Wu Dongxiao also knows that this is a treasure that his senior brother desperately needs. If it also requires an IOU, his senior brother would prefer to take this one.
Wu Dongxiao knew that his senior brother wanted to buy the level 5 resource because he didn't want his junior brother to worry too much.
Wu Dongxiao knew that his senior brother's plan was the most suitable for him, but the pain of his senior brother's soul fusion was not significantly reduced. He needed to think of other ways...
otherwise……
Wu Dongxiao frowned and pondered deeply.
He regretted not working hard enough before. How could he have focused solely on martial arts training? Uncle Zhong was very good to him. Even if he didn't want to disturb Uncle Zhong and his younger uncle's time together, perhaps it would be alright for him to go to the Myriad Classics Tower to find some classic texts, learn alchemy, and occasionally ask Uncle Zhong for guidance?
Wu Dongxiao is now pondering and feels that he must have some talent in alchemy.
If he had thought of this earlier, wouldn't he now not only have another way to pay off his debts, but he could also refine suitable pills for his senior brother?
--etc!
Wu Dongxiao felt that he was being a bit too ambitious.
Even a genius like Uncle Zhong is only just about to become a fifth-level alchemist. Even if Wu Dongxiao has some talent in alchemy, he is probably far from being able to refine pills for his senior brother.
well.
Wu Dongxiao is very distressed right now.
·
Upon hearing Xuan Bing's request to change the trade and request to trade a level-five fusion treasure, Zhong Cai noticed that his cheap nephew's micro-expressions changed countless times in an instant, each time quite clear, allowing him to easily capture the general emotional changes.
That's interesting.
Zhong Cai held back her laughter.
At the same time, he said to Xuan Bing, "So, Senior Brother Xuan has no interest in the level eight Soul Fusion Treasure?"
Xuan Bing said sincerely, "Compared to other cultivation methods, the Water Spirit Udumbara is more suitable for my cultivation path."
Zhong Cai immediately smiled: "Since both are what Senior Brother Xuan wants, why not take them both?"
Xuan Bing: "Huh?"
Even someone as resolute as Xuan Bing was somewhat dumbfounded.
If you want to take two items, you'll have to buy both on credit!
Being able to buy an eighth-level treasure on credit is already a huge favor, but to be willing to buy both of these on credit, Junior Brother Zhong is... too generous.
At this moment, Xuan Bing's thoughts couldn't help but wander.
Although he had inquired and learned that Junior Brother Zhong and Junior Brother Wu had obtained many high-quality resources on the day of their return to spring, including quite a few level eight items, the difference between having his two junior brothers lend him two items on credit and having to wait a long time to pay off the debt, and selling them to powerful individuals who could pay in full with Xuan Stones, or simply keeping them for themselves... was too great.
Xuan Bing was quite embarrassed.
Wu Dongxiao was secretly delighted, and at the same time, his gratitude towards his two uncles deepened.
Zhong Cai smiled and said, "Senior Brother Xuan, swear an oath. I believe that with Senior Brother Xuan's abilities, you will be able to improve your strength quickly and return the Xuan Stone. Shao Gan and I don't like to have people with us. Even though we took Dong Xiao with us, we didn't take good care of him. We will have to trouble Senior Brother Xuan to help us in the future."
Xuan Bing said, "Taking care of Dong Xiao is simply my duty."
Zhong Cai waved her hand dismissively: "One thing at a time! It's your business to take care of her, and it's our business to ask you for help."
Xuan Bing couldn't say anything more.
Zhong Cai pushed both level-eight resources to Xuan Bing.
Xuan Bing was indeed not a pretentious person, and since things had come to this point, he was naturally prepared to swear an oath.
only……
Xuan Bing: "How should we price these two resources?"
At that moment, everyone paused.
That's true. It seems we were only thinking about trading, but forgot how many Xuan Stones we needed to trade.
Zhong Cai smiled and said, "That's good enough. Give me a total of forty billion low-grade Xuan stones."
On average, that's 2 billion each. For a relatively good level 8 resource, that's a fairly average price.
Actually, it's a bit cheaper than selling it to others for competition, but not by much; the market price is about the same.
Xuan Bing swore an oath without hesitation.
