Nano-engineering Immortal Cultivation Chronicle

Episode 7: Pill Refining

Returning to Wuji Hall, Patriarch Gwang-eum distributed his Contribution Points to Wuji Perfected One. Then, he tossed a Heaven and Earth Pouch to Jang So-cheon.

Jang So-cheon looked bewildered at the unexpected gift, prompting Patriarch Gwang-eum to chuckle and explain its meaning.

"I came across this by chance while wandering the Immortal World long ago. I’m giving it to you so you can gather plenty of Spirit Herbs in the future. Use it well."

"Thank you for your generosity, Patriarch. I wish I had something to offer in return… Ah!"

Remembering something, Jang So-cheon tapped his own Heaven and Earth Pouch and produced a potted plant he had bought at the market. He presented the pot to the Patriarch.

"What is this?"

"I found it by chance at the market today. I don’t know its name, but its elegant form and subtle fragrance give it the air of a gentleman."

"Are you giving this to me as a gift?"

"It seemed fitting for you, Patriarch, so I wanted you to have it."

"Very good."

"Master! May I take a look at that pot for a moment?"

As Patriarch Gwang-eum was about to store the pot in his Heaven and Earth Pouch, Wuji Perfected One spoke up from the side.

"What’s this? Do you want the pot for yourself?"

"Of course not. I just wanted to admire the Spirit Herb planted in it."

"Spirit Herb? Are you saying this is a Spirit Herb?"

"If my eyes aren’t mistaken, that’s a rare orchid called the Gentleman Orchid. It’s said that keeping it nearby during cultivation clears the mind and wards off inner demons. I didn’t know they could live this long, though."

"How old do you think it is?"

"I can’t say for sure, but it looks to be nearly six hundred years old. That makes it a top-grade Spirit Herb."

"Is that so? I’m really glad I came to Present Ghost Peak today. Jang So-cheon!"

"Yes, Patriarch!"

"How much did you pay for this?"

"I bought it for a single Low-Grade Spirit Stone."

"A Low-Grade Spirit Stone?"

"Yes."

Patriarch Gwang-eum pondered for a moment at Jang So-cheon’s reply, then took a book from his Heaven and Earth Pouch.

"This is a sword manual I found in a secret realm from ancient times. Unfortunately, it’s written in ancient script, so no one has been able to decipher it for centuries. But you’re lucky—you might stumble upon a fortuitous opportunity. It’s well worth a single Low-Grade Spirit Stone."

"Thank you very much."

Even if the text couldn’t be read, a Secret Technique Manual from an ancient secret realm was no ordinary find. The fact that it had been left in such a place alone proved it was extraordinary.

Jang So-cheon carefully placed the book in his Heaven and Earth Pouch. Then, Patriarch Gwang-eum had a final word for Wuji Perfected One.

"Securing the right to gather herbs in the Thousand Mile Gorge—your resourcefulness is impressive. Congratulations."

"It’s all thanks to you, Master."

"No, no. Present Ghost Peak is filled with auspicious energy—I feel like good things will keep happening here. I’ll be sure to visit often when I’m bored."

"Come anytime. You’ll always be warmly welcomed."

"You might regret saying that."

As Patriarch Gwang-eum made to leave, the rest of the disciples bowed respectfully.

Whoosh—

The Patriarch’s body dispersed like mist and vanished without a trace. It was a wondrous concealment technique.

After Gwang-eum left, Wuji Perfected One distributed the Contribution Points—including those given by the Patriarch—to the members of One Group. A single Contribution Point was worth as much as, or even more than, a Low-Grade Spirit Stone, since you could use them to buy Secret Technique Manuals and other things that couldn’t be bought with Spirit Stones.

Jang So-cheon had hoped for twenty or thirty points. But to his surprise, he received one hundred and thirty Contribution Points—a reward far beyond his expectations.

Makjang boasted that he’d received thirty points himself, but Jang So-cheon couldn’t bring himself to reveal his own total. He just mumbled that he’d gotten a bit more and sent a grateful look to his Master.

