Chapter 985: Refining the Heavenly Stillness Pill

Chapter 985: Refining the Tian Ji Dan

In the early morning, the gentle sunlight spread across the entire world.

The unified Da Chu enjoyed rare peace and tranquility, with this land filled with hopeful aspirations for the future.

The Tian Ting continued to consolidate its rule over the world, secretly purging resistant forces, while the cultivator realm was full of diverse lives—some diligently pursued the Dao, others devoted themselves to forging romantic bonds, and the carefree ones indulged in worldly pleasures.

Gazing at the world bathed in sunlight, Ye Chen revealed a contented smile, then turned and stepped into the Xu Tian Teleportation Array.

When he reappeared, he was in Dan Cheng.

Dan Chen and the others were already waiting, each of them visibly excited.

Ye Chen had found the Qi Lin Horn, meaning they now had all the materials needed to refine the Tian Ji Dan.

Previously, they had attempted to refine the Tian Ji Dan multiple times but failed each time. Besides the incomplete materials, the main reason was the lack of the correct Dan Fang.

This time was different—they had the accurate Dan Fang, the complete materials, and the assistance of a Dan Sheng, so refining the Tian Ji Dan was not impossible.

The Tian Ji Dan was a six-pattern elixir, the highest-grade spirit pill in Da Chu, its status equivalent to that of a Da Chu emperor. As alchemists, refining a supreme-level pill was their lifelong aspiration.

"Today, this should be a memorable day," Dan Yi said, taking a deep breath.

"But I hope it succeeds," Dan Chen said, stroking his beard and trying to appear calm, though his expression betrayed his excitement.

"It seems I'm a bit late," came a smile from outside the hall, as Ye Chen, dressed in plain robes, walked in slowly.

"We're just waiting for you," the elders in the hall said with smiles.

"Something delayed me."

"It's fine." Dan Chen smiled. "Now that everyone's here, let's begin!"

With that, he waved his sleeve, enveloping the entire Dan Cheng grand hall in layers of barriers, with Tian Ting experts guarding outside and a substantial formation in place.

Alchemists hated interruptions during refining, especially when crafting a six-pattern Tian Ji Dan.

Buzz!

Soon, a golden Dan Furnace was brought out, hovering in the center of the hall, radiating brilliant light. It was indeed a refining furnace, but also an extremely powerful spirit artifact.

This was the Dan Zu Shen Furnace, forged by Dan Zu in the past from a piece of divine iron from beyond the heavens, infused with Dan Zu's principles of alchemy. It was a priceless treasure, used by Dan Cheng only for refining the highest-level pills.

Meanwhile, Ye Chen and Dan Chen had already waved their hands, taking out stalks of sealed spirit herbs.

Seeing this, Dan Yi and the others summoned their own refining furnaces.

They placed great importance on this refining process; those present were at least the supreme elders of Dan Cheng. Although their alchemy skills were not as advanced as Dan Chen's and Ye Chen's, they were all masters at the pinnacle of the alchemy domain.

Ye Chen and Dan Chen distributed the various refining materials to Dan Yi and the others.

The process of refining the Tian Ji Dan was extremely complex, requiring teamwork and clear division of labor.

Naturally, the most critical steps of fusing the elixir and merging souls would be handled by Ye Chen and Dan Chen, whose alchemy skills had reached the realm of perfection.

"Let's begin!"

Ye Chen took a deep breath and directed a cluster of golden flames into the refining furnace.

Soul Flame?

Glancing at the blazing golden flames in the furnace, Dan Chen and the others murmured.

The so-called Soul Flame was a type of flame, and an exceptionally wondrous one at that.

Alchemists rarely used Soul Flame for refining; it consumed too much soul power and was prone to backlash. Any mistake could lead to failure, especially when refining high-grade spirit pills, making it unwise to use lightly.

Dan Chen and the others were well aware of this.

The entire Tian Ting knew that Ye Chen's Immortal Fire Dao Body had been destroyed by a mysterious expert, and his Immortal Fire had vanished with it. Otherwise, why would Ye Chen resort to using Soul Flame as a substitute? It was a last resort.

"Let's begin!"

Withdrawing his gaze, Dan Chen took a deep breath and directed his San Mei True Fire into the refining furnace.

On the other sides, Dan Yi and the others did the same, channeling their true fires and not daring to be careless.

This was no ordinary pill; it was a six-pattern Tian Ji Dan, and nearly every material was extremely rare in Da Chu. They couldn't afford even the slightest error, or the materials might be wasted or damaged, and replacements might not be found.

Meanwhile, Ye Chen was continuously waving his hand to toss stalks of spirit herbs into the refining furnace.

Though it was Soul Flame, he handled it with effortless mastery.

Soul Flame had its drawbacks, but it also had advantages that no other flame could match. As a flame connected to the soul, it allowed for easier control.

"Everyone, we only have three chances, so let's take it steady," Ye Chen said with a smile while extracting the essence from the spirit herbs. Perhaps only he, as a Dan Sheng, could afford to chat while refining.

