Could she really be a genius?

"...She doesn't seem to have been possessed."

Apothecary raised her hand and gently poked Xiao Yan's soul, examining it carefully.

Apart from being slightly stronger than those of her peers, Xiao Yan's soul showed nothing unusual.

In fact, back in the Central Plains, Apothecary had seen geniuses whose souls were far stronger than those of others their age.

So this little "anomaly" proved nothing.

After carefully examining Xiao Yan's soul, Apothecary finally reached a conclusion-Xiao Yan had not been possessed.

And since the Dou Qi Continent had no concept of "reincarnation," Apothecary would never suspect that Xiao Yan "hadn't drunk Meng Po Soup."

No one knew how many years had passed since a Dou Di last appeared, so the perspective of the continent's "natives" had its own "limitations."

Things like "higher planes" and "extraterritorial heavenly demons" also fell outside Apothecary's knowledge.

-At least, she wouldn't think along those lines for now.

On the present-day Dou Qi Continent, possession was the only, rather "monotonous," way to swap out the person inside.

"How bizarre. Just how is this girl's brain put together...?"

Having "come up empty-handed," Apothecary floated out of Xiao Yan's body. "Forget it. There shouldn't be anything wrong with this girl. I must have been overthinking things-"

"Could she really be a genius?"

Alchemists could actually be considered a "higher-tier" profession than physicians. After all, one of the most important functions of pills was to cure illnesses and save lives.

And Xiao Yan's talent for thinking about "pills" and "medicine" was downright terrifying.

The "Poison Pill Method" was practically an entirely new branch of the pill arts, perhaps even one that could claim "half their realm"!

Although Xiao Yan had only supplied an "idea," that alone was extraordinary!

Strictly speaking, she could count as Apothecary's own "mentor," or even... the future "founding patriarch" of the Poison Pill Method!

Sure enough, a brain was a wonderful thing, and when it came to "innovations in Alchemy," Apothecary admitted that hers wasn't as useful as Xiao Yan's.

"Tsk, I've picked up a treasure..."

Apothecary looked at Xiao Yan, who was floating "without a care" in the bathtub (the medicinal bathwater was relatively dense). She was just about to wake her when she paused.

Xiao Yan: "Hoo-"

"...Never mind. Let the girl get a good night's sleep."

After the Xiao Clan's Coming-of-Age Ceremony, once she had a certain foundation in cultivation, Xiao Yan had gradually begun replacing sleep with seated meditation.

The energy of heaven and earth truly was the best replenishment. After cultivating all night, a Dou Shi wouldn't feel tired the next day, but refreshed and clearheaded instead.

Still, for almost everyone, deep sleep was the best way to relax.

Besides, Xiao Yan was ultimately just a teenage girl.

Although she was in the golden period of cultivation, when people would say, "How can you sleep at your age?" she was still young. One day wouldn't make much difference.

Work and rest had to go hand in hand.

And so, in a rare display, Apothecary showed her "maternal" and "gentle" side.

She fished the deeply "sleeping" Xiao Yan out of the medicinal bath and laid her on the bed nearby.

The bedding had all come from Xiao Yan's Storage Ring. After all, the things in an "inn" simply weren't as comfortable as her own.

A few basic daily necessities didn't actually take up much room-she hadn't even brought her wardrobe!

Apothecary took a quilt from Xiao Yan's Storage Ring, covered her pale, bare bottom, and gave it a pat while she was at it.

Mm, the feel of the impact was as satisfying as ever.

"Mm..."

Xiao Yan noticed nothing and continued sleeping with a peaceful expression.

Apothecary floated over to the other side to deal with Xiao Yan's "bathwater."

Quite a bit of energy remained unabsorbed in the medicinal liquid used for the bath. Simply wasting it would be a shame.

Although they weren't "short of money" now, this tub of water cost at least ten thousand gold coins-the medicinal herbs used for Xiao Yan's bath were all top quality.

Even if they had money, they couldn't squander it like that, could they?

With a beckoning motion of her right hand, Apothecary drew up the medicinal liquid, then used the Bone Spirit Cold Flame to evaporate its water, extracting and preserving the essence within.

