193: Chapter 192 Rewarding Meritorious Service

Tens of thousands of miles away, in the Provincial Capital of Fengyin Province.

When the Third Prince received Zhou Qian's transmission, he was in his study discussing military affairs with Shen Yizhi and Qin Zhao.

Maps were spread across the table, with red and black arrows crisscrossing, marking the troop deployments and supply lines of various provinces.

Qin Zhao pointed to a dashed line on the map, saying that the imperial court's reinforcements might take a detour from there for a sneak attack, and suggested setting up another defensive line there.

Shen Yizhi shook his head, saying the mountains were high and the forests dense there, making it difficult for a large army to pass; the court would not take the long way around.

Both held their ground, and the Third Prince, caught in the middle, was about to make a decision when the transmission talisman by his hand lit up.

He took out the talisman paper and crushed it.

Zhou Qian's voice sounded in his mind, his speaking speed much faster than usual, carrying an irrepressible excitement.

After listening, the Third Prince was silent for a moment, then looked up at Shen Yizhi and Qin Zhao.

Seeing his strange expression, the two stopped their argument and waited for him to speak.

“That Alchemist from Qingyao City, Yun Ming.” The Third Prince's voice was calm, but there was a light in his eyes. “He has become a Fourth-Rank Alchemist, and using only five sets of Materials, he refined two Xuan Ying Pills. One Low Grade, one High Grade. Zhou Qian has already sent the pills along with the letter; they will arrive in a few days.”

The study fell silent for a moment.

Qin Zhao was the first to react, her eyes lighting up: “Two batches from five sets? Even a Fourth-Rank High Grade Alchemist is only about this good, right?”

Shen Yizhi didn't speak, but the folding fan in his hand stopped.

He looked at the Third Prince with deep eyes, as if re-evaluating the value of this news.

“The pills haven't arrived yet, so the truth is not yet certain,” the Third Prince said. “We will only know after we have inspected them upon arrival.”

Shen Yizhi nodded: “Your Highness is right. If true, this person is indeed worth betting on.”

Qin Zhao snorted dismissively: “Two batches from five sets, and he even refined a High Grade one—what is there to doubt? It is not like Zhou Qian hasn't seen Medicinal Pills before; could he have misjudged?”

Shen Yizhi did not respond.

He was used to considering the worst-case scenario first; this was not targeted at Yun Ming, it was just his style of doing things.

The Third Prince understood him and did not say much more.

A few days later, the two Xuan Ying Pills sent by Zhou Qian arrived.

The Third Prince poured the pills out of the Jade Bottle, held them in his palm, and examined them carefully.

One was pale gold with clear cloud patterns and abundant medicinal properties—it was Low Grade.

One was reddish-gold with dense cloud patterns and a rich pill fragrance—it was High Grade.

He handed the two pills to Shen Yizhi, who looked them over and handed them to Qin Zhao. After Qin Zhao looked them over, she handed them back to the Third Prince.

“They are real.” Shen Yizhi spoke, his tone more solemn than usual. “And the quality is not low. Especially that High Grade one; it is a rare fine product even among Xuan Ying Pills.”

Qin Zhao smiled: “I told you, Zhou Qian wouldn't misjudge.”

The Third Prince put the pills back into the Jade Bottle and placed it on the table.

He leaned back in his chair, tapped his fingers lightly on the armrest a few times, and then sat up straight.

“Pass down the order,” he said. “These two Xuan Ying Pills will be rewarded to those below. Reward based on merit.”

Qin Zhao's eyes lit up: “Your Highness, isn't this too fast? We are rewarding them before we have even warmed them up ourselves?”

The Third Prince shook his head: “It is not too fast. First, it can counter the rumors of our resource shortage. Don't they all say outside that we are so poor we can't even issue Medicinal Pills? Let them see that not only do we have Xuan Ying Pills, but we can also reward them to our subordinates. Second, to test the quality of these two pills. Although Yun Ming refined them, we will only know how effective they are after they are consumed. Third—”

He paused, his gaze sweeping over Shen Yizhi and Qin Zhao. “To see if any of our subordinates are capable enough to use these two pills to Breakthrough to the Nascent Soul stage. Even if only one succeeds, it is an added bit of help.”

