Guidance

Mittel Auction House, reception room.

On the spotless table sat two small jade boxes. Inside each was a pale green pill the size of a longan, lying quietly within. The pills were smooth and lustrous, their rich fragrance drifting through the air and refreshing the mind.

The delight on Guni's face was impossible to conceal as he looked at the pills in the jade boxes.

"Senior's Alchemy is truly admirable. The quality of these two Qi Gathering Powders could probably rival those refined by some Fifth-Grade Alchemists."

After examining the pale green pills several more times, Guni sincerely praised them.

"Hehe, it was merely a small effort. My luck was decent. Three sets of ingredients produced two Qi Gathering Powders. Put them away."

Old Yao spoke with a faint smile.

"Ah, obtaining even one Qi Gathering Powder would already be excellent. Our Mittel Auction House cannot simply take the second one for free. How about this? We'll treat it as a pill consigned by Senior for auction!"

At this point, Guni did not dare take advantage of him. Judging from the quality of the pills, this senior alchemist had likely already touched upon the realm of a Fifth-Grade Alchemist. Taking a small loss to make a friend was absolutely worthwhile for the Miter Auction House.

"Wouldn't that be inappropriate?"

Xiao Yan had not expected Old Yao's little feint to turn his original plan of selling the pills at cost into selling them at auction prices.

Only an idiot turned down a bargain!

"Hehe, Senior need not be so polite. Being able to serve Senior is already my honor. This is what you deserve."

Carefully putting away the two Qi Gathering Powders, Guni spoke with a beaming smile.

"And sell all of this Foundation Establishment Spirit Liquid for me as well. There's no rush to sell it all at once; your Miter Auction House can decide how to sell it. I only ask that the profits be maximized. Whether you transport it to the Imperial Capital or hold a special auction in Wutan City, I have no objections."

As his words fell, Xiao Yan waved his arm, and fifty jade bottles appeared neatly arranged across the table.

"Th... these are all...?"

Looking at the table full of Foundation Establishment Spirit Liquid, Guni's voice trembled.

Heavens!

These were all his sales figures!

With an extra million or more in sales out of nowhere, not only would he meet this year's assessment requirements, he would exceed them by far!

"Yes, all of them. Take them back and inspect them yourself later. Don't waste my time. Their quality is fine."

After speaking, Xiao Yan took out a scroll of paper from his robes and handed it to Guni. His aged voice sounded with a smile.

"Also, trouble yourself to prepare some of the medicinal ingredients listed above."

Eagerly accepting the paper, Guni glanced over it, then summoned a maid, handed her the paper, and instructed her to prepare everything at once.

Guni himself hesitated for a moment before finally speaking.

"The things Senior wishes to purchase are all formulas for relatively basic First-Grade pills. The medicinal ingredients purchased last time were also low-grade materials for refining First-Grade pills. If I'm not mistaken, Senior is preparing these for a disciple?"

Neither Xiao Yan nor Old Yao was surprised that Guni had seen through this.

"Correct."

Xiao Yan nodded slightly, and Old Yao's voice followed.

"I truly wonder who could be fortunate enough to take Senior as a master!" Guni sighed and shook his head. Then his expression grew more solemn as he asked, "Recently, while refining pills, I encountered several doubts. May I ask Senior to clear them up for me?"

"You may. For the sake of the Qi Gathering Powder, ask away."

Old Yao was naturally not stingy with his knowledge toward someone who sincerely wished to improve in Alchemy. A few casual pointers were enough to make Guni suddenly see the light.

"So that was how it was. Thank you for Senior's guidance!"

With his doubts resolved, Guni was in high spirits. The way he looked at Xiao Yan became even more respectful, and he could not help standing up and giving Xiao Yan the salute of a junior.

"Reflect on it carefully and practice diligently. With your talent, you certainly will not stop here."

Old Yao gave him a faintly smiling word of encouragement.

