Braised Dragon with Soy Sauce

Chapter 277 Long term plan

The refining of the Detoxification Pill may seem simple, but it involves many intricate details. Mo Yuming stood calmly in front of the cauldron. He first used his powerful water elemental energy to gently wrap the first three precious herbs like a thin veil, and then carefully put them into the blazing cauldron.

Immediately afterwards, he swiftly unleashed his spiritual fire, precisely enveloping the outside of the cauldron and beginning to slowly heat it up in order to extract the medicinal liquid.

Time ticked by, and after about fifteen minutes, a soft gurgling sound rang out, indicating that the medicinal liquid had finally been successfully extracted. Mo Yuming didn't stop there; he continued to purify and concentrate the liquid. Under his skillful hands, the initially slightly turbid liquid gradually became clear and transparent, and the impurities settled to the bottom.

After completing the above steps, Mo Yuming unhesitatingly added an appropriate amount of diatomite powder into the cauldron. At the same time, he mobilized the wood-attribute spiritual power within his body, allowing this vibrant energy to blend with the medicinal liquid and powder in the cauldron, promoting their fusion and reaction. Gradually, a faint medicinal fragrance wafted from the cauldron, permeating the entire space.

Mo Yuming focused intently on controlling the output of his spiritual energy, daring not to slacken in the slightest. He knew that at this crucial moment, even the slightest mistake could lead to the failure of the alchemy. Just then, a crisp "ding" was heard, the cauldron lid opened, and seven round, smooth pills, with a warm, jade-like luster, quietly appeared in Mo Yuming's palm, like twinkling stars in the night sky.

To successfully refine seven pills at once is already an outstanding achievement! It should be noted that in the field of alchemy, the ideal number of pills to be refined is only nine.

"A Heavenly Profound-level Detoxification Pill!"

Ji Xianlin took the detoxifying pill Mo Yuming handed him and examined it carefully. His eyes were filled with disbelief. In such a short time, less than a day, two types of Heavenly Profound Pills had already appeared! This was simply astonishing!

"The detoxification pill is very easy to make. The reason why alchemists have never been able to reach perfection is because they made a mistake from the beginning and did not truly understand the properties of the ingredients in the pill formula. This kind of pill can be mass-produced like an armory. The refining process is very simple. Let me think about it carefully, and then find a place to build such a pharmaceutical factory. Then we can mass-produce the detoxification pill," Mo Yuming said to Ji Xianlin.

Ji Xianlin was nearly speechless with shock upon hearing this. Heavenly Profound Pills could be mass-produced? What would the thousands of alchemists think? Should they just go find a block of tofu and smash their heads against it? While his jaw dropped in astonishment, Ji Xianlin also thought of another shocking fact: if the Detoxifying Pills were indeed mass-produced, it would inevitably shock the entire Heavenly Profound Continent and have a huge impact on the Alchemist Association, even greater than the previous impact of the blast furnace ironworks.

After all, over 90% of the population on the entire continent has a cultivation level below the mid-Earth Rank, and over 80% of the ailments they suffer from are due to poisoning and injury. Therefore, the best-selling second-class pills or liquids in the Alchemist Association and some pill-selling shops are for detoxification and healing. And this basic detoxification pill, suitable for the vast majority of people, is definitely one of the best-selling pills.

The price of a Detoxifying Pill is around ten silver coins, while a high-quality one can sell for fifteen to twenty silver coins. Since no Heavenly Profound-grade Detoxifying Pill has ever appeared, there is no price for it. However, it is estimated to be at least one gold coin or more.

The price of the Detoxifying Pill seems much cheaper than the Spirit Gathering Pill, but the cost of its ingredients is much lower. The cost of one Detoxifying Pill is at most a few copper coins, while ten copper coins are equivalent to one silver coin, and one hundred silver coins are equivalent to one gold coin. This shows how high the profit margin for alchemists is.

As one of the best-selling pills, it's the primary pill refined by alchemists below the intermediate level, and a significant source of income for them. If Mo Yuming were to mass-produce it, it's safe to say that more than half of the alchemists would be affected. While they wouldn't starve, they would certainly suffer. Even if it weren't cheaper than the pills refined by alchemists, everyone would still buy it, simply because it's the Heavenly Profound Pill, a pill without any residual toxins.

However, this is definitely good news for over 90% of the people on the mainland. From now on, they can buy better Heavenly Profound-grade Detoxifying Pills for less money. Ji Xianlin is almost certain that Shangyuan City will soon become the largest imperial city on the Heavenly Profound Continent, without exception. Although these old men at the mid-level of the Heavenly Rank and above have transcended worldly concerns and no longer value money and wealth so much, this change still excites them. They estimate that old men with higher cultivation levels than them will also be very interested. Because with the first type, a second type of pill will inevitably appear.

