Starting from the Greyhound, seventy-two changes.

Chapter 99 Monster

The sun was rising. After a busy night, coupled with the temperature of the alchemy furnace, even though it was winter, Chen Ku felt a little dehydrated due to the heat.

But the alchemy furnace that has been burning all night is about to be opened and the results can be seen.

He is still in a good mood.

"Turn on the furnace."

Shang Yunfang looked at Chen Ku expectantly:
"Let's see how many pills you can make this time?"

Chen Ku nodded.

Shang Yunfang also stood up.

The two men went up the steps on both sides of the huge alchemy furnace. Chen Ku put on gloves and picked up the lid of the alchemy furnace, which was as big as a manhole cover.

Both of them looked down at the same time.

I saw that in the internal structure of Danlu, there were many grooves, and in one of the grooves, there was a blood-red pill, rolling...

when.

Finally, it fell into the alchemy plate in the middle of the alchemy furnace.

Looking at the pill plate again, except for this one, the rest were all charred ashes.

"One?"

Chen Ku looked at Shang Yunfang:
"There is only one... Master, is this good or bad?"

Shang Yunfang couldn't help but fall silent.

Without saying a word, he first used something to pick up the pill plate, and then picked up the newly-made Seven Blood Pill with his hands and sniffed it.

After a moment's silence, he said:

"It's of average quality, but considering that this is your first time refining an elixir, it's already very good to be able to produce a pill of this quality."

Chen Ku shook his head and said:
"Master, please don't give me an excuse. One Seven Blood Pill costs more than one hundred taels of silver, and the ten raw materials alone cost this much, not to mention the consumption of fire essence when starting the furnace... I only made one pill when I started the furnace... It's obviously a loss-making business."

Shang Yunfang looked at Chen Ku, without rebutting, and asked:
"Do you know what the problem is?"

Chen thought hard.

The ratio is ok.

He deliberately acquired the vision of a golden-eyed eagle, the mental concentration of a spirit-e, and the fine sense of smell of a marten...

Even Master Shang said it was the golden ratio of ten.

This is the level of an experienced pharmacist who has been dispensing medicines for many years.

But among the pills, only one was of medium quality, and the others turned to ashes. It seemed that the fire was too big.

"Fire, disciple didn't control the fire well."

Chen sighed bitterly.

"Yes, it's a matter of temperature. The recipe is fine, but it's the person who controls the temperature. Even if you have a teacher to teach you, when it comes to alchemy... if the temperature is a little off, the changes in the furnace will be a world of difference."

Shang Yunfang looked at Chen Ku with some disappointment and said:
"This is the first time you refine an elixir. It's just that both your master and you have high hopes for your first time. After all, your performance in other aspects is so amazing. Your master instinctively expects that you will have the same amazing talent in refining elixirs."

"Now it seems that you do have a talent for alchemy. You were able to produce a pill in your first attempt. This is already better than half of the pharmacists who want to become alchemists. Next, all you have to do is practice more..."

Shang Yunfang said seriously:

"Fire control experience is gained through practice, do you understand?"

Chen Ku nodded.

To be honest, after some reflection, he felt that he had set his expectations too high.

After all, he was not a genius, and the fact that he was able to mix medicine with the golden ratio was due to his support in other aspects.

But it depends on the temperature.

He didn't have any special talents, but he was lucky enough to produce a Seven Blood Pill of medium quality, as he didn't waste the ten parts of gold-ratio raw materials.

"The temperature... the temperature..." Chen Ku murmured.

Shang Yunfang saw this and said slowly:
"Fire is the root of the elixir. In fact, it is said in the hall that the reason why the founder was able to refine the sixth-grade Five Elements Great Huandan was because he practiced a martial art that could 'control fire'. But this is actually speculation and rumors a hundred years later. Is it true... Is there really a martial art that can control fire in the martial arts world? At least... I haven't heard of it yet."

"Fire control?"

Chen thought hard.

"Okay, we've been busy all night, go back and rest, and just practice more."

Shang Yunfang was also a little sleepy.

However, Chen Ku could clearly hear some sadness in Master Shang's tone.

"Disciple takes leave."

Send Chen Ku away.

Shang Yunfang turned and looked at the alchemy furnace, helpless:
"As expected, there is no such thing as perfection in the world. The child has such a superb physique and martial arts talent, which is already good enough. As for alchemy... it's okay if it's a little bit worse. We can't let him take care of everything in the future."

…………

Chen Ku returned to his home.

