The Hehuan Sect cultivates alchemy; my senior sister helps me refine alchemy throughout the world.

Shen Yifei counted his spirit stones and found he still had over three hundred. He went to the market and bought two portions, spending almost half of his spirit stones.

No matter how painful it is, I have to spend this money, otherwise I won't be able to complete the sect's mission.

Back in the alchemy room, he placed the two sets of medicinal herbs he had bought from the market on the table, and then took out the alchemy furnace, which was half the height of a person, and wiped it inside and out.

The alchemy furnace is a fine thing. It is cast in bronze, and the furnace wall is engraved with cloud and animal patterns. It looks more stable and serious than the Cauldron of All Things.

Shen Yifei stuffed some firewood into the bottom of the furnace, then sat cross-legged in front of it and began to recall the incantations from the "Danhuo Jue" (The Art of Elixir Fire).

"Guide the Qi into the body, gather it in the Dantian, and let it travel along the meridians to the palm, where it condenses into fire..."

He stretched out his hand and circulated his spiritual energy according to the incantation.

A tiny spark appeared in my palm, flickered, and then went out.

Come again.

A little bit appears, then it's extinguished.

After struggling for the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, a small flame finally flickered in his palm, pale red and trembling.

Shen Yifei didn't dare to delay and quickly guided the flames to the bottom of the alchemy furnace.

The flames immediately flared up as soon as they touched the bottom of the furnace, licking the furnace walls with a whooshing sound.

Following the instructions in "Detailed Explanation of the Qi Gathering Pill", Shen Yifei first heated the furnace before adding the medicine.

The stove was hot enough for an incense stick to burn, and the walls of the stove glowed slightly red. He lifted the lid of the stove and threw in the dragon yang grass, poria cocos, lingzhi mushroom, and blood ginseng rootlets one by one in order.

Put the lid on and start controlling the heat.

Shen Yifei stared at the flames at the bottom of the furnace, sometimes increasing the output of spiritual energy to make the fire burn brightly, and sometimes decreasing the output of spiritual energy to make the fire burn small.

After a stick of incense had burned, he smelled the aroma of medicine and was overjoyed. He hadn't expected to be able to refine the medicine so quickly.

Another incense stick later, he noticed something was off about the smell; there was a burnt smell!

He lifted the stove lid and looked inside; it was a dark, burnt mess.

Undeterred, Shen Yifei cleaned the furnace and began the second batch.

Heat the furnace, add the medicine, and control the fire.

This time he was smarter; he didn't dare to output too much spiritual energy, for fear of burning it again. The incense stick burning with the strong fire was burning lukewarmly, while the three incense sticks burning with the gentle fire looked like they were about to go out.

One stick of incense, two sticks of incense, three sticks of incense...

The last incense stick burned to seal the elixir with a powerful fire.

Shen Yifei lifted the furnace lid and looked inside.

Ten pills lay at the bottom of the furnace, round and plump, of varying sizes and colors, some black and some yellow, but without the slightest hint of medicinal fragrance.

This is a typical example of a wasted pill!

The first batch was burned because the fire was too high. The second batch wasn't cooked through because the fire was too low.

But how do you know if the heat is just right? The book says, "A gentle fire is like a candle, a strong fire is like a torch," but what exactly does "like a candle" and "like a torch" mean?

Shen Yifei was in a dilemma; with no one to teach him, he could only try it himself.

He took out the remaining spirit stones and counted them; he had 180 left. He could buy two more portions and try twice more.

Shen Yifei gritted his teeth and went to the market to buy two more portions of medicinal herbs.

Come back and continue practicing.

This time, he slowly figured it out and finally succeeded in refining six pills in the first batch and eight pills in the second batch.

Having completed the mission, Shen Yifei still had four Qi Gathering Pills left, which he decided to keep for himself.

The elixir was successfully refined, but his pockets were now empty.

The next morning, Shen Yifei went to the mission hall.

Senior Sister Li took the jade bottle, poured out ten Qi Gathering Pills, examined them one by one, then picked one up and smelled it. She looked up at him and asked, "Did you refine these yourself?"

"Yes, I refined them all myself!"

A hint of surprise flashed in Senior Sister Li's eyes: "Didn't you say you couldn't refine pills?"