The IOU agreement was thus formally established.
·
Zhong Cai put away the other resources that Xuan Bing and Wu Dongxiao did not need.
Next, the two brothers sat down to drink tea and exchanged a few words with Zhong Cai and Wu Shaogan.
After that, the two sides had nothing more to talk about.
So Xuan Bing, along with Wu Dongxiao, bid farewell to the two.
Zhong Cai laughed and said, "Senior Brother Xuan and Dong Xiao are the same, right? Without a million Xuan stones, there's no need to rush to pay it back."
Xuan Bing agreed.
Immediately afterwards, the two brothers left.
After everyone left, Zhong Caicai said happily, "When Senior Brother Xuan and Dongxiao go out to train in the future, they'll probably be ripped off."
Wu Shaogan listened and raised an eyebrow.
Zhong Cai turned her head to look at him: "What, you don't think so?"
Wu Shao chuckled dryly, "I think what A-Cai said is quite right."
Zhong Cai said smugly, "That's more like it!"
·
On their way back, Xuan Bing and Wu Dongxiao were unusually quiet.
When they first signed the IOU, they were mostly happy, but now that they're out here, sitting cross-legged on the back of the Crimson Fire Phoenix, with the wind blowing from both sides, the feverish feeling in their heads has completely disappeared.
Both of them are quite calm now.
At the same time, they couldn't help but think of those two terrifying numbers.
Wu Dongxiao, 1.13 billion.
Xuanbing, 4 billion.
From then on, the two brothers had a towering mountain weighing on their shoulders, making it impossible for them to stand up straight.
Xuan Bing had mixed feelings.
He originally wanted to help his junior brother pay off his debts, but unexpectedly, he ended up with a debt several times heavier than his junior brother's!
Four billion!
Even though he's already at the Fusion Realm, this number still makes him dizzy.
Suddenly, Wu Dongxiao spoke softly, "...Master...what to do?"
Xuan Bing didn't hear clearly and asked, "Dong Xiao, what did you say?"
Wu Dongxiao raised his voice slightly and said, "Senior brother! Should we tell Master about this? What will we do if Master finds out?"
Xuan Bing: "..."
Xuan Bing pondered for a moment and then whispered, "There's no need to tell Master about this."
Wu Dongxiao moved a little closer to Xuan Bing.
Xuan Bing pondered, "I always feel that I can't owe anyone any more favors."
Wu Dongxiao didn't understand for a moment what this had to do with owing favors.
Xuan Bing's mind worked quickly. He recalled his previous interactions with his two junior brothers, Zhong Cai and Wu Shaogan, and said hesitantly, "Junior Brother Zhong is very generous and easygoing. Perhaps because he has acquired so many resources this time, he doesn't seem to care much about immediately converting them into Xuan Stones."
Wu Dongxiao listened carefully and nodded in agreement: "Uncle Zhong is indeed a very generous person." He paused, "And very kind as well."
Xuan Bing's lips twitched: "So... I suspect that Junior Brother Zhong might also have resources suitable for our master."
Wu Dongxiao paused: "Senior brother, do you mean that Uncle Zhong will also give me face and have Master write an IOU?"
Xuan Bing remained silent.
To be honest, when this idea came to him, he thought it was a bit outrageous, and wondered if he was being too shameless and presumptuous.
But Junior Brother Zhong's previous generous offer of two level-eight resources was really too... casual.
Xuan Bing thought to himself, if even he, Dong Xiao's senior brother, could get credit, then his master's relationship with Dong Xiao must be even closer than his own, and his master must be extremely protective of Dong Xiao... Perhaps Junior Brother Zhong would actually give him face.
Moreover, Xuan Bing, who was raised by Wan Tianfeng from a young age, knows Wan Tianfeng much better than Wu Dongxiao knows his master.
Xuan Bing knew very well that his master was not far from the Spirit Transformation Realm and needed a lot of resources to cooperate.
Under such circumstances, if a suitable resource were presented to the master, the master would certainly be willing to trade at a high price.
If it's a level seven resource, the master can afford it with his savings; and if the suitable resource reaches level eight...
Master, I'm afraid you really should write an IOU.
