It wasn't an Immortal Pill refined from a Singular Velvet Sky Chrysanthemum.
It was a whole Singular Velvet Sky Chrysanthemum.
Yue Guan had seen the Immortal Pills Bian Que refined, so he knew it wouldn't be difficult to obtain one in recognition of his achievements in Spirit Hall.
But the moment his Martial Soul saw this Singular Velvet Sky Chrysanthemum, it had yearned for it desperately ever since.
His instincts told him that if he obtained the Singular Velvet Sky Chrysanthemum, his Martial Soul would undergo an unimaginable transformation, and the bottleneck that had held him back for years would finally break.
When he'd first read the description of the Singular Velvet Sky Chrysanthemum among the Immortal Herbs, he'd already realized he'd taken the wrong path.
But there was no undoing a move once it had been made!
All nine Soul Rings were already set. Even if he wanted to turn back, he couldn't.
Now that he finally had a chance to break through, how could he bear to give it up?
In the end, he still chose to ask Qian Xunji for the Immortal Herb.
Qian Xunji made the wise choice: leave professional matters to the professionals.
Would the Singular Velvet Sky Chrysanthemum be put to the best use by refining it into an Immortal Pill or giving it to Chrysanthemum Douluo?
Qian Xunji summoned the newly appointed head of the Alchemy Hall, the seven-year-old Bian Que!
The Alchemy Hall sold not only Immortal Pills, but also pills and potions made from ordinary herbs. Their effects varied, and they were mainly divided into three categories.
Healing pills. These were further divided into pills for external injuries, internal injuries, and detoxification, among others. They were practically essential for every member of Spirit Hall.
Restorative pills replenished the Soul Power and stamina depleted in battle. They usually had mild side effects, such as hunger or drowsiness. They forcibly maintained the body's condition, at the cost of strain and aftereffects.
Then there were auxiliary pills. These were the rarest, and their effects were the most varied. Most Immortal Pills fell into this category. They could improve physical fitness and talent, increase the odds of a breakthrough, temporarily forcefully raise one's level and combat strength, or increase Soul Power, among other things.
The detoxifying pills in the first category could also be used alongside poison to poison enemies.
This tactic was remarkably effective, and many people had fallen victim to it.
People on Douluo Continent generally had low resistance to poison and physical attacks. Their knowledge of medicine was underdeveloped, so when people were poisoned, they often relied on Support Soul Masters to treat them with Soul Skills.
That gave Qian Xunji an itch to summon Taiyi Zhenren, who specialized in alchemy, and Master Luban, who was skilled in mechanics.
Hmm...
Could Master Luban build a Luban No. 7? According to the lore, Luban No. 7 had been made by Master Luban himself, after all.
As he pondered, Qian Xunji opened the System Panel and looked at the Prestige points sent over by the heroes. Time for a ten-pull!
Bian Que glanced at Qian Xunji, who had dumped the matter on him and was now staring at the panel, drawing prizes. To anyone else, he looked like he was daydreaming.
"Ah!"
"Elder Ju, you can have this Singular Velvet Sky Chrysanthemum, but I have one condition..."
Chapter 50: Distributing the Immortal Pills
Naturally, the Immortal Herbs couldn't be given away for free!
The Alchemy Hall had just been established, and Bian Que urgently needed people.
Especially someone like Chrysanthemum Douluo, with his knowledge of medicine!
If he had to make every pill himself, he could work himself to death and still never meet the demand for pills across all of Spirit Hall.
But no one had practiced alchemy before, so Bian Que had to teach his subordinates from scratch.
He had even drawn the blueprints for the pill furnaces himself.
The system was urging Bian Que to treat Qian Xunji as soon as possible, while Qian Xunji was urging him to hurry up with developing Immortal Pills and establishing the Alchemy Hall. And Bian Que himself still needed to cultivate now and then.
He was swamped. He had now gone ten days without sleep, keeping himself going with pills.
Of all the people Bian Que had met, Chrysanthemum Douluo Yue Guan was the only one whose talent in the medicinal arts was worth anything. He really didn't want to teach any more idiots.
Learning alchemy without understanding medicine was like an illiterate person trying to study classical Chinese.
Bian Que planned to teach Chrysanthemum Douluo the principles of alchemy, then put him in charge of making pills in the Alchemy Hall and training its new members.
Besides, the Alchemy Hall really did need a Titled Douluo who could lend it some authority.
People kept coming to request pills, and the supply couldn't meet the demand. Among them were talented students from Martial Soul Academy, as well as the descendants of various elders and deacons.
Immortal Pills in particular had some people going straight to Qian Xunji himself.
It wasn't hard to understand. Martial Souls and talent were innate, and they determined one's limits. The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda Martial Soul couldn't break through level eighty, while Yu Xiaogang, with his half-grade Innate Soul Power, couldn't get past level twenty-nine. That was the limit of their talent, and no amount of resources could change it. Now that something like Immortal Pills had appeared, something capable of defying fate and changing a person's life, how could they not be tempted?
This was especially true of elders whose descendants had turned out poorly. At their advanced age, they came to Qian Xunji, a junior they'd watched grow up, for the sake of their descendants.
Golden Crocodile Douluo was among them. His Martial Soul was the top-tier Golden Crocodile King, but his blood descendants had only awakened the Golden Crocodile Martial Soul, and none of them had reached Innate Soul Power level eight.
They'd struggle even to become Soul Douluos, let alone Super Douluos among the Titled Douluos.
Once he died, the Golden Crocodile Clan would decline with him.
As more and more people arrived, Qian Daoliu was eventually alerted.
