Chapter 114: Refining Foundation Establishment Pills

Qin Ming returned to his secluded abode. First, he took out the notes on refining Foundation Establishment Pills that Su Yuqing had sent him, carefully studying them over and over again.

As for the method of refining the Foundation Establishment Pills, he had already mastered it thoroughly.

Qin Ming couldn’t help but marvel. Su Yuqing truly lived up to his reputation as a prodigy in alchemy; every crucial point and detail in the process of refining the Foundation Establishment Pill was meticulously annotated in his notes.

He had paved the way for Qin Ming with his own experience.

With Su Yuqing’s insights, Qin Ming’s confidence in refining the Foundation Establishment Pill greatly increased.

After all, this pill was a coveted elixir sought after by base-level independent cultivators throughout their lives.

Though the refining difficulty was not extremely high, the real challenge lay in acquiring the spiritual ingredients.

Even among ordinary second-rank alchemists, few could successfully refine the Foundation Establishment Pill.

Even the mighty Master Sun, a high-grade second-rank alchemist, sometimes encountered failures when refining this pill.

No one could guarantee a hundred percent success.

The six sets of spiritual materials Qin Ming had could support him in refining over a dozen batches.

Since refining one batch didn’t require an entire plant but only portions according to the recipe, materials were usually sold whole to prevent loss of medicinal potency after cutting.

Qin Ming laid out all the prepared materials beside him.

Including the three main ingredients and numerous auxiliaries, there were a total of thirty-six jade boxes.

Before starting the refinement, he didn’t rush into making the Foundation Establishment Pill. Instead, he first tested his touch by refining a batch of Rejuvenation Pills.

This was also one of the small techniques Su Yuqing had shared: refining a pill of similar difficulty before the main attempt helps quickly get into the right state and serves to warm up the furnace.

After an hour, a batch of three high-quality Rejuvenation Pills was successfully produced.

He was now in the zone.

Qin Ming calmed his mind, dispelling all distractions.

“Let’s begin!”

He started the process of refining the Foundation Establishment Pill.

With a wave of his hand, all the jade boxes opened automatically.

He took out a cluster of Jade Agate Fungus and gently peeled off a portion.

Following the proportions on the recipe, he extracted the medicinal embryos.

Before long, his powerful divine sense spread out, and clusters of medicinal embryos floated suspended in the air around him.

He measured every ingredient’s quantity and extraction with perfect precision.

The extraction process was smooth and effortless, far better than he had anticipated.

Next, Qin Ming manipulated his divine sense to concoct the medicinal liquid.

After the time it took to burn an incense stick, a pale blue liquid appeared before him.

While controlling the Devouring Spirit Poison Flame to heat the alchemy furnace evenly, he poured the prepared liquid into the furnace.

Then, his divine sense entered the furnace to observe the internal reactions.

His expression grew unusually serious.

This was the crucial step: whether the pill would succeed depended on the smooth fusion of the medicinal liquid.

However, just as Qin Ming was about to perform the pill fusion technique to forcibly separate and recombine the liquid into a solid pill...

Suddenly, the purple alchemy furnace began trembling violently.

Qin Ming tensed.

This wasn’t good—the furnace was about to explode!

He quickly intensified his divine sense, trying to stabilize the liquid inside.

A muffled pop sounded from within the furnace, followed by a burst of choking smoke.

Clearly, the first attempt had failed.

Qin Ming’s face remained calm and serene—this was expected.

He carefully reviewed the previous procedure.

He took out the black ash residue from the furnace and spread it out for examination.

The near explosion had been caused by an unstable collision between conflicting medicinal properties during the fusion process.

Qin Ming cleared out the residue and thoroughly cleaned the furnace.

He then began the second attempt.

Soon after, another muffled failure echoed from the furnace.

This time, the liquid had almost fully fused but ultimately fell short.

A sudden idea flashed through his mind.

Royal jelly had the effect of neutralizing medicinal properties; adding a bit during refining could increase the success rate by ten to twenty percent.

Since it worked for ordinary pills, it should help with the Foundation Establishment Pill as well.

Why not give it a try?

Without hesitation, Qin Ming restarted the furnace.

Unconsciously, more than two hours passed.

It was already late into the night.

The faint blue flame still glowed steadily in his abode.

During the third attempt, at the fusion stage once again, Qin Ming extracted a strand of his divine sense and guided a small drop of royal jelly into the prepared Foundation Establishment liquid.

In an instant, the previously volatile liquid calmed and softened.

“It really works!” Qin Ming felt a surge of joy but remained cautious.

The medicinal liquid inside the furnace successfully fused and began solidifying into a pill.

Just as failure seemed imminent, Qin Ming invoked the Pill Fusion Technique from the “Yin-Yang Separation and Spirit Control True Art” to forcibly condense the pill.

After a moment of quiet concentration, a deep blue medicinal liquid appeared within the furnace, radiating dazzling brilliance.

