After a while, Su Qian finally snapped out of his shock and couldn't help but ask, "You two... aren't alchemists, are you?"
"No, we're not. Although we're interested in alchemy, we don't have the talent to become alchemists," Xiao Feng replied.
Hearing this, Su Qian subconsciously let out a sigh of relief but couldn't help feeling that something was being wasted.
"What a waste!"
"Such a pity!"
"You're not alchemists, so why would you tame a Heavenly Flame..."
The elders of the alchemy department wailed as if their hearts were breaking, slapping their thighs in anguish.
For alchemists, Heavenly Flames are rare treasures, much like a thousand-mile horse to a horse lover.
Yet Xiao Feng and Little Fairy Doctor, despite not being alchemists, had tamed a Heavenly Flame. To the elders, it was like using a prized horse to pull a millstone—utter waste!
(￣ー￣)
Seeing the elders of the alchemy department in such distress, Xiao Feng couldn't help but say, "How is it a waste? Even though I'm not an alchemist, I'm a blacksmith, and I also need the Heavenly Flame!"
"A blacksmith?"
Everyone's expressions changed slightly at these words.
"Boom!!!"
Xiao Feng raised his right hand and waved it, causing a massive green cauldron to appear out of thin air in front of everyone.
The surface of the cauldron was covered in dense, strange patterns, faintly forming a flame motif. A subtle fire energy slowly gathered toward the cauldron.
The elders of the alchemy department, being knowledgeable, could immediately tell from the cauldron's aura and luster that it was no ordinary object.
"What a treasure! What a treasure! What a treasure..."
The elders swarmed around the cauldron, stroking it as if they had just encountered the most exquisite beauty.
"This cauldron is called the Green Lotus Cauldron. I designed it based on the principles of the Green Lotus Core Flame," Xiao Feng introduced. "While crafting it, I inscribed three interlocking fire-gathering arrays inside.
"As long as fire-attribute Dou Qi is poured into it, it can compress the energy and create an artificial Heavenly Flame similar to the Green Lotus Core Flame, greatly enhancing the success rate of alchemy.
"The only drawback is that it requires a vast amount of Dou Qi. You need to have at least Dou King-level strength to use it."
Upon learning that the Green Lotus Cauldron could transform fire-attribute Dou Qi into an artificial Heavenly Flame, the alchemy department elders' eyes burned even brighter with desire.
"So, what do you think?"
Xiao Feng smiled playfully. "With my blacksmithing skills, I haven't wasted the Wind Fury Dragon Flame, have I?"
"Not wasted, not wasted at all..."
The fire elder, the head of the alchemy department at Jia Nan Academy, waved his hands frantically, then put on a somewhat fawning smile as he approached Xiao Feng. "Elder Xiao, is this Green Lotus Cauldron for sale?"
The fire elder, not only a Dou Emperor expert but also a peak-grade tier five alchemist, had been stuck at the peak of tier five for years, just a step away from breaking through to tier six.
With the help of the Green Lotus Cauldron, he thought, perhaps he could take that final step.
"Yes, of course!" Xiao Feng started to say, then suddenly changed his tone. "But crafting this Green Lotus Cauldron took a lot of effort, so it's not going to be cheap."
Hearing this, the fire elder and the others didn't doubt Xiao Feng. In fact, they thought it was only natural.
After all, just the fact that the cauldron could transform fire-attribute Dou Qi into an artificial Heavenly Flame was enough to place it on the Heavenly Cauldron List.
What the fire elder and the others didn't know was that Xiao Feng had used the "Divine Craftmanship" method to craft it.
Compared to other blacksmithing techniques, the Divine Craftmanship was extremely fast. Xiao Feng had actually crafted the Green Lotus Cauldron in less than three days, and the total cost was under a million gold coins.
"If you want to buy the Green Lotus Cauldron, all you need to do is help me gather the herbs on this list," Xiao Feng said, pulling out a list from his storage ring and handing it to the fire elder.
When the fire elder and the others saw the names on the list, they immediately wore pained expressions.
The herbs on the list were too expensive—mostly tier six spiritual herbs, and there were even a few tier seven ones.
What Xiao Feng didn't tell them was that the list was actually the recipe for the Life-Devouring Pill, though he had removed a few common herbs and added several rare tier six herbs.
Once Xiao Feng gathered all the ingredients, he planned to ask Yao Lao to refine the Life-Devouring Pill and give it to Xiao Xun'er.
Xiao Xun'er would soon arrive at Jia Nan Academy, and her strength would likely be at the threshold of breaking through to the Dou Grandmaster level, which was just right for taking the Life-Devouring Pill.
Currently, Xiao Xun'er's Dou Emperor bloodline hadn't fully activated, and if she were to train on her own, it would take her about a year to advance from a one-star Dou Grandmaster to a one-star Dou King.
Although Xiao Xun'er never complained to Xiao Feng, her true feelings had already been revealed.
She knew that both Little Fairy Doctor and Qing Lin had received Life-Devouring Pills from Xiao Feng, and it was hard for her not to feel a little jealous that she hadn't.
Xiao Xun'er wasn't truly concerned about the pill itself but rather feared that her position in Xiao Feng's heart might be lower than that of the other women.
"If you think the Green Lotus Cauldron is too expensive, there's a cheaper option—renting it with spiritual herbs," Xiao Feng said with a smile, pulling out another list. "I've written down the rental terms here. Interested elders can rent the cauldron first and try it out."
Hearing this, the fire elder and the others eagerly looked at the new list.
According to Xiao Feng's rental terms, a tier five spiritual herb could rent the Green Lotus Cauldron for three days, a tier six herb for a month, and a tier seven herb for a full year.
After some discussion, the elders pooled together six tier six spiritual herbs and decided to rent the cauldron for half a year.
Seeing this, Xiao Feng smiled knowingly. He was confident in his blacksmithing skills.
Once the fire elder and the others used the Green Lotus Cauldron, they would realize its superiority and certainly come back for more.
(End of Chapter)
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