172: Chapter 172 I struck gold

"Under Elder Zhao of Xuanguang Peak, there is a Disciple born with a Water Spirit Body, whose affinity for Spirit Medicine follows the same path as yours.

That child has excellent perception and restoration effects on water-attribute Spirit Medicine, and is significantly better than ordinary Disciples at handling other attributes as well. However, the further it deviates from the water element, the more the effect diminishes."

Elder Qingmu glanced at Su Cheng. "Both of you have your own strengths and are useful to the Sect, but neither is indispensable. That's why you need to control the pace; a sense of hunger is more effective than cheap diligence."

These words were spoken clearly, and Su Cheng committed every word to heart.

After finishing the serious talk, Elder Qingmu's expression relaxed. He bent down to pick up the small shovel from the ground and squatted back down next to the dragon beard vine.

Before squatting down, he tossed a sentence over.

"Alright, go do what you need to do. Don't just stand there in front of me; you're in the way."

Though the words were meant to dismiss him, Su Cheng clearly heard his Revered Master mutter something to the vine after squatting down.

The voice was very soft, mostly broken up by the wind at the mountain top, but Su Cheng's Divine Sense caught the last few words:

"Found a treasure."

Su Cheng didn't look back; his lips twitched slightly as he headed down the mountain.

On the way down, he encountered Chen Yuan walking up at a corner.

The expression on Chen Yuan's face was quite subtle: part of it was the lingering excitement after observing the third-rank pill, part was the self-reflection stimulated by the gap, and part was something between gratitude and awkwardness.

He stopped when he saw Su Cheng.

"Junior Brother."

"Senior Brother."

The two looked at each other for two breaths.

Chen Yuan pulled a Jade Slip from his sleeve.

"I haven't slept much these past two days. I've recorded everything I could remember of Elder Elder Lu Yuan's entire Alchemy process. Why don't you take a look?"

Su Cheng took it and scanned it with his Divine Sense.

Good heavens.

The amount of information Chen Yuan recorded was thirty percent more detailed than what Su Cheng had compiled himself.

Especially the part about switching hand seals; Chen Yuan had actually drawn out the finger-movement details for most of Immortal Master Elder Lu Yuan's hundreds of hand seals from memory. Although it was impossible to replicate them one hundred percent, the precision had reached an admirable level.

Su Cheng looked up at him.

Chen Yuan took two steps forward, and as he passed by Su Cheng, he whispered, "I owe you a favor for that observation opportunity."

"You're too kind, Senior Brother."

"I'm not being kind." Chen Yuan continued up the mountain without looking back, his voice drifting back, "If you ever need help, just ask."

The wind in the pine forest scattered these words.

Su Cheng stood on the mountain path, watching his Eldest Senior Brother's back disappear around the bend above, then continued his descent.

Returning to his Immortal Cave, he compared and merged Chen Yuan's Jade Slip with his own notes.

After the two records complemented each other, the technical details regarding Immortal Master Elder Lu Yuan's batch of huayuan pills were restored to over ninety percent completeness.

Without exaggeration, Su Cheng estimated the value of this data: if he wanted to rely on himself for Alchemy in the future and attempt to refine third-rank pills, it would save him three to five years of detours.

Of course, Su Cheng mainly relied on the creation furnace; with such a treasure in hand, he certainly wouldn't let it go to waste. The reason he had been relying on himself within the Sect during this time was to pave the way, and it seemed he had done enough for now.

He carefully stored the merged Jade Slip and then took out another blank Jade Slip.

It was time to write a letter to Fang Zhenhai.

First, tell Fang Zhenhai to continue taking ning shen pills and po zhang pills, and to make steady progress in coordination with the Core Condensation Essentials.

Second, press for clues regarding the exotic fire and the precious artifact pill furnace.

Halfway through the letter, Su Cheng set down the Jade Slip and stared blankly at the cave wall for a while.

The gains during this period were greater than expected: contribution points, connections, and experience—he had acquired all three.

But the greatest gain was not among those three; rather, it was the confirmation of one thing.

