Dominator Emperor

”Begin—” the Saint Elder shouted, summoning his Furnace God. In an instant, a giant furnace stood towering before Li Qiye and the others.

This giant furnace was massive, standing as tall as two men and several times larger than a great water vat. The furnace’s mouth was held in the maw of an Auspicious Beast, and it was as vast as the sea, as if the entire Furnace God could swallow three rivers.

As the Furnace God was summoned, wisps of medicinal fragrance drifted out from within, like curls of rising green smoke. The scent was reminiscent of musk and osmanthus. Just from this aroma alone, one could tell that the furnace’s Medicine Treasure was extraordinary.

”Fed with Eight Treasures Grass, Six Arts Leaf, Purple Coral...” Li Qiye took a careful sniff of the fragrance, naming each Spiritual Elixir and Herb one by one. He then glanced at the Saint Elder and said, ”It seems the Saint Elder specializes in Gold Tempering Powder.”

In the parlance of Pharmacists, there is a saying: Body-Brewing Ointment, Jing Shou Medicine, Life Refining Pill, and Gold Tempering Powder.

For Body Ointments, brewing is the key; for Longevity Medicines, extraction is the key; for Life Pills, refinement is the key; and for Gold Tempering Powders, tempering is the key!

”Golden Powder” is Antiseptic Medicine. Among the elixirs Pharmacists refine, Body Ointments, Longevity Medicines, and Life Pills each form their own complete systems. Only Golden Powders are chaotic and varied. Each sect and school has its own Miracle Techniques, and as such, they have never been formed into a single, coherent system.

The Saint Elder stared at Li Qiye in astonishment. Just by smelling the fragrance of the Medicine Treasure, he knew which Spiritual Elixirs and Herbs were used to feed the Furnace God, and even knew that he specialized in Gold Tempering Powder. ’This is the level of a Grandmaster Pharmacist! His mastery over Spiritual Elixirs and Herbs has reached perfection!’

”Do you cultivate the Medicine Dao?” the Saint Elder asked, looking at Li Qiye in amazement.

Li Qiye chuckled and shook his head. ”The Medicine Dao is just a hobby.” With that, he peered into the Saint Elder’s Treasure Furnace and continued, ”The Fire Source appears to be yin, yet there is hardness within its softness. Your furnace was born with a yin-fire source, but you’ve fed it Eight-Treasure Fire to nurture it, giving it that firm quality. Coincidentally, this Fire Source is perfect for brewing the Beast Marrow of a Hell Iron Bull.” At this point, he glanced at Li Shuangyan beside him.

’Without a doubt, the Nine Saints Demon Gate sent the Saint Elder after analyzing my situation. And for them to get first-hand information, it must have come from Li Shuangyan.’

Li Qiye’s casual yet detailed explanation truly frightened the Saint Elder. ’Such profound knowledge of pharmacology, such an understanding of Furnace Gods... This requires a Pharmacist to be immersed in the Medicine Dao for hundreds, even thousands of years to achieve some success. And even a thousand-year Pharmacist might not have this level of mastery!’

”You’ve really never cultivated the Medicine Dao?” The Saint Elder was filled with shock and doubt. Only Elder Sun and Li Shuangyi remained calm; they had already grown accustomed to Li Qiye’s unfathomable Divine Techniques.

”It’s just a hobby. I’ve read a few books on the subject,” Li Qiye said nonchalantly.

The Saint Elder was rendered speechless. ’If someone could master pharmacology and understand Furnace Gods just by reading a few books, then Grandmaster-level Pharmacists like us might as well go hang ourselves. It’s simply impossible! Even a genius couldn’t do it. This requires an accumulation of knowledge over a great deal of time!’

’But this boy before me is only fourteen. Where would he find the time to accumulate such knowledge? Where would he get hundreds or thousands of years of immersion?’

Of course, the Saint Elder had no way of knowing that the world’s current Medicine Dao system was created by none other than Li Qiye and the Medicine God back in the day. If he didn’t understand pharmacology, then who in the world possibly could?

