At ten o’clock, the furnace was lit, and the alchemical process began.

Counting the crimson bills in his hand, Luo Yu calculated that he now had over ten thousand in liquid assets—most of it, in fact, won from scions of the wealthy. He first made a round of the ginseng specialty shops; wild ginseng with a certificate of authenticity, even at just twenty years old, cost upwards of seven or eight thousand. Luo Yu hesitated, reluctant to make such a purchase—if he ruined a root in refining, he’d have nothing left to work with. Perhaps it would be wiser to practice with a few batches of Cleansing Spirit Pills first.

Thus resolved, Luo Yu headed to the pharmacy, where he spent over six hundred on three pieces of golden amber and three of blood amber, intending to test whether different ingredients would yield different effects. He then bought more than a dozen supplementary ingredients for just over two hundred, and even visited a florist for aloe and the like. Once all the medicinal materials were assembled, a new question arose: the fire.

He pondered: the so-called “earthfire” must be something akin to magma. How did other Qi Refining cultivators manage to seek out magma for alchemy? According to his research, volcanic lava ranged from 800 to 1300 degrees Celsius, so alchemy required a heat of around 1000 degrees. In ancient times, stoking a wood fire to reach such temperatures must have been nearly impossible, but in the modern era, a gas stove was more than sufficient: scientifically designed, evenly distributed, and remarkably stable.

But before he could begin, one more problem presented itself—alchemy required “magical power.” Nowhere in “Asking the Pivot” had Luo Yu encountered an explanation of what magical power actually was. Only in his study of alchemy did he realize it must exist within himself. The immortal Shui Jian Zhenren likely considered the concept too basic to explain, so the alchemy manual contained no instructions. Luo Yu had to fumble and guess his own way forward.

In Luo Yu’s imagination, spiritual energy was like electricity or motive power—a driving force. Magical power, then, derived from it, just as motion generates electricity, or electricity, with clever apparatus, can produce motion. Perhaps magical power could also be used to generate spiritual energy? But such questions were too advanced for Luo Yu’s current level and could wait.

He tried circulating spiritual energy within his dantian, and gradually felt a force begin to well up—this, surely, was magical power. Unlike spiritual perception, which was formless and intangible and could be released at will, magical power had to flow through his meridians. Since it was restricted by the body, it could interact with physical things: an invisible yet substantial force? A mutated element, perhaps?

Luo Yu went out to the courtyard, gathering magical power in his palm, and, aiming as if to strike a wild rabbit, intended to hurl it at a leaf. He miscalculated; there was no need to throw it at all—the power released directly, nearly striking himself. After a few more attempts, Luo Yu found magical power incredibly useful, acting like an invisible hand—capable of moving objects remotely, gathering in his limbs for attack or defense. At the moment, he could move no more than a single slipper, but the potential was considerable.

With all preparations complete, Luo Yu dragged out the pill furnace and set about his first attempt at alchemy in his sleek, modern kitchen.

The Cleansing Spirit Pill was relatively simple to make—an entry-level elixir. The process required four steps:

First: remove the harmful and useless impurities from the materials, leaving only the essence. This essence is gentle and easily absorbed. Shui Jian Zhenren suggests tasting a little at this stage to personally acquire a sense of the medicinal properties and uses of each extract.

Second: add the ingredients in proportion and according to their fire resistance, much like one must stew the ribs first before adding radish in a radish-and-ribs soup. The alchemist must understand the properties of each herb and know precisely when to add what.

Third: “frying”—using magical power to blend the essences. When the essences are fully integrated and uniform, pill condensation begins.

Fourth: A critical final stage—“pill opening.” Too early and the pill is unstable; too late and it becomes useless dregs. At the moment between condensation and stability, one must envelop the pill with spiritual energy, producing a peculiar “chemical” reaction with the essences, ultimately yielding a fragrant, lustrous elixir.

Luo Yu placed the furnace on the gas stove, lit the fire, and watched the blue flames lick at the base. He felt a twinge of nervousness—he had never even cooked before; could he possibly succeed at this? The furnace quickly grew hot. Curious, Luo Yu reached for the lid, only to scorch his hand instantly—the heat conduction was astonishing! With an iron pot, he could have managed a few quick touches... How was he supposed to open this lid?

Could he use a cloth to handle it? Luo Yu turned to fetch one, but when he looked back, he noticed a dim glow coursing over the furnace’s surface. Studying it closely, he saw flowing light threading through the patterns etched into the walls, flickering just like the neon lights he’d often seen, and reminiscent of the jade tablet’s outbursts of power.

