Chapter 496: Chapter 496: Pill Completion

Thunder would occasionally rumble above the altar.

On Mi Mountain, Li Wuji could often hear it. Aside from the Great Suanni sleeping restlessly, it didn’t have much of an impact.

The only real change was that Ah Er had grown much more nervous. It was always rushing about, its former ease gone completely.

Disciple Chen and another disciple from the Foreign Affairs Hall came to the black prison to retrieve someone.

They had actually managed to secure a command token from the Foreign Affairs Hall.

Ah Er, who had just returned to receive a batch of ore, was intercepted by them, much to its displeasure.

After a round of gesturing and explaining, Li Wuji nodded.

"Since Junior Brother Bai Mo has already looked over the list, there’s nothing more to say."

"Gentlemen, pick one."

Disciple Chen pondered for a long time. Following the guidance of his peers, he screened the candidates using various methods and finally chose one man.

He was a rather burly man who had been imprisoned for over fifty years, barely qualifying as an old-timer in the black prison.

Before leaving, Disciple Chen hesitated for a moment, then turned back and said to Ah Er:

"Please thank Warden Bai for me. If this is truly successful, I will make sure my Master acknowledges this favor..."

Ah Er was unimpressed, waving a claw in farewell.

Bai Mo’s selection method was meticulous, involving one’s birth chart, physique, temperament, Cultivation Technique, and entire cultivation journey, among other things.

’If this fails,’ Ah Er thought, ’it’s probably because the folks from Pill Peak just aren’t good enough.’

Li Wuji saw it off the mountain.

"Is there anything I can do to help our junior brother?"

Ah Er was about to shake its head, but after a thought, it made a few gestures.

Li Wuji understood its meaning and agreed.

"I understand. If anyone comes by, I’ll help stop them..."

In matters of alchemy, Bai Mo could only rely on himself; no one else could interfere.

However, a strange phenomenon was occurring. Thunder rumbled above the altar, and a bolt could strike at any moment. The presence of others could get them caught in the crossfire.

An Caiwei’s senior sister was very nervous.

The two of them had been watching from a small hill in the mushroom forest for over half a month.

The woman in white kept glancing at the lightning snakes in the sky above, extremely wary.

An Caiwei didn’t understand any of this and was meditating beside her, perfectly calm.

"Senior Sister, we’ve been out for a long time. Since you’re so afraid, why don’t we just go back?"

The white-clothed disciple looked resentful and shook her fist.

"What do you know?"

"Opportunities to observe a process like this are rare. Besides, we came out under the pretext of gathering Scale Crystals."

"I have a stash of them. We can just use those to make up the numbers later."

Hearing this, An Caiwei knew her Senior Sister was dead set on it, and made one last attempt to persuade her.

"Junior Brother said his methods aren’t suitable for you."

"All paths lead to the same destination," the young woman in white said.

"There’s always something to learn. If nothing else, it will broaden my horizons, which will be very useful in the future."

She had no Alchemy Dao master, lacked talent in this path, and had to figure everything out on her own, so she was naturally unwilling to leave so easily.

...

When Ah Er returned, Bai Mo was pouring a bowl of hard, golden-yellow mineral powder into the Pill Furnace.

The powder melted in an instant.

In the boiling Pill Liquid, the first-rate ores that had been added had already melted into a single mass, but it lacked the texture of ore.

Instead, it was a fluid mass of gold mixed with dark cyan, constantly shifting with the rolling bubbles, looking very soft.

Ah Er came over for a look, filled with apprehension.

The liquid in the furnace was scalding hot.

Once, while pouring in ore, a single drop of splashed Pill Liquid had landed on its chest.

The fire-repelling talisman it wore had instantly caught fire and burned right through.

The remaining heat had landed on Ah Er, scalding it so badly that it howled and cried incessantly.

Since then, it had become extremely careful about its protective measures before starting work.

Bai Mo glanced at it.

"Are all the ores ready?"

