Chapter 14: Refining Pills

"Then what do you want?" Du Fei stared at Lian Zhen and said indifferently.

Upon hearing this, Lian Zhen's eyes twitched, and then he took a deep breath, sneering, "My group of subordinates are indeed useless, but these useless people have already disgraced me. If I don't stand up for them today, how will I be able to survive in this Bu Yue City in the future!"

As he finished speaking, Lian Zhen stomped his foot on the ground, and his figure shot towards Du Fei like a cannonball. At the same time, his right hand instantly clenched into a fist, and before his body even arrived, a sharp fist wind was already heading straight for Du Fei.

"This is the power of the ninth level of Body Tempering!"

Seeing this punch, which was much stronger than Du Qing's attack that day, Du Fei couldn't help but be startled in his heart.

However, he did not retreat. Instead, his face turned slightly serious, and he also clenched his right hand into a fist, smashing it fiercely towards Lian Zhen's punch.

"Bang..."

When the fists met, Du Fei immediately felt an extremely powerful internal force surge towards him, making his throat sweet and his vision darken. His entire body was forced to retreat rapidly, sliding back several meters before he finally stabilized himself. Even so, a thin thread of blood still trickled from the corner of his mouth.

The gap between the fourth level and the ninth level of Body Tempering seemed to be completely unbridgeable with just a set of Body Tempering Fist!

"Master..."

Xiao Ai let out a low cry, her voice filled with worry.

"It's nothing." Du Fei wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, his expression unchanged.

Although he had spat out a few drops of blood, he had basically neutralized Lian Zhen's internal force with the Soft Fist, so there was no serious injury.

Lian Zhen, looking at Du Fei's appearance, was also slightly surprised. After all, although the gap between the ninth level of Body Tempering was not huge, Du Fei's gap with him was a full five levels. According to common sense, Du Fei should have been instantly killed by his attack, but the current situation... However, even though Du Fei had blocked his move, Lian Zhen was confident that if he used his full strength, he had a 100% chance of killing Du Fei on the spot! This was the confidence of the ninth level of Body Tempering!

"Master Du Fei, you are indeed talented! The Du family is truly extraordinary! Come again!"

With a cold laugh, Lian Zhen stomped his foot on the ground again, and as his figure moved, his hands drew a strange arc. Then, his right hand twisted sharply, and his fist, like a cunning and venomous snake, aimed straight for Du Fei's face!

"Spirit Snake Fist!"

As the punch was thrown, it seemed as if a swarm of snakes were dancing in front of Lian Zhen, creating a terrifying momentum!

"Is this the Lian family's Spirit Snake Fist? Although it's just a ninth-grade martial technique, Du Fei is finished this time!" Seeing this move, someone in the crowd couldn't help but exclaim in shock.

The ninth level of Body Tempering plus a ninth-grade martial technique was absolutely not something a mere fourth-level Body Tempering practitioner could withstand!

Looking ahead, Du Fei's pupils constricted, and a cold electronic voice quickly sounded in his mind.

However, just as he was about to issue a command, a graceful figure suddenly darted in front of Du Fei.

"Bang, bang, bang, bang..."

A series of dull, violent sounds instantly rang out. A moment later, the two figures entangled in front of them both froze, then retreated violently.

"Bang..."

Lian Zhen's feet stomped on the ground, his figure swaying slightly, his face turning red. His gaze fell on the figure in front of him, his shock evident.

At the same time, Du Fei's gaze also fell on the figure in front of him. A moment later, his lips twitched involuntarily, and he exclaimed, "Xiao Ai!"

This sudden turn of events not only left Du Fei but also the surrounding crowd stunned. It wasn't until a moment later that a series of gasps of shock could be heard.

After all, Xiao Ai looked like a thirteen or fourteen-year-old girl, yet she had fought the ninth-level Body Tempering Lian Zhen to a standstill! If this scene hadn't been seen with their own eyes, no one would have believed it!

"Ninth level of Body Tempering?" Lian Zhen exhaled lightly, his expression complex. "Miss Xiao Ai, you are indeed extraordinary..."

"Do you want to try again?" Hearing this, Xiao Ai's face turned cold, her angry gaze falling on Lian Zhen.

"I admit defeat!" Although he had lost, Lian Zhen's expression showed no resentment. Instead, he smiled and said, "With Miss Xiao Ai's abilities, why be a servant to a waste of space! The doors of the Lian family are always open to you! If you are willing, from now on, you will be above all others!"

His tone was serious, and the admiration in his eyes was even more intense, almost impossible to hide.

Hearing this, Xiao Ai frowned slightly and said coldly after a moment, "I'm not interested!"

"Ha ha, since Miss Xiao Ai isn't interested, I won't force you. However, I have a word to say to you... with your talent, isn't it a waste to follow this guy?" Lian Zhen's gaze fell on Du Fei, and he smiled coldly. "Today you were lucky to hide behind a woman! But next time, it won't be so easy... I heard Du Qing plans to cripple you during the Du family competition! I look forward to that time! Ha ha ha..."

After saying this, Lian Zhen didn't even glance at the subordinates on the ground, but laughed loudly and left.

