Chapter 32
A few days passed since then.
『Dao Friend (538.24): I guess we can’t call Five Elements Spirit Root Holders Mixed Spirit Roots anymore.』
『Dao Friend (811.81): Wouldn’t the true Mixed Spirit Root be the Three Spirit Root Holder, who is neither a genius nor a dullard?』
[Because a Four Elements Spirit Root Holder can at least plant a False Spirit Root to become a Five Elements Spirit Root Holder.]
└Dao Friend (88.4): This guy is a Four Elements Spirit Root Holder.
The atmosphere of the Nameless Forum had changed quite a bit after Baek-Cheong’s strategy guide on Multi-Technique Deployment swept through it.
The Dao Friends no longer mocked Baek-Cheong by calling her an Old Monster of the Qi Condensation Stage.
『Dao Friend (12.971): Dao Friend (913.14) is just exceptional; most Five Elements Spirit Root Holders are indeed ordinary mortals.』
『Dao Friend (87.303): Dao Friend (913.14) is a Peerless Prodigy but a problem child.』
Instead, an atmosphere formed where they accepted the fact that she was a crazy, malicious Qi Condensation Stage prodigy with bizarre Divine Sense and genius-level comprehension.
Of course, that didn’t mean they looked up to or praised Baek-Cheong by any means.
『Dao Friend (944.98): She has that kind of comprehension and still does malicious things?』
『Dao Friend (24.17): Is her mindset just different because she’s too smart?』
[Maybe she’s the same breed as those bastards who are Breaking Through the Interface from the Upper Realm Nameless Forum to spread Jinseonkasu in the Lower Realm Nameless Forum?]
Her malicious track record of polluting the Forum Board and raising the blood pressure of cultivators hadn’t gone anywhere, so she was firmly tagged as a person of interest and a troublemaker.
However, the person in question, Baek-Cheong, didn’t even have the luxury to enjoy the changed public opinion of the Nameless Forum.
“The flames are too rough! Hold your breath and follow the Flow of Qi!”
Yak-seon’s thunderous roar echoed loudly through the Pill Room.
Baek-Cheong wiped the beads of sweat forming on her forehead while guarding the front of the pill furnace.
Her daily life, where she dreamed of a free forum-surfing life, had once again sunk deep into the swamp of hellish Pill Refining Tutoring.
The culprit behind this situation was a single question Baek-Cheong had casually thrown out a few days ago.
“Grandfather Yak-seon, by any chance, are there Low-Spirit Gathering Pills with inscribed patterns on them?”
It was a question born from Baek-Cheong’s pure(?) desire to gather spiritual energy quickly, break through her realm, and post picture posts to her heart’s content.
However, this question became a massive catalyst that ignited Yak-seon’s Alchemist soul.
“Inscribing a Pattern on a 1st-Grade Low-Tier Pill… Hoho, what a truly novel and brilliant perspective.”
Yak-seon stroked his beard, his eyes sparkling.
A 1st-Grade Low-Tier Pill was nothing more than a commonplace consumable eaten by cultivators at the Qi Condensation Stage.
What crazy Alchemist would pour their heart, soul, and massive amounts of qi into Inscribing a Pattern on such a universal pill?
It was a fruitless endeavor and a waste of time that wouldn’t even cover the costs.
But the Eccentric Idea of a prodigy overflowing with comprehension was enough to stimulate his curiosity as an Alchemist Grandmaster.
“Yes, if one could inscribe a pattern on a 1st-Grade Low-Tier Pill like the Spirit Gathering Pill, that might truly be the path to approaching the origin of Pill Refining. Cheong-A, how about you prove it yourself?”
From that day on, Baek-Cheong’s assignment was solely fixed on Crafting Spirit Gathering Pills.
The glorious days of showing off her Pill Refining Talent by making 1st-Grade Mid-Tier pills like the Suhwadan or Blood-Stopping Pill were over.
From morning until night, she had to endlessly shove only Astragalus Root and Clear Heart Grass into the pill furnace.
Of course, for Baek-Cheong, who could effortlessly handle up to 1st-Grade Mid-Tier pill recipes, the act of Crafting Spirit Gathering Pills itself was easy enough to do with her eyes closed.
After a few days of Repetitive Practice, she reached a level where she could frequently produce Top-grade Spirit Gathering Pills.
