Return to Lingxu

Rekindling the Pill Fire, adjusting the spirit sand, channeling mana, fusing the spiritual herbs...

In alchemy, every single step contained an incomparably rich wealth of detailed knowledge.

When Han Yi used spirit charcoal to rekindle the pill fire, the Old Man among the three stewards seated above brightened at once.

That fluid technique was clearly something only an alchemist deeply versed in pill refining and possessed of abundant experience could have.

The Old Man unconsciously gave Han Yi another look.

The Red-Faced Youth in his thirties and the Plump Woman in her forties also went from casual indifference to paying attention to Han Yi's movements. They looked over properly now, nodding slightly.

But neither of them said anything.

There were few disciples who passed the Return-to-Sect Assessment, but there were still some.

Before the time it took for an incense stick to burn, Han Yi withdrew his mana. With a tap of his palm, he lifted the lid of the pill furnace, and a waft of pill vapor drifted out.

Inside the pill furnace lay ten white Qi Nourishing Pills, each the size of a fingernail, resting quietly within.

Han Yi took out the jade bottle he had prepared beforehand. With a single-handed gesture, he drew the Qi Nourishing Pills straight into the bottle, then respectfully presented it to the Old Man.

The old man poured out one pill, examined it, smelled it, then swallowed it outright.

After sensing it for a moment, a satisfied expression appeared on his face.

"Qi Nourishing Pills. Ten pills formed. Though their quality falls within the ordinary range, they are among the best of that range. With one further step, they could reach Standard Quality."

"Not bad. Very good."

"What is your name?"

Hearing this, Han Yi was delighted inside and hurriedly replied, "Reporting to Uncle-Master, this disciple is Han Yi."

"Good. Very good."

The Old Man passed the jade bottle to the other two stewards beside him, and they used the same appraisal methods as he had.

A moment later, both nodded in satisfaction.

Clearly, they agreed with the Old Man's final appraisal of the pills.

"Good. You have passed the Return-to-Sect Assessment."

"This old man is Shen Yu, Deputy Peak Master of Little Green Cloud Peak. If you wish to find a better courtyard, come to Green Cloud Peak tomorrow and find me. This old man will make arrangements for you."

As soon as the Old Man finished speaking, the other two beside him addressed Han Yi for the first time since he had entered the room.

The red-faced youth in his thirties smiled warmly. "I am Luo Qi of Little Blazing Fire Peak. Little Blazing Fire Peak ranks among the top ten Outer Peaks in strength. If you are willing, you may also seek me out. I can arrange for you to transfer to Little Blazing Fire Peak."

The Plump Woman covered her mouth and laughed, extending an olive branch as well. "Little Sea View Peak has many female disciples. If you come, I'll introduce you to some."

Though delight showed on Han Yi's face, his heart turned cold.

He had originally thought he had already held something back. If he had gone all out in refining, he could absolutely have produced Qi Nourishing Pills of Standard Quality.

But if he had done that, it would have been far too shocking.

After all, only a small number of high-stage Qi Refinement alchemists could refine pills of Standard Quality. Even within the inner sect, they could be called the very best.

Just think about it—purely in terms of alchemy, in the span of a single year, he had gone from an obscure outer sect alchemist to one of the finest alchemists in the inner sect.

That was no ordinary leap. An average outer sect disciple might have to struggle for an entire lifetime to achieve it.

It would be difficult for this not to arouse someone's curiosity and interest.

For instance, there would certainly be no shortage of people who guessed that he had obtained some mysterious inheritance and wanted to seize it for themselves.

With his strength still insufficient, exposing such terrifying alchemical skill left Han Yi feeling deeply unsafe.

Seeing the delight on Han Yi's face, the Old Man chuckled. "All right. Today's assessment ends here."

"You have passed. Take your assessment token and return to Vermilion Bird Peak to complete the formalities."

"As for what comes next, which Outer Peak you wish to go to will be entirely up to you."

The Old Man did not make things difficult for Han Yi, and neither did the other two say anything further.

They had merely seen that Han Yi's alchemy was outstanding—better even than that of certain inner sect disciples—and had thus temporarily developed the intention of recruiting him.

The Mystic Pill Sect had over a hundred Outer Peaks. Every single one competed with the others, whether for disciples or resources.

Strictly speaking, disciples were also a kind of resource—and the most important kind at that.

Han Yi gratefully glanced at the Old Man, remembering the name Shen Yu that he had just given, then accepted the assessment token. After offering his thanks, he cautiously withdrew.

After leaving the Alchemy Hall, Han Yi let out a deep breath, his expression brimming with excitement.

