CHAPTER 68: 068 LIN BAI WANTS TO PRACTICE ALCHEMY

[Matchmaker System: The Great Ultimate begets the two primary forces; yin and yang are fundamentally one. As I sit in the Harmony Immortal Palace and preside over the marriage registry, men and women shall find love, and their lineages shall continue endlessly! Our goal is to fill the world with love.]

[Initial task: Please create a CP in this world. Reward: Little Pan’s Bamboo Stick.]

[Create a CP in this world task (completed). Reward: Little Pan’s Bamboo Stick (Can be claimed at any time).]

[Little Pan’s Bamboo Stick: Anyone hit by this bamboo stick will develop lustful thoughts towards the stick holder and form an ill-fated bond (one-time use).]

[Keep up the good work and create the second CP. Reward: One of the Matchmaker’s red threads.]

Even before the City Lord finished speaking, a series of prompts suddenly popped up in Lin Bai’s mind.

Then, he was stunned. The system activation method is so damn random!

But what kind of system is this?!

Matchmaker under the moonlight?

I’ve already opened a restaurant, and I’m likely going to open a pill shop in the future. Do I also have to open a matchmaking agency in this world?

What’s more, you’re a matchmaker system, so why aren’t you properly tying red threads? What do you even understand about creating CPs? How many of the CPs you hype up are actually real?

And what kind of reward is this?!

Little Pan’s Bamboo Stick?!

Is this even legitimate?!

Do you remember the sheer scale of the bloodshed it caused back then?!

Your system rewards something like this? Are you sure you’re not a fake matchmaker?!

"Why have you gone silent?" Xu Longyun, occupying a high position and having met countless people, naturally saw Lin Bai’s insincerity. She sneered, "Feeling guilty?"

Lin Bai snapped back to his senses. He temporarily pushed the Matchmaker System aside and looked at the City Lord, saying with righteous indignation, "Guilty about what? Integrity speaks for itself. Making some sacrifices for the citizens of Jiamucheng is something I should do..."

[Resentment from Xu Longyun; +1+1]

Feeling Xu Longyun’s emotions, Lin Bai was stunned. What’s wrong with her? She was furious just a moment ago! Now it’s turned into resentment? Don’t tell me she actually has a crush on me?

Before Lin Bai could finish speaking, Xu Longyun’s face had already darkened. "Get out. I don’t want to see you anytime soon."

Wasn’t it you who summoned me over every single day?! Lin Bai grumbled internally, pretending he hadn’t heard her. "City Lord, I have another matter I need to ask for your help with."

"Speak," Xu Longyun said.

"Do you know anyone who possesses a Dan Fang?" Lin Bai asked.

"What for?" Xu Longyun inquired.

"I’ve recently figured out the Alchemy Technique and want to learn how to refine pills," Lin Bai smiled.

"Alchemy?" Xu Longyun chuckled. "Do you think Pill Masters are as common as cabbages? That you can just fumble around and successfully refine Pill Medicines? The Pill Medicine supply for Qian City, Kun City, Zhen City, Dui City, and all their subordinate towns comes from Medicine King Valley. A Dan Fang is as precious as lifeblood to the Pill Masters of Medicine King Valley. If one were to leak, the entire Medicine King Valley would hunt down the perpetrator. How could any Dan Fang possibly circulate in the outside world? Even if a sect occasionally develops its own Dan Fang, they guard it jealously and would never let it out. You’re a disciple from the Cultivation World, didn’t your master tell you these basic facts before you descended the mountain?"

Damn!

So, the Pill Medicine industry is a monopoly in this world?!

Lin Bai was startled. "Where is Medicine King Valley?"

Xu Longyun saw right through Lin Bai’s intentions. "Are you planning to go and steal a Dan Fang?"

"Just asking casually," Lin Bai smiled.

"Medicine King Valley is on the Mountain of the Medicine King, a thousand li from Jiamucheng," Xu Longyun stated. "There are eight hundred Pill Masters within the sect and three thousand disciples guarding the mountain. Their minimum cultivation is Golden Core Cultivation. If you truly intend to storm Medicine King Valley, please inform me beforehand so Jiamucheng can immediately sever all ties with you."

"Golden Core?" Lin Bai was stunned. Suddenly, his Inner Strength didn’t seem so amazing anymore, and the world felt incredibly dangerous. Indeed, Jiamucheng is just a Novice Village after all!

"Medicine King Valley has countless Pill Masters. They could cultivate a large number of experts just by amassing Pill Medicines," Xu Longyun said. "Otherwise, why hasn’t a single Dan Fang leaked from Medicine King Valley in all these years?"

Experts cultivated by amassing Pill Medicines!

Lin Bai’s eyes lit up slightly. Being an Alchemist truly is a great profession!

