Wind and Moon Mirror

Soaring Snake Mountain, Flying Horse Market.

Gao Xian's leg twitched where he lay against the wall. He jolted awake from a nightmare.

The first thing he saw was a strangely shaped brass alchemy furnace, a little over a meter tall. It looked like a kettle without a spout, with three frog-leg-shaped supports and a brick platform underneath.

There was a fire channel beneath the platform, along with a flue connected to the chimney. More accurately, it was a somewhat complicated wood-burning stove.

Gao Xian stared blankly for a while, then sighed. This oddly shaped alchemy furnace was how he made his living.

It had been three days since he'd transmigrated. He'd gotten used to his new body and name, but not his new identity: an alchemist.

Gao Xian held out his left hand and silently thought, Come, Mirror.

A bronze mirror of antique design appeared out of nowhere in his hand. Four characters were engraved on its handle: Wind and Moon Mirror.

The Wind and Moon Mirror was a sort of Dream of the Red Chamber tie-in, a birthday present from a friend. Somehow, it had transmigrated with him.

At that moment, its polished surface reflected a handsome young face.

Gao Xian usually just read Water Margin fanfiction and watched low-budget movies. He couldn't think of the right words to describe his looks now.

Words like "sword-shaped brows" and "a face like white jade" were too vague.

All he could say was that he looked a little like some young male movie star—handsome, refined, and dashing. His black eyes, in particular, were so bright they seemed to sparkle...

It was like a professional lighting crew was shining a spotlight on him from across the room!

The only downside was his pale complexion and dark circles. He didn't look very healthy.

"If I'd had a face like this, I wouldn't have been single for over thirty years!"

Gao Xian touched his face with a bit of vanity. Thinking of the days when he'd had to rely on his own two hands to make a living, he sighed.

This was the only thing about transmigrating he liked: a young body brimming with vitality, and a handsome face brimming with promise!

Lines of text appeared across the surface of the Wind and Moon Mirror.

Gao Xian: Lifespan 24/66

Cultivation: Qi Refining, Second Level (2/200)

Five Elements Technique, Second Level, Proficient (15/200)

Fire Control Art, Beginner (88/100)

Water Control Art, Beginner (80/100)

Cleansing Art, Beginner (95/100)

Flying Feather Art, Proficient (99/200)

Clear Wind Swordplay, Beginner (33/100)

First-Rank Alchemy Art, Proficient (29/1000)

Qi Recovery Pill, Proficient (55/200)

Foundation Strengthening Pill, Proficient (41/200)

White Dew Pill, Proficient (11/200)

After studying it for two days, Gao Xian had mostly figured out what the Wind and Moon Mirror could do.

The mirror could show his personal status and turn his various abilities into numerical values. The problem was that his Alchemy Art was grayed out and unusable.

Gao Xian had tried all sorts of things, but he couldn't activate the Alchemy Art or change the data in the mirror.

According to the memories left behind by the original owner, he was the alchemist at an apothecary!

The apothecary supplied the ingredients, and he supplied the pills.

He now owed the apothecary five hundred each of Qi Recovery Pills, Foundation Strengthening Pills, and White Dew Pills.

He also had a huge problem: the original owner had secretly traded away a batch of pills he'd made in exchange for Crimson Blood Pills.

Crimson Blood Pills were a potent cultivation pill. The original owner had taken one to break through to the second level of Qi Refining, but somehow died, leaving his body to Gao Xian.

The large quantity of ingredients used in alchemy had left a massive shortfall. How was he supposed to explain that to the apothecary's owner?

Worse still, the original owner's memories were incomplete, and the memories related to Alchemy Art were no exception.

Even if he had enough ingredients, he couldn't make pills right now.

By his reckoning, he should have delivered the first batch of pills five days ago.

He had no idea what would happen if he couldn't deliver them, but it probably wouldn't be anything good!

Just as Gao Xian was trying to think of a solution, the courtyard gate banged open. He jumped and hurried to the window to peer outside.

