Chapter 92

Chapter 92: I, Luo Chen, will cultivate and refine the foundation for Uncle Mi Shuhua, protecting the path! (Second Update)

Freelancer, lackey, worker, tool, partner!

Luo Chen's identity, through his efforts, was subtly changing.

The changes in the Alchemy Hall were visibly progressing day by day.

The group of apprentices, furnace workers, and alchemy managers were gradually becoming familiar with their roles.

A month passed in the blink of an eye.

At the end of the month, Luo Chen took some time to attend a small internal meeting of the Broken Mountain Gang.

There weren't many attendees: him, Uncle Mi Shuhua, Mi Junping, the three hall masters of the Combat Halls—Zeng Wen, Luo Wudi, and Yang Wei.

And the two Alchemy Hall enforcers, Sikong Shoujia and Gu Caiyi.

During the meeting, it was decided that each of the three Combat Halls would send ten people, with one being in the late Qi Condensation stage and nine in the middle Qi Condensation stage.

Thus, three small teams were formed.

These three teams would now serve the Alchemy Hall wholeheartedly.

They would handle protection, transportation, and some procurement tasks.

During the meeting, Luo Wudi mentioned something.

"I have a connection in the Snow Lotus Market, but it's a bit risky. If we can establish it, the profits will definitely be high."

"Riches come from taking risks. Why not give it a try?"

Everyone else was somewhat eager to try.

However, upon learning about Luo Chen's current alchemy production, Uncle Mi Shuhua temporarily put this proposal on hold.

"This month, the Alchemy Hall produced a total of 980 Wondrous Pills."

"This quantity can barely meet the demand of the Great River Market. Even if we establish a connection in the Snow Lotus Market, we won't have enough pills to supply."

"Moreover, the Snow Lotus Market is a harsh and cold place, not as prosperous as the Great River Market. It's not worth the effort."

These were Uncle Mi Shuhua's exact words.

Luo Wudi was a bit disappointed. He had wanted to use this opportunity to elevate one of his brothers, just like Wang Yuan, to take on a significant role.

The lack of alchemy production limited his idea.

All he could do was encourage Luo Chen to refine more pills.

Luo Chen chuckled and said he would try his best.

When the meeting ended, Luo Chen, in front of everyone, received four bottles of Qi Nourishing Pills from Mi Junping, who looked pained.

Luo Wudi, Yang Wei, and the others stared with wide eyes.

Wasn't it supposed to be two bottles a month?

When did that kid get a raise?

Are you sure Luo Chen isn't Uncle Mi Shuhua's illegitimate child?

The person involved didn't care about their thoughts.

Just envy it, this is what I deserve!

Nearly a thousand Wondrous Pills a month means four to five thousand low-grade spirit stones!

What does this mean? It could buy forty to fifty bottles of Qi Nourishing Pills, or two high-grade magical artifacts, or even a dozen low-grade magical artifacts.

And that's just for one month.

A Qi Condensation cultivator's lifespan is at least a hundred years.

In the long run, as long as Luo Chen continues to produce pills, he will bring stable and substantial profits to the Broken Mountain Gang.

Therefore, no matter how unwilling Uncle Mi Shuhua and Mi Junping were, they had to pay this salary.

...

Under the dark night sky, Luo Chen sat alone on his bed.

The Grandmaster-level Eternal Spring Technique continuously circulated, and the Qi Nourishing Pills dissolved within him, releasing a massive amount of spiritual energy that he absorbed.

Finally, it merged with his own spiritual energy.

This process of transformation and absorption lasted for a long time.

The feeling of fullness and abundance continued.

Until Luo Chen, gritting his teeth, swallowed another Qi Nourishing Pill.

"Breaking through to the sixth level of Qi Condensation is happening today. I'll do it in one go!"

With this thought, he continued the same actions.

With the influx of new spiritual energy, the feeling of fullness and abundance became even stronger, almost to the point of feeling bloated.

Unconsciously, when Luo Chen finished his cultivation and opened his eyes, his body was already emitting the spiritual fluctuations of the sixth level of Qi Condensation.

"Success!"

After years of effort, he finally reached the realm of Old Daoist Chen.

Now, among the middle Qi Condensation cultivators, he was one of the strongest.

He glanced at his attribute panel.

[Sixth Level of Qi Condensation 1/100]

Luo Chen's originally joyful mood suddenly became heavy.

The effect of the Qi Nourishing Pills seemed to be getting worse.

At the third level of Qi Condensation, one pill could increase two progress bars.

At the fourth level, one pill corresponded to one progress bar.

