Huff… Huff…
The dream felt incredibly real. Qin Xiu’s exhaustion wasn’t an illusion but came from the complete fatigue of his soul.
“I must endure… I must endure…”
Even as his eyes could no longer stay open and his consciousness sank into darkness, those words kept repeating in his heart. Ten steps, and he had only climbed one. To become an alchemist was clearly a long and difficult journey…
“Hiss, that hurts!”
While he had fallen asleep in the dream, in reality, Qin Xiu slowly opened his eyes.
The stabbing pain deep in his core made him inhale sharply, as if he had been viciously beaten while unconscious. And yet, his body didn’t bear a single wound.
“Tempering the soul is no easier than honing martial techniques.”
Though it hurt, Qin Xiu could clearly feel that his soul had grown stronger. His senses had become sharper and more sensitive to his surroundings, and the pain was quickly forgotten as he gazed blankly at the ancient runes in front of him.
“If I can feel the improvement so clearly, then my soul has at least doubled in strength.”
Doubled!
That might not sound like much, but the threshold for becoming an alchemist was a soul strength twice that of an average person.
“That means, even if I was born with an ordinary soul, just now, the tempering I went through already raised me to the standard of an alchemist?”
Qin Xiu was overjoyed!
With just one dream, he had already placed one foot into the ranks of the highly respected alchemists.
“I thought I had to reach the top of all ten steps… So it’s not that I’m weak—it’s that this divine technique is astonishingly powerful.”
A brilliant light flashed in Qin Xiu’s eyes. If one step gave him such gains, what if he managed to ascend a few more?
The national alchemist of the Great Li Empire, known as the greatest in the entire Empire, had a soul strength less than three times that of an ordinary person.
“If I reach the top, then my soul strength…”
Rubbing his fists eagerly, Qin Xiu knew that although he wasn’t fully confident in refining pills yet, he could certainly produce some basic medicinal liquids for himself. Immediately, he thought of the Qi Gathering Liquid, a weaker version of the Qi Refining Pill, but the most sought-after medicine in Lingqu City. After all, very few could afford Qi Refining Pills.
“I’ll start with medicinal liquids. Once I get the hang of it, I’ll move on to pill refinement.” Qin Xiu didn’t have the ingredients for the Qi Gathering Liquid, so he got up and went out to buy them.
As long as he succeeded in refining medicine, he wouldn’t lack money in the future.
Lingqu City, Zhou family pharmacy.
Although no alchemist had appeared in recent generations, the ancestral notes and insights left behind allowed the Zhou family to produce the finest medicinal liquids in Lingqu City. The city lord’s personal alchemist rarely involved himself in business, and none of the remaining families could compete.
“The Zhou family is the most likely to have Dragon Saliva Fruit.” Qin Xiu entered the bright main hall and stated the ingredients he needed.
The shop assistant immediately began tallying them. The ingredients for Qi Gathering Liquid were quite common—basic spirit herbs often consumed during daily cultivation.
Just as the assistant was about to pack the herbs, a surprised voice called out, “Huh? Aren’t you that useless freeloader from the Yun family?”
The assistant paused and was stunned to see who had spoken.
“Patriarch!”
The man was none other than Zhou Yuntao, the current patriarch of the Zhou family. The Zhou family’s ancestor had long since retired to seclusion, so Zhou Yuntao was now in charge. Zhou Yuntao looked Qin Xiu up and down, eyes filled with mockery, then pressed down on the packed herbs. “Did I say you could sell to him?”
The assistant was confused.
He didn’t know Qin Xiu personally—this was just regular business…
But Zhou Yuntao turned to Qin Xiu with a smirk, “Qin Xiu—oh, pardon me, Young Master Qin—I’m sorry, but we’re not doing business with you.”
Qin Xiu frowned, “What’s that supposed to mean? You don’t even want to make money?”
Zhou Yuntao replied smugly, “My Zhou family isn’t short on money. But we do need to offer something to show our allegiance to Young Master Gao Yang.”