Through a crack in the paper window, Gao Xian saw Shopkeeper Zhu, short and fat as a pig, and the tall, broad-chested Boss Lady Zhu Qiniang behind him.

The two stood together with nearly two feet between their heights: one fat, one tall. The contrast was so striking that Gao Xian immediately recognized them.

Gao Xian sighed and tugged at his heavily wrinkled robe. After taking a deep breath, he pushed open the door and went to meet them.

"Brother Zhu, sister-in-law, come in and have a seat..."

Gao Xian put on the professional smile of a middle-aged office worker with twenty years of experience, greeting them politely and warmly.

"Xiao Gao, how's it going?" Shopkeeper Zhu asked with a genial grin.

Gao Xian looked embarrassed. "Brother Zhu, I was in a hurry to break through to the second level of Qi Refining, so I haven't finished making the pills yet. I'll bring them over as soon as they're ready."

Shopkeeper Zhu smiled. "Xiao Gao, you have to take cultivation one step at a time. Don't rush. One wrong move and you could suffer a cultivation deviation—and lose your life."

Beside him, the Boss Lady's expression was stern. She said nothing, but the pressure of her unsmiling presence was palpable.

Gao Xian felt a little guilty. He wasn't short, actually—he figured he was at least a meter eighty-five. Yet he still came up to just below the Boss Lady's head.

In his memories, the Boss Lady was at the ninth level of Qi Refining and extremely skilled at breaking bones. Her combat prowess was off the charts.

Still, the Boss Lady had long brows, deep-set features, and taut, smooth, wheat-colored skin. Her loose blue robe couldn't conceal her ample chest and long legs.

Her features were sharply defined, and her long brows arched slightly. Her emerald-green eyes were as beautiful as cat's-eye gems.

It was only when he got a closer look that Gao Xian realized how beautiful the Boss Lady was. In this land of yellow earth, there was actually a beauty like her!

Out of male instinct—and the repressed nature he'd cultivated over thirty years—he couldn't help sneaking another look.

The Boss Lady frowned slightly. Her beautiful green eyes shifted, and she gave Gao Xian a look he couldn't quite interpret.

What does the Boss Lady mean by that?

Gao Xian couldn't make sense of her look, but that didn't stop him from meekly backing down. With an abject expression, he explained, "Brother Zhu, I was in a hurry to improve my cultivation because I wanted to get better at alchemy.

"The higher your cultivation, the better you can control the heat, and the higher the quality of the pills you make."

Gao Xian smiled ingratiatingly. "Brother Zhu, sister-in-law, I didn't mean to delay things. Please give me a few more days. Just a few more days."

Shopkeeper Zhu waved a hand. "Even if I weren't doing it for your master's sake, a few days' delay wouldn't be a big deal."

His round face was filled with a warm, friendly smile, as if this were nothing at all.

"Will another ten days be enough?"

Shopkeeper Zhu was so accommodating that Gao Xian breathed a sigh of relief.

He nodded with a fawning smile. "Yes, yes. Ten days will be enough. I'll bring them over as soon as they're ready."

"Focus on your alchemy. Don't let your master down."

Shopkeeper Zhu patted Gao Xian on the shoulder and offered a few words of encouragement, like an elder caring for a junior.

"If you have any trouble in your daily life, just tell me... All right, I have things to do, so I'll be off. No need to see me out."

Gao Xian hurried after him to show them out. Shopkeeper Zhu walked through the gate with a smiling face, treating Gao Xian quite cordially.

Following behind Shopkeeper Zhu, Zhu Qiniang gave Gao Xian a long, lingering look before she left.

There seemed to be something complicated in her gaze...

Gao Xian had no idea what it meant. Could sister-in-law have taken a liking to me?

As the saying went, nothing beat dumplings—but he wasn't that kind of person!

Whatever he thought in his heart, Gao Xian maintained a respectful air, clasped his hands in a bow, and escorted Shopkeeper Zhu and his wife out.

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