"Bring the Seven Yin Moon Grass," Han Yu ordered sharply.
The timing window was extrely short. The alchemists were already holding the box in their hands.
They peeled off the talismans and opened it.
A dazzling cold light flooded the chamber for an instant.
The alchemists felt as if a bright white moon had appeared in the alchemy hall for a single fleeting mont as the herb shone with its own vibrant radiance. For that brief instant, the entire chamber seed bathed in pale silver light, as though moonlight itself had descended from the heavens.
Then, just as quickly, the glow faded away and revealed the herb within.
The bright white radiance had rely been the accumulated energy of the herb, sealed inside the box and released all at once when it was opened. The mont it spread through the air, everyone felt a biting chill.
If not for the protective arrays layered throughout the hall, frost would have already ford on their skin, and their Qi circulation would have slowed dangerously.
The herb itself had a single slender stalk with five broad leaves. At its tip was a tightly curled bud that looked as though it was preparing to unfurl yet another leaf. Even without touching it, one could sense the terrifying cold energy sealed within.
"Add it!" Han Yu ordered, his voice calm but sharp.
As soon as the stalk fell into the cauldron, the boiling liquid stopped instantly. A thin layer of ice spread across the surface of the blood within, freezing it in place as if ti itself had paused.
The potency of the Seven Yin Moon Grass was astonishing, equal in level to the Heart Marrow of a Nascent Soul realm beast. This was only possible because Han Yu had already weakened it through preliminary refinent. If not, the violent Yang energy of the marrow would have completely overwheld it long ago.
But now, the Seven Yin Moon Grass was the domineering one, and Han Yu had to bring it under control.
"Flas," Han Yu uttered softly.
Blood red flas danced across the surface of the cauldron at his command. The temperature rose instantly, and the ice that had ford on the surface lted away in monts.
However, Han Yu did not stop there. He manipulated the cauldron to release fine plus of fla directly into the liquid. Using the Dancing Fla Art, he guided those flas to coil around the stalk of the herb, which still resisted stubbornly.
He had to refine this herb directly, breaking down its structure and extracting its essence before it would submit. This process was exhausting. For four long hours, Han Yu maintained absolute focus, guiding every wisp of fla with precision. Sweat rolled down his face, and he consud several Qi replenishing pills, along with a few Blood Crystals, just to keep his reserves from running dry.
Finally, the stubborn herb gave in. Its surface blackened and cracked, making it look as though it had been ruined. In truth, its essence was being forced into a purer and more concentrated state.
After another hour, the herb burned away completely, leaving behind only a few drops of pure blue and white liquid, shimring faintly with cold light.
Deng~
"rge!" Han Yu shouted, his eyes now bloodshot from strain as he slamd his palm against the cauldron.
The liquid inside rippled violently.
Those ripples spread through the mixture and smoothly carried the essence of the herb into every corner of the solution. It took another full hour of heating and refinent before Han Yu finally nodded in satisfaction.
"Add the Living Blood," Han Yu ordered.
The alchemists brought forward a small jade jar that contained less than a liter of liquid. It looked like ordinary blood, dark and thick. But if one focused on its scent, they would almost hear the cries of hundreds of humans and beasts mixed together in a horrible, maddening chorus.
Unlike the other materials, the Living Blood caused no violent reaction. It slipped into the mixture like a ta child, rging smoothly and quietly with little effort required.
Even so, Han Yu did not relax. He observed the cauldron for a full hour, watching for even the smallest abnormality.
Living Blood was an extrely complex material. Its properties depended entirely on how it was refined, what kind of blood was used, and how many lives had been consud to create it. It could react in countless unpredictable ways.
But that was not the only reason Han Yu was watching so closely.
'This feeling… why do I sense lingering souls?' Han Yu wondered silently.
The others felt nothing unusual, but he could sense it clearly. There were lingering souls clinging to the Living Blood, likely belonging to those who had been killed to create it. As the blood rged with the solution, those soul remnants seed to grow stronger instead of fading.
Han Yu could faintly see fluctuating strands extending upward from the cauldron, disappearing into the ceiling as if being drawn sowhere unseen.
'What are these? There was nothing about this in the scrolls,' Han Yu thought with unease.
Still, since the phenonon did not seem to disrupt the process itself, he decided to leave it alone for now.
It was finally ti for the fifth and final ingredient.
"The Soul Binding Blood Crystal," Han Yu said in a cold, steady voice.
The one bringing it forward was none other than Fatui Zhuwen himself. This material was dangerous. One needed a strong mind just to handle it. Otherwise, their soul could be damaged simply by prolonged exposure.
And this was despite the fact that it was sealed inside a box protected by multiple formation arrays.
Clack.
The mont the box was opened, Han Yu's eyes widened. A powerful and unfamiliar pressure spread through the hall.
'This… Soul Qi?' Han Yu was nearly stunned.
He knew it was a soul oriented material, but he had never imagined it would contain such a dense concentration of Soul Qi.
For a brief mont, even he felt tempted to consu it directly. Or rather, it was his Soul Core that expressed that desire.
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