Apothecary

Biodata

Power Progression

Background / History

Life Before the Black Ring

Apothecary obtained the Flame Mantra when her cultivation was already advanced. Because practicing it required abandoning her existing cultivation—and its ability to evolve remained unproven—she never cultivated it herself 19.

She had spent time in the Central Plains and witnessed young geniuses with unusually powerful souls. By the time she meets Xiao Yan, she has lost her physical body and endured a prolonged existence inside the Black Ring. She withholds the details of her origins 8 9 46.

Taking Xiao Yan as a Disciple

Apothecary absorbed Xiao Yan’s Dou Qi for three years and promised compensation. Xiao Yan accepted her as a teacher after learning that she could become an alchemist 8 43.

Although Apothecary had already awakened and observed Xiao Yan’s unguarded behavior, she initially withheld spare techniques while continuing her assessment. Her caution is associated with an earlier painful experience, whose details are not explained in these passages 9.

She rebuilt Xiao Yan’s cultivation through medicinal baths, foundation-strengthening pills, and physical conditioning. Once Xiao Yan reached Dou Zhe, she offered a choice between an Earth Tier Low Grade fire-attribute method and the Flame Mantra 12 14 15 19.

The Flame Mantra and Rebirth

Apothecary hoped that the Flame Mantra could eventually restore her body. Its obscure passages describe using several complementary heavenly flames to forge a body capable of housing a soul. She nevertheless explained the risks and assured Xiao Yan that their master–disciple relationship did not depend on her choice 19.

Xiao Yan chose the Flame Mantra, partly for her teacher’s sake. Its subsequent improvement after consuming a beast flame gave both of them their first practical confirmation that it could evolve 19 23.

Supporting the Xiao Clan

Apothecary permitted Xiao Yan to reveal that she had an alchemist teacher while keeping the teacher’s identity concealed. She supplied Mystic Rank high-grade cultivation methods and matching Dou Techniques, including the Thousand Astral Mantra and Astral Wind Break. She deliberately withheld Earth Tier resources because the Xiao Clan could not yet safely accommodate them 22.

Soul Recovery and Travel

Concerned that exposing herself could attract the Soul Hall, Apothecary remained hidden while Xiao Yan obtained Seven Illusory Azure Spirit Saliva from the Nalan Family. She refined and consumed it to replenish her soul power 28 36 39.

She planned to improve Xiao Yan’s practical combat skills in the Magical Beast Mountain Range, gather ingredients for an Earth Spirit Pill, and then investigate reports of heavenly flames in the Tagor Desert 41.

Developing the Poison Pill Path

After identifying Xiao Yi Xian’s Woeful Poison Body, Apothecary encouraged Xiao Yan to recruit her. Xiao Yan’s explanation of medicinal applications for poison then inspired Apothecary to formulate a new Poison Pill Path, with Xiao Yi Xian as its prospective practitioner 41 44 45.

Xiao Yan’s unusual knowledge also prompted Apothecary to investigate whether she had been possessed. She examined Xiao Yan’s soul, found no evidence of possession, and concluded that her disciple’s originality was a genuine talent 45 46.

Appearance

• Appears as a woman with the face of someone around thirty, despite being considerably older 12.
• Manifests as a floating soul and can emerge from or retreat into the Black Ring 10 39.
• Retains expressive gestures and facial reactions, including raised eyebrows, mischievous grins, and softened expressions toward Xiao Yan 12 19 45.

Personality

Apothecary is teasing, proud, and young at heart. She enjoys trading insults with Xiao Yan, insists that “big sister” sounds better than “Teacher,” and jokes about her disciple winning over Xun’er. Conversation helps restore a feeling of humanity after her long isolation inside the ring 9 12 24 27 38.

Her irreverence does not prevent careful judgment. She worries that encouraging the Flame Mantra could squander Xiao Yan’s talent, presents the safer alternative honestly, and praises her disciple for refusing to absorb more power than her body can safely handle 10 19 35.

She is protective without wanting Xiao Yan to become dependent on her. During training journeys, she expects her disciple to solve problems independently and reserves intervention for necessity or life-threatening danger 26 47.

Apothecary also accepts lessons from her disciple. Xiao Yan’s unconventional solutions repeatedly challenge her established thinking, culminating in an alchemical breakthrough. Her maternal concern appears when she lets Xiao Yan sleep, puts her to bed, and maintains watch through a thread of awareness 39 45 46.

Abilities & Skills

Alchemy

Apothecary possesses exceptional refining skill, although her formal rank remains undisclosed 8 22.

• Cauldronless refinement: Processes herbs and a magic core directly in her palm, neutralizing the core’s violent energy to produce jade-green medicinal liquid 12.
• Pill patterns: Hand-refines a first-tier pill bearing a pill pattern 14.
• Foundation-building formulas: Possesses a first- through fifth-grade pill series corresponding to Dou Zhe through Dou Wang. Its benefits require repeated use and unusually large quantities of ingredients 13.
• Teaching: Slows demonstrations so Xiao Yan can observe extraction and transformation through her soul perception 12.
• Resource recovery: Extracts unused medicinal essence from bathwater for reuse rather than discarding it 46.

