ETR | Chapter 26

Ji Yun Pavilion of Wangtian Immortal Sect had a good relationship with the main branch of the Chamber of Commerce in the First Heaven, so Ning Ling and the others had no reason to keep a low profile. They were here precisely to show themselves off.

Lian Sheng had pretty good talent in alchemy, and she had already agreed to collaborate with the Chamber of Commerce here. A few days later, she’d be attending the alchemist competition in the Thirteenth Heaven, which even had a performance segment—she’d refine pills live, and the pills would be auctioned off by the Chamber.

In exchange, the info-rich Chamber of Commerce would help them search for the Dijun and the legendary Empress.

She bit her lip and asked, “So if we don’t have the Prismatic Snake King’s hide anymore, what do we do?”

Ning Ling wasn’t worried at all. There were plenty of prismatic snakes in this forest—they’d run into another eventually. “You two go back first. I’ll go find you after I finish hunting.”

Lian Sheng didn’t dare disobey his orders, so she prepared to leave with her brother. Lian Yan was more than capable of getting her out of the forest safely. But just as the two were about to set off, Ning Ling called them back.

“Wait,” he bent down and picked up a smashed wild fruit from the ground. “Do you know what kind of wild fruit this is?”

Lian Yan looked confused. That fruit didn’t carry even a speck of spiritual power. He didn’t get what the fuss was about—maybe it just tasted good or something.

“I think I saw some on the way here,” he pointed in a direction, “on the cliff. It’s hard to pick.”

Ning Ling found another fruit that was slightly more intact and held it up for comparison. When he looked up again, he saw the Lian siblings staring at him with these complicated, hard-to-describe expressions. He frowned, and his tone turned colder, “Still not leaving?”

The two quickly slunk away.

When Xiao Wan returned home, Xiao Xueman had already reheated the food—for the second time.

What he didn’t expect was for his son to come back in such a mess. His protective suit was torn to shreds, and the medicinal salve on his face had completely worn off. Xiao Wan’s hair grew fast; he had just had it cut not long ago, but now it reached his shoulders again. He came back with his hair all loose, bangs messy, making his pale little face seem nearly translucent. His green eyes looked like they were soaked in water.

No matter what kind of mood he was in, once he saw Daddy, Xiao Wan’s temper just softened right up. He didn’t care if he was all grimy—he basically dove straight into Xiao Xueman’s arms.

“Daddy, hug.”

Xiao Xueman didn’t mind him being dirty and scooped him up right away, asking, “Did Xiao Wan get bullied outside?”

Xiao Wan sniffled and first handed over his bundle. Xiao Xueman peeked inside and immediately noticed the oversized Prismatic Snake gallbladder—it stood out.

“Was it a tough spiritual beast you ran into?” Xiao Xueman guessed. “Did you get hurt?”

Xiao Wan shook his head. Though he looked like a disaster, he hadn’t really gotten injured.

Since he wasn’t hurt, then it wasn’t a big deal. Xiao Xueman put him in the bath, and once he came out, he was back to being a clean little cub.

While eating, Xiao Wan told him all about the stuff that happened in the forest. When he got to the part where he dropped the wild fruit, he still sounded a little wronged.

“It fell… I worked so hard to pick it,” he poked the food on his plate with his chopsticks, sulking, “What’s wrong with those people?”

Xiao Xueman glanced over and noticed there were still a few wild fruits left in the backpack. He carefully picked them out, tried one, and smiled, “Pretty sweet. Tastes better than the ones sold in the markets. I’ve had a bite, so it’s not a total loss.”

That made Xiao Wan feel better. He comforted himself too—he was going back into the forest tomorrow anyway, worst case, he’d just pick more.

He let the fruit thing go, but the people he met… those weren’t ordinary. Xiao Wan didn’t forget to give a serious reminder, “But I really don’t know what’s up with those people. The Thirteenth Heaven shouldn’t have people that talented, especially not three of them at once. They must be from the Upper Realm. Daddy, Uncle Shen, you both be careful.”

Xiao Xueman patted his head, showing he understood.

