Fame Throughout Qingyun Sect
At this moment, Ouyang Shishi was completely stunned by Zhang Lingxiao's talent.
Eighteen years old.
A Core Disciple of Alchemy Peak.
Cultivation at the Fifth Heaven of the Spiritual Martial Realm.
And now...
A newly advanced First-Rank Alchemist capable of refining Supreme-Grade Qi Gathering Pills with an astonishing pill formation rate.
Goodness...
Even her father, the Sect Master, had never displayed such terrifying talent at Zhang Lingxiao's age.
Looking at him now, this shameless fellow didn't seem nearly as annoying as before.
In fact...
He was rather handsome.
Since ancient times, beauties admired heroes, and cultivators naturally respected the strong.
Without realizing it, Ouyang Shishi's opinion of Zhang Lingxiao had quietly begun to change.
Zhang Lingxiao, however, frowned slightly.
"Is a ninety-percent pill formation rate really that impressive?"
"What's your usual pill formation rate when refining Supreme-Grade Qi Gathering Pills?"
Originally, he had been somewhat dissatisfied.
Based on the medicinal essence contained within the Spirit Herbs, he believed they should have produced ten pills.
Instead, he had refined only nine.
Yet judging from Ouyang Shishi's reaction...
A ninety-percent pill formation rate seemed to be something extraordinary.
"Hehe..."
"Hehe..."
Ouyang Shishi laughed awkwardly.
There was no way she was going to admit that, after studying alchemy for two full years, she still couldn't refine a single Supreme-Grade Qi Gathering Pill.
That scoundrel would never let her live it down.
Seeing that she remained silent, Zhang Lingxiao didn't continue asking.
"I'm tired."
"I'm going to sleep."
After spending the entire afternoon refining pills, his Divine Sense had been heavily depleted.
He urgently needed proper rest.
Taking off his shoes, he lay down on the bed and closed his eyes.
"What about me?"
Ouyang Shishi pointed at herself.
Zhang Lingxiao opened one eye before patting the empty space beside him.
"A beautiful little maid can naturally accompany her Young Master to bed."
"Want to join me?"
"You..."
Ouyang Shishi's pretty face instantly turned scarlet.
She stomped her foot angrily, let out a huff, and stormed out of the room.
Watching her leave, Zhang Lingxiao chuckled before closing his eyes.
Soon, he fell asleep.
...
Early the next morning.
A series of gentle pecks landed on Zhang Lingxiao's forehead.
He slowly opened his eyes.
The little Black Fire Bird was standing beside his pillow, chirping nonstop.
Thanks to their master-servant contract, Zhang Lingxiao could vaguely understand its thoughts.
"You're hungry?"
He scratched his head helplessly.
"Right..."
"I almost forgot that Spirit Beasts need to eat as well."
After thinking for a moment, he took out the jade bottle containing yesterday's pills.
Pouring out a single Supreme-Grade Qi Gathering Pill, he held it before the little bird.
"Here."
"Take this as your reward for helping me refine pills yesterday."
"From now on, you'll have to work hard."
The Black Fire Bird's crimson eyes immediately lit up.
Although it was already a peak second-order Spirit Beast, the rich medicinal aura emitted by a Supreme-Grade Qi Gathering Pill was still immensely attractive.
With a cheerful chirp, it snatched the pill from Zhang Lingxiao's hand before pecking at it happily.
Watching the little fellow eat, Zhang Lingxiao gently stroked its head.
"Eat well."
"From today onward..."
"I'll call you Little Red."
The little bird chirped happily in response.
After washing up, Zhang Lingxiao walked outside.
For ordinary Qi Martial Realm cultivators, a Supreme-Grade Qi Gathering Pill was an invaluable cultivation treasure.
Taking one in moderation greatly increased cultivation speed while leaving almost no side effects.
However...
For Zhang Lingxiao, whose cultivation had already reached the Fifth Heaven of the Spiritual Martial Realm, the medicinal effect of a Qi Gathering Pill was negligible.
