I'm in Yellow Maple Valley, and I have one equipment slot!

Fall in love with reading, starting with Cola Novels.

"Nine thousand spirit stones per stone?"

Even though Zhou Yuan was mentally prepared, he couldn't help but frown deeply upon hearing the price.

After upgrading his equipment yesterday and purchasing Snow Spirit Water Heavenly Fire Liquid today, he only had about four hundred low-level spirit stones left.

There are still over a hundred mid-grade spirit stones left. At an exchange rate of one to one hundred, they can be exchanged for about eleven thousand low-grade spirit stones.

If you spend 18,000 spirit stones to buy two Dust-Reducing Pills, you'll have very few spirit stones left!

Let alone purchasing other cultivation supplies, they probably won't even have enough for daily expenses.

Moreover, is this price... really reasonable?

The plot of the original work flashed through Zhou Yuan's mind.

Han Li and five other pseudo-core cultivators, including Qing Suanzi, were invited by the Six Linked Palace to participate in setting up the "Six Escapes Water Wave Array" to hunt down the level six demonic beast, the Infant Carp Beast.

The Six-Hall Alliance promised that each person would receive a Dust-Clearing Pill as a reward upon completion of the task!

Those are five, worth nearly fifty thousand spirit stones!

In addition, the Six-Linked Hall also invited two guest elders at the early stage of Core Formation to oversee the event, which was another considerable expense.

Although the Infant Carp Beast is rare and its entire body is a treasure, is it really so valuable that the Six-Linked Palace would pay nearly 100,000 spirit stones?

Is it still possible to make a profit?

Or is it that, in this chaotic star sea, the value of a level six demon beast is truly beyond imagination?

Or perhaps... there's more to this than meets the eye? Maybe the Six-Linked Palace urgently needs some kind of material, or maybe the Infant Carp Beast itself has some special value?

Seeing Zhou Yuan's furrowed brows and silent contemplation, Ouyang Gong assumed he was intimidated by the price and explained, "Fellow Daoist Zhou, the normal market price for the Dust-Clearing Pill is indeed around five or six thousand spirit stones. But 'market price' is one thing, 'available' is another. This pill is difficult to refine, and demand is high; often, even with spirit stones, it's unavailable. If our shop were to source it for you, we would need to utilize many connections and channels, and these costs would naturally be included in the selling price. Nine thousand spirit stones is already a sincere price given considering you're purchasing two portions of Heavenly Fire Liquid and Snow Spirit Water at once."

Upon hearing this, Zhou Yuan's mind raced. It seemed that directly purchasing the Dust-Reducing Pill would not only deplete his savings but also risk him being ripped off.

Suddenly, a thought struck him, and he realized another possibility.

"Manager Ouyang, do you have the recipe for the Dust-Clearing Pill for sale here?"

Zhou Yuan raised his head, looked directly at Ouyang Gong, and asked calmly.

In the Tiannan region, high-level pill formulas are regarded as closely guarded secrets by major sects and forces, and are rarely leaked out.

If Zhou Yuan were to ask this question in the Yue Kingdom, it would likely immediately arouse suspicion and hostility.

But he was familiar with the original work and knew that the situation in the Chaotic Star Sea was completely different!

The commercial atmosphere here is strong, and the flow of cultivation resources is far freer than in Tiannan.

Many pill formulas, weapon-refining diagrams, and formation illustrations that are considered secret in Tiannan can be purchased from major merchant alliances or shops in the Chaotic Star Sea, as long as you are willing to spend spirit stones!

This is because the power structure in the Chaotic Star Sea is relatively fragmented, and the ways to acquire marine resources are more diverse, making it more difficult to monopolize them.

As expected, Ouyang Gong did not show surprise or wariness when Zhou Yuan inquired about the pill formula. He was only slightly taken aback before a playful smile appeared on his face: "Judging from Fellow Daoist Zhou's words... could it be that you want to try refining the Dust-Clearing Pill yourself?"

"That's good." Zhou Yuan readily admitted, "If I can acquire the formula and gather all the necessary materials, I might be able to try refining it myself. Even if I fail, it's never a bad thing to learn more."

Upon hearing this, Ouyang Gong's eyes flashed with a sharp light. He carefully examined Zhou Yuan for a few moments, seemingly reassessing this "fellow Daoist Zhou".

