After parting ways with Lin Yan, Xiao Yan made his way directly to the Heavenly Fire Venerable’s Tower located in the northern part of the Inner Academy. The tower gates had long since been opened, saving him from any waiting time. Entering the tower, Xiao Yan did not linger on the first level, but instead descended to the second. Perhaps due to the fact that more people practiced during the day, all the advanced and intermediate practice rooms on the second level were occupied. Seeing this, Xiao Yan originally intended to go straight to the third level, but after a moment of contemplation, he suddenly chose a small, low-level practice room at random.
The low-level practice room Xiao Yan had chosen was the smallest in area, capable of accommodating only one person for practice. The accumulated dust within indicated it was rarely used, as the heart fire in such rooms was even inferior to some of the intermediate practice rooms on the first level. Therefore, unless absolutely necessary, ordinary practitioners would not choose these rooms. However, Xiao Yan’s search for such a solitary practice room was not for the purpose of cultivation; he merely needed a quiet place to refine some pills he required for his seclusion.
Entering the practice room and shutting the door tightly, Xiao Yan did not enter the small, black stone platform. Instead, he sat cross-legged on the floor. With a wave of his hand, the medicine cauldron, which had recently been stored in his Nalan ring, reappeared. Setting the cauldron down, Xiao Yan slowly closed his eyes, beginning to review the several pill formulas that the Pharmacist Elder had given him…
After nearly five minutes of meditation, he opened his eyes, a faint glimmer of surprise in them. “Green Lingzhi Fire Spirit Paste, ingredients needed: three-leaf green lingzhi, fire lotus fruit, thousand spirit grass, and fire elemental magic core… Swift Wind Spirit Pill, ingredients needed: swift dragon salivary, night spirit leaf, and wind elemental magic core…”
Although these two pills were not of high rank, they both belonged to the category of pills with quite peculiar effects. The rarity of such unusual formulas was no less than that of sonic fighting techniques among other fighting techniques. The first, Green Lingzhi Fire Spirit Paste, when applied to the skin during cultivation, provided an extremely sensitive tactile and strange absorption ability to fire elemental energy. Even without actively circulating one’s qi, the fire elemental energy from the surroundings would still be drawn into the body. Of course, this paste also had a drawback: it caused a tingling and itching sensation, which could be unbearable for those with weak willpower, preventing them from maintaining their cultivation state, let alone absorbing energy.
The second, Swift Wind Spirit Pill, had an even stranger effect. After consumption, it could accelerate the circulation of qi within the body, much like adding a gust of wind to a windmill, causing the already circulating qi to rotate at an even faster pace. However, everything followed a natural law. This acceleration of qi circulation was akin to overdraw. Once the duration of rapid qi circulation passed, the body’s qi would fall into a period of lethargy, reducing one’s combat effectiveness by half if encountered by an enemy.
The strange abilities of these two pills, though normally not of much concern, were extremely useful to Xiao Yan at this moment. In the Heavenly Fire Venerable’s Tower, the concentration of fire elemental energy was astonishingly high. With the aid of the Green Lingzhi Fire Spirit Paste, Xiao Yan’s absorption speed would undoubtedly double. Moreover, when the internal fire rose, if the speed of qi circulation could suddenly increase, the refining speed would also quicken. Therefore, it was not an exaggeration to say that these two pills were what Xiao Yan needed most at this time.
Though the ranks of the two pills were not high, and the combinations of ingredients somewhat peculiar, with Xiao Yan’s current alchemy skills, their refinement was merely a matter of time. Reviewing the blending degree and fire intensity of the first pill’s ingredients, Xiao Yan flicked his finger, and a wisp of green flame shot into the cauldron. The raging fire instantly raised the temperature of the practice room.
Sitting cross-legged before the cauldron, Xiao Yan waved his hand, and a pile of various herbs appeared on the ground. His eyes fixed on the flames in the cauldron, the green fire reflecting in his pitch-black pupils, creating a slightly eerie interplay of black and green. Xiao Yan remained motionless, his expression serious. Occasionally, he would wave his hand, and the precise qi enveloped the herbs, one by one, casting them into the cauldron, continuously refining and fusing…
The first refinement lasted nearly half an hour before it gradually concluded. When Xiao Yan filled a jade vial with a thick, sticky red paste, the refinement of the Green Lingzhi Fire Spirit Paste was successfully completed.
