Mang Ba was somewhat disappointed upon hearing this.
He scratched his bald head with his fan-like palm and muttered to himself, “This herb-collecting business really is like robbery.
If I’d known, I would’ve sent my little brat to the Thousand Medicinal House as an apprentice too.”
Of course, he was only speaking in jest.
Becoming a qualified Physician apprentice was no easy feat; even for junior apprentices, the elimination rate was terrifying.
Those who didn’t study seriously or lacked talent would be weeded out in the first round.
Furthermore, this White Orchid Fruit was only discovered because of Yan Qingshan’s incredible observation skills.
Even Xiao Yixian had only recognized it after Yan Qingshan pointed it out.
If it were an ordinary junior apprentice, even if Yan Qingshan pointed directly at the cluster of white flowers, they might not have been able to find it.
Yan Qingshan scanned the surroundings with his peripheral vision once more before turning to Mang Ba.
“By the way, Uncle Mang Ba, was there something you needed?”
Mang Ba slapped his head and pushed Yang Wu, who was standing beside him, forward.
“It wasn’t me looking for you, it was Yang Wu here, coming to thank you.”
Yang Wu was the mercenary whose life Yan Qingshan had just saved.
He carefully handed a polished, brilliant white Monster Core to Yan Qingshan, acting cautiously as if he were afraid of being rejected.
“Little Brother Qingshan, thank you for saving my life.
This is a small token of my gratitude.
Please accept it!”
“It was nothing.
We’re in the same team, so helping each other is only right.
There’s no need for such thanks.”
Yan Qingshan waved his hand to dismiss the gesture and shook his head.
“Take this Crimson Ice Snake core back.
It’s not easy for you guys to come out on these trips, so there’s no need for this.
If you really want to thank me, then just do your best to protect our herb-collecting team.”
“Additionally, I’d like to ask a favor.
Try your best to help me find some Wood-attribute Magical Beasts; a 1st Rank Wood-attribute Monster Core would be quite useful to me.”
“Alright then!
You kid…”
Yang Wu was about to say more, but Mang Ba slapped his shoulder and cut him off.
He pointed at Yan Qingshan and then at Xiao Yixian, leaving with a laughing Yang Wu.
“Brother Qingshan!”
Xiao Yixian’s gaze flickered away shyly.
Yan Qingshan smiled and retracted his somewhat heated gaze, speaking in a low voice to further bridge the distance between them.
The young girl was no longer nervous, and their conversation was filled with laughter.
Yan Qingshan and Xiao Yixian found a few more common herbs near the cliff before returning to the main group.
However, no one noticed that as Yan Qingshan left, his eyes were incredibly profound and inscrutable.
…
At the northern entrance of Qingshan Town, a fully loaded carriage, protected by over a hundred men, arrived at the gates of the Thousand Medicinal House.
After settling the mercenaries’ payments, the team brought the wagon of herbs inside.
Yan Qingshan took Xiao Yixian to inventory the collected herbs.
After receiving a decent reward, he quickly returned to his small room and impatiently immersed his consciousness into his mind.
“Beep…
beep…
beep…”
The faint sound of prompts echoed in Yan Qingshan’s ears.
His face held a mix of excitement and tension as countless streams of information intertwined in his mind, several of which displayed various progress bars.
“Foundation Elixir: Violet Leaf Blue Grass, two five-year-old Bone-Washing Flowers, one 1st Rank Wood-attribute Monster Core…
99.9%”
“Qi Gathering Powder: Four fifty-year-old Ink Leaf Lotuses, two mature Snake-Saliva Fruits, one twenty-year-old Spirit-Gathering Grass, and one 2nd Rank Water-attribute Monster Core…
60%”
“Blood-Clotting Powder: One Blood-Clotting Grass, one Life-Qi Fruit, two Poppy Flowers…
80%”
“Blood Lotus Essence Pill: Blood Lotus Essence, Ice Spirit Blazing Grass, 4th Rank Water-attribute Monster Core…
Progress…
20%”
“Three-Line Green Spirit Pill: Green Flame Grass, Black Gastrodia…
11%”
“Qi Recovery Pill: Spirit-Returning Crimson Fruit…
3%”
“Ground Spirit Pill: Earth Core Fire Agaric, Dragon-Beard Ice-Fire Fruit, Green Wood Immortal Vine, 6th Rank Water-attribute Monster Core…
0.1%”
Yan Qingshan waited with focused concentration for the final moment to arrive, his heart filled with immense tension and anticipation.