In a Sect of the Danding Sect's size, being useful was far more important than having secrets.

As long as his Spirit Medicine affinity continued to create value for the Sect's Third-Rank Alchemists, no one would ever seriously investigate the "unexplainable coincidences" surrounding him.

Because no one was willing to chop down a tree that was bearing fruit, especially when the other party was one of their own.

Su Cheng finished the letter and handed it to a Utility Disciple outside the Immortal Cave to be sent out of the mountain.

Su Cheng closed the door to the Immortal Cave, sat cross-legged on a prayer mat, and circulated the Qiankun Creation Art. No matter how lively things were outside, at least three hours of daily cultivation time was an ironclad rule.

The Qi of Creation circulated repeatedly through his Meridians, compressing a tiny bit more Impurities with each cycle.

In the Dantian of his Early Foundation Establishment Stage, the phantom of the dao foundation furnace rotated quietly, occasionally emitting a circle of faint green light.

Progress was very slow, which Su Cheng had soberly anticipated.

The cultivation speed of the Qiankun Creation Art never aimed for speed; it sought to make every step steady, building a foundation as solid as possible.

Based on his current speed, he estimated it would take at least five to ten years to leap from the Early Stage to the Middle Stage of Foundation Establishment.

After cultivating for three hours, Su Cheng finished his session and took out a Jade Slip to organize his recent to-do list.

Fang Zhenhai's Core Formation preparations were progressing, Lin Feng's Foundation Establishment and the Family layout had been set in motion, the upgrade of the wanbao mirror awaited a reply from Zhou Changgeng's Revered Master, and the Alchemy Hall Competition was still over a year away.

At the moment, there were only a few directions where he could take the initiative: refining his Spells, accumulating contribution points, and continuing to build goodwill at Wanhua Peak.

Thinking of Wanhua Peak, Su Cheng suddenly felt a bit of a headache.

Han Jing was right; once the label of "Medicine Attendant" was attached, attracting attention was inevitable.

As it turned out, Han Jing was not only right but had also underestimated the speed of the fallout.

The third day.

Early in the morning, Su Cheng finished infusing the dragon beard vine with the Qi of Creation at the mountain top. On his way down, he encountered a Foundation Establishment Cultivator he had never seen before halfway down the mountain.

The man wore the standard Daoist robes of the Alchemy Hall and had a beaming smile, carrying a Spirit-Wood Food Box in his hand.

"Junior Brother Su! I've heard so much about you! I am Wang Yuan, an Outer Sect Disciple under Elder Li of the Alchemy Hall. I heard about your brilliant performance during the huayuan pill refinement a few days ago and came specifically to visit!"

Su Cheng glanced at the food box, guessing it contained spirit fruits or similar meeting gifts.

He was well aware of the unspoken rules of the cultivation world: those who come empty-handed are looking to make friends, while those carrying gifts are looking for a favor.

"Senior Brother Wang is too kind. I only did my duty."

Wang Yuan's smile grew even brighter. "Junior Brother, you're too modest! My Revered Master happens to have a batch of third-rank pills to refine, and two of the wood-attribute Spirit Medicines need pre-processing. Our Alchemy Hall Disciples are simply not as 'proficient' as you in this regard. My Revered Master's intention is..."

"Senior Brother." Su Cheng interrupted him. "I must ask my Revered Master about this first."

Wang Yuan's expression stiffened slightly.

"Don't worry, Junior Brother. Elder Li has already spoken with Elder Qingmu!"

"That's even better then." Su Cheng was very polite. "If Revered Master has agreed, he will naturally inform me. Until then, it's not convenient for me to give an answer over my Revered Master's head."

Wang Yuan awkwardly withdrew his smile, forced the food box into Su Cheng's hands, said a few polite words, and left.

Su Cheng opened the food box and saw three second-rank spirit fruits of good quality.

He tucked them into his Storage Pouch; there was no reason to refuse something given for free.

Before he could even settle in after returning to his Immortal Cave, there was another knock at the door.

Su Cheng couldn't help but wonder why Qingmu Peak was letting people in so easily now.