Treasure Hunt

"Everything from before is in the past. Your family would want you to live happily too. Look ahead. You have a master now—if anyone dares bully you in the future, just give them your master's name, and I guarantee they'll immediately treat you with the utmost respect. Oh, right, your master is called Gu He. My peers think highly of me, so they gave me the title of 'Pill King.'" Gu He patted Xiao Yi Xian's shoulder to comfort her while telling her his identity.

Upon hearing that the person before her was the renowned Pill King Gu He, Xiao Yi Xian was almost numb with shock. Everything she had experienced today felt like a dream. She had ridden Xiao Lan through the skies above the Monster Mountain Range as usual, then spotted dense fog deep within a basin. Out of curiosity, she and Xiao Lan had gone in to take a look, only to discover a scenic valley. The most striking sight had been an extraordinary-looking Medicine Cauldron resting on a level slope. It turned out that the valley had long had an owner, a Dou Wang-level alchemist. She had clung to a faint hope and asked to become his disciple. Although it was ultimately confirmed that she had no talent for alchemy, he had still accepted her as his disciple. She had thought that alone was surprising enough, but never imagined that her master would be Gu He, the Pill King and the Jia Ma Empire's strongest alchemist.

Seeing that Xiao Yi Xian was still immersed in her shock, Gu He had no choice but to speak and distract her.

"Alright, you'll live here from now on. I live on the third floor, and the second floor will be yours." Gu He pointed out the house, which looked somewhat strange to people of this world.

"Master, I'd like to return to the Myriad Medicine House to pack up and bring some clothes over." Xiao Yi Xian recovered from her shock. She remembered how she had sweated all over during the test and now felt even more uncomfortable, desperately wanting a bath. Besides, it would be inconvenient not to have a change of clothes here.

"Mm, go on. You probably won't encounter any danger over such a short distance, but since I'll have to give you some protective items sooner or later, I might as well give them to you today." As he spoke, Gu He took out a light-blue close-fitting inner armor.

"This is a set of soft armor. I heard it was made from the genuine hide of a Fourth-tier Magical Beast, the Azure Nether Snake. It fits the skin perfectly and is highly breathable, so you barely feel it when wearing it. Its defense is quite good too—even an ordinary Da Dou Shi would be unable to break it. A Dou Ling once begged and pleaded for me to accept it. He pestered me so much that I got annoyed, but because of certain connections, I couldn't simply throw him out, so I accepted it. It's been sitting unused in my Ring ever since. I'll give it to you now."

Although Gu He made the light-blue inner armor sound worthless, Xiao Yi Xian had spent several years in Qingshan Town. How could she not know the value of a Fourth-tier Magical Beast? Even some flesh and blood from one could sell for an astronomical price, let alone an inner armor like this that had already been made into a life-saving treasure. If it were put up for sale, it could easily fetch over a million gold coins—and there would still be more buyers than sellers.

Thus, Xiao Yi Xian hurriedly waved her hands. "I can't accept it, Master. It's far too valuable. I'm already incredibly grateful that you accepted me as your disciple. I can only repay you by studying and cultivating diligently, then spreading your great name. How can I possibly accept something so precious?"

"Since I've accepted you as my disciple, it would be unreasonable not to give you a meeting gift. Besides, I believe you'll definitely achieve great things in the future. You wouldn't want people to say your master was stingy then, would you? Come on, take it." As he spoke, Gu He stuffed the inner armor into Xiao Yi Xian's hands.

"Thank you, Master." Other than her parents, no one had ever treated her so well. She could tell that many people who showed her kindness had ulterior motives. Yet Gu He had not only accepted her as his disciple and fulfilled her dream of learning alchemy, but also cared for her so much. Xiao Yi Xian's eyes grew misty.

"Alright, silly girl. Since you've become my disciple, then as your master, I have to take responsibility for your life." Gu He patted Xiao Yi Xian's head in comfort.

"It's getting late. Ride Xiao Lan and go quickly. Try to finish packing tonight and move in here."

"Mm, Master, then I'll be going first." After that small episode, Xiao Yi Xian's voice had become much gentler when speaking to Gu He. The three parts wariness, three parts anticipation, and three parts respect she had shown at their first meeting were gone, replaced by three parts anticipation and six parts filial affection.

Clutching the inner armor to her chest, Xiao Yi Xian jumped onto Xiao Lan's back and waved to Gu He. "Goodbye, Master. I'll come back as soon as I finish packing."

Gu He smiled and nodded. "Mm. Be careful on the way. Xiao Lan is only a First Tier Magical Beast, after all. Have it fly as high as possible, and don't provoke any Magical Beasts with strong territorial instincts."

Watching Xiao Yi Xian fly out of the valley, Gu He suddenly recalled the cave where Xiao Yi Xian and Xiao Yan had gone treasure hunting together. There seemed to be some precious medicinal herbs and several decent Dou Techniques inside. In particular, there was that Flying Dou Technique. If he gave it to Xiao Yi Xian, she could gain the ability to fly before becoming a Dou Wang, greatly improving her ability to protect herself.

With that in mind, Gu He decided to look for it now. He remembered that Xiao Yan and Xiao Yi Xian had discovered the cave beside the basin where they gathered herbs. They had noticed that the strange trees beneath a cliff face looked unusual, which led them to the cave. With his Soul Power, as long as he found that cliff, discovering the cave would be easy.

Gu He flew high in the air, circling around the basin and observing the cliffs nearby. After making two rounds, he found that there were only two cliffs around the basin. He chose one of them and landed on its summit, then spread his Soul Power in every direction to search for any unusual caves or strange trees nearby.

His luck was good this time. His Soul Power easily detected a pitch-black hollow within a mountain wall concealed by horizontal branches. Gu He flew straight down. Though he did not have to suffer like Xiao Yan in the original story and climb down on a rope, the thought that Xiao Yan had carried Xiao Yi Xian down made his dislike for Xiao Yan grow even further.

Though the cliff was steep, it was only around a hundred meters high. Gu He soon arrived outside the cave. Looking at the piles of rubble and strange trees densely covering the entrance, he filled his sleeve with Dou Qi and swept it forward. Although he had not used any Dou Technique, the Dou Qi of a Dou Wang still created a fierce gale, blowing the intertwined rubble and strange trees into the dark ravine below.

Looking at the cave, now fully exposed, Gu He sent another gust of wind toward the entrance and blew away the stale air that had accumulated inside. After waiting several minutes, he stepped into the cave.

Gu He kept his Soul Power active at all times. Although there had been no danger inside in the original story, that had been four years later, and the person entering then had been this world's protagonist. Who knew whether there was danger now? After all, the cave's owner had possessed the Remnant Map of Demonic Flame and was likely someone who understood this world's hidden secrets. If such a person had laid down a deadly trap, even a Dou Zong would be left in a sorry state. It was better to remain cautious.