Chapter 328
Seventh Stage of Pill Refinement
"hiss!"
Deep within the Funiu Mountains, a giant python as thick as a bucket crept silently along, its scarlet eyes gleaming like flames as if it had caught a whiff of some exotic fragrance.
Soon, it arrived at the edge of a thatched hut and could sense a sweltering heat and a strong medicinal aroma from afar.
A glint of greed flashed in its eyes, and it instinctively crawled toward the source of the medicinal fragrance.
However, the next moment, an arrow formed from condensed golden energy struck like a meteor, its sharp arrowhead easily piercing through the snake scales that protected it with demonic energy.
The giant python howled in agony, its head pinned to the ground, and it soon breathed its last.
Zhou Sheng put down the golden eagle bow in his hand, walked over, used his finger as a knife, skillfully cut open the snake's belly, took out a huge snake gall, and then put it into his mouth.
Snake gallbladders are bitter, but they are a precious medicinal material that can warm and nourish the liver, gallbladder, lungs, and kidneys, and also has the effects of improving eyesight and soothing the throat.
When I was a child, my master often gave me a drink made with silver ring snake gall and snow pear, which could repair vocal cord nodules and make my voice smoother.
Therefore, Zhou Sheng did not mind the bitterness and fishy smell of the snake gall at all, and swallowed it directly, then used the mental technique of "Hibernating Dragon Sleeping Immortal Skill" to refine it.
Threads of magical power flowed into his dantian; though thin, they were equivalent to several days of arduous cultivation.
This giant python has already cultivated demonic energy and gained sentience. If it cultivates for another few decades, it will be able to refine its transverse bones and speak human language.
A highly nutritious food!
"How many times is this already?"
Zhou Sheng carried the giant python back, then collapsed to the ground with a thud, a helpless, bitter smile on his face.
Seven days after the furnace was opened, the elixir was refined six times.
Countless mountain spirits were drawn by the fragrance of the medicine, their greed leading them to attempt to steal it.
Zhou Sheng would naturally not be polite to this; he would kill one if one came, and two if two came.
In just seven days, the number of monsters, big and small, who died at his hands was too many to count on two hands.
"People die for wealth, birds die for food."
Yao Taifeng skillfully peeled the snake's skin, her tender, green fingers contrasting sharply with the colorful patterns on the giant python.
With a cut, a pull, and a peel, the ivory-white snake flesh was exposed.
"If they hadn't come to us of their own accord, how could you and Senior Niu have been eating so well these past few days?"
"Indeed, I've had a real feast these past few days. It's just that you've had a hard time, Hongying."
Zhou Sheng's gaze towards her grew even more tender.
These days, she has been diligently studying alchemy while also carefully cooking various delicacies, all so that the old man of Niushan can eat and drink his fill and be more dedicated to alchemy.
"As long as I can refine a batch of Dragon-Tiger Golden Pills to help you improve your cultivation, what is this little bit of hardship?"
Yao Taifeng smiled brightly, seemingly unconcerned.
Today she wore a deep purple dress, the morning dew slightly dampening her ink-black hair. She was intently processing snake meat, her unadorned face glowing softly in the morning light.
Zhou Sheng's heart stirred.
Since they started refining pills, the two of them have been inseparable all day long, but they haven't had much intimate contact because they've both been too busy.
Once a young man has tasted the sweetness of marrow, how can he forget it?
Yao Tai Feng, being a divine being who had cultivated a golden body through incense offerings, immediately and keenly noticed the subtle change in his gaze, and couldn't help but roll her eyes at him.
"Wait for the elixir to be completed."
After saying that, she picked up the basket and the sliced snake meat and walked away gracefully. Zhou Sheng didn't know if it was just his imagination, but he felt that her figure was more plump and graceful, like a ripe peach.
Every move they make is captivating.
Shaking his head, he calmed the fire in his heart and prepared to return to the thatched hut to see if there was anything he could help with, when suddenly his gaze sharpened. Roar!
A powerful dragon roar resounded, and suddenly a golden dragon phantom appeared above the thatched hut, circling in the heavens and roaming among the clouds.
The next moment, another phantom tiger appeared, confronting the golden dragon from afar.
When the elixir is completed, the dragon and tiger appear.
