Time flew by, and three months passed in the blink of an eye.
The Wilderness was a storm of blood and gore, the Outer World was in turmoil, and even within the Xu Clan, things were no longer as stable and peaceful as before.
Instead, a grim and somber atmosphere had begun to spread.
It was a tension not seen even after the Xu Family's reclamation team had suffered losses in the swamp.
Affected by this, the people coming and going within the clan all hurried along with grave expressions, focusing only on their tasks with little time for leisure.
At this time, however, Lin Changheng had no mind to pay it any attention. After firing up his furnace and finishing the newly requested batch of Decompression Pills for the Xu Family, he hurried to the Miscellaneous Affairs Hall to collect what he needed for his task before returning.
He immediately laid open the Long Wooden Box, revealing two types of Wasted and Inferior Pills. Lin Changheng's eyes filled with anticipation as he mentally connected to the Primordial Cauldron and swept his hand over them.
SWISH!
SWISH!
All the residual Essence Blood from the Wasted Pills was sucked away in one go.
In his sea of consciousness, the mouth of the Primordial Cauldron spewed forth rosy clouds, projecting an image tinged with the aura of a celestial paradise.
When everything subsided, two brightly glowing Treasure Seeds, one red and one jade-green, appeared in his sight, looking incredibly solid.
[Fire Crow Treasure Seed · Fourth Layer]
[Can continue to Refine into Demon Race Lifebound Talent: Fire Control]
'It's been almost half a year, but it's finally done. Refine it into me, now!'
Lin Changheng had waited far too long, but thankfully, his patience had held. He muttered to himself.
The Red Treasure Seed swayed and fell, instantly vanishing into his mind.
An unprecedented torrent of searing plasma, carrying a terrifyingly high temperature yet giving him a feeling of extreme comfort, spread from his Divine Soul throughout his entire body.
[Obtained: Fire Control Technique: Ascension]
[Utility: Deeply manipulate ordinary flames; massively enhances Fire Magic.]
He immediately went out into his courtyard and cast a Fire Bomb Skill. The flame in his hand began to grow and shrink, from the size of a baby's fist to as large as a millstone.
He could even manipulate it into various shapes.
Like a flying bird, a slithering snake, or a soaring eagle—the transformations were endless.
More importantly, the flame of this Fireball didn't sizzle and splash outward as usual. Instead, it was perfectly tranquil.
It didn't seem like a violent flame at all, but rather a gentle ball of water.
But only Lin Changheng could know the terror contained within!
Forget about a Fourth Layer Qi Cultivation practitioner of the same level; even those at the Fifth or Sixth Layer would be left battered and bruised by this skill. A moment of carelessness could lead to injury or even death.
The flame, swaying gently in the breeze, also reflected a face with eyes glinting, utterly excited.
There was nothing in the world that brought more happiness than this kind of steady progress!
Lin Changheng even had a feeling that he could now refine ten Pills in a single batch!
This was a change brought about by the benefits to his Alchemy Dao!
Moreover, the number of Masterpiece Pills would reach two!
Although the rate of Masterpiece Pills seemed unchanged, in reality, it was a massive saving of time and Energy!
It used to take two days to refine ten pills individually, but now he could do them all in one batch!
His efficiency and yield had both doubled!
'I'll know for sure once I fire up the furnace again!'
Next, he continued by refining the successfully acquired Cyan Wood Snake Treasure Seed into himself.
[Cyan Wood Snake Treasure Seed · Third Layer]
His [Poison Transformation Technique: Spiritual] also advanced to the [Tongming] realm.
Its utility transformed as well.
[Body's resistance and tolerance to poisons increased. Can rapidly refine Lower Grade Poisons.]
"Not bad."
This time, Lin Changheng had no intention of looking for poisons to test it. To see any effect, he would probably need a Middle Grade Poison...
'Better safe than sorry...'
So he didn't dare to test it lightly.
...
As for the [Origin Treasure Seed], just as Lin Changheng had guessed, the speed of Spirit Stealing had indeed increased.
[Spirit Stealing: 62/100]
It had increased by eight points.
The speed was gratifying.
He had now thoroughly experienced the benefits of comprehension. It had a massive effect on his Cultivation Techniques, Magic, and Skills.
After all, this was one of the foundations that made humans the leaders of all living things. It was only natural!
