Myriad Medicine Clarity Body! Enlightenment Through Pills

[Firmament Ledger Announcement]: Chosen One "Chu Zhou" has become the first Chosen One to unlock the Alchemist profession. He is awarded a world announcement and a Firmament reward: special constitution, "Myriad Medicine Clarity Body" ×3.

That ancient, supreme voice, majestic as though it had echoed down from time immemorial, rang out three times in every "player's" mind.

Immediately afterward, a piece of information appeared in Chu Zhou's mind.

[Myriad Medicine Clarity Body]: A supreme constitution of the Dou Qi Continent and a foundation for attaining emperorship. Any medicinal ingredient can be recognized after tasting it. Consuming any pill reveals its refining process, Pill Formula, and the Alchemist's techniques. All pills can be absorbed perfectly, all pill toxins can be refined away, and no drug resistance will develop. Gain enlightenment through consuming pills, with a direct path to the Emperor Realm.

Whoa! Chu Zhou's expression remained unchanged, but inwardly, he sucked in a sharp breath.

I only wanted to latch onto the sweet-smelling, soft Ya Fei and use her backing as a stepping stone.

How did one little "accident" land me a whole stairway to heaven?!

I could recognize any medicinal ingredient just by tasting it. Wouldn't that make me Shennong?

The knowledge of medicinal ingredients that Alchemists painstakingly accumulated required only a single bite from him. It would save him countless hours, and it would not matter if he had no master to teach him.

Consuming a pill would reveal its entire refining process, along with its exact Pill Formula. That was even more outrageous—it meant no pill in the world would hold any secrets from him.

Pill Formulas and exclusive refining techniques were what Alchemists depended on for their livelihoods. Not only were they incredibly precious, but Alchemists would not even pass everything on to their disciples. Now, all he needed was one bite.

The last benefit was what he considered the most terrifying: he could perfectly absorb any pill, refine away all its toxins, and never develop any resistance. Did that not mean he could take the same pill repeatedly to rapidly increase his strength?

For example, a Dou Ling Pill could raise a Dou Wang's strength by one star, and an Emperor's Extreme Pill could raise a Dou Emperor's strength by one star. Ordinary cultivators, however, could only take one in their lifetime at the corresponding level.

He was different. With nine Dou Ling Pills, he could go straight from One-Star Dou Wang to Nine-Star Dou Wang.

With nine Emperor's Extreme Pills, he could go straight from One-Star Dou Emperor to Nine-Star Dou Emperor.

Moreover, a pill like the Sect Breaking Pill only increased a peak Nine-Star Dou Emperor's chance of breaking through to Dou Zong. Since he could perfectly absorb its medicinal power, taking it would guarantee his breakthrough to Dou Zong.

Xiao Yi Xian had the woeful poison body and grew stronger by consuming Poison Pills.

Qing Lin had the Triple Jade-Green Snake Flower Pupils and grew stronger by enslaving serpentine magical beasts.

He had the Myriad Medicine Clarity Body and could grow stronger without limit simply by consuming pills!

Xiao Yan relied on the Flame Mantra to grow stronger by devouring heavenly flames, but he still fell short of them.

I don't need to cling to Xiao Yan and Yao Chen anymore. Xiao Yan should be clinging to me instead. Or I could find an opportunity to cooperate with him. Chu Zhou's mindset changed in an instant.

The myriad medicine clarity body alone gave him a talent surpassing even the extraordinary gifts of Xiao Yi Xian and Qing Lin. It not only made increasing his strength effortless, but also helped improve his alchemy.

Possessing this special constitution also showed him the right way to use the Firmament Ledger. As long as he competed to be "first," he was bound to gain plenty more benefits, stacking one cheat on top of another.

With his foreknowledge of the plot, he believed he could sweep up all the "grand prizes."

"Hm?"

Ya Fei's gaze had remained on Chu Zhou the entire time.

She knew nothing about the Firmament Ledger's reward, but her keen eye allowed her to detect the subtle change in Chu Zhou's bearing.

