Chapter 556
A head peeked over his shoulder, staring curiously at the records in his hand...
Zhao Jingfan covered his forehead with his hand from behind.
Weren't you just dismissing these records earlier?
Zheng Fa turned to Elder Xiong, who looked a bit embarrassed but still spoke up:
“How did you... get this done so quickly?”
Although Madam Xuanhua's test results were not yet out, as a master of alchemy, Elder Xiong had formed his own judgment. Now, he was putting aside his pride to seek advice from Zheng Fa.
“By relying on these.”
Zheng Fa's attitude remained unchanged. To be honest, he believed that the success of the elixir had about seventy to eighty percent to do with Elder Xiong.
Without the detailed formula and hundreds of experimental data that the other party had initially drafted, how could Zheng Fa and the others have come up with their ideas and data?
Moreover, there was a bit of luck involved this time.
Not to mention, alchemy using water methods might not be as simple as it seems.
The solution can’t just be extracted and distilled; in terms of chemistry without spiritual energy, there are many reactions that occur in liquids...
In Zheng Fa's view, alchemy is a unique feature of this world, and to develop it, one must absorb the talents of traditional alchemists.
Their greatest advantage now lies in summarizing and transforming.
He handed the experimental records to Elder Xiong, who paused, seemingly surprised by Zheng Fa's generosity. He said nothing, only lowered his head to read.
The more he read, the more furrowed his brow became, as if he couldn't comprehend something.
“Raw materials, environment...”
He murmured, pondering these words. After a long pause, he suddenly asked:
“What about the secret methods of alchemy?”
“Where do the secret methods of alchemy fit into this?”
“This... where does it leave the alchemy I learned before?”
A hint of fear crossed his face.
Zheng Fa looked at Elder Xiong, who returned his gaze, seemingly seeking an answer.
“There are no secret methods.”
“...Huh?”
“Alchemy may have techniques that need to be kept confidential, but there shouldn't be any secret methods that lack an understanding of their principles.”
Elder Xiong stood before Zheng Fa, looking at the leader of the Hundred Immortals Alliance.
In recent days, Zheng Fa had been very accommodating, even appearing a bit too easygoing.
But at this moment, those words made Elder Xiong suddenly see the sharpness in Zheng Fa's heart—
He does not compete with others, yet he desires to overturn the entire alchemical system with a new, terrifying idea.
The traditional Xuanwei alchemy actually contains many techniques that are not explicitly stated or even difficult to articulate.
What they cared about was what spells to use for the first step...
What spells to use for the second step...
The spiritual herbs combined with secret methods are the two most important parts of alchemy.
But what Zheng Fa wanted was different—
He was more focused on the environment; the experimental report discussed parameters.
What kind of reactions would one or several spiritual herbs undergo in a certain environment?
His previous understanding of alchemy emphasized knowing the facts.
What Zheng Fa sought was to understand the reasons behind them.
Secret methods were merely a means to control the environment.
He could even envision that as long as the measurements of the environment were more precise, he could analyze any kind of elixir.
Without secret methods, one could create secret methods.
With secret methods, one could improve them based on experimental data.
Whether this approach was feasible...
Elder Xiong looked out the door.
For the first time in his life, he hoped his intuition wouldn’t be so sharp.
...
“Master! Madam Xuanhua says the elixir's potency is extremely strong!” A disciple shouted before even entering the room, as if delivering good news. “The project team for the 'Golden Elixir Project' has already begun verifying the Yin and Five Elements aspects of the 'Nine Mountains Golden Elixir Method'!”
It worked!
Though everyone had a premonition, the alchemy chamber was filled with joy.
Except for Elder Xiong.
He watched the joyful laughter of the Nine Mountains disciples and then glanced at the experimental report in Zheng Fa's hands, his shoulders gradually slumping.
In his heart, what was crumbling was the alchemy he had studied and researched for a lifetime.
Though it was just the beginning, he could already see Zheng Fa sharpening his knives, seemingly ready to dismantle the alchemy system that had taken him thousands of years to build, cutting off the path for these traditional alchemists.
“Elder Xiong...”
“Hmm.”
Hearing Zheng Fa's voice, Elder Xiong replied somewhat dazedly.
“Can you help us?”
“Ah?”
