Ten minutes after his first attempt, determination was once again reappearing in the eyes of the young boy. Through the short break he took after the first trial, he went through the few steps of the recipe in his mind. Using his powerful imagination and visualization to search out for the reasons that had made the medicinal essence in the cauldron lose its stability. The old witch didn't speak and left the young boy think by himself without bothering his introspective analysis.
She was well aware that this kind of temperament was necessary for a novice to develop into a true-blooded alchemist. It was even more crucial for Sheng Hao's future to focus on developing his own critical thinking. If he wasn't able to solve this hurdle by himself, then it simply meant that he wasn't vowed to grow his alchemy.
The reality might be harsh but the old witch was aware that Alchemy and Rune Enchanting was a difficult craft that wasn't made for everyone. Although the young boy had shown a precocious mind that was able to ingest a vast amount of knowledge. She wasn't the kind of person who would stop herself from telling him the truth. If he wasn't able to acquire the versatility and open-mindedness needed to go through the entire concoction process, then it simply meant that he wasn't worth her time.
"Let us see how he will deal with this trial…" Flamelle's gray eyes shone softly inside the dim lighted workshop. The light coming from the fire source of the cauldron shivered slightly, with the atmosphere surrounding the cauldron turning into a rigid silence. Despite the lack of movement or sound, the workshop seemed to take on a life of its own as if nourished by the tension coming from the young boy.
The moment Sheng Hao placed the recipe on the table, his hands moved toward the cauldron with a clear gaze marked on his chubby face. He grabbed the cauldron and cleaned it with the tools that were sitting near the fire source, before once again resuming the concoction of the Purple Sunset when he felt that everything was ready. Once again, he followed the steps written on the recipe. Taking the time to clean every single ingredient before placing it in the correct spot inside the cauldron.
"Every single ingredient needs to be refined twice before going through the stabilization process. Otherwise, the medicinal essence inside the cauldron won't stabilize when I introduce the spiritual dew to the mixture…" after dozen minutes spent analyzing the steps, he came to the conclusion that this was the mistake that caused him to fail in his first trial.
Thankfully, the reincarnated man wasn't the type of individual that would get disheartened by a single failure. His limit was far and beyond that, with the only reason behind his current stress coming from the lack of resources. If the numbers of set available were infinite, he was confident in successfully learning the concoction of the Purple Sunset panacea.
"I need to take my time with every single step… I don't mind failing due to a lacking speed in the execution but I can't afford to lose because of my own precipitation and hesitation!" he mumbled softly as he grabbed two yellowish stacks of herbs. "This ten-year-old Green Ginger shouldn't be introduced now…" he mumbled as he could sense that the recipe given to him contained certain nuances he needed to understand if he wanted to be successful in the concoction.
"Now!" he exclaimed in his heart with the blazing fire from the fire source reflecting vividly on his black iris. "If only I was able to control my spiritual power with some precision, I would be able to lessen or even contain the interactions between the ingredients until they are ready to have their essence fuse." He thought in the middle of the process losing part of his concentration.
A smell of burned herb escaped from the cauldron but Sheng Hao didn't stop his action. Even though some of the ingredients would be partially wasted, he didn't stop the concoction as he knew that each trial was meant for him to acquire further experience when it came to crafting the Purple Sunset. Soon the droplets of sweat released by his body ended up drenching his clothes and hairs, he didn't even bother to deal with that as his focus was entirely put on the concoction of the medicinal pill.
Sadly, before he even managed to go through less than half of the steps written on the recipe, the instability of the medicinal elements mixing in the cauldron attained their peak. The metallic lid of the cauldron suddenly jumped toward the ceiling, Sheng Hao instantly jumped back toward a few shelves. His body slid on the wooden floor of the workshop, the inertia of his movement only stopped when he hid himself under a table.
A dry laughter escaped from the old witch's thin lips, Flamelle reacted the moment the cauldron lid turned into a fleeing bullet and stopped it from breaking a hole in the roof of her workshop. By the time Sheng Hao left the confinement of the small table, an ashamed look was placated on his face and he couldn't help but release a small chuckle when he noticed that the lid had been placed back on the cauldron.
"An alchemist's work is far from being the simplest and safest practice. Do not be ashamed of your own reaction… It's always better to overreact and protect yourself than to face third-degree burns all over your body." She ended with another dry laugh that sounded as though broken glass were grounded inside a large electric turbine.
Sheng Hao legs took him back to the cauldron, he opened the lid that had been replaced and started assessing the inside of the metallic artifact with an intense look on his face. His fingers scrapped the layers of burned medicinal herbs and couldn't help but feel a slight burn on his fingertips, but he didn't stop as he knew that certain information would only be available if he acted now.
Once again the reincarnated man took the time to analyze his second trial, his eyes closed as he immersed himself in his own inner world. Reproducing the two trials that he had gone through in his own mind, controlling his mind and raising his focus to slow down the events that had just happened. Although he wasn't able to replicate the thousands of interactions that could happen during the concoction of the pill, he could still try his best in deducing the reasons behind his past failures.
