Mid-Grade Pill Dao

"Had the two families already clashed in the Wilderness?"

That day, Lin Changheng had just stepped out of the alchemy room when he heard some explosive news.

Apparently, the Xu Family and the Chen Family had failed to hold back during a dispute and ended up fighting. Their cultivators had gone all out, with magical artifacts flying and every trick in the book on display.

Old grudges and competing interests had both fueled the conflict. The two sides had nearly fought each other to the death.

The result was... casualties on both sides.

The post-battle tally showed that the Xu Family hadn't gained much from the fighting, but they had still come out slightly ahead.

At least, that was what the Xu Family claimed to its own people.

A middle-aged alchemist was enthusiastically sharing his take on the matter. When he saw Lin Changheng stop nearby, he immediately waved him over to join the discussion.

"Next time, next time!"

Lin Changheng didn't want to discuss it in public. Making an excuse that he had something to take care of, he promised to chat another time and hurried off.

The middle-aged alchemist stared in bewilderment at his rapidly retreating back and shook his head. It was a shame to lose an audience for his eloquent discourse.

He turned back and continued to chatter away, spittle flying.

That evening, Bai Fengxian came to visit.

"Please, come in. It's so late—what brings you here, Feng Xian?"

Bai Fengxian looked solemn and stopped Lin Changheng from making tea. "Brother Lin, don't trouble yourself. I only have a few things to say, then I'll be on my way."

Lin Changheng sensed something was wrong. "What happened?"

"The Xu Family has reassigned me..."

"To the Wilderness?"

Lin Changheng furrowed his brow.

"Not the Wilderness. To Black Dragon Pond Fishery, forty li from our cultivation grounds. I'm to help guard it."

Bai Fengxian also found it strange.

Lin Changheng's eyes shifted as he considered the possibilities. A need for more people to help guard a place usually meant one of two things:

First, the existing guards were short-handed and needed reinforcements.

Second, pressure from outside had increased, forcing them to strengthen their defenses, or they had already come under attack.

The Chen Family, the Xu Family's openly acknowledged enemy—or, more accurately, its hostile neighbor—fit both possibilities. They were the chief suspect.

The most likely one.

"Even if it isn't the Wilderness, you still need to stay alert and take care of yourself. You may be attacked or drawn into a fight while on guard. With your cultivation at the third level of Qi Refining, you should focus on protecting yourself first and killing enemies second."

Lin Changheng didn't know the full story and couldn't afford to mislead him, so he could only offer a warning.

"I understand. Thank you for the reminder."

Bai Fengxian then took ten spirit stones from his clothes to buy two pills.

Seeing Lin Changheng's puzzled look, Bai Fengxian scratched his head and gave an awkward chuckle. "There are also the three pills you lent me last time, Brother Lin. I happen to have some money to spare, so I'll pay you back for those too."

Lin Changheng's heart stirred. He really hadn't misjudged Bai Fengxian. But he said nothing, merely taking out two more pills, bringing the total to four, and handing them over.

What he said was, "I sell them to the family at a thirty percent discount. Since we're friends, I can't charge you more than that."

Though he hadn't intended to take money for the three pills from before, he reconsidered and accepted it.

As the saying went, even brothers should keep clear accounts. It was also a way to preserve the sincerity of their friendship, rather than let it turn into a lopsided relationship where one person gave charity and the other had to beg.

That would be a shame.

Bai Fengxian left with gratitude, and Lin Changheng saw him all the way to the door before returning inside.

But his thoughts lingered on the matter. "Something must have happened at Black Dragon Pond Fishery to bring about this change."

And had the urgent matter Xu Xuzhong dealt with that day been connected to whatever had happened at Black Dragon Pond Fishery?

He didn't have enough information to figure it out.

Lin Changheng shook his head, an indescribable feeling rising in his heart. Perhaps one day, a parting would be forever.

