The Monkey Elder was stunned.
Ye Qiu refined pills ten times, succeeding all ten times.
If the previous one was included, Ye Qiu had refined pills eleven times that day, without a single failure.
Moreover, every single pill Ye Qiu refined was a top-grade earth-level spirit pill.
Not only that, the yield increased each time. It started at seven pills, then rose to eight and nine, and the final batch reached a terrifying ten pills.
Even though the Monkey Elder was a heaven-level alchemist, even if he did not suppress his cultivation, he could not produce ten top-grade earth-level spirit pills in one furnace.
The most crucial point was that Ye Qiu was currently only at the Cave Heaven Extreme Realm.
If he was already this formidable at the Cave Heaven Extreme Realm, then when Ye Qiu broke through to the Nascent Soul Realm or the Spirit Communication Realm, to what heights would his pill-refining skills reach?
The Monkey Elder dared not imagine.
“A genius! A once-in-an-eternity genius!”
The Monkey Elder did not know whether he was trembling from excessive excitement or utter shock.
Likewise, the little white fox and the other elders were utterly astounded.
Ye Qiu’s talent in pill refining had completely overwhelmed them.
The Sheep Elder was the first to recover, saying, “Old Monkey, give me the Profound Spirit Pill.”
This time the Monkey Elder was very straightforward. He took out a wooden box and tossed it to the Sheep Elder. The Sheep Elder opened it, glanced inside, grinned widely, then took a sniff.
“Worthily a top-grade heaven-level spirit pill. It smells even better than Rabbit.”
At that moment, Ye Qiu withdrew his emperor-level anomalous flame, turned back to the Monkey Elder and asked, “Monkey Elder, is my pill-refining success rate acceptable?”
Acceptable? It was simply perverse.
That was what the Monkey Elder thought in his heart, but he remained rather proud and aloof, replying faintly, “Passable.”
“Ye Changsheng, you have passed all the tests.”
“Next, I will teach you my insights into pill refining.”
With that, the Monkey Elder took a book from his sleeve and threw it to Ye Qiu.
Ye Qiu caught it and saw several large characters on the cover:
“Pill Formulas and Secret Medicines”!
The book was written in both human and demon race scripts. The handwriting was extremely neat. It was clear that the Monkey Elder had put great care into writing it.
The Monkey Elder said, “This book contains not only my pill-refining insights accumulated over a thousand years, but also records of some lost pill formulas at the back, including more than a dozen heaven-level spirit pill formulas.”
“Ye Changsheng, remember to return it to me after you finish reading.”
“This book is the only copy.”
“Alright.” Ye Qiu flipped through the pages rapidly, reading ten lines at a glance. Moments later, he handed the book back to the Monkey Elder.
“What do you mean by this?” The Monkey Elder was taken aback.
Ye Qiu said, “Thank you, Monkey Elder. I have finished reading it, and I have memorised all the contents.”
Such remarkable memory?
The Monkey Elder was somewhat surprised. He put the book away and said, “Ye Changsheng, although you have memorised the contents, you must practise diligently in future.”
“Especially those lost heaven-level pill formulas. They are extremely precious. I spent many years searching for them.”
“When your cultivation improves in the future, remember to try practising heaven-level spirit pills.”
Ye Qiu bowed solemnly to the Monkey Elder and said, “Thank you for your guidance, Monkey Elder. I will never forget your great kindness.”
“I am sorry about earlier. I damaged so many of your pill furnaces.”
“When the opportunity arises, I will give you the finest pill furnace.”
The Monkey Elder replied magnanimously, “Do not trouble yourself over that. In my lifetime, to witness a pill-refining genius like you is enough to make my life without regret.”
Hearing this, the little white fox was moved and said, “Monkey Elder, why not take Ye Changsheng as your disciple?”
The Monkey Elder first looked delighted, then glanced at Ye Qiu and sighed, “Reporting to the National Lord, I am afraid… that will not work.”
“Why not?” The little white fox was puzzled.
