Invincible Soul Emperor

Chapter 114: Chapter 114 Gathering Soul Pill of the Six Yangs

The first step of alchemy, Quenching Flame, is the process of refining various medicinal herbs into Medicinal Liquid in a specific order. This step sounds simple, but it has its difficulties. Not only must one master the heat of the Alchemy Furnace, but one must also control the timing for adding each herb and monitor the progress of the refinement.

However, with the guidance of the Pill Emperor’s Heart Sutra, the process went smoothly despite it being Ye Qingchen’s first time. After twenty minutes of refinement, all five medicinal herbs had been processed into Medicinal Liquid. Now it was time for the second step of alchemy: purification.

The purification of the Medicinal Liquid was Ye Qingchen’s greatest strength. After all, he had just purified a Medicinal Liquid to ninety-eight percent purity at the Apprentice Alchemist Conference. This step was also completed with ease, followed by the final and most important step of alchemy: Solidifying Pill.

Many Apprentice Alchemists are unable to advance to become First-Grade Alchemists because they get stuck at the Solidifying Pill step. After all, refining medicinal herbs and purifying Medicinal Liquid can be perfected through practice, so long as the heat of the Alchemy Furnace is well-controlled. The Solidifying Pill step, however, is different. This step requires the alchemist to possess immense spiritual power and control. After all, various herbs have synergistic or antagonistic properties, with some even having completely opposite attributes.

The slightest mistake could cause the herbs to repel each other, leading to the one thing alchemists dread most: a furnace explosion.

Ye Qingchen took a deep breath and began the most crucial phase. Step by step, he followed the records in the Pill Emperor’s Heart Sutra, attempting to mix and compress the various Medicinal Liquids. The green Medicinal Liquid began to shrink, gradually taking the shape of an irregular bead.

Ye Qingchen felt a surge of pride. This is the precursor to the Elixir’s formation. All I have to do now is increase the heat to burn away the remaining impurities, and the Elixir will solidify completely.

But it was during this final, simple step that a problem occurred. A crack appeared on the translucent Elixir, followed by more and more, until finally, the Elixir shattered completely, turning to ash in the roaring flames.

Ye Qingchen’s brow furrowed. How could it have failed? I was so close.

Instead of attempting a second round of alchemy, Ye Qingchen sat down cross-legged and replayed the steps he had just taken. The more he replayed the process, the deeper his frown became. No matter how he reviewed his actions, he was certain he had followed the pill formula exactly. So where did it go wrong?

Ye Qingchen began to inspect the medicinal herbs he had prepared; they were all up to standard. So where was the mistake?

Was my control insufficient? No, that can’t be it. With the enhancement from my Double Pupils, my control over the heat and timing is second to none. Was the refinement inadequate? That’s not right either. I purified the Medicinal Liquid to ninety-nine percent, a feat no one else could achieve when refining First-Grade Pills!

Suddenly, inspiration struck. Ye Qingchen slapped his thigh and shot to his feet, pacing the secret chamber excitedly. That’s it, it was a problem with the purification!

Because he had increased the purity of the Medicinal Liquid so drastically, the nature of the toxins and impurities within the liquids had also changed. If he continued to refine them using the old method, failure was inevitable. This also explained why the furnace hadn’t exploded, even though his attempt had failed.

Having identified the problem, Ye Qingchen began to ponder a solution. He compared the records in the Pill Emperor’s Heart Sutra with the legacy of Elder Fen Tian, and an hour passed quickly.

Ye Qingchen adjusted his mindset, took out a new batch of medicinal herbs, and began his second attempt. The refinement and purification stages went off without a hitch. When he reached the third step, Ye Qingchen activated his Double Pupils, focusing his entire attention on the Alchemy Furnace. His spiritual power was already formidable, and with the enhancement from his Double Pupils, not a single minute change within the Alchemy Furnace could escape his senses. Even though he had found a solution, Ye Qingchen remained extremely cautious.

Ultimately, his perseverance paid off. After a long twenty minutes, the Crimson Heart Pill he was refining finally finished solidifying.

Succeeding on only his second attempt was a feat that would surely make other Alchemists burn with envy. Every Alchemist grew stronger by experiencing countless failures and furnace explosions. For a First-Grade Alchemist, achieving a pill solidification rate of forty percent was already something to be immensely grateful for.

He had succeeded once in two attempts, for an apparent success rate of fifty percent. However, Ye Qingchen knew in his heart that if he were to refine a Crimson Heart Pill again, he would absolutely not make another mistake.

Ye Qingchen gazed at the Spirit Pill in his hand, which radiated both pill fragrance and Spiritual Energy. His eyes were filled with emotion—this was the very first Spirit Pill he had ever refined, and its sentimental value was immense.

Ye Qingchen smiled and placed the Crimson Heart Pill into his storage ring. Even though he had no use for such a Spirit Pill at his current level of strength, he decided he would keep it for the rest of his life.

After briefly adjusting his state, Ye Qingchen took out a new set of medicinal herbs to begin refining the next Spirit Pill: the Six Yang Soul Gathering Pill.

Although the Six Yang Soul Gathering Pill was also a first-grade Spirit Pill, its refinement difficulty was no less than that of a second-grade Spirit Pill, and its effects were equally remarkable. The number of medicinal herbs required reached a terrifying total of over thirty. This drastically increased the demand on an alchemist’s control, as each additional herb required them to divide their focus even further to manage the fire’s heat and the degree of refinement.

Ye Qingchen was not being overambitious by attempting the most difficult Six Yang Soul Gathering Pill right after refining the Crimson Heart Pill, the simplest of First-Grade Pills. It was because while refining the Crimson Heart Pill, Ye Qingchen had come to a profound realization: his grasp of the alchemy process far exceeded the level of a typical First-Grade Alchemist.

As time was short, Ye Qingchen couldn’t afford to progress slowly step-by-step. He therefore chose to tackle the Six Yang Soul Gathering Pill directly. Even if he failed, he could learn from the experience and improve himself. The medicinal herbs required for the Six Yang Soul Gathering Pill were also quite precious, but thanks to his relentless efforts in gathering materials, Ye Qingchen had more than enough to splurge.

After composing himself, he began the refinement. As expected, his first attempt ended in failure. But Ye Qingchen was not discouraged. After a brief analysis, he began his second attempt.

「Three days!」

For three days, Ye Qingchen refined Spirit Pills without eating or drinking. Finally, after five failed attempts, he successfully created his first Six Yang Soul Gathering Pill. Afterward, he pushed himself even harder, attempting the refinement again and again.

By the end, his success rate in refining the Six Yang Soul Gathering Pill had reached a terrifying ninety percent