Chapter 215: Refining Pills and Foundation Establishment

The eight dragon heads spewed purple flames that, under Han Li's control, thickened from fine threads to the thickness of fingers, while the silver-threaded cauldron's rotation slowed gradually and began to tremble slightly within the flames.

As time passed, a faint medicinal fragrance drifted from the small cauldron, invigorating the senses—but Han Li knew well that this was far from completion; he would need even fiercer earthfire for an instant solidification to form pills.

Thinking this, the purple flame under his control blazed brighter still, growing as thick as a bowl's mouth, engulfing the entire silver-threaded cauldron. From afar, the small cauldron had become a massive fireball, and the medicinal scent grew even richer.

Without needing to guess, Han Li knew the powdered herbs were beginning to coalesce—his focus sharpened further.

But at that moment, a muffled crack echoed from within the cauldron. Though quiet, it sank Han Li's heart; his expression darkened.

After a moment's hesitation, Han Li sighed, shut off the earthfire, gestured with his hand to lift the lid of the still-scalding cauldron, and leaned in to look.

Inside lay several fragments of pale blue solid matter—clearly failed pills.

Shaking his head, Han Li took out a jade box and placed it on the ground, then flipped the silver-threaded cauldron to pour the failed pills into it, sealing it away. Even as failures, these were condensed from rare herbal powders—he wouldn't dare discard them; they might yet serve some other purpose.

After finishing this, Han Li returned to his cushion and sat in meditation until the silver-threaded cauldron had cooled completely, then began refining again.

Same steps, same powdered ingredients, same flame control—but unfortunately, he failed again at the pill-coagulation stage.

This time, Han Li's face showed no expression; once his state stabilized, he silently began the next round…

…

A month passed; the ugly man, seeing Han Li still hadn't emerged from the earthfire chamber, felt slight surprise—but mostly excitement, for the longer Han Li stayed, the more fees he could extract.

Two months passed; the stone door of Room Eighteen still hadn't opened. The ugly man, inwardly delighted, was now deeply astonished.

Three months…

Six months later, Han Li showed no sign of emerging. The ugly man's earlier joy had vanished entirely; only worry and unease remained etched on his face.

For refining pills or artifacts, half a year was not unusual—even longer durations, the ugly man had witnessed several times.

But those who remained inside the earthfire chamber for so long were at least Foundation Establishment cultivators! A Qi Refining cultivator like Han Li, staying this long to refine pills—he had never seen such a thing.

Moreover, Qi Refining cultivators' Grain Grain Grain Grain Grain Grain Bigu could last only a month at most—could this disciple of Master Li really be carrying food and drink with him, allowing him to endure this long? The ugly man pondered, puzzled.

Inside the earthfire chamber, Han Li sat cross-legged on his cushion, gazing at the two dozen glowing blue pills floating before him, his expression deep in thought.

These pills were the sole fruits of Han Li's six months of relentless effort—obtaining them had been excruciatingly difficult.

In the first twenty or so attempts, Han Li couldn't even pass the coagulation stage. Watching each batch of failed pills, his heart ached; he nearly gave up, planning to return and learn proper refining techniques from other alchemists before trying again. Though this would waste far more time, it was better than squandering precious herbs.

But just before leaving, he inexplicably opened the cauldron for one more try. And this time, as if blessed by heaven, the herbs coagulated—and when he opened the furnace, miraculously succeeded in extracting the first pill he had ever refined himself.

This single Foundation Establishment pill, though slightly smaller in size, was otherwise identical to his original three pills. Han Li's spirits soared.

Emboldened by this success, Han Li gritted his teeth, abandoned his plan to return, and settled in to continue.

Remarkably, after this breakthrough, his success rate in coagulation skyrocketed—one in three refinements now succeeded. Even more astonishingly, his skill in extraction proved extraordinary: over half the pills were successfully retrieved in a single attempt—a fact he himself never imagined.

During this time, whenever Han Li felt hunger or thirst, he swallowed one of the Grain Grain Grain Grain Grain Grain Bigu pills he'd obtained from the old man—each granting him another month's endurance. This bottle of Grain Grain Grain Grain Grain Grain Bigu pills had cost him several century-old herbs he'd acquired under false pretenses—and now, they proved perfectly useful.

