“Amazing,” she said to herself indistinctly, with a slight note of disappointment in her voice.

  The book she was reading resembled a diary rather than a treasure trove of alchemist's knowledge. Not to mention the terrible handwriting, which made it difficult for May to read. Nevertheless, the book contained a few interesting things that should not see the light of day.

  Many of the recipes were standard alchemical recipes, but there were also a few more sinister things.

  The Blood Eye Potion, made from the eyes of newborns, allowed one to awaken the “Third Eye” with incredible powers. The Last Drop Elixirs, or the Devil's Ritual, required inflicting as much physical pain as possible on as many people as possible.

  The brutality of some of the entries in the book was so great that it seemed comical. It was as if the author was trying to come up with the most horrible rituals to read.

  However, she couldn't deny how amazing the effects were. For example, The Last Drop Elixirs could allow one to skip the entire cultivation stage immediately! With just one potion, she could shorten the cultivation time by months! The forbidden cultivation was certainly tempting.

  With my talent, however, it is unnecessary. Thanks to the system, I am able to achieve much better results without resorting to such evil deeds.

  As she read the book, it became increasingly clear to May who the main target audience for these types of evil recipes was. It was people with limited talent, who might take a lifetime to reach even the first stages of Qi Refinement.

  It wasn't exactly a pleasant piece of literature. May needed to take a few breaks before she could finish reading it. Finally, however, she found the passage about the light blue crystals. When she reached this passage, May sat up straight and focused all her attention on it.

  “Let's see what the reason was for them committing such despicable acts...” she said to herself.

  According to the author of the book, these crystals were called Havini Crystals. Their production required injecting the human body with various alchemical mixtures so that they could develop in the internal organs of the victims, using the life force of those people.

  The book described how to produce these substances, as well as exactly where, when, and how much to inject them.

  And as for their effects...

  “Huh? They collect Life Energy... And that's it?” she whispered in surprise.

  I admit I've never heard of such a thing being possible, but even so, it doesn't seem that great... Even if it can be collected in this form, it still can't be used to extend one's lifespan, as it would be incompatible.

  May continued reading, hoping to learn more, but it seemed that the crystals were indeed a kind of battery for life energy. She didn't know of any possible use for it.

  May left her desk and began reviewing her notes. She had already learned about Life Energy in Introduction to Cultivation. One of the first lessons discussed the different energies in the human body. She quickly found the definition.

  Life Energy — present in all organisms, inseparable from living beings, is what separates living things from inanimate objects. Its quantity defines the maximum length of life. It cannot be created. It remains unchanged from birth to death.

  (...)

  Cultivators can live longer, but not because they have more life energy. Cultivation reduces the rate at which life energy is consumed, which is why cultivators can live longer, but they do not have more life energy than mortals.

  (...)

  Every living being has a unique life energy, so it is impossible to “give” your energy to someone else and prolong their life.

  May read her notes for a moment longer, hoping to find something. Of course, she took these words with a grain of salt. They weren't undeniable facts, but rather the current limited understanding of the world by the cultivators who taught her.

  They could be wrong. Just as teachers insisted that talent could not be changed, which turned out to be false. That's why she had to take their words cautiously.

  However, if people in our sect believe this, it would be difficult for those evil cultists to have a different opinion on the matter. I doubt they are advanced enough to be able to prolong their lives.

  Havini Crystals were a crystallized form of life force. But what did they need them for? That was the question now.

  May was happy enough to have found out that much. At least she wouldn't have to waste so much time with Hua Tang. She just had to find a way to tell him without revealing that she had learned this from the stolen book.

  “You haven't finished reading yet,” Minnie said suddenly. “Maybe there's more information about what the crystals are needed for later on?”

  May skimmed through the next few pages and shook her head. The following pages seemed to be completely unrelated to the topic.

  “The next pages describe some kind of plant. Garoton Silverberry. It seems that after eating the fruit, the person becomes part of the plant...? Ugh, disgusting, like everything else in this book,” she replied, closing it and putting it away in a safe place. “That's enough for today. My psyche can't handle so many hours of reading about all these horrors.”

  ───── ??☆?? ─────

  “Um... Esteemed Cultivator, are you sure...?” asked the man uncertainly. He was one of the penicillin distributors. “I'm afraid your requirements may make sales a little difficult...”

  May demanded that penicillin be sold only after confirmation of the illness by a qualified salesperson. After the penicillin craze broke out, many people bought it even if it was ineffective against a given illness (i.e., a viral one).

  People began to naively believe that penicillin was a panacea, which was obviously a mistaken assumption. In addition, some people used it as a “precaution” when they were not sick.

  Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more.

  Bacterial resistance to antibiotics was a huge problem on Earth, so May was right to fear that the reckless use of penicillin by the people of this world could eventually render it ineffective.

  “I'm quite sure. This will be verified by our company Fleming, and sellers who violate our rules will be cut off from supplies,” May said seriously.

  It wasn't difficult to convince Hua Tang, as she explained the situation to him and he seemed to accept it quite easily. The bigger problem was enforcing these rules. Many people were opposed to the idea.

  When the man left, May sighed, leaning back in her chair. After meeting with the fifth distributor, she had no doubt that people would ignore her words regardless. She was slightly annoyed by this.

  Standing by the door, Niu Pin, who hadn't spoken a word since morning, finally spoke up, slightly surprising May.

  “Sorry to interrupt, but maybe it's worth asking the sect for help,” he said with an expressionless face. “I can tell you care a lot about this.

  May fell into a brief contemplation.

  Well, the sect has already interfered in our affairs for their own benefit... The leader skillfully circumvented our no-tax agreement by promising us protection. Well, then, what if we order them to enforce our terms?

