Shen Yuan Ring

Alchemy Room

After parting ways with Wang Yueyue and the others, Ji Daoyi went straight into the alchemy room. He planned to refine all the spiritual herbs in his storage bag into pills, which would not only free up space in the storage bag but also allow him to take the alchemy furnace with him.

Having refined the Body Tempering Pill multiple times, it was a piece of cake for Ji Daoyi now; he could make the pill even with his eyes closed.

Therefore, the first batch of Body Tempering Pills was unsurprisingly all of high quality.

Just as he was about to collect the Body Tempering Pill, an accident occurred.

The alchemy furnace, which had always been quite ordinary, suddenly began to peel off its outer layer of skin.

Upon seeing this, Ji Daoyi couldn't help but curse: "Damn it, I only refined one batch of Body Tempering Pills and this furnace is already broken? Could it really be an ordinary alchemy furnace? Or am I wrong?"

As he was still wondering to himself, the alchemy furnace flashed and revealed its true form.

Then a wisp of smoke rose from it, and then transformed into the phantom of a middle-aged man.

He was extremely tall and slender, dressed in a white outfit with cloud and bat patterns, with a wide blue brocade belt with auspicious clouds around his waist. His jet-black hair was tied up and topped with a small silver crown inlaid with jade. The white jade on the crown was crystal clear and lustrous, which further accentuated the blackness of his hair.

Ji Daoyi was also surprised to see the suddenly appearing phantom. He had never encountered such a situation before. After calming himself down, he asked, "Who are you? How did you get out of the alchemy furnace?"

The middle-aged man glanced at him indifferently, but did not answer his question immediately. Instead, he waved his right hand, and all the Body Tempering Pills refined by Ji Daoyi fell into his hand.

"The medicinal power of the pill has reached 99%, a full dose, very good! No wonder it was able to touch the spiritual imprint I left behind. It seems that the 'charlatan' did not lie to me; he is indeed qualified to be my first disciple."

Ji Daoyi looked puzzled when he saw the illusory figure in front of him, and kept looking at the pills he had refined.

(Could it be that there's something special about the pills I refined that caused this phantom to appear from the alchemy furnace? But that doesn't make sense either; my pills are just ordinary body-tempering pills, they shouldn't have that much appeal to him.)

"I'll ask him first if he has a master. If not, I'll ask if he's willing to become my disciple. That way, I can avoid any misunderstandings. Although the charlatan said my destined first disciple would become my disciple here, I can't accept a disciple who's already become my disciple," the middle-aged man thought to himself.

"Young friend, were you refining pills here just now?"

Ji Daoyi looked around in confusion: "If there's no one else, then it was me who refined it."

(Isn't that obvious? I'm the only one in the entire alchemy room. If it's not me, then it's you.)

The middle-aged man was also surprised by the child's unexpected and unconventional answer.

"Ahem, that's not what I meant. I just wanted to ask who your teacher was?"

"The alchemists in my family taught me," Ji Daoyi said after thinking for a moment.

"That means you didn't have a master!"

"No!" Ji Daoyi shook his head.

(The family's alchemist was probably just a mentor. He had such excellent alchemy talent, but he didn't take on any apprentices, either because his own alchemy level was too low and he was afraid of misleading others, or because he didn't know about the child's alchemy talent.)

Thinking of this, the middle-aged man's expression turned serious, and he said solemnly, "Then would you be willing to become my disciple?"

"I refuse!" Ji Daoyi refused without even thinking. A strange, illusory figure suddenly appeared and said he would take him as a disciple. No matter how he thought about it, he felt there was something wrong with it.

The middle-aged man was taken aback when he heard Ji Daoyi refuse, expecting the child to immediately kneel down and kowtow to become his disciple.

It's astonishing that a disciple of the Central Plains Pill Hall, seeking apprenticeship in this remote and impoverished place, was rejected.

"Why? Do you know who I am, and how many people want to become my disciples?"

Ji Daoyi replied irritably, "Uncle, are you sure you're alright? How am I supposed to know who you are? You're just a phantom, suddenly appearing in front of me, taking the pills I refined, and then suddenly asking me to become your disciple. And you're asking me why?"

Ji Daoyi's series of questions left the middle-aged man at a loss.

After a moment of silence, he felt a sense of utter despair, so he coughed a few times and said, "It's all my fault, I didn't explain things clearly."

"My name is Feng Yuntian, and my Daoist name is Dan Chenzi. Well, a hundred years ago, I was a direct disciple of the Pill Hall, and my alchemy level was Pill King. This illusory image of mine was left in the alchemy furnace by my original self when I left a hundred years ago. Of course, I did not perish; I simply returned to Zhongzhou."

“It would be a huge loss for me to become your disciple. You can’t teach me alchemy right now, nor can you provide me with cultivation resources. Besides, I’m only just starting out in cultivation, and my cultivation level is low. It’s impossible for me to go to Zhongzhou. Moreover, I’m not ready to leave my parents and go far away from home.”

“I can’t teach you alchemy on the spot, but I can pass on my alchemy experience and formulas from being a master alchemist to becoming a king alchemist. This alchemy furnace can also be considered my gift to you as a disciple.”

When Ji Dao heard that he would be given the Pill King's alchemy experience and formulas, his eyes flickered and he replied, "Sounds alright, but this alchemy furnace is already mine."

"You little devil, not only did you not give me a gift for becoming your disciple, but you even asked me for something! Here's what we'll do: if you agree to become my disciple, I'll give you this wisp of Heavenly Fire Origin—Azure Wood Yang Fire—as a gift." Dan Chenzi said with a smile and a scolding tone, but in his heart he felt he had made a profit.

(You little brat, your master is still your master. This wisp of green wood yang fire was originally intended as a gift for my disciple's apprenticeship.)

Upon hearing this, Ji Daoyi didn't waste any more words and immediately knelt down and kowtowed, saying, "Disciple Ji Daoyi greets Master."

"Very well, from today onwards, you are my eldest disciple, Dan Chenzi." Dan Chenzi was very happy, and then took out a token from somewhere and handed it to Ji Daoyi.

"This is our Pill Hall disciple token. You will become a disciple of our Pill Hall after you swipe your blood to acknowledge it as your own. This pill furnace can also be swiped to acknowledge your own blood. Although it is only a high-grade Xuan-level Yuan artifact, its hardness is comparable to that of a Di-level artifact, which is enough for you to use for a long time."

Ji Daoyi did exactly as Dan Chenzi instructed. After he recognized the alchemy furnace as his own, he discovered that the furnace could shrink and be stored in his dantian for nourishment.

After seeing that Ji Daoyi had finished everything, Dan Chenzi said, "Disciple, sit cross-legged. I don't have much time left. I will now impart all my knowledge of alchemy to you. Of course, you can only access alchemy knowledge above the Danzong level if your cultivation level breaks through to the corresponding realm."

Within a quarter of an hour, Dan Chenzi imparted all the relevant information about alchemy to Ji Daoyi, except that he became more transparent, as if he might disappear at any moment.

"Master, are you alright?" Ji Daoyi asked worriedly when he saw the transparent Dan Chenzi.