With heaven and earth as the furnace, and a beautiful woman as the catalyst!

This Jade Bottle was the exact one he had previously handed to Qing Tan.

He extended his hand to take it, feeling its warm and smooth texture.

He uncorked the bottle, his Divine Sense seemingly probing inside with casual ease. Upon the yang returning lotus seed, he had left a trace so faint it was nearly imperceptible.

"As expected, it is Qing Tan whose Divine Soul is injured. To think this Mu Wanqing is willing to act as the medicinal catalyst herself just to save her..."

"The relationship between these two is far from simple. Are they sisters? Or perhaps... mother and daughter?"

Thoughts raced through Lin Yuan's mind, and he had already grasped seven or eight tenths of the truth.

"These are all the auxiliary Materials required for refining the soul nurturing pill."

Mu Wanqing's voice pulled him from his thoughts as she handed over another heavy Storage Pouch.

Although her expression had returned to the sharp professionalism of a merchant, the way her hands were tightly gripping her sleeves until they turned slightly white, along with the lingering nervousness and pleading deep in her eyes, could not escape Lin Yuan's notice.

Lin Yuan took the Storage Pouch and nodded slightly.

"Fellow Daoist Mu, guard me. Now, let the Alchemy begin!"

The moment the words left his lips, his entire aura shifted abruptly. He became composed and confident.

With a flick of his palm, a Pill Furnace with an archaic design and covered in pill pattern markings crashed onto the ground with a muffled thud.

"Rise!"

Lin Yuan opened his mouth, and a wisp of dark blue flame spewed out like a spirit snake, landing precisely into the Pill Furnace.

Boom!

The temperature inside the Pill Furnace soared instantly, causing the surrounding air to distort. Mu Wanqing felt a violent shock in her heart, staring fixedly at the dark blue flame, her beautiful eyes filled with horror.

Earth Core Nether Fire!

A Heaven and Earth spirit fire formed only after years of convergence between Earth Lung Fire and Earth Nether Qi!

Just as her mind was reeling, Lin Yuan had already begun.

His movements were not merely fluid; they were an art form full of rhythm and beauty.

The spirit Materials in the Storage Pouch were guided by his Divine Sense. He did not toss them in one by one, but in groups of three or five, hovering them above the flame in a specific order to preheat them. The moment their medicinal properties were stimulated, they were precisely dropped into the Pill Furnace.

His fingers moved rapidly before him, weaving complex Alchemy seals. With every seal that merged into the furnace, the dark blue flame would change its form—at times roaring like a fierce tiger, at others condensing into a lotus platform to support the contents—controlling every bit of heat to the finest detail.

Although Mu Wanqing herself was not proficient in the Dao of Alchemy, as the Pavilion Master of the Pill Treasure Pavilion, she had seen no fewer than eighty alchemists. She could tell that Lin Yuan's Alchemy methods had long surpassed the realm of "technique" and were nearing the "Dao"!

"Such multitasking control of Divine Sense, such absolute mastery over an exotic fire... this is absolutely not something a Sixth-Grade Alchemist could compare to!"

"He is at least a Fifth-Grade Alchemist! Perhaps even higher!"

A wild thought exploded in her mind, making her blood race and her breathing grow involuntarily rapid.

A Fifth-Grade Alchemist!

In the entire Yin Corpse Sect, there were only nine Fifth-Grade Alchemists on record!

Hundred Herbs Peak did not even have one!

And those nine were all figures of high status within the Sect, arrogant and aloof. Even an Immortal Master at the Golden Core stage like her father would have to humble himself and cater to their whims if he wanted to request a pill.

She quickly cycled through the images of those nine Fifth-Grade Alchemists in her mind, but not a single face matched the handsome, resolute one before her.

Her father had been stuck in the Middle Stage of Core Formation for a century. If he could obtain the full assistance of a Fifth-Grade Alchemist to refine the "violet extreme obstacle breaking pill" needed to break through, he would have a seventy percent chance of entering the Late Stage!

And if she and her sister could forge a good relationship with this person, what unimaginable help would they gain for their future path of cultivation!

"No matter what, I must seize this opportunity!"

"At any cost!"

Mu Wanqing cried out in her heart. She took a deep breath, forcing her body, which was trembling with excitement, to calm down.

If she knew that what Lin Yuan was displaying now was merely the tip of the iceberg of his Fourth-Grade Alchemist attainments, one could only wonder what she would think.

Just then, Lin Yuan suddenly opened his eyes, a flash of sharp light passing through them.

"Open!"

With a low shout, he formed a seal with one hand and slammed it against the Pill Furnace.

Hum—!

The lid of the Pill Furnace shot into the sky. A rich, almost tangible pill fragrance swept out like a storm, and within it, there was even a faint trace of dao rhyme!