  “Good point, Niu Pin, thank you.” She replied, admitting that it was indeed a good idea. After a moment, she frowned and decided to ask him something. “Do you think the sect will agree to help us with this?”

  From what May understood, Niu Pin was a fairly trusted man of Ze Yun, so he should have a fairly good, or at least better than May's, grasp of how the sect operated.

  “Forgive me, but I don't think it's my place to speculate on that.” He replied with indifference.

  May snorted at his words. “You've already chimed in, so you might as well share your thoughts.”

  The man didn't respond, but after a moment he let out a soft sigh.

  “Penicillin has attracted a lot of attention from high-ranking members of the sect. It is considered a beacon of hope for the sect and our economy. And you are the person most directly responsible for this achievement, so it will be difficult for them to ignore your words.”

  “But they probably won't like my idea...”

  The man shrugged.

  “Probably not. Verifying the disease before sale sounds like a pain in the ass. But although I don't know the exact agreement between you and the sect... I suspect you have much more influence over them than you think.”

  May sighed quietly and stood up, and headed toward the main production factory. Niu Pin followed her, walking a few feet behind her like a shadow. She had already gotten used to it a little.

  It's a bit sad that our sect's entire economy depends on the discovery of penicillin... Yes, it is an amazing discovery. However, it is still only one scientific breakthrough. The situation is truly hopeless. She thought, shaking her head in irritation.

  May had already planned to slowly reveal the next cards. She already had plans for a few more discoveries that were even more impressive than penicillin. At this rate, she was sure that her company would soon be richer than the entire sect.

  She entered Hua Tang's private laboratory. Apart from May, anyone else would have had doubts about whether it was appropriate to enter without prior invitation.

  “You should at least knock...” Niu Pin said, but May ignored him and walked straight in.

  Upon entering, she saw her master, who was still examining the blue crystals. There was a smell of burning in the air. Niu Pin frowned slightly, trying to hide his disgust at the smell in the room.

  “You should listen to your bodyguard,” he snorted, without interrupting his work.

  “I should. But I'm not going to,” she said, rolling her eyes. “How's the progress, master?”

  “Your theory seems to be true. Everything indicates that crystals are a form of life energy storage... This completely changes my view of life energy. If it weren't for the surrounding circumstances, I would be ecstatic.”

  To tell the truth, her master had had a similar theory from the very beginning, so even without revealing the existence of the alchemist's notes, he had no problem coming to similar conclusions. Unfortunately, he also had no idea what it could be used for.

  “Is it still impossible to extend life with them?” She asked curiously, knowing that her master was going to conduct a few experiments.

  Her master waved his hand and sighed loudly in irritation.

  “No. As I've already explained to you, even in this form, Life Energy is still extremely specific. To tell the truth, I don't see the point in producing them, as they are useless.”

  “But they can't be that useless,” May replied. “Otherwise, why would they take such risks with these kidnappings? There must be some use for them.”

  “Not necessarily. There's no point in expecting logic from evil path cultivators.”

  May disagreed with this assessment, but did not comment further.

  “Well, anyway, that's not the purpose of my visit,” said May. “I'd like to get some of my earnings for this month and ask for some advice.”

  “Sure, wait a few more minutes,” replied her master, and May left the laboratory and sat down to wait for him to finish.

  Shortly thereafter, he appeared, dressed in his usual extravagant clothes, and led her to his office.

  After deducting production costs, employee salaries, and sharing the profits, she received nearly one hundred thousand in cash. It was such an absurd amount that she was probably already among the richest one percent in the entire sect.

  This resulted from the growth of production and the expansion of sales to all surrounding sects, whose demand was even greater than that of the Island Mountain Sect—which now accounted for only a minority of their revenue. Her first million seemed closer than she had ever expected.

  “Alright, since we’ve settled everything, what was it you wanted to ask?” he inquired curiously.

  “I am thinking of undertaking a new venture,” May replied honestly. “I need to purchase a significant amount of land.”

  The man let out a sound of surprise and fell into thought for a moment before asking, “How large an area are we talking about?”

  “Quite large, larger than this at least. And preferably close to the capital.”

  “Proximity to the capital will increase the costs, but with your current funds, it shouldn't be a problem,” he stated bluntly. “May I ask what you are planning?”

  “Our sect suffers from poor soil quality. I intend to solve our agricultural problems once and for all.”

  Her master furrowed his brows. “Something like the Crimson Soil Enhancer?”

  The Crimson Soil Enhancer was an expensive alchemical product used to increase crop yields. However, due to its high cost, it was only ever used on a small scale.

  “Something like that,” May said. “But, just as with the penicillin, my goal is to lower the costs.”

  “May... I'm sorry to say this, but...”

  “It's impossible, isn't it?” She finished for him with a slight smile. “I know.”

  Fertilizer manufacturing thanks to the Haber-Bosch process. Without this technology, there would be no modern agriculture on such a widespread scale on Earth. Yet even May was not naive enough to think it was possible. Even with magic, this world was too underdeveloped.

  However, it was a long-term project. She didn't intend to do it in a month, or even a year. She knew it could take her decades, but with the estimated lifespan of a cultivator, that wasn't a problem.

  “I treat it as a long-term plan,” May replied. “Every cultivator has a project to which they devote their lives, whether it's sword technique or achieving longevity...”

  “I see... It's a rather specific problem, but I'll try to help.”

  May's idea was that she should choose a difficult, almost impossible goal for herself. In the process, she would solve many smaller problems.

  First of all, I would have to start an industrial revolution.

  At present, carrying out ammonia synthesis in this way was not feasible in any way. Neither in terms of materials, technology, nor energy. However, again, it was a long-term goal.