The Demon Beast Tide

“We have quite a lot of elixirs to refine today. Help me get all of these ready.”

As soon as Jiang Lu entered the alchemy room, she heard Huang Mei's instructions.

She nodded. However, the daily elixir output of the Medicine King Pavilion was always a fixed amount. Why had it suddenly increased today?

The expression on her face was too obvious. Seeing her pause, Huang Mei asked, “Do you have any questions?”

Jiang Lu nodded.

“It's only normal that you don't know about this news, especially since you're new here.”

Jiang Lu's background was not a secret to them. Everyone's identity in the Medicine King Pavilion was public knowledge. On the day Jiang Lu's talent was revealed, many had gone to investigate.

It was only natural for a seeker of the Dao from the mortal realm to know nothing about the cultivation world. Moreover, her ability to join the Medicine King Pavilion was truly a stroke of luck. Who could have expected that a cultivator from the mortal realm would have a higher perception of spiritual plants than most other cultivators?

“You know there's a dense forest outside Xijiang City, right? The depths of that forest connect to a massive woodland. It's almost time for the demon beast riots. During this period, a massive influx of demon beasts will surge into the dense forest. Whether cultivators go to fight, seek opportunities, or simply gain experience, elixirs are absolutely indispensable.”

Jiang Lu realized what was happening. So that was why.

She then immediately set off to organize the spiritual plants according to Huang Mei's requirements. Among them, several were used for refining Tier Three elixirs.

In the Medicine King Pavilion, alchemists who had been refining elixirs for over two years and maintained a success rate of over ninety percent had two opportunities each month to attempt refining higher-grade elixirs.

If they successfully refined five different types of elixirs of the corresponding tier ten consecutive times, they would be recognized as having reached the new alchemy level, becoming a higher-grade alchemist.

This was an unspoken rule acknowledged throughout the cultivation world. However, the profession of an alchemist, much like weapon refiners and formation masters, required taking an official assessment.

Within their Jiangwu Domain, the Three Great Sects, the various great clans, and the Medicine King Pavilion all had the authority to conduct these assessments. Those who passed would receive a rank token.

The assessment fee was not high. The basic level cost only ten low-grade spirit stones, the intermediate level cost ten medium-grade spirit stones, and the advanced level cost ten high-grade spirit stones.

If one did not even take the assessment, the items they refined would not be trusted by others.

Huang Mei had begun trying to refine Tier Three elixirs since last month, but all her attempts had ended in failure.

It seemed she was going to try again this month.

Refining elixirs of each tier required different techniques. One had to master the sequence of adding the spiritual plants, and more importantly, have enough strength and mental energy to support the process.

Otherwise, they would almost certainly fail at the final step of condensing the elixir.

Jiang Lu did not stop her movements. As her thoughts drifted, she looked at Huang Mei, who was seriously refining elixirs, wondering if Senior Sister Huang Mei could break through and become a Tier Three alchemist.

Although Tier Two and Tier Three alchemists were both collectively referred to as primary alchemists, crossing that threshold was still extremely difficult.

Looking at the elixirs in her space, Jiang Lu nodded in satisfaction. Now that she was also a Tier One alchemist, she could begin learning sword techniques according to her previous plan!

Moreover...

A demon beast tide?

If possible, she could also go and investigate.

“Junior Sister Lu, do you plan on going to resist the demon beast tide?” Huang Mei suddenly asked. After all, most of the demon beasts that came here were of Rank One or Rank Two, with the highest being Rank Three. There were quite a few Foundation Establishment cultivators in Xijiang City now, and they would definitely go.

Many ordinary cultivators would go to scavenge and pick up scraps; it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say they could strike it rich overnight.

Jiang Lu nodded. “Senior Sister Huang Mei, if there's an opportunity, I'm naturally willing to go.”

“Of course there is. Didn't you know? The Medicine King Pavilion organizes disciples to go every time. If you're interested, you might as well sign up.”

Jiang Lu really didn't know this. She nodded, asked for a few more details, and then immediately set off.

Although she was Senior Sister Huang Mei's exclusive spiritual plant herbalist, she was still free to participate in these experiential trials.

Jiang Lu arrived at the registration location, which was the City Lord's Manor. The risk factor of a demon beast tide was high, so local forces usually organized the expeditions.

Whether one ended up as cannon fodder or the backbone of the defense depended entirely on the conscience and capability of the organizing power.

Xijiang City had a long history. Judging by how the City Lord offered spiritual root testing for free, it was clear that he was not an evil person. Any minor selfishness he had was insignificant in the face of true matters of life and death.

Arriving at the City Lord's Manor, Jiang Lu found it bustling with crowds. At a glance, there were even more disciples here than those who had previously gone to the secret realm.

Aside from Qi Condensation cultivators, there were also Foundation Establishment cultivators. This was the first time she had encountered so many Foundation Establishment powerhouses in Xijiang City.

It was considerably more than she had imagined.

After signing up and receiving her identity token, she squeezed through the crowd to leave. Only when she was out of the line did she let out a sigh of relief.

There were truly so many people!

Although they came to sign up, they were still divided by their respective factions.

Private actions were not allowed during a demon beast tide. Everyone who signed up had to follow commands, which ensured the highest safety factor.

If one went alone or formed their own team, there was no need to register, but likewise, none of the factions would offer them aid.

Jiang Lu belonged to the Medicine King Pavilion's team. Quite a few disciples from the Medicine King Pavilion had signed up, more than enough to form a team. The strongest among them would serve as the team leader. She didn't know who it was, but she would meet them on the day of assembly.

As for the smaller factions, several of them would be grouped into a single team to follow commands.

The team leaders would coordinate with each other to allocate resources. A fixed portion of the team's gains would be handed over to the City Lord's Manor, while the remaining resources could be distributed among themselves.

Thus, the teams would discuss and agree upon these matters beforehand to prevent anyone from holding them back in the middle of the trial.

Returning to her room, Jiang Lu took out her elixir cauldron again to refine elixirs.

Currently, she knew how to refine over a dozen types of elixirs, and each batch yielded ten high-grade elixirs.

Now, she needed to refine more Qi-Solidifying Pills and Qi-Replenishing Pills.

She didn't know if it was due to her spiritual energy or some other reason, but although the elixirs she refined were of the same high-grade as Senior Sister Huang Mei's, they were plumper and had better medicinal efficacy.

Aside from lacking the elixir veins of a Supreme-grade elixir, it wouldn't be an understatement to call them Supreme-grade.

She had read many elixir recipes and spells in the Library. Once she returned from the trial, she could try refining Tier Two elixirs.

As for taking the rank assessment, there was no rush. The cultivation world supported directly testing for an alchemist rank without needing to climb up level by level.

Since she didn't need to make a living by selling elixirs right now, she was in no hurry. She would worry about it after she returned from the trial.

At present, she had only learned many spells without having any opportunities for practical application. This trial was the perfect chance to test her cultivation.

A few days later...

After organizing the things she needed and storing them in her storage bag, she followed the other disciples to the city gates.

Because the demon beast tide did not strike all at once but in multiple waves, the teams from various factions were also divided into multiple groups.

As one of the top factions, the Medicine King Pavilion charged in the first wave. The strength of the demon beasts in each wave did not differ much, and the Qi Condensation disciples were fully capable of handling them.