CHAPTER 972: CHAPTER 969: THUNDERWOOD

"Lin Tian, you’ve finally taken the first step in alchemy. If the Ghost Valley Inheritor knew you succeeded in refining your first potion on the eleventh attempt, he would be more astonished than anyone. Your talent seems destined for a pharmacist," Jiang Xiu Ying couldn’t help but praise.

"Junior Brother, I really want to open up your head and see what secrets are inside. Your acupuncture talent is unparalleled, and now your alchemy skills are almost demonic. Are you even human?" Zi Yan said with admiration and curiosity. Lin Tian wanted to say that opening up his head wasn’t necessary, but opening his clothes could be considered.

"I just knew that Brother Lin would succeed," Yun Xiaotian said, overjoyed. An Xiaoru didn’t say anything, but the stars in her eyes clearly showed how much she admired him.

Facing their astonished and curious gazes, Lin Tian calmly said, "This is just the first step, and also the most basic one. There are many more herbs waiting for me, each with different properties requiring different levels of heat control during refining. The difficult journey has just begun."

"Yes, having such a mindset is very good. Not letting success go to your head, proud but not arrogant, is a quality every pharmacist must have," Jiang Xiu Ying said with a smile, very pleased with Lin Tian’s demeanor.

"Junior Brother, can you finally eat now?" Zi Yan helplessly reminded, realizing Lin Tian was such a workaholic, capable of forgetting to eat and sleep when immersed in work.

"Uh, since I’ve succeeded at one step, why not press on..." Lin Tian’s mind was still on alchemy, enjoying the joy of it. But seeing others nearly faint with hunger, he had to hold his tongue.

He might not need to eat and wouldn’t starve, but Yun Xiaotian and the others are ordinary people who might faint from hunger if they miss a meal, especially since it’s already dark outside.

Lin Tian knew if he didn’t go to eat, Yun Xiaotian and his senior sister probably wouldn’t eat either. It wouldn’t be good if he completes the pills but they both collapse.

The meal didn’t take much time, so Yun Xiaotian simply had the servant deliver food to Yunxiang Inn, and they all ate in the living room. After the meal, Zi Yan escorted Jiang Xiu Ying back, using the excuse that alchemy requires a calm mind and too many people might be distracting.

"Xiao Tian, you don’t have to stay with me. Go back," Lin Tian said, not to issue a dismissal, but because Yun Xiaotian had just returned from Xikou City and hadn’t rested yet.

Yun Xiaotian wanted to refuse, but Lin Tian waved and said, "I’ll let you go back because I need you to do something. Go back and tell Uncle Yun and Aunt Wang, and the old master, there’s no need to hide it from them anymore. Let the old master adjust and rest for a few days. I’ll start preparing the Yin Yang Life Elixir in the next few days, and the medicine could be ready for the old master at any time."

"Really? I’ll go back right away," Yun Xiaotian said excitedly and left in a hurry without Lin Tian urging him.

"Mr. Lin, what about me? Is there anything I can help with?" An Xiaoru asked eagerly.

Lin Tian thought for a moment and smiled, "Actually, there is something you can help with. You know the Yun Family brewmaster, right? That Baihua Wine from last time was unforgettable. I think drinking a couple of cups while refining medicine would feel as joyful as being immortal. Could you fetch me a jug of it?"

"Mr. Lin, don’t worry, I will get it for you quickly," An Xiaoru agreed readily and left immediately.

Once everyone was gone, Lin Tian moved all the alchemy tools and herbs to the rooftop of Yunxiang Inn. He needed to seclude himself there, unaffected by anything else, and refine the "Shaoyang Pill" in one go, so he could confidently start refining the "Yin Yang Life Elixir."

After moving everything, An Xiaoru returned with the Baihua Wine, which Lin Tian took before sending her off to rest. He then locked himself on the rooftop, akin to an ancient martial artist’s seclusion, though for a pharmacist.

The night wind blew gently on the rooftop under the bright moon. Lin Tian took a sip of Baihua Wine, feeling self-satisfied with the thought that this kind of seclusion, so enjoyable, was unmatched in history.

Having enjoyed the Baihua Wine, Lin Tian refocused his thoughts on alchemy. The "Shaoyang Grass" potion he just refined was placed in a jade bowl, and the next herb after Shaoyang Grass was "Thunder Wood."

Lin Tian had read the Shennong Emperor’s Medical Scripture, knowing what Thunder Wood was. This Thunder Wood wasn’t the Kualai Wood used in construction but rather the heartwood of a peach tree.

There is a peculiar type of peach tree that every ten years attracts a bolt of lightning. If the tree is not destroyed by the lightning and continues to grow, its heartwood transforms into "Thunder Wood."

Peach trees inherently have anti-demonic properties, and after being struck by lightning, their properties enhance, especially the heartwood, making Thunder Wood the best. It can heal various hard-to-cure diseases, especially those afflicted by dark energies.

In ancient medical theories, Shaoyang Grass is the principal drug, and Thunder Wood is the ministerial drug. Thunder Wood assists Shaoyang Grass, using the Five Elements theory, they complement each other, bringing out the best medicinal efficacy.

However, Thunder Wood is extremely rare; the special peach trees are already scarce, and those not destroyed by lightning are one in ten thousand. Lin Tian remembered these Thunder Woods were transported from a shrine in Japan.

Lin Tian picked up a small piece of Thunder Wood, threw it into the medicine cauldron, added spring water, and ignited the charcoal in the furnace.

The blue flame was very conspicuous under the night sky; if seen by people, it would likely be mistaken for ghost fire, which is why Lin Tian chose the rooftop, avoiding being seen in the living room by servants, fearing they’d think Yunxiang Inn was haunted.

The surroundings of the rooftop had waist-high railings, and large trees surrounded Yunxiang Inn, so the rooftop could not be seen from outside.

The refining of Thunder Wood was distinct from Shaoyang Grass; Shaoyang Grass was semidried while Thunder Wood was fully dried wood. Therefore, Lin Tian had to ponder over the refining method of Thunder Wood.

Fortunately, with the experience of refining Shaoyang Grass, Lin Tian had a direction and began refining Thunder Wood.

The blue flame in the medicine cauldron reflected on Lin Tian, with blue flames seemingly dancing in his eyes, making it hard to distinguish if they were reflections or genuinely from within.

Lin Tian focused intently on the medicine cauldron, his penetrating gaze covering it inside and out, mastering every minute change of the herbs and flames to adjust the fire.

Good thing Lin Tian was a zombie, otherwise maintaining a position for extended refining would be unbearable for ordinary people.

The refining of Thunder Wood continued, and after destroying nine pieces, Lin Tian finally succeeded in extracting the essence of Thunder Wood.

The previous refining of Shaoyang Grass yielded a potion, but the Thunder Wood resulted in a gray powder, yet within the gray powder, there were small bright particles, seemingly the mutated materials produced after being struck by lightning.