An Alchemist's Path to Eternity

Just as Qu Xibai had said, Luo Chen’s arrival was bound to attract visits from many Adepts stationed here. There was no helping it; the title of master alchemist naturally carried tremendous appeal. Yet the first to come calling were not Adepts, but two Initiates—a mother and her son.

”Uncle Luo, it’s good to see you!” Qin Yuanjiang called out respectfully.

After many years, the once-inexperienced youth now fully deserved to be called a man. He was a real man, weathered by hardships and steady in bearing. At the same time, from the look in his eyes to the tone of his words, everything about him showed that he truly was happy to see his ”uncle” again.

Luo Chen smiled and nodded at him, then looked toward the elegant woman. ”Sister-in-law, it’s been many years. Have your days been peaceful?”

Hearing the way he called her, Murong Qinglian could not help but let out a quiet breath of relief. She had been hesitating over how she ought to address Luo Chen. If she addressed him casually, with his current standing, wouldn’t she be rude to a renowned Adept? And if she used an honorific, would that not place her on the same footing as her own son? Thankfully, Luo Chen had taken the initiative to solve that dilemma.

Murong Qinglian nodded, and a faint smile appeared on her face. ”Life has been fairly smooth. Especially now that Yuanjiang has settled down, I have put down another worry.”

Luo Chen looked at Qin Yuanjiang in surprise. ”You have a Dao companion now?”

Qin Yuanjiang laughed in a somewhat abashed manner. ”Yes. She is the daughter of my sect leader, Ruan Huan’er. I actually wanted to bring her today to meet you, but she’s busy with matters outside and could not come.”

Luo Chen could not help but chuckle as well at the unexpected news. He had not expected his nephew to be so capable—the young man had not only taken the Falling Cloud Sect’s leader as his master, but also the latter’s daughter as his wife. With this, Qin Yuanjiang’s future held practically no limitations. The only problem was that his cultivation pace actually seemed rather limited.

Luo Chen frowned. ”Your mother is already at the eighth stage. How are you still only at the fifth?”

In times like these, the fifth stage of Foundation Establishment was truly nothing to speak of. If he were to encounter a powerful demonic beast, even protecting himself would be difficult.

Murong Qinglian shook her head and spoke in his defense. ”This is not Yuanjiang’s fault. He has to handle many random affairs, and now that the Frontier War has begun, he has even less time for cultivation. I am the opposite. I shut myself away from outside matters over these years and focused solely on cultivation, and I also benefited from that huge amount of top-grade Jade Dew Pills you gave me. It would have been weird if I hadn’t gotten this far.”

Qin Yuanjiang smiled awkwardly at the side and said nothing. Luo Chen nodded in understanding. Being the sect leader’s personal disciple came with many advantages but inevitably entailed many administrative responsibilities, and such matters truly did slow cultivation.

But Murong Qinglian’s rapid cultivation progress was actually rather unexpected. In the Luo Tian Sect, there were only a few people in the late stage of Foundation Establishment. Strictly speaking, apart from Wang Yuan and Chu Kui, there were in fact only two. One was Xu Haizhen; thanks to a steady supply of top-grade Ascending Dragon Pills, he had slowly cultivated from the sixth stage to the eighth. The other was Sima Huiniang. With a top-grade second-tier cave residence, the Luo Tian Sect resources at her disposal, and a steady supply of Jade Dew Pills from Luo Chen, she had only just managed to advance to the eighth stage.

But this only went to reinforce the example of Murong Qinglian and her son. In the case of Sima Huiniang, it was only after her disciple successfully reached the Foundation Establishment and took on many duties for her that she had the time to cultivate.

After chatting for a while about family matters, the two prepared to take their leave. But before departing, Murong Qinglian explained that there was another purpose to their visit. ”Since the Falling Cloud Sect is leading the Frontier War, everyone has been drawn into it, myself included. These past few years, I have been working under the sect’s chief alchemist, Fairy Mu. She knows you have arrived and wishes to pay a visit. Luo Chen, what do you think?”