After a moment, he suddenly clapped his hands and laughed, "If Fellow Daoist Zhou is proficient in alchemy, I have a better suggestion..."

He leaned forward slightly and lowered his voice, saying, "Fellow Daoist Zhou, would you be willing to accept a position as a guest alchemist at our Jade Ring Abode? You only need to refine certain designated pills for us periodically, including the Dust-Clearing Pill, of course… We will not only pay you a generous sum of spirit stones as compensation, but also provide you with a stable alchemy space, and even… share some insights into high-level pill formulas. In this way, you can earn spirit stones, accumulate alchemy experience, and prepare for your own Core Formation—wouldn't that be a win-win situation?"

"An alchemist... a guest alchemist?"

Upon hearing this, Zhou Yuan was taken aback.

This suggestion was unexpected, yet it subtly touched upon his memories.

Back when he first transmigrated and his cultivation was still in the Qi Refining stage, wasn't it by working as an alchemist in the Lin family, accumulating resources little by little, and buying magical artifacts and pills that he gradually got to where he is today?

At that time, he was cautious and, with the help of his comprehension skills from the equipment slots and through hard work, he mastered considerable alchemy skills, thus gaining his initial foothold.

Now, times have changed, and he is in the distant Chaotic Star Sea, where his cultivation has reached the late stage of Foundation Establishment.

But the identity of "alchemist" still seems to be a viable path!

In particular, he urgently needs spirit stones to purchase cultivation materials and core-forming spiritual objects. If he can exchange his alchemy skills for resources, it would undoubtedly be a shortcut.

As a major power second only to the four major merchant alliances, the Six-Hall Alliance has extensive resource channels, and the conditions and rewards it provides are bound to be excellent.

This seems... to be a good approach.

"I wonder what kind of treatment your esteemed residence can offer me?"

Zhou Yuan pondered for a moment, then looked directly at Ouyang Gong and asked the question directly.

Now that the other party has extended an olive branch, he naturally wants to find out the terms first.

Ouyang Gong's smile deepened, a shrewd businessman's glint in his eyes: "Hehe, as for the compensation, it will naturally depend on Fellow Daoist Zhou's alchemy value. May I ask what level of alchemy Fellow Daoist Zhou is at now? And what grades of pills can you consistently refine?"

Update released! Book lovers, go read Cola Novels!

He paused, then explained, "If you can only refine some common Qi Refining stage pills, your compensation will naturally be limited. You'll simply be provided with a pill-refining room, basic spirit charcoal, and paid with spirit stones based on the quantity refined. But if you can consistently refine Foundation Establishment stage pills, especially mainstream pills that enhance cultivation like the 'Essence Pill' and 'Snow Spirit Pill,' or even... if you can try refining high-difficulty pills like the Dust-Descending Pill, then your compensation will be quite different."

"In addition to generous rewards of spirit stones, our shop can provide higher quality alchemy furnaces, a stable supply of earth fire or strange fire, priority in purchasing our rare materials, and even share some insights into high-level alchemy formulas to accumulate experience for your future attempts to refine the Dust-Clearing Pill. Furthermore, as an alchemist recognized by our Six-Hall Hall, you will also receive certain conveniences and protection from our hall when operating in Kui Xing Island and the surrounding waters."

The conditions sound quite .

Especially since Zhou Yuan had just arrived.

"Where is your alchemy room?" Zhou Yuan had basically decided to accept the offer.

"Fellow Daoist Zhou is indeed straightforward! Please follow me." Seeing that Zhou Yuan was interested, Ouyang Gong smiled broadly and stood up to lead the way.

The two left the side hall, passed through the side door of the main hall of Yuhuan Residence, and walked along several corridors towards the back of the shop.

The corridor was lined with fragrant spiritual plants, creating a serene environment. After walking about a hundred steps, we arrived at a heavy stone door engraved with simple protective runes.

Ouyang Gong took out a token, waved it at the stone door, and the stone door slid open silently.

Behind the door was a rather spacious secret room, about two zhang square.

The most eye-catching feature is an ancient alchemical furnace in the center of the secret chamber, about five feet tall, dark gold in color, with three legs and a round belly, and its surface engraved with intricate flame and cloud patterns.

