On this day, you returned to the Danxia Sect.

You had originally planned to find Xie Huide,

but discovered the entire Danxia Sect was completely deserted.

When you went to look for Xie Huide, you found he wasn't there either.

Moreover, his residence was in complete disarray.

Essential items like pill furnaces were all missing.

It seemed Xie Huide had left in great haste.

"Did the Danxia Sect go bankrupt? Why didn't anyone notify me?" You were puzzled.

After searching the sect multiple times, you couldn't find a single living soul.

Just as you were standing there bewildered,

a squad of heavily armored Great Qian soldiers found you.

Their leader was a general named Hu Zhongxuan, a Grandmaster cultivator.

His body radiated killing intent, and you knew you were no match for him.

Hu Zhongxuan informed you that Great Qian had gone to war with the Jin Yue Nation to the north.

The entire Danxia Sect had been conscripted to the front lines,

responsible for treating wounded soldiers and supplying medicinal pills.

Now you finally understood why there had been so many injured martial artists recently -

those must have been deserters returning from the battlefield.

Others were likely injured resisting conscription or fighting with the military.

This war was massive in scale, with wide-reaching implications.

You too were being conscripted.

The rest of the Danxia Sect members had already departed for various battlefronts yesterday.

You would need to accompany Hu Zhongxuan to the front lines.

After hearing this, you were filled with regret.

Had you returned just one day earlier,

you could have met Xie Huide and obtained the Internal Spirit Pill recipe.

Had you returned one day later,

you could have avoided Hu Zhongxuan and escaped conscription.

Missing by just one day meant you got neither advantage.

Years of effort wasted,

and now you had to risk your life on the battlefield.

Though pill refiners weren't sent to the frontlines, there was still danger.

You were deeply frustrated.

At this moment, Hu Zhongxuan asked for your name.

You answered truthfully: "I change neither my name nor surname - Zhao Tiezhu at your service."

Hu Zhongxuan nodded and handed you a large chest,

saying Xie Huide had specifically left these items for you.

Inside, you found pill recipes and refinement insights,

along with one thousand Blood Qi Pills and five hundred Internal Spirit Pills.

The Internal Spirit Pill recipe was clearly among them.

Beyond the fourth-grade Internal Spirit Pills, there were several higher-grade recipes up to seventh-grade.

It seemed Xie Huide had handed over his life's work to you.

This atmosphere felt ominous.

Was Xie Huide... dead?

You hurriedly asked Hu Zhongxuan: "Did Xie Hui... my master die?"

Hu Zhongxuan gave you a strange look: "No, he's on another front line refining pills for high-level martial artists."

"Oh, not dead then."

You had thought Xie Huide died because this seemed exactly like someone settling final affairs.

But Hu Zhongxuan got the impression you were hoping for Xie Huide's death.

He figured this must be how master-disciple relationships worked in the Danxia Sect.

He didn't understand, but respected it.

Not only had you obtained the Internal Spirit Pills,

but also many unexpected recipes

and Xie Huide's valuable practical experience that would save you years of trial and error.

You happily followed Hu Zhongxuan to the front lines,

arriving at the strategic military stronghold of Yajiangkou near the Cangwang Desert in the north.

This was a crucial contested location between the two nations, heavily garrisoned with main forces.

You were assigned to the medical corps as part of logistics support,

specifically responsible for refining Blood Qi Pills.

Most soldiers were at Bone Tempering level or below,

creating enormous demand for Blood Qi Pills.

Medical corps personnel didn't go to the battlefield.

Compared to soldiers fighting for their lives, you faced no mortal danger.

Year Ten:

Your Blood Qi Pill refinement success rate was so high you could complete daily quotas in just two hours.

The army assigned you additional refinement tasks,

including third-grade Golden Sore Pills for wound treatment.

You deeply understood the saying: "The capable get endless work."

Fortunately, the military covered all refinement materials,

allowing you to improve your third-grade pill refining skills.

After half a year of continuous Golden Sore Pill refinement,

your third-grade pill proficiency finally reached mastery.

You had become a genuine third-grade pill refiner,

and planned to begin fourth-grade Internal Spirit Pill refinement.

Third-grade refiners weren't particularly remarkable in the Danxia Sect,

but were rare high-level talents in the medical corps.

Pill refiners were scarce in the corps,

with most struggling even with second-grade Blood Qi Pills.

Producing six or seven pills per batch had them shouting "This master has succeeded!"

Most medical corps personnel were ordinary physicians,

the majority being non-cultivators.

Refiners only made pills while physicians treated wounds.

Most corps refiners knew no medicine,

but you happened to be highly skilled -

a result of the Danxia Sect's special training system for direct disciples.

This war's scale created enormous demand for physicians,

necessitating lowered recruitment standards.

Your group even included several veterinarians.

These vets figured: "If wounded soldiers dare take my prescriptions, they must know what they're doing."

The soldiers thought: "If physicians dare prescribe this, they must know what they're doing."

Both sides happily engaged in this mutual understanding.

Until yesterday, when a vet prescribed an ox dose to a wounded soldier.

The soldier's eyes immediately turned red as he excitedly mooed,

constantly feeling his neck lacked a plow.

He ended up plowing two acres before calming down.

After this incident, the vets received emergency medical training.

Their skills became barely adequate for minor wounds.

During peak casualty periods,

you sometimes assisted with treatments.

Hu Zhongxuan eventually discovered your medical skills

and put you in charge of a team.

As an army staff officer second only to commanders,

he had authority over medical corps assignments.

He assigned you three refiners and thirty physicians.

Normally refiners and physicians operated separately,

with refiners holding higher status.

Compared to herbal medicine,

pills worked faster and better -

just swallow one and return to duty the same day.

Physicians often begged refiners for pills,

but wartime demand meant limited supplies.

Other teams prioritized severely wounded soldiers.

But your group operated differently.

Your high refinement efficiency eliminated shortages.

Anyone brought before you received a healing pill without question.

Those healed returned to battle roaring;

others stayed for more until full.

Eventually you developed muscle memory,

feeding pills even to uninjured stretcher-bearers.

Your three refiners also improved dramatically under your guidance:

two mediocre first-grade refiners became proper first-grades,

while another advanced from first to second-grade.

This freed more time for your cultivation.

One day while cultivating in your quarters,

your true qi suddenly condensed.

Your Nine Condensations Profound Skill completed its eighth condensation.

You sensed subtle internal changes,

but couldn't determine if it was imagination.

Finding nothing abnormal upon inspection,

you frowned and temporarily set it aside.

Taking out your pill furnace and materials,

you prepared to begin Internal Spirit Pill refinement.