If he succeeded this time, it would prove his theory correct, giving him his primary capital to rise within the Dou Qi Continent.
To rise to power, Yan Qingshan had naturally designed plans to strengthen himself.
Relying on his powerful memory, he had managed to extract several complete pill recipes from the plot of the novel he once read, using Dawn to perform deductions.
Dawn’s computational mechanism was based on his cognitive database.
As long as he had personally touched or experienced the specific effects of these herbs, their data would be recorded.
Through big-data deduction and screening, it was possible to analyze and reconstruct a complete pill recipe.
Indeed, a complete pill recipe was more than just a list of ingredients; it included processing methods and precise steps.
Even with these, Alchemists often failed.
Yan Qingshan only knew the ingredient ratios; trying to attempt it blindly would be a certain waste of resources.
Fortunately, he had Dawn.
While Dawn couldn’t perform scientific research to break through new problems, it could perform infinite deductions once enough data was collected.
In theory, it could derive every feasible solution and outcome.
Yan Qingshan still remembered the effects and some rough steps for these pill recipes.
Having part of the process and the final result meant the difficulty and progress of the deduction were much lower, making success much more likely.
Of course, for precious herbs that Yan Qingshan currently couldn’t find or touch, he couldn’t collect data.
Relying solely on the simple descriptions in a medicinal encyclopedia wasn’t enough to begin a deduction.
Furthermore, his mental capacity was limited, so he could only prioritize certain tasks.
The first two formulas were his most urgent needs, so they had the highest analysis completion.
Among them, the most important one—the Foundation Elixir—had entered the final countdown.
As the numbers after the decimal point shifted, the progress of the Foundation Elixir formula finally reached 100%.
Along with a massive stream of information exploding in his mind, the smile on Yan Qingshan’s face widened until it was practically split from ear to ear.
“Foundation Elixir: Three Violet Leaf Blue Grasses, two five-year-old Bone-Washing Flowers, one 1st Rank Wood-attribute Monster Core.”
“Processing Method: Crush and stir three Violet Leaf Blue Grasses using Dou Zhi Qi to extract the raw liquid.
Add the Bone-Washing Flowers and stir vigorously to soak.
After crushing the Wood-attribute Monster Core, integrate it into the medicinal liquid at an ultra-high speed of over 1500 RPM…”
The formula Yan Qingshan analyzed was naturally different from the original.
It wasn’t that he couldn’t deduce the original steps, but rather that his current conditions didn’t allow him to use those methods.
Yao Lao was a Peak 8th Tier Alchemist; refining a Foundation Elixir was naturally simple for him.
But with Yan Qingshan’s conditions, using those methods was impossible.
The medicinal powder created through this plan involved more tedious steps and its effect was far inferior to the true Foundation Elixir, but it was the absolute limit of what he could achieve under his current circumstances.
However, he wasn’t discouraged.
Anything that could assist in Dou Zhi Qi cultivation was incredibly precious.
All things considered, he had still struck a gold mine.
…
Five months later, in the Magic Beast Mountain Range near the end of the year, snowflakes fell gently.
The peaks were wrapped in silver beneath a biting cold wind.
Within the dead silent forest, almost no traces of humans or beasts could be seen.
In the backyard of the Thousand Medicinal House, the once lively main hall had fallen quiet.
During the New Year, the pharmacy would go on holiday.
Most of the apprentices had gone home, leaving only those like Yan Qingshan and Xiao Yixian, who had no family left, to stay behind.
At least here, they still knew a few people.