Du Fei's cold gaze fell on the departing Lian Zhen. He took a step forward and grabbed Xiao Ai, saying indifferently, "Forget it... now isn't the time to worry about this."

"But... are we just going to let him go?" Xiao Ai bit her lip, her voice filled with hatred.

"Although he is despicable, he did say something right... if I want to settle the score with him, I have to do it myself... ha ha ha... Du Qing, Lian Zhen, Long Aotian, the black-clothed man... I won't let any of them off," Du Fei narrowed his eyes and said with a cold laugh, his tone calm but filled with a chilling aura.

Hearing this, Xiao Ai nodded slightly, acknowledging his words.

Seeing Xiao Ai's expression, Du Fei smiled and changed the subject, "By the way, I have a question for my little genius... when did you advance to the ninth level of Body Tempering? I didn't know about it."

"This... about half a year ago, but Master ordered me not to tell you, so you didn't know..." Xiao Ai hesitated for a moment before nodding slightly.

Half a year ago, before she turned fifteen, she had reached the ninth level of Body Tempering?

Thinking about this, Du Fei couldn't help but stick out his tongue. It seemed that his father had indeed found an extraordinary prodigy back then!

With Lian Zhen's departure, the conflict that had attracted much attention ended in this unexpected way, shocking many people. In this situation, Du Fei didn't want to stay outside and be a spectacle, so he quickly returned to the family compound with the things he had bought.

Once inside the family compound, the two of them carefully avoided most of the clan members and returned to their courtyard, finally breathing a sigh of relief.

"Master, are you really planning to refine pills with these things?" Xiao Ai looked at the pile of items on the table, her expression strange.

Du Fei smiled but didn't reveal the secret of the system. Instead, he patted the alchemy cauldron and said, "I found a pill formula in Father's study. I don't know where he got it from, but it's worth a try... if I can successfully refine the pill, I won't say anything, but maybe this talented girl can make a breakthrough and advance to the ninth-grade Martial Artist first."

"I don't really care... but Master, isn't it said that refining pills requires a master's inheritance? Won't you get into trouble if you do this recklessly?" Xiao Ai asked, her face filled with concern.

"Probably not. Just keep watch outside and don't let anyone disturb me. I'll try it myself, and if it doesn't work, I'll give up," Du Fei said in a low voice.

"Alright!" Unable to persuade Du Fei, Xiao Ai pouted and left the room, obediently standing guard in the courtyard.

After laughing, Du Fei quickly moved the items to the inner chamber.

Du Fei's living quarters were not large, consisting of a small hall for receiving guests, two bedrooms, and an inner chamber.

This inner chamber was clearly where Du Tian used to practice, so it was quite secluded. Du Fei's decision to refine pills here was a good one.

In the quiet inner chamber, Du Fei carefully opened the jade box, allowing the herbs inside to spill out. Instantly, a medicinal fragrance filled the air.

Smelling this scent, Du Fei's spirit was refreshed, and he couldn't help but take a deep breath before saying in a low voice, "System, read the pill refining procedure again!"

"Beep!"

The cold electronic voice sounded in his mind, and the scene of pill refining he had seen before reappeared in his mind.

After a moment, Du Fei exhaled and his gaze fell on the alchemy cauldron in front of him.

It seemed he could start now!

According to the pill refining process, using true qi to refine the pill would be the most appropriate, but Du Fei hadn't even cultivated true qi, let alone true qi.

However, fortunately, the requirements for fire in refining a ninth-grade pill were not high. When Du Fei casually lit the cauldron with firewood, the pill refining process began... The cauldron was divided into upper and lower parts. In the lower part, the fire was slowly boiling, while in the upper part, after removing the lid, a wisp of blue smoke slowly drifted out of the ancient cauldron.

Du Fei took a deep breath and then grabbed the stone heart marrow from the jade box, evenly sprinkling it into the cauldron.

As the stone heart marrow fell, the cauldron emitted a sound like popping beans, and the newly sprinkled stone heart marrow began to jump slightly due to the high temperature. However, after a moment, the stone heart marrow gradually turned into a liquid, like a bowl of water being poured in.

"First step, success!"

Du Fei's heart leaped with joy, and then he quickly grabbed the Purple Violets and Tiger Bone Flowers, throwing them into the cauldron almost simultaneously.

As the two sets of herbs fell, a purple flame suddenly ignited on the cauldron. These flames covered the two herbs, flickering strangely.

This scene didn't surprise Du Fei too much. According to the system's prompt, the refining process would take a lot of time. For now, he only needed to control the fire, and there wasn't much else to do... Time passed slowly, and after about an hour, the Purple Violets and Tiger Bone Flowers slowly melted like melting snow, gradually softening in the cauldron and merging into the liquid below. However, the herbs that merged into the liquid did not blend together but remained distinctly separate.

The final step, Du Fei called out softly in his heart, and then he carefully grabbed the Orchid Marrow Branch and Leaves, gently tossing them into the cauldron...

"Bang..."

A loud noise echoed, and the inner chamber was instantly filled with smoke, making people's vision blurry. After a moment, the smoke slowly dissipated.

Du Fei's nervous gaze fell on the cauldron in front of him. After a moment, his face turned dark...

It failed!

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