The medicine garden was unquestionably one of the most important places on Spiritual Medicine Peak. Tens of inner force disciples who were above the eighth level were stationed here at all times.
A blue-robed disciple welcomed them as soon as they arrived at the medicine garden.
That person's gaze swept over them and he immediately said in a serious voice, "Senior He, please wait."
He Wude smiled and said, "Yiming, show me Master's badge."
He Yiming turned his wrist and tossed the badge given to him by the Medicine Man.
The blue-robed disciple, whose inner force was at the ninth level, accepted it and looked at it carefully. He looked extremely respectful and bowed deeply. "Ah, it's an order from the founding master. Please come in."
He bowed slightly and made way for them, respectfully inviting them in.
Although He Wude had been accepted by the Medicine Man again and was acknowledged as He Yiming's elder, the news had not spread yet. However, this matter had not spread out after all. Otherwise, they would not need any token to enter the medicinal garden at all.
When He Yiming arrived at the medicinal garden, the scenery he saw made his eyes light up.
The medicine garden was covered in grass, and birds were chirping while butterflies and bees were busy. The scenery was gorgeous, and it was very different from what he had imagined.
Next to him, He Wude sighed and said, "I haven't been here for over 40 years, but nothing seems to have changed. It's as if everything has passed in the blink of an eye. Time really flies."
He Yiming had lived on Spiritual Medicine Peak for 40 years, so he was as familiar with the medicine garden as if it was his own home.
The many precious plants in the herb garden were easily over a thousand years old, or even several thousand years old. To the plants, the decades since He Wude left Spiritual Medicine Peak were like the blink of an eye. Therefore, when He Wude entered the medicine garden, he did not feel unfamiliar at all. Instead, he lamented.
He Yiming looked around and noticed over ten people walking carefully in the medicine garden. Although He Yiming did not know what they were doing exactly, he knew they were the disciples in charge of taking care of the precious plants in the garden.
Among these people, most of them were Spiritual Medicine Peak disciples between the ages of 30 to 50. However, there were a few of them who were similar in age to He Wude.
Their entrance immediately attracted everyone's attention. The two old men even greeted He Wude. When they knew that He Wude had officially returned to the sect, they all smiled and congratulated him.
When these people found out that He Wude and his companion had come to the Herb Garden on the orders of the Medicine Man, they were all astonished. However, they were only puzzled, and no one suspected anything.
He Wude did not tell anyone that He Yiming was about to become a Xiantian Elder of the Hengshan lineage. After all, He Yiming was his grandson. If he were to speak of it, it would inevitably leave a bad impression on others. Anyway, Ho Wuji was someone who knew about it. In a few days, the entire Spiritual Medicine Peak would know about it.
Under the guidance of the old man, He Yiming began learning in the medicine garden.
The token that the Medicine Man gave him represented his status as an elder of the Hengshan lineage. With the token in hand, he would be able to move freely in the entire Hengshan lineage. However, He Yiming's current interest was all focused on alchemy. Therefore, he spent his days either in the medicine garden or in the Medicine Man's library.
The various rare herbs in the medicine garden broadened his horizons. He also learned a lot about how to cultivate herbs and what to pay attention to for each type of rare herb.
Under He Wude's special guidance, he even personally carried out the cultivation process of removing insects and inoculating a few special herbs.
Other than that, the number of books in the library was innumerable. However, what puzzled He Yiming was that the books here were all related to medicine. He immediately understood that the books on martial arts in the Hengshan lineage were not in the Spiritual Medicine Peak.
There were also a few disciples in charge of cleaning and guarding the library. Every time they saw He Yiming, they would be respectful and submissive. Even when they saw the Medicine Man, they were not as respectful.
At that moment, He Yiming finally understood why the Medicine Man asked He Wude to teach him the most basic lessons.
That was because He Wude had already announced his identity. The Spiritual Medicine Peak disciples who were in charge of guarding and taking care of the medicine garden had a 180-degree change in their attitudes toward him.
Everyone began to be submissive and respectful in front of him. Under such an attitude, He Yiming would feel awkward even if he wanted to ask for advice. Old Master He Wude was the only one who treated him the same no matter how his identity changed.
It was only under such circumstances that he could successfully learn some real knowledge.
Just like that, after an entire month, He Yiming finally managed to memorize a lot of knowledge about medicinal herbs.
The more he learned, the more he realized how broad and profound the knowledge was. In comparison, it was not inferior to martial arts at all.
At that point, he thought about Hsieh Chih-en from the Xie residence, and he was secretly alert. Although he had to learn alchemy, he could not put all his energy into it. If his martial arts cultivation was delayed because of that, Hsieh Chih-en's example would be right in front of him.
On this day, he had finished cultivating with Yuan Lixun. Now, Yuan Lixun had also benefited from him, as the Medicine Man had bestowed her with a golden energy pill. She improved tremendously when she cultivated her inner force, so much so that she was not inferior to He Yiming's cultivation speed back then.
He Yiming was very satisfied with her cultivation. After cultivating, he left his room and headed to the peak of the mountain as usual.
