198: Chapter 198 Is this Li Qing an alchemist?

After completely sorting out his thoughts, Li Qing no longer had the slightest hesitation.

The most urgent matter at hand was to immediately gather the medicinal ingredients and open the furnace to refine the golden cloud pill.

He checked the spiritual field once and carefully inventoried the Spiritual Plants he had in stock.

He discovered that he was still missing a few types of Spiritual Plants specifically suited for the second-tier Low Grade golden cloud pill.

If he wanted to engage in Alchemy and rely on Medicinal Pills to make money and establish a foothold, the first step was to go to the Heiyuan City marketplace to replenish all the missing Spiritual Plants.

Having made up his mind, Li Qing tidied up briefly, changed into a plain cyan Cultivator robe, restrained his Spiritual Qi fluctuations, and suppressed his aura until it was unremarkable, looking exactly like an ordinary Foundation Establishment Cultivator.

Heiyuan City was a place where dragons and snakes mixed, filled with people with ulterior motives, especially with Yin Tiancheng secretly watching him; there was no need for him to be high-profile, and keeping a low profile was the safest approach.

He walked out of his Advanced Immortal Cave and followed the bustling streets toward the central marketplace.

The marketplace in Heiyuan City was always noisy and bustling, with voices clamoring. The sides of the road were lined with stalls of all sizes, filled with a dazzling array of spiritual Materials, Magical Artifacts, Talismans, and Medicinal Pills.

The Cultivators coming and going were of all kinds: solitary Loose Cultivators, teams traveling together, and hidden veteran experts. Everyone was in a hurry, filled with an urgent sense of needing to Cultivate and seek wealth.

There were no rules or social etiquette here, only strength and Spirit Stones. Trade was free but also hid dangers, and one could see Cultivators hunting for bargains, reselling at high prices, or negotiating in secret everywhere.

Li Qing navigated the various medicinal plant stalls with familiarity. He did not wander or linger; his goal was extremely clear as he specifically selected the missing Spiritual Plants needed to refine the golden cloud pill.

The main ingredients required for refining the golden cloud pill were not rare; they were all common second-tier Low Grade Spiritual Plants: Cloud-Mist Grass, Red Spirit Flower, Green Wood Vine, and Condensed Dew Root. They could be found everywhere in the marketplace, though the cost of purchasing them in bulk was not low.

After purchasing them along the way, he managed to gather enough Materials to refine fifty golden cloud pills, filling more than half of his Storage Pouch.

Although Li Qing was low-key throughout the entire process, only buying Spiritual Plants for Alchemy, not touching any other items, and not saying a single unnecessary word.

Even though he was deliberately low-key, this act of purchasing a large quantity of second-tier Spiritual Plants still quietly fell into the eyes of someone lurking in the shadows.

...

Inside the Advanced Immortal Cave number eighteen on the West Mountain of Heiyuan City, Yin Tiancheng was sitting cross-legged, meditating and regulating his breathing.

Ever since he left Li Qing's Immortal Cave, he had been paying attention to Li Qing.

Therefore, when he left, he had specifically set up an extremely covert sensory warning Formation on the periphery of the Advanced Immortal Cave where Li Qing lived.

This set of Formation was extremely subtle, with no Spiritual Qi fluctuations at all. Neither the naked eye nor Divine Thought could detect it, and ordinary Foundation Establishment Cultivators could not perceive the slightest abnormality.

As long as Li Qing's Immortal Cave door opened or someone entered or exited, the Formation would instantly trigger, sending the message precisely to him. The whole process was silent, and it would definitely not be discovered by outsiders.

He didn't expect that shortly after he left, Li Qing would go out.

A cold curve appeared at the corner of Yin Tiancheng's mouth, his eyes full of inquiry. He immediately suppressed his own aura, left the Immortal Cave silently, and followed from a distance to investigate.

He dared not get too close; once his tracks were discovered, it would only alert the enemy.

Therefore, he kept a very far distance, using the flow of people in the streets and the cover of buildings to silently observe Li Qing's every move.

When he saw clearly that Li Qing only stopped at medicinal plant stalls throughout the whole time, purchasing large quantities of second-tier Spiritual Plants, and that the types of Spiritual Plants were all main ingredients for refining second-tier Low Grade Medicinal Pills, Yin Tiancheng's pupils shrank slightly, and his face was filled with disbelief.

