Chapter 77: So Intoxicating

"Boss, you're amazing."

After a moment, Bai Ling finally looked away from those three-pattern pills, admiring Lu Xun greatly.

Seeing Bai Ling shocked, Lu Xun wanted to say, no, actually you're amazing.

He's that skilled entirely thanks to Bai Ling's great progress in alchemy.

"Three-pattern pills."

Lu Xun felt a sense of accomplishment looking at the pills he had refined.

Strictly speaking, this batch of pills is not yet saint-rank.

But it lies between heaven-rank and saint-rank.

True saint-rank pills have not gold patterns but color patterns.

After all, this is the first hands‑on attempt; how could one make saint‑rank pills right away?

Three‑layer gold patterns come from the creation meridian.

Such meridians, a kind of heaven‑earth meridian, have many uses.

For example, they let an alchemist increase cultivation without deliberate practice while refining pills.

Furthermore, when initiating pill formation, they can raise the success rate and quality of the pills an alchemist refines.

Like Bai Ling's nine‑revolutions meridian, which gives her a nearly 100% success rate and also boosts quality by several levels.

Thus the second‑grade pills Bai Ling refines are all second‑grade heaven‑rank pills.

Lu Xun's creation meridian is even stronger, directly raising pill quality by two steps and granting many marvelous effects.

From a single‑layer gold pattern to a three‑layer gold pattern.

The resulting effect is stronger medicinal power, smaller side effects, and pill toxicity becoming negligible.

"Bai Ling, want to refine pills stronger than heaven‑rank?"

Lu Xun suddenly had a good idea.

He wanted to exploit a bug.

"Hmm!"

Bai Ling nodded.

"Come, I'll teach you."

Lu Xun's idea was to share his alchemy insights with Bai Ling so her alchemy could advance faster.

And strive to refine pills surpassing heaven‑rank.

Then Bai Ling's progress will flow back to Lu Xun.

This way, Lu Xun's alchemy expertise will keep growing.

Each step in alchemy expertise actually needs considerable time to settle.

Don't think Bai Ling jumped from second to third grade so quickly just because; it's because during the days her meridian was abandoned she never slacked, amounting to deep accumulation.

Otherwise, even with a meridian, Bai Ling would need several months or more to go from second to third grade.

So over the next few days, Lu Xun would impart his insights to Bai Ling while occasionally refining a batch of pills.

He wanted to forge true saint‑rank pills.

As for pill grade, Lu Xun currently refines only second‑grade pills.

"Success!"

One week later, Lu Xun successfully refined the first saint‑rank pill.

Some pills can be refined twelve at a time, while rarer ones only one per batch.

The pill Lu Xun refined this time is quite rare.

"Wow, color patterns! Boss, you're amazing!"

Bai Ling looked on, her eyes shining.

Lu Xun had refined a color‑pattern pill, and it was three‑layer color‑pattern.

Needless to say, the extra two layers are the work of the creation meridian.

This should be a pill pattern only Lu Xun can produce—truly one‑of‑a‑kind.

Unless someone else also possesses a creation meridian.

But that's impossible.

"Bai Ling, keep trying; I'll be right back."

"Hmm!"

Lu Xun left Qingbei Jie with the saint‑rank pill.

"Lu Xun, I haven't finished the gathering‑qi pills you gave me; do you have any other pills?"

At the gate of Clear Void Academy, Chu Youqing was called out by Lu Xun.

"Youqing, try this supplement‑qi pill; it can instantly boost your cultivation by three months."

Lu Xun handed over the saint‑rank pill.

"Supplement‑qi pill?"

Chu Youqing shook her head repeatedly: "Lu Xun, the instructor won't let me use pills that directly raise cultivation; even heaven‑rank ones of this type carry hidden dangers."

"I know, but this one is more than heaven‑rank."

Lu Xun said.

Pills that directly boost cultivation indeed have hidden dangers, and great ones at that.

Such dangers are mild at first, but once growth reaches a certain point they often become deadly and prone to capping one's limit.

Thus, anyone with talent basically avoids these pills, opting instead for auxiliary kinds that speed up cultivation.

Only the cultivation earned through one's own training is truly solid.

"Not just Heaven-tier?"