·
After listening to his senior brother's words, Wu Dongxiao was also a little conflicted.
It seems, perhaps, that it's not impossible.
However, no matter what, they couldn't keep asking their two uncles for resources, since they would always owe Xuan Stones, right?
Wu Dongxiao then said, "Senior brother, why don't we just not tell Master? Let's keep it a secret if we can?"
Xuan Bing nodded.
Wu Dongxiao hesitated again, but what if his master would be hindered from cultivating because of this?
But in the end, the two brothers decided to put it off for the time being.
Since Master is still in seclusion, we'll ask him if he needs any resources when he comes out.
The two of them still felt that constantly going to Duobao Peak to inquire about resources was no different from deliberately taking advantage of others, and doing it again and again was just too greedy.
It's best not to go if you can avoid it.
·
Afterwards, the two brothers returned to Feifeng Mountain and each went into seclusion.
Xuan Bing, in particular, possesses two level-eight resources. He should refine the ones that need refining as soon as possible, and use the others as soon as possible.
Soul-fusion treasures are the kind that can be refined if desired. Xuan Bing needs to refine them into his primordial soul so that they can continue to function.
The level of that Water Spirit Udumbara is too high. Xuan Bing can only attempt to refine it when he reaches at least the Spirit Transformation Realm. But now it can create a cultivation domain filled with endless water mist. After Xuan Bing successfully refines the Soul Fusion Treasure, he can enter this domain to absorb the water mist, continuously refine the secret technique, and enhance its power...
Wu Dongxiao himself had bought an eighth-level body-refining treasure, which he couldn't use for the time being, so he naturally continued to cultivate step by step.
But after thinking about it for a while, he still went and rented a few books on alchemy.
He wanted to see just how talented he really was.
Upon reading this, Wu Dongxiao found that he had actually understood the contents of the classic text quite easily, and he immediately had a better idea of what was going on—his talent in alchemy was actually not bad!
At that moment, Wu Dongxiao became interested.
From then on, he would spend some time every day studying alchemical texts and also researching medicinal herbs, trying to get started as soon as possible.
It was certainly very difficult when I first started trying it.
However, since level one resources were very cheap, Wu Dongxiao went all out in refining them. Even when he failed, he was discouraged. He wasn't blindly refining; rather, he could see his progress each time he refined them, so he was aware of his own progress.
Meanwhile, Wu Dongxiao would occasionally write letters to Zhong Cai, which contained his questions about alchemy...
Zhong Cai did not refuse him. Not only did she give him a corresponding answer, but several days later, she also gave him a book on alchemy.
The booklet covers the first to third levels of alchemical lineage.
Each type of elixir forms a network of alchemical knowledge. By simply following along, Wu Dongxiao can quickly absorb a vast amount of related knowledge and rapidly improve his alchemical skills...
Some time later, Wu Dongxiao actually succeeded in refining a first-grade pill!
He could even start refining the quality of the pills!
·
The first to third levels of alchemy inheritance were actually specially recorded by Zhong Cai, and they belong to the ninth level of inheritance.
As for why it took several days to give it to Zhong Cai, it was because Sang Yunchu had finally completed the inscription of the inheritance and returned the original to Zhong Cai.
Zhong Cai was also surprised that the little brat suddenly became interested in alchemy, but recalling some information about the protagonist that she had received before, it didn't seem too unexpected.
Perhaps, no matter what, the little brat will eventually put some effort into alchemy.
The original protagonist's alchemy was simply because he happened to inherit the legacy of the Pill King; having more skills is never a bad thing, and besides, the protagonist was poor in the early stages! It was also to earn some resources for his expenses…
Now, the protagonist should have no shortage of resources and no need to earn any money for himself, but he used high-level resources ahead of time and incurred a huge debt due to overspending.
So, the protagonist has to work hard to pay off his debts.
Making pills to pay off debts... well, it's good to have more skills, right?
·
While Zhong Cai found it amusing, she also had some mixed feelings.
While the implications were subtle, he simply granted him a level nine inheritance.
He was curious to know whether the protagonist, while possessing similar combat talent to his uncle, could also have a sufficiently powerful talent for alchemy, just like his adoptive uncle…
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