Chapter 117: Alchemy Furnace
The operating table gave off a low, deep hum. Cyan-green light motes surged from every corner of the cabin like iron filings pulled by a massive magnet, swallowing the table whole.
The light was not still. It slowly spun and folded in the air, shifting as if an invisible giant hand were hammering it into shape.
An ancient, peaceful aura filled the medical bay—a strange blend of heavy bronze metal, fresh herbs, and the warm crackle of alchemical fire.
Clang—!
A crisp, resonant tone rang out through the vehicle like a dragon’s roar.
The blinding light faded. The sleek, high-tech operating table was gone.
Standing in its place was an ancient, grand bronze tripod cauldron about one and a half meters tall, complete with three sturdy legs and two thick handles.
The faint cloud and thunder patterns on its surface were now sharp and intricate. One side depicted blooming herbs and soaring cranes, symbolizing life and vitality. The other side showed roaring flames and drifting constellations, representing refinement and transformation.
These carvings were not static; a soft, warm light flowed through them like water.
The two girls rushed over to look. Deep inside the cauldron, a faint glow flickered. Lin Huai tossed two Yin energy crystals into the belly. The light brightened a little, but nothing else happened.
Milk Tea Seven Parts Sugar leaned over the rim, barely poking her head above the edge. With a long, troubled face, she groaned, “Sister Bone Ash, this furnace is way too tall. If I want to refine pills, do I have to stand on a stool every time…?”
Lin Huai chuckled softly. “Check your interface. You should be able to adjust its size.”
Milk Tea opened her screen and focused on shrinking the cauldron to fit her height. Meanwhile, Lin Huai kept testing the furnace’s hidden functions.
If Yin energy wasn’t enough, perhaps Yang energy would do the trick.
With that thought, she tossed in two Yang energy crystals. As the opposing energies began to circulate inside the vessel, they produced only a tiny cyan-green vortex at the very bottom. It spun a few times and promptly vanished.
Lin Huai clicked her tongue in disbelief. “Four crystals for just that? This thing really is a bottomless pit, isn’t it?”
By now, Milk Tea had resized the cauldron so that the rim reached comfortably to her chest.
Looking down at it, her delicate brows knitted together with worry. “What should I do, Sister Bone Ash? I don’t think I can afford to feed this furnace…”
She sighed, feeling overwhelmed. “The ghost incubator you gave me already eats Yin crystals to hatch. Raising a baby ghost is already stretching my wallet thin. Now with another money-hungry monster, I feel like I’ll never be able to upgrade my ambulance. The pressure is huge…”
Lin Huai offered a warm smile and comforted her, “It’s fine. If we can’t use it yet, just let it sit there. We don’t even have a single complete pill recipe, so there’s no rush anyway.”
She patted the cool metal. “Just binding it to your vehicle is already a massive win. Now that it’s here, you’re bound to trigger related quests or conditions soon.”
Turning toward the back door, Lin Huai added, “Alright, that settles the furnace. As for the crystals, the Young Miss and I will handle that. You don’t need to stress yourself over it. Come on, let me see how your little ghost is doing.”
Milk Tea had set up the incubator right beside her bed in the living quarters. Surrounded by colorful plush toys and dolls, it was clear she was pouring her whole heart into caring for the spirit.
Seeing that, Lin Huai felt much more at ease. “Just stick to the prenatal care routine I taught you. Talk to it every day, keep it company, and it will hatch healthy and strong.”
Just as they were chatting, a chubby little baby phased straight through the ambulance’s outer wall, floated into the room, and settled gently onto Lin Huai’s shoulder.
Milk Tea’s eyes lit up in delight. “Wow! Sister Bone Ash, is this the little ghost you’re raising? She’s adorable! Is it a boy or a girl?”
Lin Huai didn’t explain the full, complicated background. She simply nodded, letting Milk Tea assume it was her own companion. “She’s a girl. Her name is Dong Xiaobao.”
Milk Tea reached out eagerly, wanting to hold her. “Do baby ghosts get this affectionate when you raise them? That’s wonderful! Seeing Xiaobao makes me even more excited for my own little one.”
She tilted her head in curiosity. “Wait, why is her surname Dong? Is your family name Dong, Sister?”
Lin Huai shook her head gently. “My surname is Lin.”
Milk Tea was confused, but she quickly recalled Brother Long’s strict advice: the Boss’s private matters were her own, and teammates shouldn’t pry too deeply. She let the question drop, spinning happily on her heels as she cradled Dong Xiaobao in her arms.
“She’s so well-behaved! She actually lets me hold her!” Milk Tea beamed. “Can she speak yet? It would be amazing if she could talk. The long highway wouldn’t feel so lonely anymore.”
She sighed softly, “Driving alone every single day… I honestly feel like I’m going crazy sometimes.”
Watching Milk Tea chatter away with a bright, genuine smile while hugging the baby, Lin Huai knew she had made the right choice giving her that incubator back then.
After sharing a warm meal and catching up on recent events, Lin Huai took Dong Xiaobao and returned to the hearse.
The moment the tow cable disconnected, the two vehicles split apart, returning to their respective lanes on the highway.
Standing beside the passenger seat, Lin Huai looked out at the heavy snowfall burying the asphalt. After taking a sip of hot coffee, she opened her console and messaged Ghost Car Nine-Headed Bird.
[Bone Ashes Mixed with Rice]: Ah-Jiu, my dear Ah-Jiu, do you have any snowplow attachments in stock? The snow is way too thick out here, and the vehicle can barely push through.
[Ghost Car Nine-Headed Bird]: Of course! I stocked fifty sets the day the blizzard started, but I’ve only sold nine so far. How many do you need?
Lin Huai paused, checking in with the Elite Squad to tally up orders. Naturally, every single member was struggling with the snow.
[Bone Ashes Mixed with Rice]: How much for one set?
[Ghost Car Nine-Headed Bird]: For my dear Fanfan, you always get the best price! A front-bumper motorized snow roller paired with heavy-duty tire chains. It’s normally ten thousand underworld coins, but I’ll give you twenty percent off—eight thousand flat per set.
[Ghost Car Nine-Headed Bird]: I also have all-terrain adaptive tires in stock. They combine the grip of heavy snow tires with the speed of racing slicks, automatically shifting to match the surface. Those run a bit steeper at eight thousand coins per tire.
[Bone Ashes Mixed with Rice]: Deal. Send me all forty-one remaining snowplow and chain sets.
[Bone Ashes Mixed with Rice]: And send me six of the all-terrain adaptive tires.
Her hearse ran on six wheels, and she replaced all six on the spot.
As for the snowplows and tire chains, after outfitting every member of the Elite Squad, Lin Huai handed the extra sets over to Jiangzhehu Inheritor. The young heiress was instructed to sell them at fair prices to reliable members of the wider guild who had the funds to spare.
Even high-tier upgrades like autonomous driving modules were offered through the guild. As long as someone gathered enough coins, the heiress would help arrange the purchase through Lin Huai.
Naturally, there was a modest service fee attached, but it was kept very reasonable. After all, the vast majority of the guild members were original Zone 444 veterans who had driven thousands of miles through the dark to back her up at the Ghost Mother’s canyon. Lin Huai was not the kind of leader who took advantage of her own people.
