Chapter 210: Chu Ning, Chief Deacon!

Chapter 210: Chu Ning, Chief Deacon!

Seeing Yuan Rongzhang's discomposed state, the crowd within the dojo was slightly taken aback.

Especially those cultivators who were unaware of the difficulties in refining the Nineflower Condensing Yuan Dan.

At this moment, they couldn't quite understand why Yuan Rongzhang was losing his composure even before Chu Ning had properly started.

Ling Cang's gaze also flickered with a hint of surprise, and soon after, his voice resonated throughout the dojo.

"The key to refining the Nineflower Condensing Yuan Dan lies in the mastery of the Fire Control Incantation.

This incantation encapsulates the essence of our Nineflower Sect's pill refining techniques. Among intermediate-level pills, the fire control method employed in this pill is the most profound.

It took me five years to master this fire control incantation for pill refining after I started learning it a hundred years into my cultivation."

Upon hearing Ling Cang's words, everyone's gaze toward Chu Ning was filled with shock.

Ling Cang was, after all, the foremost expert in pill refining in the Nineflower Sect today! Even he had spent five whole years to learn this fire control incantation, which spoke volumes about its difficulty.

Yet now, how much time had Chu Ning spent?

Half a year?

Could he have truly mastered it?

"However, this technique becomes increasingly intricate as one progresses. Chu Ning has merely begun.

To say that he has truly mastered this fire control incantation is still premature."

At this point, Ling Cang's voice sounded out once more.

However, he stopped short of continuing further and instead fixed his gaze upon the high platform.

At this moment, Chu Ning had started to place spirit herbs into the pill furnace.

Yuan Rongzhang, realizing his loss of composure, regained his composure and sat down calmly once more.

At the same time, he muttered, as if speaking to himself, "Indeed, the intricacies of this fire control technique deepen as one progresses, and each type of spirit herb requires a different fire control incantation. Thus, refining this pill becomes increasingly challenging."

Within the dojo where even a falling needle could be heard, Yuan Rongzhang's voice, though not loud, was clear to everyone present.

Instantly, everyone's curiosity was piqued as they watched Chu Ning.

"I wonder how far this Deacon Chu will be able to go in refining this pill?"

Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, Chu Ning's mind sank completely into the process of pill refining.

From the beginning of refining the first batch of pills to the present, Chu Ning had already spent a considerable amount of time.

As the pill refining progressed, his mind became increasingly immersed in the art.

Wind Spirit Fruit, Nine-Dragon Spirit Herb...

One by one, Chu Ning placed the spirit herbs into the pill furnace, each addition accompanied by a change in his fire control incantation.

At this point, even Chu Ning couldn't spare any attention to think about the pill refinement rate as he had done when refining other pills.

Moreover, the success rate of refining the Nineflower Condensing Yuan Dan was only around fifty percent in his previous attempts.

Thus, there was no need to bother pondering about the success rate.

With his mind fully immersed in pill refining, the sensations and insights from his previous attempts at refining this pill naturally blended into his fire control incantation.

This caused Chu Ning's movements to appear incredibly smooth and practiced.

The onlookers watched as Chu Ning executed one incantation after another without the slightest pause, and they couldn't help but feel that it was like a flowing dance, a pleasure to behold!

As for Ling Cang, He Yanmao, and Yuan Rongzhang, who were already capable of refining the Nineflower Condensing Yuan Dan, their expressions and eyes widened in shock as they followed Chu Ning's movements.

Chu Ning's actions were too smooth, to the extent that they could instantly tell that Chu Ning had achieved a very high level of proficiency in this fire control technique.

For these three, who were also capable of refining the Nineflower Condensing Yuan Dan, they clearly understood that only by reaching a certain level of comprehension of the fire control incantation could one achieve such a smooth and fluid execution.

"How is this possible? He's only been studying it for half a year," Yuan Rongzhang muttered in disbelief.

His expression and eyes betrayed his incredulity.

"Could there truly be someone with such outstanding talent in pill refining?"

Chu Ning, however, was oblivious to the impact his pill refining was having on the three top pill refiners of the Nineflower Sect.

As the pill refining progressed, Chu Ning gradually entered a state of profound mysticism.

