Chapter 808: Farewell to Han Yan

Knowing that the Five Elements Sect relic would open early, Ji An felt a sense of urgency rise within him.

Once, during a conversation with Senior Brother Zhengyang, he was told that the sealing array of the relic would only loosen for about two months.

If he missed this opportunity, he would have to wait another four or five hundred years, a wait he couldn’t afford.

“Thank you for the information, Daoist friend. I will prepare in advance.”

Ji An felt no fear of exploring the relic; his strength had been tested in real battles, and now he had full confidence in his combat abilities.

With a Tier Three Top-Grade Puppet equivalent to a late-stage Golden Core Cultivator in his hands, and soon to order a second top-grade puppet, he feared no challenge unless faced with a Nascent Soul level threat.

“Daoist friend, you’re too kind. If you are determined to go, you need to arrive at the Wanhua Mountain Range ahead of time. The opening of the relic is time-sensitive; if you get the news late, you might miss the chance to enter.”

Feiyun Zhenren mused over the other party’s willingness to risk exploring the relic. As a highly potential alchemist, such a person should be able to slowly accumulate many resources.

If they could understand the true needs of the other party, they could draw closer ties.

She coughed to clear her throat. “If there’s anything you need from me, Daoist friend, feel free to ask.”

Whether she could help was another matter, but the gesture needed to be made.

…

Three months later.

Phoenix Dance Mountain Range, Ge Clan Ancestral Land.

Feiyun Zhenren walked into the room holding several jade bottles and cupped her hands, saying:

“Clan Leader, these are the pills just delivered from Cloud Sea Immortal City, please take a look.”

Although she had reported Ji An’s situation to the family, the first batch of spirit medicines sent to Cloud Sea Immortal City by the family was only enough to refine two furnaces each of Nourishing Yuan Pills and Golden Core Pills, with each furnace producing only three pills.

Even with her as a guarantor, acting in such a manner was a clear sign of distrust, and she felt a bit displeased.

Master Tianfeng chuckled, “You can discuss this matter with Uncle Seven, there’s no need for me to worry, right?”

“Grandpa Seven does not trust the people I recommend, saying that the transportation to Cloud Sea Immortal City is inconvenient and prefers to leave the opportunity to family members. I wanted the Clan Leader to personally examine the quality of the pills and urge Grandpa Seven to follow the rules.”

She had her criticisms of Grandpa Seven’s behavior, which sounded righteous on the surface but was actually about allocating the spirit medicines to her own line of the family for refining.

The crux of the issue lay in the average level of the alchemist, with only a little over fifty percent success rate in refining Golden Core Pills.

While this success rate would be acceptable to other forces, in the Ge clan, a sixty percent success rate was a must.

Master Tianfeng sighed silently. There were all kinds of competitions among the family members, and he often had to mediate conflicts.

He took the jade bottle and poured out a pill from a cyan jade bottle, revealing a Nourishing Yuan Pill with two pill patterns.

Pinching the pill, he performed a spell, and a flame shadow rose and quickly dissipated.

The flame divided into three layers, from the inside out in colors of cyan, red, and white.

“Indeed, it’s the Cyan Lotus Heart-Burning Fire. That alchemist truly got lucky; why don’t family cultivators have such opportunities?”

Master Tianfeng sighed, placing the pill back into the jade bottle.

He then poured three Nourishing Yuan Pills with three pill patterns from another cyan jade bottle and asked:

“How many Nourishing Yuan Pills were you able to refine with the sent herbs?”

“Six.”

“Even with the Cyan Lotus Heart-Burning Fire, that cultivator’s pill formation success rate is below seventy percent; their methods seem less remarkable than imagined.”

The Cyan Lotus Heart-Burning Fire can purify impurities, making pill formation easier.

Feiyun Zhenren pressed her lips tightly and said:

“The materials sent to Cloud Sea Immortal City were for two furnaces of Golden Core Pills as well, able to produce up to six pills at most.”

Alchemy required great experience, and in her view, it purely stemmed from Ji An’s rare opportunities to refine Nourishing Yuan Pills.

Master Tianfeng continued his inventory, pouring six high-quality Golden Core Pills from the final jade bottle, then paused in surprise.

A one hundred percent pill formation rate, a one hundred percent high-quality rate—an alchemist turning in such a report card deserved praise from anyone.

He himself was a ninth-layer Golden Core cultivator, with a six-hundred-year alchemy career, and even he couldn’t claim reaching this level.

“Can we confirm that they were all refined by them?”

Feiyun Zhenren replied:

“I don’t think the other party has any motive to falsify, the family member responsible for liaison urgently borrowed a few high-quality Purple Cloud Jade Ganoderma Pills just to exchange for Golden Core Pills.”

Master Tianfeng swiftly calculated in his heart, if the other party could maintain an eighty percent pill formation rate, the family’s Golden Core Pill refining income would increase by several percent.

Each year, they could easily increase their income by several thousand top-grade spirit stones.

If broader cooperation could be launched, the profits would be substantial.

“I will discuss this with Uncle Seven and strive to send more spirit medicine to Cloud Sea Immortal City. If they can maintain their pill formation rate and high-quality rate, we can develop deeper cooperation with them.”

He considered that when the time was right, it might be necessary to discuss the possibility of welcoming them into the Ge clan.

Previously, he had concerns about their loyalty, but now it seemed that even a mutually beneficial cooperation with them could generate significant profits, making it worthwhile to try to win them over.

Feiyun Zhenren smiled, “Alright.”

…

Two years later.

The merchant flying ship returned to Cloud Sea Immortal City from the Western Continent, and Ji An received a message from Profound Wood Daoist Master, rushing to the Golden Puppet Pavilion at the fastest speed.

