Transmigrated as Investment Banker in Cultivation world

Sebastian was attempting to concoct an Emerald Serpent Vitality Pill, a potent elixir used by cultivators to stabilize, strengthen, and expand their Spiritual Space.

"Luminous serpent blood, one drop," he muttered quietly, as a drop of red liquid floated in front of him, forming the pill's base.

In the next moment, an orange flame ignited beneath the drop of blood, slowly heating it. Once it reached the right temperature, he flicked his fingers, adding a petal from the Heart of Verdant Lotus, allowing it to dissolve into the blood. The mixture turned a vivid green.

Sebastian's focus was unwavering as he carefully added other ingredients: Thousand-Year-Old Ginseng Root, a shard of Crystallized Dragon Essence, and more, each at the precise time and quantity required.

Now came the most critical stage—formation and cooling. As the ingredients merged, Sebastian began to reduce the heat. The mixture started to harden and take shape.

However, his expression darkened as cracks began to appear on the pill's surface.

David, who had been observing, also frowned. He could see the fine cracks appearing on the pill, thanks to the passive effect of his Ancient Web of Mindfulness.

"Another failure?" David thought, as the cracks worsened.

But just as hope seemed lost, Sebastian's body flashed with a greyish light.

"Darkheaven Transformation," he whispered. The temperature around the pill plummeted to an extreme degree, and under David's watchful eye, the newly formed cracks began to disappear.

"Whew! Finally succeeded. Concocting pills in this barren world is extremely hard," Sebastian muttered, holding the emerald-colored pill filled with potent energy.

"Wow! Congratulations, Sebastian," David said, genuinely impressed. It had almost ended in failure, but Sebastian managed to turn things around.

At that moment, Ruby, who had been meditating with her eyes closed, suddenly opened them. She eyed the pill in Sebastian's hand with longing.

If she could get her hands on it, her cultivation progress would increase by leaps and bounds. However, despite her desire, she could only look at the pill with her cold, vermillion eyes, filled with yearning.

Mary, on the other hand, rushed over to Sebastian, abandoning her pretense.

"Impressive, Sebastian, you really did it." She had noticed the cracks appearing on the pill and recognized that it was only due to Sebastian's timely actions that the pill was a success.

"Thank you, Mrs. Mary, for your kind words," Sebastian replied calmly. Then, he turned to David, holding up the green pill. "Manager, would you like to try it?"

David was tempted, nearly nodding in agreement. But he ultimately shook his head with great difficulty. "Nah, Sebastian, you've worked hard for this. I don't want to take the fruits of your labor."

It wasn't that David didn't want the pill, but he knew it wouldn't be the most efficient use of its power. If he took the pill, it would benefit only him. But if Sebastian or Mary used it, the pill would be twice as effective because of his investment in them.

Killing two birds with a single stone.

Sebastian, a straightforward man, didn't press the issue.

"You know what, Sebastian? You should give the pill to this big sister here," Mary said, appearing in front of him like a ghost.

"You can have it. I can always make more pills. I still have another batch of ingredients with me. If only we could have stayed in Crimson Town for a while… sigh," Sebastian said, handing the pill to Mary without much thought.

Mary eagerly took the pill and returned to her previous spot, sitting down on the ground.

Ruby watched this scene with mixed emotions. She also wanted the pill but didn't know how to ask for it.

In her long life, she had never needed to ask for anything—she only had to express her desire, and it would appear before her the next day.

Mary took a deep breath, steadying herself. The pill in her hand wasn't something to consume lightly. Once her breathing stabilized, she opened her mouth and gently popped the pill inside.

David and Sebastian watched her intently—David because he had nothing else to do, and Sebastian for research purposes.

As soon as the pill entered her mouth, it melted, turning into a surge of torrential mana.

Mary's expression turned serious as she carefully guided the mana toward her Spiritual Space. In the next moment, her Spiritual Space quaked and vibrated with excitement, slowly beginning to grow.

It doubled in size from 300 meters to 600 and continued to expand. The blackish mana within her Spiritual Space began to transform into a slightly greyish color. When thirty percent of her mana had transformed, the growth finally stopped.

Inside her Spiritual Space, Mary appeared, looking around in amazement. Her Spiritual Space had grown to 900 meters, pushing her cultivation to the third rank of the Foundation Building Realm.

Contrary to expectations, there were only two greyish pillars in her Spiritual Space, like pillars of heaven supporting it.

If she wanted, she could have created more pillars, but that would be foolish and suicidal. Besides, it would hinder her ability to break through to the next realm. At the center of her Spiritual Space was a huge white ball, engraved with complex runes that flickered from time to time.

Mary felt emotional. She never imagined her recovery would be this fast. After taking one last look around, she returned to reality and opened her eyes.

"How was the effectiveness, Mrs. Mary?" Sebastian asked as soon as she opened her eyes. However, he didn't really need her to answer—just from the mana fluctuations she was unconsciously releasing, he could tell it had been highly effective.

"Very Impressive! To be able preserve the energy of each ingrident with such perfection, you truly have the skills of a top notch alchemist."

Mary went all out in praising Sebastian, her words were genuine. In her long life she had met who knew how many alchemist but only a handful of them were able to achieve such perfection.

Sebastian humbly accepted her praise and only nodded his head at her words.

David on the other hand didn't listen to their words, he was busy looking at his Spiritual Space which had started to grow after receiving the feedback from Mary.