As time continued to march forward, Ye Fei could feel that all the medicinal ingredients in the alchemy furnace had melted into liquid.
What followed was the final and most crucial step of the alchemy.
Ye Fei quickly increased the four strands of furnace fire to six.
This fluid and seamless action left both women stunned.
Especially Shangguan Xue'er, who had confidently declared earlier that Ye Fei wouldn't be able to refine pills, now wished she could disappear into a crack in the ground.
Time ticked by, second by second.
Seeing that enough time had passed, Ye Fei once again reduced the furnace fire to four strands.
Before long, a faint, elusive fragrance permeated the alchemy room.
Shangguan Xue'er's spirits lifted immediately. Without further ado, she took a few steps forward, approaching Ye Fei.
As for Sister Hua, her face was also filled with shock.
She stared blankly at Ye Fei, clearly disbelieving.
After a while longer, the alchemy room was already filled with a strong scent of pills.
Taking a breath of it felt invigorating and cleared the mind.
The effect was truly heaven-defying!
Given how potent the scent was, one could only imagine the quality of the pills themselves.
Shangguan Xue'er held her breath, her gaze fixed nervously on the alchemy furnace in front of Ye Fei.
"Pills formed!"
With Ye Fei's shout, the lid of the alchemy furnace was flung open.
Then, a string of round pills was swiftly caught in Ye Fei's hand.
"Not bad, not bad!"
"Although this is my first time refining this pill, I completed it perfectly."
Ye Fei muttered, clearly relieved.
His words were heard completely by Shangguan Xue'er.
Suppressing her shock, she moved to Ye Fei's side and cautiously asked.
"Ye Fei, can you let me see the pills in your hand?"
Ye Fei generously handed all the pills over to Shangguan Xue'er.
"What!"
"They're top-grade pills!"
Shangguan Xue'er exclaimed in shock.
The several golden pill patterns on them were undeniable proof!
"Let me see too!"
Upon hearing the words "top-grade pills," Sister Hua also rushed over.
Then, the two of them began to examine them together.
The pills were entirely emerald green, with no impurities visible on the surface, and possessed a clear, fragrant aroma.
More importantly, the pill patterns that signified top-grade pills were clearly present on them.
After several checks, the two women finally reached a conclusion.
That Ye Fei could indeed resolve their shop's problem of having no customers.
And these were the legendary top-grade pills, pills without medicinal toxins!
This was simply astounding.
It was well known that the greatest concern for pill consumers was the gradual accumulation of medicinal toxins, which, if too many pills were taken, could eventually lead to blocked meridians, rendering all previous efforts futile.
However, top-grade pills without toxins eliminated this worry.
From what she knew, very few alchemists could currently refine top-grade pills, and even then, it was often a matter of luck, not something they could consistently achieve.
Shangguan Xue'er finally realized the magnitude of her mistake.
But since she was someone who owned up to her actions, she would readily apologize for her previous error.
With a resolute heart, she went to Ye Fei's side and said.
"Ye Fei, I'm sorry. I was small-minded before."
"I thought you were intentionally toying with us. The truth is, I was wrong, terribly wrong!"
"I hope you can be magnanimous and forgive me!"
Shangguan Xue'er said sincerely.
Ye Fei was startled by her grand gesture and quickly stepped back.
Only after she finished did he wipe the sweat from his forehead and reply.
"I wasn't bothered by it at all, you don't need to be like this!"
"Don't worry, I'll take care of your pill shop!"
"However, I must state upfront that my cultivation is too low, and I can only refine basic pills for now."
"I cannot refine advanced pills yet."
"And I can't stay here forever!"
"I need to rapidly improve my cultivation, so I can only refine a batch of pills periodically, and then you can arrange for someone to pick them up. What do you think?"
Ye Fei directly laid out his plan to the two women.
Whether they accepted it was up to them.
The two women conferred for a few moments and finally agreed.
"Alright, then it's settled!"
"Without further delay, I'll start by refining the medicinal ingredients for all the Clear Heart Pills you have in stock."
Ye Fei clapped his hands and said to them again.
"Ah, don't you need to rest for a bit?"
Sister Hua was momentarily speechless. After refining a furnace of top-grade pills, didn't he need to recover his primal energy before continuing?
Why was this young man not following the usual procedure?
"Don't worry, this young master's primal energy is abundant. I can refine another ten or eight furnaces without any problem!"
Ye Fei said with a confident smile.
Sister Hua, looking bewildered, left the alchemy room and instructed her subordinates to deliver the Clear Heart Pill ingredients to Ye Fei's alchemy room.
Shangguan Xue'er, this time, took on the role of Ye Fei's assistant.
Ye Fei had no objections to this.
Once all the medicinal ingredients were ready, Ye Fei instructed again.
"Alright, let's begin now!"
As the assistant, Shangguan Xue'er immediately became alert, standing by Ye Fei's side, ready to follow his commands.
Ye Fei's speed this time was noticeably faster than during his first attempt at refining the Clear Heart Pill.
Shangguan Xue'er, standing beside him, watched Ye Fei intently.
Ye Fei now displayed none of his former nonchalance. His handsome face was exceptionally serious, and sweat was already beading on his forehead and body.
This side of Ye Fei made Shangguan Xue'er look at him with newfound respect.
Thinking that Ye Fei was working diligently to refine pills for her shop, she hesitated for a moment before stepping forward, taking out a brand new handkerchief, and reaching out to wipe the sweat from his forehead.
The firelight reflected on Ye Fei's chiseled face, causing Shangguan Xue'er's heart to race.
Even the hand holding the handkerchief began to tremble uncontrollably.
As it was Shangguan Xue'er's first time being so close to a man, she dared not look at Ye Fei too much, quickly wiping his forehead somewhat carelessly before immediately moving to his neck.
This time, she mustered her courage and opened her eyes, her gaze falling upon his attractive Adam's apple.