This state was familiar to him, whether it was from his previous art of talisman-making or pill refining. Whenever he was in an optimal state, the Spirit Source Spiritual Body and the Yuan Dan Spiritual Body would bring him into this state.

Once he entered this state, Chu Ning's attention would be wholly focused on the task at hand.

His entire being would be immersed in the act of pill refining, soaking in the insights of the Nineflower Condensing Yuan Dan's refinement technique.

He would be engrossed in the subtle changes brought about by each fire control incantation.

Gradually, the insights he had gained from the pill refinement techniques in the Thunderfire Sect's Spirit Pill Compendium also unknowingly blended in.

"This set of fire control incantations seems to be capable of bringing about even more profound changes..."

At this moment, a realization dawned on Chu Ning.

He continued to execute the incantations for refining the Nineflower Condensing Yuan Dan, and to Ling Cang and the others, it appeared no different from before.

However, only Chu Ning knew that his incantations had subtly changed.

He had not only simplified some of the more complex parts but also added slight variations at times.

Additionally, he had developed his own understanding of the rhythm and tempo of the incantations.

But Chu Ning's variations were hidden within the original fire control incantation, so much so that even a Golden Core cultivator like Ling Cang didn't notice without directly probing.

However, as they witnessed Chu Ning effortlessly executing one intricate incantation after another with relative ease, the shock in their eyes intensified.

"It's about to condense into a pill!"

Yuan Rongzhang, observing the changes in Chu Ning's incantations, could also deduce the progress of his pill refining.

His gaze and emotions grew increasingly complex.

"Condense!"

At this moment, on the high platform, Chu Ning's eyes narrowed as he let out a low shout.

Immediately, his gaze focused, and he struck out several talisman seals with his hands.

In an instant, the nine pools of pill solution in the furnace rapidly solidified, transforming into nine round pills.

The speed was astonishingly fast, far surpassing the usual pill condensation speed.

In just a few breaths, Chu Ning casually waved his hand, shaking open the lid of the pill furnace.

He began to extract the pills.

This time, one pill after another flew out.

However, at this moment, Chu Ning finally realized something.

After six pills had flown out, the palm he had hovering over the pill furnace slightly fluctuated with spiritual power.

Instantly, the remaining three pills that were about to fly out fell back into the pill furnace.

Even so, it still startled the onlookers below, their eyes nearly popping out of their sockets.

Even Ling Cang stood up at this moment, his eyes shining as he fixedly stared at Chu Ning as he collected the pills.

"Six pills! Out of nine pills, six were successfully condensed, a success rate of over sixty percent!"

His voice held unconcealed astonishment.

Everyone present could tell that this Golden Core Elder had completely acknowledged Chu Ning's pill refining technique.

However, no one felt too surprised at this point.

After all, when Chu Ning had started refining the Nineflower Condensing Yuan Dan, Ling Cang had already explained the difficulty of refining this pill.

And now, not only had Chu Ning successfully refined it, but he had also achieved a success rate of over sixty percent.

Even those with no knowledge of pill refining knew that Chu Ning's pill refining technique and talent were exceptionally outstanding.

For a moment, the dojo buzzed with discussions.

"This Chu Deacon from the Pill Refining Pavilion is truly remarkable.

He actually managed to refine four types of pills, and the success rate for each type far exceeded our expectations!"

"It's been a long time since our Nineflower Sect has produced such a talented pill master!"

Amidst these discussions, many of the younger pill masters in the Pill Refining Pavilion felt a sense of pride.

After all, with Chu Ning as the Pill Refining Pavilion's deacon, they felt a sense of pride when disciples from other pavilions and peaks praised him.

As for Yuan Rongzhang and the others, they fell completely silent at this point.

Yuan Rongzhang's face was expressionless, his gaze unmoving.

However, anyone could tell that this genius pill master of the Pill Refining Pavilion had received a significant stimulus.

Yuan Rongzhang was indeed stimulated. He had spent nearly a decade researching and refining the Nineflower Condensing Yuan Dan, only managing to raise the success rate to fifty percent.

Yet now, after merely half a year of contact with refining this pill, Chu Ning had already achieved a sixty percent success rate.

Whether it was the time taken or the success rate, Chu Ning had far surpassed him.

It must be known that before this, Yuan Rongzhang had always considered himself the top young pill master in the Nineflower Sect.

