"Alchemist Zhou's alchemy skill has grown increasingly profound; I think in another year or two, he will enter the middle-grade ranks!" Lin Xueying slightly parted her lips, admiration shining in her starry eyes.

In her view, the man before her had an air of elegance, like an orchid or a cassia tree, his mastery of alchemy was quite accomplished, and he was very likely to ascend to the rank of a high-grade alchemist in the future.

There is even a slim hope of becoming a tier-two alchemist.

Such talent is extremely rare among the Four Great Clans.

"Miss Lin overpraises me!" Zhou Xun modestly replied.

"I invited you here because I need your help with something!" The young lady said, after some simple pleasantries, moving on to the main topic.

"I want to refine a middle-grade Fireproof Pill, but of all middle-grade elixirs, this one is among the most difficult to refine. It may be hard to succeed on my own,"

"Therefore, I need someone to assist me by managing some spirit medicines."

During the refinement of the middle-grade Fireproof Pill, it requires simultaneously condensing two different medicinal liquids. The spirit medicines used for refining these two liquids have properties that are incompatible, making it impossible to refine them together in one pill furnace.

They need to be dealt with in separate pill furnaces and then merged during the liquid condensation phase.

Although Lin Xueying is classified as a middle-grade alchemy master, her cultivation is still at the middle-stage Qi Refining, having not yet awakened her divine sense, making it impossible to manipulate two alchemy furnaces at once, thus requiring an assistant to handle the spirit medicines in the other furnace.

In the trio tasked with refining Fireproof Pills, Zhou Xun's alchemy skill was the highest, making him the most suitable candidate.

"Since the young lady requires assistance, Zhou Mou has no objections, but the task of refining low-grade Fireproof Pills..."

Zhou Xun pondered and did not refuse, although he was supposed to receive substantial rewards for refining low-grade Fireproof Pills on his own.

"For refining middle-grade Fireproof Pills, after a successful pill, you will be compensated with fifty Spirit Essences and five contribution points!" The young lady's face turned cold, and she spoke expressionlessly.

"Since that is the case, Zhou Mou will comply with the young lady's requests!"

This was also an image Zhou Xun deliberately cultivated.

He sensed that this Miss Lin was being overly friendly with him.

A woman of exceptional beauty can be a troublesome distraction, he decided to disregard personal factors and treat everything as official business.

"Tomorrow, come directly to my place, and we will start refining the middle-grade Fireproof Pill!"

"Yes!"

After leaving, Zhou Xun did not return home to Luliu Lane; instead, he headed to Miaofu Pavilion to find Lan Song, purchasing several tier-one middle-grade defense talismans from him.

The Fireproof Pill only has the effect of resisting the power of the fire element. The invitation from Miss Lin of the Lin Family made him feel as if beneath the surface brightness of Red Leaf Square, some undercurrent was stirring.

He then went on to Hundred Treasures Pavilion, buying three sets of body refining materials.

During this time, his body refining technique was progressing smoothly, and he thought he could successfully begin practicing it after a few more attempts.

However, his cultivation was still stuck at the peak of the third-layer Qi Refining, but during this period, he had not stopped cultivating, feeling a strong sensation that the day of breakthrough was near.

...

The next day, Zhou Xun arrived early at Lin Xueying's courtyard.

Seeing the courtyard full of spirit grass, Zhou Xun couldn't help but feel envious.

These were all spirit grasses, some even at the entry tier.

He even spotted several tier-one middle-grade spirit medicines among them, and this was only Lin Xueying's villa.

"A tier-one middle-grade Spirit Plant Garden!" Zhou Xun guessed.

"Alchemist Zhou, you're early, have you had breakfast?" At this moment, Lin Xueying also arrived.

Today, she wore a plain dress with a horse-faced skirt, and her hair was tied up, giving her a dashing and spirited look, which made Zhou Xun glance a few more times.

"I have!" Zhou Xun nodded in response.

"Then let's begin! Follow me," Lin Xueying said with a calm tone that indicated a slight sense of distance.

Zhou Xun followed her.

