Chapter 769 - 673: Human Lives Are Like Weeds, a Heart of Reverence

Princess Lan Yue didn’t dwell on the matter of the Merak Sacred Land’s sudden declaration of war. Instead, she went straight to the Recovery Spirit Pill that Yang Chan had mentioned.

She knew that what Yang Chan wanted right now was to refine the Recovery Spirit Pill, not analyze the sudden start of the war.

Neither of them would be sent into the Demon Cave to fight the Alien Race; they were both assigned to logistics. Therefore, refining the Recovery Spirit Pill was how they would complete their logistical duties.

"Alright. First, I’ll look through the alchemy records in these Pill Books. Then I’ll try refining the Recovery Spirit Pill. I’ll see which steps in the process prove to be a problem."

Yang Chan listened intently to Princess Lan Yue’s recollection of refining the Recovery Spirit Pill. Her account detailed the process used by a Top Level Pharmacist, which would be of great help to him.

However, Yang Chan didn’t rush to start refining immediately. Instead, he found the records for refining the Recovery Spirit Pill in a few of the alchemy insight notebooks he had brought with him and read through them first.

Even though the refining difficulty wasn’t very high, reading through the notes and insights of his predecessors could help him avoid some detours.

This time, he naturally had to refine a good number of high-quality Recovery Spirit Pills to give to the Merak Saintess and maintain his status as a Genius Pharmacist.

He didn’t know how long this war would last, but as long as he maintained his genius status, he would be held in higher regard by the Merak Saintess and avoid a lot of trouble.

Even if something major happened later in the Demon Cave, or if something happened to the Merak Saintess herself, his identity as a Genius Pharmacist would ensure he wasn’t among those who were abandoned.

Without the Merak Saintess, someone else would still protect him, giving him the time to grow into a Top Level Pharmacist.

That was why, at a time like this, he needed to demonstrate his value.

Yang Chan quickly finished reading the few alchemy notebooks that recorded the process for the Recovery Spirit Pill. The contents were largely the same, and they gave him a solid grasp of the entire refining process.

The process Princess Lan Yue had described her master using was actually quite similar. Reading these insight notebooks was a way to fill in any gaps.

"That’s about enough. I’m going to start refining the Elixir!"

Yang Chan put down the book. No amount of reading could compare to the usefulness of personal experience.

Reading those insight notebooks was merely a way to avoid some of the common problems that occurred during alchemy.

He flipped the switch to control the Earth Fire, and the temperature in the room began to rise again. The Alchemy Furnace started to change color.

"First, the Lingzhi, then the Fire Source Grass..."

Yang Chan methodically took out the prepared Spirit Medicines and began placing them into the Alchemy Furnace.

Princess Lan Yue watched intently from the side, paying close attention to Yang Chan’s every move. If she noticed any issues, she would make a note of them and bring them up after he finished the refining process.

This wasn’t the first time she had done this, so she was quite adept at it.

’The refining failed!’

Midway through the process, black smoke billowed from the Alchemy Furnace. Yang Chan immediately shut off the Earth Fire.

This meant the refining attempt had failed.

"The refining difficulty isn’t high, but you can’t rush the process, or it’s easy to fail."

Yang Chan summarized the reason for his failure.

Although the Recovery Spirit Pill wasn’t difficult to refine, this was his first time making it. He had also underestimated the difficulty, which led to failure.

However, this failure also made his expression turn much more serious.

"From your observation of my alchemy, what problems did you see during the refining process?"

Yang Chan asked, his gaze turning to Princess Lan Yue.

The onlooker sees most of the game. Someone watching the alchemy from the side could always spot details that he himself might miss.

"Pharmacist Yang, I felt there were no problems at the beginning of the refining. However, when you placed the Ling Guang Flower, the timing might have been a little too fast. Additionally, the temperature should have been adjusted at that moment, and also..."

Princess Lan Yue pointed out the few areas where she felt there might have been an issue. This, after all, was the reason Yang Chan had asked her to observe.

"So those were the spots, huh?"

Yang Chan stroked his chin, replaying the alchemy process in his mind.

After practicing alchemy for a long time, one develops certain subconscious habits. However, the refining process for some elixirs directly contradicts those personal habits. When that happens, it’s very easy to fail, and because of those habits, it might take two or three failures to even realize the problem.

