Blazing Sun Ragdoll (Please Read On)

"An apprenticeship might be possible, but learning alchemy probably isn't."

"The junior alchemist our pharmacy employs acts like he's got his eyes on top of his head—arrogant as can be. He even turned down my dad's request to let me study alchemy under him."

Huang Zhicheng said indignantly, clearly reminded of an unpleasant memory by Chen Wei's words.

"Then forget it. I'll look for another way myself."

Chen Wei could only reply helplessly. He had merely wanted to give it a try. After all, he had no desire to start as a menial worker at the Alchemists' Association.

A menial worker was far beneath an apprentice. At least apprentices could learn something, while menial workers were simply laborers who handled basic tasks. They also had to endure one or two years of an alchemist's assessment before they could become apprentices—it all depended on whether the alchemist took a liking to them.

Don't underestimate apprentices. Even obtaining apprentice qualifications required connections; ordinary people needn't even dream of it.

Of course, if you awakened an innate talent related to alchemy, you would become a hot commodity.

The doors of the Alchemists' Association would always be open to you. So long as you wished to step through them, becoming an alchemist would be effortless.

Unfortunately, Chen Wei's talents had absolutely nothing to do with alchemy.

He had once considered teaching himself to become an alchemist through online instructional videos. But without a master to lead him through the door, he had made little progress relying on videos alone.

Through online self-study, Chen Wei had only learned how to identify medicinal ingredients and determine their properties, as well as which derivatives from plant-type pets could be used as medicinal ingredients for alchemy.

At least so far, Chen Wei had never heard of a self-taught alchemist in the Donghua Kingdom.

After chatting and finishing his run, Chen Wei returned to his apartment covered in a thin sheen of sweat.

Some time later, freshly showered, Chen Wei sat on his bed meditating to cultivate his Origin Star.

He did not plan to train at the Beastmaster Association today. Renting a venue for even a day was no small expense, and psychic power could be practiced in his room as well.

Not far away, Color Spirit sat on the sofa with her bright, watery eyes wide open. The ice crystal atop her head glowed with intertwined blue and white light.

Focused intently, she used psychic power to control a dumbbell, making it move continuously through the air. Unfortunately, she could only maintain her psychic power for a dozen or so seconds at a time.

Thud... thud... thud. Every so often, Chen Wei heard the dull sound of the dumbbell dropping onto the sofa.

After repeating this several times, Color Spirit seemed to feel that the 2.5-kilogram dumbbell was too light. She began using her psychic power to intermittently add weight plates to it, though her progress in attaching them was extremely slow.

More than ten minutes passed, yet she still had not finished attaching the weight plates, even though it had looked so simple when she watched the beastmasters do it.

After several attempts, Color Spirit, mentally exhausted from overusing her psychic power, impatiently smacked the dumbbell with her tail. Yet she still had no intention of using her tail to install the plates.

Chen Wei had instructed her earlier, "For today's training, use psychic power wherever you can."

Unwilling to admit defeat, she narrowed her eyes and began resting, preparing to try again later. Attaching a few measly weight plates was something she could do without using her tail.

Chen Wei meditated on the bed, cultivating his Origin Star, while Color Spirit practiced psychic power on the sofa.

Each went about their own training, yet an unspoken understanding flowed between them. One man and one pet maintained this cultivation routine for the entire day.

Several days later, the two of them had gradually adapted to this monotonous, tedious life.

Inside a luxurious grand villa near the center of Water Mountain City was an alchemy room specially designed for refining pills.

At the center of the alchemy room stood an ancient, blackish-brown medicinal cauldron.

Above the cauldron were two dragon heads posed as if spouting something forth, while beneath them was carved a dark-golden divine dragon that appeared to be roaring in fury.

Its massive mouth was filled with countless fine holes, from which orange-red flames poured.

At the top of the cauldron was a reddish-brown lid, its tiny holes spewing billows of hot vapor.

At the center of the cauldron's front was a round, transparent crystal window through which one could observe the interior.

Liu Muning was currently pulling open the small door of the transparent crystal window and continuously tossing all kinds of medicinal ingredients into the cauldron.

Not long after entering the cauldron, the ingredients were refined into white powder.

Beside Liu Muning stood a resplendent King-level pet, the [Blazing Sun Ragdoll], continuously breathing flames into the cauldron.

It had a pair of long, pointed ears, with tiny titanium crystals scattered around them, while a cluster of orange-red flames burned atop its head.

Above its elegant yet dignified face were a pair of scarlet gemstone eyes, and its body was covered in fiery-red fur.

Its limbs were somewhat thick, and faint wisps of smoke seemed to rise from beneath its paws where it stood.

"Red Jade, raise the flame temperature by thirty percent," Liu Muning transmitted telepathically after closing the cauldron's round little door.

At her words, the flames pouring from the Blazing Sun Ragdoll's mouth shifted from orange-red to dark red.

Liu Muning wore a grave expression as she sensed the constant changes within the cauldron. Under the scorching heat, the white medicinal powder gradually took on a faint reddish hue, seeming to glow slightly.

A few minutes later, she poured the transparent liquid from a white jade bottle into the cauldron. As the liquid fused with the powder, a soft emerald-green radiance slowly spread through the cauldron.

Once the light faded, all that remained inside the medicinal cauldron was a pile of paste-like, unidentifiable medicine.

"Red Jade, stop," Liu Muning immediately transmitted the command.

The flames in the Blazing Sun Ragdoll's mouth vanished instantly.

It shook its head. Keeping up an uninterrupted stream of flames without moving for so long had evidently left its neck stiff and uncomfortable.

Liu Muning inhaled the medicinal fragrance wafting from the cauldron and observed the sheen on the paste, a faint smile appearing on her face.

This batch of third-tier Myriad Spirit Paste seemed to have been successfully refined, and its quality looked quite good—excellent grade.

"Good work. You handled the temperature very well today."

She affectionately stroked Red Jade's head again.

Astonishingly, the flames burning atop Red Jade's head did not harm Liu Muning's delicate hand in the slightest.

After placing the ointment from the cauldron into white jade bottles one by one, Liu Muning left the stuffy alchemy room.

Looking at Gu Yun, who was waiting outside the door, she asked with a smile, "Among the recent interviewees, have there been any talents worth noting?"

"There have been one hundred and eighty-three interviewees these past few days, and only two awakened their innate talents."

Gu Yun added, "One is a junior pharmacist who awakened a fire-control talent, while the other is an appraiser who awakened an appraisal talent."

Liu Muning gave a soft sound of surprise. "Not bad. There are actually two of them. Then follow the old rules—finish interviewing them tomorrow afternoon."

"Understood, President Liu."

Gu Yun was used to it. Every talent awakener interviewed by Ragdoll Mall had to be personally assessed by the young lady.

"By the way, Chen Wei hasn't come to work these past few days, has he?" Liu Muning's tone was somewhat flat.

"That's right." Gu Yun's body stiffened slightly.

"I hope to see him at the company tomorrow morning." As her phone rang, Liu Muning glanced at the message and spoke casually.

"Understood."

Gu Yun nodded, then silently followed Liu Muning away, always maintaining a distance of half a step behind her as they walked.