The Birth of Hoa Van Town

Hao Nhien and Tieu Lan said goodbye to Lang Tuyet and Luu Van, then returned to the private courtyard behind Heavenly Treasure Pavilion. The moment the wooden door closed, the noise from the street outside was completely cut off by the formation, leaving only the late-afternoon sunlight filtering through the trees, casting shifting patches of light across the blue stone courtyard while a faint osmanthus fragrance drifted through the air.

The two stood facing each other for a while without speaking. The composure they had maintained throughout the negotiation seemed to finally loosen only now.

Tieu Lan was the first to laugh. She took both of Hao Nhien’s hands, her eyes shining with joy.

“Young Master, we really did it.”

Hao Nhien let her shake his hands several times before smiling.

“Yes. At least we have taken the first step.”

Tieu Lan looked at him, the happiness in her eyes undiminished.

“Master will come to Hoa Van, and Heavenly Treasure Pavilion will come too. All those things that used to be only the two of us sitting together and talking about... now there are people who truly believe we can make them happen.”

Her voice slowed slightly.

“Before, I always thought that as long as I took good care of Young Master, prepared medicine, watched the alchemy cauldron, and stayed by your side, that would be enough. But today, hearing everyone talk about Hoa Van, I suddenly felt that what I am doing may not only matter to Young Master.”

Hao Nhien looked at her.

“Of course it does not only matter to me.”

He gently tightened his hands around hers.

“You are not someone standing behind me, and you are not merely someone walking beside me. You are building Hoa Van together with me. The future Medicine Garden will need you, and the alchemy students who come there will need you as well. The injured, the tribes that lack medicinal supplies, perhaps even children who have never received proper treatment... one day, all of them may need the things you are working on now.”

The corners of Tieu Lan’s eyes gradually reddened, but she continued smiling.

“I am only afraid I am not good enough yet.”

“You do not need to become good enough immediately. As long as today is better than yesterday, and tomorrow is better than today, that is enough. I am the same.”

Tieu Lan nodded softly, then stepped forward and rested her forehead against his chest. Hao Nhien wrapped an arm around her shoulders.

For that brief moment, he did not think about Heavenly Eye, nor the ancient box, the bow, or the secrets buried for a thousand years. He simply stood in the courtyard and felt the warmth of the young woman in his arms.

After a while, Tieu Lan asked softly,

“Are we returning to Hoa Van tomorrow?”

“Before we leave, I want to visit the Quan Family one more time.”

The smile on her face faded slightly.

“Still no news from Sister Quan Nha?”

“None.”

Hao Nhien looked toward the roof of the courtyard.

“But the Quan Family has already sent people to Hoa Van. Once the communication route is established, information between Thanh Van City, Tam Thành, and Hoa Van will move much faster. Quan Lam has also arranged a private contact point. If Quan Nha or Elder Linh Van appears anywhere within the Quan Family’s network, we should hear about it very quickly.”

Tieu Lan lightly gripped the edge of his robe.

“Sister Quan Nha will definitely be fine.”

“Yes.”

Hao Nhien answered, though he himself did not know whether the words were meant to comfort her or to steady his own heart. For now, all he could do was continue handling the things within his control.

The following morning, the two went to the Quan Family estate.

Quan Vo Cuc personally received them in the great hall. The Quan Family’s support group had already departed earlier, including people responsible for transport, two young formation masters, a group of guards, and several stewards with experience establishing supply points near the border.

Quan Lam had also given the group a set of communication formation plates. Once they reached Hoa Van and erected the first relay pillar, the Quan Family, Tam Thành, and Hoa Van would be able to pass messages through three stages instead of waiting for someone to carry jade slips across thousands of miles.

Quan Vo Cuc handed Hao Nhien a jade token.

“This is a private contact point of the Quan Family. Any information concerning Quan Nha will be placed on the priority route. If anything is discovered, you will receive word before even some of the elders within the clan.”

Hao Nhien accepted the jade token and cupped his hands.

“Thank you, Family Head.”

Quan Vo Cuc waved a hand.

“There is no need to thank me. She is also a member of the Quan Family.”

He paused briefly before continuing.

“As for Hoa Van, my people will cooperate in establishing the communication route and transfer warehouse, but they are only there to assist. The rules in that place are still yours to decide.”

Hao Nhien understood.

The Quan Family wanted to participate, but it had no intention of turning Hoa Van into its territory.

“I will keep the boundaries clear.”

“That is best.”

Before leaving, Hao Nhien looked back at the great hall one more time. The chair where Quan Nha had once sat remained in its old place.

No one mentioned her again.

Yet that silence made the stone in Hao Nhien’s heart feel slightly heavier.

At noon, the Wandering Sword left Thanh Van City.

Three days later, Hao Nhien and Tieu Lan returned to Hoa Van.