Exhaling sharply, Qin Ming intensified the Devouring Spirit Poison Flame, raising the temperature inside the abode sharply.

The blue liquid, under his continuous control, slowly solidified into a pill.

Half a cup of tea later, Qin Ming’s gaze sharpened as he formed a hand seal, pointing at the purple furnace.

A humming sound rose.

The furnace opened, and a cascade of multicolored mist burst forth, emitting enchanting light.

A wave of heat swept through the air.

An intoxicating, exquisite pill fragrance filled the space.

A deep blue spirit pill floated calmly at the furnace’s center.

“The Foundation Establishment Pill—success!”

Qin Ming’s eyes brightened, his face lit with overwhelming joy.

He reached out, and the pill effortlessly settled into his palm.

He carefully examined the pill, feeling its lingering warmth.

He could hardly believe that one day he could truly refine this pill.

Such a pill, casually released, could cause uproar and bloodshed.

Qin Ming placed this ordinary-quality Foundation Establishment Pill into a delicate porcelain bottle.

He then calmed his mind, took a restorative pill to replenish his mana, and rested briefly.

Adjusting his body and mind to their peak state, he prepared to start refining again.

Though it was only his third attempt, he had already succeeded once, greatly boosting his confidence.

Of course, this success owed much to Su Yuqing’s shared insights.

Qin Ming’s goal was not just an ordinary Foundation Establishment Pill but a fine or even supreme quality one.

With the experience of his first success, his refining process became even smoother and more familiar.

Time passed bit by bit.

The fourth and fifth attempts still fell short, failing due to improper timing.

Perhaps the first success had involved a bit of luck.

But by the sixth and seventh batches, Qin Ming consecutively refined two ordinary-quality Foundation Establishment Pills.

As his experience and touch improved further, by the ninth batch, a remarkable phenomenon erupted above the purple furnace.

A seven-colored mist enveloped the space, swirling and lingering.

Qin Ming formed a hand seal and opened the furnace.

Five-colored pill aura shot upward.

He lifted his hand, and a deep blue Foundation Establishment Pill appeared, radiating a ring of light.

The surface bore five Taoist markings.

“A fine Foundation Establishment Pill!”

A satisfied smile spread across Qin Ming’s face.

After several consecutive attempts, he finally refined a pill of fine grade.

An ordinary Foundation Establishment Pill increased the chance of establishing the foundation by about thirty percent.

A fine pill raised the chance to approximately thirty-five percent.

As for the legendary supreme Foundation Establishment Pill, rarely seen across the cultivation world, it shattered the limitations of ordinary pills, increasing the chance by as much as forty percent.

Qin Ming’s repeated refining had yielded a fine Foundation Establishment Pill, meeting his expectations.

With materials still remaining—enough for about four more batches—he decided to push on without pause.

Such intense refining was also a test of his divine sense and mana cultivation.

Others might have long since collapsed under such strain.

From the start of his refining until now, three days had passed unknowingly.

The faint blue flame in the abode never ceased burning.

Su Yuqing had mentioned in his letter that the Foundation Establishment Pill he took during his foundation establishment was a supreme-grade one personally refined by him.

That sentence carried a strong sense of pride.

Qin Ming, naturally, was unwilling to accept that.

Finally, after repeated failures and attempts, an extraordinary phenomenon erupted in his abode.

A larger, more vibrant seven-colored mist gathered again above the furnace.

A dense pill fragrance flooded Qin Ming’s senses.

His divine sense entered the furnace, where he saw a dazzling deep blue spirit pill.

This supreme Foundation Establishment Pill bore eight Taoist markings.

Opening the furnace, he summoned the pill with excitement shining in his eyes.

A surge of heroic spirit welled within him.

“A supreme Foundation Establishment Pill! Outstanding performance! Hahaha!”

After this intense refining session, all his spiritual materials were consumed, producing five pills in total:

Three ordinary ones, one fine, and one supreme Foundation Establishment Pill.

If this news got out, the Thunder Origin Sect, Spirit Feather Gate, the Seven Great Powers, and the Alliance of the Seventy-Two Islands would probably come to attack his Moonwatch Island.

Without sufficient strength, it was best to remain low-profile.

Through this refining, Qin Ming’s alchemical skill had also greatly improved.

Next came the breakthrough to Foundation Establishment.

However, he had been refining continuously without rest, depleting much of his mana and divine sense.

He needed a break to rest and adjust, preparing to attempt the breakthrough in optimal condition.

One day later, Qin Ming finished his adjustments, looking radiant and vigorous.

He stepped out of his abode and approached his life-born spiritual plant, the Longevity Vine.

As if sensing his thoughts, the entire plant rustled joyfully.

Qin Ming exhaled deeply.

Thirty years of cultivation, enduring countless hardships, and now, at last, he stood before this crucial step.