Chapter 828 - 263: I Will Perform Alchemy for You! (Three Updates)
Within the arena, Mu Qingge was unaware of the storm her presentation of the Heaven-Burning Furnace had quietly stirred.
The old man of the Medicine Tower had once used the Heaven-Burning Furnace to threaten her.
Yet, she did not know what the Heaven-Burning Furnace truly represented!
"Why does she have the Heaven-Burning Furnace? Didn’t you tell me that the Heaven-Burning Furnace had vanished?" Lian Qiao shouted excitedly at the dean of the Alchemy Institute within the hall.
Her anger was palpable, and the rest of the Pill Masters could only bow in submission, not daring to speak.
The dean of the Alchemy Institute’s face was also unsightly at this moment. Bearing the pressure from Lian Qiao, he murmured, "I also don’t know why it appeared in her hands."
However, Lian Qiao seemed to not hear him, murmuring sorrowfully and painfully, "The Heaven-Burning Furnace has appeared, is he coming back..."
The dean of the Alchemy Institute looked up at Lian Qiao, intending to console her, but could only sigh.
At this moment, Elder Gan transmitted a message to the dean, asking, "Dean, wasn’t it you who instructed Yuan Hao to take the Heaven-Burning Furnace away so the ancestors wouldn’t be reminded? How come..."
The dean sighed internally and shook his head slowly, without replying.
Silence descended on the hall. The appearance of the Heaven-Burning Furnace had made the atmosphere intricate and complicated.
In the arena, Mu Qingge and Yao Xinghai were both preparing for their crafting process. The medicinal materials that had long been prepared were displayed.
With everything in readiness, Yao Xinghai said to Mu Qingge, "I am already prepared, and regardless, I will give it my all."
He was telling Mu Qingge that he wanted a fully committed competition.
Mu Qingge nodded, smiling, "Rest assured, I won’t hold back."
Hold back?
Yao Xinghai wanted to ask what ’hold back’ meant. However, Mu Qingge seemed to have stopped the conversation, leaving him no choice but to let it go.
"The purpose of the Alchemy Conference is to connect through elixirs and exchange alchemy skills. Everyone can give their best. Remember, alchemy skills vary in depth, elixirs have no high or low, alchemy is only for saving people, please do not forget your original intention!"
An ancient and powerful voice descended from the sky, thick and resonant like a bell, deafeningly impactful.
Mu Qingge raised her eyes to gaze at the clear sky, her eyes slightly squinting.
"The Alchemy Conference has no excessive rules. The event concludes upon crafting the first elixir; everyone may begin now," the voice continued.
Mu Qingge chuckled internally, for the Alchemy Conference truly lacked any verbose rules.
Observing others, including Yao Xinghai, they had already collected their minds and were ready to start alchemy.
Mu Qingge withdrew her gaze and meticulously recalled the steps of crafting the elixir in her mind.
Taking a deep breath, Mu Qingge pursed her lips.
’Ge’er, don’t be nervous.’ Suddenly, a message entered her ear. Mu Qingge looked up toward the stands, instantly meeting a pair of eyes as vast as the stars.
Her eyes showed a hint of surprise. Si Mo had somehow transformed into an extremely ordinary person, seated amidst the ten thousand spectators, and seemingly no one around him even noticed him.
Only...
Mu Qingge’s gaze was slightly puzzled; the people around Si Mo seemed unusually quiet.
’I just performed a small illusion technique. Ge’er wouldn’t want others sitting around me, right?’ Si Mo’s voice came again.
These words explained Mu Qingge’s puzzlement but also amused her.
He clearly did not want anyone nearby, yet he pretended it was her preference. Fine, she wouldn’t argue.
Beside her, Yao Xinghai had already begun.
Mu Qingge still stood in place, unhurried.
’This is my first attempt at crafting a Holy Level Elixir...’ She transmitted to Si Mo.
Si Mo showed a faint smile, responding, ’Don’t be nervous.’
Mu Qingge’s lips subtly curled into a smile; she told him, ’I want to craft a Holy Level Elixir for you.’ She didn’t want Si Mo to endure indescribable pain anymore; she wanted to resolve his physical issue.
’Okay.’ Si Mo nodded.
Deep within his eyes, an emotion surged. A feeling he had never experienced before, strange yet he liked immensely.
The person he liked reciprocated his feelings with the same affection; what could match this?
Mu Qingge ceased further conversation with Si Mo. The elixir she intended to craft was named the Hundred Turn Marrow Refining Pill. As the name implies, it allows the body to break and rebuild, healing internal injuries, restoring it to its initial state.
