Qin Yuan stood.
The floor formation measured his pressure and adjusted automatically.
Qin Yuan walked to the testing stone at the corner of the room.
It was a dark gray block used by low-level Warriors to measure impact strength.
He raised his hand.
No technique.
No Spirit Qi blade.
Just a punch.
His fist struck.
Bang.
The testing stone shook.
A shallow crack spread across its surface.
A number appeared above it.
The room's formation paused.
Then recalculated.
Qin Yuan looked at the result.
With this strength, he felt he could break apart a boulder.
A normal 3rd layer Spirit Opening cultivator, without strong body protection, would not survive if he grabbed their throat seriously.
He flexed his fingers.
"Good."
That one word was all he said.
But his eyes were brighter than usual.
His talent list continued shifting.
Cultivation Talent rose.
Combat Talent rose.
Sword Mastery rose.
Body Refinement Talent rose.
Vital Force Circulation rose.
Muscle Control rose.
Bone Strength rose.
Spirit Qi Circulation rose.
His strength had increased by leaps and bounds.
Not enough to be arrogant.
Enough to change his options.
That mattered more.
A chime came from the room's door.
"Qin Yuan."
Elder Su's voice.
Qin Yuan adjusted his robe and opened the door.
Elder Su stood outside with a tablet in one hand.
She looked at him.
Then paused.
Her eyes narrowed.
"Fourth layer Spirit Opening."
Qin Yuan nodded.
"And fourth layer Body Opening."
Elder Su stared for a moment.
Then she looked down at her tablet.
Then back at him.
"Of course."
Qin Yuan blinked.
"That's all?"
"What do you want me to do? Scream?"
"No."
"Good. I'm out of surprise. You used all of it this week."
Qin Yuan stepped out.
Elder Su circled him once, her Origin Core senses checking his aura.
"Foundation improved too."
"Yes."
"Sixth-Grade Spiritual Root?"
"Yes."
"Gold Flesh Gates?"
"Yes."
She stopped in front of him.
"You do understand normal people do not casually rebuild two foundations and jump three layers in one sitting, right?"
Qin Yuan nodded.
"I prepared properly."
Elder Su gave him a flat look.
"That sentence is doing a criminal amount of work."
"I didn't rush."
"That is the only reason I'm not scolding you."
She looked at the cracked testing stone inside the room.
Her eyebrow twitched.
"You broke association property."
Qin Yuan glanced back.
"It cracked."
"That is a type of breaking."
"I can pay with points."
"You will."
Qin Yuan nodded and gained an idea.
Elder Su noticed the faint shift in his eyes.
It was not excitement.
Not arrogance.
Not the usual glow of a young genius who had just discovered that the adults around him were willing to invest in him.
It was calculation.
That made her pause.
Most youths became easier to read after praise. Their shoulders lifted. Their eyes brightened. Their mouths twitched like they were holding back a smug smile.
Qin Yuan remained the same.
Calm.
Quiet.
Almost irritatingly steady.
Elder Su folded her arms beneath her chest, her long sleeves sliding over her wrists like white clouds.
"What is it?"
Qin Yuan looked up.
"Does the association have a place to practice combat?"
For the first time since meeting him, Elder Su's expression visibly shifted.
Not by much.
Only the slight narrowing of her eyes.
"You want to practice combat?"
"Yes."
"You just became a seven-star apprentice alchemist, passed two tests I designed to break your confidence, refined with nearly flawless control, and your first thought is to go swing a sword?"
Qin Yuan's tone stayed flat.
"Self-defense seems necessary."
Elder Su stared at him for a breath.
Then, unexpectedly, the corner of her mouth curved.
It was not a warm smile.
It was the kind of smile a teacher gave when a student finally said something that was not completely stupid.
"At least your brain works outside the furnace."
She turned and began walking.
"Come."
Qin Yuan followed.
As they stepped out of the examination chamber, several staff members immediately straightened. Some looked at Qin Yuan with barely hidden curiosity. Others lowered their eyes, already aware that this youth's position had changed too quickly to treat him casually.
Seven-star apprentice alchemist.
Those words were not just a title.
In the Clearbell Eastern Three-Path Pill Association, they meant potential.
A first-time candidate becoming a seven-star apprentice was not normal.
A 4th layer Spirit Opening youth doing it after shocking Elder Mu and Elder Su was even less normal.
Information in the modern cultivation world traveled fast.
Internal association messages, disciple group chats, elder notice boards, spirit-net rumor channels, anonymous forum threads—news could fly across a district before a person finished drinking tea.
Qin Yuan could already feel more gazes touching his back.
He ignored them.
Elder Su led him through a long floating bridge between association towers. Transparent spirit-glass formed the walkway beneath their feet, giving Qin Yuan a view of the lower districts far below. Spirit-energy buses slid along elevated roads. Delivery talisman drones moved in neat lanes. Flying swords streaked between towers in controlled ribbons of light.
The Pill Association itself was like a city within a city.
One tower held testing halls.
Another held pill storage vaults.
Another contained herb simulation farms, where rare ingredients grew inside artificial climate chambers.
There were also healing centers, lecture halls, flame control chambers, mana-medicine labs, warrior recovery rooms, and private cultivation suites.
Elder Su glanced at him.
"You asked the correct question, even if your timing is weird."
Qin Yuan looked at her.
"Alchemists get attacked often?"
"Constantly."