Elder Xiong's eyes flickered, finally noticing Zheng Fa standing in front of him with a smile, pointing at the alchemy furnace:
“In my opinion, this elixir still has room for improvement...”
“After all, Elder Xiong, you are a Nascent Soul alchemist, with skills and techniques that surpass those of my Nine Mountains disciples.”
“...With your help, the quality of this elixir will likely improve even further.”
Elder Xiong blinked, understanding Zheng Fa's implication:
“Don’t worry, you still have value. Do you want to learn?”
His heart felt a weight lift:
“So I’m the tool, huh?”
Well, that’s fine then!
...
While Zheng Fa and the others were still conducting experiments on Gongkai Island, the mundane affairs of the Nine Mountains realm fell entirely on Sister Zhang's shoulders.
The most important thing now was to establish a technical alliance.
Or rather, to form various guilds.
Among them, the most crucial were the guilds for alchemists, talismans, artifact refiners, and formation masters.
This was the most important and thriving four arts in the world of cultivation.
On University Island, meetings for the establishment of the four major guilds were held one after another.
The talisman guild goes without saying; the Nine Mountains Sect has an advantage in talisman arts. Not to mention the Hundred Immortals Alliance, even among the Six Sects, they could at least claim to be on par.
The talisman guild could be described as a platform for Nine Mountains disciples to engage in grand discussions while other lesser sects merely applauded.
As for the formation masters... that was too advanced; the Hundred Immortals Alliance had very few, and none had shown up.
To even mention a guild would be self-deprecating, so they simply didn’t.
The artifact refiners, due to the lack of participation from the Heavy Xuan Sect, were essentially supported by Madam Xuanhua, along with some foundational sects. They were neither strong nor weak, but there were no major conflicts, and the regulations passed smoothly.
Only the last alchemist alliance had a big player—Qingmu Sect.
Before the preparatory meeting, a dozen or so leaders and elders from various alchemist sects suddenly flooded into the guest room of Qingmu Sect.
Sect Leader Song looked at the crowd in surprise and asked, “What brings you all here?”
The leaders produced a soundproof artifact, isolating them from external scrutiny.
Sect Leader Song twitched his mouth, feeling that this group was naive; what in the Nine Mountains realm could escape Zheng Fa's notice?
But he also guessed what they were up to.
“Leader Song, what do you think of the alchemist guild?”
Someone whispered.
“The meeting hasn’t started yet; I don’t know the specifics. What’s there to think about?”
“How could you not know? The rules of the talisman guild and the artifact refiner guild are practically identical!”
Someone urged.
Sect Leader Song glanced at him, then at the others, and realized: “Do you all have opinions?”
“Opinions... of course we have...”
Someone hesitated to speak.
“The Nine Mountains Sect is currently the leader of the Hundred Immortals Alliance, and we acknowledge that, but there are some things... he shouldn’t be doing this way.”
“What shouldn’t he be doing?”
“First, talking about compiling teaching materials—doesn’t that mean he wants to take our secret methods to train disciples for the Nine Mountains Sect?”
“...That makes some sense.”
“And what about the patent rights? Why only fifty years... After fifty years, our secret methods will all be made public?”
Sect Leader Song nodded again.
“And what about journals, unified procurement...”
“Not to mention...”
“If this continues, in less than a hundred years, our sect’s alchemist legacy will probably all belong to the Nine Mountains Sect!”
After hearing this, Sect Leader Song nodded repeatedly.
He seemed to agree wholeheartedly.
The truth was, while the guilds appeared insignificant, the leaders of the Hundred Immortals Alliance were not fools...
In the past, they controlled the inheritance of alchemists, managed the quantity, price, and quality of elixirs on the market.
Now, however, there was a guild.
Once the guild had its own teaching materials, its own training system, and even its own customers and sources of herbs...
What need would there be for their sects to exist?
Or rather, the guild would inevitably become the largest alchemist sect directly managed by the Nine Mountains Sect.
Sect Leader Song had thought of this long ago...
His initial agreement was mainly because Qingmu Sect was in dire straits, and the benefits of the guild were a significant portion of what Qingmu Sect could gain.
But these leaders were not of the same mind.
They could see the essence of the guild, and since they felt they wouldn’t gain any benefits, they were naturally reluctant.
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