Relationship Changes

"Xiao Yan, Xiao Yan, where are my pills?" Zi Yan had arrived in Xiao Yan's room early in the morning, looking at him expectantly.

"You really are punctual." Xiao Yan looked helpless. He and Zi Yan had agreed that she would come to him for pills one hour after sunrise every day, yet the moment the time came, no matter where he was, Zi Yan would stare at him with those big eyes.

"Here, here, here." Xiao Yan placed five pills in Zi Yan's hand, then took out another pill. After hesitating again and again, he finally handed it to her.

"Here, this is a Sixth-Grade Pill. Its medicinal effect is very strong, so be careful."

The moment Zi Yan saw the pill, her eyes went wide. She wiped away nonexistent drool and grabbed the pill. "At least you have a bit of a conscience. Hehe."

"Miss, you certainly haven't eaten any shortage of good things. Five pills every day—I'm practically your personal Alchemist."

"How could that be?" Zi Yan replied indignantly. "You took all the good stuff. I haven't even eaten a tenth as much as you have! And you said that Heavenly Snake Mansion couldn't find enough herbs, that you wanted to cut back on my daily pills."

As she spoke more emotionally, a mist of tears even appeared in Zi Yan's eyes. Xiao Yan would have felt a little sorry for her if he had not seen the floor she had already stomped to pieces.

"Hmph, I'm going to play with Sister Xun Er." Everyone naturally liked Xun Er's temperament, and Xun Er herself was very fond of Zi Yan, so the two of them spent every day together. Xiao Yan had instead been left out.

Xiao Yan had not enjoyed even a minute of peace before an even more terrifying voice rang out.

"Brother Xiao Yan." Xu Yingwu's voice came from outside, and Xiao Yan could only smile bitterly.

If anyone was more troublesome than Zi Yan, it was definitely Xu Yingwu. Zi Yan would leave as soon as she received her pills, but Xu Yingwu could cling to him for an entire day at a time. Ever since Xu Yingwu had seen Xiao Yan refine pills, he came every day to ask him about difficult problems in alchemy. His questions were not something that could be solved casually, so they often took up most of the day. Although Xiao Yan could also gain much from Yao Lao's answers, it still did not feel as satisfying as learning on his own.

"Brother Xiao Yan, I encountered several problems while refining pills yesterday. I hope you will not hesitate to teach me."

"Of course, of course," Xiao Yan said with a bitter smile.

However, before Xu Yingwu could ask his question, Xiao Yan and Xu Yingwu both noticed that the Dou Qi in this stretch of heaven and earth had suddenly thinned. As though being drained away, it surged toward Su Zhang's room.

Xu Yingwu said delightedly, "Teacher is coming out of seclusion?"

"It's been ten days. Is it finally over?" Xiao Yan muttered to himself.

After the Dou Qi gathered, another quarter of an hour passed before a powerful aura emerged from within the room.

"Hahaha, I've finally taken this step."

"Six-Star Dou Zong?" Xiao Yan sensed the powerful aura Su Zhang was emitting. The increase in Dou Qi was secondary; more importantly, Xiao Yan felt that Su Zhang's soul power had become pure and vast. For an Alchemist, soul power was the foundation of one's standing. Su Zhang had gained greatly from this moment of enlightenment. Becoming a Seventh-Grade Alchemist would surely now come naturally.

"Congratulations, Teacher, on successfully advancing," Xu Yingwu said with a bow.

Su Zhang looked at Xu Yingwu and Xiao Yan standing outside the door, his heart filled with emotion. He then said to Xu Yingwu, "Yingwu, wait outside for a while. Young Friend Xiao Yan and I have something to discuss."

With that, Su Zhang pulled Xiao Yan into the room, leaving Xu Yingwu standing there in confusion as he watched Xiao Yan get dragged away.

Xu Yingwu paced twice outside the door, then struck his fist into his palm. His confused expression turned resolute. "That's it. Teacher must mean that I still come to Brother Xiao Yan too late. Teacher is reminding me that I need to ask questions early. That's right, that's right. It seems I still can't wait until dawn tomorrow."

Xiao Yan had no idea how much trouble Su Zhang's casual action had caused him, because he saw Su Zhang crying like a child again.

"Venerable One, Su Zhang has once again received your guidance. Even death could not repay your kindness."

Yao Lao looked at the emotional Su Zhang and sighed inwardly. He had not expected Su Zhang to be such a sentimental person.

"You studied my records and forged your own path in alchemy. That can be considered inheriting my legacy. Su Zhang, in this life, I have had only one disciple—Xiao Yan." Yao Lao paused here. Only Xiao Yan knew how important Han Feng had been to Yao Lao, and how deeply Yao Lao regretted it.

"Are you willing to take me as your master?" Yao Lao asked solemnly.

Su Zhang was stunned at first, then his face filled with wild joy. He kowtowed and said, "This disciple, Su Zhang, greets Teacher!"

It could be said that Su Zhang's fate had been entirely changed by Yao Lao. The Pill Tower had had its reasons for choosing him. He was exceptionally sensitive to medicinal ingredients; otherwise, he would not have been selected as an alchemy apprentice. However, he severely lacked creativity, which was why the Pill Tower had not heavily nurtured him. Yao Lao's appearance had completely shown him a clear path. Thus, even after several decades, his gratitude and admiration for Yao Lao remained boundless. For Yao Lao to accept him as a disciple now was something he had never even dared to dream of.

"You received my notes first, so that counts as entering the school before him. From now on, Xiao Yan will have to call you Senior Brother."

Although what Yao Lao had done was improper in terms of etiquette, his age was there for all to see, so Xiao Yan naturally accepted it.

"Senior Brother." Xiao Yan bowed to Su Zhang.

Su Zhang's face was full of smiles. "Junior Brother, there is no need for such formality. This is Sappanwood Spirit Jade. Wearing it can strengthen the wood attribute and improve your pill success rate. Consider it a meeting gift between us."

The moment the Sappanwood Spirit Jade landed in Xiao Yan's hand, he felt the dense wood-attributed energy, as though it were erupting from a spring. All Alchemists possessed a fire attribute accompanied by a trace of wood attribute, but fire was ultimately dominant. It was common for weak wood attribute energy to affect the results of pill refinement. Now that Xiao Yan had this jade, he would almost never need to worry about the wood attribute again.

"Senior Brother, this is too precious. I cannot accept it," Xiao Yan said sincerely.

"Ah, if your Senior Brother gives it to you, accept it. You and Teacher have suffered who knows how much, and you still won't let your Senior Brother show something? This guilt of mine may trouble me for the rest of my life."

Xiao Yan smiled upon hearing this and nodded. "Then many thanks, Senior Brother."

Su Zhang pushed open the door and called to Xu Yingwu, who was waiting outside, "Yingwu, come quickly. From now on, Xiao Yan is your Martial Uncle. Hurry and pay your respects."

"Ah?" Xu Yingwu scratched his head in confusion. He clearly remembered that things had not been this way just moments ago.

However, a master's command could not be defied. Xu Yingwu still said respectfully, "Xu Yingwu pays his respects to Martial Uncle."

Xiao Yan also looked helpless. "Brother Xu, from now on, we can each address the other as we please. You can call me Martial Uncle, and I'll call you Brother Yingwu."