Then he lifted his eyes and gazed into the distance, straining to see as far as he could, hoping to make out this world of cultivation. All he saw was the night, as dark as ink, thick enough to resist being stirred...

Two months later.

The situation outside the mountain valley in the Wilderness grew increasingly dire.

The Xu and Chen clans refused to back down. They had clashed repeatedly, fighting large-scale battles with cultivators on both sides.

It was no exaggeration to say they had fought themselves into a frenzy.

The tension on the battlefield had already spread beyond it.

It was fair to say that the fighting was no longer just a clash between two teams of cultivators. The two clans were now pitting the strength of their entire families against one another.

Lin Changheng noticed that the Xu Family kept bringing wounded cultivators back from the front to recover, while new recruits took their places as reinforcements.

During this time, Lin Changheng had seen off two more friends from among the immortal seedlings.

Their luck had been both good and bad.

They had gone to the battlefield later than most, which was lucky.

But unlike Bai Fengxian, who had happened to be stationed nearby, they had both been sent into the Wilderness to fight, where the risk of casualties was much greater.

Of the immortal seedlings he knew, only Dantai Feiyue, who had also entered the ranks of the Hundred Arts, had yet to be sent to the battlefield.

When they had nothing else to do, the two of them would sometimes get together for a drink and a chat.

"Brother Lin, with your Pill Dao skill, you're always able to 'pick up' Premium Grade pills. You must have already touched the threshold of mid-grade Pill Dao, haven't you?"

A faint flush had risen on Dantai Feiyue's cheeks. After raising her cup in a toast, she suddenly asked him.

"Isn't that true of you as well, Lady Dantai? I'm afraid the Xu Family will soon have another mid-grade talisman master."

Beneath the moonlight, Lin Changheng was a little tipsy too. He clinked cups with the charming young lady and smiled calmly.

"Brother Lin, don't tease me. My skill is nowhere near yours."

Dantai Feiyue raised her jade-white fingers to tuck back a loose strand of hair. Then she leaned halfway over, tilting her head toward him, and murmured, "I wonder if you've found a way to acquire mid-grade Pill Dao inheritance."

The young lady's nearness brought a waft of delicate fragrance. Her breath, sweet as orchids, brushed Lin Changheng's face, mingling with the faint, mellow scent of wine. For a moment, his mind went hazy.

"I haven't found a way yet. I asked the Xu Family before, but mid-grade Pill Dao inheritance is a closely guarded secret, kept from outsiders. It isn't available to immortal seedlings like us. I imagine mid-grade Talisman Dao is the same."

"Perhaps we'll have to find another way..."

With Dantai Feiyue leaning so close, Lin Changheng neither avoided her nor drew back. He didn't act like the bashful young men of his past life, blushing and shifting his gaze aside like a gentleman who dared not look at a woman for fear of impropriety.

Instead, he looked straight at her and admired her openly, without the slightest attempt to hide it.

He couldn't help reflecting that she was naturally beautiful, and cultivation only added to her charms. Her skin was like ice and jade, her complexion like snow and flowers—not a single flaw to be found.

"Perhaps that would have been impossible before, but it may not be now."

Dantai Feiyue smiled thoughtfully, hinting at something more.

Then she glanced back and noticed Lin Changheng's eyes fixed boldly on her. Her pretty face flushed, a rosy glow creeping down her neck.

She realized she had "crossed the line" and instinctively started to pull back. She trembled slightly, then forced herself to settle back into place. Her beautiful eyes met Lin Changheng's boldly. There's nothing wrong with what I'm doing. I can't back down, or he'll look down on me!

She had a proud streak befitting a young lady of the House. With the wine emboldening her, she became even more daring and haughty. Face-to-face with Lin Changheng, their eyes locked, she was mere inches from him and refused to yield.

They were close enough to feel each other's breath on their faces!

"Do you mean that with the Xu Family facing a crisis, its policies might change? They could be so desperate they'd grasp at straws, giving you and me a chance to obtain mid-grade inheritance?"