Although doing this was a little wasteful... ahem, it wasn't as if she couldn't simply "freeze it," but that would be too bulky and take up too much space. It wasn't convenient.

With it prepared this way, they could simply add some water next time and keep soaking.

Xiao Yan was the one using it anyway. Surely she wouldn't turn her nose up at herself?

Once she had finished making the "tea bag" and tucked it into Xiao Yan's Storage Ring, Apothecary floated back into her own ring, leaving a thread of her awareness to watch the outside world.

The night passed uneventfully.

The next morning, Xiao Yan groggily opened her eyes.

"Mm..."

Hugging the quilt, Xiao Yan surveyed the room's furnishings before belatedly realizing something.

Had she... blacked out last night?

What had happened?

"Teacher? How did I fall asleep?"

"Nothing happened. I wanted you to get a good night's sleep before your training began-once you enter the Magical Beast Mountain Range, even finding somewhere to sleep peacefully will be difficult."

Apothecary "glossed over the important part," avoiding any mention of entering her body the previous night.

Xiao Yan: "..."

Wait, that sounds perfectly reasonable, but why does it feel so strange?

After all, she vaguely remembered suddenly "falling asleep" while cultivating in the medicinal bath.

...Something isn't quite right.

Still, Xiao Yan examined her internal condition and found nothing wrong. Presumably, Apothecary wouldn't harm her, so she didn't dwell on it.

After all, Apothecary was old in body but young at... ahem, beautiful and still possessed a "childlike heart." This wasn't the first or second time she had "teased" Xiao Yan.

She was used to it by now. It wasn't anything bad, anyway.

"My lord, how did you sleep last night?"

The moment Xiao Yan stepped out of the guest room, Mr. Yao approached her with a smile and a deferentially bent back.

"Well enough," Xiao Yan replied noncommittally, then asked, "Where's Xiao Yi Xian?"

"Well... you may not know this, my lord," Mr. Yao said. "Xiao Yi Xian just left with a group of mercenaries to gather herbs in the Magical Beast Mountain Range."

At those words, Xiao Yan couldn't help frowning.

What's going on? Xiao Yi Xian already "agreed" to leave with me yesterday, and now she's gone herb gathering today?

Even with a mercenary group, a herb-gathering trip into the Magical Beast Mountain Range would take at least three days there and back, possibly longer.

Yesterday, she had said she would only stay in Qingshan Town for two or three days, telling Xiao Yi Xian to hurry... ahem, to think it over before deciding.

If she hadn't added that remark back then, Xiao Yi Xian would probably already be following her now.

So Xiao Yi Xian changed her mind? Surely not?

And she left first thing in the morning?

As Xiao Yan saw it, even if Xiao Yi Xian had suddenly decided she couldn't bear to leave Qingshan Town, she wouldn't simply stand her up.

At the very least, she would tell her in person-this wasn't Xiao Yan being "ordinary yet overconfident," but the confidence her status as an Alchemist gave her.

Sensing something amiss, Xiao Yan instinctively considered several possibilities-the Myriad Medicine Pavilion certainly wouldn't want Xiao Yi Xian, its "living signboard," to leave.

They couldn't control an Alchemist like her, but that didn't necessarily mean they couldn't control Xiao Yi Xian, if she was a "soft persimmon" with no real backing.

And under normal circumstances, even if a passing Alchemist vaguely sensed something wrong upon hearing that Xiao Yi Xian had suddenly gone to gather herbs in the Magical Beast Mountain Range, they wouldn't pay it much mind-better one less problem than one more.

Once she left Qingshan Town, wouldn't Xiao Yi Xian be left for the people of the Myriad Medicine Pavilion to manipulate as they pleased?

Of course, this was only Xiao Yan's conjecture, though she felt the truth probably wasn't far off.

There was definitely something wrong with what had happened today.

Teacher, do you know about this? Xiao Yan called to Apothecary in her mind.

"Mm. You were sleeping so soundly this morning that I didn't wake you-don't worry, that little girl is fine."

Xiao Yan: "..."

Her teacher really was something else...