Chapter 93: Refining the Jade Marrow Pill (Third Update)

The three alchemy rooms were arranged, with the central one being the largest.

The various facilities inside were also the most complete.

This was because, in this alchemy room, there was the most precious item in the Alchemy Hall, aside from Luo Chen.

The Xuan Yun Tripod, a first-tier intermediate-grade item.

It was said that its price was among the highest for intermediate-grade magical artifacts, even more expensive than some less useful intermediate-grade defensive magical artifacts.

At this moment, there was no one else in the large alchemy room.

Even Millet was kept outside.

Luo Chen stoked the fire himself, opened the furnace, and continuously added the medicinal materials that Uncle Hua had already prepared.

Common ginseng and polygonum multiflorum were indispensable auxiliary materials.

Even for Qi Nourishing Pills, such auxiliary materials were necessary, as they could provide the basic essence energy for cultivators.

In addition, there were more valuable auxiliary materials like blue tangerine grass and snow orchid. They could effectively assist the main ingredients, either by enhancing their medicinal power or suppressing certain unwanted properties.

After these auxiliary materials were added to the tripod, Luo Chen stared intently at it.

The Spirit Eye Technique had already been cast on his eyes.

Now, his Spirit Eye Technique was just one step away from the Master level.

When he used it, his vision was so sharp that he could see through the realm of a Ninth Layer Qi Condensation cultivator with a single glance.

Ordinary Qi Condensation cultivators would never spend much effort on such a technique, so their proficiency could not compare to Luo Chen's.

Occasionally, Luo Chen would wonder if, once his Spirit Eye Technique reached the Master level, he could see through the disguises of Foundation Establishment cultivators.

"The medicinal power of the auxiliary materials has been mostly released."

"It's time to add the main ingredient!"

Luo Chen took a bamboo box from a nearby shelf.

Opening the box, a palm-sized piece of cold jade glowed brightly.

Washing Jade, a first-tier spirit jade, was abundant in rivers, lakes, and seas, and also produced in places with heavy yin energy.

This jade had many uses. It could be used to make jade boxes to seal pills, or to create water-attribute jade slips.

Its inner jade marrow could also be used for body refinement.

It was said that this type of jade was also popular in the mortal world, either as the core material for ice cellars or for constructing tombs on a large scale.

The price was quite high.

A palm-sized piece of Washing Jade cost one spirit stone.

If sold, it could buy ten pounds of spirit rice.

The main ingredient of the Jade Marrow Pill was the jade marrow from this Washing Jade.

It alone accounted for one-fifth of the total cost of a batch of pills.

According to Luo Chen's estimation, the raw material cost for a batch of Jade Marrow Pills was about five spirit stones.

Not cheap, but not expensive either.

It was similar to the cost of the All-Wonder Pills.

Actually, the cost of the All-Wonder Pills shouldn't have been that high, but one of the main ingredients came from the Northern Sea of the Outer Domain, which made the cost artificially high.

Currently, the cost of the Jade Marrow Pill was set, but Luo Chen was still unsure about the number of pills that could be produced in a batch.

However, as long as it was higher than the All-Wonder Pills, it would definitely be profitable!

After all, one was an aphrodisiac, and the other was a pill to aid cultivation.

The two markets could not be compared.

With these thoughts in mind, Luo Chen did not relax his movements at all.

The Washing Jade floated above the tripod, and Luo Chen continuously channeled his spiritual energy.

The amount of spiritual energy released was not large, only about one-tenth of a Fireball Spell.

However, this force had to be maintained very well and very steadily.

The duration was long enough to cause a sense of fatigue.

After channeling the spiritual energy, he had to manipulate and compress it using a special technique.

This technique, called the Jade Folding Hand, was learned from the *Qingyuan Alchemy Manual* and was specifically used to process jade-like materials.

Under the Jade Folding Hand technique, cracks appeared in the Washing Jade's shell.

Then, drops of clear liquid, like bone marrow, seeped out.

This was the jade marrow of the Washing Jade!

It was originally solid, but under the manipulation of spiritual energy, it became semi-solid and semi-liquid.

Once these jade marrows entered the tripod, they would turn completely liquid under high temperature.

Extracting the jade marrow took a lot of effort from Luo Chen.

It took a full half-hour to complete this task.

"The two most difficult parts, one is done."

"The next one is even more challenging."

The main ingredient being jade meant that this pill was not a medicinal pill but a mineral pill!

In the cultivation world, medicinal pills were the absolute mainstream.

Medicinal pills were divided into many types based on their main ingredients and effects.

For example, if the main ingredient was an herb, it was a medicinal pill.

If the main ingredient was a monster's inner core, it was a beast pill.

If the main ingredient was a mineral, it was a mineral pill, also called a metal-stone pill.

It was said that there were also soul pills with soul as the main ingredient, qi pills with qi as the main ingredient, and strange pills with rare items from heaven and earth as the main ingredient.

There were even rumors that great alchemists could use the intangible laws of the Dao as the main ingredient to refine Dao pills!