Qin Zhao nodded, finding it reasonable.

Shen Yizhi also nodded without speaking, but the corners of his mouth curled up slightly.

When the news spread, the entire Prince's Mansion was in an uproar.

Xuan Ying Pills, and two of them, to be rewarded to subordinates.

This was the most generous reward since the Third Prince had raised his army.

The generals were rubbing their hands together, all wanting to compete for them.

In the end, the two pills were rewarded to two Golden Core Perfection generals with outstanding military achievements.

One was an old subordinate who had followed the Third Prince for many years, charging into battle and repeatedly performing meritorious deeds in many campaigns.

The other was a local powerhouse who was the first to respond when the Third Prince raised his army, donating his entire family fortune to serve as military funds.

Overwhelmed by the favor, the two knelt on the ground and kowtowed three times before taking the pills and withdrawing.

Half a month later, news came back.

Both Xuan Ying Pills had been consumed, the medicinal effects were excellent, and there were no problems.

The old subordinate who had followed the Third Prince for many years successfully broke through to the Nascent Soul stage. Although the other did not Breakthrough, he had touched the threshold, and given time, there might still be hope.

The Third Prince was overjoyed and immediately issued another order.

Zhou Qian received the Third Prince's reply.

The letter was long, filling several pages, but there were only a few core points.

First, all current and future Xuan Ying Pill Materials in the City Lord's Manor are to be given to Yun Ming for refining.

Second, two Fourth-Rank Low Grade Pill Formulas are attached to the letter. One is to be rewarded to Yun Ming as payment and a reward for refining the Xuan Ying Pills; the other is to be given to the City Lord's Manor's original Fourth-Rank Alchemist, so he can switch to refining this type of pill in the future.

Third, Zhou Qian must do everything possible to befriend Yun Ming, at all costs.

The end of the letter specifically mentioned one thing—because of the Xuan Ying Pills refined by Yun Ming, the Third Prince's forces now had an additional Nascent Soul True Lord.

That old subordinate who had followed the Third Prince for many years had been stuck at Golden Core Perfection for nearly a hundred years. After taking that High Grade Xuan Ying Pill, he broke through to the Nascent Soul stage in one go and was now a new capable general under the Third Prince.

The Third Prince wrote in the letter: “Yun Ming's merit must be rewarded. I am specially bestowing an additional Fourth-Rank Low Grade Pill Formula as a token of commendation.”

After Zhou Qian finished reading the letter, a wave of complex emotions welled up in his heart.

He remembered how he had worried that Yun Ming wouldn't be able to refine them and even wanted to persuade Yun Ming to change the Pill Formula.

As it turned out, not only did the man succeed, but he also directly helped the Third Prince add a Nascent Soul True Lord.

This level of merit was indeed worthy of an extra reward.

He hurried to find Feng Boyong.

Feng Boyong was reviewing official documents in his study. After hearing him finish, he put down his brush and was silent for a moment.

“Follow the Third Highness's orders. How many sets of Xuan Ying Pill Materials are left in the City Lord's Manor's inventory?”

Zhou Qian said: “Last time I gave five sets to Yun Ming, there are less than two sets left in the warehouse.”

“Give them all to him.”

Feng Boyong said, “From now on, give him all the Xuan Ying Pill Materials. When the Materials in the warehouse are used up, go outside and buy more. If you can't buy them, collect them at a high price. The Third Highness said, at all costs.”

Zhou Qian nodded and then mentioned the matter of the Fourth-Rank Alchemist in the City Lord's Manor.

Feng Boyong waved his hand: “I will handle that person. Give me the Pill Formula, and I will go talk to him.”

Zhou Qian handed the Pill Formula rewarded by the Third Prince to the City Lord's Manor's Alchemist to Feng Boyong, then took out the three sets of Xuan Ying Pill Materials from the warehouse, along with the Pill Formula rewarded to Yun Ming and the Spirit Stones in the Storage Pouch, and packed them all together.

He checked twice to confirm nothing was missing, then left the City Lord's Manor and rushed toward Yun Ming's small courtyard at full speed.