Furthermore, the restored body’s potential would surpass that of before, reaching a new level.
The Hundred Turn Marrow Refining Pill was found in the Dan God’s legacy elixir recipes, a recipe invented by the Dan God himself. The medicinal materials required for the alchemy, she had begun collecting from a long time ago. Back then, upon leaving Taixuan Ancient Palace, she had specially gone to the medicinal material vault within the Demon Realm for a thorough search, finally gathering everything.
Today was the time to start crafting.
Mu Qingge was oblivious to others, her mind already immersed in the Hundred Turn Marrow Refining Pill recipe.
Her silence, however, aroused surprise in the ten thousand viewers around.
"Eh? Why isn’t she moving?"
"Others have started, why hasn’t she begun?"
"Young Master Yao has already started refining the second medicinal material."
Voices of discussion rose, but to not affect others’ alchemy, these talks were subdued, only audible to those in the stands.
Mu Xuewu showed some concern, glancing at King Sang Shun, who gave her an ’ease your mind’ gesture.
Mu Feng and Mu Chen exchanged a look; Mu Feng said, "What’s the young master doing?"
Mu Chen slowly shook his head, "The young master’s thoughts have always been enigmatic, let’s just wait and see."
"Why hasn’t Qingge started yet, even Yao Xinghai has begun!" Ji Yaohua exclaimed in anxiety, standing up.
Ji Pianpian hurriedly pulled him down, whispering, "Mu City Lord naturally has his considerations, don’t worry blindly."
Ying Ze looked at him, spoke in a deep voice, "Calm down." before remaining silent.
Among these people, the one who knew Mu Qingge best was Han Caicai. Watching Mu Qingge unmoved, Han Caicai’s long, narrow eyes pondered something, though his lips curled into a faint smile.
It seemed the distance between him and Mu Qingge was widening, even though their collaboration continued, yet their carefree days seemed hard to come by.
But, who could be blamed?
Han Caicai bitterly smiled inside, realizing it was all due to his wishful thinking. As Mu Qingge climbed higher, he increasingly understood they were never on the same path.
And the Middle Ancient Realm was never Mu Qingge’s final destination.
’Divine Tomb...’ The term flashed through Han Caicai’s mind. His hand clenched slowly within his wide sleeves. The Han Family naturally received news of the Divine Tomb’s impending opening. All forces from the Middle Ancient Realm are eager not to miss this opportunity, how could he miss it?
Mei Zizhong and the other three were also in their seat at the Alchemy Institute’s viewing platform, watching Mu Qingge.
Fortunately, they had absolute confidence in Mu Qingge, so her silence did not make them anxious at all.
Outside the Mystic Light Mirror, the market was crowded yet unusually quiet.
Almost everyone maintained a single action, which was looking up at the massive mirror suspended in the air, observing the scene within it.
"Why hasn’t Mu City Lord started the alchemy yet? Although the Alchemy Conference does not have a time limit, he sees others already beginning their alchemy, especially the Yao Young Master. Isn’t he anxious at all?"
"Could there be a problem?"
"I don’t think so."
"Could it be that Mu City Lord is having stage fright at a critical moment?"
"Hahaha—stage fright? If it really is stage fright, then we’ve thoroughly overestimated him before."
...
Within the Alchemy Institute, Lian Qiao’s emotions had gradually calmed down, although her expression remained stern. She looked at Mu Qingge and noticed she had not started alchemy yet, causing her to frown.
"Why isn’t she starting?" Lian Qiao asked.
The head of the Alchemy Institute couldn’t answer.
Lian Qiao suddenly said, "With the Heaven-Burning Furnace in her possession, does that mean I can leave here?"
This statement startled the Alchemy Institute’s head and he quickly looked up to stop her. "Ancestor, this matter must not be taken as a joke."
Lian Qiao suddenly slumped down, waved her hand in exhaustion, and said, "Forget it, let’s just watch the competition."
The head of the Alchemy Institute sighed heavily and said no more.
...
On the competition field, Mu Qingge raised her eyes slowly. In her heart, she repeatedly calculated the alchemy process, avoiding almost all factors that might lead to failure. At this moment, she could finally start refining pills.
Boom—!
The Taichu Urgent Fire shot out from her fingertips, landing in the Heaven-Burning Furnace and starting to blaze fiercely.
The furnace’s body, burned by the Taichu Urgent Fire, became even redder and brighter; nobody noticed that in the Divine Envoy’s eyes, an inexplicable light also arose.
His eyes reflected the Heaven-Burning Furnace and nothing else.