Thus, when his raw materials were finally exhausted, he had amassed this astonishing quantity of Foundation Establishment pills—far exceeding his original expectations.

Initially, hearing how difficult refining was, he'd thought himself lucky to obtain seven or eight pills. Yet now, refining didn't seem as impossibly hard as the cultivation world claimed—were alchemists misleading others? Or did he truly possess a talent for refining?

Han Li felt perplexed.

In truth, Han Li had underestimated it: refining was even harder than the outside world claimed. A mediocre alchemist required decades of practice and nearly astronomical wealth to cultivate.

Yet Han Li's current skill in refining Foundation Establishment pills already placed him among the upper tier of ordinary alchemists. This incredible feat stemmed entirely from his unbroken six-month refinement of the same pill.

Even the wealthiest sects could never afford to let any alchemist use abundant rare materials daily to refine the same pill for half a year.

Such a thing was barely conceivable only with low-grade pills—but if they were low-grade, why bother refining them specifically to accumulate experience? The ingredients were cheap; if you failed, just try again.

Han Li didn't understand this, so he didn't dwell on it. After brief consideration, he let it go—for he had suddenly developed a powerful urge to immediately swallow a Foundation Establishment pill and cultivate into Foundation Establishment right here.

The thought was so strong that Han Li seriously considered the possibility of closing off in the earthfire chamber to cultivate.

…

Eleven months later, the stone door of Han Li's earthfire chamber remained tightly shut, showing no sign of opening.

On this day, the ugly man stared blankly at Door Nineteen, his face heavy with worry—he was certain Han Li had met with disaster. Otherwise, even a Foundation Establishment cultivator would have emerged by now.

He wasn't worried about Han Li himself—he feared Master Li would blame him for his disciple's mishap. Though he was a close relative of Master Zhong and managed this place because of it, the ugly man knew well: if Master Li truly flew into a rage, his patron would not defend him.

Just as the ugly man was drowning in anxiety, the stone door before him flashed white light—and silently opened. Out stepped a man beaming with joy: Han Li, who had remained inside nearly a year.

The ugly man, stunned into silence for a long moment, then burst into startled delight, hurried forward several steps, and began complaining:

"Younger brother, why did you only come out now? If you hadn't, I was going to… hey! You…!"

Having spoken only a few words, the ugly man's eyes widened in shock, as if seeing a ghost; he pointed at Han Li, mouth agape, unable to utter another word.

"What's wrong? Is something amiss with me?" Han Li glanced at the ugly man, a faint glow shimmering across his face as he smiled.

"Y-you… your cultivation method! How…? Could… could you be Foundation Establishment now?" The ugly man finally found his voice, his face filled with confusion and terror, stammering out the question.

"Yes. After refining the pills, I thought the environment here was suitable, so I swallowed one Foundation Establishment pill and closed off to cultivate. The breakthrough succeeded—I am now a Foundation Establishment cultivator!" Han Li, seeing the man's reaction, stretched lazily and declared with casual confidence.

"You cultivated here?"

The ugly man glanced back at the earthfire chamber, then at Han Li, still unable to believe it—he had never heard of anyone cultivating into Foundation Establishment inside a chamber meant solely for refining pills or artifacts.

Yet he opened his mouth several times, and still didn't voice his doubts. This man wasn't just Master Li's disciple—he was a Foundation Establishment cultivator, a status far beyond what a Qi Refining cultivator like himself could challenge.

"Is that not allowed?" Han Li glanced at him dismissively, his tone unyielding. Instantly, the unique aura of a Foundation Establishment cultivator radiated outward—forcing the ugly man, standing mere steps away, to stumble backward several paces, drenched in sweat.

"Of course not! There's no such unreasonable rule! Congratulations, Elder Brother, on your successful cultivation!" The ugly man, quick-witted, immediately bowed and smiled, changing his address from "younger brother" to "elder brother" without hesitation.

Now that Han Li had succeeded in cultivation, he was his senior—showing deference was only proper.

The ugly man was remarkably pragmatic—he understood the cultivation world's rule of power above all, deeply and thoroughly.

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