Had becoming Uncle Gu Ni's Alchemist apprentice changed his mindset so drastically?

Interesting. Was that confidence, or arrogance?

"Qin'er, take Chu Zhou to change into a new set of clothes and arrange new accommodations for him. Then bring him to the medicine room. I want to test his talent for identifying medicinal ingredients."

Gu Ni also sensed the subtle change in Chu Zhou, but he found it perfectly reasonable.

Alchemists were simply that distinguished. Becoming an Alchemist apprentice made Chu Zhou an Alchemist in training, and his status was already different.

"Yes, Master Gu Ni." Qin'er bowed respectfully, inwardly relieved.

Fortunately, she had chosen to bring Chu Zhou to see Ya Fei. Rather than offending this prospective Alchemist, she had established a friendly relationship with him.

From this day forward, Chu Zhou's standing throughout the Mittel Auction House would be different.

"Uncle Gu Ni, how many resources do you think we should devote to cultivating him?"

Once Chu Zhou had left with Qin'er, Ya Fei asked her question.

Gu Ni sat down beside her and said seriously, "Use the full extent of your authority."

"What?!" Ya Fei's delicate lips parted slightly in surprise and confusion. "Uncle Gu Ni, he's eighteen and only has three-stage Dou Qi. Even if he has a talent for Alchemist, surely..."

"Eighteen?" Gu Ni smiled and shook his head. "Wrong. I checked his bones just now while I had the chance. He should be over twenty."

Ya Fei: ???

Wouldn't that mean Chu Zhou was dishonest, and his cultivation talent was even worse?

"He probably lied about his age because he feared being looked down on. There's no need to dwell on it." Seeing what Ya Fei was thinking, Gu Ni explained seriously, "I also examined his meridians. They're exceptionally sturdy and robust. His cultivation talent is actually quite good."

"Books can be studied in poverty, but martial training requires wealth. He probably grew up in the countryside with no one to teach him and devoted himself to his studies, neglecting cultivation. Otherwise, he would at least have reached Seventh Stage Dou Qi by now."

"If he starts cultivating seriously, breaking through to Dou Zhe within three years won't be a problem."

"Once he reaches Dou Zhe, cultivation methods and resources will have a much greater influence. With your full support, miss, reaching my current realm within ten years won't be a problem either."

"And his talent for Alchemist far exceeds mine. I'm currently a Three-Star Da Dou Shi, yet I'm only a Second-Rank Alchemist. With sufficient training, he could reach at least the third rank, and possibly even the fourth."

"In other words, miss, as long as you put effort into cultivating him, in roughly ten years you could have a third-rank or even Fourth-Rank Alchemist younger than me, with respectable cultivation talent and strength."

"Of course, throughout his training, I'll also assess his character and loyalty for you. We can't raise an ungrateful traitor!"

Master Gu Ni had once received kindness from Ya Fei's parents and regarded her almost as his own daughter. Everything he considered was entirely for her sake.

"Ah!" Ya Fei was so distracted that she scalded her lips on her tea.

From Gu Ni's reaction, she had realized Chu Zhou must have decent talent, but she had not expected both his cultivation and alchemy talents to be good. At the very least, Master Gu Ni admitted he could not compare.

As a capable merchant, she naturally understood just how great the returns would be if she invested now in a future third-rank or even Fourth-Rank Alchemist.

It would have an enormous impact on her future influence within the Mittel Family.

She had come to Wutan City to manage the auction house to escape Mu Zhan's pestering. She had never expected to stumble upon a treasure.

Unfortunately, Chu Zhou was "too old." Had he been only fourteen or fifteen, she would have dared to contact the family head directly and stake her future on investing in him.

"I'll pass down the instructions. At the auction house, he'll receive treatment second only to you and me, Uncle."

Chu Zhou knew nothing of their conversation. He was checking the Chat Channel at that moment.

Sure enough, the Firmament Ledger's announcement had left everyone utterly stunned.