She smacked her lips. It was neither sweet nor bitter, just slightly refreshing.
The refreshing sensation slowly spread downward until it vanished in her abdomen, feeling quite pleasant.
There were no other changes, much like swallowing a pinch of salt—just that tiny hint of flavor, which vanished so quickly it was hardly worth mentioning.
Lin Wei opened the rigid glowing screen.
Good news.
Her lifespan had gone from twenty-nine days to thirty days.
This proved that taking pills worked.
If three mid-grade pills added one day of lifespan, what about high-grade pills? What about mid-grade pills, high-grade pills, or top-grade pills? How much lifespan could those add?
Pills could increase one's lifespan, but what about eating top-grade spiritual fruits and herbs? How much lifespan would those increase?
Dinner was ready, and Lin Wei slowly sat down to eat.
After eating her fill, Lin Wei didn't feel much like moving around, so she simply sat cross-legged on the bed and tried to run the Qi Condensation cultivation technique.
According to the technique, her first step was to calm her mind and concentrate, then guide the spiritual qi into her body, allowing it to circulate throughout her entire system, and finally gather it into her Dantian.
The surroundings were so quiet that even the drop of a needle on the floor could be heard.
Lin Wei felt a wisp of gas as thin as a hair circling around her body.
This was spiritual qi.
Yet how was she supposed to guide it into her body? Lin Wei had no idea. The moment she grew anxious, her breathing blew the spiritual qi apart...
She had no choice but to quiet her mind once more and wait for the scattered spiritual qi to gather again. Since she could neither touch nor catch it, she could only watch.
The Qi Condensation technique flashed through her mind over and over. She felt as rigid as a stone right now.
"Hiss."
A wisp of spiritual qi was drawn into her body.
Unable to suppress her excitement, Lin Wei realized that this was how spiritual qi was absorbed.
The moment she got excited, the spiritual qi dissipated.
Without losing heart, Lin Wei calmed her mind once more and started over.
Once the spiritual qi was drawn into her body, she could control its movement within her.
As the hair-thin wisp of spiritual qi traveled through her body, Lin Wei also felt an aching soreness. Her meridians were blocked; if even a hair's breadth of spiritual qi couldn't circulate properly, what would happen if an overwhelming surge of spiritual qi were drawn into her body? Wouldn't she simply explode?! Lin Wei was not a greedy person, so she guided this tiny bit of spiritual qi to slowly clear a path within her body. When this strand of spiritual qi dissipated, she absorbed another, repeatedly scouring her blocked meridians in this manner.
When her stomach emitted a series of rumbling growls, Lin Wei opened her eyes and immediately retched.
"Stinky, it stinks so much! Who relieved themselves on my bed?!"
The stench made even her aged limbs and joints feel much more nimble. She got off the bed and frantically fanned the air, but the more she fanned, the worse it smelled. Lin Wei suddenly realized that the stench was coming from herself...
Lin Wei's expression instantly turned grim.
Noticing a circle of brownish water stains where she had been sitting cross-legged, Lin Wei pulled a long face and hurried off to boil water for a bath.
After changing the bedsheets and quilt and letting the foul odor in the room completely dissipate, she finally felt somewhat at ease.
As the sky grew dark, thinking about alchemy, Lin Wei briskly went out and slaughtered another spiritual chicken.
She could eat her fill of the hundred-odd spiritual chickens raised by the original owner; she certainly wouldn't leave a single one for those three unfilial sons.
Thinking of Su Qiao, Lin Wei stepped out of the kitchen and headed to the adjacent courtyard.
Right next door was where Su Qiao lived, and despite her young age, she already had a small plot of spiritual herbs.
Every day she busied herself tending to these things, and she had even learned from Lin Wei to raise spiritual chickens, though she only had a few.
When Lin Wei came to see her, the girl was busy picking bugs off a piece of snow ganoderma grass.
"Xiao Qiao, come over to Granny's place for dinner."