The Monkey Elder explained, “Brother Ye’s pill-refining talent is unmatched through the ages. His success rate and yield far surpass mine. He is already an earth-level alchemist, which can be considered mastery of the pill dao.”
“When his cultivation rises, refining heaven-level spirit pills will be no difficulty at all. It will not be long before he surpasses me.”
“Whether in talent, comprehension, or any other aspect, I am ashamed to say I am inferior.”
The Monkey Elder smiled bitterly and continued, “Most importantly, I no longer have anything to teach Brother Ye. Everything I know, he already knows. Now he only needs to raise his cultivation.”
Hearing this, the elders present were shocked once again.
“To drain Old Monkey dry so quickly, Brother Ye truly is a heaven-sent prodigy.”
“Brother Ye achieved mastery of the pill dao in just over a month. Such talent is unique in the world.”
“It is still the National Lord who has the keen eye. Brother Ye will surely become the supreme alchemist in the future.”
“…”
The elders praised Ye Qiu endlessly.
The corners of the little white fox’s mouth curved up as she thought to herself, “The person this National Lord has taken a fancy to is naturally no mediocrity.”
Ye Qiu glanced at the Monkey Elder and noticed that after saying those words, he seemed to have aged decades.
He understood that his actions today had not only deeply shocked the Monkey Elder but also dealt him a heavy blow.
After all, the Monkey Elder had immersed himself in the pill dao for over a thousand years and was the strongest alchemist of the demon race. Yet now he had nothing left to teach Ye Qiu. It had to be said that this was a severe blow to the Monkey Elder.
Ye Qiu grew somewhat worried. He feared the Monkey Elder might never recover from this. After thinking for a moment, he made a decision.
“Monkey Elder, thank you for teaching me the art of pill refining. These days studying under you have benefited me immensely.”
“I am someone who repays kindness.”
“I do not have anything good to give you, so I will give you this.”
With that, Ye Qiu handed an ancient tome to the Monkey Elder.
The Monkey Elder looked down and saw two characters on the yellowed cover:
“Pill Book!”
“A pill-refining secret manual?” The Monkey Elder did not reach out to take it, saying, “Brother Ye, I appreciate your kindness, but I already have the ‘Pill Book Secret Key’ and no longer need other pill-refining manuals…”
Before he could finish, Ye Qiu pressed the “Pill Book” into his hands and said, “Monkey Elder, this ‘Pill Book’ was obtained from a saint’s tomb. Please accept it!”
“Something from a saint?” The Monkey Elder grew curious and opened the “Pill Book” to read.
At first, he saw yellow-level spirit pill formulas, and his expression remained unchanged.
Then he saw earth-level spirit pill formulas, and his face stayed calm.
Next came heaven-level spirit pill formulas.
The Monkey Elder’s eyes instantly lit up, because these heaven-level spirit pill formulas were ones he had never seen before. There were fully a hundred of them, recorded in great detail.
When he turned to the final few pages of the “Pill Book”, the Monkey Elder’s breathing quickened.
“Heavens, there are actually eighteen saint pill secret formulas. This, this…”
The Monkey Elder was so excited he could barely speak. Then, suppressing his agitation, he handed the “Pill Book” back to Ye Qiu.
“This item is far too precious. I cannot accept it.”
“Moreover, my pill-refining talent is inferior to yours. Keeping this would be of great help to your own refining.”
“Brother Ye, take it back quickly!”
The Monkey Elder’s actions filled Ye Qiu with admiration. He smiled and said, “Monkey Elder, in our secular world there is a saying: a gift that has been given is like water that has been spilled. There is no taking it back.”
“Since I have already given it to you, you should keep it.”
“If you refuse further, you are not treating me as a brother.”
The Monkey Elder took a deep breath and said, “Brother Ye, I can accept the ‘Pill Book’, but you must promise me one condition.”
“No problem. Let alone one condition, even ten or a hundred I would agree…” Before Ye Qiu could finish speaking, the Monkey Elder suddenly dropped to his knees with a thud in front of Ye Qiu.