Also thinking.

"Alchemy! I must find a way to increase my success rate in making pills!"

He was determined:
"Otherwise, how much money will I lose if I eat one precious herb?"

One precious herb can produce at least ten pills.

Same price, ten times the profit.

How can you not learn how to make alchemy?

"fire Fire……"

Chen Ku murmured:

"Is there no such thing as strange fire in this world?"

Then I thought about it.

If there really is such a thing, what level of evil spirit would he need to suppress it? I'm afraid he would be burned to ashes before he can suppress it.

"Then...are there any demons related to fire?"

When it comes to all kinds of strange and bizarre abilities, of course the most abilities are possessed by the monsters of all shapes and sizes that may have evolved from countless races in the wild nature.

After all, in previous lives, there were common animals called "electric eels" that could discharge electricity.

In today's world, not to mention the possibility of monsters related to fire.

"There should be."

Lying in bed thinking, I began to feel sleepy after not sleeping the whole night.

Go to sleep first and talk when you wake up.

I slept until late in the afternoon.

Chen Ku had dinner at home and began to find more feasibility for this idea before going to bed.

Remember it slowly.

"Brother Jiang's family is well-educated. There is a Tongwen Hall with a collection of thousands of books. There are many books on literature, calligraphy and painting. Why don't we go and ask him if he has any knowledge about demons?"

Jiang Shaoyou has now broken through his internal energy.

Then he left the Medicine King Hall.

This was a secret agreement between his family and Yaowangtang.

It is enough to cultivate internal energy with the basic martial arts of Yaowang Hall. It is unlikely that Yaowang Hall will continue to teach more advanced ones.

When I walked out of Yaowang Hall, there was no stove outside.

The weather is cold. In winter, pedestrians on the street hunch their necks and are blown by the cold wind, looking like big quails.

Fortunately, Chen Ku also has a spotted marten, whose fur has the ability to resist cold inherited from the greyhound. Especially after transforming into a spotted marten, its ability to resist cold has become even stronger.

A quarter of an hour later.

This was the first time that Chen Ku came to this street of cultural relics, calligraphy and paintings, and he went to Tongwenguan to explain his purpose.

After a while, a waiter from Tongwenguan brought him hot tea.

Then, Jiang Shaoyou came over excitedly wearing mink earmuffs and a scarf:

"Junior brother? How come you have time to come and see me?"

"I have something to bother you, senior brother. To be honest, I'm trying to learn how to make pills using the flesh and blood of demons from my master recently. There are many demons I'm not familiar with... so I thought of coming to you to ask if there are any books or picture albums about demons. I can also learn more about their habits and gain some basic knowledge of pharmacology." Chen Ku said half-truthfully.

"You were taught the recipe for the elixir?"

Jiang Shaoyou was stunned at first, then suddenly realized:
"Makes sense. If not you, who else can I teach you? However, if you want to learn more about monsters, you have finally come to the right place. My Tongwenguan happens to have a copy of the "Treasure Dragon Monster Atlas" and a "Qiulong Monster List" that were published two years ago. Even some monsters from the foreign Yuan Kingdom are included in these two books. The Monster Atlas was published by the people of the Yulong Club in this county and our Tongwenguan, and the Exotic Beast List was published by the Qiulong Mansion. It records the rankings of some powerful monsters and exotic beasts in the Qiulong Mansion. We have them in the store. Wait, I'll bring them to you right away."

After Jiang Shaoyou finished speaking, he stood up and walked to the rows of large bookshelves in Tongwenguan and took out two books.

"Oh? There are two?"

Chen Ku curiously opened the "Illustrated Book of Treasure Dragons and Demons". After opening it, he saw that although the illustrations inside were not as wonderful as the color paintings in his previous life, the shapes outlined in ink and wash were also very lifelike.

After a quick look, he found the monsters he had killed, as well as the original monster materials in the Medicine King Hall, such as the golden-eyed white jade sculpture, the iron-horned deer, the blue-feathered eagle...

Then, he looked through the Qionglong Monster List.

Even more surprised.

This book is even clearer than the Demon Atlas, and it ranks various demons and strange beasts into a hundred categories from all aspects.

Such as:

The Great Monster List, the Strange Beast List, the Spirit Monster List...

Among them, the Great Demon List ranks the 100 most powerful demons in Qiulong Prefecture. They are basically great demons above the fifth or sixth realm. They have all been encountered by human masters but failed to be resolved...so they are on the list.

