Medicinal Materials Repository

The Medicinal Materials Repository was where the Inner Academy stored its precious medicinal ingredients, and its guards were exceptionally strict. Not only was a Dou Wang-level elder stationed here year-round, but more than ten instructors also patrolled the area around the clock.

Ordinary students were forbidden from entering such a place. Fortunately, although Xiao Yun had entered the Inner Academy through the selection competition, he was fundamentally still an Alchemy Department student, so he was qualified to come here and exchange for the medicinal ingredients he needed.

Dressed in an Alchemist's robe, with exquisite patterns embroidered across his chest and three silver ripples gleaming upon it, Xiao Yun was not driven away when a patrolling instructor stopped him. After confirming his identity, the instructor instead led him before the Dou Wang overseeing the Medicinal Materials Repository.

"Hehe, you must be Old Fire's disciple, Xiao Yun, right?" An elderly man reclined in a chair, flipping through an ancient-looking book in his hands. Upon hearing that an Alchemist had come to borrow medicinal ingredients, he had instructed the instructor to bring him in. The moment he saw Xiao Yun's childlike appearance paired with the robes of a Third-Tier Alchemist, he guessed Xiao Yun's identity.

After all, there were many Alchemists in the Inner Academy, and quite a few children as well. But among those children, Xiao Yun was the only Alchemist in the entire Inner Academy.

The old man waved a hand, signaling for the instructor to leave. Then he smiled and said, "My surname is Hao. You can call me Elder Hao. Xiao Yun, tell me, what medicinal ingredients have you come here to exchange for? For Old Fire's sake, I can give you a ten percent discount."

"Thank you, Elder Hao." Xiao Yun bowed to Elder Hao and said with a smile, "I came mainly because I want to refine some pills that can accelerate cultivation, such as the Purple Heart Barrier-Breaking Pill. However, I don't have the medicinal ingredients on hand right now, so I came to the Medicinal Materials Repository to see whether I could find some."

"Oh? The Purple Heart Barrier-Breaking Pill is a Fourth-Tier Peak Pill. Are you already confident in refining it?" Elder Hao's face was full of shock upon hearing Xiao Yun's words. He had seen only three ripples on Xiao Yun's Alchemist robe, so how could Xiao Yun dare set his sights on the Purple Heart Barrier-Breaking Pill?

"I know. I only have a thirty percent chance of succeeding in refining it, but I've already broken through to the Nine-Star Da Dou Shi. If I don't take it now, I'm afraid I won't have many opportunities to do so later. Besides, failure doesn't matter. I'll just treat it as practice in advance."

"...Practice, huh? You really are rich. Then again, those pills you recently made to remove Fire Poison have earned you a fortune, so you're not lacking in Fire Energy." Elder Hao nodded, remembering that the Xiao Yun before him was something of a little business prodigy. "Wait, didn't Old Fire prepare any pills for you?"

He suddenly recalled that Xiao Yun's teacher, Fire Elder, was a Fifth-Tier Peak Alchemist. Could it be that he had not prepared pills like the Purple Heart Barrier-Breaking Pill to increase Xiao Yun's strength?

"Uh, perhaps Teacher didn't expect my strength to improve so quickly, so he didn't prepare any?"

Xiao Yun smiled awkwardly. In truth, Fire Elder had intended to refine some for him, but Xiao Yun had obtained several Purple Heart Barrier-Breaking Pills while he was with the Law Enforcement Team. Once Fire Elder learned of that, he no longer prepared any pills for him.

"Mm, that's possible. After all, your cultivation has indeed progressed very quickly." Stroking his grizzled beard, Elder Hao casually tossed over a snow-white object and said with a smile, "This is the token for the repository's rare medicinal ingredients. Go in and look for what you need yourself. Just register them when you come out."

Xiao Yun hurriedly caught the snow-white object. With a glance, he saw that it was a token carved entirely from white jade. Various lifelike medicinal herbs were engraved upon it, and a faint medicinal fragrance even seemed to seep out from within.

