Back in the marketplace, Jiang Chan was worrying. Disciples from major sects really were difficult to approach. If she wanted to stay close to Feng Qiwu, she could only wait for Feng Qiwu to come to her.
If she went looking for Feng Qiwu herself, the Sword Sect’s old monsters might discover her. She was a highly coveted prize. Jiang Chan was absolutely certain of that.
Who would have thought that just as she needed a solution, one would arrive? Ten days after Feng Qiwu and the others finished their trial, the Sword Sect elder came to visit, bringing his young disciple with him.
The junior sister was not shy around strangers. The moment she saw Jiang Chan, she began chattering like a little lark, lively and endearing.
Mo Yu narrowed her eyes as though dozing, but she was actually listening to the junior sister with delight. Jiang Chan glanced at her discreetly. If Mo Yu’s tail had been visible, it would probably have been swishing back and forth.
The terms offered by the Sword Sect elder were very generous. The sect would provide Jiang Chan with medicinal ingredients, and she would only need to give it half the pills she refined. She could keep the rest.
The Sword Sect would set aside a mountain peak for her, Alchemy Peak, and Jiang Chan would immediately become its elder. Even Mo Yu secured an elder’s position.
Naturally, Jiang Chan agreed. How else could she keep a close eye on Feng Qiwu? Mo Yu did not mind either way. She had come out with Jiang Chan to broaden her horizons in the first place. Wherever Jiang Chan went, she would follow.
Jiang Chan closed her shop as well. She had opened it to draw Feng Qiwu in. Now that it had served its purpose, it was time to close it.
Besides, Jiang Chan was deeply curious about this cultivation world. Xiao Jin had also left her such a lengthy mission. She would need to devote more time to cultivation from now on.
Alchemy Peak was added to the Sword Sect without any fanfare. Only when the Medicine Sect reviewed its monthly accounts did it notice that business seemed to have declined a little that month. It did not think much of it.
Several months later, the Medicine Sect finally realized that the sword cultivators who had once brought it so many spirit stones seemed to have disappeared. Could the Sword Sect have acquired its own alchemist? Who would be foolish enough to become an alchemist there?
The Medicine Sect elders grumbled inwardly. Unfortunately, their sect’s members were poor fighters and did not dare go straight to the Sword Sect to ask. They could only make discreet inquiries. But despite asking around for a long time, they learned nothing.
What a joke. Jiang Chan was the Sword Sect’s treasure. She supplied them freely with pills. They would have to be idiots to tell outsiders about her. What if someone tried to lure her away?
Jiang Chan settled into the Sword Sect like a fish in water. She deliberately chose the peak closest to Feng Qiwu’s cave dwelling. The sect’s scenery was beautiful. As soon as Mo Yu arrived on their peak, she ran off to enjoy herself, disappearing into the mountains behind it.
Jiang Chan left her to it. What danger could she encounter in the Sword Sect? Besides, Mo Yu’s cultivation was high. There were few people who could hurt her.
These months in the Sword Sect had been wonderfully comfortable. Once she handed over the sect’s pills, Jiang Chan was free to spend her time as she pleased. Whether studying alchemy or improving her cultivation, she kept herself busy in an orderly way.
Of course, building a good relationship with Feng Qiwu was even more important. Jiang Chan took excellent care of her, sending over bottle after bottle of freshly refined pills, determined to equip her for every eventuality.
Fortunately, they were now very close, and Feng Qiwu thought of Jiang Chan whenever she obtained something good too. With these exchanges, she became a regular visitor to Alchemy Peak.
After tidying up her pill furnace, Jiang Chan stretched. Mo Yu sauntered in and found her holding a few pills, studying them carefully.
Mo Yu rolled her eyes. “Really, isn’t this enough? As spirit beasts, improving our cultivation is what matters most. Spending all day thinking about alchemy, aren’t you losing sight of what’s important?”
“You don’t understand. Even if I improve my cultivation, I still won’t have much offensive power. I might as well try an unconventional approach.” Naturally, Jiang Chan would not reveal the real reason. At first, she had searched for pill recipes to learn about the Rejuvenation Pill.
But the deeper she studied alchemy, the more she realized how vast and profound it was. Combining medicinal ingredients, deciding when to add each one, and determining how to prepare them all required great care, and the resulting pills could be vastly different.
Jiang Chan was completely absorbed. She was naturally able to settle down and focus, so studying these things did not bore her. Mo Yu could not do the same. Although she was a feline, she still needed to go out for a stroll every day.
“I’ve never heard of a spirit beast refining pills. You’re probably the first.” Teasing her, Mo Yu sat down cross-legged beside Jiang Chan.
“Cultivation is monotonous. I have to find some enjoyment.” Jiang Chan sidestepped the real issue. “Why were you out for so long today? Did something happen?”
Despite her lazy manner, Mo Yu was intensely curious. In the two months since joining the Sword Sect, she had learned about all its internal relationships. She had even located the places where several Supreme Elders were cultivating in seclusion.
“There was something to see! You don’t know? People from the Sword Sect went to confront the Yunshui Sect today. I went along to watch.”
Mo Yu immediately perked up. The Sword Sect disciples spent all their time cultivating. Something like this was rare, and she naturally had to take a look.
“What happened? Was it about Tang Yubai?”
“Exactly. It went very smoothly. There was no hiding what was going on between Tang Yubai and Gu Miao’er, and the Sword Sect was in the right. The engagement was easily dissolved.”
Mo Yu wrinkled her nose. “But Gu Miao’er gave me an unpleasant feeling. Her aura is muddled, nothing like a seventeen- or eighteen-year-old female cultivator’s. She seems more like an old monster who’s cultivated for years. Yet when I saw her, I couldn’t help wanting to get close to her. It was frightening.”
If her cultivation had not been high and her self-control strong, she might have found herself hovering around Gu Miao’er. Of course, the feeling lasted only an instant. Once Mo Yu came to her senses, Gu Miao’er immediately set alarm bells ringing in her mind.
“She has tremendous fortune. People close to her naturally benefit, but anyone who opposes her generally comes to a bad end. Be careful around her in the future. That woman has a black heart.”
“Do you think fortune really exists? Why would it choose a female cultivator like her?”
“Who can say? In any case, we have nothing to do with her. Whether she’s good or bad has nothing to do with us. As for that muddled aura you mentioned, I know a little about it. Have you heard of memories carried over from a previous life?”
“Is that something like our inherited memories?”
Discover more from Lilly Translations
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.