Her voice was cold and practical.
"Most fools think alchemists are soft because we spend time with furnaces instead of battlefields. They forget that pills are money, medicine, leverage, and life. An alchemist can heal an army, poison a clan, strengthen a sect, or ruin a rival's foundation with one wrong prescription."
She walked with her hands behind her back.
"Bodyguards are useful, but they cannot always stand beside you. Guards can be delayed. Bought. Distracted. Killed. A defensive artifact can fail. A formation can be broken. A safe room can become a trap."
Her eyes sharpened.
"So yes. Any alchemist with a brain learns self-defense."
Qin Yuan nodded once.
"That matches what I thought."
Elder Su snorted softly.
"You are very hard to impress."
"I'm impressed."
"You look bored."
"That's just my face."
Elder Su paused for half a step.
Then she gave him a side glance.
For some reason, that answer almost made her laugh.
Almost.
She controlled it.
"Careful. If Elder Mu hears you speaking like that, he might start liking you more."
"That would be troublesome?"
"Very. He likes collecting promising students the way old women collect antique teacups."
Qin Yuan looked ahead.
"Then I'll be careful."
Elder Su shook her head.
"You really say anything."
They reached a wide silver door guarded by two armored association guards. Both wore pill-flame badges over their chests, but their auras were not weak. Qin Yuan's Spirit Sense brushed over them lightly.
Spirit Master realm.
Both of them.
The guards bowed.
"Elder Su."
"Open the Three-Path Defensive Training Zone."
"Yes, Elder."
The door unfolded in several layers.
First metal.
Then formation glass.
Then a shimmering barrier of pale-blue light.
Beyond it, a wave of clean air rolled out.
Not medicinal air.
Combat air.
Qin Yuan heard the impact of fists against metal, swords cutting through wind, mana bolts exploding against barriers, and the low hum of active formations.
Elder Su stepped inside.
Qin Yuan followed.
The room beyond was enormous.
It was not a simple training courtyard.
It was a full combat complex.
Multiple stages floated above the ground at different heights, each surrounded by transparent protective barriers. Some platforms were for martial combat, with weapon racks, movement pillars, pressure zones, and sword-path markers. Others were built for wizards, filled with spell target arrays, mana-reflection shields, and rune-engraved drones that darted through the air. Farther away, warrior students trained inside gravity rings and impact corridors while heavy machines struck their bodies again and again.
Above everything, giant mana-screens displayed combat data.
REACTION SPEED.
SPIRIT QI OUTPUT.
MANA STABILITY.
VITAL FORCE CONTROL.
DAMAGE POTENTIAL.
DEFENSE FAILURE POINTS.
Qin Yuan's gaze moved toward the center of the hall.
There stood rows of almost human-like robots.
They were not wooden puppets.
They were not crude mechanical dolls.
Each one had a humanoid frame made of dark alloy, flexible spirit-metal joints, synthetic muscle fibers, and crystal cores embedded in their chests. Their faces were smooth and expressionless, but their bodies looked disturbingly alive. Some held swords. Some held spears. Some had spell cores installed into their arms. Others were built larger, with reinforced limbs meant to imitate body cultivators.
Qin Yuan was not surprised.
He had read about them.
Combat automation had replaced the old Puppet Dao in most modern cities.
Traditional puppets were difficult to produce, required specialized puppet masters, and often had rigid fighting patterns unless made by true masters.
These combat robots were different.
They were called Spirit-Combat Simulants.
The newer generations could replicate martial arts, wizard casting sequences, warrior pressure, beast movement patterns, and even certain battlefield formations.
They did not get tired.
They did not hesitate.
They could be repaired, updated, mass-produced, and connected to combat databases.
In war, they were scouts, front-line distractions, training partners, disposable soldiers, and assassination counters.
In training halls, they were better than most human sparring partners.
Qin Yuan studied them for several breaths.
So puppet Dao became robotics.
Makes sense.
Elder Su noticed his expression.
"You do not look surprised."
"I read about them."
"When?"
"Recently."
"How recently?"
"A few days ago."
Elder Su looked at him.
"You became a seven-star apprentice alchemist, improved your foundation, and studied combat robotics in the same few days?"
"Yes."
"That was not a compliment."
"I know."
Elder Su sighed.
For a brief moment, she looked like someone wondering whether she should be happy or annoyed.
Then attention began gathering.
At first, it was only nearby apprentices.
Then instructors.
Then a few association elders who had been watching other training stages.
Whispers spread quickly.
"That's him?"
"The new seven-star apprentice?"
"He's younger than I thought."
"He looks normal."
"Normal? Elder Su personally brought him here."
"Is he here to train? Seriously?"
"Alchemists really do think they can do everything after getting praised once."
A young man in a blue alchemist coat leaned against a railing and smirked.
"This should be funny."
Beside him, a girl with silver-rimmed glasses frowned.
"Do not say that too loudly. He is still a seven-star apprentice."
"So? Seven-star furnace talent does not mean seven-star combat talent. If he embarrasses himself, nobody can blame me for having eyes."
Another youth laughed.
"Let him try. Some people need to learn that flames in a furnace and blades in the air are not the same thing."
Qin Yuan heard them.
He did not look over.
Elder Su did.
The whispering immediately became quieter.
Her gaze was not loud.
It did not need to be.
She turned back to Qin Yuan.
"What level?"
"Fourth layer."