“Am I really a genius?”
Baek-Cheong boasted while looking at the freshly crafted Top-grade Spirit Gathering Pill.
However, Yak-seon’s evaluation was ruthless.
“It is a top-grade pill without a single speck of impurity, but an inscribed pattern has not formed. Do it again.”
Baek-Cheong had to sit back down in front of the brazier with a tearful face.
Crafting a top-grade pill and Inscribing a Pattern were an Entirely Different Realm.
For a top-grade pill, one only needed to burn away the Material Residue without leaving anything behind, but an inscribed pattern was a Mysterious Phenomenon that manifested only when the Inherent Vitality of Medicinal Herbs and the Qi of Heaven and Earth were perfectly bound to the pill’s surface without a single inch of loss.
Even after running the pill furnace hundreds of times, she couldn’t grasp the slightest clue on how to inscribe a pattern.
Unable to endure the frustration, Baek-Cheong sought advice from Yak-seon.
“Grandfather Yak-seon, what exactly do I have to do to make an inscribed pattern appear? My Fire Control is perfect and I’ve extracted all the residue, so why isn’t it coming out?”
Yak-seon cleared his throat and clasped his hands behind his back.
“An inscribed pattern is not something that gets inscribed just because you try to force it. You have no choice but to take your time, constantly Refining your Fire Control, and wait with utmost sincerity for the Moment of Herb and Qi Becoming One.”
To Baek-Cheong, who wanted a clear answer, the words 'sincerity' and 'waiting' only added to her frustration.
Baek-Cheong returned to her Abode, pouting her lips.
“Ah, seriously, why are the explanations of preachy elders all like that?”
She washed her exhausted body, lay face down on her bed, and immediately connected to the Nameless Forum.
If Yak-seon wasn’t going to tell her, it would be much faster to find the answer in the Nameless Forum, where countless cultivators were gathered.
She typed the keyword [Inscribed Pattern] into the search bar of the Information Board.
Sure enough, countless posts poured out.
『Dao Friend (723.21): The Correlation Between the Principle of Inscribed Pattern Formation and Meridian Stability.』
『Dao Friend (902.1): A Statistical Approach to the Probability of Manifestation of Inscribed Patterns in High-Grade Pills.』
Among the difficult titles, a familiar post caught Baek-Cheong’s eye.
『Dao Friend (553.24): Commentary on the Five Elements Pill Refining Method.』
It was a strategy guide written by Dao Friend (553.24), who perfectly understood and developed the nonsense she had thrown out as a shitpost.
Since she was technically the founder, she examined the post, expecting it to definitely contain the answer.
[…The process involves utilizing the repulsive force of Water Overcoming Fire to control the Instantaneous Temperature, and pushing out the residue into the Realm of Chaos (Application of Formations). At this time, Rotating by the Principle of Taiji to circulate the medicinal properties of the herbs will achieve the Resonance of Heavenly Dao, forming an inscribed pattern…]
As she read down the text, Baek-Cheong’s expression gradually contorted.
“What the heck is this saying?”
They were definitely the words she had babbled, but now that someone else’s Logical Explanation and commentary were added, it felt like an alien language.
They are Deploying Inside the Pill Furnace with formations and whatnot.
It is Rotating by the Principle of Taiji and whatnot.
It was a Profound Insight that was utterly impossible to understand and apply in practice at her level of 4th-Stage Qi Condensation.
“Is this a genuine genius of Pill Refining?”
Only then did Baek-Cheong realize the bitter reality.
The fact that Dao Friend (553.24) had achieved a miracle based on the nonsense she spouted was only possible because that Dao Friend was a Genuine Genius who had delved deeply into Pill Refining.
However, while she could somehow craft top-grade pills using her Shallow Knowledge and vast Divine Sense Utilization, she hadn’t awakened to the Deep Principles of Pill Refining.
“I’m getting blocked by my own post.”
Baek-Cheong stomped her feet in frustration.
She carefully read Dao Friend (553.24)'s strategy guide dozens of times.
She even meticulously examined the interpretations of other alchemists left in the replies.
But it was impossible to fully digest the abstruse theories with her Meager Pill Refining Knowledge.
In the end, Baek-Cheong boldly cut out the difficult theories and gathered only the parts she could have an Intuitive Understanding of, and began to devise a different method to inscribe a pattern.