“I heard about what happened between you and Young Master Gao. He’s quite generous to let you still walk around freely.”
Qin Xiu scratched his nose. Sure, he was walking freely—but Gao Yang?
That might not be the case. “If you don’t want to sell, then don’t.”
Qin Xiu didn’t bother wasting time and turned to leave, planning to try another pharmacy.
But before he could step out, Zhou Yuntao sneered again, “I suggest you save your energy. If you’ve got that money, you’d be better off using it to honor Young Master Gao.”
“Don’t tell me you haven’t heard about the heavenly phenomenon from Gao Yang’s awakening last night?”
“Let me add—just now, the city lord announced the decree from the Sect Master of the Heavenly Profound Sect!”
“The Sect Master is already on his way here, and he’s ordered everyone in Lingqu City to fulfill all of Young Master Gao’s demands.”
“He also said that if Gao Yang agrees to join the Heavenly Profound Sect, the entire sect’s resources will be devoted to nurturing him.”
Zhou Yuntao’s tone grew more and more condescending. Two outsiders living in the Yun family household, and yet one was now heaven’s favorite while the other was cast into the dirt. But Qin Xiu didn’t care. New chapters come out on novelping . com first.
The Sect Master himself arriving and offering the sect’s full support?
Still the same question—was Gao Yang even worthy of that?
To people like Zhou Yuntao, Qin Xiu showed nothing but disdain. “I bet you’re not even this loyal to your own father.”
“You!” Zhou Yuntao flared with anger, “A peerless genius like Young Master Gao is a blessing to the Zhou family. We’re lucky to have this opportunity!” Then he shouted to his men, “Spread the word—any shop in the city that dares to do business with this brat is challenging Young Master Gao himself!”
With that, Zhou Yuntao declared arrogantly, “Didn’t you act all high and mighty? Believe me, with just one word from Young Master Gao, you won’t even be able to beg for a single coin, let alone buy anything.”
Qin Xiu narrowed his eyes slightly, “Then let’s see who has the last laugh.”
Leaving the Zhou family pharmacy, Qin Xiu went to a second shop. But just as Zhou Yuntao had said, several pharmacies in a row turned him away.
Either the families recognized him and didn’t want to offend Gao Yang, or even those who didn’t know him had already been influenced by Zhou Yuntao’s warnings and feared the consequences.
He spent the entire morning walking around most of Lingqu City and didn’t manage to buy even a single herb.
“Gao Yang… well played.” Qin Xiu clenched his fists, not so much angry as amused. If they could target him, they’d likely do the same if Yun Nishang came out to buy things.
He was even wondering whether he should just drag Gao Yang out into the street and beat him up when suddenly someone patted his shoulder.
“Young Master Qin.”
Qin Xiu turned his head—it was a familiar face.
“Uncle Jiang?”
Back when his father was alive, he ran a pharmacy. Though it didn’t sell pills, its medicinal liquids were as good as the Zhou family’s. Business was decent, and that had helped the Qin family accumulate some wealth.
Uncle Jiang had been the shopkeeper hired by his father. Uncle Jiang glanced around, then quickly pulled Qin Xiu into a quiet corner before speaking.
“Young Master Qin, I saw you wandering all morning. Are you looking for medicinal herbs?”
Uncle Jiang had also heard about Gao Yang awakening his spirit body. As a small figure, he didn’t dare offend someone like that. In fact, even without Gao Yang, after Qin Xiu’s father passed away, Gao Wanhua had been finding excuses to seize the shop.
Last month, when Yun Xuerong awakened the Water Radiance Spirit Body, Uncle Jiang knew the store was finished and had shut it down.
But Qin Xiu’s father had always treated him generously. And after all, the shop belonged to the Qin family.
Seeing Qin Xiu nod, Uncle Jiang gritted his teeth—this favor had to be repaid. “Young Master, tell me what herbs you need. I’ll go get them for you.”