Who Would Seriously Cultivate on Their Own?

After settling the four injured Elders, Queen Medusa sighed. "Elders, I hope that in the future, you will respect him even more than you respect me."

The Great Elder weakly opened his diamond-shaped pupils and looked at the frowning Queen Medusa. "The only reason he is willing to come to the Snake People Clan is because he has his eye on you. If we aren't a little fierce while he hasn't grown up yet, what will you do if he bullies you in the future?"

"Besides, with irritating people like us as a contrast, you'll seem even more understanding. If we treat him more respectfully in the future, it will also make you seem more capable of commanding your subordinates," the Second Elder added after the Great Elder.

"You..." Queen Medusa did not know what to say. Her cheeks flushed red.

"He knows the secret of the Medusa bloodline's evolution and has heard of the deeds of that former Queen Medusa who once swept across the Northwest Continent. That is why he is investing in me."

"Heh, do you believe that yourself? He is ultimately just a fifteen-year-old man—maybe even a boy. Do you think he can resist your allure?" the Second Elder said irritably.

"...Mo Bass should be sentenced to Ten Thousand Snakes Devouring the Body. What do you Elders think?" Queen Medusa suddenly declared coldly.

The Elders exchanged glances. They did not continue pressing the embarrassed Queen Medusa and all nodded in agreement.

After the Elders left, Queen Medusa finally twisted about the palace in shame and indignation.

Honestly speaking, a marriage alliance with Xiao Yan was not that difficult to accept. The measures left behind by his teacher were enough to prove that his background was terrifyingly powerful, while Xiao Yan himself was even more gifted than a genius.

Moreover, a marriage alliance with Xiao Yan would undoubtedly bring immense benefits to the Snake People Clan. Even now, in just one week, the Snake People Clan had gained more than ten Fifth Grade Pills, and the future looked bright indeed.

As for feelings, they could be cultivated slowly. Besides, given the special nature of the Medusa bloodline, it did not really matter even if they were not cultivated.

What truly troubled Queen Medusa was whether Xiao Yan had taken a liking to her.

If she took the initiative to throw herself at him and was rejected, how would they get along afterward?

Even if they really ended up together, would the faction behind Xiao Yan accept her? A Snake Person?

Queen Medusa had no answers to these questions. Otherwise, with her temperament, once she had made up her mind, she would probably have taken Xiao Yan on the spot.

After hesitating for a long time, Queen Medusa ultimately decided to test Xiao Yan. Xiao Yan happened to be injured now, so she might as well pay him a visit...

"Teacher, since Soul Power has realms, there should also be cultivation methods for it, right?" Xiao Yan asked expectantly.

"Cultivation methods capable of cultivating Soul Power are truly rare. They are no less valuable than Heavenly Grade Cultivation Methods and Dou Techniques, perhaps even more so."

"However, as long as you become the Pill Gathering Champion hosted by the Pill Tower, you can obtain one of the Pill Tower's cultivation methods for Soul Power."

"I obtained one myself only after winning a Pill Gathering championship. Naturally, I hope you can also become the Pill Gathering Champion and choose a cultivation method suited to you."

"Then this cultivation method seems pretty easy to obtain." Xiao Yan rubbed his chin.

"...To become the Pill Gathering Champion, you must at least be able to refine a peak Seventh Grade Pill. If you encounter a true monster, you may even need to refine an Eighth Grade Pill."

"Back then, I refined an Eighth Grade Pill with one-colored Pill Lightning, yet I still could not suppress all the other competitors. In the end, I had to use the Spirit Ascension Secret Technique to raise the pill to the level of an Eighth Grade Pill with three-colored Pill Lightning before I won the championship."

"Do you still think it is easy now?"

It seemed that the Pill Gathering truly was a grand event for Alchemists. Even without Heavenly Flames, the competition for the championship was fierce. After thinking for a moment, Xiao Yan replied, "Teacher, teach me!"

"...Get lost!" Old Yao laughed as he cursed.

After a pause, Old Yao continued, "The reason I have not taught you is because I want to further train your fire control and pill-refining techniques. After all, those two can make up for shortcomings when refining pills below the Eighth Grade."

"Furthermore, your Soul Power has always been sufficient. Comparatively speaking, the Soul Power of a Sixth Grade Alchemist rivals that of an ordinary Dou Zong, and your physical strength is enough to rival a Fifth Grade Magical Beast. Only your Dou Qi cultivation is lacking—you are merely a two-star Dou Ling."

"Although there are soul techniques that use Soul Power, the Dou Qi Continent ultimately regards Dou Qi as the mainstream. With your Dou Ling cultivation, even if your Soul Power is sufficient, you still cannot refine high-grade Sixth Grade Pills, because your Dou Qi cannot sustain such prolonged consumption."

"When your Soul Power and Dou Qi are sufficient to support you in refining Seventh Grade Pills, I will teach you."

"So that was it." The doubts in Xiao Yan's heart were finally resolved.

Ordinary Alchemists were often limited by insufficient Soul Power and relied on breakthroughs in Dou Qi to raise it. For example, Fa Ma, the Guild Master of the Jia Ma Empire Alchemist Guild, was a Fifth Grade Alchemist with the cultivation of a Dou Emperor.

If Fa Ma had not been a Dou Emperor, he might only have been a peak Fourth Grade Alchemist.

Xiao Yan, on the other hand, was an anomaly. His Soul Power had surpassed that of ordinary people since birth. He had also worked out from Old Yao a method in which cultivating Dou Qi also cultivated the soul, and he had eaten a Soul Life Fruit. As a result, his Dou Qi had fallen behind his soul.

"So, my main goal right now is to cultivate Dou Qi, right? Teacher, are there any pills suitable for a Dou Ling to take?" Xiao Yan felt that his reasoning was sound.

"...You brat, ever since I told you that Jia Nan Academy might have the Fallen Heart Flame, which can temper Dou Qi, you have completely stopped thinking about cultivating on your own, haven't you?"

"Hehehe."

"Sigh... I do have a Fifth Grade Pill Recipe called the Blood Burning Spirit Ascension Pill. At the cost of consuming Essence Blood, it allows one to break through quickly."

"If a Da Dou Shi takes it, they can probably break through to the Dou Ling realm within a month. For a Dou Ling, it is enough to raise three or four stars within a month. Even a Dou Wang expert can rise by one star."

"This pill will severely damage the user's potential. Only Dou Wang experts can take it without harming their foundation, though they will still be physically weak for around a month."

"However, with your physique comparable to a Fifth Grade Magical Beast, you already surpass ordinary Dou Wang experts. After taking it, you can also consume some pills that replenish blood and nourish the body, so there should not be much of a problem."

After saying that, Old Yao passed the pill recipes for the Blood Burning Spirit Ascension Pill, the accompanying Qi Nourishing Body Recovery Pill, and the Blood Generating Pill to Xiao Yan.

Xiao Yan glanced over them and discovered that the Qi Nourishing Body Recovery Pill was also a Fifth Grade Pill, while the Blood Generating Pill was a Fourth Grade Pill. With these two healing pills, even a Dou Ling could probably take the Blood Burning Spirit Ascension Pill without issue.

"This is the convenience of being an Alchemist~"

Xiao Yan wrote down the Medicinal Herbs needed for all three pills. After marking the herbs required for the Blood Generating Pill and requesting several sets of them, he summoned Hua She'er and told her to fetch the ingredients.