Chapter Fifty-Two: You Want to Learn Alchemy?

  "I am not a Refiner." The white-haired old woman slowly turned around, her tone was aged but neither slow nor rushed.

  What appeared in Ning Cheng's eyes was a somewhat pale face with several wrinkles.

  Ning Cheng didn't dare to stare at the old woman and carefully examine her, he hastily bowed his fist again and said, "Junior learned from Ge Chang that senior is a great master of alchemy, junior saw senior's furnace fire and believed that Ge Chang did not deceive me. Please senior lend a hand, as long as junior's magic weapon is successfully refined, senior just has to give an order, junior will definitely do his best."

  "Doing one's best means that if it can't be done, then don't force it, right?" The old woman spoke in a slow tone.

  Ning Cheng was taken aback, isn't this obvious? Are you going to help me refine a needle and I'll owe you my life or something?

  Fortunately, the old woman did not continue to ask questions, but said in a low voice, "I took something like Ge Chang, but I helped him refine a low-grade magic weapon, so he thought I was a refiner. In fact, I am not a refiner..."

  Ning Cheng despised her in his heart, but didn't dare to refute the old woman. He continued, "Senior can refine artifacts, which is already a refiner for juniors like me. My request is simple, as long as senior can help me refine an ordinary artifact."

  The old woman seemed embarrassed to refuse Ning Cheng, sighed and said, "Since you can find this place, I must help you refine a magic weapon, that's okay. However, I have three conditions, first you cannot be like Ge Chang, going around proclaiming that I am a refiner."

  "This junior understands, this junior came to Nan Yuan City just passing by. Absolutely will not spread the senior's name everywhere, disturbing the senior's quiet cultivation." Ning Cheng hurriedly spoke out to guarantee.

  The old woman nodded and continued, "Secondly, if the thing you take out doesn't meet my expectations, I won't help you refine it. Although I'm not a refiner, I'm also not someone who will refine any rubbish that comes my way. Thirdly, the reward you offer must be satisfactory to me, otherwise I won't help you refine it either."

  "Nature, may I ask what kind of reward the senior needs?" Ning Cheng said confidently. As long as the other party wanted a reward, it would be easy to handle. He still had hundreds of spirit stones, and giving one to a refiner as a reward was definitely not a problem.

  "First tell me what you want to refine, then bring out the materials and we'll talk." The old woman didn't directly ask Ning City for payment, apparently wanting to see what Ning City was refining before quoting a price.

  Ning Cheng took out two fangs of a second-level wolf demon and said, "I want to refine something..."

  Before Ning Cheng could finish speaking, the old woman's face sank, "You bring this kind of trash material for me to refine? Are you insulting me because I'm not a refiner? Get out."

  Ning Cheng was taken aback, he couldn't believe that this old woman would change her tune so quickly. The sharp teeth of a second-level wolf demon were rubbish? This was something that he wouldn't even dare to take out and sell in the Treasure Pavilion, yet in this old woman's mouth it became rubbish?

  Fortunately, Ning Cheng reacted quickly and immediately put away the Wolf Fang, hastily taking out a Unicorn Horn instead. "Since I refined it into a needle, I thought the Wolf Fang would be better suited. Since Senior doesn't like it, I also have this Unicorn Horn..."

  "Huh......" Seeing the dragon horn in Ning Cheng's hand, the old woman exclaimed in surprise and quickly snatched it away from him with a speed that was almost imperceptible.

  Ning Cheng was slightly tense, staring at the old woman on one side. He estimated that if they were to fight, he would probably not be a match for this old woman. If she wanted to take his Jiao's horn, he really had no way to stop her.

  "What a fine horn of a fourth-level Fire Dragon Crocodile! You, with your mere eighth-level Qi gathering, where did you get such a treasure from?" The old woman said, staring intently at Ning Cheng.

  Ning Cheng's heart sank and he didn't even bother to respond to Jiao Jiao's question, standing up in shock. "Senior, can you see my actual cultivation?"

  The old woman sneered, "You dare to hide your cultivation with this broken Hidden Concealment Technique in front of me? Humph."

  After she finished speaking, she took out a jade slip and tossed it to Ning Cheng, "Let you see what is the real hidden technique."

  Ning Cheng grasped the jade slip, his divine sense scanned it, and he immediately broke out in a cold sweat. Only after looking at this jade slip did he realize that his previous concealment technique was utter garbage. That concealment technique had been corrected by him, if he hadn't corrected it, it would have been even more pathetic. But no matter how perfect his corrections were, his concealment technique was still inherently flawed.

  With his current cultivation, he still can't utilize the origin of the Xuan Huang Pearl to reach the Wu Xiang level.

  Just like a piece of black iron, no matter how many times it is forged, it cannot become a piece of gold. Or maybe one day he can reach the level of Xuan Huang Wu Xiang, then any random technique can be corrected by Xuan Huang Zhu into the most awesome top-level technique. But that's definitely not now.

  Ning Cheng quickly scanned through the hidden technique. Unlike martial skills, techniques were not as complex and lengthy. Ning Cheng's memory was astonishing; he had almost entirely memorized it after just a casual glance.

  Others may have minor flaws that they haven't remembered, and mistakes may occur in the process of cultivation, but Ning Cheng is different, he can correct his own technique.

