Only then did Li Yan remember that the person before him had traveled the world with his master. Knowing Wei Zhongran's character, his master was proud to the core.
He rarely heard him mention other cultivators of the same rank with whom he associated. To think that the person before him was one of them, his attitude became even more respectful.
"Oh, my master rarely speaks of his experiences. Please forgive this junior for my ignorance. It is truly my good fortune to see Senior again. May I ask what matter Senior seeks me for? As long as it is within this junior's ability, I will do my best."
Li Yan quickly half-rose and replied. Zuo Qiudan, however, waved his hand, signaling for Li Yan not to stand up.
"Hehehe, I didn't come to seek your help with anything this time, Little Friend. I mainly just wanted to see you. I was teleported to Windy Cool Mountain a few days ago. Although I have been out fighting with your master these past few days, we were all fighting our own battles, constantly thinking about how to save our own skins…"
At this point, Zuo Qiudan's voice paused, and a dazed look appeared in his eyes, but he quickly returned to normal.
"So I didn't know you were his disciple. It was only after finding Bu Luo just now that I learned of your identity. I guessed you might be at one of the three defensive points, and indeed, you were here. What I didn't expect was that Little Friend Li is actually a disciple of the renowned Malevolent Spirit Sect, and Wei Zhongran's disciple at that. That was truly a surprise. Oh, you were hiding your cultivation back then, weren't you? I actually didn't see through it. It seems your current Pseudo-Core Realm is your true level."
Zuo Qiudan looked at Li Yan, raised a slender finger and pointed at him, and chuckled.
"Reporting to Senior, I was indeed hiding some of it back then. However, I only recently broke through to the Pseudo-Core Realm."
Li Yan said vaguely, not wanting to talk too much about his cultivation.
Bu Luo thought to himself from the side.
'He's no ordinary Pseudo-Core. He's a Pseudo-Core who can kill about ten demonic cultivators of the same rank in a great battle. I wonder if you would just brush it off so lightly if you knew about that.'
He now had a feeling that Li Yan was invincible among those of the same rank. But having known Li Yan for some time, he knew that Li Yan disliked others bringing up his cultivation.
So, after some thought, he decided to wait until he was alone with his young master to talk about it. In any case, this was the first friend he had made, which proved that his judgment was not bad.
"Since Little Friend Li is a disciple of the Malevolent Spirit Sect, you must be quite skilled in refining poison pills. May I ask what grade of medicinal pills you can refine now?"
Zuo Qiudan suddenly changed the subject again. He was just asking casually and didn't really want to know about Li Yan's cultivation, so he didn't dwell on the topic, which made Li Yan heave a sigh of relief.
Hearing the other party suddenly bring up alchemy, Li Yan's eyes lit up. Unless he was completely stupid, he should know that this great alchemy master was taking this opportunity to give him some pointers.
Even if he just said a few words, it would be more than enough to repay the debt of saving Bu Luo.
'It seems he doesn't know the use of that silver paper. Bu Luo probably wouldn't even mention the reason he was being hunted down, to avoid being punished by Senior Zuo for trying to snatch something when his strength was insufficient.'
It was only natural for cultivators to compete for cultivation resources, but Bu Luo's arrogant behavior after snatching something was not advisable.
In an instant, Li Yan thought of the silver paper. In fact, that piece of silver paper Bu Luo had given him had already repaid the life-saving grace.
But Li Yan couldn't reveal the secret of the "Undying Nether Phoenix." He was unwilling to mention it to anyone ever again.
Last time, if Wei Zhongran hadn't witnessed his incredible physical reconstruction process, and if Li Yan hadn't had any plausible excuse, how could he have revealed the truth?
Although alchemy and artifact refinement were just some of the many methods of cultivation, alchemy was very important to any cultivator. Whether it was for killing, healing, or curing diseases, it was necessary.
Now, with such a great opportunity, Li Yan would naturally seize it.
Next, Zuo Qiudan and Li Yan began to discuss the Dao of medicinal pills. Li Yan's skill in refining medicine and pills was actually very weak. Most of his time was spent on cultivation.
Currently, he could barely refine a first-grade medicinal pill. However, his understanding of the Dao of poison was so profound that it made Zuo Qiudan's eyes shine.
At the same time, Zuo Qiudan couldn't understand why a cultivator who had such a deep understanding of plants and herbs was so terrible at alchemy. It was completely contradictory.
He also knew that the Malevolent Spirit Sect's pill and artifact refinement skills were very high. Although some of their alchemy masters were not as good as him, they were still very strong.
Even if their disciples were to teach the young man before him, it would be more than enough. His skills shouldn't be this poor. But if he didn't have long experience in refining poison pills, how could he analyze them so thoroughly?
'Could it be that Li Yan has a natural wood-spirit body and has an innate perception of the Dao of plants and herbs? Otherwise, it just doesn't make sense. It's a pity he doesn't cultivate the Dao of alchemy. I heard Little Bamboo Peak has always been very reclusive. It's possible he hasn't been discovered by an alchemist. I should find some time to ask Wei Zhongran.'
Zuo Qiudan was full of complaints in his heart, but how could he know that others had to forcefully memorize the characteristics of various plants and herbs, the properties of materials from demonic beasts, and so on?
Relying on rote memorization alone, when they actually got their hands on the raw materials for refinement, they would find that there were many more things that required a master's practical experience to understand. All of this required a large amount of spirit stones to accumulate.
Therefore, the cultivation of an alchemist was very difficult. Without showing extraordinary talent, the sect would not be willing to spend a huge amount of spirit stones on him.
