Chapter 26: The Secret Treasure of Team Formation

Qin Shu poured out a Fasting Pill and examined it closely.

The pill was a gentle, warm red, emitting a pleasant medicinal aroma. Its surface was as smooth as polished jade—the mark of a top-quality Fasting Pill, nearly perfect in form.

Fasting Pills were among the most basic types of pills. While perfection wasn’t crucial, they served well enough to stave off hunger without much risk of impurities.

Qin Shu popped it into his mouth and chewed briefly.

The pill had a slightly sweet taste that dissolved quickly, mixing with saliva and flowing down into his stomach where it transformed into a surge of vital energy.

This energy could sustain a Qi Refinement cultivator’s sense of fullness for three days.

If used during secluded cultivation, its effect could last up to nine days.

“Not bad,” Qin Shu nodded involuntarily.

He then began attempting to concoct Rebirth Pills.

These were true first-rank medicinal pills, classified as healing remedies.

The primary ingredients for this formula included Pure Spirit Grass, Blood Activating Vine, and Mountain Yellow, complemented by several auxiliary components.

Pure Spirit Grass purified xenogenic spiritual energy; Blood Activating Vine invigorated blood circulation; Mountain Yellow facilitated tissue repair and regeneration. The auxiliary materials enhanced these three core effects.

As the saying goes: practice makes perfect.

After his successful attempt at the Fasting Pill, Qin Shu felt more confident.

Quickly, he reduced Pure Spirit Grass, Blood Activating Vine, and Mountain Yellow into a medicinal liquid.

Then, he added all the auxiliary ingredients at once into the pill furnace, creating a mixed药液 blend.

Next, he combined all four ingredients in the pill furnace and began to bake them.

The Karma True Fire licked at the medicinal liquid from time to time, causing a strong fusion reaction that accelerated the mixing process.

As the liquids merged, Qin Shu sensed through his divine sense that the medicinal properties were slowly intensifying.

When the potency reached its peak and started to wane, he knew it was time to weaken the fire as well.

At the same time, he had to increase the intensity of his divine sense.

Only by capturing that precise moment when the medicinal properties peaked could he produce an extraordinary pill. It required extremely sharp spiritual awareness to seize this fleeting opportunity.

Creating a perfect-grade pill, however, depended on luck.

Since it was his first attempt at refining the Rebirth Pill, Qin Shu missed that crucial moment.

After ten Rebirth Pills emerged, they turned out to be merely top-grade.

Karma True Fire, with its inherent fortune-giving power, provided a significant boost to the pill-refining process.

To him, these top-grade pills were equivalent to what others might consider high-grade.

Nevertheless, he remained undeterred: “Again!”

On just his second try, he managed to grasp the exact moment when the Rebirth Pill’s medicinal properties reached their maximum potency.

In an instant, he reduced the flame while simultaneously enhancing his divine sense.

Once the final stage of solidifying the pill solution was complete, a dan pattern materialized on the surface of each pill.

Perfect Rebirth Pill.

A first-rank perfect medicinal pill bore a single dan pattern.

The dan pattern resembled an indomitable evergreen pine, its color deep and vibrant, more profound than the main body of the pill.

During the alchemical process, Qin Shu found both the extraction of essence from the medicinal ingredients and their fusion into the pill to be remarkably effortless.

It was as if having hands was all that mattered.

He wondered if his Foundation Establishment strength made the concoction of first-rank pills significantly easier.

Encouraged, he attempted other pill formulas.

Just like with the Rebirth Pill, he achieved top-grade perfection on his second try, mastering them at will.

“I’m truly a genius,” he concluded, feeling his ego swell just a bit.

No longer satisfied with ten pills per batch, he challenged himself to twenty.

Success came easily again.

He pushed further, attempting ten refinements in one furnace, producing a hundred pills at once. This marked the limit; any more proved too much.

Moreover, maintaining consistent quality became impossible.

Out of those hundred pills, only ten were perfect, eighty of top grade, and a disappointing ten fell short, deemed merely high-grade.

“My true limit is nine refinements per batch,” he realized.

Time slipped by unnoticed as he devoted himself to alchemy—three days vanished in the blink of an eye.

In three days, he had harvested over three hundred first-rank pills of various types: Rebirth Pills, Nourishing Essence Pills, Mind Cleansing Pills, Marrow Purifying Pills, Muscle Transformation Pills, and Strength Enhancing Pills.

