16 A Shock Caused by a Fourth-Grade Pill!

"What a waste. Do you know how precious this pill is?

"Just this one pill is comparable to your entire herb garden, yet a brat like you directly used such a low-quality jade bottle to store it.

"This is a top-grade Spirit Ascension Pill. It needs to be stored in a cold jade bottle in order to prevent the loss of spiritual energy.

"Fortunately, I discovered it in time. If I hadn't come, this pill would've been stored in an ordinary jade bottle for too long. By then, its quality would've dropped. What a waste..."

Elder Zhao shared his knowledge about pills with Wu Ye.

Wu Ye had no choice but to listen to him.

He had the standard of a fifth-grade alchemist when it came to knowledge about pills. Why would he need a third-grade alchemist to explain it to him?

If not for the lack of materials and proficiency, the medicinal pill he refined just now would not have been a fourth-grade but a fifth-grade medicinal pill.

It was just a small Spirit Ascension Pill, and he could easily refine it now.

Wu Ye was speechless. It seemed that this elder of the Alchemy Hall in the Sword Control Sect had not seen the real world.

The elder was already agitated over such a fourth-grade medicinal pill. If Wu Ye refined another fifth-grade medicinal pill, would Elder Zhao go into ecstasies?

"Oh right, kid, you haven't told me how you obtained such a medicinal pill."

Elder Zhao asked with a face full of curiosity.

"Um..."

Wu Ye rubbed his chin.

A few minutes later, he really could not think of any reasonable excuse. He casually said, "I picked it up at the bottom of the back mountain cliff."

Hearing Wu Ye's reply, Elder Zhao revealed an unsurprised expression and muttered to himself, "I knew it. This is a top-grade medicinal pill. It's definitely not something that an ordinary person can refine.

"This must've been refined by a senior of our Sword Control Sect a few hundred years ago. After all, our sect has produced a fifth-grade alchemist back then.

"From its pattern, the pill looks completely natural. The alchemy technique involved in this is really too exquisite..."

Elder Zhao stared at the Spirit Ascension Pill in his palm once again. His eyes were bloodshot. Coupled with his current terrible image, he was simply like a madman.

Wu Ye was speechless when he heard him muttering to himself. Elder Zhao actually believed his casual words?

Could it be that this elder had gone mad?

Did he have to go this far...

Wu Ye exhaled and looked at him as he said slowly, "Elder Zhao, don't you have any doubts at all?"

When Elder Zhao heard Wu Ye's question, he frowned slightly and asked, "What's doubtful?"

"Actually, I was the one who refined this pill. Do you believe me?" Wu Ye asked in a low voice.

"You brat?"

Elder Zhao looked as if he had seen a ghost. His face was filled with disbelief.

In fact, the difficulty of this alchemy technique would increase exponentially with each grade increase.

He had studied pills, discerned pills, and refined pills for a total of 200 years before he reached the level of a third-grade alchemist.

This brat only entered the sect 20 years ago. Putting aside pill refinement, even if he were to become a chef and cook a meal of spirit food, he might not be able to control the fire level.

"Brat, you have talent in cultivating spirit plants and formations, which is extremely rare. Treasure your talent well. A person's time and energy are limited. Don't think about learning everything."

Elder Zhao patted his shoulder with a serious expression.

Then, he took out a cold jade bottle and slowly put the Spirit Ascension Pill inside. He immediately took out his flying sword and flew back to the Alchemy Hall impatiently.

Looking at the figure flying away from the window, Wu Ye did not know whether to laugh or cry.

He remembered that Elder Zhao previously asked him to modify the formation.

Did Elder Zhao forget it just like that?

It seemed that this pill, which was of no importance to him, was significant to Elder Zhao.

Moreover, he had told the truth, but Elder Zhao did not believe it. On the contrary, Elder Zhao believed the lie that he had made up without hesitation.

Alas. Things were difficult.

Meanwhile, when Elder Zhao returned to the alchemy peak with the Spirit Ascension Pill, the elders of the Alchemy Hall were all excited.

In the next three months, all the disciples of the Sword Control Sect were owed three months' worth of medicinal pills due to the collective seclusion of the elders of the Alchemy Hall.

The elders of the Alchemy Hall did not waste these few months. Under the leadership of Elder Zhao, they had gone through constant research and enlightenment.

They had gained some insight into pill refinement from the Spirit Ascension Pill.

Hence, everyone started to refine pills and gained enlightenment one by one.

Due to the Spirit Ascension Pill, all the elders' pill refining skills had improved.

Many of the second-grade alchemists had broken through to the third grade.

Elder Zhao saw a chance to break through to the fourth grade from the Spirit Ascension Pill.

A fourth-grade pill refined by a fourth-grade alchemist was of great help to the Nascent Soul cultivators.

This matter immediately attracted the attention and sympathy of many elders in the Sword Control Sect as well as the sect master, Zhang Qishan.

Elder Zhao did not disappoint everyone. He gave a bold statement to Zhang Qishan, "I'm confident that within a hundred years, I'll step into the ranks of a fourth-grade alchemist."

The instigator, Wu Ye, did not expect that the Spirit Ascension Pill he casually refined would cause such a commotion.

However, when he heard Elder Zhao's oath, he was somewhat puzzled.

Fourth-grade pill?

Was it difficult to cultivate?

Would it take a hundred years?

Moreover, he had heard that the second-grade alchemists in the sect were all using the Spirit Ascension Pill as a treasure to advance to the third grade.

They even had to study it.

From the second grade to the third grade?

It was possible as long as one had hands, was it not?

Wu Ye was perplexed by the actions of the elders of the Alchemy Hall in the sect.

...

In the blink of an eye, five years passed by in a flash.

During these five years, Wu Ye's cultivation routine was still the same as before.

He strolled around and signed in, planted herbs in the herb garden, set up basic array formations, practiced the sword, trained his body, refined pills, and painted talismans.

There were seven items in total. Only the tasks of painting talismans and setting up array formations were added.

The main thing was that it was really boring to only learn those things, so he thought of it as a change of experience.

He led a leisurely life in a fulfilling yet low-key manner.

Anyway, everything was already in his mind when he signed in.

All he did was increase his proficiency.

The changes in these five years were also drastic for the Sword Control Sect.

As the level of the elders of the Alchemy Hall rose, the overall strength of the disciples in the sect rose once again.

If the Ghost Daoist came again, Zhang Qishan would not need the cooperation of the other elders. He could kill the Ghost Daoist alone with the Great Void Condensing Sword.

It was impossible for the Blood Soul Demon Master to escape from the demon-slaying tower.

However, the Sword Control Sect could develop so smoothly because of this matter.

Apart from that, a major event had happened in the Northern Spirit Realm two years ago, causing a huge commotion.

Someone had found a treasure map in a secret realm.

However, that map was incomplete.

After some feng shui masters' divination, they concluded that the treasure map came from an expert of the Soul Formation Realm 600 years ago.

The reason for the turmoil was that this treasure map contained the secret of breaking through from the Soul Formation Realm to the Cavern of Mystery Realm.