Swallowing a Dao pill, the Dao could be expected, and one's fate would no longer be controlled by heaven but by oneself.

Luo Chen was not interested in those intangible and elusive things.

He had only been in contact with medicinal pills and mineral pills so far.

The current Jade Marrow Pill was a mineral pill.

Refining a mineral pill would inevitably encounter a problem.

That was how to remove the impurities from the mineral while perfectly blending it with herbal materials.

If the impurities were not removed enough, the mineral pill would have metal-stone toxicity.

If the blending was not good enough, the pill would be very unstable and prone to mineralization!

As for the result of mineralization?

Soon, Luo Chen saw it.

Not only him, but Uncle Hua and others also saw it.

"Is this the Jade Marrow Pill you refined?"

Uncle Hua held a handful of colorful small stones, his face full of disbelief.

Luo Chen was a bit embarrassed and scratched his head.

"Everyone has their off days, and even horses can stumble!"

"Besides, who can succeed on their first try? Even the Alchemy Sage of Central State wouldn't dare to boast about it."

As he spoke, Luo Chen called out loudly.

His reasoning was sound, and his confidence was strong!

That was the case.

The logic was also sound.

But the disappointment was hard to hide.

Uncle Hua sighed and threw the handful of colorful stones on the ground.

"I was too hasty."

Luo Chen subconsciously patted his shoulder, but he was startled when he did so.

When did I become so disrespectful to a Foundation Establishment cultivator?!

But seeing that the other party was not displeased, he smiled and said, "Hey, failure is the mother of success. This failure will definitely lead to success in the future. Uncle Hua, don't lose heart. I already have a good grasp of refining the Jade Marrow Pill!"

Uncle Hua muttered, "Failure is the mother of success," and wandered home in a daze.

After three days of being a protector, the person he was protecting gave him a hard blow right away.

After he left, Luo Chen shook his head.

The old man was so old, yet he couldn't keep his cool!

When he first refined the All-Wonder Pills, he failed for several days in a row but remained confident.

In front of other subordinates, he picked up the colorful stones from the ground.

After all, they were worth five spirit stones in raw materials, and the little trinkets they produced were valuable.

At the very least, they could be used to play marbles or checkers in his free time!

However, the quantity was not enough. He needed to fail a few more times to collect all the colors to play checkers.

He thought this, and others watched him pick up the marbles with enthusiasm.

Over the next few days, the failed marbles were all collected and delivered to Luo Chen.

During these days, Luo Chen rarely started to work hard on refining pills.

Every morning and afternoon, he refined the All-Wonder Pills twice.

Under his deliberate control, the success rates for low-grade, intermediate-grade, and high-grade pills were maintained at a ratio of 3:6:1.

This slowed down the improvement of his Master-level proficiency in refining the All-Wonder Pills.

However, it effectively concealed his true alchemy skills.

For this, the gang held another meeting.

It was chaired by Mi Junping.

She planned to set different prices for the three grades of pills.

After discussion, the low-grade All-Wonder Pills were priced at three spirit stones, the intermediate-grade at five, and the high-grade at ten spirit stones.

Such a high price was almost equal to a Qi Nourishing Pill!

There wouldn't be many buyers.

But it was fine; there would always be some big spenders.

Moreover, the effects were vastly different based on the grade.

According to the experience report of a veteran user, Mr. Zeng Wen, the intermediate-grade All-Wonder Pills were twice as effective as the low-grade, and the high-grade completely eliminated the side effects of the All-Wonder Pills.

Even with long-term use, it wouldn't cause the lower lock to loosen.

Moreover, it truly had the effect of consolidating the foundation and nurturing the root.

Zeng Wen exclaimed that he had found the direction of the Dao!

Luo Chen was also moved by himself. He had brought a touch of warmth and a splash of color to this cold and ruthless cultivation world.

He, Luo Chen, deserved to be one of the top ten outstanding young representatives of the Jade Cauldron Domain's cultivation world.

The Jade Cauldron Sword Sect owed him a trophy made of high-grade spirit stones!

Well, the self-appreciation ends here.

Aside from refining the All-Wonder Pills twice a day, Luo Chen would refine the Jade Marrow Pill by himself in the evening.

That's why there were so many colorful marbles.

Time passed quickly.

Ten days later, Uncle Hua stepped into the Alchemy Hall of the Crescent Moon Valley again.

However, he was immediately angered by what he saw.

"What are you doing?"

On the left side of the Alchemy Hall, there was a slightly protruding cliff platform.

Usually, a stone table was set up here for Luo Chen to eat and drink.

However, today, three people were sitting around the stone table.

Luo Chen, Gu Caiyi, and Sikong Shoujia.

The three were gathered around a hexagonal board.

It was densely filled with marbles of six colors.

At that moment, it was Sikong Shoujia's turn to move the pieces.

Hearing Uncle Hua's sudden roar, he shivered and quickly overturned the board.

"Reporting to the leader, we are studying the characteristics of the failed Jade Marrow Pills to find the possibility of success."