Ji Xianlin had a much broader perspective than Mo Yuming. After his initial astonishment, he said to Mo Yuming very seriously:

"Establishing a pharmaceutical factory requires careful consideration from many aspects, and we cannot act hastily. It would be a bad thing if we were targeted by busybodies. I think we should wait until Dugu Xian, Li Mubai, and the others return before making a decision. In a few months, it will be four years, and those old men and women will be returning one after another. Manufacturing the Heavenly Profound Pill is not as complicated as smelting iron in a blast furnace; it involves far more issues. Possessing a treasure is a crime!"

Mo Yuming understood Ji Xianlin's concerns; since he had considered this point, he would naturally consider the consequences. Moreover, with wars raging around them, the entire Great Xia Dynasty was focused on defending its borders and couldn't spare the energy for any major events at the moment.

However, this did not prevent Mo Yuming from making this decision. As the saying goes, success is reserved for those who are prepared. This matter cannot be rushed, so he would take it slowly on his own, make thorough preparations first, and when the time is right, everything will fall into place naturally.

With defenses needed everywhere, I'll have to stay in Jingzhou for the time being. Since I can't leave, I'll just treat it as a period of seclusion for cultivation. I'll take this opportunity to diligently seek guidance from Elder Ji and seriously improve my strength.

So Mo Yuming divided his day into three parts. Every evening, he used his new method to refine pills, improving his pill-refining skills while also enhancing his control over his soul power. After refining the pills, he would cultivate for an hour using the 'Soul Wheel Guidance' technique to elevate his soul power level. The best environment for cultivating soul power was originally within the soul pillar of that spaceship.

But given the current circumstances, this is the only option. However, he still has many crystal brain fragments in his sea of ​​consciousness for him to absorb, so it doesn't matter where he cultivates for the time being. Apart from necessary patrols, he spends his other time cultivating the Soul Sword and Azure Shadow Sword Technique in the secret chamber. Sometimes, to regulate his mind, he also takes time every few days to practice his strongest profound martial arts techniques: the earth-based technique 'Nine Palms of Dugu' and the Illusionary Flute Demonic Sound Technique.

During my time stationed in Jingzhou, the city remained relatively peaceful without any major incidents. Jingzhou successfully transitioned smoothly. The imperial guards and civilian officials had taken over the city smoothly, and the counties under its jurisdiction also transitioned successfully. The people of Jingzhou began to live their lives peacefully under the new policies. The new prefect of Jingzhou has been approved by the Grand Council and will soon take office.

For Mo Yuming, the biggest gain during this period was refining two kinds of Heavenly Profound Pills. His soul power also increased significantly. The most obvious improvement was that his divine soul perception range increased from the original fifty feet to nearly one hundred feet, and it was much clearer than before.

He has also made great progress in his cultivation of profound arts. Through this period of cultivation, his fire attribute spiritual power has advanced to the peak of level eight, and his water attribute spiritual power has also been improved for the first time without drinking 'water essence', reaching the peak of level five. The most significant improvement is in his wood attribute spiritual power, which has jumped from the mid-stage of level three of the earth rank to level four.

His metal-attribute spiritual power has also increased. He is soon showing signs of breaking through to level five. Moreover, during this period of alchemy, the coordination and cooperation of his fire, wood, and water-attribute spiritual power have become closer. His combat skills, such as the 'Lone Palm,' 'Azure Shadow Sword Technique,' and 'Phantom Flute Demonic Sound,' have also improved.

Thus, the entire Long Kingdom was plunged into a state of chaos, while the newly emerging Great Xia Empire chose to remain neutral and hold its ground. Seemingly in a state of national preparedness, everything slowed down, even the previously high-profile school construction and enrollment. However, one place was operating at full speed: the secret arsenal located within Wangxiang County.

The arsenal, which had been operating at full speed since before the war began, had been running at high intensity and continuously for almost three months. Every day, thousands of weapons quietly flowed out of this mountain corner and were then distributed to the armies of the various warring nations through various channels, making them even more courageous in battle. The arsenal's profits had multiplied several times during this special period, with tens of thousands of gold coins flowing into the treasury of the Great Xia Empire every day.

With the annihilation of the three assassination squads, King Wu Yi of Zhenglan finally calmed down. The loss of 300,000 troops was a significant blow, though not fundamentally damaging, but it would take three to five years for him to recover. For the time being, he dared not launch another large-scale war.

Sending out three assassination squads led by experts at the Heavenly Rank secretly had no effect; on the contrary, they suffered considerable losses, losing many elite experts.