Zhou Sheng's eyes lit up with joy. Could it be that the Dragon-Tiger Golden Elixir was about to be successfully refined?
Legend has it that when the Celestial Master Zhang Daoling was completing the elixir, images of dragons and tigers appeared, indicating that the golden elixir was almost finished.
His hands formed a mudra, and thunder roared.
Zhou Sheng's figure had already disappeared. In the blink of an eye, he burrowed a hundred feet underground and arrived in front of the alchemy cauldron in the thatched hut.
"Hehe, you brat, now you're not saying that Old Beggar is just messing around, are you?"
The old man from Niushan stroked his beard and chuckled, his face full of self-satisfaction. Pointing to the alchemy furnace, he introduced, "The alchemical texts say that one ascends to immortality through nine cycles. The first cycle subdues mercury into sand, the second cycle extracts lead and forges marrow, the third cycle brings together dragon and tiger, the fourth cycle unites the four symbols, the fifth cycle returns the three powers to their origin, and the sixth cycle causes yin and yang to alternate."
"This batch of golden pills has now reached the sixth stage of completion. Opening the furnace now will produce sixth-stage golden pills, which can be called divine medicine. But in my hands, it can reach the seventh stage!"
He manipulated the fire with hand seals, his expression finally becoming serious and focused. His hand gestures flew like lightning, almost creating afterimages.
"You old ox, lend me some breath, stop being so stingy!"
He gazed at the distant, undulating mountains, his eyes deep, and spoke softly.
The next moment, Zhou Sheng felt as if the entire Funiu Mountain range had moved, and the surrounding feng shui underwent an astonishing change.
"Moo!"
Zhou Sheng seemed to faintly hear the bellow of a green ox, and then the illusory images of the dragon and tiger, which were incompatible like fire and water, shattered with a bang, as if the wind and clouds were converging and blending together.
"This seventh transformation is called the Holy Embryo of the Pill Mother. Feng girl, you've returned just in time. Come and listen to it."
Old Man Niushan beckoned Yaotai Feng over and had her lean over the alchemy furnace, her ear close to her.
"It sounds like...a baby crying?"
"And...the sound of breathing..."
Yao Taifeng's eyes widened in shock, filled with disbelief.
Zhou Sheng went up to listen and found that it was indeed so, and even the originally rich medicinal fragrance had a faint hint of the milky fragrance of a newborn baby.
"The Golden Core has reached the seventh stage. The elixir is like a sacred embryo, seizing the secrets of heaven and earth, and is almost sentient. If it is released now, it will escape on its own. If it escapes, it can transform into human form and become a Pill Demon after several decades."
Zhou Sheng was mesmerized, never imagining that alchemy could be so miraculous.
Although the old man from Niushan said he was teaching Yaotai Feng, he didn't hide it from him and explained it in great detail and clarity. Zhou Sheng was also learning quietly.
The guidance from a grandmaster of Daoist alchemy is extremely valuable.
"This batch of pills is finished, kid. Next, Old Beggar will be opening the furnace. You're in charge of catching them. If they're lost, Old Beggar won't be responsible."
Old man Niu Shan wiped the sweat from his forehead, slightly out of breath, and gave some instructions.
Zhou Sheng was taken aback and asked in surprise, "Senior, since there is a seventh-level Golden Core, shouldn't there also be an eighth and ninth level?"
"Nonsense, of course there is. The Dragon-Tiger Golden Pill that Zhang Daoling refined back then was at the eighth level. Taking one pill can increase one's cultivation by five hundred years, which is extremely rare in the world."
"As for the Nine Revolutions... hehe, don't even dream about it. That thing is a genuine elixir of immortality, existing only in Laozi's Tushita Palace. Mortals who consume it can ascend to heaven in one step and become immortals on the spot!"
"Senior, you are so skilled, the number one alchemy master in the world. Even if you can't refine a nine-turn immortal pill, you must be able to refine an eight-turn one without any problem, right?"
Yao Tai's phoenix eyes darted around, and she said with a grin.
Old Man Niu Shan glared at her and said irritably, "You little brat, all you think about is this brat. Don't flatter me. Even an old beggar like me couldn't refine an eighth-grade weapon even if he worked himself to death."
"After eating a few meals from you, you've almost emptied my savings!"
...(End of this chapter)