When he was finished with his analysis, he once again took the time to meditate in order to calm himself before he once again lighted up the fire source. Sadly for Sheng Hao, despite the extensive analysis he had gone through, the third trial ended as soon as it began with the cauldron losing its stability as soon as the medicinal essence of the herbs were starting to fuse.
The light of the cauldron simply died down with the same acrid smell burning his throat and nose. The expression on his face was abyssal, his eyes were teary due to the toxic fumes formed by the burned materials and his mid-long hairs were disheveled and made him look like a mad scientist that was going through far too many experiences.
The light shining in the gray gaze of the old witch didn't dim, she didn't explain to the young boy the reason for his failures and continued looking at him with the same curiosity.
"Looks like this third trial has finally hit his moral." She exclaimed with an inner shrill laugh. She couldn't help but think back about her past experiences, the numerous ancient pill recipes that nearly caused her to lose her sanity when she was studying them resurfaced on her mind.
Even as the young boy seemed to be on the brink of abandoning, she could sense in Hao's gaze that he hadn't abandoned all hope. After staring at the void in a daze for a few seconds, Sheng Hao resumed his actions as he swiftly cleaned the wasted products from the cauldron before opening the fourth stalk of resources.
"I have no idea what just happened but I can't let these failures weigh me down!" he thought before closing his eyes for a moment. When he reopened them, his hands moved with a calm coldness that surprised the old witch.
Usually, the further one failed in crafting a specific panacea. The further one would develop hesitation when going through the process of the pill concoction. However in her view, the young boy manipulating the cauldron didn't seem to have gone through a long tiring series of failure at all. She silently commanded this part of his mentality in her heart while focusing on what was going on inside the cauldron with her expanding sense.
Her eyes pierced through the metallic layer of the cauldron, seeing with a crystal clarity the changes that were happening inside the alchemical tool.
"Hmm…" she nodded as she couldn't help but feel that he would once again fail on concocting the Purple Sunset. Her judgment was soon affirmed when the young boy lost control of his cauldron in the last few steps of the concoction.
Even with another failure, the reincarnated man's gaze was filled with determination and confidence. Although all the attempts resulted in different failures, Sheng Hao didn't abandon as he could feel that he was getting closer to finishing the steps required to form the panacea.
However his eyes couldn't help but dim down slightly when he noticed that there was only one more stalk of resource sitting in front of him.
He coughed dryly, trying to ease the itching sensation that had filled his throat and lungs. His vision darting toward the old witch who was still looking at him with the same smile that wasn't really a smile.
"Can't ask for more resources…" a dry cough escaped from his lips as his vision turned back to the cauldron.
"I feel that she will instantly spank my butt if I open my mouth to ask a question or ask for more sets of resources…" he thought with a slight tremble in his heart.
"Final attempt! Whether I make it or not will depend hugely on my luck but I'd better do my best in manipulating that slim chance of success!" The reincarnated man had sensed during the fourth attempt that he had nearly arrived to the final steps before the concoction of the Purple Sunset was over.
He was well aware that he wasn't able to control all the changes that could happen in the cauldron; nonetheless he could still give the task his entire focus and leave the workshop without any regret.
His vision wavered slightly as he looked at the cauldron. The clothes hanging on his body were drenched to the point where a small puddle had ended up forming under his feet. Although the concoction of this Grade 1 pill wasn't tiring for his muscles, his mental energy was swiftly drained through the earlier failed attempts.
This time too, he didn't grab the paper that contained the Purple Sunset Recipe. In the end, he had already memorized every single step to the point where he could chant it in reverse. With the experience from the past practices, it only took him a few seconds to clean the dregs of powered medicinal herbs that lay inside the alchemical cauldron. And feeling that his spirit was on the brink of collapsing, he threw his being on the concoction of the pill and lighted up the cauldron without any preparation.
Strangely, despite having skipped the few meditative breath he took before starting. His concentration throughout the first few steps of the pill concoction was absolute. His limbs trembled during the different maneuvers, but he managed to suppress any and all hesitation without losing control of his dexterity.
Every single second that passed, the smell coming from the condensation of the medicinal essence rose with the refinement of the herbs inside the cauldron. His mind wavered and a nauseous cold sweat accumulated on his back, making him feel that he was on the brink of falling unconscious. Despite his vision darkening, he gritted his teeth and continued with an absolute will that defied his own mental state.
The Old Witch Flamelle watched the entire scene in silence. Her heart tinged slightly when she saw the mental and physical expenditure of the young child but she forced herself from stopping him on pursuing in the refinement of the pill.
"What a strong will…" she sighed as a strange glint flashed in her eyes.
"He might be able to face the horrible future that awaits him." In the heart of the old lady, the affection she held for the young child rose and soon equaled what she would have felt toward her own kin.