”Let’s begin.” Amidst the Saint Elder’s shock and uncertainty, Li Qiye remained perfectly composed. To him, this was a trivial matter.

The Saint Elder placed a hand on the Furnace God and nodded. ”Begin.” The moment he spoke, wisps of flame shot up from the bottom of the furnace. The flames were neither fierce nor overpowering; they intertwined, forming what looked like a cauldron within the furnace, capable of refining anything.

”Nine-Life Turtle Shell, Ba Snake Spine, Blood Tiger Tail, Fire Scorpion Brain, Ghostly Fat Eye...” the Saint Elder called out in a deep voice.

Elder Sun was happy to assist. Hearing the Supreme Elder’s words, he immediately opened the Treasure Box and, following the Saint Elder’s sequence, rhythmically tossed the required Spiritual Medicines into the Furnace God one by one, calling out, ”A one-hundred-and-twenty-thousand-year-old Nine-Life Turtle Shell! A one-hundred-and-ten-thousand-year-old Ba Snake Spine! A one-hundred-and-ten-thousand-year-old Blood Tiger Tail...”

Finally, all the supplementary medicines were thrown into the Fire Source within the Furnace God. The Saint Elder then urged the Fire Source on. The yin fire with its core of hardness began to burn brighter and brighter. Within the pulsing flames, the various Spiritual Medicines were refined into a medicinal liquid. As the fire’s intensity steadily increased, the liquid began to boil!

At this moment, the medicinal liquid inside the Furnace God emitted a peculiar aroma. It was neither foul nor fragrant, and possessed a bitterness that wasn’t truly bitter. The aroma was utterly unique.

”Add the Beast Marrow!” the Saint Elder bellowed.

Hearing the Saint Elder’s command, Elder Sun, acting in his capacity as a Pharmacist, grew cautious. He took out a Treasure Box. Opening it revealed a three-foot-long object resembling a Bone Whip. This was the main ingredient for the Body Refining Ointment—the Beast Marrow.

Elder Sun dropped the Beast Marrow into the medicinal liquid. At first, it seemed unremarkable. However, once the Bone Whip-like outer shell melted away, an essence like blood and fat finally flowed out.

”MOOO—” A bull’s roar suddenly echoed. A fist-sized iron bull materialized within the medicinal liquid. A gloomy, Hun aura swirled around it, refusing to disperse. It threw its head back with a long cry, pawed the ground, and began to charge wildly. The sound of its stampede thundered like ceaseless peals of thunder, threatening to shake the Furnace God itself.

Beast Marrow is a crucial part of a Celestial Beast’s Bone Spine. It is where the essence of the Celestial Beast’s physique is stored. Even after the Celestial Beast dies, this essence remains.

Though the Hell Iron Bull was dead, its will could still be seen when the essence of its physique flowed out. No Beast Marrow is willing to be refined.

However, once inside a Furnace God, even if it is unwilling, it cannot escape the fate of refinement.

The will of the Hell Iron Bull roared and rampaged, its powerful aura surging endlessly as if trying to stamp out the Furnace God’s Fire Source. But at that moment, the Auspicious Beast holding the furnace mouth erupted with a powerful aura of its own. Laws of heaven and earth flowed around the Auspicious Beast, and the entire Furnace God became aggressive and intimidating, like a powerful expert awakening from slumber.

With the eruption of the Furnace God’s immense power, the rampaging Hell Iron Bull was forcibly suppressed. Even though it was unwilling to be refined, its roars of defiance ended as the essence of its physique finally merged with the medicinal liquid.

A Furnace God is no mere inanimate object. It can be said to be a product of worldly Creation itself. Within the furnace, it forms its own world, capable of suppressing all Spiritual Medicines.

Of course, Furnace Gods also have different levels. A Pharmacist’s strength in the Medicine Dao is directly linked to their Furnace God. The stronger the Pharmacist, the stronger the Furnace God!

When a Pharmacist obtains a natural Furnace God, its level is at its lowest. As the Pharmacist continuously feeds it fire sources and Spiritual Medicines, and as they constantly refine Life Pills and brew Body Ointments, the Furnace God’s power increases accordingly. This process is also known as the fusion between Furnace God and Pharmacist.

