Chapter 38: Refining Pills and Chemical Experiments

After leaving Granny Yang’s house, I walked straight home without looking back.

I must be having a streak of good luck!

I’ve hit the jackpot! Heh, the book Granny Yang gave me is obviously a treasure. Especially for me, a half-baked cultivator, it’s a priceless gem.

Yang Youcai and Yang Gaozi, father and son, are extremely averse to the divination and exorcism practices Granny Yang performs. I mischievously thought that Yang Youcai probably fears that learning these things would lead to an untimely death, just like his father. As for why Yang Gaozi rejects them so strongly, I have no clue.

If they’re not going to learn it, I will! Yeah! The word "fear" doesn’t exist in my dictionary, haha!

This treasure, The Heavenly Pill Doctor, they don’t want it? Then it’s mine! Hmm! I looked up at the sky, it’s so blue, what a lovely day!

I dashed back home and immediately retreated to my room. I took several deep breaths, calming myself down. My emotions were in turmoil today, too intense for my own good. I shouldn’t be like this. Infinite Tathagata, bless me!

Damn! As my hands touched The Heavenly Pill Doctor…

The excitement I had just suppressed surged again. I felt an intense impulse, as if my inner being was on fire.

And so, with this fervor, I quickly skimmed through the contents of the book.

Finally, from the first few pages, I learned about the relationship between the Zhang, Yang, and Liu families.

It’s quite interesting, really. According to what this book says at the beginning, the ancestors of the Zhang, Yang, and Liu families, from Jiushizhang, all shared the same teacher. That’s all it mentions, but it’s fascinating nonetheless.

Based on the author's name, it seems this book was written by someone from Yang Gaozi’s great-grandfather’s generation. Then I noticed something strange: besides my generation, the names of the male descendants of the Zhang and Yang families, which determine the generation order, are the same. For example, my third uncle’s name is Zhang Youfu, and Yang Gaozi’s father is named Yang Youcai. My grandfather’s name is Zhang Chengye, and Yang Gaozi’s grandfather’s name, I remember, was Yang Chenggong… Could the events recorded in this book be true?

But why does my generation’s name suddenly lack this pattern?

What happened between the three families?

After reading the preface, the book then divides into two parts.

The first part is called The Heavenly Secret Volume, and it contains the divination methods and rituals Granny Yang taught me, as well as some secret techniques for observing mountains, water, the heavens, and people. There are even some mentions of the rumored Gathering Yuan Formation…

Oh my heavens! This is it! I’m rich, hahahaha!

The second part is called The Pill Doctor Volume, which details Taoist methods for cultivating one's life force and longevity. It focuses on observing the body’s internal workings, using pine needles, flowers, and other natural materials as supplements, either refining pills or concocting medicines. The book even lists the required temperatures for refining pills and includes illustrated recipes…

What a great find!

I sighed with admiration, feeling incredibly proud. But when I reached the last page, I found some strange new sentences written in the once blank space. Clearly, these words were added later by the same person.

※※※

The hearts of Heaven, Humanity, and the Dao—what is the role of the ruler? What of the minister?

Is Heaven and Earth indifferent, using all things as mere straw dogs?

Why does Heaven and Earth not harmonize, causing the Earth’s energy to stagnate, the vital energy to be unbalanced, and the human heart to be out of order?

Heaven gives man a heart, yet is Heaven’s heart opposite to man’s?

※※※

Damn! So many questions! I was a bit overwhelmed upon reading them. I didn’t dwell on it much and moved on to the next section with enthusiasm, eager to look at the methods for pill refining and the required temperatures…

For the next several days, I was completely immersed in pill refining. I hadn’t yet formed my Dao fetus and lacked the Three Mystical Flames, so my foundation was shallow and I didn’t have a proper pill furnace or any valuable materials. I’d never even heard of precious herbs or materials before. How embarrassing!

But I couldn’t stop myself from itching to try it. I grabbed the black clay pot used for boiling Chinese medicine and used it as my "pill furnace"! I gathered some firewood and, following the recipe for the simple “Restore Essence Pill” from the Pill Doctor Volume, I bought some herbs and started refining!

I completely forgot that during the winter break, I had originally planned to find an excuse to visit the "Tai Xuan Ji Zhen Cave Heaven" on Ji Shi Mountain to play and dig around.

When my parents asked what I was doing, I didn’t want to tell them the truth. So, I lied, saying I was conducting a chemistry experiment.

Seeing the satisfied expression on my father’s face, I was so embarrassed that I nearly wished I could burrow underground. Unfortunately, I hadn’t cultivated any earth-moving techniques like the Earth Escape Technique.

My "chemistry experiment" lasted for about ten days, during which I was constantly covered in smoke and the smell of medicine. In the end, the black clay pot was filled with a burnt, mushy lump of something.

Is this the “Restore Essence Pill”?

Why isn’t it a round pill?

It must be because I didn’t have a pill furnace or the Three Mystical Flames, right? I tried to rationalize it to myself. Well, I’ll just have to make do for now.

But can this even be eaten?

The “Restore Essence Pill” is supposed to replenish one's essence, which should be good, right? But what I made… sigh! If it doesn’t kill me, I’ll count it as a blessing from the Infinite Tathagata!

I thought for a moment, and since I didn’t want to waste my hard work, I decided to test it on a mouse. After all, don’t many scientists use lab rats for experiments? Heh, we don’t have white lab mice in my hometown, but we occasionally see small gray mice.

It might be due to the cold weather, but I spent two whole days trying to catch one, only to end up without a single mouse hair.

Helpless, I turned my attention to the pug at the gate of a house to the west of the village.

Infinite Tathagata, this “Restore Essence Pill” that I painstakingly created is something most people can’t even get their hands on! Heh, I wonder which lucky pug will get to try it.

I went to the kitchen, grabbed a few buns, and stuffed some of the “Restore Essence Pill” into the filling. Heh!

For the sake of my noble cultivation career, I decided to let the pug become the recipient of my "Restore Essence Pill". If the other dogs in the village found out, would they be jealous?

Though I thought this, when I was walking on the road holding the buns, I couldn’t help but feel a little uneasy. When I finally threw the bun to the black pug, I felt like a thief. I was uncomfortable, but after a moment’s thought, I decided to throw only one bun to the dog. Safety first, after all. Infinite Tathagata!

My heart was racing with excitement and anticipation!

Heh! After tossing the bun to the pug, I wandered around the west side of the village for a while. After a while, I checked on the dog. It didn’t seem any different at first. I relaxed and tossed the rest of the buns to it.

As I strolled past, I noticed some villagers greeting me warmly. I nodded in response, but my mind was still focused on that dog.

After a while, I casually walked back to the gate of the house, pretending not to care. When I looked at the pug again, it had changed! Its eyes were bloodshot, and it was grinning, wagging its tail. As soon as it saw me, it barked and charged at me.

Heh! I smiled slyly and muttered to myself, "A barking pug, that’s all. And it’s chained, so I’m not worried. Come on, bite me if you can!"

“Boom!”

Just as I finished speaking, the chain holding the pug snapped…