"Just learn it. Who's born knowing how? Sigh... I ruined three batches before I finally produced this much."

Senior Sister Li laughed: "Not bad, young man, you have talent. You managed to refine ten finished pills on your first try, which is much better than those who have been studying for half a year and still can only refine charcoal."

She put away the pills, made a note in the ledger, and handed the jade token back to him: "Mission complete. Your salary for this month will be paid as usual."

Shen Yifei emerged from the mission hall with the jade token in his pocket, feeling quite pleased with himself. He had completed the mission, secured his salary, and still had four Qi Gathering Pills left. Although their quality wasn't great, at least they were ones he had personally refined, so he felt reassured about consuming them.

But his elation didn't last long before he was stunned by a harsh reality: he had very few spirit stones left.

If the situation remains the same next month, with that meager salary, I won't be able to get anything done.

After much deliberation, Shen Yifei even considered robbery. After all, his first pot of gold came from murder and robbery.

Just then, he heard someone call his name, "Junior Brother Shen!"

Shen Yifei looked up and saw a female cultivator, in her early twenties, with a pretty face, but her complexion was a bit pale and she had dark circles under her eyes, which looked like she had indulged in excessive sexual activity.

"Senior sister, what can I do for you?"

"My name is Li Ruolan, mid-Foundation Establishment stage," the female cultivator introduced herself. "I heard you can refine pills?"

Shen Yifei thought to himself, "They're here to refine pills again. It seems that alchemists are in high demand in the Hehuan Sect."

"I know a little bit, I just learned it, I can only refine a Qi Gathering Pill."

Upon hearing this, Li Ruolan became slightly excited: "Qi Gathering Pills will do! Junior Brother Shen, could you help me refine a batch?"

"Senior Sister Li, you're in the mid-Foundation Establishment stage, so those Qi Gathering Pills probably won't be of any use to you, right?"

Li Ruolan blushed, stammered for a long time, and then whispered, "It's not for me to use, it's...it's for someone else to use."

"Give it to someone else?"

"Well, I've been practicing dual cultivation with a junior brother recently. His cultivation level is low, and he's always extremely weak afterward. I wanted to refine some Qi Gathering Pills for him to replenish his energy, but I don't know how to refine them myself, and going to the alchemy room to get them requires completing a task..."

Shen Yifei understood.

This is another one who's short on cash.

"What about the medicinal herbs?"

Li Ruolan quickly pulled a storage bag from her bosom: "Yes, yes, yes, I've got everything ready."

Shen Yifei took the storage bag and looked inside. There were three portions of Qi Gathering Pill ingredients and a bunch of miscellaneous aphrodisiac herbs.

"Senior Sister Li, I can help you refine it, but I have one condition."

Li Ruolan's expression changed: "What are the conditions?"

"Don't be nervous, I won't take advantage of you! It's nothing difficult," Shen Yifei said with a smile.

Hearing Shen Yifei say this, Li Ruolan breathed a sigh of relief. She had thought Shen Yifei was after her body. If that were the case, it wouldn't be impossible. But if her little Daoist partner found out, there would be no way to resolve the situation.

In the Hehuan Sect, finding a suitable, long-term, and stable cultivation partner is actually quite difficult. Human hearts are treacherous; if you end up being taken advantage of, you'll have no way to express your suffering.

"Junior Brother Shen, just tell me your conditions, as long as it's not that kind of thing!"

Seeing her like that, Shen Yifei originally wanted to tease her, but was afraid of losing the spirit stones he had already obtained, so he said, "I'll help you refine a batch, and you give me twenty spirit stones as a fee for your trouble."

Li Ruolan was taken aback: "That's all the terms? You only want twenty spirit stones?"

"Yes, that's the condition. Will you agree or not?"

Li Ruolan's tense expression instantly turned into delight: "Great! Excellent! Junior Brother Shen, you're such a kind person!"

Shen Yifei waved his hand: "Don't be so quick to praise me. It's impossible for all three to succeed. How about I give you twenty Qi Gathering Pills for each of them?"

Li Ruolan hesitated for a moment. She understood that there was a high chance of producing a useless pill through alchemy, so she nodded in agreement.

"Okay, I'll come back in three days to pick it up."

Shen Yifei was full of confidence; he felt he could definitely train twenty this time!