Mu Yunyan? Luo Chen thought about it and nodded slightly. This woman was indeed reputable, and he had heard of her long ago. Her skills had been high enough to persuade Han Zhan to take her as a disciple back when he was still at the Golden Core Realm. And although a long time had passed and her master was now a Sage, she remained his only disciple. With the Falling Cloud Sect’s full support, her alchemy had advanced by leaps and bounds, and she could now be called a true master alchemist in her own right.

In fact, in terms of alchemical attainment, she was not inferior at all to the three elders of the Grand Alchemy Institute of Green Pill Valley. It was precisely because of her that the Falling Cloud Sect could remain self-sufficient in terms of pills, free from the control of the Medicine King Sect and even Green Pill Valley. It could even be said that for the Falling Cloud Sect to enjoy its current prosperity, Mu Yunyan alone accounted for one tenth of the credit.

An exchange with such a figure naturally stirred anticipation in Luo Chen’s heart.

”That is actually a very pleasant surprise. I’ll have to trouble you to invite her over, then. I will make preparations to welcome her properly,” Luo Chen said.

Murong Qinglian smiled, obviously pleased, and left Luo Chen’s cave residence with Qin Yuanjiang. And just one day after their departure, the honored guest arrived.

Luo Chen personally went out to welcome her.

Upon first meeting Mu Yunyan, he found that her appearance was rather ordinary, meriting no more than the word ”delicate.” Yet the instant she opened her mouth, her understanding of the Dao of Alchemy was revealed to be remarkably profound. In particular, when the discussion touched upon foundational alchemy techniques, which Luo Chen truly excelled at, she spoke with effortless familiarity.

”Falling Cloud Mist is a water-element alchemy technique I created myself. I did not expect you to have mastered it to such a degree; it’s almost on par with my own mastery!”

Their exchange was not limited to words alone. An alchemy furnace stood on top of a raging flame, slowly releasing a faint pill fragrance. As Mu Yunyan watched the techniques Luo Chen displayed during refinement, she could not help but voice her surprise and praise. Meanwhile, Luo Chen was also astonished—he had not expected Falling Cloud Mist to be her creation. The technique was third-tier, after all!

Over the years, Luo Chen had accumulated a deep foundation. But although he had devised some alchemy techniques of his own, they remained limited to the first and second tiers. In fact, it was rather generous to even call them ”alchemy techniques”; at most, they could be regarded as useful tricks.

With a sigh, he said, ”By that reasoning, I should be calling you ’teacher.’”

She smiled faintly. ”Fellow Daoist, you’re just flattering me. Don’t exaggerate like this.”

Luo Chen shook his head and said nothing further. He could not explain, and there was no way for her to know how great a role this technique had played on his cultivation path. Without it, he could not have refined Imperial Nectar. Not only would he have been unable to establish his foundation, but Murong Qinglian, Gu Caiyi, and several other cultivators of Luo Tian Sect who relied on Imperial Nectar to break through would also have been unable to continue their cultivation.

”Anyway, the reason I’m here is that I’ve heard you participated in refining the Nascent Soul Pill at Green Pill Valley back then. Would you be willing to share some of the details with me?”

Mu Yunyan’s beautiful eyes were fixed on Luo Chen, but the only emotion within was pure thirst for knowledge. Luo Chen had to stop himself from chuckling—this reminded him way too much of Meng Changshou of the Medicine King Sect. These outstanding third-tier alchemists all harbored an intense curiosity toward the refinement of fourth-tier pills, and none was more enticing than the Nascent Soul Pill. In truth, this was only natural. Had Luo Chen not personally taken part in that refinement himself, he would have felt the same. Given the chance to meet someone who had participated, how could he not be tempted to ask questions?