Previously, he had aspired to become the first deacon of the Pill Refining Pavilion because he believed that his talent surpassed that of the other deacons.

Although He Yanmao's pill refining technique was slightly better than his, the difference was minimal, and He Yanmao was nearly a hundred years older than him.

But now, not only was Chu Ning younger, but he also clearly possessed superior talent. How could this not deeply stimulate Yuan Rongzhang, who was already proud and arrogant?

However, at this moment, few people paid attention to Yuan Rongzhang's expression.

Everyone's gaze was fixed on Chu Ning as he walked down from the high platform, carrying the four bottles of pills, and approached Ling Cang and the other Golden Core Elders.

They watched as he calmly spoke, "These are the four types of pills that I refined just now. Please examine them, Elders."

Gong Yuquan was the first to laugh and say, "We're not experts in pills, so it's better for Ling Cang to take a look.

Let's see if I really brought a pill refining genius to the sect this time."

Ling Cang nodded slightly and reached out to take the four bottles of pills from Chu Ning.

He opened them one by one according to the order in which Chu Ning had refined them and took out a pill from each bottle to show everyone.

These pills were naturally flawless, and Ling Cang gave each type a rating of superior quality.

However, when he picked up the Nineflower Condensing Yuan Dan that Chu Ning had refined last, his gaze suddenly sharpened, and he exclaimed, "Intermediate high-grade pill!"

"What?!"

Hearing Ling Cang's words, everyone in the dojo was utterly astonished.

Even Yuan Rongzhang, who had been silent for a while and seemed to have lost interest, looked at Ling Cang in bewilderment.

"Master, how can the Nineflower Condensing Yuan Dan be an intermediate high-grade pill?"

As he spoke, Yuan Rongzhang moved closer to Ling Cang and looked at the pill in his hand.

The next moment, he cried out in disbelief, "Intermediate high-grade pill, how is that possible?!"

As a mid-tier intermediate pill master, Yuan Rongzhang was extremely familiar with pill grades.

Although he didn't directly hold the pill in his hand to sense it, he could clearly feel that the pill in Ling Cang's hand exuded an aura far superior to the Nineflower Condensing Yuan Dan that he usually refined.

Indeed, it carried the aura of an intermediate high-grade pill.

Even Chu Ning was slightly taken aback at this moment.

When he had extracted the pills earlier, he had indeed sensed that these pills were of high quality.

But he had attributed it to being in a good state during pill refining, which was not unusual for someone with the Yuan Dan Spiritual Body like him.

However, now that he heard Ling Cang say that this pill was an intermediate high-grade pill, Chu Ning couldn't help but sense it again.

"Could it be that the innate talent of the Yuan Dan Spiritual Body has raised the pill's quality by a whole grade? Now, this will be hard to explain."

As these thoughts ran through Chu Ning's mind, Ling Cang and Yuan Rongzhang's voices reached the ears of the crowd, causing an uproar in the dojo.

"How can it be an upper-intermediate pill? Isn't the Nineflower Condensing Yuan Dan a middle-grade intermediate pill?"

"Yeah, did Deacon Chu refine a different pill?"

At this moment, the Elder in charge of artifact refining, Ge Liuyang, who had been silent since his arrival at the dojo, suddenly spoke up:

"Elder Ling, I seem to recall reading about this in one of the sect's ancient texts.

Initially, this Nineflower Condensing Yuan Dan was indeed an upper-intermediate pill within the sect.

I'm not sure if this information is true or not."

At this moment, Ling Cang's eyes were fixed on Chu Ning, his gaze filled with excitement.

He laughed heartily and said, "Indeed! I never expected that in my lifetime, I would witness the Nineflower Condensing Yuan Dan regaining its status as an upper-intermediate pill!"

As soon as Ling Cang's words rang out, the dojo was filled with astonishment from the cultivators, especially the pill refiners.

They were surprised by the usually solemn Elder Ling Cang's open laughter in front of everyone.

They were also shocked by the fact that the Nineflower Condensing Yuan Dan, which they had always believed to be a middle-grade intermediate pill, had now become an upper-intermediate pill.

However, Ling Cang did not let their confusion linger.

He continued, "The Nineflower Condensing Yuan Dan first originated from our sect's top-tier pill, the Nine Revolutions Mystical Pearl Dan.