Of course, some Pharmacists also inherit their predecessors’ Furnace Gods. However, it is much more difficult to attune to an inherited furnace. The fusion process between the two is arduous, and the higher the Furnace God’s level, the more difficult the fusion.

Ultimately, the medicinal liquid in the furnace transformed into an ointment. The ointment was as rich as lard and as smooth as butter, crimson with a hint of purple, and it emanated a unique, fragrant aroma. Just one look at such an ointment would make anyone desire it.

However, the ointment was not yet complete. The Saint Elder began to channel his Medicine Dao Heart Technique, activating the Furnace God. Waves of medicinal fragrance began to drift out, but this time, it wasn’t the scent of the Body Ointment, but the fragrance of the Medicine Treasure.

The Medicine Treasure pulsed, releasing the Essence of Spiritual Medicine, which fused with the flames of the Fire Source. The Fire Source now seemed to have a spirit of its own, licking the Body Ointment again and again. The entire batch of ointment began to slowly rotate, allowing the flames to polish it like a water-powered grindstone, making the rich, buttery ointment even finer and smoother.

This was the purpose of the Furnace God’s Medicine Treasure. Whether brewing a Body Ointment or refining a Life Pill, the medicinal properties of the ingredients alone could never be fully harmonized. Even the furnace’s Fire Source couldn’t refine all the properties to a state of perfect, conflict-free fusion. At this stage, the powerful Essence of Spiritual Medicine from the Medicine Treasure was required to regulate the properties of the various ingredients and, in conjunction with the Fire Source, allow them to merge seamlessly.

Take Body Ointments, for example. The more times it is refined, the more perfect the fusion of medicinal properties becomes. This process, aside from the Pharmacist’s own Power, also depends to a certain extent on the furnace’s Medicine Treasure!

The process repeated itself four and a half times before it could go no further. By now, the rich, buttery ointment was exquisitely fine and smooth, like Dragon Fat. Even someone who knew nothing of such things could tell it was a treasure at a single glance.

”A pity. The Beast Marrow’s age wasn’t sufficient. We could only manage four and a half refinements,” the Saint Elder said, sighing softly as he watched the process end.

”Incredible! As expected of a master capable of eight refinements!” Seeing the Body Ointment in the furnace, Elder Sun couldn’t help but exclaim, ”If I had been the one to do it, given the insufficient age of the Beast Marrow, I’m afraid I would have struggled to even manage four refinements, and the medicinal properties would have been greatly diminished!”

Elder Sun’s Body Refining Ointment skill was stable at five refinements, while the Saint Elder’s was at eight. In principle, with the Saint Elder’s ability, reaching five refinements should have been no problem. Unfortunately, the age of the Beast Marrow used as the main ingredient was insufficient, limiting him to only four and a half.

Body Ointments are also divided by quality. From lowest to highest, they are: Acquired Body Ointment, Innate Body Ointment, Emperor’s Body Ointment, Holy Body Ointment, and Immortal Body Ointment.

Body Ointments don’t just have levels; the number of refinements also directly affects the ointment’s medicinal properties.

An Acquired Body Ointment only requires one refinement. Even a novice Pharmacist can create an ointment of this level. An Innate Body Ointment requires two to three refinements, an Emperor’s Body Ointment requires four to six, a Holy Body Ointment requires seven to nine, and an Immortal Body Ointment absolutely requires nine refinements!

The Body Ointment being refined for Li Qiye right now was an Emperor’s Body Ointment. Back when the Xiyan Ancient Sect was looking for a Pharmacist for Li Qiye, there were two candidates: Elder Sun and Cao Xiong. Cao Xiong’s skill was a notch above Elder Sun’s, stable at six refinements. Theoretically, both of them were qualified to refine an Emperor’s Body Ointment.

In reality, however, the Hell Iron Bull used as the main ingredient for this Emperor’s Body Ointment was not old enough. Whether it was Elder Sun or Cao Xiong attempting the refinement, it was doubtful either could have achieved four refinements. Such a result would have directly impacted the ointment’s medicinal properties.