Chapter 298: The Worst-Case Scenario
Chapter 298: The Worst-Case Scenario
After nearly four hours, it was finally Jiang Cheng's turn.
At this moment, inside the alchemy chamber, only he and Shen Ming, dressed in a white lab coat, remained.
"What's your surname, and what rank Mentalist are you?" Shen Ming asked.
"My surname is Zhang, and I'm a First-Rank Mentalist," Jiang Cheng replied.
"Just a First-Rank..." Shen Ming furrowed his brows slightly, "Then you'll have to work hard. The three people before you were all at least Second-Rank, and one of them was a Fifth-Rank Mentalist. The more psychic energy you have, the more room for error you get. Since you're only First-Rank, I estimate that you'll reach your limit after refining five or six furnaces at most, unless you consume pills..."
He shook his head.
The psychic energy of a First-Rank Mentalist was 100 to 200 times that of an ordinary person.
To fully restore his psychic energy, he would need at least 30 Basic Soothing Pills, which were not cheap, with a market price of 10,000 yuan each. Thirty of them would cost 300,000 yuan.
Even for a high-level Mentalist, it was not feasible to rely on consuming pills to enhance their alchemy skills.
"Come closer, let me first show you how to clean the alchemy furnace. After refining each batch of pills, it's best to clean it, removing the residue inside."
"If you don't clean it, it won't be a big deal once or twice, but if it accumulates, it will affect the success rate of pill formation."
Jiang Cheng listened attentively.
After introducing the herbs and the refining method, more than ten minutes passed before they officially began refining the first batch of pills.
The consumption of psychic energy was similar to when Jiang Cheng had watched Shen Ming refine pills, and nearly an hour had passed.
The first batch of pills was complete.
Among them, there were two finished pills, and the rest were residue.
Jiang Cheng looked at the panel in front of him.
The experience bar for alchemy skills had increased by one-tenth.
This brought him some joy.
With just nine more batches of such pills, he would be able to grasp the basics of this alchemy skill.
"Hmph, don't get too excited too soon," Shen Ming's voice sounded by his ear.
"This is only possible with my guidance. If you were to refine pills on your own, I'm afraid you wouldn't be able to produce even one."
"As Big Brother Shen says," Jiang Cheng nodded in agreement.
As the saying goes, 'Hearing the Dao at different times', Shen Ming's current skill in alchemy was indeed superior to his own, and it was only right to show him respect.
Moreover, Jiang Cheng's psychic energy was not low either. He had been consuming psychic energy for an entire morning, yet he didn't seem fatigued.
"Mmm, good that you understand," Shen Ming nodded slightly.
"Let's take a short break. After you've rested, I'll guide you in refining again. Oh, it seems it's getting late. You can go have a meal first, and then come back."
"Big Brother Shen, there's no need. I can still persist. Let's continue."
"Alright."
Shen Ming glanced at Jiang Cheng.
He secretly thought that this kid wasn't too bad.
But he had seen people like this before. While diligence and hard work were important in alchemy, they paled in comparison to innate talent.
Take himself, for example. Despite his stubborn determination, he had only reached the level of a Second-Rank Alchemist, capable of refining Intermediate Spirit Pills.
But that was as far as he could go.
As for those at the Fourth and Fifth Ranks, forget about refining Intermediate Spirit Pills, even Advanced and Supreme-grade pills were child's play for them.
This was the difference between people.
They proceeded to refine two more batches.
The second batch only produced one finished pill.
The third batch yielded three, but on average, it was still two pills per batch.
The experience bar for alchemy skills had risen to three-tenths.
The bad news was that Jiang Cheng's psychic energy had reached its limit.
Shen Ming had anticipated this and waved Jiang Cheng away, telling him to go and rest, and return once his psychic energy was restored or the next morning.
Jiang Cheng, of course, would never wait until tomorrow.
If he were to cultivate pills alone, his experience bar would barely increase by a tenth each time.
But under Shen Ming's personal guidance, it was possible.
This meant that, barring any unforeseen circumstances, in just two days, he would have mastered the basics of pill cultivation.
Out of caution, he had to seize the time to prove his worth to Yang Chun.
One must always prepare for the worst; the Dawn Society not finding this place now doesn't mean they won't find it in the future. Relying solely on his identity as a Fifth Rank Force Knight is not enough.
He must also impress Yang Chun with his pill cultivation skills; otherwise, if the Dawn Society discovers him, he might still be discarded.
And so, night arrived.
Jiang Cheng came to the alchemy chamber again, and under Shen Ming's guidance, he crafted two more batches before leaving.
What he didn't know was that after he left, Shen Ming shook his head.
Based on Jiang Cheng's performance, Shen Ming didn't think he was particularly talented.
Because in the latter two batches, the number of finished Spirit Nourishing Pills was still between one and three.
Comparisons can be scary.
The other three individuals, on the first day, all performed better than Jiang Cheng. One of the men, under Shen Ming's guidance, produced five or six finished Spirit Nourishing Pills!
The facts also proved that the man's subsequent performance was indeed impressive. In less than half a month, whenever he crafted pills alone, he could produce three or four finished Spirit Nourishing Pills, and occasionally, even five. With just a few more days of practice, passing the assessment wouldn't be difficult.
But he would only think about such things in his heart; he wouldn't say them out loud.
The next day.
Jiang Cheng and the other three returned to the alchemy chamber.
Like the day before, the four of them first watched Shen Ming's demonstration.
Naturally, unlike the other three, Jiang Cheng didn't use his psychic energy to watch continuously, as doing so would be equivalent to wasting an opportunity.
Soon, it was one of the men's turn.
The man was confident, with a smile on his face, and it turned out he did have some skill. Throughout the process, Shen Ming didn't offer a single piece of advice.
When the pills were ready, there were five finished pills!
A man and a woman beside him couldn't help but widen their eyes in envy.
"Not bad, not bad."
A smile appeared on Shen Ming's face, "You've met the requirements, and you can take the assessment task at any time. But I suggest you get more familiar with it first. Also, there were a few issues during the process that you should pay attention to..."
The man listened attentively and then quickly thanked him.
"Thank you, Big Brother Shen. If it weren't for your constant guidance, I, Han Tao, wouldn't have achieved this result."
"Hehehe, it's what I should do."
Shen Ming laughed.
Building a good relationship with a Fifth Rank Mind Master has its benefits, needless to say, if the latter becomes a high-level alchemist in the future.
Besides, there was also a sense of accomplishment in this.
Han Tao turned around, glanced at Jiang Cheng and the others, and his gaze finally landed on the only woman among them.
"Next, who's up?"
Upon hearing this, the woman stepped forward.
Seeing this, Han Tao stepped aside but didn't leave in a hurry. Instead, he watched from the side.
In the end, the woman crafted a batch of pills, but there were only four finished Spirit Nourishing Pills.
Shen Ming was somewhat satisfied and offered some guidance.
The woman turned and left, and before she did, she glanced at Han Tao, who then followed her.
"You two, who's first?"
In the room, Shen Ming's gaze fell on Jiang Cheng and the other man.
(End of Chapter)
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