Chapter 99 — The Flame Held
CHAPTER 99
The Flame Held
“Don't open that door,” Shi Feng said.
Gao Yuan’s hand stopped on the latch.
“The charcoal delivery’s here,” Gao Yuan called.
“Leave it outside,” Shi Feng replied.
Gao Yuan lowered the sack carefully. One black lump rolled against the threshold. He caught it with his boot before it knocked the wood again.
The landlord grumbled but withdrew. Inside, the copper furnace held a steady low heat. Shi Feng sat before it with three prepared extracts and an empty tray.
For the first time, he was making a Returning Breath Pill with the qi needed to sustain it properly.
The medicine served Foundation Establishment cultivators recovering spent qi. It wasn't a Golden Core pill and earned no Sky Pavilion Mark. Still, it was a clear step beyond the common recovery pills that kept his earlier business alive.
He knew the formula from Mo Tianheng's devoured spirit. He also knew how the stages should feel. Now his own body could keep the separated medicinal forces stable long enough to try the full process.
That didn't mean he could stop paying attention.
The first extract entered cleanly. Shi Feng guided the second along the furnace's outer curve before bringing it toward the center. His new qi held both without spreading thin.
The difference excited him. He didn't let the excitement move his fingers faster.
When the third extract joined, the mixture grew heavy. Previously, this stage pulled his control apart. Now he could feel where the forces resisted each other and adjust the flow before they broke loose.
The joining began.
A round shape emerged, then collapsed on one side. Shi Feng stopped the fire and lifted the lid. One misshapen lump rested in the bowl.
He examined it, annoyed but not surprised. His qi sustained the process. His final turn closed the shell too soon.
“A hand mistake,” Shi Feng said quietly.
That was better than an impossible realm limit. A hand mistake could be corrected today.
He swallowed the cooled lump to recover its raw herb qi, then reset the fire.
On the next attempt, he delayed the closing turn. The inner medicine settled first, then the shell gathered around it. He let the heat fall slowly instead of opening the furnace as soon as the pill looked round.
Two sound pills emerged.
Shi Feng held one beneath the lamp and split it. The center was even. Its medicinal force remained firmly bound instead of drifting out in a sharp, unstable smell.
He felt pleased enough to laugh.
“About time,” Shi Feng murmured.
Months of remembered expertise finally met qi strong enough to use this simple portion of it. He hadn't become Mo Tianheng overnight. He'd taken one formula from memory and made it work with his own hands.
He swallowed the opened pill and tested the effect after spending some qi on controlled movements. The recovery was stronger and steadier than the common medicine.
It worked.
He made another attempt before calling the session finished. This one produced two sound pills and a cracked third. The crack came from cooling too quickly near the furnace's uneven side.
He marked that spot for the next firing. A better realm didn't repair the copper bowl.
Gao Yuan was waiting when he opened the door. The landlord leaned forward, sniffing the changed medicinal scent.
“New pill?” Gao Yuan asked.
“A practice batch,” Shi Feng replied.
“Expensive?” Gao Yuan asked.
“Would you charge the door more if I said yes?” Shi Feng replied.
Gao Yuan looked offended. “I'm interested in your success,” Gao Yuan said.
“So is your rent,” Shi Feng replied.
The landlord gave up pretending and asked whether the new medicine could be offered to paying customers. Shi Feng said not yet.
He had successful pills, but he wanted several consistent batches before promising anyone a collection date. Selling the first good result as a reliable service would turn practice into an angry queue.
“Others announce a new medicine as soon as they get one pill,” Gao Yuan said.
“Buy from them,” Shi Feng replied.
“I don't need medicine,” Gao Yuan said quickly.
“Then let me work,” Shi Feng said.
Gao Yuan sighed and went back to counting charcoal sacks.
Over the following days, Shi Feng kept his existing commissions and reserved short sessions for the new formula. The common recovery pills became easier to manage with Foundation Establishment qi. He could split his attention between the flame and the binding without either slipping away.
He didn't enlarge every batch at once. Reliable work paid for the practice. Practice would eventually give him better work.
The Returning Breath Pill improved from uncertain pairs to several sound pills per attempt. Some still failed. He studied each failure, consumed the medicine safely, and changed the next attempt where the actual fault lay.
One batch failed because the extract was too thick. Another cracked after a hurried cooling. Those were different mistakes, and he treated them differently.
Mo Tianheng's memories made the answers easier to find. Shi Feng's own fingers learned to avoid needing those answers so often.
At the end of the fifth day, he set two successful batches beside each other. Their strength and binding matched closely.
He smiled. Now he had something worth letting a customer inspect.
Before offering it, he checked how the medicine behaved after storage. One pill stayed in an ordinary sealed bottle for a day. Another stayed in the old ring's clean jar. He opened both and compared their scent, surface, and binding. Neither lost strength in a way that would spoil an honest sale.
He also wrote the intended use clearly. It recovered spent qi for Foundation Establishment cultivators. It didn't promise a breakthrough, heal every internal injury, or turn a Bone Refinement buyer into a higher-realm expert. Those extra claims might bring faster sales. They'd also bring people expecting miracles he never made.
His business needed customers who returned because the medicine worked, not because they wanted their spirit stones back. He put the good samples away and planned a small trial order. A larger promise could wait until the first buyer knew exactly what the pill did.
Duan Li came to inspect the first trial order after Shi Feng had matched two batches. The mid Foundation Establishment escort manager wore a faded burn along his neck and looked unimpressed by the copper furnace.
“My old alchemist raised his price,” Duan Li said.
“Did he improve the medicine?” Shi Feng asked.
“He improved his carriage,” Duan Li said.
Shi Feng nearly laughed. They agreed on eight Returning Breath Pills, with ingredients supplied, a fee for the work and any additional successful pills divided as stated on the slip. Shi Feng tested the sample before promising the collection.
The first commission produced eleven sound pills. Duan Li took his eight, checked their binding and paid without another speech about the furnace. Shi Feng kept three and the usable failures. The medicine served Foundation Establishment. It earned no Mark and made no claim to do so.
After the customer left, Shi Feng reserved a short session for the Golden Core formula. This time he held its separated extracts longer before the joining failed. He marked the improvement honestly. It was progress, and still not medicine to sell.
He went home before the rice cooled. Ling Qingzhu asked whether the new preparation worked, and he said it did—and as they finished supper, the palace drums sounded from the central ward to announce that tomorrow morning the ten standing names for the Great Kingdom Tournament qualification would be posted on the capital square.