[Thanks to you, Present Ghost Peak’s prestige has risen greatly. And since we’ve even secured the chance to gather herbs in the Thousand Mile Gorge beyond the Guardian Fortress, I’m rewarding you generously. But don’t go bragging to others.]

[I understand.]

Replying to his Master’s voice transmission, Jang So-cheon placed the Jade Token containing his Contribution Points into his Heaven and Earth Pouch. Now, he realized, he had two Heaven and Earth Pouches.

Before leaving, Jang So-cheon presented the herbs he’d bought at the market to his Master, saying he didn’t need them and would rather offer them up. Wuji Perfected One refused to accept them for free and bought the herbs for fifty Spirit Stones.

After bidding farewell to his Master, the group members returned to the Dormitory, each heading to their own rooms.

Back in his room, Jang So-cheon locked the door. He took out the Heaven and Earth Pouch given by Patriarch Gwang-eum, opened it with his Spiritual Energy, and examined the inside with his Divine Sight.

Now that he’d reached the Third Star Level of the Qi Refining Stage, the range of his Divine Sight had expanded—he could see up to three zhang (about ten meters) now. Divine Sight was the ability to perceive objects using Law Power generated by the Primordial Spirit in the Spirit Realm. It allowed one to sense invisible things or gauge another’s cultivation level.

That wasn’t all. During pill refining, he could sense what was happening inside the Pill Furnace. It was an essential skill for a Pill Alchemist.

But Divine Sight wasn’t all-powerful. Unfortunately, it couldn’t penetrate Spirit Gathering Platforms or Heaven and Earth Pouches, nor could it see through living beings. Most importantly, Divine Sight wasn’t a Divine Miracle. Unlike his Special Ability, it couldn’t see the radiance emitted by Spirit Herbs or treasures, nor could it discern the age or efficacy of herbs, or slow down opponents’ movements in battle.

Still, Jang So-cheon was so delighted with his new Heaven and Earth Pouch that he nearly jumped for joy. The one he’d been using until now was a standard-issue item from the Herb Gathering Hall, only about half a zhang square—quite inconvenient. But the one from Patriarch Gwang-eum was large enough to fit his entire room inside: three zhang on each side, two hundred times bigger than his old one.

A large Heaven and Earth Pouch meant high quality. It could even have features like Water and Fire Non-Penetration. So Jang So-cheon took everything from his old pouch and transferred it to the new one.

He didn’t have many possessions. Aside from a mysterious Mystic Flask painted with a peerless beauty and a fox, a Jade Box containing a Wood Spirit Pill, his Jade Token with Contribution Points, the sword manual from Patriarch Gwang-eum, the Blue Silver Sword, and about seventy Low-Grade Spirit Stones, the rest were just Wall Valley Pills and various supplies for herb gathering.

After transferring everything, Jang So-cheon took out the mysterious Mystic Flask again. He shook and tilted it, but nothing happened.

Slosh, slosh.

Something was definitely inside the flask, but no matter how much he shook or tapped it, nothing came out.

Perhaps finding this amusing, the white fox—who’d been lying with its eyes closed—cracked one eye open, snorted, then closed its eyes again. The peerless beauty just kept smiling.

In the end, Jang So-cheon, exhausted by his own efforts, put the flask back in the Heaven and Earth Pouch.

Next, he took out the sword manual from Patriarch Gwang-eum. This manual was odd. Normally, a sword manual would have detailed illustrations of sword forms, but this one was filled with incomprehensible incantations and strange patterns and flows. Only the occasional drawing of a sword hinted that it was a sword manual at all. From the patterns and flows alone, he couldn’t even tell how many forms there were.

After three days of Qi Circulation Meditation and clumsily imitating the nameless sword technique, Jang So-cheon heard that Gwak Mu-jin, the group leader, hadn’t left his room at all. The vice-leader, worried, asked Jang So-cheon to check if he was still alive.

Creak—

The door was open. The group leader’s room was larger than his own, and there was even a separate training chamber in the back. To his surprise, Gwak Mu-jin was inside, refining pills.

