Chapter 32

Second Uncle Xu was deeply moved. His twenty years of mediating had not been in vain. Although his wife still disliked his nephew, the younger generation got along well.

Second Uncle Xu took his youngest daughter, who was fast asleep, from his elder daughter's arms and comforted her. "Ningyan is already out. It's over."

Xu Lingyue didn't believe him.

Second Uncle Xu tried every way he could to persuade her, but she remained skeptical and turned to her second brother.

Xu Xinnian said calmly, "It was a small matter."

Xu Lingyue believed him then.

Someone as proud as her second brother would not lie about something so important.

County Magistrate Zhu had been keeping a close watch on the aftermath of the matter. When he heard the news from a clerk, he immediately hurried over.

"How did you deal with Young Master Zhou?" County Magistrate Zhu was bewildered. The only possibility was that Young Master Zhou had given up of his own accord, but he didn't think that was likely.

"I asked my teacher for help," Xu Xinnian said.

So that's it. County Magistrate Zhu understood, but then he sensed something was amiss. The bigwigs at court all came from the Imperial Academy, and it was common knowledge that the Imperial Academy and Cloud Deer Academy were at odds.

Even if Xu Xinnian's teacher was a great scholar, Minister Sun of the Ministry of Justice couldn't have released him so readily. There was bound to be some wrangling. He would take the great scholar of Cloud Deer Academy down a peg; the matter wouldn't have been settled so easily.

"There was also Mr. Mubai," Xu Xinnian said, before adding, "And the white-robed members of the Bureau of Astronomy."

"What?!" County Magistrate Zhu was startled. His expression grew cautious, and his manner became much more respectful. "A tiger father has no dog for a son. A tiger father has no dog for a son indeed!"

"Congratulations, Lord Xu. Your son is exceptionally gifted. Not only does Cloud Deer Academy value him, he also has ties with the white-robed members of the Bureau of Astronomy. His future is limitless. To have a son like that makes me green with envy."

Second Brother knows the white-robed members of the Bureau of Astronomy? Xu Lingyue immediately looked at Xu Xinnian, a powerful sense of security welling up in her heart.

An ordinary woman obeyed her father at home and her husband after marriage-reflecting the two people she relied on before and after she wed.

At home, her father was someone she could rely on, and so was her elder brother.

Xu Xinnian shook his head. "I didn't ask Mr. Mubai. He was someone my elder brother knew. I don't know the white-robed members of the Bureau of Astronomy either. Elder Brother brought them in himself too."

When had Xu Ningyan met the great scholar Li Mubai of Cloud Deer Academy? Perhaps Xu Xinnian had introduced them. But how had the white-robed members of the Bureau of Astronomy come to know a mere clerk like him?

County Magistrate Zhu stood there stunned, his mind filled with the words impossible.

Xu Ningyan had made a living under him for some years. He had always been a quiet, inconspicuous nobody. His relations with his colleagues weren't bad, but neither were they close enough to bare their hearts to one another.

He had no great talents, except that he could fight.

Recently, however, he had suddenly become both quick-witted and slick, calling Head Constable Wang his brother and drinking and laughing with his colleagues.

But no matter what, he shouldn't have been able to earn a great scholar's appreciation and the friendship of the Bureau of Astronomy's white-robed members.

If that's the case, Xu Ningyan's standing is no longer what it was. Even I will have to treat him more courteously. When he reports for duty tomorrow, I'll sound him out and see what's really going on, County Magistrate Zhu thought.

Xu Lingyue opened her big, doll-like eyes wide, scarcely able to believe it.

But clever as she was, she immediately made a connection. Was it that poem? The farewell poem Elder Brother had written for Second Brother had earned the great scholar's appreciation, and that was why he had agreed to help mediate.

But how had the immortals of the Bureau of Astronomy come to know Elder Brother? Elder Brother really was becoming more and more mysterious.

Xu Qi'an followed Song Qing down a corridor. Beams of light shone through openings in the wall to their right, illuminating the passage.