The next two days went pretty smoothly. Xiao Wan gathered all the materials listed on his sheet. He was ready to start learning alchemy from Xiao Xueman.

Alchemists and artifact refiners—also known as spiritual alchemists and spirit instrument masters—were graded in a super straightforward way. It was one-to-one with the star level of the pills or instruments they could craft. If someone could refine a highest-level spirit pill that matched their skill cap, then they were that star level of an alchemist.

There were associations for alchemists and refiners. They’d refine items on-site for verification, and if successful, they’d get an official star rank certificate. Since these professions required natural talent, spiritual alchemists and refiners held much higher status than average spirit cultivators. Outstanding ones were treated like precious treasures in their sects.

Shen Guan had just returned from outside and brought them some fresh news.

“It’s lively out there right now. The alchemist competition from the Lower Realm is being held in town today,” he said. “This year’s a bit special—they invited a genius alchemist from Wangtian Immortal Sect to join. Eleven years old, Four-Star Alchemist. Probably the same people Xiao Wan ran into in the forest.”

People from Wangtian Immortal Sect wouldn’t come here just for charity or to build hype. Shen Guan’s first thought was naturally Xiao Xueman.

Xiao Xueman didn’t seem fazed. He laid out all the materials one by one, then turned to Xiao Wan and said, “Don’t learn from them. That competition’s not worth watching. Their path doesn’t suit you.”

Xiao Wan always trusted whatever his daddy said. He nodded obediently and sat in front of Xiao Xueman.

Although alchemist talent was innate, rising above others also meant working harder than everyone else. Even a beginner’s book was as thick as someone’s head. And that’s not even counting how many materials you’d waste during actual practice.

Xiao Wan was a little nervous. Xiao Xueman glanced at him and said, “First off, forget everything you read in those books about alchemy.”

Xiao Wan looked confused.

“Alchemy’s not that complicated,” Xiao Xueman held his hands, and only the two of them could hear what he said next, “You know why most alchemists are wood-type? Because wood-type has a natural affinity with nature. But Xiao Wan, we don’t need nature’s affinity. We are nature.”

Right on cue, his hands lit up with a green glow—wood-type spiritual power.

Xiao Xueman continued, “The core of alchemy is actually really simple. You extract the useful parts from the materials, combine them—that’s your spirit pill. Once you understand one method, you understand them all. Xiao Wan, remember the time your dual-type spiritual power suddenly went out of control? And when you were guiding your spirit power through your body? The principles are the same: refinement, guidance, and integration.”

Shen Guan could understand the theory—but he couldn’t do it.

There was definitely something unique about Xiao Xueman’s bloodline. He wasn’t an ordinary wood-type practitioner. Shen Guan had always had his suspicions but never voiced them.

Xiao Xueman wasn’t big on lengthy explanations. He preferred teaching hands-on.

And Xiao Wan was lucky—because he was his own kid, he was the only one who could feel Xiao Xueman’s spiritual power so clearly.

The first two tries failed. But on the third attempt, Xiao Wan successfully refined a One-Star spirit pill—an entry-level Qi-Gathering Pill that healed wounds and quickly replenished spiritual power.

Shen Guan: “…”

He had nothing to say. Just respect.

Xiao Wan had started learning that very morning. No prior foundation.

Usually, beginners had to start with zero-star pills. Only after tons of practice could they attempt a One-Star pill. That very first pill was a major hurdle. Going from nothing to something—failing hundreds of times was totally normal. If someone could succeed within twenty tries, they were already considered a once-in-a-century genius.

Xiao Wan? He only failed twice.

Xiao Xueman didn’t find anything strange about that. He didn’t have Xiao Wan jump into Two-Star pills right away—he told him to practice until he could refine One-Star pills with ease before moving up.

Once he started learning alchemy, Xiao Wan’s daily schedule became super organized. He got up early and meditated for an hour, facing the morning’s purple energy while skimming books. Then breakfast. After that, he’d head into the forest to gather materials and train his combat skills. Afternoons were for cultivation, and evenings were for pill refining.

