Chapter 23: Refining the Golden Core

Yan Chixia exclaimed in delight, “Yes, Master! I will study the control techniques for the Wishful Elixir Cauldron diligently and master it as soon as possible. Once you teach me the methods of refining golden elixirs, I’ll be able to use the Wishful Elixir Cauldron to make them.”

Master Qingxu nodded. “Danzi, because you have always been gifted and have progressed in your cultivation without many obstacles, I have never once allowed you to take any golden elixirs that would increase your power. But as your cultivation deepens, your journey will grow more arduous, and you will inevitably encounter barriers—what are commonly known as bottlenecks. Now that you have mastered the control methods for the Wishful Elixir Cauldron, if you ever reach such a bottleneck in your practice, you can use the cauldron to refine supreme golden elixirs to help you break through rapidly. That way, you will greatly shorten the time needed to reach the realm of the Primordial Grand Golden Immortal. Now, go and tend to your own matters. For safety, I shall now set up a barrier around the Qingxu Monastery…”

Master Qingxu spent a full hour deploying the Five Elements Array to lay a barrier across the entire Qingxu Monastery. Once finished, he taught Yan Chixia the incantation for entering and exiting the barrier.

Thus, within the protection of the barrier, Yan Chixia devoted himself to rigorous daily cultivation, making the most of every moment…

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In the blink of an eye, a month passed.

Through diligent study, Yan Chixia had become thoroughly proficient with the control techniques of the Wishful Elixir Cauldron. To his astonishment, when he activated the cauldron with his vital energy as instructed, it transformed into a completely transparent crystal, able to grow or shrink at will. When it came time to refine an elixir, all he needed to do was activate the golden dragon coiled around the body of the cauldron with the proper incantation; the dragon would then soar inside the vessel, spewing authentic Samadhi Fire to smelt various medicinal ingredients, its flames controlled precisely by the incantation.

Even Master Qingxu was left in awe.

Seeing that Yan Chixia had thoroughly mastered the cauldron’s control methods, Master Qingxu began teaching him how to actually refine golden elixirs.

At first, Yan Chixia thought that refining golden elixirs was simply a matter of selecting and preparing the medicinal ingredients according to their properties, then placing them into the cauldron in the right proportions and heating them to form the elixir. However, when Master Qingxu led him into a stone chamber—the Elixir Room—he was astonished by the dazzling array of instruments and furnishings, realizing the process was far more complex than he had imagined.

The Elixir Room was divided into two sections. The left side, larger in size, was where the actual refining took place. Besides the cauldron, there were a stone table, water jars, Yangcheng pots, iron and clay kettles, porcelain bowls, wooden basins, stone and iron mortars with pestles, small iron shovels, a charcoal stove, wood charcoal, fine paper, blue bricks, fine sand, clay, sieves, bamboo spatulas, palm brooms, bristle brushes, and countless other implements, all spotless and meticulously arranged.

On the right, although smaller, the room was impeccably clean. Rosewood medicine cabinets, a rosewood desk, and an intricately carved chair lined the stone wall, all exuding an antique charm and utterly free of dust.

The various compartments in the medicine cabinets contained neatly categorized ingredients: cinnabar, realgar, orpiment, mirabilite, sulfur, gypsum, calamine, borax, alum, green vitriol, blue vitriol, amethyst, maifan stone, flowerstone, mica, red clay, green quartzite, pumice, stalactite, yangqi stone, magnetite, hematite, native copper, lead, mercury, lingzhi, ginseng, fleeceflower root, ambergris, deer grass, notoginseng, dragon’s blood, bird’s nest, musk, coral herb, seahorse, bezoar, dog’s treasure, pig’s sand, snow lotus, saffron, caterpillar fungus, and more.

On the desk, there was a copper scale, exquisitely made and delicate in size, along with several bamboo scrolls, presumably secret manuals on refining elixirs.

Master Qingxu first made Yan Chixia learn the various instruments used for processing ingredients and their functions. Then he introduced him to each medicinal material stored in the cabinets, explaining every detail—their properties, medicinal effects, which combinations would produce certain elixirs, and which pairings were absolutely forbidden due to mutually antagonistic properties that would create deadly poison. Elixirs refined from such combinations would not only fail but would become fatal even if successfully formed.

Yan Chixia listened with great interest and soon became deeply fascinated by the art of elixir making. He began memorizing the names, properties, and attributes of each medicinal ingredient by heart.

Within a few days, Yan Chixia had memorized all the ingredients and their characteristics.

Master Qingxu, greatly pleased, began to personally demonstrate the specific methods of refining various golden elixirs, teaching him how to gauge the proper heat and achieve the most effective results.

Yan Chixia applied himself with utmost seriousness. Relying on his intelligence and perseverance, he mastered the art of refining various golden elixirs in less than a month.

Master Qingxu, delighted, said, “Danzi, as the saying goes, ‘A master leads you to the door—the rest is up to you.’ Now that I have taught you the methods of refining every type of golden elixir, your future success depends on your own dedication. I firmly believe that with your talent and the Wishful Elixir Cauldron—the world’s supreme artifact for elixir refining—you will surely create the finest golden elixirs!”

Although Yan Chixia had mastered the cauldron’s control techniques and learned how to blend and refine ingredients, he had never actually used the Wishful Elixir Cauldron to make a golden elixir, for he was determined that his first attempt must be a triumph—he could not allow even the slightest failure!

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Another month slipped by unnoticed, and Yan Chixia’s skill in refining elixirs grew ever more adept. Master Qingxu, gratified by his progress, noticed that Yan Chixia still hesitated to use the Wishful Elixir Cauldron. Sensing his student’s apprehension, he encouraged him, “Danzi, you have already mastered the techniques of elixir making. Why not bring out the Wishful Elixir Cauldron and try your hand at refining a golden elixir?”

Yan Chixia replied, somewhat uncertain, “Master, even though I now understand how to refine golden elixirs, I still don’t feel fully confident about using the cauldron. If I fail, I’ll have wasted such precious ingredients!”

Master Qingxu chuckled. “That won’t happen. Danzi, over the past month, you’ve used the ordinary cauldron and the Yangcheng pot to refine all sorts of pills. Even if their appearance wasn’t always perfect, they were properly formed and retained their medicinal effects. So, don’t worry. Go ahead and use the Wishful Elixir Cauldron boldly to make your golden elixir.”

Encouraged by his master, Yan Chixia finally made up his mind. “Very well, Master. I shall try.”

With that, Yan Chixia hurried back to his room, fetched the Wishful Elixir Cauldron, and placed it solemnly on the elixir room’s stone table. He said respectfully, “Master, your kindness to me is as great as a mountain. Today, I will use the Wishful Elixir Cauldron to refine a batch of Nourishing Essence Elixir for you.”

With these words, Yan Chixia took an earthenware bowl and went into the medicine storeroom, carefully weighing out the required amounts of cinnabar, sulfur, maifan stone, yangqi stone, and other ingredients according to the formula. He returned to the elixir room, crushed them together in an iron mortar, then gently opened the cauldron, poured in the ground ingredients, added a measure of mercury, sealed the lid, and began to operate the Wishful Elixir Cauldron with the prescribed incantations, starting the process of refining a golden elixir…