"Anyone who dares make a move will die!" Wuchang suddenly bellowed, his murderous gaze sweeping across the crowd with a fearsome expression.
Killing intent billowed outward, dense and almost palpable.
The few who had been itching to act immediately fell back. They could clearly sense that if they made even the slightest rash move, their lives would be forfeit in the next instant…
The aura of death was so suffocating it made their lips dry and their bodies go cold…
It was at that moment that Yang Kai's eyes snapped open, a brilliant light shining within them. He gave a low command: "Open the furnace!"
As he spoke, he pointed a finger forward, and a dark jade cauldron materialized before him.
The Black Jade Cauldron was a high-grade Dao Origin Realm pill furnace. It had originally been auctioned off in Maple Forest City by Han Leng, a disgraced disciple of the Star Soul Palace, but after Han Leng's unexpected death, it had fallen into Yang Kai's hands.
Such a pill furnace was a rare treasure in its own right — especially for an alchemist. Beyond it, only Emperor-grade pill furnaces were superior. But Emperor-grade pill furnaces were not so easily obtained. In general, they were even rarer and more precious than Emperor Treasures.
The Black Jade Cauldron opened, and a fragrance distinct from the Supreme Treasure Lotus immediately wafted outward.
Upon smelling that scent and seeing the pill furnace, many people's expressions shifted, and their confidence in Yang Kai surged.
A furnace of this caliber was something most alchemists didn't deserve to own — only Dao Origin Realm alchemists had the qualifications to wield one. And the medicinal fragrance drifting from within the cauldron spoke volumes about the countless pills it had refined over the years.
All of this served as circumstantial proof that Yang Kai was indeed a Dao Origin Realm alchemist!
With the furnace open, Yang Kai's spiritual sense surged forth. His scorching yet invisible Divine Sense fire poured into the furnace in an instant, and the Black Jade Cauldron began to hum within the blink of an eye.
"Liuyan!" Yang Kai called out in a low voice, flipping his hand. A streak of flowing light suddenly shot out from his palm.
A piercing cry echoed across the wilderness. Under everyone's watchful gaze, the translucent image of a strange-looking firebird flickered into existence and plunged headlong into the pill furnace.
"A tool spirit!" Lan Xun's beautiful eyes lit up. She couldn't help but cry out softly.
In that fleeting moment, although she hadn't been able to make out Liuyan's true form, she had instinctively sensed that the streak of light was far from ordinary. Combined with what she was now witnessing, she immediately deduced that it had to be a fire-type tool spirit!
A high-grade Dao Origin Realm pill furnace and a fire-type tool spirit…
The two combined already represented the dream of the vast majority of alchemists in the world. With both of these aids, refining any medicinal pill would yield twice the result with half the effort.
Lan Xun couldn't help but smile. "If nothing goes wrong, Brother Yang really can refine the Supreme Marvellous Pill. Everyone, just watch."
At her words, many people's spirits lifted, their faces filling with eager anticipation.
On the other side, Yang Kai had already assumed a solemn expression and begun producing the ingredients for the Supreme Marvellous Pill one by one.
He methodically fed each rare ingredient into the furnace, his hands occasionally forming spiritual seals as his Divine Sense fire surged and churned, inscribing spirit formations within the cauldron.
With each of his movements, the heat inside the furnace seemed to fluctuate — sometimes rising, sometimes falling — making it impossible to predict.
Pill refinement demanded a calm and patient mind; the greatest taboo was haste. The most critical aspects were mastering the heat and controlling the timing of each ingredient's addition…
This was not something that could be mastered overnight. It required years of accumulated experience and the attentive guidance of a master.
In the art of alchemy, Yang Kai had never had a teacher.
Yet he seemed to possess an extraordinary aptitude and talent in this field. In his early years, he had merely relied on the alchemy true formula left behind by the Great Demon God, teaching himself the path through trial and error. Later, in Yang Yan's Emperor's Paradise, he had obtained the True Compendium of Alchemy. After arriving in the Star Boundary, he had come upon the jade slips left behind by Gongsun Mu…
His alchemy combined the strengths of all three sources. Moreover, he had his own insights and innovations.
Unlike Xia Ningshang, he didn't possess a special constitution that made pill refinement as effortless as eating or breathing. But he had his own unique intuition.
When to add which ingredient, when to adjust the heat to which level — these things felt as though they had been carved into his mind from birth, having become pure instinct.
If one had to trace it back, it was undoubtedly the merit of that time his pill refinement had triggered the Heavenly Dao Resonance of Alchemy!
That Dao Resonance was the voice of the Heavenly Dao itself.
The Heavenly Dao had imparted this knowledge to him. The Heavenly Dao had elevated his alchemy to new heights.
But even so, this time Yang Kai was giving it his absolute all. He couldn't afford the slightest carelessness.
The Supreme Treasure Lotus was the only one he had. If the refinement failed, everything would be lost. He would surely bear the fury of everyone present…
He wasn't afraid of these warriors. He was afraid only of squandering the sacred ingredients for nothing.
Under this immense pressure, his state of mind was better than it had ever been.