After replaying the entire process in his mind, Yang Chan prepared a new set of materials for the Recovery Spirit Pill, adjusting the ratios as well.

The Earth Fire surged once more, and the Pill Furnace changed color.

One by one, Yang Chan tossed the Spirit Medicines into the Alchemy Furnace.

Having finished his review, he didn’t waste any more time and continued refining.

Gu An had delivered a large quantity of materials for the Recovery Spirit Pill this time, so he could refine many elixirs. If he succeeded, more Spirit Medicine would likely be sent over for him to continue refining.

Therefore, this consumption of materials was nothing to worry about.

"Finally, a success!"

On his third attempt, Yang Chan finally let out a long breath of relief. He had at last succeeded in refining the Recovery Spirit Pill.

Succeeding in Pill Formation after three attempts was actually an excellent display of skill, but Yang Chan felt he still had some issues.

’When refining low-level elixirs, I lack a sense of reverence for the unknown. That’s why I wasn’t as focused during the refining process. Otherwise, one failure would have been enough!’

’If I had more time to prepare and found a few more books with records on refining the Recovery Spirit Pill, I could have even succeeded on the first try.’

This served as a wake-up call for Yang Chan.

’Never underestimate any elixir, especially one I’ve never refined before.’

"The Elixir’s quality is at the Qualified Level!"

Taking out the elixir, Yang Chan examined the Recovery Spirit Pill. Its quality had reached the Qualified Level, which was at least usable.

It would be quite effective for an Inner Master, but much less so for a Bone Marrow Cleansing Grandmaster. It was a very ordinary elixir.

A Bone Marrow Cleansing Grandmaster’s recovery ability was very strong, so a Recovery Spirit Pill needed to be of the Top Quality Level to be truly effective. Only then would its Medicinal Power and effects be sufficient to meet their needs.

"Congratulations on successfully refining the Recovery Spirit Pill, Pharmacist Yang!"

"Should I also try refining the Recovery Spirit Pill?"

While congratulating Yang Chan, Princess Lan Yue asked if he needed her to join in on refining the Recovery Spirit Pills.

She had never refined a Recovery Spirit Pill before either. However, having had Yang Chan to observe—especially after just watching the entire process from start to finish—would allow her to succeed much faster.

Although she might fail multiple times, she was confident she could eventually succeed.

This was because the difficulty of refining a Qualified Level Recovery Spirit Pill wasn’t that high.

"No need. Just stick to your own rhythm."

"I will refine this batch of elixirs myself!"

Yang Chan didn’t let Princess Lan Yue refine them. Aside from the issue of consuming Spiritual Materials, there was also the fact that this batch of elixirs needed to be of relatively high quality. He had to present good elixirs to the Merak Saintess to prove his ability.

If he let Princess Lan Yue try, the consumption of Spiritual Materials would likely be higher, and the elixir quality wouldn’t be as good.

"You can continue to observe. The Qualified quality is rather average. What the Merak Saintess needs more are Recovery Spirit Pills of the Top Quality Level."

"Help me recall again, what other steps in the process just now might have been problematic?"

Yang Chan was not satisfied with refining a Qualified quality Recovery Spirit Pill. What he wanted, naturally, was an elixir of the Top Quality Level.

The title of Genius Pharmacist isn’t proven with Qualified quality elixirs; it’s earned with elixirs of the Top Quality Level.

The elixir quality had to be even higher to make his potential seem greater.

This expedition to the Demon Cave might even decide the position of the next Saint Master.

Although there was still some time before the next Merak Saint Master would take power, nothing was set in stone. Yang Chan was aware of this, which was why he continued to display his talent as a Pharmacist.

This was also related to his current Martial Arts Cultivation being only at the Second Bone Marrow Cleansing stage. If his Martial Arts Cultivation had already reached the Blood Exchange Martial Saint level, none of this would be necessary.

"Pharmacist Yang, during your last refining attempt, I felt there might have been issues with these steps. The first is..."

Princess Lan Yue wasn’t surprised by this. After all, in the time she had been with Yang Chan, she knew his alchemy goals were much higher than those of an average Pharmacist, because his target had always been the Top Quality Level.

Only by refining an elixir of the Top Quality Level would Yang Chan be satisfied.