Chapter 167: Opening the Furnace for Alchemy

Upon returning to his small courtyard, Chen Jianghe first wrote a message and placed it in the post box outside Courtyard 514.

Once Ruan Tieniu returned, he would naturally see this note. At that time, he would first seek out Alchemist Zhuang to trade the Foundation Establishment Pill Formula.

Refining at the end of the year was exactly what Chen Jianghe had in mind. After all, crowdfunding the refinement of the Foundation Establishment Pill was a matter better done sooner rather than later; otherwise, unforeseen changes might occur.

The next day.

Chen Jianghe made another trip to Fushou Lane. He knocked on the door ring of Blessed Residence 136. After about fifty breaths of time, Jiang Ruxu finally opened the courtyard gate. Zhuang Xinyan was hiding behind her.

“So it’s Elder Chen.”

Jiang Ruxu and Zhuang Xinyan both let out sighs of relief. Smiles appeared on their faces as they invited Chen Jianghe inside. However, observing the two women’s expressions, Chen Jianghe guessed that Alchemist Zhuang was likely not at home.

“Is Alchemist Zhuang not around?” he asked.

“Master has gone to the Immortal Sect Marketplace,” Jiang Ruxu said.

“Grandpa told us not to leave the house during this time, and absolutely not to leave the Marketplace. If anything comes up, we’re supposed to find you, Elder Chen,” Zhuang Xinyan added innocently.

“Alright. When Alchemist Zhuang returns, tell him that the matter he entrusted to me is already handled, and we can begin after the new year.”

Chen Jianghe had no intention of going inside. With only the two girls at home, he didn’t want to get too involved with them. He originally came to purchase Body Refining Spiritual Pills from Alchemist Zhuang, but he hadn’t expected the man to act so swiftly.

He had already headed to the Immortal Sect Marketplace. If his guess was correct, Alchemist Zhuang had gone to purchase the Auxiliary Materials needed to refine the Youthful Pill.

As for the Auxiliary Materials required for the Foundation Establishment Pill, Alchemist Zhuang currently had no way to purchase them. He would have to wait until Ruan Tieniu returned from the Youxian Mountain Range. Only after the two traded for the Foundation Establishment Pill Formula would Alchemist Zhuang know exactly what Spiritual Materials the twenty-one Auxiliary Materials were.

Although Chen Jianghe knew, he couldn’t tell Alchemist Zhuang. He had already sworn an oath to keep it a secret for Ruan Tieniu.

“Wait a moment, Elder Chen.” Jiang Ruxu stopped him. She walked out of the courtyard gate and handed three jade bottles to Chen Jianghe. “Master anticipated that you would come today, Elder Chen, so he left behind these three bottles of elixirs.”

Chen Jianghe accepted the jade bottles. With a sweep of his Divine Sense, he knew these were exactly the Spirit Pills he needed for Body Refining: Qi Blood Pills, Meridian Opening Pills, and Body Refining Pills.

All of them were High-Grade.

Each jade bottle contained ten Spirit Pills, making a total of thirty High-Grade Spirit Pills.

According to the market price, these thirty High-Grade Body Refining Spiritual Pills were worth six hundred Spirit Stones. A High-Grade Qi Blood Pill cost twenty Spirit Stones apiece, and the Meridian Opening Pills and Body Refining Pills were priced the same.

“So many?” Chen Jianghe exclaimed in surprise.

To be honest, he didn’t have that many Spirit Stones on hand. Coming to Alchemist Zhuang to buy Body Refining elixirs, he could afford a maximum of six Spirit Pills at once. He only had a total of two hundred twenty-eight Spirit Stones and ninety grains of Spiritual Sand on his person. If he spent it all on Body Refining Spiritual Pills, he wouldn’t be able to get by.

“Master said these are a gift for you, Elder Chen, to offset one free Alchemy session,” Jiang Ruxu said with a smile.

Chen Jianghe nodded and left Fushou Lane.

If they were truly a gift, he genuinely couldn’t accept these Body Refining Spiritual Pills. Otherwise, he would start owing favors. Between him and Alchemist Zhuang, there were only transactions and no personal favors to speak of. Any friendship they had was entirely built upon their trades.

Offsetting it through a transaction meant offsetting it against the free Alchemy session. Alchemist Zhuang had said he would provide the Auxiliary Materials, while the Alchemy fee would go to Chen Jianghe. Looked at this way, the Spirit Pills in his hand were likely paid for by the Spirit Stones from Ruan Tieniu and Ji Wujin. When the time came, their shares of three hundred Spirit Stones each would perfectly offset these thirty Body Refining Spiritual Pills.

Returning to his courtyard, he hung up his “In Seclusion” sign. He then let out Little Black and Fur Ball to continue processing and dismantling the Demon Beast parts. As for himself, he focused on Cultivation, drawing Spirit Talismans, and Body Refining.

This transaction with Alchemist Zhuang made him understand the importance of Spirit Stones even more. If he hadn’t been lacking Spirit Stones, there would have been absolutely no need to strike a deal with Alchemist Zhuang, much less make any promises.

He mused, “Ten Qi Blood Pills, Meridian Opening Pills, and Body Refining Pills each… this is enough for five years of my Body Refining needs.”

Chen Jianghe cultivated the Tidal Body Refining Technique and was currently at the Mid-Stage Body Refining. If he wanted to continue his Cultivation, he would need the assistance of Tidal Essence and Body Refining Spiritual Pills.

He needed two pieces of Tidal Essence, along with two Qi Blood Pills, two Meridian Opening Pills, and two Body Refining Pills per year. He still had one piece of Tidal Essence on hand, which was enough for this year’s Cultivation.

However, his time for drawing Spirit Talismans would have to be reduced in the future.

Currently, he needed to circulate the Ten Thousand Waters Scripture through three Grand Circulations every day, which took three hours. Then, he had to cultivate the Tidal Body Refining Technique for two hours. This reduced his time for drawing Spirit Talismans to seven hours.

Although this would decrease his income from Spirit Talismans, it couldn’t be helped.

Mid-August.

Ruan Tieniu returned from the Youxian Mountain Range. Upon seeing Chen Jianghe’s message, he went to find Alchemist Zhuang. Then, he sought out Ji Wujin to inform him about the end-of-year Alchemy. Afterward, seeing the “In Seclusion” sign hanging on Chen Jianghe’s courtyard gate, he left a return message in the post box.

Chen Jianghe saw the note, but he did not go out to meet with Ruan Tieniu. There were still four months until the end of the year. There was no need to meet up at this time; it was better to focus on drawing more Spirit Talismans.

In November.

Chen Jianghe received a letter from Yu Daniu. The contents of the letter left Chen Jianghe unsure whether to be happy or worried. It stated that both Yun Sanniu and Yun Siniu had broken through to Late-Stage Qi Refining. Furthermore, both had taken on positions within the Yun Family: Yun Sanniu had become a Steward at the Jingyue Tavern, while Yun Siniu had become a Steward at the Jingyue Treasure Pavilion.