Could there be an array inscribed on the furnace? Did the array activate when the temperature reached a certain threshold? Was this the signal to add ingredients? Or would there be a sign? Perhaps it was best to wait a bit longer. After a while, the furnace seemed to reach a steady state—the temperature was saturated, and the entire vessel was shrouded in a faint, azure-blue glow, visible to the naked eye.

Luo Yu cautiously brought the cloth closer, but the instant it touched the halo, it began to smoke. Appalled, he thought, This is insanely dangerous! Cultivation really is a perilous path—what if the furnace explodes? Would it? Wouldn’t it? Probably not, he reassured himself. This was, after all, an immortal’s tool—surely well-made. Besides, the materials inside weren’t anything like saltpeter, sulfur, or charcoal; it should be safe enough.

But how to open the lid? Wait—he had magical power now! Luo Yu gathered spiritual energy, leveraging magical power to slowly lift the lid, raising it into the air. It was a bit heavy, but the furnace wasn’t large, and the lid was lighter than the slipper he’d managed before. As the lid came off, the azure radiance at the mouth of the furnace vanished—just as he’d hoped. He surmised that the lid and furnace bore separate but integrated arrays, with a subroutine triggered upon opening the lid, releasing the glow, and reverting to the main program when closed.

Time to add the ingredients—best to start with something cheap. Luo Yu summoned all his focus, using magical power to lift a small handful of wolfberries and send them into the furnace. The maneuver—lifting the lid while grabbing ingredients—proved quite tricky, but persistence was key!

At last, the wolfberries landed inside. He quickly replaced the lid, worrying that the high heat might instantly incinerate them to ash. He sent his spiritual perception inside to monitor the process: to his amazement, the wolfberries floated eerily in midair, rather than falling to the bottom. The furnace’s programming, so to speak, kept the berries in constant motion, tumbling them like a sealed drum washing machine.

Luo Yu’s mind whirred with speculation: the furnace was suffused with spiritual energy—this must act like standby power, activating the array. The force agitating the ingredients was likely magical power generated by circulating spiritual energy. But if he kept using the array for alchemy, eventually the spiritual energy in the furnace would be exhausted. There must be a material inside capable of locking in spiritual energy—perhaps mutton-fat jade, which could serve as the array’s core, renowned for its ability to store spiritual power.

He continued to monitor the internal changes and suddenly sensed spiritual energy gathering at the furnace’s edge. Wait—the furnace could absorb ambient spiritual energy to recharge itself? Truly, the ancients’ wisdom rivaled the moderns’. Luo Yu watched, fascinated: as the spiritual energy entered, most was retained within the furnace, but a small portion seeped into the wolfberries.

Why would the furnace absorb spiritual energy? Undoubtedly the work of an array! If this array could absorb spiritual energy, couldn’t he install one at home and gather energy for his own cultivation? He resolved to study the furnace thoroughly once this batch was done—it was a marvel.

As he marveled, the wolfberries inside began to change. A red and yellow pulp oozed from their surfaces, which then started to blacken, turning into ugly little black beans. Luo Yu panicked: Had he ruined the batch? As he fretted, the constant tumbling inside caused the blackened ash to fall away from the berries, disappearing in a flash as they dropped. Soon, a burnt smell reached his nose.

It’s over, Luo Yu thought, the batch is ruined... But then, as some of the beans lost their ash, a lustrous, translucent substance was revealed—wolfberry essence! The semi-transparent extract, tinted with a faint red, was smaller than a grain of rice. As they rubbed together in midair, the fragments gathered into a single bead, about the size of a fingernail. Overjoyed, Luo Yu realized it was time to remove it. He carefully opened the lid, used magical power to lift out the bead, and hurried to find a container.

The wolfberry essence was soft and gelatinous, deforming when magical power was unevenly applied. Luo Yu dared not set it down and let it hover beside him while he rummaged through the cupboards. He could sense a faint spiritual energy emanating from the bead, but worried it might quickly dissipate. It should be stored in jade, which could lock in the energy—but he had no jade bowls, bottles, or boxes, only some ornaments and raw stones. Clearly, his preparations had been lacking.

In the end, Luo Yu found a small porcelain jar for condiments, placed the essence inside, covered it, and continued extracting more. Since this round was for practice, he wasn’t overly concerned with results.

The tale of Cultivation Buddies continues—Luo Yu has begun refining pills!