His special physique required far more Spiritual Qi than ordinary cultivators whenever he advanced.
Compared to consuming large quantities of First-Rank pills, it was far more worthwhile to obtain a pill formula suitable for Spiritual Martial Realm cultivators.
Those pills would truly benefit him.
As for the Qi Gathering Pills...
He planned to use them to nurture Little Red and the dormant Snow Moon Butterfly Cocoon inside his Life Ring, helping it hatch as soon as possible.
...
The cultivation methods of humans and Spirit Beasts were fundamentally different.
Spirit Beasts generally possessed little talent for alchemy.
Most served only as providers of Beast Fire.
However, they possessed one advantage humans could hardly match.
Their bodies could naturally digest and purify medicinal toxins.
In the cultivation world, there was an old saying:
Every medicine contains some poison.
The higher a medicinal pill's quality, the fewer impurities it contained and the easier it was to absorb.
Even Supreme-Grade pills still carried minute traces of pill toxins.
They were simply far purer than High-Grade pills.
Likewise, being a Second-Rank Alchemist capable of refining Second-Rank High-Grade pills did not necessarily mean one could refine a flawless First-Rank Supreme-Grade pill.
For ordinary alchemists, refining Low-, Mid-, and High-Grade pills mainly required experience and effort.
Refining a Supreme-Grade pill, however...
Demanded extraordinary talent.
During cultivation, excessive reliance on medicinal pills inevitably weakened a cultivator's foundation.
It was like constructing a towering building on unstable ground.
No matter how magnificent it appeared, it would never be as solid as one built brick by brick.
Consequently, cultivators who advanced entirely through pills were often weaker than others of the same realm.
Even so...
Countless cultivators still chose that path.
Many lacked the talent to break through naturally.
For them, medicinal pills represented their only hope.
The wealthy purchased Supreme-Grade pills to minimize the damage.
Unfortunately...
Throughout the Nine Provinces, alchemists capable of refining Supreme-Grade pills were exceedingly rare.
Each was treated as a national treasure.
People of such status naturally had no interest in refining ordinary First-Rank pills for the public.
As a result, Supreme-Grade medicinal pills were almost never seen on the market.
Has anyone witnessed Zhang Lingxiao casually feeding one to a bird...
They would probably have been so furious that they coughed up blood.
Fortunately, none of those concerns applied to Zhang Lingxiao.
His special physique, combined with the Devouring Heaven Demon Art, made him completely different from ordinary cultivators.
First, he could absorb virtually one hundred percent of a pill's medicinal essence.
Second, any pill toxins were devoured and refined by his cultivation technique, leaving behind no hidden dangers.
Third...
He himself could refine Supreme-Grade medicinal pills with the fewest impurities possible.
The first two reasons were why Zhang Lingxiao had decided to study alchemy.
After all, endlessly devouring the essence of living beings wasn't always practical.
Medicinal pills offered a far more stable method of cultivation.
The third advantage...
It was simply an unexpected surprise.
At present, however, Zhang Lingxiao still had no idea just how valuable an alchemist capable of refining Supreme-Grade pills truly was.
Meanwhile...
Someone was enthusiastically advertising his talent throughout Alchemy Peak.
"Senior Brother Han!"
"Senior Brother Han Tianlai!"
"I swear on my life that I'm telling the truth!"
"I met a complete scoundrel yesterday, but he refined Supreme-Grade Qi Gathering Pills on his very first attempt!"
"You must recommend him to Master!"
"Master absolutely has to accept him as a Personal Disciple!"
Early that morning, Ouyang Shishi had already arrived outside Han Tianlai's residence.
As the Sect Master's daughter, she naturally understood the importance of discovering exceptional talents for Qingyun Sect.
Han Tianlai smiled helplessly as he listened to her excited explanation.
"Alright, alright."
"I believe you."
"So..."
"What's the name of this genius?"
"I'll go meet him myself."