The alchemy furnace has a dignified appearance, with a faint glow flowing around its body. Although it is not a magical treasure-level alchemy furnace, it is clear at a glance that it is of excellent quality, made with high-quality materials, and has been tempered over the years. The furnace fire is well-maintained, which greatly enhances the success rate of alchemy and the quality of the pills.

"This 'Gilded Cloud Pattern Furnace' is one of the alchemy furnaces prepared by our shop for high-level alchemists. It is made by smelting deep-sea gold and fire copper and nurtured by earth fire for more than a hundred years. It has stable fire control and excellent spiritual energy gathering effect."

Ouyang Gong introduced it with a hint of pride.

Zhou Yuan approached the alchemy furnace, reached out and touched the furnace wall. He could feel a warm, gentle sensation and a faint lingering fragrance of elixir. It was indeed a fine furnace.

He was quite satisfied with the environment for alchemy, nodded, and turned to Ouyang Gong, saying:

"Give me a formula for a commonly used pill suitable for cultivators in the mid-to-late stages of Foundation Establishment. I'd like to study it first."

"No problem!" Seeing Zhou Yuan's straightforwardness, Ouyang Gong stopped testing him and readily took out a light blue jade slip, handing it to Zhou Yuan.

Zhou Yuan took the jade slip and immersed his divine sense into it.

The information recorded in the jade slip is quite detailed, mainly including two complete elixir formulas:

1. Snow Spirit Pill: Suitable for mid-Foundation Establishment cultivators to improve their cultivation. The main ingredient is the inner core of the level 5 demon beast "Snow-Patterned Frost Toad," supplemented with more than ten kinds of cold-attribute spiritual herbs and minerals. This pill is cold in nature and can purify mana and stabilize the foundation.

II. Essence Pill: Suitable for late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivators to improve their cultivation, and also has a slight auxiliary effect on breaking through minor bottlenecks. The main ingredient is the inner core of a level 5 demon beast, the "Crimson-Eyed Fire Python," or a fire-attribute demon beast of the same level, supplemented with various fire-attribute and harmonizing spiritual materials. This pill can effectively strengthen true essence, increase the total amount and refinement of mana.

Unlike the pill formulas in the Tiannan region, which mostly rely on spiritual herbs and medicines, the main ingredient in these two pill formulas is none other than the inner core of demonic beasts!

This is also a distinctive feature of the Chaotic Star Sea Pill System: it is extremely rich in demon beast resources, and using demon cores as medicine is the mainstream method for refining high-level pills.

Zhou Yuan was not surprised by this. As a transmigrator, he already knew that most of the pills in the Chaotic Star Sea were made from materials from demonic beasts.

"Fellow Daoist Ouyang, please wait a few days for my news!" Zhou Yuan said.

"good!"

Ouyang Gong left the alchemy room.

As the stone gate closed.

Zhou Yuan quickly took out a blank jade slip and made a copy of the pill formula.

He then equipped the pale blue jade slip containing the original elixir formula to his equipment slot.

A pale blue light screen appeared in my mind:

[Equipment Slot 3: Ancient Elixir Recipe Jade Slip (Snow Spirit Elixir, Essence Elixir)]

[Effect 1: Slightly improves comprehension of alchemy!]

[Effect 2: Increased success rate in refining "Snow Spirit Pill" and "Essence Pill"!]

It not only increases the success rate of alchemy, but also enhances the understanding of this specific type of formula.

This was crucial for him to quickly master the alchemy techniques of the Chaotic Star Sea.

Next, Zhou Yuan equipped himself with two other items he had acquired over the years that could enhance his understanding of alchemy and increase his success rate in alchemy.

Triple blessing!

Everything revolves around the core goal of "alchemy"!

In an instant, Zhou Yuan felt his mind was clearer than ever before, and he became more sensitive to the subtle changes in the flames. The contents of the pill formulas for "Snow Spirit Pill" and "Essence Pill" in his mind seemed to come alive. Every step, the medicinal reaction of each material, and the critical point of the heat change became clear and organized.

"This is the power of the equipment slot..." Zhou Yuan thought to himself, and without further delay, he immediately calmed down and began to study the pill formula with all his might.

He was an experienced alchemist in the Yue Kingdom, with a solid foundation.

He has a deep understanding of various pharmacological methods, temperature control, and pill-forming techniques.

Now, with the terrifying boost from the equipment slots, one can draw inferences from one instance to another and apply the knowledge to other situations.

Their learning efficiency is astonishingly high.