Chu Youqing curiously took it and looked, then exclaimed in surprise, "Lu Xun, how come there are colorful pill markings on this pill?"

All right, she didn't know about Saint-tier pills.

This is normal; currently, on Lan Xing, the grading of pills places Heaven-tier as the highest.

Although she didn't know, Chu Youqing felt that the pill was extraordinary as soon as she saw it.

Especially those colorful pill markings, which seemed to contain the ultimate truth of heaven and earth, the more she looked, the more beautiful they became.

"Youqing, if you trust me, take it—rest assured, you only need to take one per year, and there will be no problems."

Lu Xun handed the pill to Chu Youqing and spoke softly.

"Okay, Lu Xun, I trust you!"

Chu Youqing put the pill away.

Indeed, slowly explaining to a woman is less useful than playing the emotion card.

"Why are you keeping accounts again?"

"This is what I owe you; I definitely have to record it."

Chu Youqing took out her little notebook again and started recording.

All right.

Lu Xun let her have her way.

Chu Youqing returned to the Qingxu Academy.

Lu Xun did not deceive her.

This Qi-replenishing pill will indeed pose no hidden danger to Chu Youqing.

Even a Saint-tier pill that directly raises cultivation carries relatively little hidden danger.

Moreover, after being enhanced by the Creation Pill Meridian, this is still a Saint-tier pill with triple pill markings.

However, one must exercise restraint—no more than one per year.

Otherwise, even if the hidden danger is small, it can easily lead to inflated cultivation, allowing inner demons to take advantage.

After sending off the Saint-tier pill, Lu Xun returned to Qingbei Jie, preparing to refine another pill that directly raises cultivation for Murong Wan as well.

Lan Xing is about to enter the Ancient Starry Road; beforehand, the stronger one's cultivation, the better.

【Host possesses the Creation Pill Meridian; please do not over-refine pills, or it will cause autonomous cultivation breakthrough, leading to leakage of heavenly secrets, bringing lethal danger to the host.】

【The host needs to control the number of pill refinings; after each return and cultivation breakthrough, a certain number of pills may be refined.】

Just as Lu Xun was about to refine pills, the system's reminder popped up.

"What the hell, you won't even let me refine pills?"

Lu Xun was speechless.

After reading the prompt, he understood why the system forbids excessive pill refining.

Possessing a pill meridian allows refining pills to increase cultivation.

If he refines too many pills, causing a cultivation breakthrough, that amounts to his own training.

That would inevitably leak heavenly secrets, allowing others to detect his Chaos Divine Body and Chaos Divine Meridian.

Once Lan Xing steps onto the Ancient Starry Road, Lu Xun would likely face catastrophic disaster.

Fortunately, it's not completely forbidden to refine.

"Never mind."

This is fine; after lazing around for so long, having Lu Xun refine pills every day would also annoy him.

He only needs to act occasionally, refining the pills that Chu Youqing and Murong Wan need.

If he has spare time, he can also refine some pills to sell for money.

Thus, Lu Xun stopped refining pills and waited for his cultivation breakthrough.

【Chu Youqing breaks through to the fifth layer of Qi Gathering; you gain thirty times her harvest.】

【Chu Youqing breaks through to the sixth layer of Qi Gathering; you gain thirty times her harvest.】

【Chu Youqing breaks through to the seventh layer of Qi Gathering...】

Two days later, in just a single day, Lu Xun suddenly received three returns.

Chu Youqing broke through three layers in succession!

Needless to say.

This must be from using the Saint-tier Qi-replenishing pill Lu Xun gave her!

Saint-tier Qi-replenishing pill directly boosts cultivation by three months.

Its effect varies from person to person.

Someone might use it and gain only one layer, because in three months they can at most advance one layer.

Chu Youqing is different; using it she rose three layers straight, jumping from mid-stage Qi Gathering to late-stage.

The returns Lu Xun obtained were also extraordinarily fierce.

His cultivation surged wildly upward, from the sixteenth layer of Qi Gathering all the way to an unprecedented twenty-seventh layer, rising a full eleven layers.

His spiritual sense also grew stronger as a result, its perception range expanding from a few meters to a hundred meters around.

"So intoxicating!"

Lu Xun felt it was too awesome.