Section 22: Shujia Island's Economic Crisis, Alchemy Class

  "On it was written: 'Zhi Hu Chu Yun, aged 13, rescued his sworn father Zhu Xing, slew the crippled wolf and obtained the Drunken Snow Sword, thus topping the rankings.'"

  To be on the Jūn Jié Bǎng (Ranking of the Strongest), one must have at least one powerful demon-level strength. Chu Yun only qualified for this ranking after obtaining the Dà Yāo Bīng Zuì Xuě Dāo (Great Demon Soldier Drunken Snow Knife).

  The title of "Young Tiger" originated from this place.

  The competition on the Jyun Jyeh Bang is extremely fierce, with newcomers constantly rising to fame. At the same time, old-timers often disappear in disrepute. Take, for example, Can Lang, who once ranked high on the Jyun Jyeh Bang but was killed by Chu Yun and naturally lost his title. Similarly, Shu Tian Hao, because he handed over the Drunken Snow Sword, no longer has a powerful demon under him to fight. The name of Zhu Xing Meng Hu is also absent from the Jyun Jyeh Bang.

  The honor of being on the list is extremely great. Chu Yun's ranking, although it was only second to last in the worst list, still triggered strong jealousy among the bookworms. After all, getting on the list is not easy.

  Chu Yun didn't care about these superficial titles, but at this moment, he was also carefully examining them. These rankings were undoubtedly strong, and the order of ranking was mostly close to reality, with great reference value.

  A moment later, his line of sight shifted and he checked the information about Shu Family Island on the vines. This information was not on the main vine, but on a branch of a branch of a branch of a leaf on the vines.

  "Shujia Island suffered a loss in the war with the remnants of the wolf tribe. The new navy was reorganized, and the nearby pirates disappeared, and the military prestige was greatly enhanced."

  "Shu Jia Island's master Shu Tianhao assigned his two biological sons to Pig Tooth Island and Sun Island, appointing them as island masters."

  "The merchant ships of Ningjia Island have significantly reduced their voyages to Shujia Island. The number of Ningjia shops on Shujia Island is also decreasing."

  ……

  Chu Yun's expression turned heavy: "Pig Tooth Island and Sun Island are both small village-level islands. Father sending Shu Da and Shu Er over is clearly a sign of exile. It seems he's clearing the way for me, intentionally cleaning up Shu Family Island to leave it for me to take control of in the future. However, building a navy requires a large amount of wealth. The Ning family deliberately reducing trade will definitely lead to reduced taxes, this is a slap in Father's face."

  Thinking back to Ning Yiyi's words yesterday, Chu Yun had an epiphany: "It seems that this is the method of the Ning family. They stopped trading, and although they suffered the greatest loss, they can still afford it. But our Shu family island can't hold on, and the navy is the foundation of defending the island. If the navy can't be formed in time, I'm afraid the pirates will become active again."

  As I thought about it, a sense of indignation arose in my heart. It was not only towards Ningjia Island, but also because I felt that my own power was too small.

  Although he saw the means, there was no way to solve it. The other party's means belonged to Yangmou. In implementation, it made people helpless and powerless.

  To solve this conspiracy, the plot will not succeed. Being soft and yielding is even more out of the question. The most satisfying and thorough solution is to use one's own strength to counterattack fiercely.

  However, Shujia Island's economy has always been a huge drawback. This is a historical legacy issue that can only be solved by relying on great opportunities.

  Chu Yun thought of the epidemic in Bixi Bay. Calculating, it was also close to the time when the epidemic broke out. Taking advantage of this opportunity, Shu Jia Island set up a large salt field and seized the entire salt transportation trade market of Zhuxing Group Islands. By then, would they be afraid of Ningjia Island's economic isolation?

  However, there are still many difficulties to achieve this. Without a reliable ally to support, forcibly setting up a salt field will only attract a group of greedy wolves with huge benefits.