However, as soon as he left the courtyard, He Wude walked out of his room and waved at him. "Yiming, come with me to the alchemy cave."
He Yiming was surprised. "Grandfather, we're not going to the herb garden today?"
He Wude chuckled. "You've already learned about most of the herbs in the herb garden, and you're pretty much familiar with the basic fodder. From today onwards, you can enter the alchemy cave to observe the process of alchemy. "
He Yiming frowned and said, "Isn't this a little too fast?"
He Wude shook his head and said, "For others, without one or two years of basic training, they wouldn't even be able to enter the normal alchemy rooms outside the alchemy cave, let alone the alchemy cave residence. But you are different. As an elder in the sect, you have this privilege. "
He Yiming smiled bitterly. "Grandfather, that's not what I meant." He said seriously, "The path of medicine is broad and profound. I've only learned the basics for a month, so I don't know much. If I start alchemy now, I'll be too impatient. Medicine is like martial arts. Without a solid foundation, it'll be difficult to achieve higher achievements. "
He Wude nodded in satisfaction. He was very pleased with his grandson's knowledge.
However, the old man smiled for a while, then shook his head and said regretfully, "Yiming, I understand what you're thinking, but …" He hesitated before he finally said, "To tell you the truth, Yiming, no matter how hard you work, you won't achieve much in alchemy. Therefore, I think it's better for you to learn alchemy earlier. After you understand the process, you should focus on martial arts. "
He Yiming was shocked. "Grandfather, why do you say that?"
He Wude said seriously, "Alchemy is the same as martial arts. The most important factor isn't hard work, but talent." He paused for a moment, then cupped his fists in the direction of the Medicine Man's cavern and said, "My master once said that if I want to achieve anything in alchemy, I need ninety-nine percent of my effort and one percent of my talent."
He Yiming blinked twice to make sure he heard correctly. He asked suspiciously, "Grandfather, didn't you say that talent is the most important factor? Why does hard work take up such a large part of the equation? "
He Wude cleared his throat and said, "I'm not done yet. Back then, my master said that although 99% of hard work and sweat can be contributed by anyone, if one doesn't have 1% of one's talent and inspiration, one will still achieve nothing in the end."
He Yiming resisted the urge to roll his eyes. The Medicine Man was too good at bluffing.
He Wude chuckled and said, "It's not difficult for a Xiantian Master to achieve something in alchemy. However, if one wants to stand at the peak of this path, one must be a cultivator of both fire and wood elements. You have an unimaginable talent in martial arts, and you have a deep understanding of metal and water elements. However, in alchemy … "He Wude shook his head and sighed." What a pity, what a pity! "
He Yiming could not help but laugh. It was strange. He Yiming became a Xiantian Master in fire and wood elements, but he first comprehended the essence of wind, rain, cloud, and mist in an epiphany later. Then, because he cultivated the Thirty-six Splitting Mountain Forms, he indirectly grasped the essence of metal element. As a result, his mastery of fire and wood elements was much inferior.
He Yiming shook his head and said, "Alright, whatever you say. Grandfather, let's go to the alchemy cave."
He Wude could hear the insincerity in his words and could not help but shake his head. He secretly thought that perhaps after Yiming suffered a setback, he would change his mind and put most of his energy back into martial arts.
The two of them entered the cave on the mountaintop without a hitch.
Logically speaking, He Yiming was a novice who had just come into contact with alchemy not long ago. He was not even an apprentice alchemist, so he had no right to enter the cave.
But as soon as they entered the cave residence and explained their intentions to the Medicine Daoist, the extremely youthful old man immediately waved his hand and gave one of the five pill refinement rooms to He Yiming for personal use.
He Yiming was a little embarrassed at first, but after the Medicine Man's explanation, he felt relieved.
It turned out that the alchemy rooms in the cave used the power of earthly fire to refine pills. Apart from Xiantian Masters, even Houtian Masters with Inner Strength Stage Ten wouldn't dare to stay in there for too long.
Therefore, although the alchemy rooms were a huge project, and the success rate of refining pills was much higher than ordinary alchemy rooms outside, they had never been opened at the same time.
The Medicine Man had put one of the rooms under He Yiming's name as a favor at no extra cost.
After entering the alchemy room, He Wude took out the materials he brought with him one by one.
The materials were not expensive, but it was extremely complicated to collect them. In particular, there were hundreds of rare flower dews, which were unlikely to appear in the outside world.
Every morning, there would be a fixed number of disciples in the herb garden who would collect the flower dews on the rare herbs.
The flower dews were naturally not precious to Spirit Medicine Peak, but apart from the herb garden of Spirit Medicine Peak, which was far away from the mundane world, even the Emperor of the mundane world would not be able to successfully collect them.
After all, it was impossible to find a herb garden with thousands of years of history in a city where countless people lived together. Moreover, ordinary medicinal gardens would not be able to possess such a unique geographical environment.
Apart from the flower dews, He Yiming also saw some unique herbs.
Most of the herbs were cultivated in the herb garden, but they were not very valuable. Many of them could be seen even in Taicang County.
Needless to say, the herbs in the herb garden were grown in different environments, so their quality could not be compared to those in the outside world. Moreover, the herbs were unique in that they had a shorter growth cycle, which was around three months at most before they could be harvested.