After successfully refining the Green Lingzhi Fire Spirit Paste, Xiao Yan did not immediately proceed to the Swift Wind Spirit Pill. Instead, after swallowing a Qi Replenishment Pill, he chose to sit cross-legged to recover his qi. Although refining the Green Lingzhi Fire Spirit Paste did not consume much qi, habit dictated that Xiao Yan preferred to refine pills when his state was at its peak. At such times, his soul perception and control of the fire were at their best, and the success rate of refining pills would be highest.
After resting for just over ten minutes, Xiao Yan opened his eyes, a faint rosy glow on his face. Feeling the slight improvement in his qi after a round of alchemy, he couldn’t help but smile. With a wave of his hand, the green flame once again blazed in the practice room…
The refinement of the Swift Wind Spirit Pill, perhaps due to the need for the pill to form, took almost twice as long as the Green Lingzhi Fire Spirit Paste. After more than an hour, Xiao Yan’s tightly closed eyes suddenly opened, his gaze fixed on the rising flames in the cauldron. Within the swirling flames, the outlines of a few round pills faintly appeared.
Exhaling slowly, Xiao Yan flicked his fingers, sending a gust of qi to open the lid of the cauldron. With a gesture, several pale green pills flew out and were drawn into his palm. Opening his hand, five thumb-sized, warm pale green pills lay quietly, emitting a faint medicinal fragrance. Just smelling the fragrance, Xiao Yan felt the speed of his qi in his meridians increase slightly.
“Hehe, indeed effective,” Xiao Yan’s face lit up with a smile, feeling the accelerated circulation of his qi. Taking a jade vial from his Nalan ring, he carefully placed the pills inside. After finishing, he put away the cauldron, patted his butt, and stood up. “Everything is ready; now it’s time to enter the third level and begin my seclusion.”
Muttering to himself, Xiao Yan straightened his clothes and pushed open the door.
Stepping out of the practice room, the flow of people reappeared in Xiao Yan’s sight. Hesitating slightly, he pulled aside a passing student and asked about the direction to the third level. Startled, the student, who had been about to show impatience, closed his mouth upon hearing Xiao Yan’s question. To enter the third level, one needed at least the strength of a three-star Great Alchemist. He looked Xiao Yan up and down and then pointed politely in the northwest direction.
With a word of thanks, Xiao Yan strode off, heading swiftly northwest. About ten minutes later, the spiral staircase leading to the third level appeared before him. Two men, clearly instructors, stood at the entrance, and Xiao Yan saw that students entering were required to present their Fire Crystal Cards.
A touch of surprise flashed in Xiao Yan’s mind as he approached. The two instructors glanced at him, and one said coolly, “To enter the third level, you need a blue Fire Crystal Card and the strength of at least a three-star Great Alchemist.”
“So it’s a check…” Understanding the instructor’s words, Xiao Yan took out the Green Fire Crystal Card and handed it over.
“Green Fire Crystal Card?” The instructors exclaimed, looking at Xiao Yan in astonishment.
“Can I enter?”
Looking at their surprised expressions, Xiao Yan smiled and asked.
“The Green Fire Crystal Card qualifies you for the first six levels; the third level is definitely accessible,” one of the instructors nodded, his smile more polite than before. Strength commanded respect, regardless of one’s status.
Taking the returned Green Fire Crystal Card, Xiao Yan bowed to the two instructors and entered the spiral staircase, disappearing from view under the envious gazes of many.
“Tsk tsk, such a young age to have a Green Fire Crystal Card. In all these years, this is the first time I’ve seen it,” one of the instructors remarked, astonished, after Xiao Yan had left.
“Yes, but his aura seems to be at the Great Alchemist level. How could he have a Green Fire Crystal Card?” the other instructor wondered, perplexed. There were probably no more than fifty students in the entire Inner Academy with such a card, and most of those qualified were experts on the “Strong List,” their strength at the level of Dou Ling.
“Wasn’t it true that the new students this year received the Green Fire Crystal Card as a reward from Elder Su?”
“Uh… Was that young man the one Elder Su instructed us to pay special attention to… Xiao Yan?”
“Seems like it… Yes, right?”
At the entrance to the third level, the two instructors stared at each other, nodding bitterly after a long while.
Tai Sui Yellow Amulet Paper FuLu Taoist Love Talisman Traditional Chinese Spiritual Charm Attracting Love Protecting Marriage