The heavy blow forced Wu Yi to calm down and consider the awkward situation he faced. He had already lost all face, and faced with an unprovoked adversary, he could only swallow his anger for the time being. Watching the other vassal states continuously annexing cities and territories, Wu Yi was so angry his face turned red, and he almost vomited blood. The palace was a mess, with shattered gold, silver, jade, tables, chairs, and benches scattered everywhere.

Just as Wu Yi was slumped on the dragon throne, seething with anger and nowhere to vent his frustration, a messenger rushed in from outside the hall. Seeing the scattered items on the floor, he knelt fearfully at the door and reported:

"Reporting to Your Highness, the princesses of Qizhou, Lianzhou, Hezhou, and Qianzhou were assassinated in the prefectural city on the same day, and General Wu Mou of Suzhou was also assassinated in his own villa. The assassins left no trace at the scene, and no one saw what the assassins looked like. Only a few small arrowheads were found on the bodies of the victims."

"What?! All four princesses were killed at the same time?" Wu Yi jumped up from his seat like a spring, then crashed back down. A mouthful of blood spurted out several feet.

"Quickly, call the imperial physician!" The servant hiding behind the wall rushed forward to support Wu Yi after he collapsed and vomited blood. Seeing that Wu Yi was already unconscious, he was as anxious as a headless fly.

The Marquis's mansion was thrown into complete chaos.

Wu Yi never expected retribution to come so quickly. This wasn't just simple revenge; it was a blatant slap in the face, a mockery, a show of force, a psychological attack, and a direct challenge to what true assassination really meant. Wu Yi's morale was completely shattered. Even if he had ten times the courage, he probably wouldn't have the confidence to challenge the Great Xia Empire.

During Wu Yi's coma, the civil war in Long was nearing its end. All ten counties of Da Chi had fallen, leaving only Zhongdu struggling to survive. The allied forces of Yao Hei, Dai Lü, and Xiang Huang were already at the city gates. Apart from Zheng Lan Kingdom ceasing its campaigns, Yin Zi Kingdom also halted its conquests after annexing Yin Fu and did not advance on Zhongdu.

"It seems the war will end soon, and we need to start preparing."

Mo Yuming kept abreast of the surrounding battle situation through the Soul Jade Network. He learned that the overall situation was settled, and it was time to begin laying out some plans.

Mo Yuming then contacted Su Yangyan and asked him to designate several fertile and easily developed special areas in several large counties, such as Dog Head Valley and Qianheng Town, as special economic zones. He would recruit refugees who were willing to follow his arrangements from several refugee resettlement sites to settle there. The immigrants in the economic zones would be incorporated into the Great Xia people and enjoy the same treatment as other Great Xia people.

However, crops planted within the development zone must be planted according to the government's plan, and other crops are not allowed to be planted arbitrarily. The special economic zone adopts semi-military management, and all expenses are borne by the government before revenue is generated. Security is jointly controlled by the garrison and national security personnel.

Dog Head Valley is a town belonging to Qianding County. Due to its proximity to the Monster Mountain Range, although it is a town, its jurisdiction covers almost half of Qianding County. However, the total population of the entire town is only a few thousand people, and most of the area is uninhabited wasteland, which was once a gathering place for bandits.

After the establishment of the Great Xia Kingdom, the bandits here were successively wiped out and incorporated, and the hidden dangers have been basically eliminated. Although the area is desolate, the land here is particularly suitable for the growth of herbal medicines. The other selected areas are not much different. Those places are all uninhabited areas, but they are areas that Jingzhou medicine merchants often bring people to visit.

These areas were designated as special zones for planting medicinal herbs, which was part of Mo Yuming's initial preparations for establishing the pharmaceutical factory. The basic pills did not have high requirements for the age of the herbs, generally one-year-old herbs were sufficient. However, the pharmaceutical factory's assembly line production had certain requirements for the quality of the herbs. It was not the case that the older the herbs, the better. Unlike alchemists who only refined one batch at a time, alchemists would determine the composition of the ingredients based on the age of the herbs before refining.

However, pharmaceutical factories cannot arbitrarily change the quality of herbs during the refining process. Once the requirements are determined, all formulas must use the same herbs, meaning they must grow in similar environments and be of the same grade. This ensures that the pills produced are identical during the refining process. Furthermore, the quantity required is enormous, making it difficult to meet the demand solely through wild harvesting.

Moreover, these Blue Silver Grass, Green Chrysanthemum, and Hibiscus Tree are all extremely easy-to-cultivate herbs that grow very quickly. Once these herbs from the special zone have matured, most of the old men and women in the canyon will have returned. With such assistance, most forces will not dare to act rashly. When the Heavenly Profound-level pills are launched, those forces will only be able to look on with envy.