When He Yiming was learning about medicinal herbs, he was puzzled by the fact that these herbs were planted in the herb garden. Would it not be too wasteful to cultivate ordinary herbs in such a precious place?
However, when he saw his grandfather's grave expression, he seemed to understand that the herbs had their value.
"Yiming, I'm going to refine a Fasting Pill today. Watch closely," He Wude said seriously.
He Yiming was slightly stunned. He had been reading a lot of medicine books recently, so he was naturally familiar with the famous Fasting Pill.
It was said that after consuming one of the pills, one would not feel hungry or thirsty for a day. However, the ingredients to refine the pill were difficult to collect, so it gradually disappeared from people's sight.
He glanced at the flower dews and herbs, and finally understood the reason behind it.
The ingredients might not be precious, but other than hidden sects like Hengshan, it was not easy to collect all of them.
He Wude came to the side of the cauldron in the room. He explained the steps to refine the pill and the reason for doing so, while he put some of the herbs and flower dews into the copper cauldron in a certain order.
Then, he opened the specially-made pagoda below, and a red light spread in the cave.
As he had only opened the first level, He Wude only squinted his eyes, but he did not feel uncomfortable. He Yiming did not feel anything either.
He Wude counted silently, and kept adding a little flower dews. He then sighed, "If Master was here, he could use the power of fire and wood to sense the degree of fusion between the herbs and flower dews in the cauldron. Refining this pill would be a piece of cake for him. However, for people like us who do not cultivate both fire and wood, it would be extremely difficult to successfully refine the pill. "
As he spoke, his hands did not slow down in the slightest. Moreover, every half an hour or so, he would carefully open the lid and carefully observe the situation inside. Looking at his grave expression, it was obvious that he was not certain of success.
He Yiming saw all the steps the old man took, but he stayed by the side of the cauldron. He slowly circulated his True Qi through the copper cauldron legs on the ground, slowly probing the changes inside.
After a long time, he finally understood why the top alchemists had to cultivate both fire and wood techniques.
The herbs in the cauldron were all wood-type plants, so the wood-type technique could easily sense the vitality in them.
He Yiming could clearly sense that every time He Wude made an adjustment, the vitality in the herbs would increase a little. However, if a certain step was maintained for too long, the vitality would undoubtedly decrease by a lot.
The stronger the vitality, the higher the possibility of refining the pill. On the other hand, if the vitality of the herbs decreased to a certain level, then the pill in the cauldron would be equivalent to a waste.
In addition to the vitality of the wood-type, He Yiming could also clearly sense the power of fire.
Inside the cauldron, it was under the effect of the power of fire that the medicinal properties of the herbs would undergo rapid changes. Without this power, it would be extremely difficult to mix the medicinal properties of the herbs.
Slowly, He Yiming's heart unexpectedly had some special understanding of the cooperation between fire and wood. His pair of eyes gradually brightened.
He Wude only dared to use the smallest amount of heat to refine the pill, but He Yiming could faintly sense that if the heat was increased to the maximum at certain stages, not only could it reduce the time, but it could also increase the vitality of the herbs.
Of course, this was only a feeling. Before he tried it, he was not completely confident.
If it was said that when he observed Hsieh Chih-en refining pills in the Xie Residence, he only saw the surface and the process. This time, he had truly begun to come into contact with the essence of alchemy, and slowly understood some things that belonged to him.
Finally, He Wude's hand patted the pagoda lightly, completely isolating the earth fire. Then, he lifted the lid of the cauldron and looked inside, and could not help but be overjoyed.
"Yiming, the pills are done."
He Yiming went forward to take a look. There were over 20 small pills in the cauldron. The pills were black and unremarkable, but they had a faint fragrance.
He Wude took the pills out of the cauldron and exclaimed, "It's been so many years since I last refined the pills. I can't believe that I managed to refine the pills on my first try. My 40 years of foundation weren't wasted."
Seeing the excitement on his grandfather's face, He Yiming's heart also began to stir. He said, "Grandfather, you've prepared too many medicinal herbs and flower dew. You haven't even used one-third of them. Why don't you let me try it once?"
He Wude prepared three sets of materials because he was afraid that he would have to refine the pills again if he failed the first time. Nonetheless, he did not expect to succeed on his first try. Moreover, He Yiming wanted to refine the pills as soon as Ou Yangming finished refining the pills on his first try.
Nonetheless, Ou Yangming only hesitated for a while before he agreed to it.
The items were not very valuable in Spiritual Medicine Peak. Given He Yiming's identity, even if he wasted them, nobody would dare to say anything about it.
Since Ou Yangming was interested, He Wude naturally would not stop him.
PS: Thanks for your monthly votes, brothers. I've caught up to 300 votes in a day, but I'm still a distance away from the bandit army, so I need your support.
It will be the same tomorrow. Please give your monthly votes to the White Crane that is gradually becoming slimmer, so that the White Crane can soar … (To be continued, if you want to know what will happen next, please go to www.qidian.com to read more chapters. Support the author, support the original reading!)
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