You're the Clever One

After cultivating a cultivation method, the milky-white Dou Qi within the body would transform into the method's "exclusive" Dou Qi.

Put simply, a cultivation method was a way of "absorbing the energy of the surrounding world, refining it, and making it your own."

The higher a cultivation method's grade, the harder it was to begin, circulate, and cultivate. Getting started alone might take years, but the results once mastered would also be better.

Likewise, the lower its grade, the simpler it was and the easier it was to get started, though its effects would also be poorer.

-not much staying power.

Before evolving, the Flame Mantra was merely a yellow tier low grade cultivation method. In fact, the only reason it even qualified as yellow tier low grade was that there was no lower grade.

So getting started with it was not particularly difficult.

After just under an hour, Xiao Yan slowly opened her eyes where she sat cross-legged.

Having cultivated a Dou Qi cultivation method, Xiao Yan seemed livelier than before. Her face even carried a faint sheen like warm jade, leaving her looking bright and spirited.

She blinked, feeling that her surroundings seemed a little clearer.

She knew this was a sensory enhancement brought on by cultivating the method.

For some truly powerful cultivators, distinguishing two individual pixels and having better motion vision than an eagle was no joke.

Of course, it was not just eyesight. Other physical qualities would also improve as their Dou Qi cultivation rose or they cultivated profound methods.

Those improvements simply were not especially obvious.

But the fact that "powerful cultivators were all handsome men and beautiful women" was enough to prove that these "invisible" improvements existed-"evil cultivators" excluded, of course.

"It worked, right?" Apothecary asked with a smile beside her.

"Mm." Xiao Yan nodded and extended her fair, slender hand.

As she moved, a strand of pale-yellow Dou Qi swiftly flowed out of the vortex within her, which had now turned pale yellow throughout, before settling in the acupoint in her palm.

Projecting Dou Qi outside the body was something only a Da Dou Shi or higher could accomplish, so the Dou Qi within Xiao Yan did not break through the acupoint's barrier.

Still, tiny glimmers of pale-yellow light gradually appeared on her fair palm, faint and dim, like the last embers of a dying candle.

At the sight, Apothecary smiled a little awkwardly. "Hehe, as long as it worked. As long as it worked..."

"Teacher, when will you teach me alchemy?" Xiao Yan lowered her hand and discreetly changed the subject.

"Alchemy isn't something you can learn within this little clan." Apothecary shook her head at the question and said with a smile:

"Teaching you some basics won't be a problem, but once you've gotten started, cultivating in Wutan City will come with all sorts of inconveniences."

"Unless you're willing to let others know you're an alchemist-actually, there's nothing wrong with them knowing. It's not something shameful."

"At present, there wouldn't be any downside to letting others know you can become an alchemist. The Xiao Clan would even devote all its resources to nurturing you."

"The Mittel Auction House and the like would also establish friendly relations with the Xiao Clan."

Xiao Yan nodded. That made sense. After all, one of an alchemist's greatest advantages was their terrifying network of connections.

No alchemist hid their identity and spent all day making pills solely for their own use... If there were any, she would take that back.

Still...

Xiao Yan felt she had already been "targeted." If she also exposed the fact that she could become an alchemist, trouble might come knocking.

Even if the other party did not seem to harbor ill intentions.

So she would be better off assuming another identity and leaving Wutan City to cultivate. With Apothecary's pills and the like, her progress certainly would not be slow anyway.

Apothecary approved of Xiao Yan's choice as well. "Once you're a little stronger, you should go out and see the world. If you stay in Wutan City all the time, your cultivation will progress too... relatively slowly."

"Besides, with so many eyes watching here, I can't use some of my training measures. We'll only be able to let loose once we're outside."

Apothecary actually already had a rough guess about the force keeping an eye on the Xiao Clan.

After all, although a certain female dark attribute Dou Emperor was skilled at concealment, she had not escaped Apothecary's keen soul perception.

Besides, Xiao Yan might not have noticed the Brand Poison afflicting Nalan Jie, but how could Apothecary have missed it? It had clearly flared up only recently.

Connecting these incidents made it easy to infer a likely possibility-

Although her perception had only detected a single dark attribute Dou Emperor guard, there might well be some supreme expert lurking somewhere beyond her senses.

Undetectable ≠ nonexistent.

So, if her deduction was correct, as long as that girl called Xun'er remained, the Xiao Clan was safe-and quite safe at that.

She did not say any of this aloud, however.

Besides, putting a little pressure on this girl Xiao Yan might not be a bad thing.

The girl would most likely clash with the Soul Hall in the future. A little advance "rehearsal" could only help, right... Ahem.

Naturally, Xiao Yan had no idea what Apothecary was thinking, but she could hear what Apothecary was saying-

[With so many eyes watching here, I can't use some of my training measures...]

Recalling the earlier "The Temptation of the Whip," Xiao Yan could not help shivering.

Seemingly oblivious to Xiao Yan's reaction, however, Apothecary continued:

"This training period probably won't be short. It might take a year or two."

"Once you've gone through the Coming-of-Age Ceremony in two months, you can register at Jia Nan Academy, and then we'll hit the road together..."

Wait, what the hell did she mean by "hit the road together"?!

Xiao Yan was bursting with the urge to snark, but firmly suppressed it. "Sure thing, Teacher."

"But... why go to Jia Nan Academy? You already have cultivation methods and combat skills. What else could they teach me?"

"I'm not sending you there to study." Apothecary shook her head rather helplessly. "You're going to Jia Nan Academy to find a heavenly flame."

"I once obtained information that Jia Nan Academy should have a heavenly flame called the 'Fallen Heart Flame'..."

"Teacher?" Once Apothecary finished, Xiao Yan raised her hand to ask a question.

"Hmm?"

"What are Jia Nan Academy's admission requirements?"

"It's been a while. I remember that previously, you seemed to need to reach eighth stage Dou Qi before turning eighteen. The current requirement probably only varies slightly from that. You'll definitely qualify-why are you asking?"

"Well, Teacher..." Xiao Yan paused. "I'm not even fifteen yet. I won't turn eighteen for another three years."

"In that case, why register at Jia Nan Academy first, then ask for a year or two of leave?"

"Why not finish our training out in the world and then go straight to Jia Nan Academy to enroll? Surely they wouldn't reject me then?"

"..." Apothecary was dumbfounded.

Right. Why not?

Was it because I spent too long in the ring, so my brain's gotten a little... No, I don't have a brain right now.

Still, I really shouldn't have missed a solution like that-am I truly getting old?

Of course, as her teacher, she could never admit such a thing.

Apothecary fell silent for a while, then...

"Very well said. Your reward is a..."

"Hey, Teacher, let's talk this out. Why are you picking up a whip..."