Just moments ago, he was worried about his Inner Strength being insufficient. But now, a way to generate more had appeared. If he had Revitalizing Pills, then surely Dan Fangs for things like the Major Rejuvenation Pill and Little Replenishing Elixir must exist.

The Unworldly Divine Doctor system is too valuable to lose.

"City Lord, I recall you mentioning that Medicine King Valley and Return to Dragon View were planning to set up disciple recruitment stations in Qian City?" Lin Bai asked.

"Yes, that should be in about half a month," Xu Longyun replied, glancing at Lin Bai with a smile. "Is Lin, the Storekeeper, not planning to practice Alchemy, but intending to seek a master instead?"

"No, I still intend to practice Alchemy. City Lord, could you please build an Alchemy Room for me near the Hidden Guard’s training grounds?" Lin Bai shook his head, smiling.

Half a month. That should be when the Players leave the Novice Village. But for Lin Bai, that was too long. In terms of cultivation speed alone, he was far slower than the Players. What if some Player had a fortuitous encounter? After all, there were countless Novice Villages, and in a world this vast, anything could happen!

Therefore, he absolutely could not follow their pace. He had to grow stronger before them. Going to Medicine King Valley to snatch a Dan Fang was also unrealistic. He had to rely on himself for what needed to be done. It’s just a Dan Fang, right? What if he succeeded?

As for why he chose the City Lord’s Mansion, it was mainly because Chef’s Divine Food Stall was too noisy. Players were live-streaming him constantly, which was hardly conducive to research. Choosing the City Lord’s Mansion offered tranquility and the added benefit of being able to monitor the Hidden Guard’s communications, thereby staying informed about happenings outside. That Dumbelldore, the tight-lipped fellow, didn’t interact with his viewers even when live-streaming. Spending too much time with him would make one dull...

"Are you really planning to practice Alchemy yourself?" Xu Longyun looked utterly astonished.

"I’d be idle otherwise. Experiencing the myriad facets of life is also a form of cultivation," Lin Bai chuckled. "City Lord, it would be best if you could also build me a stove. When I’m not refining pills, I can stir-fry some dishes to refresh my mind."

Hearing Lin Bai’s bizarre request, Xu Longyun stared blankly, a whirlwind of conflicting feelings in her heart. This fellow isn’t pretending to be foolish; he’s genuinely mad. He’s definitely not someone she could maintain a long-term association with. She had to find an opportunity to draw a clear line with him; otherwise, she’d be dragged down by him sooner or later.

The faint, romantic spark kindled in the City Lord that day by Lin Bai’s sweet words had been decisively and rationally extinguished by herself upon recognizing his true nature. Having risen to the position of City Lord, she was not one to be swayed by emotions.

However, she still agreed to Lin Bai’s request.

As Lin Bai had said, she was already in a difficult position, unable to back down. Jiamucheng was undergoing major construction, the Heavenly Remnant Collection had been released, and the ’people descended from the heavens’ were being managed according to their plans...

Everything was hurtling in an unpredictable direction. If Lin Bai were to abandon his responsibilities and leave, she worried she wouldn’t be able to cope.

Even if Xu Longyun was merely the chief of a Novice Village, she could mobilize resources far more quickly than Lin Bai.

In just over two hours, an Alchemy Room exclusively for Lin Bai was constructed. It was furnished with an Alchemy Furnace, a stove, and other necessities. Of course, there were also medical texts, various kinds of Herbal Medicine, as well as vegetables, meat, and assorted condiments...

The whole setup was a hodgepodge and looked exceptionally jarring.

After entrusting the business of Chef’s Divine Food Stall to Luo Congwen and Dumbelldore, Lin Bai moved into his new workshop and commenced his Alchemy career.

Xu Longyun knew that Lin Bai, aside from his Martial Arts, was also capable of Palm Thunder. She had initially assumed he genuinely possessed some knowledge of Alchemy techniques, so she watched him with keen interest.

But for an entire afternoon, all Lin Bai did was stir-fry dishes. He didn’t even glance at the Pill Furnace.

Furthermore, although Lin Bai chopped vegetables with flashy knife skills, making his cleaver dance, the dishes he cooked tasted dreadful. They were barely edible and far inferior to what the City Lord’s Mansion cooks could produce.

After sampling a couple of dishes, Xu Longyun, her face a mask of pain, fled from the Pill Refinery.

She was now certain: Lin Bai was simply fooling around, just as he had that day when he inexplicably started diagnosing patients at the clinic...

"The world laughs at me for being too mad, I laugh at the world for not seeing through," Lin Bai mused aloud as he watched the City Lord depart. He shook his head and continued to fiddle with his wok spatula. While stir-frying, he added, "Alchemy requires precise heat control, just like cooking. Master one art, and you grasp them all. To refine pills, shouldn’t I master Fire Gong first?"