Among them, fifty percent were Perfect Grade, forty percent were High Grade, and only five percent failed, resulting in Low Grade.

The total value amounted to more than twelve thousand spiritual soul coins, fully recouping the cost of materials.

“Nine hundred million doesn’t seem so daunting after all!”

However, the pill-concocting process remained quite tedious, requiring patience amidst repetition.

Qin Shu, though generally patient, couldn’t endure this monotony indefinitely.

“Master, I’m hungry,” came Xiao Yan’s voice at that moment.

Xiao Yan was the name Qin Shu had chosen for the Green Flame Dragon Finch; its full name being Qin Yan.

Over a month, with ample food supply, Xiao Yan’s strength had grown rapidly, now equivalent to the ninth level of Qi Refinement.

Its size had increased significantly as well. When standing on tiptoe and stretching its neck, it nearly matched Qin Shu in height, its form even more graceful than that of an immortal crane.

Its appetite had grown considerably too; it now consumed demon beast meat worth thirty spiritual soul coins daily.

Without substantial resources, one truly couldn’t raise such a divine creature.

Before, Qin Shu had no income, living off his dwindling savings, but now things had changed.

He produced a large chunk of second-rank demon beast meat. “Go ahead, Xiao Yan, eat your fill.”

“Thank you, Master!” With a single gulp, the hundred-kilogram piece of second-rank meat disappeared into its mouth.

Qin Shu then returned to the Blood Contract Space to continue sleeping and refining.

Meanwhile, Qin Xu got up and went to the Money God Shopping Mall, where he sold the refined medicinal pills.

First-tier pills were useless for him now; they could only be exchanged for spiritual soul coins.

Next, he planned to refine second-tier Foundation Establishment Pills.

These Foundation Establishment Pills were basic medicinal pills for those in the Foundation Establishment stage. One pill was equivalent to an ordinary awakened being’s month of arduous cultivation.

However, there was no time for that right now.

As he reached the fourth floor, Zhao Gongqian was waiting for him.

“Qin-gongzi, they’ve already arrived. We’re just waiting for you. Please come in!”

“I apologize for keeping you all waiting.” Qin Shu nodded and followed Zhao Gongqian inside.

Two people were already waiting in the store, both women with strikingly similar appearances. It was hard to tell if they were mother and daughter or sisters.

“Is this the young master you mentioned, Manager Zhao?”

Zhao Gongqian replied, “Indeed.” He turned to introduce them to Qin Shu, “This is Madam Lu, grandmother of Miss Lu Yixi.”

Grandmother?

Qin Shu paused momentarily before realizing he was on the God Soul Continent, not Earth. Such intergenerational gaps weren’t unusual here.

“Greetings, Madam Lu!” Qin Shu bowed respectfully.

Zhao Gongqian continued the introductions, “And this is Miss Lu Yixi herself.”

Qin Shu looked at Lu Yixi—she was undeniably beautiful. Then again, among awakened beings, it seemed few were unattractive. Her appearance matched any face he’d ever seen, including from his previous life.

Her eyes seemed almost capable of speech, with a hint of mischief.

But having not interacted with her yet, he couldn’t tell if it was mere playfulness or stubbornness.

“Greetings, Miss Lu,” Qin Shu called out again.

“Hello, Young Master Qin!” Lu Yixi replied with a smile, her almond-shaped eyes blinking, corners of her lips curved upwards.

The aura around her was somewhat unstable, clearly indicating she had recently broken through to Foundation Establishment.

Madame Lu spoke up, “My daughter Yixi is in your capable hands now, Young Master Qin.”

Qin Shu smiled warmly, “You’re too kind, Madam. When shall we begin?”

“As soon as possible,” Madame Lu said, producing two golden objects - a pair of secret treasures.

These treasures resembled bracelets, intricately engraved with complex patterns.

They were team-up secret treasures: Abyssal Gold Bracelets, single-use items that shattered after activation.

Being second-tier, they cost ten times more than top-tier magical artifacts, at 30,000 spiritual soul coins each.

Ordinary awakened beings could scarcely afford such an expense.

However, given the generous compensation the Lu Family offered to Qin Shu, 30,000 spiritual soul coins was a trifling sum for them.

As a Sunlight Rank spiritual soul awakened being, Lu Yixi’s cultivation limit was that of a Supreme Golden Immortal. Naturally, the Lu Family would spare no effort in nurturing her talent.

Moreover, Lu Yixi’s spiritual abilities held immense potential benefits for the entire clan.