Feeding Her While Standing Tall

"An alchemist... slower cultivation growth... a secret cultivation method to improve fire control ability?"

Listening to the shadow's report, Xiao Xun'er frowned slightly.

Why was this a little different from the version Sister Xiao Yan had told her?

Still...

Sister Xiao Yan must have her own considerations... Xiao Xun'er thought.

Besides, this was an alchemist they were talking about, the most prestigious profession on the continent.

Even she wanted to become an alchemist. Unfortunately, her Dou Qi attribute was unsuitable: pure yang... ahem, pure fire.

So pure that it contained not a trace of wood qi.

That meant she was destined to have no chance of becoming an alchemist.

Xiao Xun'er sighed softly, then continued listening to the shadow's report.

Sister Xiao Yan needs a higher-tier beast flame now? Should I help her...

Finding a few beast flames was no trouble at all for her, but she could not simply "give them away."

After all, without a suitable reason or justification, Xiao Yan would most likely refuse even if she offered them for free.

Xiao Xun'er had previously planned to give Xiao Yan a mystic rank high grade fire-attribute cultivation technique, only for Nalan Jie to come charging out halfway and offer the Xiao Clan a black tier middle grade one as "compensation."

And she had been the one who led Nalan Jie to the Xiao Clan.

Giving her a cultivation technique then would have been rather inappropriate, so she had never brought it out.

Although, in the end, Xiao Yan had not chosen the technique Nalan Jie provided either.

Based on her understanding of Xiao Yan, if she showed up with a beast flame, there was over a ninety-percent chance she would be refused outright.

The remaining ten percent was a polite refusal.

Then Xiao Xun'er's mind turned, and a plan sprang to life. She instructed the shadow behind her:

"Aunt Ling, please make the arrangements. Find some relatively gentle beast flames suitable for alchemists, and think of a way to 'sell' them to those two Xiao Clan elders."

"Yes, miss," the shadow answered, then slowly faded away.

Although she felt that Miss Xun'er was paying rather too much attention to that girl named Xiao Yan, it was not her place to interfere.

She was only a guard. All she needed to do was perform her duties and carry out Miss Xun'er's orders.

Of course, if Xiao Yan had not been a girl, she would have had to report this matter to her superiors.

Besides, a "minor matter" like collecting beast flames naturally required no approval from above. She could simply get it done.

Thus, orders were secretly passed down, and several Dou Ling level "powerhouses" swiftly sprang into action.

If "Xiao Yan" had been the male "Xiao Yan" instead, even if Xun'er wanted to help, her "maidenly reserve" and desire to protect "Brother Xiao Yan's masculine dignity" would have kept her from feeding him too eagerly.

That was how things had unfolded in a certain "parallel world."

After all, if Xun'er took too much initiative, she could easily attract her "family's" attention and invite all sorts of trouble. Besides, she would not want a certain someone accused of "living off a woman," would she?

Now, however, because this was the female "Xiao Yan," Xun'er no longer had certain reservations. If she wanted to help, she simply helped. Even if her family found out, it would not matter.

So, in a sense, offense and defense had switched places...

Elsewhere.

At that moment, Xiao Yan was taking her first steps in alchemy.

Before her sat a second-tier medicine cauldron Xiao Zhan had purchased from the Mittel Auction House. The storage ring on her hand also held medicinal herbs he had bought there "in bulk."

Not long ago, Xiao Zhan's purchases of both a medicine cauldron and medicinal herbs had led the Mittel Auction House to suspect that the Xiao Clan had either produced an alchemist or "made a connection" with one.

Of course, Xiao Zhan understood that a tall tree caught the wind.

Thus, although he had not concealed his identity when buying the medicine cauldron and other supplies, he had revealed nothing about Xiao Yan.

The Three Great Elders and the few others in the know had also tacitly kept their mouths sealed, leaving the other factions with nothing beyond speculation.

The Xiao Clan was already considered Wutan City's foremost clan. Whether an alchemist had emerged within its ranks or it had latched onto an alchemist's thigh, either would merely add flowers to an already splendid brocade.

As such, no unpleasant little incidents occurred.