Inside the alchemy room were two alchemy furnaces.

Unlike Zhou Xun's setup, these furnaces were at least middle-grade.

In fact, Zhou Xun suspected that the one used by Lin Xueying had reached high-grade.

In front of the alchemy furnaces, there were several sets of spirit medicines for refining Fireproof Pills, as well as low-grade silver spirit charcoal for providing heat.

"Your part of the process is no different from refining low-grade Fireproof Pills, but the key lies in the timing. The completion time of the liquid you refine must match mine precisely,"

"Otherwise, the two liquid medicines cannot perfectly fuse during condensation, which would make it difficult to produce authentic Fireproof Pills!"

The young lady slightly parted her lips, explaining the key to refining with seriousness.

Zhou Xun listened carefully.

"It seems the key to success lies in the harmony between the two of us!"

"Alright, with that said, let's try refining a batch to get a feel for it!" The young lady's tone was cool.

Zhou Xun nodded.

"Light the fire, warm the pill furnace," the young lady instructed.

Following her words, Zhou Xun placed the silver spirit charcoal beneath the pill furnace, casually casting a flame technique, instantly igniting the silver spirit wood, and raising a cyan-blue flame.

While Zhou Xun was manipulating the fire, the young lady cast her gaze towards him.

Seeing Zhou Xun's seamlessly smooth and orderly movements, she couldn't help but nod approvingly in her heart.

"Though this person is known for his greed, his foundation in alchemy is remarkably solid!"

"Open the furnace lid and refine the spirit medicines!" the young lady commanded further.

With a gesture, Zhou Xun made the lid rise autonomously, then with a wave of his hand, the spirit medicines flew into the alchemy furnace on their own, and the lid closed by itself.

Upon seeing this, Zhou Xun began forming seals, casting a spell onto the silver spirit charcoal.

The flames surged instantly, the flames shifting from cyan-blue to entirely cyan.

Meanwhile, Lin Xueying also began refining another set of spirit medicines.

Their progress was almost identical.

"Alchemist Zhou, I will finish my refining in another quarter of an hour!" the young lady noted, watching Zhou Xun's side.

"So will I!" Zhou Xun replied succinctly.

Soon, as the end of the process neared, the young lady couldn't help but remind him again.

"Alchemist Zhou, ten breaths remaining!"

"Rest assured, it won't be off by a fraction!" Zhou Xun replied with a serene demeanor, his words full of composure.

During the refining, Zhou Xun used his divine sense to continuously monitor Lin Xueying's progress, adjusting his own refining pace accordingly.

At the last moment, both pill furnaces opened simultaneously, with perfect timing.

Lin Xueying looked at Zhou Xun in surprise and met his gaze.

They shared a knowing smile.

Lin Xueying then refocused on the refining process, while Zhou Xun's work was done.

The two streams of medicinal liquids merged smoothly, fusing perfectly.

Then came the condensing of the pill.

Finally, nine glistening white pills flew out of the pill furnace.

Careful examination revealed superb quality, all belonging to the authentic tier.

This successful refinement exceeded Lin Xueying's expectations.

Reflecting on the entire refining process, Lin Xueying felt exceptionally comfortable, seamless.

Everything went so smoothly, it felt as if the success was predestined from the moment the refinement began.

Thinking of this, she couldn't help but glance at Zhou Xun again.

For their first collaboration to be so harmonious gave her a special feeling.

Suddenly remembering Zhou Xun's money-grubbing demeanor from the previous day, she just happened to catch Zhou Xun's gaze, which sparked a sudden rush of unbidden annoyance.

"Let's get on with it and refine another batch!"

Zhou Xun nodded in surprise, unable to comprehend when he had upset Miss Lin.

This marked the end of four full batches being produced between the two.

"Alchemist Zhou, you arrived early, your skills are truly exquisite. Today's refinement was perfect!" the young lady returned to her original graceful and magnanimous self.

"Miss Lin, thank you for the compliment! Now if there is nothing else, I'll take my leave!" Zhou Xun bowed and bid farewell.

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