CHAPTER 970: CHAPTER 967: FIRST PILL REFINING

The pale blue flame quietly burned within the furnace. Lin Tian seemed to be silently counting something, and when he reached nine in his mind, he opened the lid, added three scoops of spring water into the alchemy furnace, then closed the lid again.

The water in the alchemy furnace quickly heated, with steam spraying from the fine holes in the dragon and tiger mouths on the lid. The meeting of water vapor at both ends intertwined like dragons and tigers, creating a magnificent spectacle.

Lin Tian recalled the ingredients for the "Shaoyang Pill" in his mind. Next, he would begin adding the ingredients. Zi Yan and the others watched quietly without disturbing Lin Tian.

One must concentrate completely during alchemy and control the heat. It’s similar to cooking; if the heat is off, the cooking will fail. If cooking fails, it’s merely unappetizing, but if alchemy fails, you end up with a pile of medicinal residue, and in the worst case, the furnace might explode, which would be dangerous.

"Main ingredient, three stalks of Shaoyang Grass..."

Lin Tian recalled the elixir recipe’s ingredients, confirmed the quantity, and his hand hovered over the herbs, now holding three stalks of Shaoyang Grass.

Shaoyang Grass is also a relatively rare herb, and most ordinary doctors have never heard of it. Shaoyang Grass must be used in its entirety and has an excellent effect in expelling evil and supporting good, suitable for countering Yin Sha Qi.

Lin Tian felt the intensity of the heat within the cauldron, then opened the lid and tossed the Shaoyang Grass into the alchemy furnace. As the Shaoyang Grass touched the boiling spring water, it made a "hiss" sound, followed by a peculiar fragrance that everyone smelled.

This fragrance was very unique, as if one was standing in sunlight amidst flowers, the floral aroma seemingly imbued with the flavor of sunlight, giving a sense of bright springtime.

Spring is the season when Yang Qi first arises, and this newborn Yang Qi is the Shaoyang Qi, giving a feeling of spring returning to the earth, and everything sprouting.

Everyone experienced this strange feeling because the medicinal aroma of Shaoyang Grass was evaporating under the heat of the cauldron, dispersing into the air. Inhaling this medicinal aroma, people felt nourished and comfortable, like basking in the sun in early spring.

Everyone showed expressions of amazement, except for Jiang Xiu Ying, who shook her head, seemingly dissatisfied.

Lin Tian controlled the fire’s intensity through the wind path, heating slowly. His first step was to extract the medicinal liquid from each ingredient using the cauldron. The purer the extraction, the higher the chance of successfully forming a pill in the next step.

The medicinal liquid in the cauldron turned a jade green color. As the steam evaporated, the liquid thickened and the green deepened. At a certain point, Lin Tian quickly extinguished the fire in the furnace, completing the extraction of Shaoyang Grass.

Lin Tian opened the cauldron lid, and everyone leaned over to see the nectar-like medicinal liquid inside the cauldron, which was quite appealing.

"Elder Jiang, what do you think?" Lin Tian inquired. This was his first semi-finished product as a pharmacist, so he was particularly concerned.

Jiang Xiu Ying shook her head and simply said, "Failure!"

"No way, Brother Lin’s medicinal liquid is jade green and looks quite good. How can it be a failure?" Yun Xiaotian asked, very puzzled; this was the same thought An Xiaoru had.

Jiang Xiu Ying glanced at Yun Xiaotian as if looking at a child, smiled helplessly, and said, "Success in alchemy isn’t judged by appearance. However, since I’ve been refining medicine for your grandfather, and you haven’t seen it, it’s understandable that you would say that."

"Elder Jiang, how do you determine if it’s successful?" Lin Tian asked humbly.

"Actually, during your extraction process, I already knew this extraction would fail because the medicinal fragrance was too intense earlier," Jiang Xiu Ying explained her reason for shaking her head moments ago.

"Why is this?" Lin Tian and a few others asked simultaneously.

"Although alchemy has similarities to cooking, medicinal ingredients are not cuisine. There’s no need to aim for a combination of color, aroma, and taste. When you extracted Shaoyang Grass earlier, the fragrance was too intense, indicating a loss of potency."

"That’s one reason. The second is the color of the extracted Shaoyang Grass should ideally be light green, resembling the fresh sprouts of trees in spring—fragile but thriving, full of vitality. The closer it is to this color, the better."

"The medicinal liquid you extracted was a mixed green, indicating many impurities. High impurity levels in the medicinal liquid greatly increase the likelihood of failure during the pill fusion process. I mentioned earlier that purer medicinal liquid enhances the chance of successful pill formation."

"Returning to the previous question, how can you maintain potency during extraction? The key is controlling the heat, regulating the variation in heat without blindly applying high heat for speed. Uncontrolled thermal changes in the cauldron cause potent substances to vaporize in tandem with intense heat fluctuations."

"How to control the heat, I can’t tell you because I’m only half a pharmacist. I can only share the insights, which you can find in your pharmacist notes and the Shennong Emperor’s Medical Scripture. Your pharmacist notes are rich with alchemy experience, perfectly suited for beginners like you," Jiang Xiu Ying patiently explained to Lin Tian.

Even though she did not mention any specific alchemy methods, her guidance sparked a breakthrough for Lin Tian, a sense of enlightenment.

Since Jiang Xiu Ying did not disclose specific alchemy methods, it did not break any rules for An Xiaoru and Yun Xiaotian to listen, as they were not pharmacists and couldn’t understand it anyway.

"Thank you very much for the guidance, Elder Jiang. You are my teacher," Lin Tian sincerely expressed with great respect.

In Elder Jiang, Lin Tian saw a reflection of Elder Zhou. When Elder Zhou taught him the knowledge of jadeite, he was devoted, imparting knowledge freely without requiring formal disciple rituals.

Such magnanimity and openness are the hallmarks of a master, unlike those in the news where anyone claims to be an expert or master. A true master is not only distinguished by knowledge but also by character.

"Haha, you may call me teacher, but not master." This was the second time Jiang Xiu Ying mentioned this, explaining that both Lin Tian and Zi Yan share Master Gui Guzi as their teacher.

"Junior Brother, do you wish to continue?" Zi Yan smiled and asked.

"Of course, there’s no such thing as giving up in my dictionary," Lin Tian replied confidently.

Having said that, he sat down cross-legged on the ground, regardless of the location, and began recalling the contents of the Shennong Emperor’s Medical Scripture and the Pharmacist Notes in his mind.

Last time, he focused on the prescription, but now Lin Tian centered all his attention on alchemy, replaying the book’s contents as if a person were performing alchemy before him, personally instructing him.

Only Lin Tian could achieve this as he memorized the entire book in his mind, so visualized, it was as if a pharmacist were practicing in his brain.

In fact, the image of that pharmacist was himself. Lin Tian, based on his understanding of alchemy, practiced in his mind, simultaneously rehearsing and observing, becoming increasingly familiar with alchemy’s skills and methods.

When Lin Tian reopened his eyes, he noticed Zi Yan and the others looking at him with odd expressions.