Chapter 4: Asking for Pills
Arriving at the entrance of the Alchemical Hall, Xiao Yichen stopped running and walked slowly inside.
"Well, well? Isn't this our little junior brother? What brings you to the Alchemical Hall with so much free time? Surely you aren't here for your good senior sister, are you?" As Xiao Yichen stepped inside, a smiling voice reached his ears. Following the sound, he saw a familiar-looking woman sitting on a wooden chair nearby, her eyes filled with teasing as she looked at him.
"Greetings, Senior Sister Zhang." Xiao Yichen gave a slight bow. This person was none other than the other woman who had lured him into the Meiyu Sect that night, Zhang Qingyue.
At that time, she and Yun Mei were hunting down a male disciple who had escaped from the Meiyu Sect. In his panic, that male disciple had burst into the room where Xiao Yichen was resting and grabbed him on impulse, intending to use him as a human shield. Xiao Yichen had been dragged into the whole mess through sheer unmerited disaster. Later, when Yun Mei discovered that he possessed a talent for cultivation, she had cajoled him into the Meiyu Sect using a mix of threats and seduction.
"Senior Sister Zhang, this junior brother has come precisely on account of Senior Sister Yun's injuries. I wonder if Senior Sister Zhang would be so kind as to introduce me?" Xiao Yichen said, cupping his hands slightly.Hearing this, Zhang Qingyue let out a disdainful chuckle. "Heh, Junior Brother is truly thoughtful. That Yun Mei really makes me envious. But why should I help you? You must know that in the upcoming sect tournament, Yun Mei and I are bound to cross paths. If she loses, you will become masterless." With that, Zhang Qingyue slowly walked up to him, her hand creeping closer to Xiao Yichen's face as if to stroke it, but he dodged away.
Seeing this, Zhang Qingyue did not get angry. Instead, she continued with a smile, "When the time comes, if I defeat her, according to the wager between us, you will be mine. Your Senior Sister has fancied you very much since the first time we met. So tell me, should I help her or not?"
Hearing these words, Xiao Yichen realized she had no intention of helping him. With a faint smile, he bid farewell to Zhang Qingyue and walked straight into the Alchemical Hall.
Watching Xiao Yichen walk farther and farther away, Zhang Qingyue narrowed her eyes slightly with a soft smile at the corner of her lips. She took a Sound-Transmission Stone from her bosom, and after a short wait, the stone on the other end connected. She spoke up, "Junior Sister Liu, I have a favor to ask..."
Upon entering the interior of the Alchemical Hall, Xiao Yichen strolled around slowly. Normally, his life revolved around a simple two-point routine between his quarters and the waterfall, so this was his first time actually stepping inside, having previously done little more than linger outside.Inside the Alchemical Hall, a massive bronze cauldron stood at the center, its surface covered in intricate runes and engravings. The surrounding walls, constructed from a special type of jade, emitted a gentle, warm glow that bathed the entire hall in soft light.
Embedded in the walls were rows of shelves lined with various precious herbs and alchemy materials. Some gave off an exotic fragrance, while others shimmered with a mysterious light.
Xiao Yichen sought out a disciple to ask a question, but the moment he opened his mouth, the person turned and walked away. Puzzled, Xiao Yichen assumed she was simply antisocial and thought nothing more of it. He approached another person, but her attitude remained indifferent; when he tried to ask a few questions, she walked away with an expression of annoyance. Several others he approached afterward were equally dismissive.
Just as Xiao Yichen was beginning to feel irritated, someone tapped him on the shoulder from behind. He turned around to find a young girl with a long ponytail looking at him with a smile.
"Little Junior Brother, are you here because of Senior Sister Yun?" the girl asked with a mischievous glint in her eyes.
Xiao Yichen did not recognize her. She looked to be about the same age as him, perhaps even slightly younger. Since she called him "Little Junior Brother," it only meant she had joined the sect before him. It was normal not to be familiar with her, as she likely spent all her time in the Alchemical Hall.
"Greetings, Senior Sister," Xiao Yichen said politely. "You are correct. I have come for that very reason. I hope you can help me save Senior Sister Yun."
The girl let out a slight sigh. "My name is Liu Qingqing. You can just call me Senior Sister Liu. I am aware that Senior Sister Yun is injured, but the sect's rules are too strict. Whenever a disciple is injured, they are required to handle it themselves—all under the pretense of 'training.' Furthermore, every pill in the sect is strictly accounted for. I cannot simply steal one for you. Sigh..."
Hearing this, Xiao Yichen grew anxious. No wonder the sect members had only provided minimal treatment to Yun Mei without fully healing her; it turned out there was such an absurd rule. But what was he supposed to do now?
Just as he was burning with anxiety, Liu Qingqing rolled her eyes, a faint smile tugging at the corners of her mouth. She pulled him aside into a secluded corner and whispered, "Little Junior Brother, Senior Sister Yun has always taken good care of me. How about this? You gather the medicinal ingredients for me, and I will secretly brew a pill for you. How does that sound?"As if grabbing a lifeline, Xiao Yichen nodded in agreement the moment he heard her words. Seeing this, Liu Qingqing was stunned for a moment; she had not expected him to agree so readily, especially since she had not even mentioned what medicinal herbs were involved.
