NPC Alchemy Furnaces

Why NPC Furnaces Matter

Alchemy furnaces (丹炉) determine which pill tiers you can craft and how efficiently recipes resolve. Higher-tier furnaces unlock late-game elixirs, resistance pills, and breakthrough aids that gate Heavenly Foundation and Core Formation progression. Before patch 0.13.16, several top-tier furnaces had unreliable obtain paths — the July 12 update added guaranteed furnace loot to two key NPCs.

This guide covers Chixiao (赤霄) and Jianmu Elder (建木老人) — the two NPCs LeiYun expanded in 0.13.16 — plus the interaction workflow to extract their new items.

Chixiao (赤霄) — Furnaces Added in 0.13.16

Chixiao is a combat-oriented NPC associated with artifact crafting and fire-element techniques. After the 0.13.16 update, Chixiao's inventory includes two high-tier alchemy furnaces:

• Wuxing Xuanhuang Furnace (五行玄黄炉) — five-element furnace enabling mid-to-high tier pill recipes with elemental affinity bonuses
• Eight Wilderness Six Harmony Cauldron (八荒六合鼎) — broad-spectrum cauldron supporting diverse recipe categories and reduced craft failure rates at tier 3+

How to Obtain from Chixiao

1. Locate Chixiao on the world map — typically accessible during mid-game story progression on the Luocha Island route
2. Build goodwill (好感) through gifts, sparring victories without soul search, and quest completion — see NPC Relations
3. Use the Request (求取) interaction to ask for items once goodwill threshold is met
4. Alternatively, Learn (学习) if furnaces appear as teachable items, or Gift (送礼) first to raise standing
5. F8 save before requesting — goodwill costs are non-refundable if you pick the wrong item

Jianmu Elder (建木老人) — Furnaces Added in 0.13.16

Jianmu Elder is a lore-heavy NPC tied to ancient cultivation knowledge and rare crafting materials. Post-0.13.16, Jianmu Elder carries:

• Hongmeng Zixiao Divine Furnace (鸿蒙紫霄神炉) — premium-tier furnace for tier 4 pill recipes and high-resistance elixirs
• Nine Turn Linglong Furnace (九转玲珑炉) — specialized furnace for multi-turn refinement recipes and quality-upgrade chains

How to Obtain from Jianmu Elder

1. Progress main story until Jianmu Elder appears on the map — typically late Qi Refining to early Foundation on the Luocha route
2. Maximize goodwill before requesting — elder NPCs often require higher standing than combat NPCs
3. Request furnaces individually — you may need multiple visits and gift cycles to obtain both
4. Pair with Shennong Cauldron (造化神农鼎) treasure for cave heaven herb supply — furnaces are useless without ingredient pipelines

Furnace Tier Strategy

Not every player needs every furnace immediately. Prioritize by build:

• Shennong Cauldron + alchemy focus: Jianmu Elder's Hongmeng Zixiao Divine Furnace first — unlocks tier 4 recipes that doubled XP (0.13.14) makes profitable
• Shiling Pearl + combat focus: Chixiao's Eight Wilderness Six Harmony Cauldron for combat elixirs and resistance pills before boss fights
• Heavenly Foundation prep: Any tier 3+ furnace enabling Foundation Pill quality upgrades — Ghost Market now stocks Dao Foundation Fruit permanently (0.13.14)

Related Systems

Furnace mechanics tie into broader alchemy: Alchemy System, Artifact Crafting, and Pills & Elixirs. Patch context: Patch Notes 0.13.x. The tier 4 furnace obtain path fix in 0.13.14 complements the NPC loot expansion in 0.13.16 — update both patches before farming.