Xiao Yan was now practicing the extraction of medicinal herbs under Apothecary's guidance.

This step seemed simple, but it was anything but easy.

After refining her first second-tier beast flame, Xiao Yan's cultivation technique had actually evolved, rising to yellow tier... low grade.

Yes, it was still yellow tier low grade.

It had merely gone from "three seconds" to "five seconds"... which counted as considerable progress?

Still, other cultivation techniques would not improve even if their practitioners swallowed heavenly flames. Flames could only amplify the power of Dou Techniques.

So this "tiny" change was already enough to thrill both Xiao Yan and Apothecary-the Flame Mantra really could evolve by devouring flames!

Once their excitement passed, both quickly calmed down.

After all, one had lived two lives, while the other had "died once." Neither possessed a temperament an ordinary person could match.

While waiting for her second beast flame so she could test whether the Flame Mantra could fuse different flames, Xiao Yan studied the basics of alchemy with Apothecary.

For her part, Apothecary marveled that "this girl truly has an extraordinary temperament" while teaching Xiao Yan alchemy.

At this point, the advantages... disadvantages of a yellow tier low grade cultivation technique made themselves apparent.

A yellow tier low grade cultivation technique left very little Dou Qi stored in the Dou Qi vortex. A little use exhausted it, and recovering it was exceptionally difficult, with the absorption and refinement of the world's energy proceeding at a turtle's crawl.

Truly, alchemy drained her reserves like a mountain collapsing, while recovering her energy was like drawing out silk thread by thread.

Moreover, extracting medicinal herbs was entirely a case of "the mind understood, but the hands couldn't keep up." The slightest mistake in controlling the heat could burn the herbs to ashes.

Still, every beginning was difficult. At least the future held promise.

Xiao Yan chose to exhaust her Dou Qi through alchemy before entering cultivation, ensuring that neither her alchemy nor her cultivation suffered.

Two months later, Xiao Yan's cultivation broke through to Two-Star Dou Zhe, and her alchemy was not far from first grade.

The First Elder and Second Elder returned to the Xiao Clan with a group of guards, bringing back a pink flame seed.

The flame seed was contained in a rather large, transparent jade bottle, where it gently churned, suffused with a faint peach-colored aura.

Because the jade bottle was sealed extremely well, no energy escaped from it.

To the First Elder and Second Elder, who knew little about such things, this beast flame was a bargain they had "luckily" stumbled upon.

The moment they saw it, they felt that the flame seed was not particularly violent. Its color was pretty, too, making it suitable for Xiao Yan.

The shopkeeper said it was a third-tier beast flame, and the price was reasonable, so they gritted their teeth and bought it outright.

Since they had purchased it near the Alchemist Guild, they were not worried about getting a "fake"-such as a second-tier beast flame passed off as a third-tier one.

Yet when Apothecary, hidden inside Xiao Yan's ring, saw the pink flame seed, she frowned slightly-

This kind of flame seed was called peach blossom flame, and it existed only within a rather rare fifth-tier wood-type magical beast, the Kui Mu Beast.

In other words, this was a fifth-tier beast fire.

Its nature, however, was much gentler, making it somewhat easier to refine.

With her assistance, refining this beast flame would not be difficult for Xiao Yan.

Of course, this beast flame was absolutely beyond the current Xiao Clan's means-or rather, beyond the little bit of "liquid capital" those elders had brought along.

Something was off.

"Ah..."

Apothecary soon guessed the gist of it and could not help sighing.

"What's wrong, Teacher? Is there something wrong with this beast flame?" Xiao Yan asked inwardly, holding the jade bottle.

"There's nothing wrong with the beast flame. There's something wrong with me..." Apothecary felt a pang of frustration. "I'm just a little jealous of you and want to give you a beating."

"Seriously, you're only a Dou Zhe, and she's already feeding fifth-tier beast fire straight into your mouth. Back in my day, I had to fight for my life over a scrap of resources..."

"Girl, why don't you just marry her? What are you even working so hard for? Seriously, your big sister isn't joking. That stuff isn't a problem at all..."

Xiao Yan: "???"