It sounded grand, but!

Luo Chen gritted his teeth and glared at Sikong Shoujia.

Old man, you were about to lose, and you overturned the board.

I don't care; you must give me the book you bet!

...

Faced with Sikong Shoujia's sophistry, Uncle Hua was half-believing, half-doubting.

Overall, he didn't believe it at all!

However, seeing the two old men looking at Luo Chen pitifully, he also wanted to know Luo Chen's progress.

Seeing the two old men looking at him pitifully, Luo Chen sighed.

He took out a jade bottle from his storage bag and casually threw it to Uncle Hua.

Uncle Hua took the jade bottle in confusion, opened it, and his eyes instantly widened.

Then...

"Ha ha ha, as expected, you're a genius in alchemy!"

Luo Chen gave a thumbs up, "You really have keen eyesight!"

Uh!

Uncle Hua stiffened, this kid was really shameless!

But then, he was overjoyed as he took out a pale white pill from the jade bottle.

"Come, that kid from the Luo family, come here for a moment."

Luo Chen subconsciously took a step, then became angry.

Damn, he was calling Luo Erduo, Luo Wudi's nephew.

No, after becoming a respected elder, the Luo surname must be respected!

Luo Erduo walked up in a daze.

"Leader!"

"Eat it, run your cultivation technique, try to refine it, and then tell me the result."

"Okay."

Luo Erduo was usually carefree, but he was obedient in front of a Foundation Establishment cultivator.

He took the Jade Marrow Pill and started practicing his cultivation technique on the spot.

However, his posture was extremely strange, like a frog lying on the ground or a tiger descending from the mountain with all its hair standing up.

Seeing this, Luo Chen was stunned.

Seeing his confusion, Gu Caiyi whispered, "Each cultivation technique has its unique effects, so the cultivation methods are different. It's said that Luo Erduo practices the Tiger Walking Mountain Technique taught by his uncle Luo Wudi. At each stage, the technique simulates the movements of a monster tiger to better absorb the spiritual energy of heaven and earth."

Luo Chen understood.

He didn't know much about cultivation techniques, except for the Changchun Technique.

The Changchun Technique, a wood-attribute technique, is suitable for stillness, not movement.

Therefore, when running the technique, the body is like a still tree.

The Tiger Walking Mountain Technique, on the other hand, is more dynamic.

He wondered what other cultivation techniques were like.

Thinking about this, he glanced at Gu Caiyi.

He noticed that she looked a bit uncomfortable and turned her face away.

Luo Chen became interested, "Gu Daoist, let's practice together sometime!"

"Get lost!"

Gu Caiyi spat, her eyes flashing (rolling her eyes).

Seeing the two bickering, Uncle Hua glared at them and immediately set up a soundproof barrier around Luo Erduo.

For low-rank cultivators, running their cultivation techniques took a long time.

When Luo Chen practiced the Changchun Technique, it took two hours each time.

This drawback was later reduced to half an hour as his proficiency improved.

Luo Erduo was no exception. He performed various strange movements, each lasting twenty minutes.

After two hours, he finally finished, drenched in sweat.

Uncle Hua nodded, "The Tiger Walking Mountain Technique has nine movements. You can currently use six, which shows that your foundation in the middle Qi Condensation stage is solid."

Luo Erduo was pleased by the praise.

He wiped the sweat and talked about his experience with the pill.

"The medicinal properties are cold, not as mild as the Qi Nourishing Pill."

"Normal, the main ingredient is Washing Jade, which is cold, so the medicinal properties are naturally cold," Luo Chen explained.

Looking at Luo Chen, Luo Erduo continued, "The medicinal power is good, increasing my total spiritual power by about one or two thousandths."

One or two thousandths, roughly one or two thousandths.

Luo Chen frowned, "The medicinal power is a bit low, probably due to my technique not being good enough yet."

However, Uncle Hua was already very satisfied.

He smiled, "Luo Erduo is only at the Fourth Layer of Qi Condensation. Taking one Qi Nourishing Pill would increase his power by about one or two hundredths. In other words, this low-grade Jade Marrow Pill already has one-tenth the effect of a Qi Nourishing Pill!"

Luo Chen raised an eyebrow. Uncle Hua seemed to have a lot of experience in this area?

He currently had some confusion in this regard.

Perhaps, he could find a time to get some advice from Uncle Hua.

Foundation Establishment cultivators, after all, could always be persuaded to give up something valuable if you tried hard enough.

After getting the user feedback, Uncle Hua dismissed everyone.

He looked excitedly at Luo Chen, "What's the success rate?"

Luo Chen replied calmly, "In ten days, I only succeeded once, using my own Purple Cloud Copper Furnace. In one batch, I produced eleven Jade Marrow Pills."

Hearing this, Uncle Hua's excitement diminished.

The Jade Marrow Pills couldn't be sold like the All-Wonder Pills.

The All-Wonder Pills, as Kang Dongyue, the head of the Goldstone Pavilion in Mount Tai Market, had said, were over