Zi Yun could accept that pace. She hurriedly shook Tang Yan's arm and said, "Then refine the pills for me."
"Beg me. If you beg, I'll give them to you," Tang Yan teased.
"Then don't! Who cares? I'd never beg anyone!" Zi Yun glared at Tang Yan with her almond-shaped eyes, stamped her little foot in anger, and turned to head into her room.
Watching Zi Yun storm away, Tang Yan couldn't help marveling at the girl's fiery temper.
Of course, he had only been teasing her. When he had followed her out of the city that day, Bai Qing had nearly killed him. Had Zi Yun not been kind enough to save him, he would have long since descended to the Yellow Springs.
Though Tang Yan had never spoken of that tremendous debt, he had always kept it firmly in mind. Whenever he had time, he would naturally help her regain her strength.
Now that he had entered the yellow tier, his need for pills had grown, and First Spirit Pills could no longer fully satisfy his appetite.
Entering his room, Tang Yan took out paper and a brush, listed all the medicinal ingredients he needed in detail, and sent Xiao Cui out to buy them. A careful count revealed a staggering seventy-six ingredients.
Counting the days, he realized the seventh month was nearly over. In just over ten days, it would be Mid-Autumn.
He wondered how his brothers from his previous life were doing now.
Mid-Autumn? Inspiration flashed through Tang Yan's mind. If he remembered correctly, the Mid-Autumn Gathering was held on Bright Moon Lake every year.
The Tang Family had always been suppressed and pushed aside by the other three great lineages in Cloud City. Those three would certainly not let this Mid-Autumn Gathering pass without seizing the opportunity.
He was the only member of the Tang Family's younger generation in the direct line. If he did not compete, the entire city would spread rumors that the Tang Family's young master was useless, that the family had no worthy successor, and that its future looked bleak.
If that happened, fewer and fewer factions would be willing to attach themselves to the Tang Family.
But if he competed, whether in the literary contest or the martial competition, others would target him, and he might even face danger at every turn.
In the past, the Tang Family had endured humiliation every year. But this year... a cold smile curled Tang Yan's lips.
Still, Tang Yan was not blindly arrogant. He knew there was a considerable gap between himself and the other lineages' descendants. Take Liu Zhi of the Liu Family, for example. According to the scouts' reports, he had already reached the eighth grade of the yellow tier. His true strength, however, might well have entered the ninth grade.
Then there were Wu Feiming and Qin Jiushan, the foremost members of the younger generation in the Wu Family and Qin Family respectively. Both had reached the seventh grade of the yellow tier.
His own mere first-grade strength was still far too weak!
If he wanted to make a name for the Tang Family in the grand competition, he needed to prepare much more.
Inside the City Lord's Residence in Cloud City.
Lin Xiao and his wife sat facing each other over drinks.
Looking at his wife's smiling face, her veil now removed, Lin Xiao fell into a momentary daze. How many years had it been since she had smiled so radiantly?
"My husband, you've spent so much effort over the years trying to heal the scar on my face. You've had a hard time of it," Madam Lin said gently.
"We've been married for so long. There's no need to stand on ceremony. That scar left me burdened with guilt for years. It's all thanks to that boy from the Tang Family," Lin Xiao said with a sigh.
"My birthday is in two days. Let's invite that boy over especially, and thank him properly," Madam Lin suggested.
"Mm. All the lineages in Cloud City will come to celebrate your birthday. Tang Yan gave us the Scarless Pill simply because he wanted the City Lord's Residence to owe him a favor. If we thank him publicly then, it will also intimidate the other three great lineages and keep them from dealing the Tang Family a vicious blow lightly. That will fulfill Tang Yan's aim to some extent and count as repaying the favor." Lin Xiao's eyes were particularly deep as he precisely analyzed Tang Yan's intentions in offering the pill.
"That sounds excellent. The City Lord's Residence rarely owes favors. Repaying this one early will settle the ties it created. As long as the disputes between the lineages don't go too far, we should avoid getting too involved," Madam Lin agreed with a nod.
