Leaving Jubao Pavilion and returning to the academy, Jiang Nannan and Tang Ya chattered about the treasures they saw at the gathering. Yu Beibei chimed in occasionally, but Zhu Ziyang remained silent the entire way, lost in thought.
So what was he thinking about?
It was clear—he was thinking about how to make money.
The display of elixirs at the Treasure Appreciation Gathering had given Zhu Ziyang an idea:
He could refine pills himself. This way, he could not only obtain cultivation resources for personal use but also sell elixirs to earn a profit—two birds with one stone.
In the current Douluo Continent, the art of alchemy wasn't popular. But that didn't mean it hadn't once flourished. On the contrary, during the ancient era of the continent, nearly every powerful sect had its own signature elixirs, and their strength was deeply tied to their mastery of pillcraft.
Over time, however, most pill recipes had been lost—whether through the destruction of sects or the disappearance of rare ingredients. For countless reasons, over 90% of all known alchemical formulas had vanished from the continent. Elixirs with specialized effects gradually disappeared, and even books detailing alchemy had mostly been lost. The once-complete alchemical system now existed only in broken fragments.
But to Zhu Ziyang, this was actually good news.
Inside the Super Library, he possessed every pill recipe that had ever existed on the Douluo Continent. These ancient formulas were a priceless treasure trove. He could easily choose a few forgotten, once-famous recipes, refine them into actual pills, and sell them. In today's world, only a handful of powerful factions still held alchemical knowledge or practiced pillcraft. The entire elixir market was an untapped blue ocean. Even tossing out a few basic pills would rake in massive profits.
The more he thought about it, the more excited he became. His heart beat faster with anticipation.
Currently, Douluo Continent classified pills into five grades:
Low-grade,
Mid-grade,
High-grade,
Top-grade,
And Supreme Legendary Pills.
Except for the Supreme grade—which couldn't be measured in money—the lowest-priced low-grade pill still cost over 10,000 gold soul coins, while a single top-grade pill could fetch up to 100 million.
If he could find a suitable recipe, learn to refine it, and establish a distribution channel, then making a million per day wouldn't be a dream.
He was already browsing pill-related books in the Super Library.
—
After returning to the dorms, the group parted ways. Zhu Ziyang immediately pulled out a book titled "Basics of Pill Refinement." It was a foundational alchemy manual, once widespread during ancient times but now preserved only in a handful of old sects.
For someone like Zhu Ziyang, who had no previous alchemy experience, this book was enough to keep him busy studying for quite a while.
The next morning.
In front of the dormitory building, Zhu Ziyang leaned against the wall, waiting for Jiang Nannan while reading Basics of Pill Refinement. Yu Beibei stood nearby, casually observing the old man reclining at the entrance.
"Gege, we're here," Jiang Nannan and Tang Ya called out as they came down the stairs.
"Let's go. Time for a run," Zhu Ziyang said as he put away his book.
"Alright!" Jiang Nannan agreed enthusiastically.
"Beibei, let's run together too, okay?" Tang Ya said to Yu Beibei.
"Zhu Ziyang and Nannan are already Soul Elders, and they still train so hard. I'm just a little Soul Master—I can't afford to slack off anymore!"
Her gaze was firm.
"Sure! I'm with you," Yu Beibei said without hesitation.
And so, the four of them jogged toward Sea God Lake together.
After they left, the old man who had been lying motionless on the chair suddenly opened his cloudy yet deep eyes and murmured:
"Basics of Pill Refinement… what an interesting young lad…
It's been so many years… I haven't seen anyone this curious in a long time…"
Then he closed his eyes again, still as a statue.
As Zhu Ziyang had guessed, this old man was no ordinary person. His name was… Mu En.
Later that morning.
Zhu Ziyang awoke from his cultivation, his eyes opening slowly. A dazzling silver light flickered in his right eye, while his face filled with surprise and joy.
After a full month, the strange transformation of his right eye had finally completed.
Just as he had guessed, the change was closely tied to the Silver Dragon Wolf. Although his eyes now looked normal, a closer inspection would reveal that his right pupil had faint silver patterns, like the wings of a dragon etched by fine brushstrokes.
But it wasn't the outward change that excited him—it was the new ability granted by the eye:
Time Freeze.
That's right—Zhu Ziyang's right eye now allowed him to consume spiritual energy and freeze time for any single target within a specific area.
This ability resembled the soul bone skill Frozen Time from the Silver Dragon Wolf's right arm bone, but with one major difference:
Frozen Time affected a fixed area.
Time Freeze, on the other hand, targeted a specific individual and could grow stronger over time.
As Zhu Ziyang's strength and mastery of the eye increased, the duration of the time freeze would grow longer.
Currently, he could freeze time for 1 second on any target below the Soul King level.
Zhu Ziyang was thrilled.
With the addition of this new ability, he now possessed three powerful control skills across soul bones and soul rings—his ability to protect himself had risen to a whole new level.
He named the eye "Silver Right Eye."
But he was also aware that Time Freeze was just the beginning—the true secrets of the Silver Right Eye were yet to be discovered. There was still much to learn.
Another benefit: because the Silver Right Eye was now linked to his spiritual sea, he no longer needed to consciously enter it—he could check its state at any time with ease.
Feeling content, Zhu Ziyang left the dormitory.
He and Yu Beibei waited outside for Jiang Nannan and Tang Ya, just like always. After spending a month together, the four of them had become close friends.
"Beibei! I broke through!" Tang Ya's excited shout came from the stairwell.
She charged forward and leapt into Yu Beibei's arms, shouting so loudly that passing students turned to stare. Even Mu En lifted his eyelids slightly.
"Really? You broke through?" Yu Beibei's face lit up with joy as he caught her.
"That's amazing, Xiao Ya!" He spun her around a few times before gently setting her down.
"We'll go hunt your soul ring today. I know a place with a perfect Ghost Vine!"
"Yes!" Tang Ya's face shone with anticipation.
"Ghost Vine... that was Tang San's second soul ring!"
"Congratulations, Xiao Ya," Zhu Ziyang said warmly once things calmed down.
"Hehe, Class President, does this mean I can skip worrying about this month's combat class?" Tang Ya asked playfully.
"That's right," Zhu Ziyang nodded with a smile.
"Alright then! Come on, Xiao Ya, let's walk and talk," Jiang Nannan said, pulling her along.
The four of them headed toward Sea God Lake.