Benjamin Franklin smiled, “It seems you still don’t understand. When it comes to an alchemical equation, I’m afraid that aside from the author themselves, it’s very difficult for anyone to give a one hundred percent certain answer. After all, we are all making conjectures, and there will always be some discrepancy from the author’s original intent.”

William Graham grew even more puzzled. “Isn’t it enough to prove your guess is correct if you manage to create a successful product based on your own speculation?”

“Hahaha…” Benjamin Franklin laughed heartily. “Of course not. Even if you guess wrong, sometimes you can still produce a successful result. That’s the true charm of alchemy.”

Benjamin Franklin looked at William Graham, who seemed to be deep in thought, and said with satisfaction, “This alchemical equation is only meant to show you the necessity of cryptography. For now, you don’t need to crack any complex equations. We’ll start with the most basic things.”

“What are the most basic things?” William Graham asked.

Benjamin Franklin pointed to the symbols in the inner ring of the equation. “These—universal alchemical symbols. This is our common language.”

Chapter 003: The Dual-Solution Equation

“First, you need to know the basic principles of alchemy. The sages believed that this world is composed of four elements: earth, fire, air, and water—this is a bit different from the elemental theory of magicians. There are four symbols, each representing one of these fundamental elements…” As he spoke, he drew on the ground with a branch. The symbol for fire is an upward-pointing equilateral triangle; the symbol for water is the opposite, a downward-pointing equilateral triangle. The symbol for air is an upward-pointing equilateral triangle with a horizontal line through the middle, and the symbol for earth is a downward-pointing equilateral triangle with a horizontal line through the middle.

William Graham looked at the strange symbols Benjamin Franklin had drawn and thought to himself: This is somewhat similar to the yin-yang, water, and fire in the Eight Trigrams—there are two basic symbols, and then variations are added.

Benjamin Franklin continued, “The sages divided equations into three types: synthesis, decomposition, and transmutation. No matter how complex an equation is, it can be classified into one of these three. For example, the Emma Green you see is a magical creature, which in alchemy belongs to the highest level of equations, but it is still a synthesis equation: combining the mark of life with the physical body.” Emma Green was napping nearby with drooping ears. Upon hearing Benjamin Franklin’s words, she grumbled in protest. Benjamin Franklin chuckled and corrected himself, “She.”

…

The cloak of the goddess of wisdom covered a vast area, even protecting the forest behind them. Every day, William Graham practiced breathing exercises and refined his inner elixir, often gathering the vital energy of living beings from the forest behind the house. In a daze, it felt as if he had returned to the days of morning lessons at Edward Graham. Only the continuous supply of abundant vital energy allowed him to keep his mind clear and remember that he was already in another world.

After each meditation session, William Graham’s mood would always dip for a while, only recovering when Benjamin Franklin began teaching him about alchemy.

The inner elixir cultivation method of Edward Graham is mainly divided into five steps: breathing, absorbing qi, circulating qi, refining qi, and fetal breathing. Although there are five steps, there are nine realms: entering stillness, sitting in forgetfulness, inner observation, guarding the orifices, maintaining unity, meditative contemplation, visualization, refining the spirit, and heart fasting.

The five steps are closely linked and none can be omitted. No matter which realm you reach, you must still follow these five steps in cultivation. William Graham had already reached the realm of sitting in forgetfulness. Every day, he calmed his mind and nurtured his qi, letting his soul wander beyond the material world, sensing the great Dao of heaven and earth, observing the key points of the five elements, condensing his strength, and strengthening his muscles and bones—one punch could topple a tree.

In the world of Star Refinement, spiritual energy is abundant, and the vital energy within living beings is much richer than on Earth. Over the past few months, as William Graham absorbed the vital energy from the forest behind the house, the forest itself grew more rapidly. When he first arrived, some saplings were only small, but now they had grown as thick as a bowl.

Every morning, he refined his inner elixir according to the Edward Graham method, and after morning practice, he listened to Benjamin Franklin’s lectures on alchemy. Unknowingly, William Graham had spent nine months in this world. Benjamin Franklin noticed that William Graham’s mood was becoming increasingly low, and after each lesson, he would often sit alone on the large stone in front of the house. As the setting sun cast its afterglow, the forest was draped in a golden-red cloak. The breeze rustled the leaves, and the stone and the person sitting on it seemed to merge into one, their shadow stretching long, exuding an indescribable sense of loneliness.

Benjamin Franklin saw this and could only shake his head and sigh.

William Graham twirled the stem of a leaf between his fingers, spinning it rapidly. By his calculations, his junior sister’s child must be about to be born.

He had arrived in this world in September of the year 2742 of the Xingyuan Era on the continent. In the blink of an eye, nearly nine months had passed.

Two thousand seven hundred years ago, the last single-race nation on the continent, the Northern Demon Empire, perished, marking the official completion of the continent’s great racial integration. That year was designated as the first year of the Xingyuan Era, and from then on, the continent’s calendar began the Xingyuan reckoning.