Xu Ning was speechless, but he didn't give up. He started cooking again, determined to succeed.
The fourth batch resulted in more waste pills. He was getting closer.
The fifth batch exploded again, sending him back to the drawing board.
Xu Ning kept summarizing his experiences, searching for a balance between too little and too much removal.
Finally, after twenty batches, Xu Ning successfully burned his pot. It was ruined.
Seeing that it was already light outside, Xu Ning quickly opened the door and went outside for some fresh air. He then felt a sense of existential doubt wash over him.
"Is my talent for alchemy really that bad? Am I just not suited for it?"
Xu Ning had doubted the iron pot, the lantern, even the thatched hut, but he had never doubted himself. Now he was questioning everything.
The thatched hut said, "Xu Ning, this is how it is at the beginning of alchemy. After all, it's difficult to get started. After practicing for a while, you'll naturally realize you shouldn't give up. It's a learning curve."
Xu Ning glared at it. "You're trying to discourage me! Believe me, I'll tear you apart if you keep it up."
The thatched hut immediately shut up, not daring to say anything more. It knew when to be quiet.
Xu Ning sighed, took a bath to wash off the soot, changed his clothes, and headed towards the alchemy room. He had a lesson to attend.
Upon arriving at the alchemy room, Xu Ning saw his master, Miao Yunyi, sitting by a large pit, seemingly deep in thought. He looked contemplative.
He wasn't sure if it was just his imagination, but Xu Ning felt there were many more pits here than yesterday. The landscape had changed.
"My dear disciple, you've come?" Miao Yunyi opened his eyes, seemingly sensing Xu Ning's arrival. He looked pleased.
Xu Ning asked suspiciously, "Master, last night, did you… practice more?"
Miao Yunyi glared. "What are you saying? Are you suspecting I burned several batches again last night? How dare you."
Xu Ning quickly shook his head. "I didn't! I would never suspect you."
Miao Yunyi said, "Quickly bring out the spiritual herbs, and I'll demonstrate how to successfully burn one batch for you as soon as possible. Then I can go and deal with other matters. I'm busy."
Xu Ning said, "But I don't have an alchemy furnace. I only have the pot."
Miao Yunyi waved his hand, and another alchemy furnace appeared before him, gleaming. "It's settled then. This is the last time I'll make an exception for you. Next time, you'll have to figure it out yourself."
Xu Ning nodded. "Understood, Master. I appreciate it."
After Xu Ning brought out the spiritual herbs, Miao Yunyi finally spoke. "Yesterday, the sun was too strong, affecting my vision. Today, your master will show you what alchemy is all about. Pay attention."
Xu Ning nodded. "Yes, yes! Master, will the furnace explode again today?"
Miao Yunyi said confidently, "Don't worry, it definitely won't this time! You must have enough trust in your master. Believe in me."
Xu Ning nodded. "I believe in Master. I have full faith."
Miao Yunyi nodded in satisfaction, but then he heard a rustling sound from Xu Ning behind him. He subconsciously turned around and was immediately furious.
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"What are you doing? Don't you trust your master at all? What is this?"
He saw that Xu Ning was completely covered in armor, from head to toe, with only a pair of small eyes showing through the visor.
Xu Ning's voice came from within the armor, muffled. "Master, the sun is too strong. I'm afraid of getting sunburned. Wearing armor for sun protection is reasonable, isn't it? I'm just being careful."
Miao Yunyi immediately felt heartbroken. "Doing this will break my heart! You have no faith."
Xu Ning said, "Master, hurry up and refine the pills! Give me the pill formula so I can follow along."
Not wanting to deal with this rebellious disciple, Miao Yunyi tossed a pill formula to Xu Ning and then began refining pills on his own, focusing intently.
And the result was exactly as expected.
Rumble—
The pill refining room was once again rocked by a shockwave, and another large crater appeared in the ground. The dust rose.
Fortunately, Xu Ning was well-prepared this time, so he wasn't affected. His armor protected him.
Looking at the crater, Miao Yunyi's face was full of resentment. "It was so close! I almost had it."
Xu Ning said, "Master, if the furnace explodes, the difference won't be small! You were far off."
In other words, it didn't even get close to forming. It was a complete failure.