Cloud-Mist Grass, Red Spirit Flower, Green Wood Vine... The uses for these Spiritual Plants were extremely fixed; apart from refining the second-tier golden cloud pill, they had almost no other use.

Ordinary Foundation Establishment Cultivators would at most buy a few ready-made Medicinal Pills to Cultivate; who would hoard such a large quantity of Spiritual Plants for Alchemy?

A bold guess instantly exploded in his mind!

"Could... this Li Qing actually be an Alchemist?!"

Once this thought appeared, Yin Tiancheng's entire mindset changed.

At first, he only thought that Li Qing was an ordinary Foundation Establishment Cultivator with a huge sum of money.

But if the other party was a second-tier Alchemist, the nature of things would be completely different!

In a lawless place like Heiyuan City, where resources were scarce and everyone was crazily trying to Cultivate, the status of an Alchemist was too special and too noble.

Cultivators with powerful combat strength could be seen everywhere, and desperate outlaws who dared to fight and kill were countless, but an Alchemist who had mastered Alchemy and could refine medicine independently was a truly rare talent.

Especially an Alchemist who could refine second-tier Medicinal Pills, even if it was only second-tier Low Grade, it was enough to make countless Foundation Establishment Cultivators fawn over them, and even many Golden Core old monsters would give them some face.

Yin Tiancheng stood in the shadows, his brows furrowed tightly, and for the first time, intense hesitation and wariness arose in his heart.

His original plan was simple: figure out Li Qing's background, find the right opportunity, and seize his huge fortune.

But if Li Qing was really a second-tier Alchemist, then this matter would be completely thorny!

Offending an ordinary Foundation Establishment Cultivator was not worth mentioning at all; even if the other party's combat strength was strong, at most they were just a Loose Cultivator who could fight, a lone individual. If killed, they were killed; no one would pursue it, and no one would care.

But offending a second-tier Alchemist was purely brain-dead and courting death!

An Alchemist held rare Alchemy techniques, could continuously produce Medicinal Pills for Cultivation, and would invisibly bind a large network of connections behind them.

Countless Cultivators who needed Medicinal Pills to Cultivate would take the initiative to befriend and protect the Alchemist.

If he really tore off the mask and laid a hand on Li Qing, it would be equivalent to cutting off the Cultivation resources of countless Cultivators, equivalent to making enemies with a large group of people, and he would instantly become a target of public criticism.

This kind of stupid thing that was not worth the loss and had a hundred harms with no benefits was something no Cultivator with a little bit of a brain would ever do.

At this moment, the thought of revenge in Yin Tiancheng's heart was completely shaken for the first time.

He stared fixedly at Li Qing, who was buying Materials low-key ahead, his eyes flickering, his mind turning over a thousand times.

He was unwilling to just give up like this, but he also dared not rashly test or provoke him.

"Don't be anxious, let's watch a bit more!"

"Maybe I'm just overthinking it; perhaps he's just buying them to have someone else refine the Medicinal Pills, not necessarily knowing Alchemy himself!"

Yin Tiancheng forcibly suppressed the wariness in his heart, still holding onto a glimmer of hope.

He must completely confirm whether Li Qing could actually perform Alchemy and whether he was truly a second-tier Alchemist.

If he was just purely hoarding medicinal plants and asking someone else to refine them, then everything would go on as before, and he would still have a chance to manipulate the other party.

But if he could really refine second-tier Medicinal Pills independently... then he could only endure for the time being and would never dare to easily provoke him in the slightest.

Meanwhile, Li Qing, having finished purchasing all the spiritual Materials, did not stay in the marketplace for even a second longer.

The Storage Pouch filled with medicinal plants felt heavy in his hand, enough for him to open dozens of furnaces of Medicinal Pills, completely sufficient for him to practice, mass-produce, and make a name for himself.

He keenly sensed the faint feeling of being watched all around him. Although he didn't discover any specific figure, he knew in his heart that it was highly likely Yin Tiancheng's surveillance.

Li Qing didn't care about this at all, and was even vaguely happy to see it happen.

He had originally intended to rely on his Alchemist identity to establish a foothold in Heiyuan City and create a protective shell.

Since Yin Tiancheng loved watching him so much, then let him slowly become wary and slowly hesitate, not daring to act easily; it would just happen to buy him enough time for closed-door cultivation and development.