2022-11-24 00:06:51The pill refinement process immediately began once Tang Yun Long was satisfied with his inspection. Because he had the habit of refining the pills with intense flame, the eldest senior brother added half a stalk of Spirit Calming Grass to solidify his refinement results.
As this would be Chen Tu's first time observing the process of refining a Spiritual Replenishing Pill, Tang Yun Long favored him a little more.
"Crimson Marble Fruit!" Tang Yun Long said and grabbed the ruby-like fruits within a tray. This Spiritual Herb usually comes in a big and small pair. The former tasted sour, while the latter had a sweeter flavor.
These fruits held no value from eating them raw. But the thing is different after cooking. The medicinal extract inside the fruit would strengthen tenfold after processing them.
From many Alchemists' records, this miracle is due to the chemistry between bigger and smaller fruit. Like Yin compensating for Yang, the mixture doesn't equal two, but three or more.
Hence, the Crimson Marble Fruit had to be harvested together with the stem to preserve either fruit from degrading. If either fruit was damaged in the process, it is equivalent to wasting the other fruit.
By putting some force in his hand, Tang Yun Long dropped the Crimson Marble Fruits into the cauldron to purify the fruit's essence through the flame. A bucket of burning charcoal was also added to the fireplace to start the process.
After a few minutes, both fruits were cooked to perfection. And to avoid burning the medicinal essence, the fire has to be removed.
"Xiao Tu, remove the flame!" Tang Yun Long ordered. Simultaneously after what he said, a pair of tongs were used to remove the remainder rinds of the Crimson Marble Fruit.
Tang Yun Long then reaches out for the next ingredient. Both Spirit Calming Grass and the Highland Flower were added to the cauldron. And almost instantly, the two medicinal herbs evaporated and turned into a cloud of gasses trying to escape the pot.
But their escape was thwarted by Tang Yun Long after he covered the cauldron with a pull of a chain. He then forcefully presses the lid while injecting his Spiritual Energy into the pot simultaneously.
"Xiao Tu, new fire!" Tang Yun Long ordered. He was asking for a new bucket of burning charcoal, not what was left from before. This was part of pill refinement, where uneven flame, either too strong or weak, is believed to affect the pill and its final grading.
And thus, changing the bucket of charcoal into a new one for a steadier flame was necessary.
Chen Tu naturally followed the instruction obediently. He quickly replaced the bucket with new charcoal before placing it inside the fireplace. Qin Lei also quickly helped and raised three fingers at Chen Tu, reminding him to add another batch of charcoal onto the preparatory stove.
The flame from below and Spiritual Energy above created a cycle of condensation for the evaporated medicinal gasses. Before long, drops of Spiritual Herb extracts were dripping from the corner of the lid.
They're only waiting to be mixed together to create a final concoction.
It's been a quarter-hour from the start until now, but they're just halfway through the process. These fifteen minutes don't seem long for the others, but not in Tang Yun Long's case. Being the only person standing closest to the fire, he had to bear all the intensity from the flame while refining the Spiritual Replenishing Pill.
This was the challenge all alchemists had to face eventually. And this explains why cultivation, physique, and preparation were necessary for an alchemist before they started to refine a pill.
Although an accident is rare, once in a while, there's always news regarding an alchemist ending up burned into ashes because forcefully trying to refine a pill that exceeds their ability.
The news also didn't stop there. There are also a few special cases where the alchemist was forced to add some of their precious blood essences to form the medicinal pill. Although this practice wasn't banned, it was still considered a drastic measure.
After all, what is the point if the refinement requires the alchemist to sacrifice his vitality in the process? Even if the pill is worth the effort, how many times can the alchemist repeat it before dying a gruesome death?
"Burial Root!" it was finally the time for the last ingredient. Upon entry, the Spiritual Herb acted like a sponge that sucked up all the moisture in the surroundings and harmonized them within its root.
Tang Yun Long also stopped injecting his Spiritual Energy from the top and only relied on the flame from the charcoal to cook the Burial Root. Under everyone's sharp observation, the Burial Root deflates multiple times until a few obvious pellets can be seen on its parched exterior.
"Xiao Tu, new fire!" Tang Yun Long ordered again. Because Chen Tu already had Qin Lei's tip this time, his movement was very smooth. The exchange of buckets happened in less than three seconds, and strong flames fired up the cauldron again.
But this time, it was accompanied by Tang Yun Long's Alchemic Refinement Flame. It wasn't necessary, but if the attempt could help the pill coagulate faster, why not?
Chen Tu witnessed how his eldest senior brother lighted the medicinal cauldron with the Alchemic Refinement Flame. In exactly thirty-three minutes, the pill refinement process is finally completed.
"Remove the flame! Open the cauldron!" Tang Yun Long immediately ordered. The others quickly moved, with Chen Tu pulling the bucket of charcoal away. One person went for the lid, and another scooped the pill out.
The scalding hot pills were placed in a bowl to be gently panned until the heat subsided. Even the stopping momentum had to be done in control to prevent the pill's surface from cracking.
After a while, seven pills were allowed to cool on the plate. But unfortunately, two of them cracked and shattered.
Their combined effort in this first cauldron of ingredients turned out to be five Spiritual Replenishing Pills. All of them were regular medicinal pills without stars.
"Juniors... Great job." Tang Yun Long praised everyone and raised his thumbs up at them.
"YAY! Success right on our first try!" except Chen Tu and Qin Lei, everyone yelled in happiness.
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