This token is a fine item too. I wonder what kind of jade it's made from. It's perfect for preserving the vitality of medicinal ingredients. Too bad I can't just take it with me.

Breathing in the medicinal fragrance, Xiao Yun clicked his tongue inwardly. He did not linger any longer and turned toward the room where the medicinal ingredients were stored.

When he reached the room, Xiao Yun pushed open the door and entered. Beyond it was a pitch-black passageway, with only a faint glow emanating from its far end.

Xiao Yun walked straight ahead. A faint energy barrier stood before him. He looked around and spotted a groove in the wall, perfectly sized for the token. He stepped forward and placed the jade token inside.

As the jade token made contact, the light of the energy barrier gradually faded. A moment later, the passageway fell completely dark.

Whoosh!

A small flame emerged from Xiao Yun's fingertip. By its light, he retrieved the jade token, pushed open the wooden door behind the energy barrier, and entered this repository filled with rare medicinal ingredients.

Beyond the wooden door was a spacious room shrouded in faint fluorescence. Extinguishing the flame in his hand, Xiao Yun slowly stepped inside and swept his gaze around. A look of amazement gradually appeared on his face.

The walls of the entire room were covered in a layer of white jade, and even the floor beneath his feet was no exception. He had just been thinking that this white jade could be made into jade boxes to preserve the vitality of medicinal ingredients, yet the Inner Academy had actually used it to build an entire medicinal repository!

The room's layout resembled the convenience stores from his previous life. There were several aisles, with goods filling both sides of each aisle. The difference was that the goods here were precious medicinal ingredients, and the shelves holding them were also made entirely of white jade.

"What an extravagant display. My worldview was too narrow." Xiao Yun stared in shock, like a country bumpkin entering the city for the first time, finding everything novel.

"Dragon Whisker Grass, Golden Thunder Flower, Soulheart Grass, Greenwood Vine..."

He casually entered an aisle, his eyes constantly scanning the medicinal ingredients on either side. The shock on Xiao Yun's face grew ever stronger. The medicinal ingredients he saw were all at least Fifth Order, and some had even reached Seventh Order or above.

Xiao Yun's throat bobbed as he swallowed hard. The medicinal ingredients here were simply too tempting. If he could loot every last one of them, then wouldn't he...

Forget it. I'd still like to live a few more years.

Trying hard to set his mindset straight, Xiao Yun took a deep breath and forced himself not to look at those precious medicinal ingredients. Instead, he focused on finding what he needed.

He was like a robber who had entered a bank vault. The only difference was that a robber could take as much as he wanted, while Xiao Yun could only stare helplessly.

The Medicinal Materials Repository was divided into several sections, each storing medicinal ingredients of different grades. The area Xiao Yun had just inspected stored high-grade medicinal ingredients. Now, after turning into the low-value medicinal ingredients section, he quickly found some of what he needed.

"Purple Spirit Flower, Purple Spirit Flower, come out already."

After nearly ten minutes of searching, Xiao Yun had found every other medicinal ingredient and taken them, but he still had not found the Purple Spirit Flower. It was a Fourth Order medicinal ingredient and the key to refining the Purple Heart Barrier-Breaking Pill. Without it, the pill could not be refined at all.

Xiao Yun moved through aisle after aisle, conducting a thorough search for the medicinal ingredients he needed. Yet after searching several times, he still did not see a Purple Spirit Flower.

"Huh, could there really be none here? That shouldn't be possible." Xiao Yun stopped and pondered. The Purple Spirit Flower was not some high-grade medicinal ingredient, and it was rather common. By all rights, the Inner Academy's medicinal repository should have it.

"Could it be outside? Forget it, I'll go ask Elder Hao."

There was no point in continuing to search like this. Even if the repository did not have it, Xiao Yun could place a bounty for Purple Spirit Flowers throughout the Inner Academy. He refused to believe that the entire Inner Academy had none.

"Kid, what are you doing here? Did you come to get medicinal ingredients too, like me?"

Just as Xiao Yun was pondering and turning to leave the medicinal repository, a crisp, childish voice suddenly rang out from behind him.