Ah Er had already inventoried this batch of ore on Mi Mountain, so it confirmed that they were.

Bai Mo glanced at the progress in the Pill Furnace and nodded in satisfaction.

"Grind the ore. I’ll need it in a moment."

Ah Er didn’t dare to delay. It jumped off the altar, went to the side, tossed the ore into a stone basin, and began pounding it with all its might.

These ores came from many sources, including the Celestial Barrier Mountain range, what Wei An and his allied Cultivators had gathered, and also Black Stone City.

Back when the beast hordes of the Celestial Barrier Mountain range were rioting and frequently crossing the borders, Bai Mo had taken Ah Er there.

By nightfall, Ah Er had finished grinding all the ore.

The mixed powder was packed into a cloth bag, which it brought to the steps beside the furnace.

After receiving a nod from Bai Mo, Ah Er gripped the mouth of the bag tightly, leaving only a small opening, and carefully poured out the powder.

The mineral powder formed a glittering stream, shimmering beautifully in the moonlight.

As it fell into the Pill Liquid, it dissolved instantly, converging into a mass like a colorful butterfly, exceptionally brilliant.

The woman in white in the distant mushroom forest couldn’t see this spectacle; her eyes were fixed on Bai Mo’s actions beside the Pill Furnace.

As the mineral powder was added, her junior brother’s hands never stopped moving.

The flames beneath the furnace danced, their intensity and position constantly shifting.

She understood.

’This is using fire control to guide and harmonize the medicinal properties inside the furnace.’

’But how is such complex control even possible?’

Just as she was pondering this, a winding white light suddenly flashed across her vision.

CRACK! BOOM!!

The next moment, a clap of thunder exploded, startling both women.

An Caiwei was jolted from her meditation and asked urgently:

"What happened?"

The woman in white looked up at the sky above the altar.

A moment ago, the bright moon had hung high, its light unobscured by clouds. Now, everything had become dim and murky.

She said irritably, "How should I know?"

"Look at your junior brother. He’s completely unfazed, so it’s probably nothing serious."

"But we should go. We can’t stay here. We might get struck by lightning..."

She grabbed An Caiwei and hastily left the hill in the mushroom forest, departing on a Flying Ship.

Meanwhile, at the foot of the altar, Bai Mo was comforting Ah Er:

"Don’t be afraid. Keep your hands steady."

"I am borrowing the power of the heavens. This is merely a backlash from the Celestial Dao. It can be resolved. It’s not a big deal."

Bai Mo had long anticipated such a situation. It was merely another variable in the refining process.

For an experienced Alchemy Cultivator, resolving it was not difficult.

There were even great masters in ancient times who could absorb such celestial interference, channeling it into the pill to create unpredictable transformations.

Reassured, Ah Er calmed down and continued its work...

「After that night.」

Bai Mo frequently used his Divine Thought to influence the changes in the medicinal power within the furnace.

The Pill Liquid, which had shown signs of instability, stabilized once again.

A mass of Golden Liquid inside the furnace gradually began to absorb the essence from the Pill Liquid. Its soft interior began to transform, forming patterns along a certain trajectory.

The embryonic form of the Pill was created at this moment, but it was still a long way from completion.

It was a long process.

「The seasons changed.」

In the blink of an eye, three more quarters of a year passed.

The Four-Season Winds around the altar had been fully gathered, adding an air of bleakness and desolation to the area.

Disciples from Divine Dao Mountain came to inspect them and gave good feedback on the four flags.

"The wind is ready to be used," they said.

Bai Mo then channeled the Four-Season Winds into the furnace, causing a tempestuous change within.

...

When Li Wuji was about to complete his second year guarding the black prison, the Foreign Affairs Hall came for an evaluation.

By the time this matter was dealt with, it was already night.

Li Wuji saw them off and had just turned to return to the mountain when he suddenly saw the sky behind it fill with golden light, as if a rare treasure was being born.

In a few leaps, he bounded up the mountainside and looked toward Bai Mo’s location.

’Did he succeed?’

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