Looking down from above, the forward settlement was still crude. Rows of tents stretched across the reddish-brown earth, the earthen walls were only partially complete, and water channels ran along the eastern side. Members of the Fire Qilin Clan and wandering groups were still transporting stone, timber, and compacted earth, but compared with when Hao Nhien had left, the entire place was busier, more orderly, and more regular.

The moment Hao Nhien landed, Luu Thanh and several people in charge came forward to greet him.

He did not rest for long.

That very afternoon, he gathered those responsible for storage, construction, patrols, and food distribution.

The first shipment of supplies from the Free Roaming Sect had not yet arrived, but the allocation had already been confirmed. Hao Nhien had no intention of waiting until resources were piled outside the warehouse before teaching Hoa Van how to manage them.

He required the storage area to be completed first. The names of those permitted to access supplies had to be clearly recorded, while every item entering storage had to list its source, quantity, person responsible, and intended use. No one was allowed to take pills merely because of high status, and no one could remove supplies from the settlement without the proper token.

After the meeting, Hao Nhien returned to the central tent area, where an alchemy cauldron had already been prepared.

His goal today was not to refine as many pills as possible.

He wanted to create a process that others could learn, repeat, and record instead of relying entirely on his own talent and intuition.

Three sets of ingredients for the Qi-Recovery Pill lay on the table.

Hao Nhien did not begin refining immediately. He separated each type of medicinal ingredient, observed its color, checked its moisture, cut a section of stem to examine the amount of fluid inside, then used Divine Sense to assess the level of impurities before recording everything in a jade slip.

Even among the same species of spirit herb, differences in age, growing environment, and harvest time could alter medicinal strength. If one only looked at the name of the ingredient and used the same level of fire for every batch, the results would inevitably vary.

He began with selection.

The first set of ingredients was cleaned using the usual method. The second was more carefully processed by Tieu Lan with Wood-element true qi, removing dead root tissue and adjusting moisture before the ingredients entered the cauldron. The third set was left almost untouched for comparison.

Only then did Hao Nhien begin refining.

The first batch succeeded with nine pills, five mid-grade, three high-grade, and one lower-grade pill whose medicinal power had been unevenly distributed.

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Hao Nhien was not disappointed. He recorded the point when the fire had fluctuated, the origin of the ingredients, and the differences among the medicinal extracts.

The second batch was more stable, producing six mid-grade and three high-grade pills, with noticeably less variation between them.

The third batch partially failed. Two pills broke during the condensation stage, but the remaining four mid-grade and three high-grade pills revealed something interesting. On the best pill, an extremely faint segment of a pill pattern appeared, stretching less than half a circle before fading away.

It was still not supreme grade.

But Hao Nhien held the pill and examined it for a long time.

This was the result he truly wanted to see.

Not a supreme-grade pill appearing because of conditions he himself could not explain, but a gradual approach toward that boundary through changes that could be recorded and verified.

He added the timing of fire reduction, relative fire intensity, intervals between airflow adjustments, and the differences between the three ingredient groups into the jade slip. By the time night fell, there were not many pill bottles on the table, but the record was far more complete than any of his previous refining sessions.

Meanwhile, Tieu Lan spent most of her time within the cave-dwelling space inside the Spirit Ark.

She knew the secrets of the Ark well and was the only person besides Hao Nhien who could freely enter this area when he permitted it. Important spirit herbs that were difficult to grow or not yet adapted to the climate of the Western Wastes were kept there as seed stock and reference specimens.

Tieu Lan divided the medicinal fields into several sections. One was used for new seeds, another for spirit herbs that needed recovery, while the deeper area held rarer plants or varieties that were still too unstable to move outside.

For each plot, she recorded the source, planting date, water requirements, suitable level of Wood-element true qi, and estimated harvest time.

Several groups of seeds were selected for new germination experiments. Tieu Lan guided only a faint amount of Wood-element true qi into them, enough to stimulate vitality without forcing their growth. When the first sprout broke through the soil, she immediately reduced the flow and waited for the plant to stabilize before checking the medicinal qi inside.

She recorded the amount of true qi used, then repeated the process with another plot at a lower intensity for comparison.

Sand Spirit Root, Fire Sand Grass, Spirit Cloud Leaf, and Meridian-Nourishing Vine were selected as the first experimental group. Any variety capable of adapting to the soil and climate of the Western Wastes would gradually be moved to the outdoor Medicine Garden, while those that remained unsuitable would continue to be preserved inside the Spirit Ark.

Tieu Lan did not merely want to grow one crop of medicinal herbs.

She wanted Hoa Van to possess seed stock of its own.

Nearly a week after Hao Nhien and Tieu Lan returned, Medicine Peak’s survey team finally arrived.