As he looked upon the misty sea of clouds surrounding Black Tortoise Peak, his state of mind was completely different from the shock he had felt when he first crossed over and gazed upon the clouds.

At this moment, his heart surged like stormy waves.

"Hahaha, I, Hu Hansan, am back again."

"From now on, I'll lie low until the heavens grow old and the earth turns barren, lie low until I'm invincible beneath heaven, lie low until I become immortal. This old man will never leave the mountain."

Han Yi quietly made up his mind.

Quite a few disciples undergoing the Return-to-Sect Assessment passed by. Seeing Han Yi's expression, they guessed that he had passed the assessment, and looks of envy appeared on their faces.

Even Social Guy, who had left the Alchemy Hall slightly before him yet still felt unwilling to accept it, stared at Han Yi with jealousy written all over his face. But he did not step forward to provoke him; that would only be asking for trouble.

"Little Blazing Fire Peak, Luo Qi. I've heard that name before. When I had first transmigrated, Senior Brother Guan Di gave me a mission to earn contribution points—to go to Little Blazing Fire Peak and serve as Luo Qi's pill-testing subject."

As Han Yi walked back to Little Spirit Void Peak, the name of that red-faced youth from earlier surfaced in his mind, along with a piece of information.

As for that plump forty-year-old woman, Han Yi also knew of the Little Sea View Peak where she was from. It was one of the peaks with the most female outer sect disciples.

Han Yi shook his head. He was still worrying about his own future; for now, he would not consider the matter of a Dao companion.

Actually.

Now that he had calmed down.

He truly had considered going to Little Green Cloud Peak. As the deputy peak master of Little Green Cloud Peak, Shen Yu was certainly at Qi Refining Layer 9. With Shen Yu's recommendation, Han Yi would effectively have someone to rely on. He ought to live more comfortably on Little Green Cloud Peak than on Little Spirit Void Peak.

But on second thought, he had accepted a favor. If he went to Little Green Cloud Peak later, there might well be other troubles waiting for him.

Moreover, Little Green Cloud Peak was also an Outer Peak, and its spirit vein was only second-tier. It was not much better than Little Spirit Void Peak.

If it had been an Inner Peak, he would have gone straight there without another word.

Besides, the most important point was that Han Yi only needed a stable environment. Whether it was Little Spirit Void Peak or Little Green Cloud Peak, both were Outer Peaks. To him, they were all the same.

So why bother tossing himself around?

He decided to lie low for a while first.

By the time he returned to Vermilion Bird Peak, he had already firmed up his decision. He found the senior brother on duty, handed over his assessment token, and explained the situation.

The senior brother on duty looked surprised, then smiled as he helped Han Yi complete the procedures.

"Congratulations, Junior Brother Han, on returning to the sect. In the future, you will surely spread your wings wide and astonish the world with a single cry."

Based on past experience, outer sect disciples who had caught the eye of the assessment steward and changed their status from dispatched disciples back into disciples returning to the sect had all advanced by a great leap in alchemy.

Such a person was worth befriending on the strength of his alchemy alone.

"Just luck, just luck."

"May I ask how I should address you, Senior Brother?"

The senior brother on duty answered with a smile, "My name is Ma Yu."

"Senior Brother Ma, could you help me check whether my former courtyard has already been assigned to someone else? If not, could I apply to return to my original courtyard?"

Han Yi was rather sentimental. If he could return to his old courtyard, one he was already familiar with, that would naturally be best.

Ma Yu nodded, checked the registration information, and smiled. "What a coincidence—it's actually still being held."

Han Yi was delighted to hear this. It was really still there. But after a moment's thought, he understood why.

His courtyard was relatively far out on the outskirts, even close to the rear mountain peak. Perhaps only new disciples with neither status nor ability would be passively assigned there.

But Han Yi did not care. As long as it had a second-tier spirit vein, that was enough.

As for everything else, he had plenty of spirit stones.

"Senior Brother Ma, could you help me apply to get that courtyard back?"

"No problem. I'll handle it for you right away."

Ma Yu responded and began registering the relevant information. Then he stepped away and went into the room to retrieve the deed token for Han Yi's original courtyard.

A short while later.

He had completed all the procedures and handed all the documents over to Han Yi.

Han Yi thanked him repeatedly, and Ma Yu was quite satisfied as well.

This meant that this junior brother owed him a favor. If the other party ever rose to prominence in the future, this favor would bring him some benefit, however small.

That was also why he had spared no effort in helping Han Yi.

That was the good thing about holding a position in this administrative hall.

Meanwhile, Han Yi left Vermilion Bird Peak and headed straight for Little Spirit Void Peak.

Only after returning to the familiar courtyard and activating its separate courtyard formation did he finally relax completely.