Elian made another trip to the Mu Immortal Clan. Upon seeing him, Mu Xuanming realized that Elian had already advanced to the Purple Mansion stage.
Shocked, Mu Xuanming repeatedly addressed him as "senior" and naturally dared not refuse any of Elian's requests. He promptly provided the remaining two spiritual herbs required for the recipe.
Not only that, but upon learning that Elian intended to refine a third-rank pill, Mu Xuanming voluntarily lent Elian the only third-rank low-grade artifact in his possession, the "Purple Pattern Pill Furnace."
Seeing the Mu clan leader's tactful gesture, Elian naturally accepted the offer. With a third-rank pill furnace, the chances of successfully refining the Vital Energy Restoration Pills would undoubtedly increase.
The Mu Clan's gesture was also logical. After all, their survival would depend on the Chen Clan's protection in the future. By building a good relationship now, they could ensure favorable consideration when the Chen Clan decided to sell high-rank treasures in the future.
With the auxiliary herbs now complete, Elian returned to Linghu Isle. Upon his return, he discovered that the Patriarch was busy rearranging the formations on the island.
"Come help me," the Patriarch said with a smile when he saw Elian return.
Elian stepped forward and noticed that the new formation being arranged by Chen Changxuan was a third-rank Water Element Formation.
The formation artifact was a third-rank saber, specifically Deng Yuanjie's water-attribute third-rank artifact.
Together, the two of them spent three hours completing the arrangement of the formation. The Patriarch smiled and said, "With the Heavenly Saber Demon-Slaying Formation, even one or two mid- to late-stage Purple Mansion cultivators wouldn't easily breach Linghu Isle."
"Patriarch, your formation skills are truly exceptional," Elian said with a smile. With a third-rank formation in place, the island's security was significantly enhanced.
Without further delay, Elian began his secluded refinement of the Vital Energy Restoration Pills.
"This Purple Pattern Pill Furnace truly lives up to its status as a third-rank pill furnace," Elian marveled as he used his magical power to temper the furnace before beginning the refinement.
The furnace was inscribed with multiple alchemical array patterns and could emit Yang True Flame, a superior fire specifically designed for pill refinement. This flame significantly improved the success rate of pill formation and was far superior to the second-rank pill furnace Elian had been using.
"With this Purple Pattern Pill Furnace, I'm confident I'll successfully refine the Vital Energy Restoration Pills," he thought.
He took out the Ginseng of Vitality and the 29 auxiliary herbs. While the difficulty of refining the pill wasn't high, Elian was confident in his success.
With his exceptional insight and experience, especially during the beast uprising when he assisted Jiang Linglong in refining multiple batches of third-rank pills, including over twenty batches of Foundation Establishment Pills, Elian's alchemical skills had already reached a profound level.
Now that he had advanced to the Purple Mansion stage, refining third-rank pills was simply a natural progression.
The process of refining the medicinal liquid wasn't particularly challenging. Over the course of ten days, Elian successfully melted the auxiliary herbs and the Ginseng of Vitality into a unified medicinal liquid.
Using a low flame to temper the liquid for several more days, he divided it into four portions.
"Let's see how many pills I can successfully form," Elian murmured, his expression solemn as he gazed at the four portions of liquid.
The refining of the medicinal liquid tested cultivation and magical power, while the pill formation stage required precise control of magical power and timing.
Reaching the pill formation stage, Elian concentrated, intensifying the true flame while using his magical power to condense the liquid into pills.
"Pop!"
Suddenly, a faint popping sound was heard, and one portion of liquid cracked, evaporating into a wisp of green smoke.
Elian's eyes narrowed, realizing that with his current alchemical skill and magical power, it was nearly impossible to refine four pills simultaneously.
He decided to abandon one more portion, focusing all his efforts on the remaining two.
This decision proved wise. Moments later, two radiant pills emerged from the furnace, emitting dazzling light.
"It's done," Elian said as he retrieved the pills, his face beaming with joy.
Not only had he succeeded in refining the pills, but he had also managed to produce two in a single batch, a testament to his deeply honed alchemical skills.
When Elian emerged from the seclusion chamber, he found the Patriarch waiting.
Seeing Elian's expression of joy, the Patriarch immediately understood that the pills were ready but still asked, "How did it go?"
"Mission accomplished," Elian replied, holding out his hand, where a radiant pill floated.
The Patriarch entered seclusion and consumed the pill. Within two days, his injuries had mostly healed. After resting for about a month to fully absorb the pill's effects, he would be completely recovered.
Afterward, the two traveled to the Xuantie Mountain mine, finding that the spiritual vein there had already been upgraded to high-grade second rank.
The Patriarch convened a meeting at the Xuantie Mountain grounds.
"Congratulations, Patriarch! Many congratulations!" the family's ten Foundation Establishment cultivators exclaimed with joy as they congratulated the Patriarch in the grand hall.
Within a single year, the Chen family had produced two Purple Mansion cultivators. This glory was enough to leave everyone thrilled.
It was now clear that the Chen family would officially rise as a Purple Mansion Immortal Clan, taking their place on the stage of Chu Kingdom.
"You all did well during my seclusion," the Patriarch said with a smile. "With the Metal vein under our control and two new Purple Mansion cultivators in the family, we should celebrate this achievement."
He continued, "Let's distribute three years of wages to every family cultivator as a celebration."
"Indeed," Elian added with a smile.
"I'll personally contribute another year's wages for everyone."
"Thank you, Ancestor!" the cultivators exclaimed, their faces brimming with joy. For Foundation Establishment cultivators, whose annual wage began at 300 spirit stones, four years of wages were enough to buy several second-rank spiritual fruits.
Excluding the two Purple Mansion cultivators, the Chen family now had an annual payroll exceeding 7,000 spirit stones.
From the Metal vein alone, the family had acquired treasures worth over 200,000 spirit stones in a single stroke. Additionally, the annual yield from the mine's first- and second-rank mines would generate another 7,000 spirit stones. Rewarding a few years' wages was therefore inconsequential.
After some joyous exchanges, Chen Nianchuan suggested, "Now that we've ascended to a Purple Mansion Immortal Clan, should we host a banquet?"
Hearing this, Elian exchanged glances with the Patriarch before nodding thoughtfully.
"It's only right to host a gathering and invite the clans of the Border Regions," Elian said.
"Indeed," the Patriarch agreed. Hosting a Purple Mansion banquet was no small matter.
With the Chen family now elevated to a Purple Mansion Immortal Clan, they had the right to claim a share of the Border Regions's resources.
For example, the Border Regions's spiritual stone mines. The Xu and Yang families each received 5,000 to 6,000 spirit stones annually, and the Jinxing Mine beneath the spiritual stone mine yielded thousands more annually for the two families.
After the breakthrough to the Purple Mansion stage, there were numerous areas to develop: third-rank formations, cultivation methods, spiritual veins, and the interests controlled by Purple Mansion Immortal Clans.
...
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I need POWAAA! Gimme Power Stones :D