Seeing Luo Chen hesitate, Mu Yunyan sighed. ”As a matter of fact, Qing Danzi initially talked to me about assisting back then. Unfortunately, due to sect interests, I ultimately ended up not doing it.”

Luo Chen was genuinely surprised. There was actually something like this going on behind the scenes?

On second thought, it did make sense. On the one hand, before Luo Chen advanced to the Golden Core Realm, Mu Yunyan had in fact been the most suitable candidate for the sixth position. On the other hand, it was likely that, in the end, Green Pill Valley did not wish to become too deeply entangled with the Falling Cloud Sect. They had thus settled for the second-best option by choosing Luo Chen.

He smiled and said, ”That is indeed a pity. If it had been you instead, perhaps the refinement would have succeeded back then.”

”You are being too modest,” said Mu Yunyan, shaking her head. ”From what I have observed, even if your alchemy skills are not superior to mine, you are still outstanding among third-tier alchemists. Moreover, the refinement of a pill like that always depends on the lead alchemist. If I’d been there instead of you, I would have also served as support. My presence there would’ve had little bearing on the outcome.”

Luo Chen nodded, fully agreeing with her words. Since the topic had already been broached, there was no longer any need for restraint. He recounted the details of the pill refinement that day. He did not avoid the subject, as Green Pill Valley had not imposed any secrecy on the matter, and outsiders from Skysail City and the Silktree Sect had been present to observe at the time. What was there left to conceal?

Of course, as a direct participant, Luo Chen’s impressions were deeper, and the details he described were more thorough and reliable than what anyone else could provide. What he knew ranged from the Green Pill Valley’s grand formation to the selection of alchemists and the handling of auxiliary materials.

Little by little, the details flowed from Luo Chen’s lips. Throughout the process, Mu Yunyan listened attentively, while Luo Chen occasionally paused to ask whether she saw any better solutions. In truth, Luo Chen harbored a private motive. He hoped to continuously review that joint formation refinement from the perspectives of high-level experts. If a better solution could be found, then after he reached the late stages of the Golden Core Realm and obtained the Nascent Soul Pill formula from Green Pill Valley, he would be able to gather the materials and personally refine the Nascent Soul Pill.

”A millennial ginseng, yet processed using a method for five-hundred-year-old ones? Strange... How could Qing Danzi make such an obvious mistake? No... it must’ve been to preserve the medicinal properties and save them for an explosive release during the final fusion...”

”Wait, why was the Patterned Dream Fruit processed to dark purple? Logically, after fusing with the two auxiliary materials, it should have been light purple. What is the hidden principle here... Oh, I see. Patterned Dream Fruit combined with Life-Gathering Pills should indeed yield light purple. But some of its medicinal power would be neutralized. By extracting it in full and supplementing it with another material, the medicinal power was pushed to the extreme, and that also made it easier to integrate with the other ingredients...”

”Hmm, so the primary technique was the Burning Crane Hand? That was definitely the right choice, precisely because that Nascent Soul Pill leans toward the fire element. That is also why Qing Danzi gathered the five of you with a primordial true fire...”

She spoke continuously, her words moving from doubt to realization and finally to self-answered questions. At first, Luo Chen felt her alchemy was simply too advanced, as those incisive remarks directly unraveled doubts he had carried for years. He even felt that Mu Yunyan’s alchemy skills even surpassed those of the more renowned Meng Changshou. Yet gradually, he started to sense something amiss. Perhaps it was not that Mu Yunyan was superior overall, but rather that she seemed extremely familiar with the Nascent Soul Pill formula. That was why she could so easily identify the merits and faults of the process. Once Luo Chen realized this, he began steering the discussion toward areas he himself did not fully understand.

Under his subtle guidance, Mu Yunyan provided answers one by one. ”There is no issue with the processing of the Divine Iris. It should indeed have its tip trimmed before being used. As for the Violet Monkey Flower... that one is different. I think what Qing Danzi did was not the right approach.”

