Mortal Alchemy

Chen Ping sat cross-legged in the dojo.

His aura was rapidly rising, with extreme fluctuations.

One Qi Cultivation Pill increased his cultivation by a year, requiring a month to refine.

However, Chen Ping did not dedicate all his time to cultivation, needing to balance work and rest.

Mu Luofei and Meng Huang'er, having lost their families, appeared to be immersed in the Immortal Path.

But the feeling of sorrow was hard to conceal; Chen Ping secretly saw Mu Luofei and Meng Huang'er weeping in private.

Each time Chen Ping consumed a Qi Cultivation Pill, he would take time to accompany Mu Luofei and Meng Huang'er.

Moreover, he had to refine Enlightenment Pills, Longevity Pills, and Body Tempering Pills.

The materials for the second-order Everlasting Beauty Pill were still incomplete, and after some research, Chen Ping could not find suitable substitutes.

This day, Meng Huang'er, having enjoyed pleasure with Chen Ping, was savoring the afterglow.

"Huang'er, I might have a way for you to enter the Foundation Establishment stage," Chen Ping said, embracing Meng Huang'er and sharing the news.

Meng Huang'er leaned on Chen Ping's chest, giggling softly, charming and coquettish, like a young girl:

"Junior Brother is just teasing me; I've long passed the Foundation Establishment limit, how can I establish my foundation again?"

Chen Ping was already fifty years old, and Meng Huang'er was almost sixty, a few years older than Chen Ping.

Chen Ping said solemnly, "I have recently been planning a pill called the Longevity Pill. Taking one can delay the Foundation Establishment limit by a year."

"If Huang'er takes thirty or forty pills, she can try to establish her foundation."

Upon hearing this, Meng Huang'er's delicate body trembled, her beautiful eyes met Chen Ping's, still somewhat disbelieving: "Is Junior Brother serious?"

Chen Ping said, "Of course, it's true. Only by entering the Foundation Establishment stage can Huang'er have a longer life, and also officially become a second-order alchemist."

"I have been researching this matter for the past few years, refining many pills, and am close to success."

"Shi... Junior Brother..." Meng Huang'er was so excited that she was about to cry.

She couldn't wait to offer her Yuan Yin to Chen Ping immediately.

As a second-order body cultivator, but not a Foundation Establishment cultivator, she would be discriminated against and despised wherever she went.

Although she willingly served as Chen Ping's concubine, many people in Floating Light Square City felt that she used her beauty to bewitch Chen Ping, thus receiving such care from him.

Meng Huang'er didn't say it on the surface, but she had been feeling wronged in her heart for many years.

She never expected Chen Ping to be so attentive to her, even trying to find ways to help her establish her foundation.

Chen Ping comforted her, "Huang'er, don't rush to cry, cry after you enter the Foundation Establishment stage."

"Your cultivation is only at the eleventh level of Qi Refining. You must first strive to enter the twelfth level of Qi Refining, reaching the peak of the twelfth level."

"Otherwise, the time for your Foundation Establishment will be delayed by a few more years."

"How is the collection of Foundation Establishment Pill materials that I asked you to acquire last time going?"

Meng Huang'er wiped away her tears and smiled through her tears: "Junior Brother, I'm listening to you."

"I have already collected three of the five spiritual herbs for the Foundation Establishment Pill."

"Still lacking Hundred-Year Spiritual Milk and Heavenly Spirit Fruit."

"Next, I will first strive to raise my cultivation to the peak of the twelfth level of Qi Refining."

Chen Ping playfully pinched her nose:

"Then don't slack off."

"Mmm, mmm." Meng Huang'er hugged Chen Ping tightly, although she was already very tired from serving Chen Ping.

But after getting the news from Chen Ping, she straightened her tired body and served Chen Ping again.

...

"There are still eleven years left until the Changtian Secret Realm..."

"Should I use all my resources to advance the Sword Dao Intent, or advance the Body Cultivation to the third order?"

Currently, Floating Light Square City is becoming a small scale.

