"Fellow Daoist Xu, please begin." After handing the spirit medicine for the Qi Refining Pill to Xu Ping, Hongyi and the Pill Master stepped aside.

"Alright,"

Xu Ping nodded and then took out the alchemy furnace, placing it on the ground.

This time, he didn't set up the "Flame Ignition Array" to kindle the fire. With a flip of his palm, a pale red flame appeared in his hand—it was the Foundation Establishment's True Flame!

The Foundation Establishment's True Flame could meet the alchemy requirements. The temperature was high, and it didn't consume much mana, but the flame's stability was slightly lacking.

Xu Ping gently waved his arm, and the Foundation Establishment's True Flame fell onto the fire gate below the Purple Profound Tripod, then expanded rapidly to the size of a baby's head, starting to heat the Purple Profound Tripod.

Once preheating was complete, he activated his magic technique, and the lid of the tripod opened slightly.

He placed each spirit medicine into the tripod one by one in the correct order and ratio.

Removing impurities, extracting the essence of spirit grass, merging, condensing the pill, and opening the furnace—each step was so familiar to Xu Ping that, supported by the panel, failure was nearly impossible.

Though Hongyi knew nothing about alchemy, the process seemed very smooth to him.

The truly knowledgeable Pill Master glanced with a slightly heavy gaze, thinking the techniques and proficiency might rival a seasoned second-stage lower grade alchemist. With a decade or more of practice, he could break through to middle grade.

A promising talent.

The Pill Master nodded slightly.

Because the Foundation Establishment's True Flame had a higher temperature, it removed impurities and refined essence faster, significantly speeding up the alchemy process.

Half an hour later, the alchemy was complete.

Xu Ping extinguished the Foundation Establishment's True Flame.

His mana controlled the tripod lid to slowly rise.

As the lid gradually opened, a rich pill fragrance greeted them, seeping into one's senses.

Xu Ping grabbed the air, and two light blue pills appeared in his hand. With a flick of his fingers, the two pills flew towards the Pill Master and Hongyi.

"Fellow Daoist Hong, Pill Master, please appraise them."

The two took them and began inspecting.

Hongyi, though unfamiliar with pill concoction, had no problem with appraisal. After a moment, he nodded, "Not bad, it's a Qi Refining Pill."

The Pill Master, being a second-stage upper grade alchemist, examined more meticulously, "The impurities are very cleanly removed, the fragrance is robust..."

He scraped a bit of powder into his mouth, savoring it. After half a moment, he nodded slowly, "The medicinal potency is pure; it's an excellent Qi Refining Pill."

"Your alchemy skills are quite impressive. At least in Qi Refining Pills, your proficiency is not inferior to some second-stage middle grade alchemists." The Pill Master's gaze showed admiration, and he held Xu Ping in high regard.

Beside him, Hongyi listened to the Pill Master's praise for Xu Ping, showing a look of surprise.

The Pill Master was known for being extremely proud of his alchemy skills and rarely praised others this way.

It seemed this new guest minister Xu indeed had a great talent in alchemy.

His combat power and potential were already above average for a Foundation Establishment cultivator, and now even his alchemy talent was evident.

This was a real treasure find!

Hongyi felt pleased.

"The Pill Master flatters me; my alchemy skills are nothing in front of you," Xu Ping said modestly.

"Fellow Daoist Xu, don't be modest. The Pill Master rarely praises people this way. Come, let's head to the main hall and chat." Hongyi smiled warmly.

The group moved to the main hall again.

Hongyi summoned the gatekeeping disciple to serve tea and then got to the main point, "I invited you, Fellow Daoist Xu, here today to discuss your first task."

"With Fellow Daoist Hong's arrangements, as a guest minister, I will uphold my duty," Xu Ping said seriously.

"No need to be nervous, Fellow Daoist Xu. For a second-stage alchemist like you, naturally, you won't be doing ordinary tasks like other guest ministers," Hongyi said with a smile,

"In the future, you'll just need to periodically help 'Qiu Xuan Mountain' with a batch of pill concoctions, of course, with materials provided by us and a fee for alchemy included."