A Medicinal Pill the size of a dragon's eye, red as blood jade throughout, with the faint shadow of a Phoenix cry circulating on its surface, spun gracefully as it flew out from the furnace and finally hovered above Lin Yuan's palm.

The medicinal fragrance was intoxicating. Mu Wanqing felt as if her Divine Soul had been cleansed, and the mana in her body even became uncontrollably active.

Her gaze, like iron filings attracted to a magnet, was nailed to the pill, unable to move a single inch away.

This was not the impurity of a Low Grade Medicinal Pill, nor the contained spirit light of a Medium Grade one.

It was a perfect quality that was flawless, self-generating in pill rhyme, as if created by heaven itself!

High Grade!

It was a High Grade soul nurturing pill that only a legendary Fourth-Grade Alchemist could reliably refine!

Mu Wanqing felt her throat go dry.

A Fourth-Grade Alchemist!

There were only a handful in the entire Eastern Region! In the entire Yin Corpse Sect, there was only that elusive Master of the Pill Hall!

What kind of existence had she encountered today?

"I can see that Fellow Daoist Mu is very satisfied with this soul nurturing pill I have refined." Lin Yuan put the pill away, his voice calm.

Mu Wanqing was, after all, someone who had seen great storms. She forcibly suppressed the turbulent waves in her heart and bowed deeply to Lin Yuan, placing herself in a very low position.

"It was Wanqing who failed to recognize a superior. I did not expect Senior Huang's attainments in the Dao of Alchemy to have already reached the Transcendent state. Please forgive me, Senior!" She even changed her form of address from "Fellow Daoist" to "Senior".

She took out a Storage Pouch and offered it with both hands: "This is the previously agreed-upon reward. However... the value of this High Grade soul nurturing pill cannot be bought with these Spirit Stones!"

Lin Yuan waved his hand, interrupting her.

"Spirit Stones are but external objects to me." He looked at Mu Wanqing with a calm gaze. "I have recently opened a new Immortal Cave and am in need of a decent defensive Formation. I wonder if you have any High Grade Formation Flags or Formation Plates in your possession?"

"A Formation?" Mu Wanqing was startled, then gave a bitter smile. "Senior, you may not know, but the path of Formations is obscure and difficult. High Grade Formation Masters are even rarer than High Grade alchemists. A great Formation capable of defending against a Golden Core Immortal Master is worth over a million Spirit Stones, and even then, it is priceless and hard to find."

"I do have a ready-made Five Elements Inversion Formation, sufficient to protect a Cultivator at the Foundation Establishment Stage, but the effect of this Formation is mediocre. I fear it will not catch your eye, Senior."

Lin Yuan naturally had no interest in such common goods.

Mu Wanqing pondered for a moment, seemingly weighing something. Finally, she gritted her teeth, as if having made a decision.

"However... I do happen to have a Jade Slip for the crafting of a Formation called the 'Nine Curves Bewildering Spirit Formation'." Her voice lowered slightly. "This method was obtained not long ago from the belongings of a fallen Golden Core Formation Master from the front lines, and it was entrusted to me to sell on their behalf. The seller's asking price is 100,000 Spirit Stones."

"This Formation is quite famous. Not only is its defense astonishing, but it also comes with an illusionary array, enough to trap and kill Cultivators of the same stage. However, to successfully refine it, one must be a Formation Master."

She raised her head, looking at Lin Yuan with burning eyes: "To others, this transaction is a chicken rib. But I think that with your heaven-defying means, Senior, by drawing parallels, you might be interested."

"Wanqing is willing to use this Formation Jade Slip, along with all the Materials required to refine this Formation, to compensate for this Alchemy reward. What does Senior think?"

If this proposal were made to any other alchemist, they would refuse without hesitation. Alchemy and Formation crafting were two completely different fields.

But Lin Yuan, after only a brief moment of thought, nodded in agreement.

"Agreed."

Among the hundred arts of cultivation, the Dao of Alchemy comes first, but Formations, Artifacts, and Talismans are equally indispensable. His attribute points were abundant now; comprehensive development was the true path.

A look of ecstasy appeared on Mu Wanqing's face, and she quickly completed the transaction, fearing that Lin Yuan might change his mind.

Just as she thought the matter was concluded and was preparing to take her leave, Lin Yuan spoke again.

"Oh, that's right." He seemed to have suddenly remembered something. "Fellow Daoist Sun also brought some Materials for refining the foundation establishment pill earlier. He said that the resulting Medicinal Pills could be sold to Fellow Daoist Mu first."

As Lin Yuan spoke, he calmly took out an exquisite jade box and handed it over.

Mu Wanqing took it and carefully opened the jade box.

The moment she opened the jade box, she was struck as if by lightning, frozen completely in place.