"Of course." Song Lin smiled and said, "Prepare a quiet room, along with the Feather Transformation Pill recipe and its ingredients."
"Aren't you the one who specializes in alchemy? How come you can't even memorize the recipe?" Li Xuan remarked, then looked toward the Ghost Soldier General nearby. "General, why not just kill him? This man is clearly stalling for time."
"Give him one chance," Tongshou Taoist suddenly interjected. For some unknown reason, he had a feeling that Song Lin might create a miracle.
There are four levels of pills: ordinary pills, spirit pills, immortal pills, and golden-core pills.
The Feather Transformation Pill is barely categorized as a low-grade spirit pill—most alchemy Taoists can't successfully refine it.
"Fine, you may refine it in the alchemy room. The ingredients will be provided, as well as the recipe," Taoist Wude said with a chuckle. "But if you're intentionally stalling and fail to refine it, I will turn you into a Taoist soldier, bound to endless torment, never to reincarnate."
"It's a deal!"
The group made their way to the alchemy room inside the warehouse.
Inside, the room was equipped with earth fire specifically for refining pills.
After shutting the heavy doors, Song Lin opened the Feather Transformation Pill recipe handed to him by Tongshou Taoist.
The Feather Transformation Pill is considered an advanced Qi Nourishing Pill, with the added effects of strengthening muscles and bones.
In essence, it's an enhanced version of the Jiachen Yang Qi Pill with one additional ingredient: the Spring and Autumn Cicada Molt.
Given this, Song Lin had a twenty-percent chance of successfully refining the pill.
Of course, a mere twenty percent wasn't enough.
With this in mind, Song Lin called forth the Monster Chronicles.
A weathered, ancient book hovered in mid-air.
Fortunately, he wasn't worried about others noticing it—he had tested it many times; outsiders couldn't see the Monster Chronicles.
He had been granted three hours. Deducting the two hours for refining, he would have at most one hour to collect the ingredients, equivalent to a month's worth of time within the story.
Swoosh!
With a thought, Song Lin entered the Taiyin Refining World.
"Come forth!"
Swoosh!
A Yin Wind howled as Song Lin summoned the Twelve Rampant Soldiers.
"At all costs, collect Spring and Autumn Cicada Molt, Cistanche, and Polygonum multiflorum..."
The so-called Spring and Autumn Cicada Molt is the first molt shed by a cicada after it becomes an adult.
It's extremely rare but not entirely unattainable.
The Rampant Soldiers could steal from royal families.
Within less than ten days, the ghosts and gods managed to secure ten portions of the ingredients and brought a pill furnace.
Song Lin sat cross-legged in front of the furnace, forming hand gestures as True Qi surged forth and transformed into flames.
True fire was slightly inferior to earth fire.
But if he could succeed with True Fire, any other flame would pose no issue.
The first attempt failed due to insufficient heat.
The second attempt failed due to excessive heat.
...
The fifth attempt failed because the timing to add ingredients was off.
...
The Feather Transformation Pill, being an advanced Qi Nourishing Pill, required similar techniques with additional ingredients and more precise control of heat.
It came down to the very last portion of ingredients.
Boom!
The pill furnace emitted a muffled bang, sending up a burst of black smoke.
Song Lin extinguished the flame and stepped forward to open the lid.
Inside lay a single charred pill.
"Close enough to success." Song Lin smiled.
The pill appeared unappealing, but it wasn't a complete failure—it was a defective product, retaining some efficacy.
In the next ten days, Song Lin had the soldiers gather three sets of ingredients, and he finally succeeded in refining the pill.
Three hours later, outside the alchemy room.
Tongshou Taoist kept his gaze fixed on the door in silence.
Wude stood beside him with exaggerated politeness, displaying immense respect.
Only Tongshou knew in his heart that this man was secretly laughing.
The reason Wude was acting this way was because his position as Dianzao was an externally appointed role. Combined with his usual focus on cultivation, his subordinates had stripped him of power.
Assigning Song Lin to manage the Dharma Altar Warehouse was a reluctant choice to balance the forces of his subordinates.
If his subordinates consolidated their power further, he as Dianzao might find himself entirely blindsided.
The Taoist temple wasn't large, but it managed affairs for a population of a million people, spanning a vast area of a thousand miles.
This Dianzao position attracted countless eyes, and its interpersonal entanglements and covert rules were innumerable—one misstep could lead to catastrophe.
If Song Lin died this time, Wude's reputation would plummet, and he might have no choice but to resign and return to the inner sect for cultivation.