Luo Chen was jolted. So one of the two fourth-tier main ingredients he had failed to recognize back then was called Violet Monkey Flower. That had to be the thing resembling a brain—So that was a monkey brain? That’s... interesting.

He probed cautiously, ”But why did Qing Danzi use that lotus pod to envelop the medicinal liquid at the critical moment of final fusion?”

Mu Yunyan replied as if it were obvious, ”When a cultivator forms the Nascent Soul, the phenomena accompanying it are known as ’Three Flowers crowning one’s head and Five Qi returning to the origin.’ When this process is completed, golden lotuses surge from the earth, and heavenly flowers rain down. The Five Elements Lotus follows this very principle. What is taken is not the seed, but the lotus pod itself. It embodies the earth-born golden lotuses, thus representing the principles of the Great Dao. The principles of alchemy and cultivation are naturally interconnected. Fellow Daoist Luo, surely this is not something you don’t know—”

At this point, she suddenly paused and tilted her head, glancing at Luo Chen with an amused smirk.

So that’s the Five Elements Lotus! Thanks, noted! Luo Chen committed the name of the last fourth-tier ingredient to memory. With this, he now knew all the materials required to refine the Nascent Soul Pill. If he encountered them in the future, he could begin collecting them in advance.

He then bowed sincerely to Mu Yunyan. ”Fellow Daoist, thank you for your guidance!”

The woman’s amused smile deepened as she realized what Luo Chen had been doing earlier. She did not grow angry; instead, she even offered an additional tip. ”The older the Five Elements Lotus, the better. At the very least, it must be five hundred years old, but even that’s not enough. From what you describe, Qing Danzi’s alchemy skills are truly beyond mine and yours, but the Five Elements Lotuses he found simply weren’t up to par. At most, they were only five, maybe six hundred years old. No wonder he failed so many times.”

Luo Chen etched these words firmly into his mind. One day, he would certainly follow Qing Danzi’s path and reach that stage himself. He also etched Mu Yunyan’s guidance firmly into his heart; her help in this matter counted as a priceless favor.

”Alright then, let us stop here for today. I need to return and properly analyze everything we discussed,” she said.

Mu Yunyan took her leave. Luo Chen did not try to keep her for longer, as he needed time to ponder on the insights she had just shared. As he escorted her to the door, Luo Chen casually said, ”I have only just arrived and do not know many people yet. I plan to hold a private gathering in a few days. I would be very happy if you could attend.”

Mu Yunyan nodded. ”If nothing unexpected arises, I will be there.”

With that, the woman summoned a white cloud and drifted away. Luo Chen let out a long breath as he watched her retreating figure.

By now, he had confirmed that the Falling Cloud Sect also possessed a copy of the Nascent Soul Pill formula held by Green Pill Valley. It was even possible that Green Pill Valley’s formula was actually a copy, and the formula had originally come from the Falling Cloud Sect.

”A formula that relies on the age and quality of materials with unique medicinal properties... This is clearly not a product of recent times. It must be an ancient formula. I wonder where the Falling Cloud Sect obtained it....”

Luo Chen shook his head. That was not a problem he could solve just by thinking about it. He returned to his cave residence and sent out a voice transmission. A few moments later, Zeng Yilong arrived at his door.

As he’d just told Mu Yunyan, Luo Chen planned to host a small gathering with the Adepts around. First, it would allow him to build connections and meet most of the powerful figures on the front lines. Second, it would spare him the trouble of dealing with people visiting one by one. If a single gathering could resolve the matter, why bother with individual visits?

He planned to take advantage of the gathering to establish his reputation while seeking new buyers for the Starfield Pill. At the same time, he would see if he could find some more Fire Spirit Diamonds. He was already at the second stage of the Golden Core Realm, yet he still didn’t own a life-bound treasure, and he was starting to feel a little anxious.