It was unavoidable. And honestly speaking, it was an expected response from backwater people like Nick and Shen Mi Kang.

After all, it was recently that the two were exposed to matters related to Innate Spirit and cultivation. Hence, it is natural for them to respond this way to Gu Yong Cheng's words.

Still, Nick's expression amused Gu Yong Cheng. If this didn't happen before, he would have thought Nick had difficulty expressing himself emotionally.

"Hahaha... Magical aside, do you think that refining the Mysterious Yuan Pill was an easy process?" Gu Yong Cheng chuckled at Nick's amateurish response. It wasn't weird to see how Nick came up with that assumption.

"Is it difficult to refine a Mysterious Yuan Pill?" Nick continued. He wasn't sure of how alchemy works in this world. But it should not be too different from how it was described in those Xianxia and Xuanhuan novels he had read before.

Even if a few fundamentals are different from the ones he knew, their concept should be similar.

"En." Gu Yong Cheng nodded at Nick's words before continuing.

"The complex refinement method can be compensated by continuous practices, but the problem is how troublesome it was to collect the necessary ingredients." Gu Yong Cheng said with a hint of sigh in his tone.

"Also, if the Mysterious Yuan Pill was so easy to refine, won't the market be flooded with them?" he added. This last sentence of his further emphasizes the pill's rarity.

The last sentence made Nick and Shen Mi Kang ponder quietly and allowed the waiter to serve their ordered dishes. After ensuring nothing else was left behind, the restaurant staff left quietly.

Apparently, the waiter and waitress's professionalism was at the level above Nick's restaurant. Even Nick was awed by how fluid and quickly food and drinks were served before leaving the table.

"We should eat first before we continue." Gu Yong Cheng said and used the chopsticks in his hand to pick a few pieces of meat dishes into Nick and Shen Mi Kang's bowl.

The meal went on quietly. As the restaurant was a proper establishment, their food naturally came adequately flavored, unlike the staff meals back in Golden Expanse House's Canteen.

"Even I would have a hard time getting my hand on the Mysterious Yuan Pills," said Gu Yong Cheng after he flushed the lingering flavors past his throat. Since they had finished the meal, it was naturally time to continue their talk.

"Is that why you're publishing a request to collect the Mysterious-Qi Herb?" Shen Mi Kang asked. His guess wasn't wrong, but it was too shallow to say he guessed correctly.

"Yes, but that's just a part of the reason." Gu Yong Cheng nodded. "I am trying to build a friendly relationship with a reliable alchemist and sponsor him. In return, he will refine the Mysterious Yuan Pill using the ingredients I provide," he added.

"Again, that's just an option. After all, who wanted to go through such a lengthy process, from collecting the ingredients to refining the pill?" Gu Yong Cheng said.

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His words actually make sense. If there's enough finished product in stock, why would one work hard for a month for the Mysterious Yuan Pill to be refined?

But this was the second fastest way after buying the finished product.

Furthermore, there's a benefit to the second option, as it allows the requester and alchemist to get closer. After all, an alchemist would be useless if nobody required their service and sponsored them with the ingredients necessary to refine pills.

The same can also be said for the requester. Without a reliable alchemist, it would be pointless for them to amass all the ingredients since they had an expiry date on them.

Their conversation continued. But with the food finished and neither of them was drinking, the talk ended prematurely when everyone felt it was time to leave. And before leaving, Gu Yong Cheng stuffed a pouch into Nick's hand as a gesture of his goodwill.

"There are three Yuan Qi Turquoise Fruits inside the bag. I will be waiting for one day you're good enough to take on the missions requiring you to go out of this Nanyao City." Gu Yong Cheng whispered beside Nick's ear before leaving.

"Chengzi will make sure to not disappoint big brother Gu's expectations!" Nick said and cupped his fists while looking at Gu Yong Cheng leaving.

"Your big brother Gu is quite nice to you. No wonder you put so much effort in repaying him for his kindness." Shen Mi Kang elbowed Nick after Gu Yong Cheng could no longer be seen.

"Naturally." Nick smiled in his reply.

The two walked side by side until they returned to the Golden Expanse House. As the time wasn't early, they went straight to their room and rested.

...

...

...

"How are you doing, Training Alchemist Yuwen?" Gu Yong Cheng immediately greeted an individual after entering the room filled with medicinal herbs, pill cauldrons, and cabinets.

Surnamed "Yuwen," this person was one of the few candidates with good alchemy potential in the Gu Punitive Army. But unlike Gu Yong Cheng, Training Alchemist Yuwen's allegiance was with the Gu Family, not the Punitive Army.

This means his status was slightly above Gu Yong Cheng, even without the surname "Gu" in his name.

After all, people with his talent are rare in this Nanyao City. At most, only two hundred or so people with alchemic talent exist.

"Not bad. Are you here to order the Mysterious Yuan Pill?" the Training Alchemist, Yuwen Ping, said. He was a youngster in his early twenties, with short black hair, and dressed in a green robe with golden embroideries around the sleeve and collar.

He would give out the impression he was squinting at another person whenever he tried to look around. He would have started refining a pot of pills if Gu Yong Cheng had come in a few minutes later.

"Yes. There are five sets of ingredients here, would you like to check?" Gu Yong Cheng placed the ingredient on the table.

"Hmm... Hmm..." Training Alchemist Yuwen mumbled while looking at the ingredients Gu Yong Cheng brought. Although it was called a set, there are only two kinds of Medicinal Herbs here.

One was the Mysterious-Qi Herb, which appeared to have a verdant outer layer and purplish stem. The other one was Blood Eye Catalyst Fruit. This common ingredient could increase the success rate and yield when refining the Mysterious Yuan Pill.

A cauldron of pills would require two stalks of Mysterious-Qi Herbs and five Blood Eye Catalyst Fruits for it to be considered a complete set. And the yield would usually be around two to five Mysterious Yuan Pills, depending on how excellent the ingredient provided.

"Well... I know you already know about this, but the price for my pill-refinement service will be half of what was produced. And there won't be any compensation if the refinement was a failure. Do you agree with this condition?" Yuwen Ping asked.

Although this step was repetitive, it has to be mentioned repeatedly to ensure no dispute after that.

"Yes, Training Alchemist Yuwen. You may proceed whenever you're ready." Gu Yong Cheng nodded in response. He naturally knew about this because this was not his first time asking for the service.

But this was his third time using Training Alchemist Yuwen's service. The two previous attempts were not great but somewhat acceptable.

"Alright. Five sets of Mysterious Yuan Pills. Please wait at a side while I refine them into pills for you." Yuwen Ping said.