Chapter 627: The Saint Medicine’s First Trial: Immortal Phoenix Fire

Princess Phoenix gave the command, and the Divine Beast Phoenix, which had already been waiting in position, immediately let out a long, piercing cry. Its magnificent flames surged violently, then rushed toward the Dragon Flame Cauldron as though a sea of fire had suddenly been stirred into motion.

A miraculous sight unfolded before them.

The enormous Divine Beast Phoenix flew directly into the blazing flames above the cauldron, but instead of being consumed by them, its body rapidly shrank. In the blink of an eye, the colossal phoenix had become roughly the same size as the crimson dragon carved into the Dragon Flame Cauldron.

The dragon and phoenix cried out together.

A mighty dragon’s roar and a clear phoenix cry rang through the alchemy chamber. In the next instant, the shrunken Divine Beast Phoenix merged with the crimson dragon, and the two creatures became a pair of intertwined flames that circled and spiraled around the cauldron. The resulting Dragon-Phoenix Alchemical Flame surged with astonishing power, causing the red medicinal liquid inside the cauldron to boil even more violently.

"Spring of Purity!"

Princess Celeste raised Marcus’s Mythic Artifact, the Jade Purification Vase. A moment later, a clear stream of water poured from its mouth. This was the Spring of Purity, one of the five legendary springs of the Dreamland Continent, renowned for its extraordinary healing properties and ability to cure diseases. The precious spring water cascaded into the violently boiling cauldron.

A full vat of Spring of Purity was poured into the mixture, and the red medicinal liquid immediately began to churn. The two liquids gradually intertwined, then began to merge into one beneath the raging Dragon-Phoenix Alchemical Flame.

The intense heat soon caused the red health potion to begin evaporating. Princess Phoenix and Princess Celeste stood on opposite sides of the cauldron, continuously pouring more Super Health Potions into the mixture to replenish what was being lost.

Marcus watched the process carefully before reaching into his storage bag and taking out one of the supplementary materials from the Three-Star Sacred Lotus.

A single Lotus Leaf.

He dropped it into the boiling red liquid, and everyone immediately focused their attention on the cauldron.

This was a crucial moment.

The success of the next step depended on whether the Three-Star Sacred Lotus Leaf could withstand and dissolve in the Dragon-Phoenix Alchemical Flame. If the leaf could not be melted quickly enough, then there was no chance of completing a Saint-tier medicine within the twenty-minute time limit.

Fortunately, the result was immediate.

The Phoenix’s Immortal Phoenix Fire truly deserved its reputation as the supreme flame among divine beasts. Combined with the already terrifying firepower of the Dragon Flame Cauldron, its intensity was extraordinary. The moment the blue-green Three-Star Sacred Lotus Leaf entered the boiling medicinal liquid, it began to soften and dissolve.

Less than ten seconds later, the entire leaf had transformed into a blue liquid, which slowly dispersed into the surrounding red mixture.

"It melted!"

The tension that had been weighing on everyone’s hearts finally eased.

Marcus let out a quiet breath of relief, while the three women were even more visibly excited. Alana’s eyes brightened as she watched the mixture, and Princess Phoenix and Princess Celeste both looked toward Marcus with anticipation. The first hurdle had been cleared, which meant they could continue.

"Good."

Following the established sequence, Marcus waited for the next stage before adding the Three-Star Sacred Lotus Root.

This time, it took nearly twenty seconds for the entire root to dissolve. Once it had completely melted into the mixture, Marcus immediately added the Three-Star Sacred Lotus Stem. After the stem dissolved, he followed with the Three-Star Sacred Lotus Flower, and finally, a single Three-Star Sacred Lotus Seed.

None of them had any actual experience refining a Saint-tier medicine. They had only the ancient legends and records to guide them, which stated that a Saint-tier medicine required several Divine-grade herbs as its foundation. Since there was no established recipe for what they were attempting to create, the only option available to them was to combine as many powerful ingredients as possible, provided their energies and attributes were compatible.

Three minutes later, the Lotus Leaf, Root, Stem, Flower, and Seed had all completely dissolved under the Dragon-Phoenix Alchemical Flame.

The transformation was striking.

The medicinal liquid, which had originally been bright red, had now become a thick blue mixture. It churned slowly inside the cauldron, carrying the concentrated energy of the Three-Star Sacred Lotus.