At the fifth level, it took about two pills to increase one progress bar.

And this time, after breaking through to the sixth level of Qi Condensation, Luo Chen had calculated through the system that he would need at least five pills to increase one progress bar.

A bottle of Qi Nourishing Pills only contained ten pills.

In other words, he would need at least fifty bottles of Qi Nourishing Pills to advance to the seventh level of Qi Condensation.

That's five thousand low-grade spirit stones!

Moreover, the number of pills he could refine in a day was also limited.

"Grass! It's a plant!"

"Am I cultivating or eating spirit stones?"

Luo Chen, the rat, had become a gold-devouring beast.

His handsome face was now filled with uncertainty. He felt something was off.

Other low-level cultivators didn't waste spirit stones like this!

Was it because of his five-element constitution?

Or was it because the Grandmaster-level Eternal Spring Technique had opened all his meridians, requiring more spiritual energy to break through realms?

Or was it some other factor?

For a moment, Luo Chen couldn't pinpoint the problem.

He only knew that he needed to gather as many cultivation resources as possible and find a way to refine more pills in a day.

Oh, and one more thing.

The effect of the Qi Nourishing Pills was getting worse, and he was gradually developing a tolerance.

He needed to find a new pill to replace the Qi Nourishing Pills.

With all these thoughts swirling in his mind, Luo Chen seemed to have gotten used to it.

He planned step by step and finally got up.

"Regardless, breaking through to the sixth level of Qi Condensation today is a good thing."

"I should celebrate with a drink!"

Holding a green gourd, he drank Huangli Wine and walked to the courtyard.

The moon was bright, and the stars were sparse.

In the small courtyard, it was silent, but there was a figure sitting on a swing, swaying back and forth.

"Gu Caiyi, you're still awake?"

Gu Caiyi had noticed Luo Chen as soon as he came out.

She just nodded lightly and continued swinging the small swing.

Suddenly, she blinked.

"Did you break through to the sixth level of Qi Condensation?"

"You've been discovered. Haha, indeed, even a genius, no matter how low-key, stands out like the moon in the night sky."

Luo Chen chuckled.

Thinking for a moment, he made a hand seal, and his spiritual energy circulated along a special path.

The leaking spiritual fluctuations slowly returned and condensed into a seed of spiritual energy within his body.

In an instant, his external spiritual fluctuations returned to the level of the fifth level of Qi Condensation.

The Conceal Qi Technique!

"Gu Caiyi, take a look, what level am I now?"

Gu Caiyi looked and her eyes brightened, then she said calmly, "Fifth level of Qi Condensation."

Indeed, the Conceal Qi Technique was effective.

After a month of practice, he had reached a proficient level and could slightly control his spiritual fluctuations.

Luo Chen alternated between releasing and concealing his spiritual fluctuations, playing with them happily.

After a while, he felt the atmosphere become as cold and clear as the moonlight.

"Gu Caiyi, what's wrong? Are you in a bad mood?"

Gu Caiyi sighed, "Don't mind it. I'm just worried because, since you joined the Broken Mountain Gang, your realm has advanced so quickly, but my income has drastically decreased."

Luo Chen was taken aback.

Income?

Indeed, Gu Caiyi's monthly spirit stone income at Tianxiang Tower was quite good.

Especially during the grand opening of the Discussion Platform, her dance performance had made her a star.

In the following month, she had earned a lot.

But after leaving Tianxiang Tower?

Even as an Alchemy Hall enforcer now, her monthly salary was only a hundred or so spirit stones.

Sikong Shoujia also earned this much, but don't forget, the old man had an elder's title and received additional income.

A monthly income of a hundred was already quite good.

In the inner city, it was roughly equivalent to a small shop enforcer or a large shop supervisor.

However, this was far from enough to meet the cultivation needs of a ninth-level Qi Condensation cultivator.

With this income, how many years would it take to advance from the ninth level of Qi Condensation to the Great Perfection stage?

And how much time would it take to earn enough spirit stones to buy a Foundation Establishment Pill and break through to the Foundation Establishment stage?

"I'm already thirty-nine years old."

"Although I've always aspired to reach the Foundation Establishment stage, I know it's just a fantasy."

"But the Dust Transformation Pill that Fei Baiwen gave me allowed me to advance to the ninth level of Qi Condensation. Now, I'm just one step away, but I'm stuck here due to a lack of cultivation resources."

"I'm not willing to give up!"

"Luo Chen, was leaving Tianxiang Tower the right choice?"

Hearing these murmurs, Luo Chen was momentarily at a loss for words.