"Are you sure?" Liu Qingqing asked suspiciously.
Xiao Yichen nodded without the slightest hesitation. Finding him as arrogant as someone who had never seen the world, Liu Qingqing let out a cold snort, placed her hands on her hips, and said, "Fine then. In the eastern part of the sect's Back Mountain, there is a Red Lotus Fruit Tree. If you want healing medicine, go pick a Red Lotus Fruit for me."Without waiting for Xiao Yichen to speak, Liu Qingqing continued, "However, don't say I didn't warn you. There are a few fierce beasts near that Red Lotus Fruit Tree, and they are certainly not something a mere mortal like you can handle. Don't go losing your life over it." With that, regardless of his reaction, Liu Qingqing pouted and walked straight away.
As she left the Alchemical Hall, Liu Qingqing pulled a Sound-Transmission Stone from her robes, tapped blindly on it a few times, and said, "Senior Sister Zhang, I've already rejected him just as you said. Actually, there's no need to go to all this trouble. The sect already has a rule forbidding us alchemists from treating fellow disciples privately. Although I've broken it a few times before, I definitely won't step in this time. Having half a year's worth of cultivation resources deducted every single time breaks my heart."As she spoke, she even clutched her chest, looking quite comical, and then continued into the Sound-Transmission Stone: "Right, Senior Sister Zhang, could you please go easy on her during the grand competition? Senior Sister Yun has always been quite nice to me, and since she's heavily injured right now, she certainly won't be a match for you anyway."
On the other end, hearing this, Zhang Qingyue gave a light chuckle and said: "Junior Brother doesn't usually pay much attention to the sect rules, so it's only natural that he doesn't know these things. I'm just afraid that you pharmacists, with your benevolent doctor's hearts, are too soft-spoken and will be persuaded by him out of consideration for fellow disciples. Such things have happened before. As long as Junior Brother recognizes the difficulty and backs down, stopping coming to beg you lot, I will naturally show mercy."
As soon as she finished speaking, she heard Liu Qingqing on the other end excitedly say: "And another thing, don't forget what you promised me! If you really defeat Senior Sister Yun and snatch Junior Brother away, remember your promise—you're supposed to let me have Junior Brother. You have no idea, seeing all of you paired up with cultivation partners every day, I'm almost dying of envy."On the other end, listening to Liu Qingqing's words through the Sound-Transmission Stone, Zhang Qingyue smiled faintly and replied in a measured voice: "Rest assured, Junior Sister Liu. I've simply seen you alone for so long and felt sorry for you. Now that I have a partner of my own, the little junior brother wouldn't be of much use to me anyway. When the time comes, I'll definitely give him to you."
A cheerful voice came from the other side of the Sound-Transmission Stone as Liu Qingqing responded. After exchanging a few more pleasantries, the two hung up. Putting the Sound-Transmission Stone back into her robes, Zhang Qingyue looked into the distance, a faint smile playing at the corners of her lips:
"Yun Mei, oh Yun Mei, who would have thought that at such an important moment as the Sect Grand Tournament, you'd end up so heavily injured? Truly, even the heavens are helping me. Liu Qingqing won't help you, and no one else is going to defy the sect's rules for your sake either. As long as I win this competition, I suppose there will be no one left to contend with me for the position of the next Saintess. Ha, ha..."
***
In the Back Mountain of the sect, following Liu Qingqing's instructions, Xiao Yichen kept walking toward the Red Lotus Fruit Tree. His heart pounded nervously the entire way as he kept wondering whether doing this was truly worth it.
After all, if Yun Mei lost, he would simply go from being her cauldron to someone else's cauldron. While the window of opportunity to make his escape might become shorter, the fundamental difference was negligible—he would still end up dying in the end. At least it wouldn't be like this, having to face fierce beasts head-on, where there was a good chance he'd be mauled to death on the spot.
Harboring such thoughts, Xiao Yichen slowly approached the vicinity of the Red Lotus Fruit Tree. After searching around for a bit, he finally spotted his target on a small hillside.
In the distance, the large tree had a thick, twisted trunk with interwoven bark resembling ancient runes. Its powerful, sturdy branches reached out in all directions, dangling apple-like fruits whose deep crimson color looked as though they had been stained with fresh blood. It was precisely the Red Lotus Fruit described by Liu Qingqing.
Just as he was about to cautiously make his way toward the fruit tree, a beastly roar in the distance startled him and froze him in his tracks. He looked in the direction the sound had come from.
He saw three fierce beasts slowly emerging from a nearby cave, letting out a roar toward Xiao Yichen in the distance. Yet the moment the three beasts caught a clear look at his face, they started in shock and scrambled back into the cave without even looking back.
As for Xiao Yichen, upon seeing what the beasts looked like, he stood frozen in a daze, his face plastered with sheer disbelief:
"Xiaobai?? Xiaohua?? Dahuang??..."