"What are you doing?"

"Can’t you see?"

"Mind if I watch?"

"Suit yourself…"

Jang So-cheon had studied Spirit Refining Technique back when he attended Jamnyeong Pavilion. He hadn’t had any talent or interest at the time, but now, strangely, he found it fascinating—probably thanks to his thirty years of experience before reincarnating, synthesizing products and analyzing quality in a reactor.

‘Wait, you shouldn’t do it like that…’

Watching Gwak Mu-jin’s pill refining, Jang So-cheon frowned several times. The group leader kept making mistakes that defied all common sense. Still, Jang So-cheon held his tongue and watched patiently to the end.

As the pill refining neared completion—

Sssshhh.

He heard the sound of herbs burning inside the Pill Furnace.

Oh no!

Startled, the group leader opened the lid and poured in water, but it was too late. The precious herbs had turned to black ash, floating on the water’s surface.

Sigh!

The group leader sighed and looked at Jang So-cheon, asking why he’d come.

"The vice-leader sent me to check if you were dead or alive. You’re still alive, right?"

"No. Tell him I’m dying."

"Will do. So, what kind of elixir were you making?"

"The Yellow Essence Pill. It’s a good pill for cultivators at the Qi Refining Stage. I heard it helps with Realm Advancement when taken during Qi Circulation Meditation…"

"But you failed every time?"

"No, I succeeded once."

He showed Jang So-cheon a pill, but even to his eyes, it looked crude—not something that would help with cultivation.

"Is that the Yellow Essence Pill?"

"Ah, no… It’s not quite the Yellow Essence Pill. The effect is weaker, so I suppose I should call it a Half Essence Pill."

"And its efficacy?"

"About thirty percent of the original…"

"Then you can’t even call it a Half Essence Pill. Shouldn’t you just throw it away?"

"Don’t rub salt in my wounds."

"Right. Are you done refining for today?"

"Of course not. I don’t even know the meaning of the word ‘give up.’"

"That sounds like you, group leader. Mind if I keep watching?"

"Do as you like."

This time, Jang So-cheon got to watch the entire process of making the Yellow Essence Pill. Gwak Mu-jin cleaned the Pill Furnace, boiled water, added herbs in order, sometimes heating the furnace with his palm or cooling it with a fan. When the mixture thickened, he stopped refining, scooped out the semi-solid mass, and rolled it into a pill.

Of course, he failed again.

"Why did it fail? I had a good feeling this time…"

‘That’s because you relied on your gut feeling.’

Jang So-cheon almost blurted this out but held back. He peered into the Pill Furnace with Divine Sight and casually commented,

"At least you didn’t burn it this time. Since it’s good for the body, couldn’t you just drink it like a tonic?"

"Drink the pill like a tonic?"

"Why not? Once it’s in your stomach, it’s all the same anyway…"

From what Jang So-cheon could see, the liquid in the furnace didn’t have much potency. The reaction was weak, and most of the medicinal properties had evaporated during heating. There were also a lot of impurities. Still, it seemed more effective than the crude pill he’d been shown earlier.

"Hahaha! That’s because you don’t understand. Pills must be round and complete, like the world itself, so you can chew them thoroughly with your saliva, which is the body’s Spirit Fluid. The principles of the universe are contained within a pill—how could you just drink it like water?"

"If you’re going to throw it away, can I have it?"

"What would you do with that junk?"

"Look at the ingredients for the Yellow Essence Pill: Floating Immortal Flower, White Lotus Herb root, Lingzhi, Yellow Clear Sap… Every one of them is rare and expensive. It’s a waste to just toss it. I’d like to study it."

"Fine."

Gwak Mu-jin poured the contents of the Pill Furnace into a large Mystic Flask and handed it over.

Slosh, slosh.

As Jang So-cheon left the room, he told Gwak Mu-jin to give him all the failed batches in the future. He left a Spirit Stone on the table for the herbs and hurried out of the room.