  "The Hidden Art of Jade can be given to you, but you need to answer me two questions." The old woman saw Ning City's grasp on the jade and knew that Ning City was already shocked by this hidden art. She thought it was normal for Ning City to be able to see the jade in his Qi-gathering period.

  Ning Cheng hastily returned the jade slip to the old woman, "I don't dare to covet the predecessor's Gongfa jade slip, if the predecessor has any questions, please ask, I will answer without reservation."

  Ning Cheng wasn't a fool, he had already understood the Jade Simple Method, and if this old woman gave it to him again, wouldn't that be owing her a favor for nothing? Even if he wanted something, it should be something he hadn't seen before.

  The old woman didn't know that Ning City had such a strong memory, and also the ability to correct his cultivation method. Instead, she asked with some doubt, "You really don't want it?"

  Ning Cheng said resolutely, "I've come to ask you to refine a magic weapon for me. If I were to also ask for the Jade Manual of Techniques, that would be too greedy. Please instruct me."

  The old woman put away the jade slip and asked, "Since that's the case, I won't ask you any questions. This lone-horned fire dragon turtle has just been promoted to level four, and with your meager Qi gathering cultivation, you were able to obtain this thing - it's really not simple. Also, do you have the turtle shell and turtle core here?"

  Ning Cheng didn't hesitate and directly took out the python skin, piling it in the room, saying "I didn't find the python dan."

  The old woman's eyes showed some surprise. She didn't continue to examine the python skin, nor did she ask about the python cinnabar. Instead, she asked directly, "What do you want to refine?"

  "I want to refine a fine needle artifact with stealth effect, the finer the better. At the same time, this fine needle must have ice-based attack methods...". Ning Cheng was no longer polite, guessing that this old woman should not be an ordinary person, and directly said all the characteristics of the Seven Day Ice Needle.

  "Do you want to refine the Seven Day Ice Needle? You, a Qi gathering cultivator, actually have such a mysterious technique? It seems that there are no small secrets on your body." The old woman looked at Ning Cheng with a meaningful gaze and said.

  Ning Cheng subconsciously shivered, this old woman is formidable, even knowing the Seven Day Ice Needle. If she knew he had the Xuan Huang Pearl, wouldn't that be courting death?

  Seeing Ning Cheng's worried look, the old woman smiled slightly and said, "Although the Xuan-level spell is not bad, I won't take it to heart. However, if you use the horn of the single-horned Jiao to refine the Qiyao Ice Needle, even if it's refined, the effect will be mediocre at best. This single-horned Jiao material has great use for me, and I have a fourth-level Wuying Bee tail needle that is just suitable for refining a needle-shaped magic tool. Why don't I refine this Wuying Bee tail needle into Qiyao Ice Needle and exchange it for your single-horned Jiao material?"

  Ning Cheng knew he would be at a disadvantage, but without even considering it, he said, "However, according to Senior's instructions, Junior only needs one Seven Day Ice Needle."

  The old woman nodded, apparently very satisfied with Ning Cheng's attitude. She then said, "Although I am not an alchemy equipment master, I am a pill refinement master. If you need any pills refined, you can come find me. At least for the next year, I won't be leaving Nan Rong City."

  Ning Cheng's heart was filled with wild joy, he couldn't believe that this old woman was actually an alchemist. When he first heard the news, he almost asked the old woman to refine the Cong True Pill. However, Ning Cheng eventually restrained his thoughts, feeling that even if he wanted to ask the old woman to refine the Cong True Pill, it couldn't be now, at least not until he got the Seven Day Ice Needle in hand.

  "Of course, I can help you refine the elixir, but you need to bring your own spiritual grass. As an old woman who doesn't go out, I don't have any spiritual grass to give you." After receiving the dragon horn and dragon skin from Ning City, the old woman's attitude changed greatly.

  Ning Cheng knew that although he had the Golden Cicada Fruit, refining the Condensed True Dan required one or two dozen types of spiritual herbs. In the short term, it was fundamentally impossible for him to gather all these spiritual herbs, and thus finding this old crone to refine the dan was also unrealistic.

  Thinking of this, Ning City hastily said, "Excuse me, senior, do you have any alchemy jade slips and introductions? If so, I'd like to borrow them for a look."

  "You want to learn alchemy?" The old woman immediately understood Ning Cheng's thoughts and asked in a somewhat disbelieving tone.

  Ning Cheng scratched his head awkwardly and said, "Yeah, if I could refine pills myself, it would save me a lot of trouble in the future."

  The old woman's mouth corners revealed a hint of a smile for the first time, Ning Cheng could see it, this old woman wasn't ridiculing him, but her meaning was not much different from ridicule.

  "Throughout the ages, eight or nine out of ten cultivators who wanted to refine elixirs ended up failing. Becoming a true alchemist is as rare as a phoenix feather or a unicorn horn. Refining elixirs requires not only innate talent and perseverance but also opportunity. Even if you have a pure spiritual root and your willpower is astonishing, without the right opportunity, you still can't become an alchemist." The old woman's tone became somewhat despondent towards the end, as if she was lamenting her own situation.

  Ning Cheng knew that the opportunity was right in front of him, and he couldn't care less about exposing his tail anymore. He said hastily, "I am confident that I can become an alchemist, and I don't need your guidance, Senior. Just give me a beginner's alchemy jade slip and that will be enough."