Bone Spirit Cold Flame

Apothecary possesses the eleventh-ranked heavenly flame, the Bone Spirit Cold Flame 24.

• Uses its pale-white fire for alchemy and processing soul-restoring medicine 12 39.
• Can evaporate bathwater while preserving the remaining medicinal essence 46.
• Cannot safely separate a child flame in her current soul state without backlash. Even a tiny wisp would be fatal for Xiao Yan at her early Dou Zhe level 22.
• Detects its fear in response to the aura of the more powerful heavenly flame carried by Xun’er 24.

Soul Perception and Manipulation

Her soul abilities greatly exceed Xiao Yan’s current capabilities 20 47.

• Detects a concealed Dark Attribute Dou Emperor monitoring or following Xiao Yan 20 28.
• Can survey the whole of Qingshan Town with her current soul perception 47.
• Communicates directly within Xiao Yan’s mind 9 38.
• Induces sleep, enters Xiao Yan’s body, and examines her soul for signs of possession 45 46.
• Projects pressure reaching approximately Dou Emperor level without using her full strength 40.
• Avoids openly unleashing her power because doing so could draw the Soul Hall’s attention 28.

Cultivation Instruction and Body Tempering

Her training emphasizes a strong foundation rather than the fastest possible increase in cultivation 9 16 35.

• Combines medicinal baths with physical exhaustion to improve absorption of medicinal power 14.
• Uses carefully controlled lashes to strengthen Xiao Yan’s physique, expend Dou Qi, and stimulate dormant medicinal power 15.
• Guides Xiao Yan’s alchemy, beast-flame refinement, and Eight Extremes Collapse training 22 26 32.
• Advises rest and stable cultivation after rapid advancement 35.
• Treats unfamiliar situations as tests of Xiao Yan’s independent judgment 47.

Woeful Poison Body and Poison Pill Research

Apothecary recognizes the Woeful Poison Body and understands both its rapid poison-driven growth and its potentially fatal backlash 44.

• Poison Pill Method: Explains a control method requiring three heavenly flames, Bodhi Body-Transforming Saliva, and a seventh-rank Heavenly Poison Scorpion Dragon Beast magic core 44.
• Soul-transfer fallback: Proposes removing Xiao Yi Xian’s soul before an uncontrolled eruption and placing it in a new body. This remains a proposed solution, not a completed procedure 44.
• New Poison Pill Path: Develops a preliminary system after Xiao Yan discusses dosage-dependent medicinal uses of venom. It still requires practical verification 45.
• Knowledge limits: Her examination does not reveal Xiao Yan’s reincarnation; that possibility lies outside her current understanding 46.

Equipment / Weapons / Items

• Black Ring / Storage Ring — Her dwelling and repository for scrolls and supplies; spacious enough to hold Xiao Yan’s medicinal bath tub 9 16 22.
• Training whip — Used for controlled body tempering and joking threats of additional training 15 38.
• Flame Mantra scroll — The black scroll passed to Xiao Yan as her chosen cultivation method 19.
• Earth Tier Low Grade fire-attribute method — The red scroll offered as a safer alternative to the Flame Mantra 19.
• Cultivation methods, Dou Techniques, and pill formulas — Includes resources far beyond the Xiao Clan’s original holdings; she considers many Mystic Rank items surplus 8 13 22.

Relationships

• Xiao Yan — Disciple and principal companion. Their constant banter accompanies genuine trust, protective care, and reciprocal learning. Xiao Yan chooses the Flame Mantra partly to help restore her body 9 19 45 46.
• Gu Xun’er — Her disciple’s close friend and an important source of protection. Apothecary recognizes the care behind Xun’er’s flame gifts and becomes more comfortable with Xiao Yan’s public activities after detecting her escort 24 28.
• Xiao Yi Xian — Prospective grand-disciple and intended practitioner of the Poison Pill Path. Apothecary regards her as someone under their protection 45 47.
• Xiao Clan — Indirect beneficiary of her resources and teaching. She supports its development through Xiao Yan while preserving her own anonymity 22.
• Gu He — Benchmark she dismisses: she claims she would not accept the sixth-rank “Pill King” even as a pill boy 8.
• Soul Hall — A threat influencing her secrecy and contingency plans. She considers eventual refuge at the Pill Tower if exposure becomes dangerous 28 36.

Notable Quotes

“Just remember that whatever you choose, you are my disciple. I won't blame you for it.” 19

“Find her yourself. You ask me about everything—what will you do without me someday?” 47

“Tsk, I've picked up a treasure...” 46

Trivia

• The author explicitly describes Apothecary as raising Xiao Yan like a daughter and rules out a romantic master–disciple relationship in the main story 33.
• An authorial aside identifies her as this story’s female reinterpretation of Yao Lao 43.
• She claims to take “beauty sleep” despite being a soul; Xiao Yan suspects she is sometimes merely observing silently 28.