Qingyue's efficiency was extraordinary. Barely half a day after departure, a boy servant from the Treasure Pavilion arrived, hauling along every last item Liu Meng had ordered.
Outside the cave, a massive black beetle crouched silently on the ground. Strapped across its back was an ancient, half-man-tall pill furnace, surrounded by boxes of all shapes and sizes. Each was filled with the ingredients needed for alchemy.
Liu Meng stepped out personally to greet the delivery. At the sight of this batch of goods, she felt a sharp pang in her heart.
This single purchase had nearly drained the few Sancai Coins Qin Shuang had gifted her.
In Sancai Market, the prices of finished pills and talismans were shockingly cheap. But the moment one sought the raw ingredients to refine them, the prices returned to normal—nearly as costly as the finished products themselves.
And that pill furnace…
If not for sheer luck in finding a second-hand one, even the lowest-grade furnace would have been far beyond her reach.
Far too expensive!
Liu Meng sighed inwardly. Of course she understood—the sect's high command had designed it this way.
They wished to sell finished pills and talismans to disciples for profit, not to allow disciples to master these crafts themselves.
In other words, if one truly wished to learn, the "tuition" would be painfully high.
Was this not simply monopoly?
To keep disciples forever dependent on the sect, forced to toil endlessly for meager cultivation resources—perhaps this was their true worth in the eyes of the sect.
As for the rare few with outstanding talent who stood out in alchemy, they would likely be recruited by Sancai Market directly, taken in as its own members.
Just like the alchemist Liu Shiyi had met before. He not only retained his own will, but even possessed rank and authority—all because he held the irreplaceable skill of refining high-grade pills.
In the same way, Liu Jiu's gift for talisman-crafting could one day earn him a place as an exclusive talisman master for Sancai Market.
If he had been an independent person, he would surely have pursued that path for the sake of better resources and status.
But he was only a clone. His existence was meant solely to serve the original body. Naturally, he would not consider such things.
At least… not until a second talisman-crafting clone appeared. Only then might this be reconsidered.
Shaking her head, Liu Meng pushed such distracting thoughts aside.
What she needed most at this moment was an alchemy-capable clone.
And that could only be achieved through trial and error.
She had not managed to buy all the ingredients for the Foundation-Condensing Pill. Two vital herbs were missing, leaving her unable to begin that recipe just yet.
Besides, she could not possibly start with such a difficult pill anyway.
Like talisman-crafting, alchemy required steady progression.
Her plan was to begin with the simplest pill: the Qi-Nurturing Pill.
Commanding Qingyue to move the furnace and ingredients into a sealed chamber, she dismissed everyone else. Alone, she began her first attempt.
The Dao of Pills, like that of Talismans, was divided into nine grades—ninth being lowest, first being highest.
But unlike talismans, even the lowest cultivation stage pills could reach first grade, though only with immense difficulty—requiring genius talent.
Taking a deep breath, Liu Meng placed the herbs into the furnace one by one, following the proportions in the recipe. Then she roused her spiritual power, summoned the earth-fire, and carefully began to control the heat.
Ten hours later, she emerged from the chamber, weary yet wearing a peculiar expression.
She wasn't sure if she had talent or not.
Her very first attempt had succeeded beyond expectation: three ninth-grade Qi-Nurturing Pills of decent quality.
For a moment, she even wondered if she was an alchemy prodigy.
But her subsequent trials brought only failure—scorched herbs reduced to ash from poorly managed heat, or ruined pills crumbled by unstable spiritual force.
When she was nearly disheartened, convinced her first success was just luck, she suddenly succeeded again—seemingly by accident.
Even when she attempted the harder Qi-Restoring Pill, the pattern repeated: mostly failure, but with the occasional success.
This bizarre inconsistency left her baffled.
With no one around to compare against, she could not tell if this was normal—or if she was uniquely strange.
In the end, she yielded the furnace for Liu Ming to try.
Moments later he came out of the chamber with a face full of black lines.
His aptitude was clearly worse than hers. After six or seven attempts, all he had to show were wasted herbs and a chamber filled with acrid smoke.
Unwilling to give up, he let Liu Jiu try.
But the instant Liu Jiu roused the earth-fire, Liu Meng's expression changed drastically. She rushed in and slammed her palm on the furnace, extinguishing the flames by force.
Only then did she breathe in relief.
A heartbeat later and their hard-won second-hand furnace would have exploded into scrap.
Fortunately, their shared consciousness let her arrive just in time.
But this only proved Liu Jiu's aptitude was worse still than Liu Ming's.
Through this comparison, Liu Meng finally understood: her talent in alchemy might not be stellar, but compared to "ordinary folk," she was far ahead.
Perhaps, she reasoned, for true alchemists, success was always rare?
This was the only comfort she could give herself.
If so… then could she already attempt the far more difficult Foundation-Condensing Pill?
But there was still the problem: two ingredients she had yet to find. Even Sancai Market did not sell them.
Where could she obtain them?
After some thought, she decided to ask Su Mei'er.
With their current relationship, Su Mei'er would surely share such minor knowledge.
The only concern was whether her stagnant cultivation might displease her master.
Yet, after reflection, she realized she was worrying too much.
The mid-stage of Qi Refining was nothing like the early stage. Slow progress was the norm for disciples at this realm.
Besides, not much time had passed since their last meeting—Su Mei'er would hardly be scrutinizing her progress.
Resolving herself, Liu Meng left her cave and sped toward Su Mei'er's dwelling.
Her journey was smooth and unimpeded. Soon she stood once more in that familiar grand hall.
On the dais above, Su Mei'er's mood did not look pleasant. One snow-white foot pressed down upon a writhing lump of pale flesh, though its form was hidden beneath flowing red gauze.
Only when she noticed Liu Meng's arrival did her expression soften slightly.
"My dear disciple," she said, "what brings you here this time?"
Liu Meng explained her situation in full detail.
Su Mei'er frowned. "Dragon-Saliva Incense and Phoenix-Blood Vine? Both are normally sold in Sancai Market. Are they unavailable?"
Liu Meng shook her head. "I had my people search the entire market. None were found."
Understanding dawned on Su Mei'er.
"I heard the Market Master recently acquired a new pill formula. It seems those two herbs are precisely what is needed for it."
Liu Meng's brows furrowed slightly. "Then does Master know where else they can be found?"
This time, Su Mei'er answered at once:
"They're not particularly rare. But they grow in the Six-Yao Mountains—territory perilously close to the righteous sects. Clashes are frequent there.
"If you truly want them, send others to fetch them. But do not go yourself. Should the righteous cultivators discover you, you'd be in serious trouble."