"That boy Tang Yan strikes me as anything but simple. Every time I recall our last conversation, I feel that he secured his ground at every step, leading people to accept his approach without even realizing it.
"I originally thought the Tang Family would no longer have a place among Cloud City's younger generation. But starting this year, they should be stepping onto the stage too." Lin Xiao sipped his tea and cast a long look in the direction of the Tang Family.
Inside the Pill Room, Tang Yan deftly tossed medicinal ingredients into the Pill Cauldron one after another.
This time, Tang Yan was refining High Spirit Pills. Built upon the foundation of the First Spirit Pill, this pill tripled the spiritual energy it contained. In terms of refining difficulty, it qualified as second tier low grade.
After a night of refining, Tang Yan had finally stockpiled a good number of High Spirit Pills, enough for his immediate needs.
After a short rest, Tang Yan began refining the pills that would restore Zi Yun's strength.
Only after all the pills were ready did Tang Yan yawn and leave the Pill Room.
When he pushed open the door, Tang Yan froze.
The morning sunlight was brilliant and full of vitality. Dressed entirely in white, Zi Yun stood in the courtyard, looking graceful and pure in the dawn's glow. The beautiful sight gave even Tang Yan's icebound heart a gentle stir.
Gathering his thoughts, Tang Yan smiled. "Silly girl, why are you up so early?"
Zi Yun turned and stared coldly at Tang Yan, enunciating every word. "Call me silly girl one more time, and once I regain my strength, I'll beat your head into a pig's head. Just try me!"
"Then here's your chance to beat me into a pig's head. These are Qi-Restoring Pills. Take one every three days. How quickly you recover will depend on you-forty days at the shortest, three months at the longest." Smiling, Tang Yan handed over two porcelain bottles. "These are First Spirit Pills. Their medicinal properties are mild, so they're very suitable for your current condition."
Zi Yun was stunned. She had assumed Tang Yan had long since forgotten about the pills, or that he simply didn't know how to refine them at all. She had been prepared to stay with the Tang Family for a while, then write to her lineage and ask them to bring her home. She had never expected him to have the pills ready after just one night.
Taking the porcelain bottles, she pulled the stopper from the bottle of Qi-Restoring Pills. A pure aura of vitality poured out, filling Zi Yun's eyes with astonishment. "You can refine second-tier elixirs?"
"Don't worship me. I'm a legend," Tang Yan said with a shrug.
"Show-off!" Zi Yun rolled her eyes at Tang Yan and turned toward her room. Just as she was about to enter, she suddenly looked back and smiled at him. "Thank you."
Her ink-black hair fell over her shoulders, her eyes shone brightly, and her teeth were pearly white, her beauty radiant as the stars. In that instant, Tang Yan was struck by the breathtaking vision of "one backward glance and a smile awakening a hundred charms, leaving the powdered beauties of the six palaces without color."
This little enchantress!
Only after Zi Yun had disappeared did a laughing voice ring out. "Young Master, Young Master, don't tell me you've fallen for Sister Zi Yun?"
"Keep talking nonsense and see if I don't give you a beating!" Knowing he had lost his composure, Tang Yan called out to Xiao Cui, "Hurry up and get my breakfast ready!"
"Yes, Young Master. Heehee..." Xiao Cui knew her young master's temper very well. Knowing Tang Yan was not angry, she skipped off to prepare breakfast.
Two days flew by. With the help of the High Spirit Pills, Tang Yan advanced to the second grade of the yellow tier.
That astonishing speed left Zi Yun, who had been keeping an eye on Tang Yan, quite surprised. She remembered that just two days earlier, he had shown no fluctuations indicating an imminent breakthrough.
Zi Yun's recovery was also progressing very well. Her dantian could already produce true qi, which gave her renewed confidence in regaining her strength.
That day, just as Tang Yan was about to continue cultivating, Old Master Tang came to his courtyard again.
"Boy, tell me what's going on!" Old Master Tang demanded the moment he saw Tang Yan.
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