When our predecessor in the sect researched and created this pill suitable for Foundation Establishment cultivators, they found that it was too difficult to refine even for Golden Core cultivators.

Because this pill cannot be refined using a Golden Core cultivator's Elixir Fire, a special fire control technique is required.

Later, some changes were made to the extraction and fire control techniques, resulting in the current fire control method passed down in the sect, and the pill's grade was changed to a middle-grade intermediate pill.

But according to the ancient records, if one could master the fire control technique to the point of perfection, even with the existing medicinal ingredients, one could refine this pill into an upper-intermediate grade pill."

Ling Cang paused slightly, and the crowd began to understand what had happened.

However, He Yanmao and Yuan Rongzhang were even more confused, and Yuan Rongzhang asked in bewilderment, "Since this fire control technique can only refine middle-grade intermediate pills, how could an upper-intermediate pill be produced?"

Ling Cang's gaze fell on Chu Ning as he spoke with a thoughtful expression, "If I'm not mistaken, Junior Chu Ning must have integrated his understanding of the fire control incantations from his studies of ancient pill techniques and improved upon this fire control technique.

Am I correct?"

"He improved the fire control technique?"

Hearing Ling Cang's words, the pill refiners from the Pill Refining Pavilion were astounded!

The fire control technique for pill refining had been passed down and refined by generations of cultivators. By now, it was already highly sophisticated.

If one were to make changes to it, numerous attempts and a high likelihood of failures would be expected. In the current cultivation world, where resources were scarcer than in ancient times, ordinary pill refiners would never consider altering the fire control technique.

Moreover, they wouldn't have the capability to do so.

The fire control technique for the Nineflower Condensing Yuan Dan was so intricate that even pill refiners in the Nineflower Sect struggled to grasp it. Yet, Ling Cang claimed that Chu Ning had improved upon it.

How could this not astonish them?

Everyone's eyes turned to Chu Ning, their expressions filled with both shock and puzzlement.

Facing their gazes, Chu Ning thought back to the pill refining process he had just undergone and honestly replied, "Elder, I didn't intentionally modify the fire control technique.

When I was immersed in pill refining earlier, I wasn't even aware if I had incorporated my understanding of ancient pill techniques."

Upon hearing this, Ling Cang immediately asked, "Do you still remember how this fire control technique has changed?"

Chu Ning naturally understood Ling Cang's intention and nodded, "I do remember!"

"Good! Good!" Ling Cang exclaimed in delight.

"This technique was originally lost in the sect's records, but you, Junior Ling, have brought it back to life. You have greatly contributed to our sect!"

As he spoke, Ling Cang's gaze shifted to the few deacons of the Pill Refining Pavilion and then rested on the elders, including Gong Yuquan.

"Since Chu Ning is capable of refining upper-intermediate pills and has achieved such a high success rate, he is indeed an upper-intermediate pill master.

Furthermore, he has made such a significant contribution to our sect's pill refining technique. Do you all have any objections to him becoming a deacon of the Pill Refining Pavilion?"

"None!" The crowd naturally had no objections.

Ling Cang even specifically looked at Yuan Rongzhang, Geng Wansheng, and the others.

At this moment, they no longer dared to voice any dissent.

Ling Cang's voice then resonated throughout the dojo.

"From this day forward, Chu Ning, an upper-intermediate pill master, shall be the deacon of the Pill Refining Pavilion, and he shall be the chief among the deacons!"

"Whoosh!"

"Chief Deacon!"

Upon hearing these words, the dojo erupted into an uproar of exclamations and surprise! Ling Cang's announcement was completely unexpected.

However, when they recalled Chu Ning's exceptional pill refining performance earlier, it seemed only natural.

He Yanmao immediately took the lead in paying respects, "Greetings, Deacon Chu!"

The rest of the Pill Refining Pavilion's disciples and pill refiners followed suit, bowing respectfully.

"Greetings, Deacon Chu!"

"Greetings, Senior Chu!"

Their voices echoed throughout the dojo, including those of Yuan Rongzhang, Xu Minghua, Geng Wansheng, and the others.

Within the Pill Refining Pavilion, pill refining skill determined one's status!

As the chief deacon, anyone below the Golden Core stage would address him as Senior!

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end