Xu Mu returned home; it was already afternoon.
Studying the herbs in his hand, he fell into thought.
In the end, he picked up his car keys, drove off, and headed to Yang City.
For low-grade pills, an oven or microwave would suffice, but this time he was going to refine a seventh-grade pill.
Seventh-grade pills already count as high-tier—he needed to make a simple furnace.
As for a furnace's quality, it's easy to grasp:
Put bluntly, it depends on the materials.
Heavenly materials and earthly treasures aren't only medicinal herbs; furnace materials are included as well.
Some mysterious materials can amplify a herb's medicinal effect to its maximum.
Others carry innate attributes that can merge into the pill itself, pushing its grade even higher.
This time, Xu Mu planned to check the antique market in Yang City.
Barring surprises, Dai Xingluo's body should be fine by now.
Her rib had been broken by Lin Yan; no matter how strong the pill Xu Mu refined, a snapped bone can't be instantly restored.
Hence the hospital.
But after more than a day, the medicinal power should have fully dispersed—her injury should be mostly healed.
Dai Xingluo owns an antique shop; maybe she could help him find some materials.
—
He drove to Yang City's antique market.
He first strolled the street and didn't find any high-grade heavenly materials.
There were a few valuable antiques, but at best worth a hundred thousand or so—hardly worth his time.
Unwittingly, he arrived at Dai Xingluo's shop.
As usual, Li Zizai sat at the front desk, wearing reading glasses and examining a porcelain piece.
Dai Xingluo had changed back into Hanfu and was lounging on a recliner.
"Whoa! A rare guest."
Li Zizai looked up at the sound of the door and smiled when he saw it was Xu Mu.
The dazed Dai Xingluo on the recliner also lifted her head.
"Brother, why are you here?"
Her face lit up with surprise.
"Your injury should be healed, right?" Xu Mu asked as he came in.
He'd planned to keep some distance from Dai Xingluo—who would've thought fate would meddle?
She'd even risked herself to try to save him.
She hadn't actually helped, but she'd had the heart to try.
Xu Mu wasn't the sort to keep pushing such a person away.
He could only take things one step at a time.
"All healed. Thanks to you, Brother."
Dai Xingluo nodded gently. "Did you come just to see me?"
"In a way. I've also got a small matter I need your help with."
Xu Mu nodded.
"I see—so you mainly came for the small matter, and seeing me is… incidental?"
Dai Xingluo's expression turned plaintive, her tone going yin-yang again.
"Behave."
Xu Mu was helpless—annoying as it was, she wasn't wrong.
If not for the furnace issue, he probably wouldn't have come today.
"Tell me, what is it?"
Dai Xingluo sat back down on the recliner.
"Do you have materials that count as heavenly treasures? Not herbs—I need materials, even lower grade is fine."
Xu Mu had none on hand. His standards weren't high—anything that could boost efficacy would do.
"What do you need them for?"
"I've recently been learning alchemy. I want to use materials to make a simple pill furnace."
At that, busying Li Zizai stared at Xu Mu in shock.
Dai Xingluo narrowed her eyes slightly—could Xu Mu also be an alchemist?
Thinking back to the pill she'd taken—was it refined by him?
If so, then she absolutely had to hold on to this man.
The same heavenly materials, when empowered by an alchemist, yield vastly better results.
With Xu Mu's help, she'd grow much faster than on her own.
"Old Li, don't you like collecting that sort of thing?"
Dai Xingluo looked over at Li Zizai.
"I do, but I've mostly been using those materials to make objects."
He nodded with a smile. "I've got quite a lot stored at my house. How about you and Xu Mu go take a look? I'll watch the shop."
"Alright."
Dai Xingluo took the key, then slipped her arm through Xu Mu's. "Brother, let's go."
Feeling the touch on his arm, Xu Mu kept a steady face and nodded.
—
Li Zizai's house was in a village on the outskirts of Yang City.
Xu Mu and Dai Xingluo arrived together.
He hadn't expected Li Zizai to have a homestead—this close to the city, it must be worth a tidy sum.
Dai Xingluo opened the gate and walked in with Xu Mu.
He noticed a pile of stones of all sizes stacked in the courtyard corners.
There was also a shed beside them—the workshop for cutting and polishing.
"How about those stones?" she asked, pointing at the wall corner.
"Some are good stock, but they've got nothing to do with heavenly materials."
He gave them a quick sweep.
"Come with me—there are plenty in this room."
She unlocked a side room.
When Xu Mu stepped in, his eyes lit up—there really were quite a few good things.
"Grade-2 Scarlet Tiger Iron, and Grade-3 Crystal Jade…"
He checked them one by one—coming to Dai Xingluo had been the right call.
"Brother, you're amazing. You know so much," she said from the doorway, while thinking about how to claim him for herself.
This man was truly a hot commodity.
She'd already been interested; now she was even more so.
Xu Mu rummaged around, and finally discovered a deep-red round wood about the size of a fist in the corner.
"Whoa—Grade-5 Fire-Yang Wood?"
He pulled out the cylindrical piece, roughly fist-sized. "I'll take this."
"Using wood to make a furnace?" Dai Xingluo asked curiously. "Won't it burn up?"
"Fire-Yang Wood's least afraid of fire—it can even stimulate a herb's potency. It'll make for a pretty good furnace."
Xu Mu examined the red wood. "Shame it's a bit small, but it's enough to refine a few pills at a time."
"Brother, could you refine pills for me in the future?" Dai Xingluo slipped her arm through his again. "I can help keep the fire going."
"Sure—just don't burn yourself."
He shot her a glance.
[Favorability +10]
A smile bloomed on her face.
—
They drove back toward Yang City.
After entering the urban area, Dai Xingluo looked in the rearview mirror. "Brother, someone's following us."
Xu Mu extended his perception and found it was Fan Shiyu.
He happened to want a word with her, so he circled over to a distant park.
He noticed it was the very spot where he'd met with Meng Wanyue and Dai Xingluo before.
The two got out of the car and waited by the street.
Seeing the Volvo tailing them also pull over, Dai Xingluo walked straight to the driver's window.
Xu Mu strolled over unhurriedly.
It was time to get a read on Fan Shiyu's attitude.