Time was short!
Old Jin took the medicinal herbs delivered by Yan Shouyi and immediately put them into the mortar, then pounded the medicine furiously with all his might.
"Ginseng, Rehmannia!" Old Jin shouted.
Yan Shouyi acted like a helper, but not flustered, he quickly took out these two herbs from the pile. Old Jin took them and just weighed them in his hand to know the quantity.
This was Old Jin's "hidden skill". His hands were like a precision scale, he grabbed as much as he needed, not an ounce more or less.
"Kudzu root, Poria!"
"Coming!"
"Add some Astragalus!"
"Here!"
"And..."
Working together, they quickly ground all the herbs into powder.
By this time, the alchemy furnace was also glowing red and emitting white smoke.
Old Jin felt the temperature of the alchemy furnace with the back of his hand, knowing it was just right, and threw the pounded herbs into it.
Having reached this point, all that remained was to control the time and temperature.
As long as the heat was correct, refining the elixir would just be a matter of time.
But now... the most lacking thing for everyone was time!
Hu Chai had been observing from the side. When he saw the herbs Old Jin chose, he knew that Old Jin had seen through the poison he had administered and found the corresponding antidote formula.
The antidote was called Ren Huang Hui Qi Dan, refined from herbs such as kudzu root, ginseng, Rehmannia, Poria, and Astragalus.
As long as Han San took the Ren Huang Hui Qi Dan in time, his poison would be eliminated within five minutes, and his breathing ability would be quickly restored.
However, even though Old Jin had reached this point, Hu Chai's face still held a confident smile of certainty.
Xu Shengnan stood behind Hu Chai and asked softly,
"Vice Helmsman, they seem to have found the antidote formula."
Hu Chai sneered, "Why the panic? The most difficult part of this poison is not the cause of the illness or the antidote formula, but the time. Do you know why I only gave them the time of two incense sticks? It seems like double the time, but it's actually not enough. Even for me to refine the Ren Huang Hui Qi Dan, it would take a full two hours."
"What can they possibly refine in just two incense sticks?"
Xu Shengnan cupped his hands and said, "Vice Helmsman is wise beyond measure!"
"Empty fame." Hu Chai waved his hand. Of course, he didn't care about such things; killing was his first hobby.
Daoist Dog and the others also saw the clue at this moment.
The time was simply not enough.
If they couldn't refine the Ren Huang Hui Qi Dan, Han San would surely die.
But time could accelerate at any moment, how could time be accelerated?
This seemed like an unsolvable problem.
Miao Ji had already started contemplating whether to end Han San's life early to give him relief.
After finishing everything, Yan Shouyi had nothing to do.
He saw Old Jin waiting as well.
Sensing the problem, Yan Shouyi couldn't help but say, "Old Jin, we don't have enough time..."
"Don't speak yet!"
Old Jin interrupted Yan Shouyi, his expression more serious than ever.
He extended his hand, keeping a distance from the alchemy furnace, concentrating on feeling the temperature, as if silently counting the seconds in his heart.
"I can do it, the Qihuang School can do it," Old Jin said in a low voice.
Yan Shouyi was stunned. Although he didn't know what other tricks Old Jin had, he chose to trust him.
Since Old Jin said he could do it, then he definitely could!
Everyone held their breath, even Hu Chai stopped speaking, his eyes fixed on Old Jin.
Ancient physicians of the Qihuang School, what other tricks do you have?
Bring them all out, I am looking forward to it...
One incense stick had already burned out, and Hu Chai lit the second one.
Time seemed to have become worthless. The incense burned rapidly, and Long Feicheng felt as if he had only blinked before the second incense stick was more than half burnt.
Suddenly, Old Jin seemed to have grasped a certain opportunity and reached out to open the alchemy furnace.
Seeing this, Hu Chai couldn't help but laugh:
"He is too impatient."
Not enough time, so Old Jin wanted to open the furnace directly, roll the semi-finished medicinal paste into pills, and feed them to Han San to detoxify him?
Heh, that was absolutely impossible!
As the saying goes, all medicine has three parts poison. If the herbs used to refine Ren Huang Hui Qi Dan were not subjected to sufficient high-temperature purification, mixing them together would not only fail to detoxify but could even introduce new toxins to Han San!
If semi-finished products could save lives, then what was the point of finished elixirs?
Is this the strength of the ancient physicians of the Qihuang School?
Truly disappointing!
Hu Chai shook his head, as if he could already see the ending.
Beside Old Jin, although Yan Shouyi was also extremely surprised by Old Jin's actions, he did not stop him.
He wanted to see what Old Jin was going to do.
As Old Jin opened the alchemy furnace, high-pressure gas instantly gushed out. Fortunately, Old Jin dodged to the side in time, otherwise, his face would have been severely burned.
When the mist dissipated, everyone saw the mushy medicinal paste inside the alchemy furnace.
This level was not enough; it couldn't save anyone!
Even Daoist Dog shook his head.
However, just as everyone thought Old Jin was out of options,
He suddenly produced a Taoist talisman!
He threw the talisman into the alchemy furnace and then shouted in a low voice, "Tian Xuan Fu Huo Fa!"
Swish!
The talisman instantly ignited, and a terrifying heat wave rushed forward. The alchemy furnace emitted a dazzling golden light, like a blazing sun!!
"Fu Huo Fa?!"
Hu Chai, who a moment ago had been so confident that Old Jin would lose, suddenly his face changed dramatically.
Yan Shouyi suddenly recalled some of the Qihuang School's abilities and couldn't help but laugh heartily, patting his thigh and shouting,
"So it's Fu Huo Fa! I almost forgot, the Qihuang School has such a unique skill!"
At first hearing Fu Huo Fa, many people would be confused.
But if you put it another way, everyone would instantly understand – gunpowder!
In ancient China, Taoists revered alchemy, and alchemy and metallurgy were one and the same. The essence of metallurgy was chemical reactions.
The earliest alchemy involved not only various Chinese herbs but also minerals like gold, silver, copper, and iron. However, minerals also possessed a certain toxicity, and if not refined properly, could easily be fatal.
During the Tang Dynasty, a folk physician named Sun Simiao, in order to reduce the toxicity of minerals and metallic drugs, summarized the "Fu Huo" method. When using minerals and metallic drugs like sulfur and arsenic, he intentionally made them easily ignite and burn, thereby removing their toxicity. However, during the experimental process, the alchemy furnace often exploded. Later, after several improvements, he invented the black gunpowder known today!
Although Sun Simiao accidentally invented gunpowder while trying to refine elixirs, and it has been used to this day, the "Fu Huo Fa" concept he created was further refined by later generations. Combined with Taoist skills, it ultimately led to the creation of "Tian Xuan Fu Huo Fa," which, by means of a specially made Taoist talisman, could instantly increase the temperature inside the alchemy furnace!
The temperature created by Tian Xuan Fu Huo Fa was scorching but not fierce. It would not instantly burn the medicinal materials into charcoal. Instead, it was like slow simmering over a gentle heat, which not only did not harm the medicinal materials themselves but also condensed their medicinal properties and enhanced their efficacy!
And its greatest advantage was its ability to significantly accelerate the alchemy process!!