Seeing her so focused, Lin Wei felt a stifling ache in her chest. At such a tender age, the girl knew nothing of her future fate, nor that she was being manipulated; she would simply be overjoyed by the slightest scraps of meager charity.
"Granny, why are you here? I've already eaten today, really."
Su Qiao was thrilled to hear Lin Wei's voice. In fact, she had secretly gone to check on Lin Wei at noon, but seeing her meditating with her eyes closed to cultivate, she had quietly slipped back. To emphasize that she had already eaten, Su Qiao deliberately patted her belly. Her stomach was rounded—she really was full.
"Granny doesn't enjoy eating alone. Keep Granny company and have some more."
Lin Wei took Su Qiao by the hand and walked toward her own courtyard.
This little girl's stomach went slosh with every pat.
Bringing Su Qiao back, the two of them ate and drank soup together.
"From now on, come eat with Granny every evening, you hear me?"
After the meal, watching the diligent little girl tidy up, Lin Wei instructed gently.
Su Qiao nodded obediently. She truly loved Granny Lin so much. She felt that Granny Lin had changed; she talked more than before, but she was also much kinder. She liked this vibrant Granny Lin.
Shortly after Su Qiao left, the sky grew completely dark.
Lin Wei got up and headed out, walking straight to the alchemy room with the familiarity of someone used to the road.
As soon as she arrived, she saw Liu Xun and the other three already there.
Zhao Zheng and the other two stood respectfully behind Liu Xun.
Liu Xun smiled amiably. "Elder Sister has arrived. Come in, please, come in."
"What are we refining today?"
Lin Wei asked directly.
Liu Xun politely replied, "Insect-repelling pills. All the medicinal ingredients are here and have been prepared for a while. These pills are easy to refine and will be done in two hours."
"These are for disciple cultivators to use when they go out into the mortal realm to slay demons and vanquish devils. There are many bugs in the mortal world, and cultivators' blood is sweet and fragrant, so insect-repelling pills are a must-have for everyone."
Liu Xun explained with a smile, thinking to himself as he watched Lin Wei listen intently: As expected, this old hag knows nothing about these matters.
Liu Xun was genuinely curious about the old woman's background. How could she be so ignorant of even the most basic things? Her knowledge level clashed so jarringly with her advanced age.
Lin Wei paid no mind to Liu Xun's private thoughts; she truly did not know.
She calmly said, "Then let's begin."
Since every cultivator could obtain insect-repelling pills, the item was essentially valueless. Liu Xun had specifically arranged this for her to practice with; even if the refinement failed, it wouldn't matter.
He wanted to see whether her very first attempt at alchemy last night was due to a shred of talent or was purely a matter of luck.
Lin Wei saw right through him without calling him out. Even for insect-repelling pills, she treated the task with utmost seriousness.
"After you, Elder Sister."
Liu Xun made a respectful gesture of invitation.
"Let me see the pill formula."
Lin Wei said naturally. She had to look at the formula to see what ingredients were involved, after all.
If she memorized them, just in case she managed to leave this place alive, these things would be of great use later. Even if she couldn't become an immortal, she could make a fortune refining these in the mortal realm.
Liu Xun rubbed his nose, and with a single look from him, Jiang Ya promptly handed the formula over.
Unfazed by suspicion or ridicule, Lin Wei asked about any characters she didn't recognize, and only then began dropping the ingredients into the small opening one by one.
Over the next hour, Lin Wei added the ingredients sequentially.
Liu Xun's expression turned solemn.
Li Hui and the other two wore varying expressions as well, but seeing Lin Wei's calm and collected demeanor, they couldn't help feeling a surge of anticipation.
Catching the scent of medicine, Lin Wei found a cushion and sat down to meditate.
"Master, will this work? The timing of her adding the ingredients is completely off."
Li Hui lowered his voice and whispered to Liu Xun.
Liu Xun's expression was similarly complex, but since the alchemy furnace hadn't been opened yet, he dared not jump to conclusions. This wasn't because of anything else, but simply because this old woman possessed extraordinary composure.