Outside the Earthfire Chamber.
Yue Zhao stood trembling, clutching a small box in his hands. When Yun Jin told him that the Butian Pill had been successfully refined, he had been overjoyed, practically floating. After all, this was a seventh-rank pill.
A seventh-rank pill he had never even seen in his entire life.
Now the pill was in his hands. He had even breathed in the fragrant medicinal scent. Only then did Yue Zhao's heart settle down.
The Butian Pill.
It was real.
His master could be saved.
Tianjian Peak could be saved.
Yue Zhao hugged the box tightly, his face full of awe and reverence.
Though Qing Yun had been the last to leave, he was the first to arrive.
When he arrived, what he saw was Yue Zhao clutching the box, grinning like a fool.
Wait.
Where was Yun Jin?
"My disciple, where is she?" Shen Yanye and Cang Li arrived just behind him. Shen Yanye's first words were already possessive.
Cang Li shot him a glance and said coldly, "Shameless."
"It was bound to happen anyway. What's shameless about it?" Shen Yanye snorted.
As the three spoke, their gazes turned in unison toward Yue Zhao. Their meaning was clear.
Where is she?
Where was that Yun Jin who had been here just moments ago?
They were only one step late, and she had already vanished?
Only now did Yue Zhao recover from the elation of the pill's success. A little flustered, he explained, "Junior Sister suddenly felt a rush of spiritual energy. It looks like she's about to break through to mid-stage Golden Core, so after handing me the pill, she went back into seclusion..."
He was telling the truth, but he still felt uneasy. He had been so overwhelmed with excitement earlier that he forgot to mention all the important figures who had come looking for Yun Jin.
Now she had closed herself off again, and he didn't dare disturb her cultivation. But these three—each one a major figure in their own right—what was he supposed to do?
If any one of them lost their temper, the entire Tianxing Sect might be flattened.
Qing Yun narrowed his eyes. He didn't seem too concerned about Yun Jin's whereabouts. Instead, his gaze fixed on the box. A flicker of lightning danced in his eyes, as though he could see straight through the wood and into the pill inside.
"Boy," Qing Yun said calmly, "where did this pill come from?"
There was still a strong medicinal scent lingering in the air. Qing Yun had used a secret technique and seen something through the box...
His expression shifted slightly. The pill inside was perfectly clear and bore seven complete pill lines. The scent, combined with the visual details, left no doubt. This was a seventh-rank Butian Pill.
And not just any seventh-rank pill. A perfect-grade one.
What shocked Qing Yun the most was that the medicinal scent had yet to fully settle. This pill had clearly just been refined. But where had Yue Zhao gotten a freshly refined Butian Pill?
In that moment, Qing Yun suddenly remembered that Yue Zhao had once come to him asking for Bishui Fruit.
That fruit—it was listed in the Butian Pill's recipe.
And just like that, the pieces fell into place.
Yue Zhao had searched for the Bishui Fruit specifically for the Butian Pill. The pill itself required at least three full days to refine. So he must have just now received the pill.
Which meant someone had just succeeded and handed it to him.
That person...
Qing Yun's eyes slowly shifted toward the sealed Earthfire Chamber.
Wasn't Yun Jin inside?
"Senior, I..." Yue Zhao forced himself to speak, though his voice faltered.
Qing Yun's eyes sharpened. "Are you telling me... Yun Jin isn't alone in there?"
Ling Fei and Elder Jian arrived in haste, only catching the tail end of that question.
Ling Fei said instinctively, "Impossible. The Earthfire Chamber only accommodates one person at a time."
One person per chamber.
A freshly refined seventh-rank pill.
Qing Yun snapped his head toward Yue Zhao.
Yue Zhao realized there was no hiding it anymore. He forced a nervous smile. "Senior, I... I can explain."
"Yun Jin..." Qing Yun murmured, "She's the alchemy prodigy?"
His gaze bore into Yue Zhao like a sword, as though he wanted to see straight through him. Yue Zhao had planned to let Yun Jin decide when to reveal her secret.
But now... it was out of his hands.
He could only nod, cautiously. "Possibly. Maybe. Probably..."
What?
What were Yue Zhao and Qing Yun talking about?
Yun Jin? Alchemy prodigy?
Shen Yanye and Cang Li exchanged glances, an ominous feeling rising between them. They had been fighting for days, only to realize that their real competition wasn't each other?
Elder Jian looked completely baffled.
Wasn't Yun Jin supposed to be a once-in-a-century sword cultivation genius?
She had only just started learning the Azure Lotus Sword Art, and that alone would keep anyone busy.
How did she even have time to become an alchemist?
Everyone knew that alchemy was a time-consuming and resource-intensive secondary path.
Even if she had the talent, did she really have the time? The conditions?
Was this... some kind of misunderstanding?
Cang Li clearly thought so too. He said carefully, "Senior Qing Yun, there might be a mistake here. From what I heard, Yun Jin seems to have some talent in spirit plant cultivation, but alchemy? I've never heard anything about that."
"Yes, definitely a misunderstanding," Shen Yanye added quickly.
If Qing Yun joined the competition, his own chances of taking in such a good disciple would drop even further.
Qing Yun continued to examine the pill's aura, his expression unreadable. Then, all of a sudden, he said, "I heard your master Lin Ya suffered severe injuries in the past. He needs the Butian Pill to restore his dantian. There's no time to delay. Come, I'll go with you to see Lin Ya."
His sudden shift in topic made Yue Zhao hesitate.
Visit Master?
"This pill is immensely potent," Qing Yun said with a faint smile. "I'm not just a ninth-rank alchemist. I'm also a ninth-rank apothecary. Lin Ya's injuries are severe, and absorbing this kind of pill might be painful. If I'm present, I can ease the process and help resolve any unexpected complications. It's for your master's benefit. Don't you agree?"
Qing Yun's words made Yue Zhao waver. He couldn't quite tell what the senior's intentions were, but Qing Yun didn't seem malicious. If he had bad intentions, there was nothing they could do to stop him anyway. And pills of this rank were extremely rare. They knew very little about their effects. Having Qing Yun around could save a lot of trouble.
Yue Zhao respectfully cupped his hands. "Then I'll trouble you, Senior."
A faint smile curved Qing Yun's lips. "Let's go, then."
Seeing how things were going, Shen Yanye and Cang Li immediately tried to follow.
But Qing Yun turned to block them. "Consuming the Butian Pill can trigger complex changes. Too many people would only make things unstable. You two should wait here on Tianjian Peak."
Shen Yanye and Cang Li silently cursed.
That old fox. He definitely knew more than he let on. He must have already guessed Yun Jin's identity.
Now he was heading straight to Lin Ya to strike first.
Despicable. Absolutely despicable.