Phong Van Tu led the group. Behind him were a middle-aged medicinal practitioner, a logistics steward, five young alchemy students, and four outer-sect disciples responsible for transporting cauldrons and supplies.

The moment Phong Van Tu saw Hao Nhien and Tieu Lan coming to meet them, he laughed loudly.

“Hao Nhien! Tieu Lan! This old man is here!”

Tieu Lan immediately hurried forward.

“Master!”

Phong Van Tu swept his gaze across the settlement, from the tents and water channels to the newly opened Medicine Garden and the groups carrying stone for the walls. He took a deep breath and laughed again.

“Hot, dry, full of wind and sand, and short of nearly everything. Exactly the kind of place where we can see whether the things we discussed in the mountains are actually useful in the real world.”

He turned and introduced each person behind him.

“This is Medicinal Practitioner Tran Moc, responsible for evaluating medicinal ingredients, climate, and cultivation potential. Steward Ho Minh will handle logistics, recordkeeping, and communication with the sect. As for these five, they are alchemy students who volunteered to come.”

The five stepped forward together and bowed.

“Greetings, Senior Brother Quan. Greetings, Senior Sister Tieu Lan.”

Hao Nhien returned the gesture.

“There is no need to be overly formal. During the survey period, Hoa Van will provide lodging and security. For anything involving medicinal ingredients, speak with Tieu Lan. For logistics, coordinate with Steward Ho and the people managing the warehouse. If something exceeds your authority, report directly to me.”

He looked at each of them and made the matter clear.

“You are not here to fight or involve yourselves in disputes between tribes. Your main tasks are to survey, record, and help us build processes that can be repeated. After one month, anyone who wants to return will be sent back according to the original plan. If some of you voluntarily wish to remain afterward and continue the research, Hoa Van will always have a place for you.”

The five alchemy students exchanged glances.

None of them answered immediately, but the curiosity in their eyes had clearly increased.

That afternoon, Hao Nhien led the group to the tent being used as a temporary Alchemy Room.

There were no secret formulas or rare spirit medicines on the table, only trays of medicinal ingredients, lamps, jade plates, and blank jade slips.

Hao Nhien looked at the five students.

“I do not intend to teach all of you the same thing. Each of you still needs to understand the entire process, but for the first stage, you will begin with whatever you are naturally best at.”

One alchemy student looked slightly surprised.

“We are not all going to learn alchemy together?”

“You are all learning alchemy, but not everyone needs to begin by standing in front of the cauldron.”

Hao Nhien pointed to the first student.

“You recognize medicinal ingredients quickly. For now, you will classify them, assess their age, and record differences between materials from different sources.”

The second student, whose perception of spiritual qi was sharper than the others, was assigned to monitor medicinal fragrance, spiritual fluctuations, cauldron vibrations, and changes that could be observed externally during extraction.

The third possessed the clearest Fire spiritual root, so he began with fire control. There was no need to open the cauldron yet. His task was simply to maintain a stable level of heat over an extended period.

The fourth had a strong memory and was assigned to record the entire process, including time, relative fire intensity, the color of medicinal extracts, medicinal fragrance, and abnormal signs.

The last student had previously worked in Medicine Peak’s medicinal storehouse, so he was given responsibility for preservation. The same type of medicinal ingredient would be stored using several methods, then compared after a few days to measure changes in medicinal qi and quality.

The five students became serious after hearing their assignments.

Hao Nhien placed a dried piece of spirit herb on the table.

“The alchemy process does not begin when the cauldron is opened. It begins the moment an herb is harvested. If the selection is wrong, the storage is wrong, or the preprocessing is wrong, then no matter how skilled the person controlling the fire is, there is only so much they can save.”

Phong Van Tu stood beside him. At first, he had merely been stroking his beard, but the longer he listened, the more focused his eyes became.

Hao Nhien did not teach the newly arrived students the entirety of Wind-Fire Medicine Refining. The deeper portions involving Divine Sense, separation of medicinal power, and airflow control were still withheld, while the basic principles were broken down into steps clear enough for anyone to practice.

Tieu Lan also brought the group to the outdoor Medicine Garden.

She placed two spirit herbs of the same species before them. One was larger, with darker green leaves and a much healthier appearance, while the other was smaller and far less impressive.

Several students instinctively looked toward the first plant.

Tieu Lan did not explain immediately. She cut a small section of root from each and let them sense the difference for themselves. The medicinal qi in the larger plant dispersed very quickly, while the smaller one retained a steady current.

“The larger plant was forced to grow too quickly. It looks better, but its medicinal power has not accumulated enough. Caring for medicinal herbs is not about making them grow as fast as possible. It is about allowing them to accumulate what the pill formula actually requires.”

The students who had still been glancing toward the Alchemy Room immediately turned their full attention back to her.