Watching Xiao Wan stick to it so seriously, Shen Guan couldn’t help but overthink things a bit. He even mentioned to Xiao Xueman, “The Thirteenth Heaven doesn’t have spiritual power density or resources like the Upper Realm. Are we holding Xiao Wan back like this?”

Xiao Xueman thought for a moment and replied, “Don’t worry. It’s not really affecting his cultivation. His current pace is just right—no need to rush.”

Xiao Wan’s alchemy was fully self-sufficient. Apart from his initial attempts at Qi-Gathering Pills, he started experimenting with other pills. His success rate kept climbing. After nearly a month, he had at least a hundred One-Star pills of all sorts in his room. That was his total yield.

He planned to sell them. One-Star pills usually sold for 1 to 5 spiritual crystals, depending on type and quality. Xiao Wan’s stash could easily fetch 200 spiritual crystals. This was his first time earning that much all on his own. The scholarship from his academy was nothing in comparison.

Time to buy something for Daddy!

He turned around and sold the whole batch to the Chamber of Commerce. While the quantity was large, One-Star pills were common in the Thirteenth Heaven. Everyone could tell this was the work of a newbie alchemist in training—nothing to get too excited about.

Recently, Xiao Wan had also been picking wild fruits from the forest to process into candied treats for a local shop. After marinating for a while, the owner would give him a huge jar to take home. Today was the pick-up day. Xiao Wan was carrying the jar, money tucked in his coat, humming happily.

But after only a few steps, his mood took a nosedive.

Someone blocked his path.

It was that mist-type guy from the forest—the one who was a full head taller than him. Xiao Wan had even applied medicine to his face again today, but this guy had seen his face in two different states already. It wasn’t surprising that he recognized him.

“What do you want?” Xiao Wan took a step back with his jar, “It’s been a while—still want to settle a score?”

The other guy smiled and said, “Not here to settle anything. About last time, I’m here to apologize on behalf of Lian Sheng. She was wrong. I stopped you today just to say—I’m Ning Ling. Nice to meet you?”

His attitude was polite, but Xiao Wan’s guard only went higher.

He paused, then asked bluntly, “You guys are from the First Heaven, right?”

Ning Ling didn’t hide it. He nodded and introduced himself, “We’re from Wangtian Immortal Sect.”

Xiao Wan thought, I knew it.

He still remembered meeting Wang Tian Dijun years ago—that memory was unforgettable.

This legendary top sect kept sending people down to the Lower Realm. Could it really be to drag Daddy back?

Xiao Wan looked just like his daddy. This guy had seen his face, but didn’t seem to recognize him. If they really came to capture someone, there was no need to be so roundabout about it.

As it turned out, Ning Ling actually had no clue what the legendary Empress looked like. Their sect had strict orders not to speak of it—one careless word could piss off the Dijun.

More than a hundred years had passed. The new generation had never seen Xiao Xueman. Even many elders in the sect hadn’t seen his face. Any recorded images were probably taken by the Dijun himself.

People always said the Empress back then was super lowkey, only interacting with the inner circle. Those elders had either become the current Pavilion Masters or long-standing Elders—and they kept their mouths shut.

Not a word, not even a hint. When they sent them down, the higher-ups made it clear: don’t meddle in anything related to the Empress.

But the more forbidden something is, the faster rumors spread.

Truth be told, Ning Ling came here partly for that reason. It was his personal curiosity. Everyone said the Empress had resurfaced—this mythical figure who had driven even the Dijun half-mad with longing for over a century. Who wouldn’t be curious?

But after all this time in the Thirteenth Heaven, he hadn’t seen the Dijun or Empress. Instead, he ran into someone… very special.

Ning Ling had seen most of the same-aged talents being groomed by the top sects of the First Heaven and Second Heaven. That kid wasn’t from the Upper Realm.

He was born and raised in the Lower Realm, looked even younger than them, yet had such frightening ability. And not to mention, that one glimpse—that fleeting moment—had been burned into Ning Ling’s mind ever since.