Miao Yunyi said, "My good disciple, I'm demonstrating failure so you can learn from the experience and avoid making the same mistake again, understand? It's a teaching method."
Xu Ning asked, "Is that really so? It seems like you're just bad at it."
Miao Yunyi said, "Of course. Here's what we'll do. Tomorrow, prepare the ingredients for the Fire Spirit Pill and the pill furnace, and I'll demonstrate what true pill refining is all about. I'll succeed this time."
Xu Ning hesitated. "Master, maybe we shouldn't! It's a waste of materials."
Miao Yunyi glared. "Don't you trust me? If not, then forget it. Go exchange for the pill formula yourself. I'm done."
It's true what they say, being a pill refiner is an expensive profession! Just the pill formula alone requires a huge amount of resources to exchange.
And this stuff was a closely guarded secret. You couldn't buy it on the market. You could only exchange it within the sect, and even then, the minimum was 5,000 contribution points. It was a fortune.
Xu Ning didn't have many sect contribution points to begin with, and he planned to use them to exchange for cultivation techniques and spells. He couldn't bear to spend so many contribution points on a formula.
For the sake of the pill formula, Xu Ning had no choice but to nod and say, "Alright, Master. I'll get the ingredients."
After bidding farewell to his master, Xu Ning had just returned to the door of his thatched hut when he saw Cang Wanrou pacing back and forth, seemingly conflicted and anxious. She looked nervous.
"Senior Sister Cang, what brings you here?" Xu Ning walked up and asked with a smile, curious.
Cang Wanrou smiled with difficulty, her face strained. "Senior Brother Xu, you are now an outer disciple. Your status is much higher than mine. I should call you Senior Brother. From now on, you can just call me Junior Sister. I'm beneath you."
Xu Ning didn't dwell on it and nodded. "Junior Sister, what brings you here? Is it about the cultivation of spiritual herbs? Do you need advice?"
Unexpectedly, Cang Wanrou shook her head. "No, Senior Brother. I came here this time to ask you to accompany me to the market. I heard that the market has been a bit unsettled lately, and I'm a little scared to go alone. I need protection."
"And after spending this time together, I actually have a lot of feelings for you, Senior Brother! Since you left, I've been thinking about you constantly, and I want to be with you all the time. I can't stop thinking about you."
Upon hearing this, Xu Ning's heart tightened, and he immediately became alert. Something was off.
The other party's words were clearly full of loopholes. This sudden confession was completely out of character.
There was only one conclusion: the other party wanted to harm him! It was a trap.
It was unbelievable. Even as a disciple of the peak master, his safety wasn't guaranteed, and someone wanted to harm him. The sect was dangerous.
However, Xu Ning was too lazy to expose Cang Wanrou. Instead, he felt that this matter could be used to his advantage.
Xu Ning smiled and said, "Junior Sister, it's like this. I need to prepare elixirs for Master these few days, so I don't have time. If possible, could you wait two days? I'm very busy."
Cang Wanrou was initially disappointed, then gritted her teeth and said, "Then don't forget, Senior Brother! I'll come to see you the day after tomorrow. Please don't stand me up."
Xu Ning nodded. "Okay, I'll be here. I won't forget."
Watching Cang Wanrou's departing figure, Xu Ning couldn't help but smile coldly.
This kind of thing thought she could trick him out of the sect? Tomorrow he'd show her what cunning really meant. He was no fool.
He took a stroll through the spirit fields, processed the spirit plants, and then went to the contribution pavilion to exchange for the elixirs for Fire Spirit Pills. He returned to his thatched hut.
Then he set up the pot, put on his armor for protection, and began refining pills again.
Perhaps it was because he'd watched his master refine pills—no, to watch the furnace explode—today, and gained some insights. Xu Ning felt a sense of ease and success in refining pills this time.
Finally, he successfully exploded another batch. It was a spectacular failure.
The iron pot cried out, "Xu Ning! Maybe you shouldn't learn this anymore! Every time the furnace explodes, it hurts like hell! I can't take it."
Xu Ning retorted, "Shut up! I don't believe it! I'll succeed eventually."
The thatched hut interjected, "Xu Ning, your pill-refining method has always been wrong from the start."
Xu Ning was surprised. "What do you mean? How is it wrong?"