In the courtyard where Yan Qingshan resided, a figure sat cross-legged within a medicinal bath.
Time had passed, yet it was still the same youth.
After half a year of cultivation, although the youth often went out, he spent far more time in his room than outside.
Due to the lack of sunlight and frequent soaking, his skin appeared exceptionally fair.
While his looks weren’t exactly handsome, he appeared clean and elegant, possessing a somewhat ethereal aura.
‘Inhale…
exhale…
inhale…
exhale…’
Yan Qingshan circulated his Dou Zhi Qi, causing the liquid in the tub to ripple slightly.
Between the colorful ripples, waves of energy were drawn into his body with each breath, strengthening his internal aura.
The pale green liquid constantly changed, thinning and fading to the naked eye.
Simultaneously, Yan Qingshan’s Dou Zhi Qi grew stronger and more vigorous.
Finally, at a certain moment, it reached its peak and hit a threshold.
He slowly opened his eyes.
‘Finally…
9th Stage Dou Zhi Qi.’
Yan Qingshan slowly exhaled a breath of turbid air.
A slightly dark, impure mist shot out like an arrow, extending nearly three feet.
After finishing his work, he felt a wave of lightness throughout his body, and the Dou Zhi Qi within him had reached an extreme.
Reaching the peak of 9th Stage Dou Zhi Qi in half a year was a terrifying speed of cultivation, but compared to those true “cheaters,” he was still far behind.
‘The peak of 9th Stage Dou Zhi Qi.
Now comes the next step.’
Yan Qingshan walked into the room and took a sealed jade-like bottle from a locked cabinet.
This bottle, which looked like warm jade, wasn’t actually made of jade; it was crafted from a superior wood called Jasper Wood, which was most suitable for storing medicinal powders.
‘One month of time should be enough.
I must not fail.
If I lose this time, who knows how long it will take to find another set of materials!’
Yan Qingshan brought the wooden bottle to his ear and gave it a careful shake, his eyes filled with tension.
‘Qi Gathering Powder requires four fifty-year-old Ink Leaf Lotuses, two mature Snake-Saliva Fruits, one twenty-year-old Spirit-Gathering Grass, and one 2nd Rank Water-attribute Monster Core.’
‘It also requires the painstaking refinement of a qualified 4th Tier Alchemist.
It is one of the most difficult 4th Tier pills, capable of assisting a 9th Stage Dou Zhi Qi in breaking through to a Dou Zhe.’
‘The cost of these materials alone exceeds fifty thousand gold coins, and with an Alchemist required, it’s naturally not something I can afford.
Fortunately, aside from the Water-attribute core, I found everything else in the Magic Beast Mountain Range.’
‘According to Dawn’s deductions, this should be the modulation plan most suitable for my current conditions.
Storing it for a month should be enough to disperse the hardest-to-handle Water-attribute Monster Core.
The resulting medicinal juice certainly won’t be as good as a true Qi Gathering Powder, but it should have the effect of the Qi Gathering Liquid used before the pill forms.’
‘This is good enough for me.
It’s better than trying to break through directly without any supplementary means!’
With an anxious heart, Yan Qingshan opened the bottle that had been sealed for a month.
A refreshing fragrance hit his nose; just a small sniff made his Dou Zhi Qi become a bit more active.
He looked at the green-blue liquid inside, which was as thick as honey yet as translucent as glass.
After unsealing it, he didn’t dare to hesitate.
He brought it to his mouth and swallowed it in large gulps.
The medicinal juice he modulated couldn’t compare to a pill; once the seal was opened, its medicinal properties began to leak, making it impossible to store for long.
Therefore, the moment he confirmed the juice was successful, he had to consume it immediately and charge toward the Dou Zhe realm.
As for whether he could become a Dou Zhe, he could only see if the heavens would grant him favor.
After draining the juice, a trembling Yan Qingshan dropped the wooden bottle and returned once more to the slightly cold medicinal bath to sit cross-legged.
He began his breakthrough to 1-Star Dou Zhe.
(End of Chapter)