When he saw so many old friends heading to the Pope Palace, he'd initially thought his rebellious son had caused trouble again. Once he learned what was going on, he breathed a sigh of relief.
He felt that giving his old friends' descendants an Immortal Pill was no big deal.
The Titled Douluos of the Elder Hall had worked for Spirit Hall for over a hundred years. Their families had depended on Spirit Hall for generations, and their contributions were already beyond any reward.
Now that they'd finally asked for something of their own accord, there was no reason to refuse.
Especially since Chrysanthemum Douluo had been given an entire Immortal Herb. Asking for just one Immortal Pill was hardly unreasonable.
Just as the Pope Palace was still bustling, a figure appeared at the entrance. He had a refined, easygoing air, elegant features, and a slightly weathered gaze. The corners of his eyes seemed to have developed crow's-feet in recent years, perhaps from getting worked up too often. It was none other than Qian Daoliu.
"Great Enshrined!"
"Great Enshrined, you're here!"
The Titled Douluos in the Pope Palace called out one after another when they saw Qian Daoliu.
Qian Xunji, who had been locked in a war of words with them, fell silent.
The bustling Pope Palace fell quiet in an instant.
Looking at his old brothers, their faces red with anger from arguing with his rebellious son, Qian Daoliu sighed, but also felt a strange sense of satisfaction.
At least his rebellious son didn't only torment him. He attacked everyone indiscriminately.
That thought made him feel a lot better.
"You all go ahead. I'll talk to this rebellious son of mine." Qian Daoliu waved a sleeve as he spoke.
The Titled Douluos respected Qian Daoliu as the Great Enshrined. At his words, they nodded and filed out.
Once everyone had left, only Qian Daoliu and his son Qian Xunji remained in the Pope Palace.
The usual picture of a loving father and devoted son failed to appear.
Qian Daoliu had spent his life as a man of integrity and was fairly reasonable.
As long as Qian Xunji didn't do anything wrong or deliberately provoke him, he was quite easy to talk to.
This was no different.
Immortal Pills were a precious resource, and Qian Xunji, as the Pope, hadn't handed them out arbitrarily. That was something he deserved praise for.
Especially since this involved the division of power within Spirit Hall. He and his old brothers had all joined the Worship Hall, which didn't need to obey the Pope or fall under his authority. It answered only to him, the Great Enshrined.
Each side managed its own affairs, and they lived in peace.
Now the Worship Hall was suddenly asking for precious resources belonging to the Pope Palace. Naturally, Qian Xunji, as the Pope, wouldn't agree without a fight.
Qian Daoliu had always been reasonable, so he wouldn't start acting like a loving father and devoted son with Qian Xunji over this.
Of course, he didn't want to shortchange his brothers either, so he could only negotiate with Qian Xunji.
Qian Daoliu had lived a long time and naturally had plenty of treasures stored away. Qian Xunji had always wanted to inherit his father's estate.
"Tell me, what do you want in exchange for the Immortal Pills?" By now, Qian Daoliu knew his rebellious son's personality. To avoid being infuriated by his outrageous remarks, he got straight to the point.
Chapter 51: The Effects
Qian Xunji looked at his father, Qian Daoliu, whose once-refined, self-disciplined demeanor had given way to increasing bluntness and decisiveness. He shook his head and named his price directly. "I want Soul Bones."
"You're not short on Soul Bones. What do you want them for?" Qian Daoliu furrowed his brow and asked, puzzled.
"I want Soul Bones with holy attributes. You've locked all of those away, and there aren't any in Spirit Hall's treasury." Qian Xunji seemed to have come to his senses and explained rationally.
"I need to prepare them for Arthur and the others. You know how low the drop rate for Soul Bones is and how rare they are out in the world. Soul Bones that match your Martial Soul's attributes are rarer still."
Qian Daoliu fell silent for a long moment before speaking. "...These are the Qian Clan's foundations. Are you sure?"
Holy attributes were rare not only in Soul Bones but even among Soul Beasts. Apart from members of the Qian Clan, no one in Spirit Hall had any use for them.
Soul Bones could be passed down after their owner died, but their energy dwindled over time. After three or four inheritances, a Soul Bone would lose its power completely.
The Qian Clan members who hadn't received a divine trial weren't qualified to obtain a full set of the Angel God Set. They could only use the few Soul Bones collected by their ancestors over the generations.
At present, besides Qian Renxue, who had already been chosen to inherit the Angel God's legacy and had the Angel God Set prepared for her, the prospects of obtaining holy-attribute Soul Bones for the other three heroes were bleak.
To be honest, Qian Daoliu hadn't even managed to complete his own set of Soul Bones. Either the age wasn't right, the attributes didn't match, or he simply couldn't bear to part with them.
Now Qian Xunji wanted to trade Immortal Pills for Soul Bones. Even Qian Daoliu, as the Great Enshrined, felt a pang of regret and reluctance.
"I'm sure."
"You really are a good adoptive father!" Qian Daoliu snorted. As an adoptive grandfather, he couldn't bring himself to dote on these adopted grandsons who had no blood ties to him, had been taken in by his rebellious son, and came from unknown origins. Only Qian Renxue had earned his favor.
Still, they had to continue the negotiations, and the two haggled over the Soul Bones' age requirements.
At several points, Qian Xunji swung the Dragon-Slaying Saber and slashed the price down, making Qian Daoliu's beard bristle with anger.
"Brat, you want a ninety-thousand-year Soul Bone? Why not just ask for a hundred-thousand-year one while you're at it?"
Before you continue