At this point, Lin Changheng's Fire and Wood Spirit Roots had transformed again, reaching thirteen strands and nine strands respectively!
...
Another half a month passed before some rumors began to circulate among the Xu Family's upper echelons.
They vaguely pointed to the root cause of the sudden change in the Xu Clan's atmosphere.
As soon as the news broke, it immediately piqued Lin Changheng's curiosity.
He needed to understand the situation clearly to be at ease.
Because this wasn't just about the Xu Family; it also concerned the stability of his long-term residence. After all, when the nest is overturned, how can any egg remain intact?
Whether the Xu Family could continue to stand firm would determine if he should pack up and run.
It was very important.
Almost immediately, Lin Changheng learned a vague version of the story from Xu Fugui, but he could still piece together the general outline.
He immediately felt a sense of relief.
The Xu Family team, which had suffered losses last time, had originally adopted a conservative strategy in their subsequent reclamation efforts.
They advanced cautiously, without being reckless.
They did everything possible to mitigate risks and preserve their effective strength.
But then, half a month ago, while clearing out Demon Beasts, a clan member unintentionally discovered some [Cyan Spirit Wormwood] saplings distributed near a Beast Nest.
After the detail-oriented clan member reported back, an elder skilled in surveying went to investigate. He found that while the surface soil looked normal, the deeper layers were blackish-red. Upon digging even further, he discovered this was due to the influence of something spreading from nearby. He thus came to the preliminary conclusion that there must be a Middle Grade or higher Spiritual Land in the vicinity!
When the news was relayed back, the Xu Family's upper management was ecstatic.
Cyan Spirit Wormwood is a Tier One Lower Grade Spirit Grass of limited value. However, the existence of a Spiritual Land is a different matter entirely. The value of the Spirit Grass that had been growing there year-round, unharvested, would alone be worth a considerable number of Spirit Stones.
If they could occupy and fully develop it, it would greatly enhance the family's foundation.
If they were lucky, there was even a chance the Spiritual Land could nurture Upper Grade Spirit Grass!
Its value would more than quadruple!
The subsequent exploration went quite smoothly, confirming that the Spiritual Land was located in a mountain valley!
However, the valley was perennially filled with a Poisonous Miasma, making it dangerous for Cultivators to enter lightly.
Patriarch Xu immediately made a decisive, executive decision. "Even if we must pay a price, we will absolutely take this Spiritual Land for ourselves!"
At the same time, he issued a strict gag order.
He also distributed a Pill Formula, demanding that the clan's Pill Masters produce large quantities of [Decompression Pills]!
Lin Changheng had his suspicions but couldn't confirm them, so he simply focused on Alchemy.
However, he had already put in an early request for the task of processing the Wasted and Inferior Pills from this new elixir.
Fortunately, over the years, Lin Changheng had followed the principle of building good relationships and being kind to others, leaving an excellent impression on Xu Xuzhong, the Steward of the Miscellaneous Affairs Hall—
Not only did he have a strong sense of belonging and loyalty to the clan, but he was also meticulous in handling his tasks, always completing them on time without causing any trouble.
The other Pill Master, on the other hand, had been so busy with Alchemy that he had missed task deadlines several times, causing the Steward some headaches. On each occasion, it was Lin Changheng who stepped in, asking for nothing in return, to help the other man out of his bind, thus resolving the Steward's worries about the man's performance assessment.
Although Xu Xuzhong couldn't strip the other Pill Master of his tasks over such minor matters, he had hinted multiple times that if there was a new task, Lin Changheng would have first pick, free to take whatever he wanted!
Lin Changheng had also opportunely presented him with several elixirs close to Masterpiece Pill quality for his son's Cultivation, which thoroughly solidified their relationship.
Therefore, the task of handling the Wasted Pills for this new elixir could belong to no one but Lin Changheng!
...
Lin Changheng, for his part, was filled with anticipation.
He knew that since this was the first time refining this pill, many of the clan's Pill Masters lacked his level of comprehension and Fire Control techniques. Being unfamiliar with it, they would need to fumble their way through. Coupled with the large quantity demanded, fatigue from Alchemy would easily set in. As a result, a large number of Wasted and Inferior Pills were bound to be produced!
He would be able to make a massive haul in one go!
And one of the raw materials for this pill was the Essence Blood of a [Wood Puppet Fox].
A new type of Mixed Grade Demon Beast.
'I wonder what new properties it will have?'