Now that she had a hypothesis, what followed became much simpler.
Using the excuse of not wanting to disturb her master with trivial matters, Nan Zhi temporarily borrowed the base's laboratory dedicated to analyzing spiritual energy components.
The official laboratory had an air cleanliness rating of Level 1, which meant that within a lab of this class, the number of particles per unit volume of air was extremely low, maintaining the highest possible degree of cleanliness.
To put it simply, assuming a dust particle size of 0.5 μm, the maximum number of dust particles in a Level 1 laboratory would be less than or equal to one.
The experimental facilities of a military-grade sterile laboratory were far more precise than those of most private research institutes on the market.
Although spiritual energy was invisible and intangible, refining pills in a sterile laboratory was currently the only way Nan Zhi could think of to easily control spiritual energy variables.
Aside from the preparation room, washroom, sterilization room, and various measuring instruments, the lighting, temperature, and humidity also had extremely rigorous requirements.
The panels used to construct the laboratory floor, doors, and windows were all made of non-toxic, harmless, antibacterial, and heat-resistant new building materials.
Security was tight; the guards were all equipped with live ammunition, and authorized personnel had to undergo layer upon layer of verification before being granted entry.
After all, the cost of any random machine inside started at eight figures.
In other words, using a Level 1 laboratory for a single day cost at least a million just for water, electricity, and routine cleaning.
“Scientific research is such a money burner.”
Nan Zhi stood before the pill cauldron dressed in a sterile suit, while Qin Yue stood beside her, bundled up tightly like a zongzi as well.
Behind the two of them, separated by a thick, massive glass window, a dense crowd jostled and craned their necks to peer inside, every single one of them wearing a mask.
Among them were elderly academicians with graying hair and solemn expressions.
There were also leaders from various departments of the research base, their expressions tense and their lips tightly pursed.
Most, however, were researchers who looked full of curiosity, dreaming of squeezing inside for a close-up observation and wishing they could drag out Qin Yue standing next to Nan Zhi and replace her themselves.
She, Qin Yue, is a martial officer—how could she handle a scholar's work?!
Let us do it!
Boss, look at us! Look at us!
Here is a dedicated researcher who has published multiple papers in international scientific journals, deeply plowing research for over a decade, with rich theoretical and practical experience, toiling away without complaint!
The laboratory observation area, which usually had restricted access, was packed with researchers, yet it remained eerily silent.
—Even though they knew the laboratory's soundproofing materials were military-grade and that not even a gunfight outside the glass could be heard inside, no one made a single sound.
For a moment, only the fluttering of eyelids and deliberately muffled breathing could be heard in the observation room.
“Hehehe, for this experiment, we must thank young Comrade Nan Zhi for her contribution to the Special Investigation Bureau, being willing to conduct an open pill refinement experiment. We previously attempted pill refinement experiments multiple times, but they all ended in failure. I hope observing this refinement will help us identify the reason for our failures.”
The elderly academician was far more composed, cheerily instructing the person beside him:
“Since she agreed to make the alchemy process open to the Special Investigation Bureau, we can't be stingy either. In my view, let's temporarily allocate this laboratory for young Comrade Nan Zhi's use from now on.”
“Understood. I will submit a report as soon as I get back.”
The person in charge standing beside him nodded, not distressed in the slightest over the future addition of a massive fiscal expenditure:
“If Comrade Nan has other experiments, the Special Investigation Bureau's researchers can work twenty-four-hour shifts to fully cooperate with her.”
This meant that certain resources within the Special Investigation Bureau would consciously or unconsciously tilt in her favor.
The elderly academician nodded and said with satisfaction, “That's the spirit. We provide a scientific research platform to encourage everyone to learn and improve together—oh, it's starting.”
As his voice fell, everyone around held their breath and focused, staring unblinkingly at the laboratory for fear of missing a single detail.
“The fire used for alchemy visibly reaches an inner flame temperature of 1,500 degrees, yet the cauldron appears to be bronze, which has a melting point between 700 and 900 degrees. How miraculous.”
“Circling the cauldron three times first? Mhm, that must be some kind of metaphysical ritual.”
“Why did she suddenly freeze? Did something go wrong?”
