ation, which indicated something.These few onlookers who originally just watched now firmly believed in what they thought and quietly moved to join the queue behind. They reasoned that medical consult...Chapter 769 Grand Nourishing Essence Potion

Although Li Suijun and the others did not understand what a alchemist was, they knew from the demeanor of these deacons that this alchemist must be incredibly formidable. Moreover, judging from their discussions, Xiao Yu now better suited the conditions of modern society than this alchemist.

"Hahaha... Great! Today is such an auspicious day for my Blood Flame Battalion; tonight we won't stop drinking until everyone falls dead drunk!" Upon seeing how excited these deacons were, Li Suijun knew that it was a good thing. So he laughed heartily and said so, and the other old generals also became very excited. Practitioners had always been the weak point of the Blood Flame Battalion, but now not only did one appear among their descendants, this practitioner was even incredibly powerful. Hence these old generals all burst into laughter when they heard Li Suijun's words.

"Little Gu, Little Liang, you two don't leave today either; take a good rest!" After saying so, Li Suijun turned to the first and second chiefs and said, without waiting for them to respond, he also said to Zhang Dahan: "Dahan, go get all of my stored alcohol; we're going to reward everyone tonight!"

"Yes, Master!" Upon hearing Li Suijun's words, Zhang Dahan responded with great excitement. Seeing his third brother succeed, he was extremely happy in his heart.

"Dahan, come on, I'll go with you!"

"Me too..."

Seeing Zhang Dahan about to leave, Song Shanshan and Ye Fei also stood up. They were very excited as well; the more accomplished Xiao Yu became, the happier they would be, finally not disappointing their leader's trust. Although Xiao Yu's growth had nothing much to do with them, it still felt like they could explain things even if they died.

They kept drinking until midnight before the banquet was over. That night, everyone in the Blood Flame Battalion who wasn't on duty was drunk to the point of staggering around; today was the most enjoyable day for these old generals in half a century, so naturally they got thoroughly wasted. Even when leaving, the first and second chiefs were still reeling from their drunkenness.

Of course, this alcohol didn't count for much to Xiao Yu right now. Therefore, by the time the banquet was over, he was the only sober person left.

The next day, Xiao Yu and Wang Xiong from their respective families called to discuss the possibility of forming an alliance. However, these people's clans were very large, so they all needed time to deliberate.

In the afternoon, they returned Xiao Yu's call, agreeing to form an alliance. They weren't foolish; with great sects now emerging, if they didn’t join forces, they could only rely on these major sects for survival. Moreover, one mountain cannot accommodate two tigers—without support from these powerful sects, their clans would undoubtedly face suppression. In the absence of the major sects, their clans were top-tier entities, but now that the major sects have emerged after over a hundred years, who could say how formidable they truly are

Though they couldn't gauge the strength of these major sects, even a starved camel is larger than a horse; they knew they would be insufficiently prepared against such powerful entities.

Thus, forming an alliance with the state became their only option. Xiao Yu was already at the peak of Condensation despite his young age, and behind him stood the nation's might. The major sects could hardly fathom the strength of the state after centuries in seclusion, but these clans living in the mundane world knew well that if the state threw caution to the wind, it would still be a match for them! After all, modern society was no longer like ancient times; contemporary technology is incredibly potent.

Of course, such a move came at an enormous cost. As long as these major sects didn't overthrow the state's rule, the nation wouldn’t recklessly take such drastic actions.

Xiao Yu made it clear that their alliance would not interfere with internal clan affairs—it was based on mutual support and assistance. Furthermore, they needed these clans to maintain regional stability.

Originally, the state intended to pacify these families and invited them to serve in the Blood Flame Corps, but this offer was rejected by those in power. As cultivators, how could they submit to control from a secular nation It was precisely because of this that the current batch of patron gods were recruited.

Now that these major sects have emerged, their superlative status can no longer be maintained. Therefore, when Xiao Yu proposed an alliance, they agreed, as the state previously lacked cultivation strength, but now with Xiao Yu's rapid rise and his unpredictable future prospects, they chose to align themselves with him over the major sects.

In reality, it wasn't necessarily a zero-sum game between the nation and these major sects, but the state couldn’t afford to gamble. To engage in dialogue requires strength, especially within the cultivation realm. That’s why Xiao Yu sought alliances; in the minds of these major sects, there was no concept of a nation. They had endured countless dynastic changes and viewed nations as mere jests, valuing lineage above all.

Upon confirming that representatives from these families would come to discuss the alliance tomorrow, Xiao Yu began making preparations. The most reliable form of an alliance is based on mutual benefit, hard-to-refuse benefits. Therefore, he started preparing for their arrival the next day so as to firmly bind them to the nation’s cause.