He descended, striding into the hall and spoke to the waiting maid:

“I am here at the invitation of Profound Wood Daoist Master, please announce my arrival.”

The maid bowed gracefully, “Please wait a moment, esteemed predecessor.”

She departed with light steps, and Profound Wood Daoist Master soon appeared along with an unexpected fellow sect member.

“Haha, I only sent out my Communication Golden Sword less than half an hour ago and already you have arrived. Your speed of flying escape is far beyond my expectations. Friend, let us chat in the lounge, please!”

Profound Wood Daoist Master laughed; he had been to Black Stone Mountain and knew how long this flight would typically take.

Han Yan smiled and saluted, her eyes full of admiration, “Senior Brother!”

She had learned Ji An’s refining of the Fire Element Pill reached a ninety percent pill formation success rate, convincing the Sect Leader to allow her to “work abroad” in Central Continent.

The three entered the lounge and started discussing the situations after they last met.

After half an hour, Ji An and Qin Yan bid farewell and returned to the Black Stone Grotto Mansion.

“I haven’t had the chance to congratulate Junior Sister; this is a Tier Three Middle Grade Spiritual Peach, considered a gift for your breakthrough to Golden Core.”

“Thank you, Senior Brother,” Han Yan’s voice was sweet, happily accepting the gift box.

Ji An waved his hand and said:

“No need to be courteous. I truly don’t understand why Sect Leader Senior Brother is willing to let you come to Central Continent.”

He thought it would be Li Haoran coming this time.

Both he and Han Yan are the sect’s only Golden Core level alchemists, now both have come to Central Continent, leaving the sect without any top-tier alchemists.

“You let Senior Brother Jiuxiao bring back a large number of Fire Element Pills; the sect temporarily doesn’t lack Tier Three Pills. I come to study with Senior Brother to better serve the sect; Sect Leader Senior Brother naturally would agree.”

Han Yan’s voice turned low, “Senior Brother Yuxiao also toured Central Continent; his decades of traveling brought little inheritance for the sect. Your achievements shocked him, and Golden Core cultivators from the sect will come to Central Continent to broaden their horizons.”

Fire Element Pill is a Tier Three Lower Grade pill, and no sect’s cultivator had ever seen so many Tier Three pills presented before them.

Various magic techniques, talisman making techniques, pill formulas, greatly enriched the sect’s heritage.

She took out a jade slip emitting a red spirit light and added:

“This is from the sect’s artifact refiners collating some ideas, hoping to help Senior Brother refine the Thunder Bead.”

Ji An took the jade slip and placed it on his forehead to read the information within.

Seeing many paragraphs of suggestions inside made him overjoyed.

“Whose handiwork is this? Remarkable insight indeed.”

“Junior Brother Qin Yan broke through to the Golden Core Stage, and this conclusion is gathered from high-tier artifact refiners of the Artifact Refining Hall.”

It’s somewhat unbelievable, the sect known for artifact refining and beast taming in Western Continent; among the sect’s Golden Core cultivators, there is only one artifact refiner—Qin Yan.

Senior Brother Yuxiao delves into talisman making; both she and Ji An are alchemists. Lin Qiu Bai and Li Haoran are sword cultivators, never researched any cultivation techniques, and Lin Jiuxiao is the same.

Ji An put away the jade slip, “I don’t know much about artifact refining; otherwise, I would buy some artifact refining inheritance to send back.”

Han Yan smiled and shook her head, “That’s unnecessary; the last time Senior Brother Zhengyang and I came to Central Continent, most of what we bought was about artifact refining. Since Senior Brother is not an artifact refiner, you wouldn’t pay attention, but the sect’s artifact refining heritage is quite rich.”

Now, alchemists have acquired more Tier Three pill formulas, the Puppet Hall obtained the technique for refining Tier Three puppets, just awaiting the birth of Golden Core level puppet masters and spirit farmers, the sect’s foundation will ascend another tier.

The two had endless topics, unknowingly the setting sun slanted west, filling the window frame with orange-red brilliance.

Ji An said:

“Junior Sister, stay here overnight, and tomorrow I will take you to the grotto mansion. The grotto mansion is quite near this place; originally Junior Brother Jiuxiao rented it, but upon his departure, wanted to cancel the lease which I stopped, conveniently leaving it for you.”

…

At 7:00 AM the next day, Ji An and Han Yan departed from Black Stone Mountain, riding the clouds to the grotto mansion that had been vacant for roughly two years.

Han Yan looked at the lush and tall spirit wood and smiled:

“These spirit plants of the grotto mansion, are they also managed by Senior Brother?”

Senior Brother Lin Jiuxiao stayed in Western Continent for thirty years; it’s unreasonable to have rented a grotto mansion filled with high-tier spirit wood, the reason is self-evident.

Ji An nodded slightly, “Yes, allowing the spirit field to become barren would be a crime. Many spirit woods have grown to the Tier Three level, in a few days I’ll contact someone to sell them, the rental fee for the grotto mansion will then have coverage.”

Han Yan quickly waved her hand, “They are all managed by Senior Brother; I haven’t accomplished anything, so how can I accept such favors.”

Renting a Third Level grotto mansion isn’t cheap, costing hundreds of top-grade spirit stones annually at the very least.

“Don’t decline, consider this a small contribution to the sect, letting future fellow sect members visiting Central Continent have a place to stay.”

Ji An performed a spell to open the dharma prohibition and handed over the restricted jade token:

“The grotto mansion welcomes a new owner, now it is yours to manage, let us go in now.”

The two walked into the grotto mansion, where a few spirit lizards were kept to devour dust; although no one had stayed there for a long time, it was spotless and maintained its cleanliness.

Seated, Ji An inquired:

“Junior Sister, what are your plans for the future?”

He had a plan; if she had no definite goals, he could implement it.