More than a month later, the two wizards sat at the laboratory table with Mulan.
"All right, we've worked out all the basic details. The only remaining question is that final change. Where did the flames that appeared during the repair of their souls come from?"
Mulan frowned at the old wizard's question. When neither man spoke, the young wizard beside them thought for a moment and offered a suggestion.
"Could it be a problem with the alchemy?"
Mulan immediately shook his head.
"No, no, no. It definitely wasn't a problem with the alchemy. Redhead was the first to undergo alchemical surgery, so your teacher and I might have made some mistakes through lack of experience. But the same thing happened to all three of the others afterward, which clearly rules that out."
"Then could it be that applying the alchemy we devised to souls naturally produces those flames?"
The old wizard stroked his beard and fell into thought. Mulan remained silent as well.
"Mr. Gao'er, did you notice that when those flames burned, a pattern appeared on their souls? It looked like fire itself."
"Now that you mention it, I do vaguely remember something like that. And it was those flames burning away the excess energy that kept Redhead from dying on the operating table."
"Yes, and they didn't just burn away the excess energy. They burned away impurities in the potions, and even some impurities in the souls. That's why there haven't been any obvious adverse reactions over the past month or so."
The young wizard couldn't help laughing at that.
"If their appetites don't count as an adverse reaction, then yes, it was a tremendous success."
His student's quip brought a pained look to the old wizard's face. Flowers, fruit, vegetables, meat-none of that mattered much. The