Xiao Yu took out one-tenth of the heavenly ingredients he had obtained from the swamp from a jade box in his safe. Indeed, he planned to brew medicine tomorrow to impress these clans.

Originally, just with ordinary herbs, Xiao Yu could still produce medicinal liquid that would benefit even those at the mid or late-stage Qi Condensation Realm greatly. However, to completely tie them down, he had taken out the heavenly ingredients because using these would result in medicinal liquid whose effects lasted longer.

Alchemists were treasured and rarely exposed figures in major sects; they were legendary existences within these clans as well. If Xiao Yu showed even a hint of his prowess in this area, he needn't worry about the clans not submitting to him.

After taking out those heavenly ingredients, Xiao Yu also took over forty auxiliary herbs from his family's pharmacy. With these forty-plus herbs and the heavenly ingredients in his possession, he had exactly forty-nine herbs altogether.

This set of forty-nine herbs was for making Great Nourishing Essence Pills. Since the quality of these auxiliary herbs was only at one or two years old, they couldn't be turned into pills anyway. Also, Xiao Yu didn't have a cauldron suitable for pill-making. Hence, he decided to brew Great Nourishing Essence Liquid.

Great Nourishing Essence Pills were meant for those in the peak Qi Condensation Realm to consume, but due to the quality of the auxiliary herbs, the effects of the Great Nourishing Essence Liquid Xiao Yu would produce would be significantly less effective on those at the peak Qi Condensation Realm. Yet, it was better suited for late-stage Qi Condensers to take since it could fully leverage its benefits.

Of course, as this was liquid medicine, mid-stage cultivators could consume it too, although they wouldn't be able to completely absorb all of the medicinal effects due to their potency.

In addition, the Great Nourishing Essence Liquid had a much diluted potency compared to the Great Nourishing Essence Pill and also had a gentler nature. Thus, it wouldn't cause any harm to the meridians of mid-stage cultivators due to its powerful properties.

After gathering all his herbs in order, Xiao Yu headed towards the Blood Flame Army base where tomorrow’s alliance ceremony would take place.

At five o'clock in the morning, Xiao Yu arrived at a small grove near the meeting room. He found an open space and had some soldiers set up a large pot, filling it with water while a pile of charcoal was placed beside it.

At this time, all the elders had arrived in this small forest. They were very curious about alchemy, but the offering cultivators didn't let them come and also didn't inform them, as Xiao Yu's secret technique was considered top-secret.

Xiao Yu didn't care much about it; if it was that easy to learn, his thousand-year-old Zhong Kui memories would have been in vain. However, although he wasn't concerned, the elders were. The offering cultivators had just joined their ranks and they couldn't take any chances. Moreover, if too many people knew this alchemy technique, its value would decrease.

In a society where everyone schemes against each other and in an unpredictable political arena, these elders have experienced everything. Therefore, apart from their lifelong brothers who they entrusted their lives to, they didn't completely trust anyone else.

They believed that outside of them, there was no absolute loyalty; only interests existed. But once you couldn't provide them with enough benefits or the offered benefits weren't attractive enough, anything could happen.

After the water in the pot started to warm up, Xiao Yu put his finger into it to test the temperature and then began adding two medicinal herbs. After about 20 minutes, he tested the temperature again and added another set of herbs. He continued this process until the water was boiling.

The elders watched as Xiao Yu seemed to have no particular pattern when placing these herbs. They didn't know that after the water boiled, there were strict requirements for the sequence in which the medicinal herbs were added, and the ratios had to be precise. Adding a herb at the wrong time could ruin an entire batch of medicine.

Xiao Yu's full attention was focused on this pot of medicine, not daring to let his guard down for even a moment. Practicing alchemy is just like refining pills; it requires one to immerse their mind entirely in the process. Each herb added to this pot would change its properties differently, and every minute could alter the efficacy of the medicine. Therefore, controlling each second's changes in medicinal properties required extremely high precision.

For instance, a single herb might have completely different effects at nine minutes versus ten minutes; don't underestimate one extra minute, as it can be the difference between good medicine and poison.

To fully understand the properties of medicinal herbs often takes decades of experience. This is why alchemists are rare, especially now when the primordial qi in the world is thin, making cultivators have no time for such endeavors. Even if they could manage it, their cultivation would lag significantly behind. Without sufficient cultivation, there wouldn't be much achievement in alchemy either, thus creating a vicious cycle. For those practicing dual cultivation, this meant there was no way out, as nobody would be like Xiao Yu with Zhong Kui's thousand-year-old memories. (To Be Continued) Police Brigade and they refused to answer, it would lose him face as the mayor. Thus, while the Armed Police Brigade was around, he did not come over to ask but waited until they left before finding...