"You didn't have to say that; now you've made me nervous," Dan Yi coughed.

Ye Chen smiled but said no more, not wanting to add more pressure to Dan Yi and the others. After all, they weren't like him—Ye Chen; not everyone was as exceptional.

The grand hall fell into a long silence.

Over a hundred people, all in white robes with white hair, were the top alchemists in Da Chu. Each wore a solemn and dignified expression, striving for absolute precision in every step.

Time passed slowly, and many were already sweating profusely.

The intense concentration kept them in a state of high tension, making them feel increasingly exhausted.

The scent of medicine began to fill the air, with surging essence overflowing, creating a hazy mist in the hall. Even though the hall was sealed by barriers, the rich medicinal fragrance still escaped, invigorating the Tian Ting experts guarding outside.

Night fell, but the hall remained quiet.

This was a lengthy process; in their state of complete focus, no one noticed that day and night had cycled three times.

It wasn't until the fourth night that Ye Chen's refining furnace hummed and trembled, and a cluster of crystalline elixir essence floated out, which he waved into a prepared jade bottle.

He looked somewhat tired; using Soul Flame for refining had taken a significant toll on him.

Seeing that Dan Chen and the others were still extracting essence, he popped a few soul-nourishing pills into his mouth and sat cross-legged on a cloud to quietly restore his soul power.

After an unknown time, Dan Chen's side showed changes, with a cluster of purple elixir essence flying out and being sealed into a jade bottle.

Following that, Dan Yi and the others completed their work one after another, their various elixir essences bursting with colorful light and containing vast essence. This only highlighted the immense value of the Tian Ji Dan.

It was deep into the night when the last white-haired elder finally extracted and refined the elixir essence, marking the end of the first stage of refining the Tian Ji Dan.

Next came the condensation of the pill, the most crucial step, where the various elixir essences needed to be fused. The balance during this process had to be extremely precise; any slight error could lead to failure.

Huff!

Ye Chen and Dan Chen both exhaled deeply, standing one on the left and one on the right in front of the Dan Zu Shen Furnace.

Beneath their feet was a massive Yin Yang Bagua diagram; Ye Chen stood on the Yin side, Dan Chen on the Yang side, with the Dan Zu Shen Furnace at the center of the diagram.

As Ye Chen and Dan Chen took their positions on the Yin and Yang sides, Dan Yi and three white-haired elders occupied the Four Symbols positions, followed by eight other elders stepping forward to the Bagua positions.

This Yin Yang Bagua diagram was created by Dan Zu in the past to harmonize the Yin Yang, Four Symbols, and Bagua, maximizing the balance among the various elixir essences. It was an unparalleled technique.

With everyone in position, the other elders stepped back, as the next part was no longer their concern.

Soon, clusters of elixir essence flew into the Dan Zu Shen Furnace.

At this point, Ye Chen and the others became extremely solemn. The over a hundred clusters of elixir essence intertwined and fused within the furnace, the process agonizingly slow, and no one dared to be negligent.

Time in the hall seemed to drag on endlessly.

Sweat beaded on many foreheads, and the observing elders held their breath in tension.

"Fuse!"

After some time, Ye Chen softly commanded.

Instantly, the Yin Yang Bagua diagram radiated divine light, and the Dan Zu Shen Furnace hummed, with the elixir essences inside fusing into one in an instant. It shimmered with flowing light, essence overflowing, and powerful energy leaking out, captivating all who saw it.

Has it succeeded?

The observing elders stared intently at the Dan Zu Shen Furnace.

Through the furnace, they saw a purple pill taking initial shape, surrounded by phenomena, with patterns etching themselves one by one. Each pattern was strikingly vivid.

In this heart-pounding moment, everyone held their breath, watching the purple pill gradually become more rounded.

The six-pattern Tian Ji Dan seemed on the verge of completion.

However, just as everyone's emotions surged, the Dan Zu Shen Furnace hummed and trembled, and the nascent pill became unstable, breaking apart into clusters of fingernail-sized elixir essence.

Buzz!

With a dull hum from the Dan Zu Shen Furnace, those clusters of elixir essence turned to ash on the spot.

Pfft! Pfft! Pfft!

Ye Chen and the others immediately spat blood and were shaken back a step by the furnace's vibration.

Seeing this, the observing elders rushed forward.

The Yin Yang Bagua diagram faded, and Ye Chen and the others looked pale.

Ye Chen, in particular, suffered the strongest backlash from using Soul Flame; even with his powerful soul force, he sustained significant damage. His mind buzzed as if splitting apart, and his soul power was utterly depleted.

"Where did we go wrong?" Dan Yi said, his emotions running high. Everything had gone smoothly beyond expectations, yet an accident occurred at the final moment, which he found hard to accept.

"What a pity to fail at the last step," a white-haired elder clenched his fist, full of reluctance.

"Could the Dan Fang be incorrect?"

"What caused this?" Dan Chen, though reluctant, remained relatively composed and looked toward Ye Chen.