The list of strange beasts refers to monsters and beasts with strange abilities, such as bait rats...

And the bear's stomach can be used as a storage bag.

Some of these strange beasts may not have powerful magical powers, but sometimes their special abilities are rare in the world and are innate talents they are born with.

For example, Chen Ku casually flipped through the list and saw that the 100th ranked beast was a bird called "Lingxi".

They are in perfect harmony, just like parrots, and can speak human language. They are a perfect match made in heaven. When people separate them, even if they are thousands of miles apart, what the male bird says can be completely repeated by the female bird.

Ranked first on the list of strange beasts is a strange beast called the "Nine-Colored Butterfly". It is said that if someone can see it, it can pull people into its dreams and enable people to see the future in their dreams.

“Seeing the future…are there really such magical butterflies?”

However, Chen Ku noticed that this Nine-Colored Butterfly, which ranked first on the list of strange beasts, seemed to have not been seen by anyone for hundreds or thousands of years, according to the description above.

It only exists in classics and legends.

Chen Ku looked through the list of monsters again.

This list completely shocked him.

There were no animals or wild beasts inside, but all kinds of messy things.

Tables, bench legs, copper kettles, bells, stones, pictures, brushes, lanterns, and even silver...

Their names are such as house spirit, silver spirit, tree spirit, flower spirit, stone talisman, mud ghost, ginseng doll, and willow spirit.

Chen Ku saw a note next to this list.

Abnormal objects are called monsters, and those that cultivate into spirits are called spirit monsters.

Chen Ku looked at the ranking list and couldn't help but ask Jiang Shaoyou:
"Is this world so wonderful? Why have I never heard of these monsters and such?"

"Don't talk about you. I haven't met one either. I've only met monsters."

Jiang Shaoyou said:
"When I was a kid, I read these as stories, but my elders said that spirits are much rarer than monsters. What is a spirit? It means being smart and clever, almost like a human, and having wisdom. Only then can it be called a spirit."

"How rare is it to have the same wisdom as humans? After all, even the fifth, sixth, and seventh level great demons, unless they are of a special race, are not very intelligent. They are just larger demonic beasts, not comparable to humans."

Chen Ku nodded upon hearing this.

But in fact, I am very interested in these monsters, because the abilities and skills of these monsters on the monster list are so interesting.

Since this list of monsters came from Qiulong Mansion, then perhaps when I leave Baojiao County and reach the vast territory of Qiulong Mansion, where it becomes more popular, I might be able to meet him?
Then, Chen Ku had a brief chat with Jiang Shaoyou.

Two books, no money required, no need to be polite, Jiang Shaoyou just gave them to him.

After Chen Ku returned home, he spent the whole day looking through the two books. Finally, he found several strange beasts, monsters and demons related to fire in the two books.

The strange beast is a kind of monkey called "Fire-Hating Ape" in the strange beast list. It can eat charcoal and breathe fire, and eat red-hot charcoal as food.

There are two spirits. One is called the wick spirit, which is the wick in the oil lamp that somehow became a spirit. The other is called the underground fire spirit, which is simply a ball of conscious underground fire magma.

Finally, Chen Ku found three demons related to fire.

Two types are within the territory of Ji State.

One is called the Fire Horse, with a mane of burning flames from its head to its tail and all four limbs. It is a naturally powerful demon, with extremely hard hooves that can crush pig iron with one foot. Even a young horse has the strength of a fourth-level demon.

There is also a kind called firebomb rat, which has explosives in its body. Although it is timid by nature, once the tribe is threatened, the firebomb rats will rush out without hesitation, pounce on the invader, explode the gunpowder in their bodies, and use their lives to protect the tribe.

The last one.

It is a kind of monster that lurks near Huozui Mountain in Ximu Prefecture on the border of the Yuan Kingdom. It looks like a crow and lives in a volcanic cave, usually about one or two feet away from the magma. It absorbs the fire energy of the magma and can spray fire from its mouth.

This monster is called "Volcano Crow". It is similar to an ordinary eagle. Its biggest living habit is that it likes to eat cooked food.

"Ximufu Fire Mouth Mountain... Volcano Wu..."

Chen thought hard that if he could hunt down such a monster, he would be able to improve his control over the temperature.

But this demon is in the Yuan Kingdom.

Just at this time.

The marten turned into a white shadow and came back from outside the yard with a precious grass in its mouth.

And judging from its body shape, its fur is shiny.

It seems that I went out yesterday and had a big meal in the territory of Yuan State.

(End of this chapter)