Han Li listened to the old man's explanation, his expression unchanged, giving no indication of what he thought. After hearing it all, he simply nodded slightly, said nothing, picked up the copied jade slip, and turned toward the corridor.
"Young friend, since you're interested in pill refining, would you like to buy a pill furnace? I can give you a good deal!" The old man saw that Han Li was about to leave and quickly tried to push more of his wares.
"No thanks, I won't be needing one for now!" Han Li didn't turn around, just waved his hand dismissively and said coolly.
"What a shame! The furnaces I have here can withstand the heat of earth fire!" Elder Xu said with some regret, seeing the deal fall through.
"Earth fire?" Han Li, who had nearly reached the corridor entrance, stopped in his tracks.
"That's the Earth Core Fire — even more powerful than innate true fire," the old man said casually.
"But I've heard that pill refining requires innate true fire! Can earth fire be used as a substitute?" Han Li did his best to keep his voice calm, but his heart was pounding wildly. He knew that the solution to his predicament with the Foundation Establishment Pill might have just been found.
"Oh ho! It seems young friend knows absolutely nothing about how the cultivation world has long since replaced innate true fire with earth fire for pill refining! But that's nothing unusual — anyone who's refined pills even once or twice knows about it. Well then, I'll explain it to you for free!" The old man perked up when he saw Han Li's interest, deliberately emphasizing the word "free."
How could Han Li miss the implication behind those words? He couldn't help but smile bitterly. The man was making it perfectly clear — sure, he'd tell him for free, but saying one sentence was free, and saying seven or eight sentences was equally free. The difference between the two was enormous.
But this matter was far too important for Han Li to haggle any further.
He walked straight back and said without hesitation, "If what Elder Xu says about earth fire is true, then I'll pick out a furnace here after all!"
"Heh heh! My pill furnaces are absolutely top-notch quality — I guarantee young friend will be satisfied!" Elder Xu squinted and smiled, seeing his goal achieved so smoothly.
"In truth, using innate true fire for pill refining is ancient history! Nowadays, the cultivation world uses the Earth Core Fire from mystic yang locations to refine pills. Our predecessors discovered long ago that earth fire is not only purer and hotter than a cultivator's true fire, but also far more stable and enduring — dramatically increasing the pill success rate compared to the old true fire method. It works equally well for artifact refining. That's why any cultivation sect or even the larger cultivation clans with sufficient resources have their own dedicated mystic yang fire grounds for their members to refine pills and artifacts. It's only those lone cultivators who are too few in number and simply cannot access earth fire who still use that wasteful true fire method, which has an absurdly high failure rate." The old man wagged his head as he delivered this lengthy explanation.
"Then does our sect also have earth fire we can use? Do you know where it is, Elder Xu?" Han Li was overjoyed but forced himself to contain his excitement, still asking the key question with clear composure.
"Haha!..."
The old man burst into laughter the moment he heard Han Li's question, laughing so hard that Han Li kept blinking, somewhat confused.
"When you first entered Elder Yue's Hall, did you notice a corridor with no markings on it? That corridor leads to the mystic yang fire ground! Pay some spirit stones there, and you can use the earth fire!" After a hearty laugh, the old man finally gave Han Li the real answer.
"Is that really the case?" Han Li couldn't help showing a pleased expression, the corners of his mouth turning slightly upward.
"A man of my age — would I deceive a junior like you?" Elder Xu said, sounding somewhat offended.
"That was my mistake! Please forgive me, Elder Xu!" Han Li felt that even if the man was greedy, he wouldn't deceive him about something like this, and sincerely apologized.
"Hmph, considering your youth, I'll let it slide this once!" The old man's expression softened, but then he immediately put on a stern face again. "However, don't expect any more discounts on the furnaces."
Hearing this, Han Li didn't know whether to laugh or cry. This old man really never missed an opportunity to squeeze out a profit.
"Are these the pill furnaces?" Han Li pointed to the various sizes of cauldrons and furnaces on the shelves and asked.