He had jokingly said he would "support" her, and then Gu Caiyi joined the Broken Mountain Gang and became an Alchemy Hall enforcer.

But only now did he realize that the salary of an Alchemy Hall enforcer was not enough to support her cultivation.

Of course, this wasn't his responsibility. Introducing her to a livelihood was a good deed.

Regarding Gu Caiyi's confusion, Luo Chen could only say:

"Though it may not be right, it's definitely not wrong. The Foundation Establishment cultivator from the Hua family at Tianxiang Tower has been there for only a month or two, and it's said that two or three female cultivators have already died."

Luo Chen casually mentioned these observations, and Gu Caiyi was momentarily speechless.

Seeing this, Luo Chen didn't know how to comfort her.

He and Gu Caiyi were different.

Besides his monthly salary, he also received a share of the alchemy profits.

Thinking about this, Luo Chen suddenly realized something.

The investment in the Alchemy Hall by Uncle Mi Shuhua and the Broken Mountain Gang was increasing.

Apart from the few high-ranking members, dozens of middle and late-stage cultivators relied on the Alchemy Hall for their livelihood.

If his profits didn't increase soon, there might be problems with the group depending on him.

Change jobs?

Find a side gig?

Gradually become less involved in the Alchemy Hall?

"It seems the Jade Marrow Pill can't be delayed any longer!"

This thought flashed through Luo Chen's mind.

For others, and more importantly, for himself!

The profit ceiling of the Wondrous Pills was ultimately too low.

Only a cultivation-enhancing pill like the Jade Marrow Pill could be a cash cow!

...

...

Today, it was another day of refining pills.

Before starting, Luo Chen first met with the two enforcers and three late-stage Qi Condensation cultivators.

They were the experts selected from the three Combat Halls, responsible for leading the teams to transport the pills to designated locations for sale.

A team of thirty cultivators was escorting only a thousand Wondrous Pills.

To be honest, it was a bit like using a cannon to swat a fly or a sledgehammer to crack a nut.

However, this was a strict order from the gang leader, and no one objected.

Luo Chen knew that this personnel structure wasn't for the Wondrous Pills but for the future Jade Marrow Pills.

Handing over the batch of Wondrous Pills to the three, Luo Chen casually inquired about the destination.

It turned out that the Broken Mountain Gang had rented a small shop in the inner city, which usually sold miscellaneous resources from the Ancient Origin Mountains.

Most of these resources were things that major sects and the Lianyun Merchant Alliance didn't value.

The Broken Mountain Gang couldn't process them, so they put them up for sale in the shop.

There were always scattered cultivators interested in them.

Now, Luo Chen's Wondrous Pills would also become a special product in the shop.

Besides the shop, the southern scattered cultivator market and a small store in the outer city were also destinations for the Wondrous Pills.

After sending them off, Luo Chen leisurely entered the alchemy room.

Gu Caiyi directed a group of apprentices to move various processed raw materials into the alchemy room.

The furnace workers also took their positions.

Luo Chen waved his hand, and the alchemy session began!

Seeing his spirited appearance, the group of miscellaneous cultivators couldn't help but show envy.

This month's work had made them somewhat numb.

Every day, they repeated the same tasks.

Even for cultivators, it was quite boring.

If this were in the modern world, they would be like assembly line workers, endlessly repeating monotonous tasks.

As for the future?

Becoming a noble alchemist?

Luo Chen had never heard of an assembly line worker becoming a CEO.

Clearly, that wasn't possible here either.

Luo Chen didn't care about these things. The fragrant girl at Tianxiang Tower had once been a furnace attendant for three years in a sect.

He just focused on refining the pills.

Beside him, Miling was busy, occasionally wiping his sweat and passing him the wine gourd.

Wasn't she supposed to observe the alchemy? How did she end up being a servant?

Miling was also a bit confused.

When did this start?

Maybe it was when Luo Chen asked her to buy cucumbers?

Although she grumbled inwardly, Miling knew what she had to do.

She was trying her best to learn and imitate, but after a month, she still hadn't made much progress.

When another alchemy session ended, she realized she had learned nothing again.

Disappointed, she watched as the alchemy furnace opened.

A rich, intense medicinal fragrance instantly caught her attention.

"What is this?"

A pill the size of a longan, red and almost purple, was shining brightly on Luo Chen's fingertip!

"High-grade Wondrous Pill!!!"

Miling's expression was stunned, and she exclaimed.

The furnace workers, responsible for monitoring the fire, also looked over.

Luo Chen looked at the high-grade pill in his hand,