A Small Faction Looking for Trouble
"Senior Brother Han, the name of this Supreme Alchemist is Zhang Lingxiao," Ouyang Shishi said.
"Zhang Lingxiao? Good, good, good. Your Senior Brother will go and find him shortly…"
Han Tianlai replied with a doting smile. Then, as if struck by lightning, his eyes widened. He stared at Ouyang Shishi in disbelief.
"Junior Sister… say that again. What was the name of this Supreme Alchemist?"
"Zhang Lingxiao! Zhang as in the surname Zhang, and Lingxiao as in accomplishment!"
Ouyang Shishi enunciated every word, her tone carrying a trace of indescribable emotion.
"Zhang Lingxiao?!"
Han Tianlai cried out in shock.
"That Supreme Alchemist is actually Junior Brother Zhang?!"
Without another word, he abandoned Ouyang Shishi and rushed toward the summit of Alchemy Peak.
He intended to awaken his Master, who was currently in closed-door seclusion refining pills.
Before entering seclusion, his Master had repeatedly instructed everyone that unless the heavens collapsed or Qingyun Mountain faced destruction, no one was to disturb his pill refinement.
But compared to that...
The appearance of an eighteen-year-old Supreme Alchemist was even more shocking.
A Supreme Alchemist!
And one with a 90% pill formation rate!
Han Tianlai refused to believe his Master would remain calm after hearing such news.
If anything, the old man would probably rush out of seclusion immediately.
---
Meanwhile, Zhang Lingxiao arrived at the Spiritual Tool Pavilion and once again found Li Ruoxi, the disciple who had assisted him the previous day.
"Senior Brother Zhang Lingxiao, you're here so early to buy something again?"
Li Ruoxi greeted him warmly.
Zhang Lingxiao nodded.
"I'd like to purchase the pill formula for a Second-Rank medicinal pill."
Li Ruoxi blinked in surprise.
If she remembered correctly, Zhang Lingxiao had only purchased a pill furnace yesterday and had just begun learning Alchemy.
Why was he already buying a Second-Rank pill formula?
Still, out of professional courtesy, she didn't question him. Instead, she led him into a private room.
"Senior Brother Zhang Lingxiao, this Jade Slip contains the formula for the Spirit Gathering Pill."
She handed him a sealed Jade Slip.
Because of the protective seal, its contents could not be viewed before purchase.
"Spirit Gathering Pill?"
Zhang Lingxiao nodded thoughtfully.
The Spirit Gathering Pill was the Second-Rank counterpart to the Qi Gathering Pill. It was used by Spiritual Martial Realm cultivators to accelerate the absorption of Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi.
"I'll take this one."
Medicinal pills themselves were valuable commodities, but ordinary pill formulas were not.
As long as a pill formula had already become publicly circulated, its price remained relatively low.
Only ancient or lost pill formulas were worth astronomical sums.
Some were even priceless and could only be obtained from ancient inheritances, secret realms, or auctions.
After all, throughout the countless years of Martial Dao history, many pill formulas had inevitably disappeared.
---
After paying 10,000 Low-Grade Spirit Stones, the Jade Slip officially became Zhang Lingxiao's.
Ten thousand Low-Grade Spirit Stones were equivalent to ten Mid-Grade Spirit Stones.
Without leaving the pavilion, Zhang Lingxiao immediately placed the Jade Slip against his forehead and absorbed its contents with his Divine Sense.
A smile spread across his face.
Excellent.
He didn't need to purchase any of the required Spirit Herbs.
Every ingredient needed for the Spirit Gathering Pill was already growing inside his Life Ring. He simply needed to harvest them.
Before leaving, Zhang Lingxiao suddenly remembered something.
"By the way, Junior Sister Li, if I refine medicinal pills and wish to sell them, does the sect have a designated marketplace? Or are private transactions between disciples allowed?"
Li Ruoxi smiled.
"Of course."
"Our Qingyun Mountain isn't like certain small sects that tightly control the medicinal pill trade."
"The sect has dedicated areas where disciples can both buy and sell medicinal pills."
"In addition, you can visit the Mission Hall. Many disciples and elders post commissions there and are willing to pay premium prices for medicinal pills, often higher than direct market prices."
"Thank you for the information, Junior Sister."
Zhang Lingxiao smiled.
Then he removed a Supreme-Grade Qi Gathering Pill from a jade bottle and handed it to her.
"As thanks for all your help over the past two days, please accept this."
Li Ruoxi instinctively intended to refuse.
However, the moment she sensed the astonishing spiritual fluctuations radiating from the pill, her expression froze.
"T-This..."
"Senior Brother Zhang Lingxiao... is this... a Supreme-Grade Qi Gathering Pill?"
Her beautiful eyes widened in disbelief.
"Yes."
Zhang Lingxiao nodded casually.
At the same time, he silently asked Gu Yue Ningbing inside the Life Ring,
"Beautiful lady, why is everyone so shocked by Supreme-Grade medicinal pills? Are Supreme Alchemists really that rare?"
Gu Yue Ningbing's slightly exasperated voice echoed in his mind.
"Of course they are."
"Even among the God Clan, there is only one Supreme Alchemist."
"Do you think Supreme Alchemists are as common as cabbages?"
"I truly don't understand how your talent in both the Martial Dao and the Alchemy Dao can be so heaven-defying."
Only then did Zhang Lingxiao truly understand how precious Supreme-Grade medicinal pills were.
"Thank you very much, Senior Brother Zhang Lingxiao."
Li Ruoxi accepted the pill with visible excitement, afraid he might change his mind.
Although she had already reached the Spiritual Martial Realm and no longer needed a Qi Gathering Pill for cultivation, a Supreme-Grade pill contained almost no pill impurities.
Refining it could still strengthen her foundation and might even help her break through a minor realm.
Zhang Lingxiao simply smiled.
To everyone else, Supreme-Grade medicinal pills were priceless treasures.
To him, however, they were merely the product of another successful furnace.
After all, he possessed a 90% pill formation rate.
Most Alchemists were fortunate if a furnace produced one or two successful pills.
Talented ones might obtain three or four.
He refined nine.
Who could compare?
Just then—
A cold, arrogant voice rang out from the entrance of the Spiritual Tool Pavilion.
"Hold it!"
"That Supreme-Grade Qi Gathering Pill should have been mine!"
"You brat, did you steal it just so you could present it to a beauty?"
"Do you think you're worthy?"
Zhang Lingxiao turned toward the speaker.
The newcomer was a tall young man with ordinary features.
His aura revealed mid-stage Spiritual Martial Realm cultivation, yet he wore the robes of an Inner Sect Disciple.
Normally, someone with that cultivation should already have been promoted to a Core Disciple. The fact that he remained in the Inner Sect likely meant he had failed to meet the sect's promotion requirements before reaching the age limit.
Still...
An Inner Sect Disciple daring to address a Core Disciple in such a disrespectful manner?
Where did he get such confidence?
Zhang Lingxiao's brows knitted together.
Does he have a powerful backer?
Perhaps an Elder is supporting him?
Even so, Zhang Lingxiao remained completely unfazed.
At that moment, Li Ruoxi stepped closer and whispered anxiously,
"Senior Brother Zhang Lingxiao... he's a member of the Sky Tiger Gang."