Meng Huang'er's shop earns and distributes 1,800 spirit stones to Chen Ping each month.

This is the money Meng Huang'er makes from refining first-order Everlasting Beauty Pills.

Then, the profits brought back by the three junior brothers Fang, Luo, and Han from Broken Star Square City are 6,000 spirit stones per month.

Chen Ping mostly refines second-order Qi Cultivation Pills and Breakthrough Pills to make money.

He earns 5,000 spirit stones per month from his own alchemy, because he has to spend most of his time cultivating.

Equivalent to Chen Ping earning 12,000 spirit stones a month.

And he currently needs to purchase third-order spirit fire and a third-order alchemy furnace. Chen Ping has inquired about the price. The cheapest third-order spirit fire costs 400,000.

Although Mu Luofei was expelled from the Eastern Xuan Sect, she still maintains contact with the Golden Core master of the Qi Refining Peak. The quotation for a third-order alchemy furnace is 500,000 spirit stones.

This will cost 900,000 spirit stones.

All he has on him adds up to 400,000 spirit stones.

Because refining the Longevity Pill cost a lot of resources.

At the same time, the acquisition of the Purple Qi Essence for the Enlightenment Pill has not stopped.

"Lack of money, still lack of money..."

Deducting these expenses, before the Changtian Secret Realm begins, Chen Ping can only choose one between the Sword Dao Intent or Body Cultivation.

Chen Ping thought for a long time: "Meng Senior Sister's Foundation Establishment cannot be delayed, it is best to establish it within these ten years."

"Then let's improve Body Cultivation..."

Within these ten years, he will raise Body Cultivation to the third order, and then go to the Heavenly Venerable Sect to fleece them, to see if he can enter the fourth stage.

If he can get a leaf of Sword Dao Intent within the Heavenly Venerable Sect, then wouldn't Chen Ping save a lot of money?

This improvement of Sword Dao Intent is a bottomless pit.

Since returning from Demon Subduing Square City, Chen Ping has consumed a total of twenty bottles of Enlightenment Pills.

These twenty bottles of Enlightenment Pills alone cost Chen Ping more than 100,000 spirit stones, and this is still him refining the pills himself.

Having figured out how to spend the spirit stones earned each month, Chen Ping continued to invest in refining the Longevity Pill.

This Longevity Pill was originally a second-order pill, but it is very troublesome to modify it so that it can be taken during the Qi Refining stage.

To date, Chen Ping has failed two hundred times.

Through these three hundred times, Chen Ping has accumulated a lot of experience.

The number of times the pill formula has been adjusted exceeds one thousand times.

The cost of a first-order Longevity Pill is as high as 1,500 spirit stones.

After so many failures, Chen Ping is about to succeed, otherwise he would not have chosen to tell Meng Huang'er this news, so that she can prepare in advance.

Misfortunes never come singly. At this time, the Brocade Fur Treasure Seeking Ferret is about to advance to the second order. It consumes a lot of second-order spirit beast meat every day, costing Chen Ping almost one hundred spirit stones a day.

Fortunately, Mu Luofei began to be able to refine second-order magical artifacts. Seeing Chen Ping's predicament, she unconditionally supported Chen Ping with 2,000 spirit stones each month.

This made Chen Ping extremely moved, greatly alleviating Chen Ping's pressure.

Time passed in this way, reaching the tenth year of the Demon Tide Battlefield.

Situ Ye brought his family to Floating Light Square City. Chen Ping asked him to hide his identity and made some mental demon oaths, not to reveal any information.

As compensation, Chen Ping taught him the pill formula and refining techniques for the first-order Everlasting Beauty Pill.

Chen Ping will profit 40% from each furnace of Everlasting Beauty Pills that Situ Ye refines in the future.

In this way, Chen Ping's wallet became more relaxed.

In the eleventh year of the Demon Tide Battlefield, the Brocade Fur Treasure Seeking Ferret successfully advanced to the second-order spirit beast and fell into a coma, undergoing transformation.

Chen Ping estimates that the Treasure Seeking Ferret will sleep for at least six or seven years.