“Why is Comrade Nan stretching her left arm over her head and tilting her neck back? Is that required for alchemy, or is it a spellcasting posture?”
...
She had merely stared at the vine heart fire in the cauldron for too long and habitually stretched.
Nan Zhi glanced outside rather helplessly before concentrating once more on waiting for the pills to finish.
Where only she could see, a slowly advancing “Alchemy Progress Bar” hovered above the pill cauldron:
【Refining in “Unnamed Cauldron”—Refinement Progress: 20%, 21.1%, 21.2%...】
【Pill Fire: Snowy Mountain vine heart fire (Material Loss Rate -1%, Success Rate +1)】
【...】
—Fearing she might disturb the refinement process, Qin Yue had set down the prepared jade bottles and retreated to the side early on, standing as noiseless and still as a mannequin.
Under the watchful eyes of all, no one dared to breathe heavily for fear of affecting the cauldron.
Nan Zhi held her breath and concentrated.
【Ding!】
As the blue progress bar reached the end, a crisp system chime sounded. She immediately waved her hand and recalled the vine heart fire inside the cauldron.
Whether the pills succeeded or failed all came down to this moment.
“Open!”
Nan Zhi formed hand seals with both hands and gave a low shout. The three-meter-tall cauldron opened in response, and a visible wave of white medicinal aroma surged forth—
“Whew...”
Dense medicinal vapors curled in the air. Nan Zhi leaped up and caught sight of the hundred pills resting quietly inside the cauldron in a single glance:
Candy-sized, plump, glossy black pills lay quietly in the cauldron, each one releasing a faint, refreshing fragrance.
【Blood Supplementing Pill (Immortal Grade): A low-grade pill refined from hemostatic grass. Increases HP by 100 upon consumption.】
【Alchemy Proficiency +1】
【Current Alchemy Proficiency: 18】
It succeeded!
Another batch of Immortal Grade quality pills!
A look of joy appeared on Nan Zhi's face. Afraid the pills might lose their medicinal potency, she quickly collected the batch into jade bottles. Seeing her expression, Qin Yue finally dared to speak up:
“Little Aunt, did it succeed?”
“It succeeded. It's just as I suspected—although the spiritual energy between heaven and earth is reviving, the Five Elements spiritual energies are incomplete, causing the spiritual power in the air to flow erratically, mottled and disordered.
“Alchemy demands stability above all, emphasizing the equilibrium of Five Elements spiritual energy and strictly avoiding fluctuations where one waxes as another wanes. No wonder my previous cauldron of pills turned into ruined dregs.”
Nan Zhi put away the other jade bottles and held one in her hand, her eyes growing brighter and brighter:
“By utilizing the laboratory to stabilize the temperature and humidity, supplemented by the Biological Spiritual Energy Magnetic Field Device to keep the surrounding spiritual energy at a fixed value throughout the alchemy process, we can prevent the pills from being ruined directly due to unstable spiritual energy.”
The same principle applied to alchemy in the game world.
During the refinement process, an Alchemist not only had to monitor the cauldron constantly, but also had to use their own spiritual power to maintain stability in the surrounding spiritual energy and sustain the circulation of the Five Elements.
Metal was the cauldron.
Wood was the spirit herb.
Fire was the pill fire.
Earth was the ground.
Water served as the alchemy adjuvant.
Only when the Five Elements rotated in such harmony could the pill be formed.
And during this process, even the slightest distraction would affect the pill's quality and success.
With a modern scientific laboratory capable of controlling temperature and humidity, Nan Zhi only needed to follow standard procedure, input the pill fire and materials, and she could steadily produce pills.
It was as effortless as playing an idle mini-game on WeChat!
Hearing that the pill refinement succeeded, Qin Yue was also overjoyed. She turned around and made a hand gesture toward the window.
With a roar of excitement, the crowd outside the window erupted. Overcome with ecstasy, everyone hugged and cheered:
“It succeeded?!”
“Comrade Nan succeeded! That means the method of controlling variables is viable; we just lacked the mature conditions!”
“It really works!”
Separated by the glass, the group cheered silently without a whisper carrying through, looking strangely as if they were performing some kind of pantomime.
Rate on N.U.