The Star-Gazing Tower had no windows, and Xu Qi'an regretted that he couldn't gaze at the distant scenery.

Before long, they came to a secret chamber. Song Qing took out a key, unlocked the door, and lit the candles inside.

All sorts of strange objects were arranged in the chamber. Some were weapons and crossbows, while others were completely unrecognizable.

Xu Qi'an looked through them one by one as though browsing a clothing shop, until something suddenly gave him a fright.

"What is this?"

It was a huge glass jar filled with clear water. A strange creature was immersed inside. It looked like a cat, but its body was covered in wood grain, and there were even burls on its belly.

Stranger still, it was alive. The protruding burls rose and fell slightly, like hearts.

"This was a great experiment," Song Qing said solemnly. "It was originally a cat. I tried to fuse it with a tree, giving it the ability to regenerate severed limbs. In fact, I came close to succeeding. Even if you cut off its head, it would grow back within three days. Its only weakness is its heart."

"But I also failed, because it turned completely into wood. It can't move or think, and can only be kept in water."

Are you a fucking devil? The way Xu Qi'an looked at him changed.

"What do you think of my idea?" Song Qing asked tentatively. Seeing that something was wrong with Xu Qi'an's expression, he frowned, somewhat disappointed.

"You think there's a problem with it too?"

Xu Qi'an kept his expression unchanged and shook his head. "I just think you've gone in the wrong direction. I've considered this aspect of Alchemy too, but I call it hybridization."

Hybridization. Song Qing rolled the word over in his mind, his eyes growing brighter and brighter.

"We can start small, by crossbreeding creatures of the same kind. For example, we could cross two different breeds of cats and have them produce a completely new species," Xu Qi'an said.

"Produce a different species? What kind of species would they produce?" Song Qing pressed eagerly.

"I don't know. Maybe it would produce a new and superior breed, or maybe the opposite," Xu Qi'an said. "But that's precisely the charm of Alchemy, don't you think?"

"You just said Alchemy! You just said Alchemy!" Song Qing became excited at once.

"What's wrong?" Xu Qi'an's heart sank. He suspected he had said something wrong.

"I believe Alchemy isn't limited to inanimate objects. I think living creatures fall within its domain too. That's why I changed this cat, but Teacher disagreed. He said life wasn't within the domain of Alchemy. He even confined me for a long time over it."

Well done, Lord Chief! Xu Qi'an kept a straight face and said, "Whether it is or not, time will tell."

After a moment's thought, he continued, "If you want to refute Lord Chief without being confined, I have a suggestion."

"Go on." Song Qing already regarded Xu Qi'an as a kindred spirit.

"You could start with plants," Xu Qi'an said. "Plants are alive too, but the issue is much less serious. I read about a kind of Alchemy in an ancient text that happens to coincide with your idea."

He said no more.

"Come on, tell me!" Song Qing felt as though claws were raking at his heart and liver. Both eyes above his puffy bags were wide and round.

"The things you have here are quite nice, Senior Brother Song," Xu Qi'an hinted. "The unchanging principle of Alchemy."

"I understand. I can give you three gifts. Given your current level in the Essence Refining Realm, I think this item suits you." Song Qing immediately understood what Xu Qi'an meant. He had no objection to the principle of equivalent exchange.

He even admired it.

"The material for this crossbow was something I refined by chance. It's harder and tougher than ordinary iron, but because it's difficult to refine, it can't be mass-produced. The string is made from a blend of silk from a Six-Eyed Venomous Spider and a Seven-Colored Silkworm of the Southern Frontier. In a sneak attack, it can pierce the protective True Qi of a Qi Refining Realm martial artist, excluding those at the peak of the Qi Refining Realm."

"Its most valuable feature is the formation engraved on this military crossbow. The formation amplifies the power of its bolts, making them a threat to Spirit Refining Realm experts. But it can only be used three times, after which the formation will dissipate."

Xu Qi'an's heart stirred. "Is this a Law Artifact?"