"Thanks to Fellow Daoist Hong's regard, I will surely give it my all." Upon hearing this, Xu Ping was delighted inwardly but maintained a serious face.

Revealing his alchemy talent was indeed the right choice.

This task was not only safe but also allowed him to gain spirit stone resources from 'Qiu Xuan Mountain'.

After all, with materials provided by 'Qiu Xuan Mountain' and Xu Ping's alchemy skills with the support panel, it was all gain with no loss.

A win-win situation.

After discussing the details of the alchemy task, Xu Ping excused himself and left.

Returning home,

Xu Ping drank a joyful sip of tea.

Now that the mandatory task was completely resolved, and he could also get resources from the alchemy, earning a wave of spirit stones.

He could cultivate peacefully for a while.

...

...

Half a year later,

A heavy snow announced the arrival of winter.

Beneath a leaden gray sky,

The feathery snow fell under the perpetually activated Mountain Protection Array of 'Qiu Xuan Mountain', continuously bounced off by an invisible force field above, shattered into a sprinkle of tiny crystals, finally turning into a mist of fine droplets, wafting lightly down.

Inside, the entire mountain gate was warm like spring, lush and vibrant, with no hint of the external cold.

Inside the training room,

Xu Ping held a sword in one hand as Sword Qi quietly gathered around him, seeming to transform into an invisible tide that rose and fell with his breath.

He turned his wrist lightly, the sword tracing a graceful arc. With his movements, the sword light flickered, resembling a dragon dancing in the air.

"Sword, rise!"

With his shout, the sword light suddenly intensified, like a bolt of lightning tearing through the sky, directly striking a black puppet in the training room.

Whush!

A deep sword mark appeared instantly on the surface of the black puppet. The surrounding air subtly twisted due to the pressure of the sword force, as if even the light distorted, losing its transparency due to the Sword Qi.

Boom!

With a loud rumbling sound, the black puppet instantly shattered into fragments.

"Such power!!"

Seeing the destruction he had caused, Xu Ping's eyes gleamed.

The black puppet was specifically used for Foundation Establishment cultivators' training, with very strong defense, yet it was shattered with a single sword strike.

"Is it... the Minor Achievement of the Primordial Sword Skill?"

Xu Ping quickly opened the panel.

[Primordial Sword Skill Minor Achievement: 1/800]

"Indeed, Minor Achievement!"

Looking at the numbers displayed on the panel, Xu Ping felt joyous.

The Primordial Sword Skill was an ancient sword technique, inherently powerful, and now breaking through to Minor Achievement clearly elevated its power to a new level.

"Now, if I just use my mana and sword skill, could I fight a Mid-Stage Foundation Establishment cultivator?"

Forty-one drops of liquid mana circulated silently within Xu Ping.

Buzz!

The Blood-Drinking Sword emitted a crisp sword hum.

After a year of diligent practice, his liquid mana had increased by three drops.

Though still far from the limit of seventy drops, it was already at the peak for most Early-Stage Foundation Establishment cultivators, ready to break through to Mid-Stage Foundation Establishment at any time.

Moreover, with the Minor Achievement of the Primordial Sword Skill, he might now be able to contend with a Mid-Stage Foundation Establishment cultivator without employing other measures.

The main issue was his other methods were rather inconvenient to use publically, and his regular-state combat power occasionally felt insufficient.

Now, with the Primordial Sword Skill breaking through, paired with his mana that was comparable to peak usual Early-Stage Foundation Establishment, he was no longer weak.

However, the only slight inadequacy was...

Xu Ping couldn't help but glance down at the Blood-Drinking Sword in his hand.

Though the Blood-Drinking Sword was an upper grade magic sword, it fell a bit short when fighting Mid-to-Late Stage Foundation Establishment cultivators.

Most Late-Stage Foundation Establishment cultivators, and even some wealthy Early-Stage Foundation Establishment cultivators, used top-grade magical artifacts.

"Perhaps I should consider acquiring a top-grade magic sword!" Xu Ping mused to himself.

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