Over the next several days, the area around the Alchemy Room gradually became lively. Some people sat before a single flame for hours, training stability. Others classified hundreds of roots. Some focused solely on recording medicinal fragrance and spiritual fluctuations, while the student responsible for preservation experimented with different ways of wrapping and storing the same spirit herb before waiting for the results.

Members of the Fire Qilin Clan passing nearby occasionally stopped to stare. One quietly asked whether those people were truly practicing alchemy, while the person beside him could only shake his head and say that people from Medicine Peak probably had strange methods of their own.

Phong Van Tu did not remain an observer for long.

On the second day, he personally inspected the prepared ingredient groups. On the third, he analyzed a failed batch together with Hao Nhien. By the fourth day, he had already begun replacing Hao Nhien in guiding the fire-control group. On the fifth, he paired two alchemy students together, assigning one solely to extract medicinal essence while the other maintained heat according to the recorded markers.

Phong Van Tu’s ability to teach far surpassed Hao Nhien’s.

He knew where alchemy students usually made mistakes, knew when to ask questions that forced them to notice the problem themselves, and knew when a small deviation could be allowed to continue for observation and when it had to be stopped immediately before an entire batch was ruined.

Once Phong Van Tu took over most of the instruction, Hao Nhien gradually became able to spend more time away from the Alchemy Room.

On the sixth day, Phong Van Tu used ingredients that had been classified and preprocessed according to the new procedure to refine two consecutive batches of Body-Strengthening Pills.

The first batch produced seven high-grade pills and one mid-grade pill. The second produced six high-grade and two mid-grade pills. There was still some difference in medicinal power between the two batches, but it was far smaller than in ordinary refining, and not a single lower-grade pill appeared.

The best pill from the second batch even developed a faint segment of pill pattern. It was not enough to close into a full circle, but it still made Phong Van Tu examine it for quite some time.

Phong Van Tu placed the two jade bottles side by side and laughed. This time, the laughter was not loud, but the excitement in it was unmistakable.

“This old man understands now.”

Hao Nhien looked at him.

“What does Senior understand?”

“What matters is not one supreme-grade pill. What matters is that the next batch can come close to the one before it.”

Phong Van Tu opened both jade bottles.

“In the past, using the same formula could produce good pills and poor pills in the same batch, and sometimes even the alchemist could only rely on experience to guess why. But this time, every step was recorded. The ingredients were classified beforehand, the fire had reference markers, and the people involved knew exactly what they were supposed to watch. If something goes wrong next time, we will know where to look.”

He glanced at the faint pill pattern on one of the pills and smiled.

“Whether supreme grade appears right now is not important. As long as the result can be reproduced, that distance will eventually shrink.”

Phong Van Tu turned toward the five alchemy students.

“What you learn here is part of the cooperation between Medicine Peak and Hoa Van. Without the agreement of both sides, none of it may be spread outside. All records must be copied into two sets. One remains in Hoa Van, and the other returns to Medicine Peak.”

The five students answered together.

“This disciple understands.”

Only then did Phong Van Tu turn back to Hao Nhien.

“Leave this part to me. Go handle your own work.”

Hao Nhien looked slightly surprised.

“Senior does not need me to stay?”

Phong Van Tu glared at him.

“You already divided the path into sections. Do you still intend to lead every single person through each one yourself? This old man has lived this long. Do you think I do not know how to teach a few alchemy students?”

He snorted and pointed outside.

“You are the person leading Hoa Van. You cannot spend every day sitting in front of an alchemy cauldron.”

Hao Nhien fell silent and looked around.

The flames inside the Alchemy Room were still burning steadily. The students already knew what they needed to observe. Medicinal Practitioner Tran Moc was inspecting the southern land together with Tieu Lan, while Steward Ho Minh was comparing supply records with Hoa Van’s warehouse manager.

Everything was still crude.

But it had begun to function even when Hao Nhien himself was not standing at the center of it.

He cupped his hands.

“Then I will leave it to Senior.”

Phong Van Tu waved him away.

“Go.”

Hao Nhien stepped out of the Alchemy Room.

Outside, night had already fallen. Small flames still glowed inside the tents, rows of wooden markers stood neatly throughout the Medicine Garden, and inside the temporary warehouse, stewards from both sides were still checking supplies item by item.

Hoa Van still did not have complete walls, proper streets, or a stable merchant route. Yet for the first time, Hao Nhien felt that the place no longer functioned simply because he was standing there.

Inside the Alchemy Room, there were people learning and people teaching. In the Medicine Garden, someone was recording each plot of herbs. In the warehouse, there were already people who knew every shipment had to be checked before it was accepted.

A town was not born from walls alone.

It truly began to take shape when everyone knew what they were responsible for, and the work continued even after the person who had started it stepped away.

That night, amid the wind and sand of the Western Wastes, the refining flames of Hoa Van burned late into the night.