Alana carefully observed the changes before finally giving Marcus a nod. Marcus immediately understood that it was time to continue.

He took out the two carrot leaves he had obtained from the Golden Rabbit King, the energy-rich Divine-grade fruit known as the Seven-Leaf Carrot, and added them to the cauldron.

The two energies merged smoothly.

The Seven-Leaf Carrot leaves dissolved almost immediately, and after confirming that the mixture remained stable, Marcus took out the Century Life Grass that Princess Phoenix had given him specifically for the refinement of healing medicines.

He added it without hesitation.

At that point, every Divine-grade herb Marcus currently possessed had been added to the cauldron.

According to Alana’s instructions, the greater the energy contained within the ingredients, the easier it would be to meet the requirements for refining a Saint-tier medicine. However, that did not mean they could simply throw every herb they had into the cauldron. Only Mythic-grade and Divine-grade materials contained enough concentrated energy to make a meaningful contribution. Lower-grade ingredients would provide little benefit while introducing unnecessary impurities, potentially making the refinement even more difficult.

Now that all the necessary ingredients had been dissolved, the Dragon-Phoenix Alchemical Flame was pushed to its maximum intensity.

Alana raised the Asclepius’ Herbal Staff and swung it through the air. As she murmured the incantation, a powerful green radiance erupted from the Divine Artifact. The surrounding energy seemed to respond to her command as she channeled her Hundred-Flowers Energy together with the Wood-element energy contained within the staff.

Then she unleashed another secret technique from the Asclepius’ Herbal Classic.

"Asclepius’ Herbal Classic, Asclepius’ Elixir Inquiry!"

The green-glowing Asclepius’ Herbal Staff suddenly plunged directly into the Dragon Flame Cauldron.

The instant the staff touched the thick blue medicinal liquid, its green radiance intensified dramatically. The entire mixture began to rotate around the staff, first slowly and then faster and faster, as the energies contained within the various ingredients were forcibly drawn together and fused.

Time was their greatest enemy.

They couldn’t afford to let the ingredients simmer gradually until their properties naturally merged into a new medicine. They had only twenty minutes, and the Dragon-Phoenix Alchemical Flame was consuming the medicinal liquid far too quickly. They had to rely on their skills to accelerate the fusion process while continuously replenishing the mixture.

Princess Phoenix and Princess Celeste continued pouring Super Health Potions into the cauldron, maintaining the amount of liquid needed for the refinement. Marcus remained focused on the cauldron while gripping the remaining supplementary materials from the Three-Star Sacred Lotus.

Alana had already warned him that if she sensed the energy inside the cauldron becoming insufficient, he would need to add more of those materials immediately.

Fortunately, based on Alana’s analysis of the Three-Star Sacred Lotus and its supplementary ingredients, the amount they had already added, one Leaf, Root, Stem, Flower, and Seed, should have been sufficient.

At least, that was what they had hoped.

Under the influence of Asclepius’ Elixir Inquiry, the thick blue medicinal liquid spun rapidly around the staff. The various energies within it were being drawn together and forcibly fused, and as the rotation became faster, the liquid gradually grew thicker.

It was beginning to take shape.

Marcus’s eyes narrowed. Could it actually be working?

Princess Phoenix and Princess Celeste were thinking the same thing. For a moment, all three of them watched the increasingly concentrated mixture with anticipation, believing they might finally be approaching the critical stage of forming the Saint-tier medicine.

Then Alana’s voice suddenly cut through their hopes.

"Master, the liquid is evaporating too quickly! There isn’t enough time for the ingredients to finish fusing. Hurry and add more Super Health Potions to extend the refining time, or the medicine will dry out and burn!"

Marcus’s expression changed. That was bad.

He immediately pulled out his own supply of Super Health Potions and began pouring them into the cauldron as quickly as possible.

But it still wasn’t enough.

The blue medicinal liquid continued spinning faster and faster around the Asclepius’ Herbal Staff, while every batch of red potion they poured into the cauldron was consumed by the raging Dragon-Phoenix Alchemical Flame almost the instant it entered the mixture. Marcus, Princess Phoenix, and Princess Celeste all began pouring Super Health Potions into the cauldron at the same time, desperately trying to keep the liquid level from falling.

Yet they were still losing ground. And then something even worse happened.

Fine cracks began spreading across the surface of the thick blue medicinal liquid.