Chapter 543: 543: Soul Blood Refining Pill Skill
Each character carries power, but only by comprehending these ancient characters can one unleash their power.
Through a fortuitous incident, Zhang Wenxuan got hold of a fragmented manuscript left by the Ancient Pill Tao predecessors. Although it didn’t contain any ancient Pill Formula records or Alchemy techniques, the text alone had already benefited him enormously.
At this moment, Fang Lin had surprisingly also formed ancient Alchemy Tao characters. Even though it was only ten characters, they were far more profound and stunning than his eighteen characters.
The ten flaming ancient characters brought an indescribable yet thrilling breath, and they headed straight for Zhang Wenxuan.
Zhang Wenxuan’s eighteen flaming ancient characters immediately crumbled, melting completely like snow exposed to blazing fire.
“No!” Zhang Wenxuan exclaimed, but immediately he saw the incoming ten flaming ancient characters, which were about to land on his Pill Furnace.
At this instant, Zhang Wenxuan had no regard for anything else. If this batch of Pills were to be ruined, he’d be utterly destroyed.
Without any hesitation, Zhang Wenxuan even used his body to block those ten flaming ancient characters.
“This is bad!” Chen Yongnian secretly exclaimed. The power of Fang Lin’s ten flaming ancient characters was tremendous. If Zhang Wenxuan blocked them, he would undoubtedly suffer a significant blow.
But by this time, Zhang Wenxuan had indeed gone mad, entirely oblivious to the danger. He was only intent on protecting his batch of Pills.
Just as everyone thought Zhang Wenxuan would suffer misfortune, Fang Lin suddenly withdrew, and the ten flaming ancient characters vanished at once.
“Ah, why strive so hard in Pill Refining.” Fang Lin’s voice echoed, carrying a hint of jest.
Zhang Wenxuan’s face alternated between green and white. He knew that Fang Lin had deliberately stopped. Despite escaping disaster, Zhang Wenxuan’s mood grew worse, even feeling humiliated.
The crowd had peculiar expressions, especially the Co-King and the other four, who looked at Fang Lin with astonishment.
“This young lad is truly remarkable!” The Co-King muttered, but his brows furrowed.
“The outcome of this contest is uncertain,” said the middle-aged man from Heavenly Sword Mountain, his voice still calm and his expression indifferent.
Gongsun Cheng and the middle-aged woman remained silent, but Dream Falling Flower looked at Fang Lin with a smiling face, quite admiringly.
“You did not disappoint me indeed. If you win, I might give you a kiss.” Dream Falling Flower made this audacious declaration, caught the attention of those present. Many young Pill Refiners gazed at Fang Lin enviously. A kiss from such a beauty was a thing to wake up laughing from even in dreams.
Fang Lin immediately displayed a lovelorn expression, “Kiss where?”
Everyone was dumbfounded. Mo Ziming wished he could rush up to Fang Lin and urge him to focus on Pill Refining, not allowing these ridiculous thoughts to distract him.
Dream Falling Flower giggled, her abundant chest vibrating with her laughter: “As long as you win, where you get a kiss is up for grabs.”
Her words stirred up the men present. Dream Falling Flower’s enchanting aura, coupled with her teasing tone, was simply irresistible.
Fang Lin’s face reddened slightly, “Perhaps not, I lack self-control.”
Zhang Wenxuan felt extremely awkward standing there, close to exploding.
What the hell? You haven’t won yet! Can’t you show me some respect?
“Fang Lin! I admit you’re strong, but I swear I’ll win this contest!” Zhang Wenxuan yelled angrily.
Fang Lin looked at him calmly, “Sorry, but you can’t win.”
Zhang Wenxuan was so furious he felt like spitting blood, and his eyes revealed a savage look.
Zhang Wenxuan pulled out a dagger, made a cut on his forehead, and blood immediately began to flow.
“What’s he doing? He doesn’t need to self-harm even if he can’t win,” an astonished Fang Lin said.
Everyone present also changed their expressions. Zhang Wenxuan’s behavior was bizarre. Why resort to self-harm when refining a pill?
Only Qi Sanxuan understood what was going on, a cold smile spreading across his face.
“Using this move, there’s no way Fang Lin can turn the tide of the match,” Qi Sanxuan muttered to himself.
Zhang Wenxuan had a wound on his forehead, blood covering his face, making him appear extremely sinister and terrifying.
The next moment, Zhang Wenxuan smeared his blood on the Pill Furnace and wrote down several bloody characters.
Upon seeing this, Fang Lin’s brows slightly furrowed. Zhang Wenxuan knew Soul Blood Pill Refining Skill, which surprised him.
Soul Blood Pill Refining Skill had been around since ancient times and had once flourished, driving many Pill Refiners into obsession and frenzy.
However, these Pill Refiners soon discovered that while Soul Blood Refining Pill Skill could substantially enhance the quality of Pills, it severely damaged the Pill Refiner itself.
The price of this Alchemy Technique was to consume the Pill Refiner’s essence and soul, incorporating them into the Pills.
You might not notice the toll it took after one or two times, but too many instances would quickly lead to exhaustion of one’s energy and blood, soul weakening, and even a significant reduction in lifespan.
Moreover, the Pills refined using this method, while mostly effective, were beginning to show some side effects.
Hence, the once-prodigious Soul Blood Pill Refining Skill faced resistance, gradually disappearing from view, and Alchemy was back on the right track again.
Fang Lin had witnessed this refinement method in his former life, during the last days of the existence of Soul Blood Refining Pill Skill.
In Fang Lin’s opinion, this refinement method was simply nonsensical, without any worth, and he utterly despised it.
This Zhang Wenxuan was performing an ancient Soul Blood Pill Refining Skill. However, it seemed that his knowledge was incomplete as he knew only the blood method and not the soul method.
Nevertheless, refining Pills by sacrificing a Pill Refiner’s vital energy still had great disadvantages. Without the completion provided by the soul method, the Pills produced solely with the blood method were very likely to have side effects.
“This appears to be an extremely ancient refinement technique. I read about it once in an ancient book, but the book wasn’t very clear. It seems that this method is too old, belonging to the Forbidden Techniques,” Chen Yongnian frowned and said.
Zhang Wenxuan, with a grim face covered in blood, smeared his essence blood over the Pill Furnace, inscribing seven characters, or to be more precise, seven cryptic signs. Only those who understood the Soul Blood Refining Pill Skill could comprehend the meaning of these seven characters.
“Fang Lin, you can’t beat me! I, Zhang Wenxuan, am the top genius of Xuan Country’s Pill Alliance! You are just an ant from the Lower Three Kingdoms, completely unqualified to stand shoulder to shoulder with me!” Zhang Wenxuan roared with manic laughter.