With the furnace heating up, Mu Qingge poured all the medicinal materials into the Heaven-Burning Furnace.
Her crude approach immediately drew shocked exclamations from those around her.
Moreover, through the Mystic Light Mirror, people outside saw this scene and all exclaimed in astonishment.
A thought arose in their minds—
’Does Mu City Lord really know alchemy?’
No matter how others may think, Mu Qingge paid no heed and concentrated solely on refining pills.
She even ignored Yao Xinghai beside her.
"Xinghai’s Alchemy Dao..." Outside the Mystic Light Mirror at the Alchemy Institute, Elder Gan looked at the mirror and murmured softly.
The Alchemy Dao, only by having one’s own Alchemy Dao can one become a saint!
Those whose strength has not reached halfway to becoming a Holy Level Alchemist cannot see the Alchemy Dao hidden during alchemy.
Here, except for the head of the Alchemy Institute who was already a Holy Level Alchemist, only Elder Gan had half a foot into the Holy Level. Once he refined his own Alchemy Dao, he could become a saint.
That’s why he could perceive Yao Xinghai’s Alchemy Dao during his alchemy process.
Elder Gan watched for a while, and then his eyes narrowed as he looked at the head of the Alchemy Institute and said, "Headmaster, is Xinghai’s Alchemy Dao the Path of Righteousness?"
Path of Righteousness?
What Path of Righteousness?
The other Pill Masters were completely bewildered.
The head of the Alchemy Institute slowly nodded and explained, "The Yao Family inherits Confucian teachings and cultivates Vast Righteous Qi. This righteousness can be combined with the path of alchemy. Xinghai uses righteousness in alchemy, which is a clever shortcut, but..."
But what? The head of the Alchemy Institute didn’t continue.
Others didn’t understand, but Elder Gan did. He lowered his gaze, agreeing inwardly.
Using righteousness to enter the Dao, although upright, is constrained. Too ruled-bound, it’s hard to achieve breakthroughs. Yao Xinghai will become a saint, but he’s destined not to bring much surprise.
Elder Gan felt some regret because Yao Xinghai was, after all, an exceptionally talented disciple of the Alchemy Institute.
He thought again and looked at Mu Qingge.
This demon appearing unexpectedly, what kind of Alchemy Dao could she comprehend in such a short month? What revelations could the twelve Alchemy Dao, preserved by the Alchemy Institute with special techniques for future generations to comprehend, inspire?
Dao, can only be understood, never fully explained.
Understanding or not, depends entirely on one’s own perception.
Thus, the conversation between the head of the Alchemy Institute and Elder Gan, even if the other Pill Masters could not understand, they did not inquire further, they just silently watched the Mystic Light Mirror.
And Lian Qiao, since the appearance of the Heaven-Burning Furnace, has been somewhat distracted, unaware of what she was thinking.
Suddenly, the Mystic Light Mirror captured Mu Qingge’s hand movements, as well as the chaotic mix of hundreds of medicinal materials in the Heaven-Burning Furnace, causing Elder Gan and the head of the Alchemy Institute to simultaneously narrow their eyes.
"This is... This is..." Elder Gan suddenly stood up, his hands trembling with shock.
The head of the Alchemy Institute also dramatically changed his expression and exclaimed, "Actually comprehended... the Heaven-defying Dao!"
Heaven-defying! Heaven-defying! Heaven-defying!
The head of the Alchemy Institute was stirred to his core. Last night, he was just advising Yao Xinghai, that in alchemy, the further one goes, the more one begins to defy destiny; his path was too small and would affect his alchemy skill development.
Yet, his disciple did not listen, but unexpectedly, someone who took only a month to comprehend their own Alchemy Dao actually understood the most formidable Heaven-defying Dao.
Dao, is the true self.
The Alchemy Dao is the human Dao, and also the cultivation Dao, the true self Dao.
What steps will a genius demon who has comprehended the Heaven-defying Dao take in the future? The head of the Alchemy Institute could already envision a Heaven-defying path in his mind.
And on this Heaven-defying great path, the person continually climbing is none other than Mu Qingge, who was refining pills in front of everyone!
"Headmaster, is it really the Heaven-defying Dao? How... how does he change it?" Elder Gan asked in shock.
The other Pill Masters listened but were unclear.
The headmaster looked up at the sky and sighed long, "What wouldn’t dare? To defy heaven requires great fearlessness, great wisdom, great courage. From his Alchemy Dao, one can glimpse the path he aims to take, so dominant and fierce... This person absolutely cannot be made an enemy!"