  "Tianges Academy is the most ideal ally, but to get Tianges Academy, which has always been neutral, involved in the struggle for the islands... this task is even more difficult than recruiting Yan Que!"

  Chu Yun sighed bitterly and couldn't think of a feasible solution for the time being. As the class time was approaching, he didn't even have time to implement his original plan to investigate the Dan Yuan tree seed, so he hastily rushed to school.

  The first lesson was a Dan Lian lesson, and the teacher was none other than Bai Mei Dan Shi.

  "Dan medicine is an extremely important field in the cultivation of demon-taming masters. The refined dan medicine can be used to treat injuries or enhance the status of demonic beasts, and it can also be consumed by humans to cure physical ailments or improve their physical quality. However, as the saying goes, 'medicine has three parts poison', most of the refined dan medicine is still used for demonic beasts. Demon-taming masters often use it, but its drawbacks outweigh its benefits."

  Bai Mei Dan Shi elaborated on the importance of Dan medicine, unfolding it layer by layer, speaking in a clear and articulate manner.

  "There are many methods for refining elixirs. There's the fire-refining method, water-refining method, earth-refining method, starlight-refining method, and the heavenly furnace-refining method, among others. Among the demonic soldiers, there is a Dan-refining well that can be used for water-refining. Among the demonic beasts, there is the Fire Fox that can be used for fire-refining. Among the demonic plants, there is the Pregnant Elixir Lotus that can be used for wood-refining. Demonic soldiers, demonic beasts, and demonic plants can all be used to refine elixirs..."

  "Today, I will use the fire refining method to refine the Blood Energy Pill. Everyone, watch my technique closely." Next, the White Eyebrow Dan Master used a mysterious soldier's dan furnace and began refining on the spot.

  His fingers moved rapidly, forming various hand seals, like flower shadows, like flowing light. The flames under the alchemy furnace changed color with the hand seals, the blue flames converged, the red flames were normal, and the purple flames were violent.

  Chu Yun widened her eyes, feeling that there was more to it than meets the eye, and felt a great deal of pressure in her heart.

  After the refining was completed, nearly a hundred Blood Essence Pills flew out of the Dan furnace. They were all plump and round, far surpassing those obtained by Chu Yun from the pirate spies, by who knows how many times.

  At this time, Bai Mei Dan Shifu asked all the students if they had any thoughts or doubts.

  Many scholars raised questions, and he answered them one by one.

  When it was Chu Yun's turn, he unexpectedly said directly: "Dan Shifu, I basically don't understand your alchemy techniques!"

  The classroom suddenly fell silent, and everyone looked at Chu Yun with a strange gaze.

  Bai Mei's eyes widened in surprise, but then he thought of the root cause and burst out laughing: "There has never been a newcomer like you who had the capital to choose the alchemy course from the very first lesson. It's normal that you don't understand it yet. Alright, after class, you stay behind and I'll give you individual guidance on these hand seals. Now, let's proceed with the in-class assessment - refining the Blood Qi Pill. Whoever produces the best pill will receive academic credits as a reward."

  A low hum of discussion rose from the students in the hall, who were exchanging ideas in hushed tones.

  "Bai Mei Dan Shi gave Chu Yun a small stove, it's really enviable. How come I didn't get this treatment back then?" someone said with envy.

  "Chu Yunlian doesn't even know the basic hand seals for refining pills, yet he comes to learn pill refinement. Truly a young tiger's style..." someone sighed.

  "I guess he chose to refine the pill because of the high reward points for the production task in the Miscellaneous Hall. I heard he even chose the miscellaneous course. Hehe, let him suffer. The basic handprint for refining pills has hundreds of them, let's see how he can learn." Someone gloated.

  "Chu Yun, you're too reckless! You actually chose alchemy as your first course. You haven't even learned to walk yet, and you already want to run. As a senior, I have to advise you. Eat your food one bite at a time, and take your shit one dump at a time."

  An old man with a waxen yellow horse face sat beside Chu Yun, suddenly turned his head and looked at Chu Yun with a sarcastic tone.

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