As the old man's words fell, the flames inside the furnace quietly subsided, merging into the air without leaving a trace.
A medicinal fragrance, richer and purer than before, seeped in delicate wisps through the openings of the Medicine Cauldron as though it had come alive, instantly filling the room. A single breath made one's organs feel as if they had been washed clean, leaving the whole body at ease and the mind brimming with vigor.
Nourished by that fragrance, Yao Lao's illusory soul form seemed to grow a little more solid. Moments later, the fragrance returned entirely to the pill furnace, as though it had never existed.
The old man slowly turned around. His eyes, as still as an ancient well, swept calmly over Yao Lao and Xiao Yan before lingering briefly on Xiao Yi.
His gaze was deep and distant, as though it pierced through time and saw those two lively little figures who had listened to the Great Dao at his feet long ago.
A gentle smile quietly blossomed at his lips, adding a measure of an elder's kindness to his air of detachment from worldly affairs.
"My wanderings have brought this old Daoist here, and meeting you can be counted as a worldly connection. As your elder, I ought not come empty-handed to our first meeting. I usually refine pills with the Six-Ding Divine Fire, so today I shall give you six little trinkets as gifts to mark our meeting."
Before he had finished speaking, he casually swept his sleeve toward the ancient, unadorned Medicine Cauldron. With a soft hum, the Medicine Cauldron trembled, and three streaks of light shot out of its mouth to hover before Xiao Yan.
They were three pills the size of longan fruits, perfectly round and so thoroughly restrained that they