With these thoughts, Tongshou genuinely hoped for a miracle.
Creak!
The door swung open suddenly.
Song Lin stepped out, holding two pills emitting radiant white light.
"Mission accomplished!"
Tongshou Taoist's eyes lit up as he snatched the pills: "Haha, still warm, huh? Wude, what do you say now?"
Nearby, the Ghost General nodded in confirmation. These were indeed freshly refined pills—the alchemy room had only Song Lin inside; who else could have made them?
"Impossible!" Wude's face turned green. Others might not know, but he knew full well that these pills were originally his.
"I don't believe it... Ah!"
Li Xuan tried to speak, but Tongshou Taoist sent him flying with a slap, smashing him hard against the wall, his face swelling up like a pig's head.
"Is it your place to speak?" Tongshou Taoist glared at him coldly, then turned to Wude. "What? Are you trying to play tricks too? Just earlier, you yourself confirmed the pills only bore Song Lin's Qi aura..."
"Ah, my mistake, perhaps I made an error."
Taoist Wude, accompanied by his disciples, left in defeat.
"Much thanks, Taoist Wude!" Song Lin called out loudly, holding up Wude's bottle of Feather Transformation Pills.
Wude nearly tripped over the threshold, and after returning, Li Xuan undoubtedly endured a round of furious punishment.
In trying to steal a chicken, they had ended up losing the bait; this fury could only be vented on Li Xuan.
The Ghost General shook his head before bidding Tongshou farewell and leaving.
"Impressive, kid. Didn't expect you could actually refine pills." Tongshou Taoist sized up Song Lin.
Tongshou naturally knew the Feather Transformation Pills were Wude's, but he admired Song Lin's quick-witted adaptability.
"Indeed, I occasionally dabble in refining pills with leftover scraps, and I've picked up a few tricks. This time was sheer luck—I hadn't refined this pill before." Song Lin replied with a grin.
Tongshou Taoist probed casually, but Song Lin's answers were flawless.
The explanation was simple—talent!
He wasn't worried about Tongshou investigating further; he had records showing he had exchanged for Simple Yellow and White Skill. The other party still needed him right now and wouldn't resort to extreme measures.
By the time Tongshou realized the truth, Song Lin would likely have passed the Three Passes and entered the inner sect.
Inner sect disciples were given the honorary title "Zhi," and any mistakes they made could only be handled by the temple master or the Grand Commissioner Institute.
"Once you pass the Three Passes, I'll transfer you to the alchemy room for focused pill refinement."
"Take this bottle for your cultivation, and remember, six months from now you'll undergo the Three Passes—I've already put your name down. Don't miss the timing."
"What exactly is the Three Passes? Is it dangerous?" Song Lin had heard this phrase countless times before.
"Put it this way—the Three Passes is also known as the Netherworld Three Passes. The mortality rate is extremely high; only two or three out of ten survive."
Tongshou Taoist, appearing quite cheerful, shook his rust-covered head and began to explain:
"It is hosted in the Mei Mountain Jungle and includes not only Xuanke Temple but also all Taoist temples across Meilin County. The first pass involves the Nether Bridge; Taoist disciples must traverse a hundred-foot paper bridge. Beneath the bridge are blades and venomous snakes—falling means certain death."
"The second pass is the Netherworld River, where one must cross a boiling river of oil and water. The third pass is the Fire Sea Hell, as the name suggests, requiring one to pass through a sea of flames. Those who complete all three passes are granted inner sect disciple status."
With that, Tongshou Taoist ascended into the air, riding dark clouds toward ascension. Before leaving, he left one final note:
"By the way, remember to exchange for a few array talismans. Bury them underground to ward off demon invasions—don't fall into traps again."
"Understood." Song Lin replied.
After Tongshou Taoist departed, Song Lin fell into thoughtful contemplation.
He hadn't expected the Three Passes to be so challenging. Just hearing the names of the stages was enough to grasp the difficulty.
If he could master all the cultivation techniques from the Taiyin Refining World, his chances of success might improve substantially.
Six months—equivalent to 182 days.
Translated to the Taiyin World, this meant 182 years. He would need to transcend the world within 182 years, accumulating karma to exchange for Taoist skills or treasures to stand a chance at passing the Three Passes.
Song Lin held onto the pills, carefully inspecting his surroundings to ensure no tampering had occurred.
He then summoned the Twelve Ghosts as protectors, preparing to enter the Taiyin World.