However, in the early stages, no matter how talented you were, you still had to spend your own spirit stones to learn the basics, which was also a huge expense. Li Yan, on the other hand, did the opposite. He didn't have many spirit stones himself, but he would often seek out fights with others. Whether the opponent used a poisonous demonic beast or a poison pill, once it was used, Li Yan, being in the midst of it, would try to swallow a little bit into his body and then use his Fragmented Poison Body to detoxify it.
This process was his direct experience of understanding various poisonous mists and liquids after they entered his body.
Except for the few senior and junior brothers who knew about his special constitution, others thought he had a corresponding antidote.
Afterwards, Li Yan would compare the refining formula of this poison pill and check the feeling after it entered his body one by one. This method of his was not something others could learn.
Of course, most of the pill formulas Li Yan obtained only had the ingredients and not the refining process. Only a pill formula that recorded the detailed refining process was a true pill formula.
However, this was enough for Li Yan to understand a certain poison pill formula and its effects. He could even sense the problems in a certain formula.
All of this was figured out by himself, and there would still be deviations in some places.
Therefore, when Zuo Qiudan was talking with Li Yan, he found that Li Yan's understanding of some alchemy materials was vague. At this time, he would point out the differences, which benefited Li Yan a lot.
Many of the erroneous concepts that he had previously understood only through the feeling of medicinal pills entering his body were suddenly cleared up for Li Yan.
The two of them went from talking about poison pills at the very beginning to Qi-nourishing and health-preserving pills, and even pills that aided cultivators in their advancement and meditation.
Whatever Li Yan brought up, Zuo Qiudan would explain in detail as if it were his own family treasure, even revealing the formulas of some of the medicinal pills he had improved. These were all secrets that were not to be passed on.
In fact, medicinal pills were not divided into poison pills and cultivation pills. A poison pill, when used well, was a top-grade cultivation pill. A slight change to a cultivation pill formula, and it would become a deadly poison pill.
During this period, Bu Luo would also interject from time to time, and some of his words would always hit the key points, which allowed Li Yan to hear things he had never known from another perspective.
He couldn't help but admire in his heart. Even though Bu Luo hadn't specifically cultivated the Dao of alchemy, having been exposed to it since he was young, his understanding of the Dao of alchemy was much stronger than his own.
Time flew by. Li Yan felt as if they hadn't been talking for long when Zuo Qiudan had already stopped the conversation.
"Little Friend Li has unlimited potential in the cultivation of the Dao of alchemy. If you can devote yourself to this path, with time, it would be reasonable for you to become an alchemy master, and it's not impossible for you to even become a grandmaster."
What he said was half-truth, half-false. The first half was genuinely optimistic about Li Yan, while the second half could only be considered encouragement.
But he really thought that Li Yan might be the legendary wood-spirit body, with extraordinary talent.
He didn't know how Li Yan studied the Dao of alchemy. His understanding of medicinal pills was erratic. Sometimes, Li Yan seemed to know nothing about some very basic theories.
But at other times, he had a particularly good understanding of the toxicity of the ingredients of a certain high-grade pill formula, as well as the process and subtle symptoms of its poisoning, as if he had personally tested the poison.
Otherwise, just by observing the symptoms of others being poisoned, it would be impossible to draw these conclusions and judgments.
Of course, Zuo Qiudan wouldn't believe that someone would go and try every poison pill just to understand it. That kind of person was too crazy.
Antidotes were not 100% guaranteed to be completely effective. Moreover, for some of the poison pills the two had just talked about, even with an antidote, a Foundation Establishment cultivator like Li Yan would have his foundation completely damaged.
Although Zuo Qiudan had heard a little about the Three Great Poison Bodies of the Malevolent Spirit Sect, those were legendary things. He really didn't think of Li Yan in that way.
However, Zuo Qiudan wouldn't rashly ask Li Yan how he did these things. As an elder, it would be a bit too intrusive to ask such questions after only a few meetings.
How could Li Yan not understand the meaning behind his words? He just shook his head helplessly. He knew his own situation best.
"Oh, I have some matters to discuss with your master and a few other friends, so I won't delay Little Friend Li any longer."
As Zuo Qiudan spoke, he had already stood up and nodded at Li Yan with a smile.
Only then did Li Yan notice that it should be noon outside the cave. He hadn't expected time to pass so quickly.
Just now, he had been completely immersed in Zuo Qiudan's vast, ocean-like Dao of alchemy and hadn't felt the passage of time at all.
"Senior Zuo, please feel free!"
"Oh, as a poison cultivator of the Malevolent Spirit Sect, you must have quite a few poison pills on you. I have two 'Dustless Pills' that I refined some time ago. You are also in the Pseudo-Core Realm, so you will probably be forming your core soon. I know that with your master's status, it wouldn't be a problem to obtain a 'Dustless Pill,' but please accept this as a small gift from me."
After standing up, Zuo Qiudan did not leave immediately. Instead, a green light flashed in his hand, and a small, exquisite green bottle appeared. He casually handed it to Li Yan.
Li Yan was stunned for a moment and subconsciously took it. He certainly knew the fame of the "Dustless Pill." His eldest senior brother, Li Wuyi, had increased his chances of forming a core because of this pill.
Similarly, on his way to the Sea of the Northern Abyss, many assassins had hunted down Zhuo Lingfeng and Huchen Wuding to the point of desperation, nearly costing them their lives, all for a single "Dustless Pill."
It was only because of the "Mysterious Underworld Order" that he had stepped in to save them.