Elder Yun's Alchemy

After rushing out of the courtyard, Fang Chen looked down the mountain. He saw a thick plume of smoke rising from Elder Yun's residence, forming a black mushroom cloud in the sky.

Li Yanshan immediately slid down the mountain along the cliff face.

Fang Chen didn't know what had happened, but he quickly followed Li Yanshan, leaping down the cliff and rushing towards Elder Yun's residence at top speed.

Li Yanshan was incredibly fast. Even with Fang Chen giving his all, he couldn't keep up.

When Fang Chen reached the foot of the mountain, he found Elder Yun's house completely destroyed. Even Li Yanshan's house was affected, with many roof tiles dislodged.

Li Yanshan was digging through the rubble of Elder Yun's house.

"Cough, cough, cough..."

Elder Yun's coughing could be heard from beneath the debris.

Soon, Li Yanshan dug Elder Yun out of the ruins.

Elder Yun's hair was disheveled, his clothes were scorched, and his face was blackened.

"Elder Yun, are you alright?"

Li Yanshan asked with concern, grabbing Elder Yun's wrist with his right hand and sending a wisp of Spiritual Sense into Elder Yun's body to check on him.

"Cough, cough... I'm fine... I won't die!"

Elder Yun said, then pushed Li Yanshan away. He sat on the ground, gasping for breath, and said with disappointment, "Damn it, failed again!"

"Woof woof..."

Little Six immediately rushed into the ruins, using its paws to dig through the rubble, as if searching for something.

Li Yanshan looked at Elder Yun helplessly and said, "Elder Yun, how many times have I told you? Don't waste these medicinal ingredients and energy anymore. As long as you can live well, I'll be happy!"

"Hmph, what do you know?"

Elder Yun glared fiercely at Li Yanshan, appearing somewhat angry.

"Woof woof..."

Little Six suddenly barked excitedly. It had dug a hole in the rubble and was now sticking its head inside, seemingly biting something and pulling with all its might.

"Chii!"

A long object was suddenly pulled out. The immense inertia sent Little Six tumbling to the ground.

Fang Chen looked closely and realized that what Little Six had pulled out was Elder Yun's walking stick.

Little Six trotted over to Elder Yun with the walking stick in its mouth, wagging its tail.

This dog is really sensible!

Seeing Little Six like this, Fang Chen couldn't help but praise it inwardly.

Dragon Tiger Mountain also had two dogs, black and fat, who did nothing but eat all day.

Elder Yun took the walking stick, gently stroked Little Six's head a few times, and then stood up, leaning on the stick. He said to Li Yanshan, "Help me tidy up the house. Little Six and I are going to visit Old Ghost Qu to see if we can find anything good!"

"You... sigh... Go! Go!"

Li Yanshan looked at Elder Yun, wanting to say something, but ultimately decided it wasn't worth the effort.

Elder Yun, leaning on his walking stick, walked over to the small donkey and sat on it.

"Ooh... ah..."

The small donkey brayed, shook its head, and then carried Elder Yun away.

"Woof woof..."

Little Six trotted happily behind the donkey.

Suddenly, the donkey stopped. Little Six, following behind, skidded to a halt on the ground. The donkey slowly lifted its tail, squatted slightly, and defecated a large pile with a plop, plop.

After finishing, the donkey tossed its head and let out a seemingly relieved bray before continuing on its way.

Little Six didn't go near it. It looked at the steaming pile of dung with a disgusted expression, skirted around it, and continued to follow the donkey.

Li Yanshan looked at the stone house, now reduced to ruins, and shook his head helplessly.

Fang Chen was still completely bewildered. He had no idea what Elder Yun had done to cause such a powerful explosion that it destroyed the house.

He looked at Li Yanshan and asked, "Uncle Li, what's going on?"

Li Yanshan shook his head slightly, looking helpless. "Elder Yun failed at Alchemy just now, which caused such a huge commotion!"

"Alchemy?"

Fang Chen's eyes widened. He hadn't expected Elder Yun to be an alchemist.

Li Yanshan nodded. "Before Elder Yun was injured, he was a First-grade Alchemist with extremely high talent. He was unparalleled among the Outer Sect Disciples. Unfortunately, he offended someone later and had his limbs severed!"

Speaking of Elder Yun's past deeds, Li Yanshan couldn't help but shake his head and sigh.

"My goodness, Elder Yun is an Alchemist?"

Fang Chen looked up at the ruins before him, Elder Yun's image flashing through his mind – missing limbs, and already an old man. This was completely different from the image of an alchemist he had imagined.

Li Yanshan shook his head. "That was all in the past. This old fellow is still obsessed with Alchemy every day, not only wasting materials but also being dangerous. I'm truly afraid that one day, if he's not careful, he'll lose his life!"

After finishing, Li Yanshan walked over to the ruins, ready to clear them and help Elder Yun rebuild his house.

Fang Chen also went over to help Li Yanshan clear the debris. While cleaning, he looked up at the dilapidated house to the left of Li Yanshan's residence and said, "Uncle Li, Elder Yun's house is too badly damaged now. Why don't we tidy up that other house? It'll save us a lot of time!"

Li Yanshan shook his head and said, "That won't do. Ten years ago, Elder Yun had a stroke of luck while doing alchemy in that house and succeeded. He's been convinced that the house has good feng shui and insists on living there. That old man is stubborn!"

"Is that so?"

Fang Chen frowned slightly, surprised that Elder Yun was such a stubborn old man.

Although the house had been blown down, the stone structure was simple, and most of the materials could be reused, saving Li Yanshan and Fang Chen a lot of effort.

Fang Chen noticed that Li Yanshan was very skilled at building houses, suggesting he had repaired Elder Yun's house more than once.

They finished rebuilding the house in just over an hour.

After the house was rebuilt, Li Yanshan personally cooked a pot of sausage rice. There weren't many seasonings, just two large sausages thrown into the pot.

"It smells so good!"

Catching the rich aroma of the rice, Fang Chen couldn't help but swallow.

Li Yanshan brought the pot to the stone table under the large locust tree in front of the house, took out two large porcelain bowls, and then opened the lid.

White steam immediately rose. Fang Chen saw that the grains of rice in the pot were crystal clear, seemingly shimmering with a faint glow.

Li Yanshan served Fang Chen a large bowl of rice, with a big sausage placed on top, emitting wisps of steam. The fat in the sausage sizzled, making Fang Chen swallow again.

Li Yanshan put the remaining rice into his own bowl.

He said to Fang Chen, "You worked hard today. Eat up quickly!"

Just as Fang Chen was about to eat, he suddenly remembered something and asked Li Yanshan, "Uncle Li, what about Elder Yun? Aren't we saving any for him?"

Li Yanshan shook his head slightly and said, "No need to worry about him. He's gone to Old Ghost Qu's place, and he'll definitely eat his fill before coming back. Little Six only follows him there because there's good food!"

After speaking, Li Yanshan picked up his rice bowl and started eating.

"So that's how it is!"

Fang Chen also picked up his bowl and took a mouthful of rice. As the rice entered his mouth, he chewed a few times and found that the grains were not sticky at all, seeming to be distinct and separate. A hint of sweetness continuously stimulated his taste buds. The rice in his mouth was excellent in both texture and flavor.