Back when he had been expelled from the Yao Clan, he could only study Alchemy by himself and had taken many detours. Now that his Alchemy had reached the pinnacle, being able to guide younger generations, help them break through bottlenecks, and improve their skills was also a kind of joy for him.

At this time, the medicinal ingredients Xiao Yan wanted were finally delivered.

After storing the ingredients in his Storage Ring, Xiao Yan prepared to take his leave.

"Senior, I'll see you out!"

Having just received guidance, Guni nearly wanted to kneel on the spot and beg to become his disciple. Yet he knew his limits. Receiving guidance was already a tremendous blessing. As for taking a master, the initiative lay with the other party. Alchemists were all proud, and those of such high rank were even more so.

Therefore, their standards for accepting disciples were naturally not low. If he truly had that fate, then surely Senior would speak without him needing to ask. Since Senior had not brought it up, he clearly had little interest in him. In that case, Guni could not act rashly and lower Senior's opinion of him.

Neither Xiao Yan nor Old Yao found anything wrong with Guni's conduct. Such guidance was something ordinary alchemists might never encounter in their entire lives. Since he had been fortunate enough to receive Old Yao's guidance, it was only natural that he should see them out.

Under Guni's enthusiastic farewell, Xiao Yan left the Miter Auction House. After specifically buying a fine jade box, he found a secluded alley, removed his disguise, and strolled leisurely down the street, relaxing the nerves that had been taut from three days of frantic pill refining.

However, when Xiao Yan passed through the market, his soul power suddenly sensed a strange fluctuation. His gaze shifted and landed on a black iron fragment at a roadside stall.

The black iron fragment was extremely old, covered in rust spots and still stained with unwashed yellow mud. It looked like something that had only recently been dug out of the earth.

"Heh, kid, your soul perception is quite sharp. Buy that Black Iron Fragment. It's good stuff..."

Just as Xiao Yan was feeling puzzled and about to search his memories for anything like it, Old Yao's voice suddenly sounded in his mind.

Hearing the voice in his mind, Xiao Yan narrowed his eyes and nodded imperceptibly.

However, he did not immediately pick up the black iron fragment. Instead, he grabbed the red magic crystal beside it and smiled at the somewhat shifty-looking mercenary seated behind the stall. "What's the price?"

"Hehe, Young Master has a sharp eye. This is the magic crystal of a first-tier magical beast, a Fire Spirit Rat. Among first-tier magic crystals, this can be considered top quality. To obtain this crystal, our Sharp Fang Mercenary Group stood guard for three whole days and killed five Fire Spirit Rats before getting this one..."

Seeing that Xiao Yan was dressed extravagantly, the mercenary hurriedly began his sales pitch.

"If Young Master likes it, five hundred gold coins will do. Hehe, to hunt the Fire Spirit Rats, several of our brothers even suffered serious injuries..."

Xiao Yan shook his head at those words, glanced at the two golden stars on the man's chest, and said blandly.

"Too expensive. Ordinary first-tier magic crystals only cost around four hundred to four hundred and fifty gold coins. Besides, while Fire Spirit Rats are magical beasts, their attack power is rather average. Don't tell me your team members haven't even reached the Dou Zhe level?"

The mercenary's mouth twitched, and he gave an awkward laugh. He clearly had not expected the youth before him to be so familiar with both market prices and magical beasts. He could only say sheepishly.

"Four hundred seventy, then. Not a coin less. My brothers have to make a living too..."

"Ah..." Under the mercenary's uneasy gaze, Xiao Yan sighed, bent down, and rummaged through the stall. The strange iron fragment happened to be among the items he scooped up. Raising the handful of things in his hand, he said, "Four hundred seventy for all of this together..."

The mercenary swept his eyes over the items in Xiao Yan's hand and quietly let out a breath of relief. Fortunately, they were all cheap things...

"Deal!"

Xiao Yan briskly tossed out a small bag of gold coins, picked up the items without another word, and turned to leave.