First, she took out the paper, brush, and ink that had been shoved in the corner of her Abode.
Then, she messily scribbled down the various theories and methods she had collected from the Nameless Forum onto the paper.
[Harden the Herb Surface through Rapid Temperature Change.]
[Instead of carving it away with Metal Element qi, condense with Earth Attribute for Settling Impurities.]
[Covering with Water-attribute Qi Like Dew in the final Condensation Stage for Preserving Vitality.]
She cleverly did some Patching Together of only the parts that showed Consistency among the theories of other Dao Friends.
She melted those summarized points into the Basic Fire Control Skills she had learned from Yak-seon, completing her own Makeshift Pill Refining Method.
“Theory formulation complete.”
* * *
From the next day, Baek-Cheong continued her Bizarre Experiment in the Pill Room.
“Cheong-A! The flames are too strong! Won’t the herbs burn up?!”
“It’s fine! I’m just slightly burning the outside for Coating!”
“Coating? What kind of bizarre nonsense is that!”
Despite Yak-seon’s horrified attempts to stop her, Baek-Cheong stubbornly pushed forward with her Makeshift Pill Refining Method.
Pitch-black smoke billowed from the pill furnace, and explosions shook the Pill Room dozens of times a day.
Her skill at churning out Top-grade Spirit Gathering Pills was nowhere to be seen, and only piles of ashes and Poop-Colored Failures piled up.
Yak-seon could only click his tongue and watch Baek-Cheong’s reckless challenge.
But Baek-Cheong did not give up.
Mobilizing her powerful Divine Sense of 15 zhang, she meticulously recorded and analyzed the Qi Changes Inside the Pill Furnace at every moment of failure.
She considered at what point she needed to cover it with the water attribute to preserve its vitality, and to what degree she needed to raise the Fire Temperature to harden the surface.
Through ignorant Repetitive Practice and the utilization of her Divine Sense, she whittled down the Error Margin.
* * *
As such desperate experiments and failures repeated, nearly a month flew by once again.
Baek-Cheong’s face was covered in Black Soot, and her silk clothes had long since become Covered in Ashes.
“This time, I have a good feeling.”
Baek-Cheong glared with wide eyes and focused on the pill furnace.
The Astragalus Root and Clear Heart Grass melted in the flames, spewing out Clear Essence.
“Now!”
Baek-Cheong drew up Water-attribute Qi from her Dantian and pushed it into the pill furnace.
Cold Water Qi settled like dew over the Boiling Essence, forming a Thin Film.
At the same time, she drastically raised the fire-attribute temperature, firmly hardening the Essence Surface.
She suppressed the Conflicting Qi with the Earth attribute and finally breathed in the wood attribute’s vitality to complete the form.
Vwoom.
A Pleasant Vibration and a Pure Pill Fragrance emanated from the pill furnace.
It was a thicker and clearer scent than the fragrance of any Spirit Gathering Pill she had smelled so far.
“Open it.”
Yak-seon, who was watching from the side, also urged her with a tense voice.
Baek-Cheong carefully pushed open the lid of the pill furnace.
At the bottom, a single round Spirit Gathering Pill Tinged with Blue Light sat demurely.
And on its surface, a Silver Inscribed Pattern that looked like elegantly flowing clouds was clearly engraved.
“It appeared… It appeared!”
Baek-Cheong picked up the pill and jumped up and down, shouting for joy.
Amidst countless failures and piles of ashes, she had finally succeeded in Crafting an Inscribed Spirit Gathering Pill in her own way.
“Is this truly…”
Yak-seon examined the pill Baek-Cheong held out with trembling hands.
Even in the eyes of an Alchemist Grandmaster, an inscribed pattern engraved on a 1st-Grade Low-Tier Pill was hard to believe.
“It is a Bizarre Method that strays far from the standard to craft such an Excellent Result. Cheong-A, your comprehension tears down what This Old Man has built up over a lifetime.”
Yak-seon sent Deep Praise along with a Hollow Laugh.
“Now I can fill up my spiritual energy to the brim!”
However, Baek-Cheong didn’t care about Yak-seon’s praise at all.
Her mouth was practically watering just at the Thought of Posting Picture Posts in the Nameless Forum after chewing up the Inscribed Spirit Gathering Pill and Filling the Dantian to the Brim.
“Heheh.”