Ling Xiao didn't want to leave because he was afraid of Liu Dong, but because he didn't want to cause trouble the moment he arrived.
Furthermore, he had a lot of low-grade spirit herbs in his Spatial Ring, so even if he didn't come here to pick them, he would have enough to use. If he really didn't have enough, he could just go to Purple Sky City to buy more.
However, he didn't expect that even though he didn't want to cause trouble, the other party would still bully him.
Ling Xiao turned around to look at Liu Dong, who was glaring at him, and said, "What's with my attitude? Who do you think you are? Just because I call you senior brother, you think you're some big shot? I'm going to take those spirit grasses, and if you have the ability, you can take them back. However, you'd better measure your own worth. My master isn't Uncle-Master Zhu or Uncle-Master Yang, it's the Peak Lord. If you want to teach me a lesson, then I'll go back and tell my master that senior brother is quite impressive, even daring to bully his disciple."
Ling Xiao didn't want to use Nangong Changle to show off, but seeing that this old man still took him seriously, he could only pretend to be a thug and compete with him to see if Liu Dong still dared to be arrogant.
Indeed, as the Peak Master of Medicine Peak, Nangong Changle held supreme authority in Medicine Peak. Even Liu Dong's master, Rong Changle, had to be courteous to him. As a mere Eldest Disciple, how could he dare to act rashly?
Liu Dong didn't expect Ling Xiao's words to be so sharp. With just a single sentence, he was left speechless.
If he really offended Ling Xiao and this brat returned to complain to the Peak Lord, he would probably not be treated well in the future.
"Endure, I'll endure!" Liu Dong clenched his fists, his eyes revealing an unwilling expression as he repeatedly warned himself in his heart.
"What's wrong?
Does eldest senior brother have nothing else to say?
Then I'll be leaving. That's right, when Junior Brother Gui and I come to collect spirit herbs in the future, you must make an exception, or else we can only ask our master for them, "Ling Xiao said as he looked at Liu Dong playfully.
"Hmph, you're too arrogant, but when you lose my favor in the future, I'll teach you a lesson." Liu Dong's face was ashen as he coldly snorted. He then turned to Yu Lang and yelled, "What are you still standing there for? Hurry up and take up your post, or else I'll kick you out of Herb Peak!"
Yu Lang had no choice but to retreat to his herb garden. He was not like Ling Xiao, who dared to offend Liu Dong.
After Ling Xiao left, Liu Dong said unwillingly, "Who do you think you are? If you weren't the disciple of the Peak Lord, I would've crippled you."
He had wanted to give Ling Xiao a show of strength, but in the end, he was outmaneuvered by Ling Xiao and lost all his face. It was really not a good feeling.
"Eldest Senior Brother, there's no need to be so calculative with such a despicable person. If one day he falls out of favor, I believe the Peak Lord won't protect him," a disciple beside Liu Dong comforted him.
"You're right, but we can't let him be arrogant for too long. We have to think of a way to deal with him," Liu Dong replied.
"Eldest Senior Brother, I have a plan, but I don't know if you're willing to invest in it," the disciple said in a low voice.
Liu Dong glanced at him and said indifferently, "Let's hear it."
Thus, the disciple whispered some plan into Liu Dong's ear.
Liu Dong's expression gradually turned into a cold smile, "Alright, that's a good idea. I'll leave this matter to you, but you must do it properly. Once it's done, I'll teach you how to refine another type of Tier 1 Pill."
"Thank you, Eldest Senior Brother!" The disciple was delighted and immediately bowed to Liu Dong.
… …
The Bamboo Forest Courtyard was where Ling Xiao and Hua Xiaogui lived.
As inner sect disciples and Nangong Chang's disciples, the treatment they received was naturally much better than that of ordinary disciples.
The environment here was extremely beautiful, with verdant bamboos, lush trees, hundreds of birds singing, and abundant spiritual energy. Living here gave people a tranquil and distant feeling.
After returning to the courtyard, Ling Xiao's restless mood became better.
Within the courtyard, Hua Xiaogui was currently sitting on an altar and meditating. His expression was extremely solemn and serious.
Ling Xiao didn't want to disturb him, but he opened his eyes.
"Boss, you're back!" Hua Xiaogui cried out.
"Alright, continue working hard. I'll go to the alchemy room to refine pills," Ling Xiao said to Hua Xiaogui with a nod.
"Alright, I've never seen you refine pills before. This is a good opportunity for me to observe," Hua Xiaogui said excitedly.
"Brat, if you want to be lazy, just say it. Why do you need to find such an excuse?" Ling Xiao said in a bad mood.
During these past few days, Hua Xiaogui had been cultivating the Cloud Expelling Force that Ling Xiao had taught him.
However, he was naturally restless and simply couldn't sit still. Every time he meditated, he wouldn't last more than two hours. He lacked sufficient patience.
Hua Xiaogui seemed to have been hit by Ling Xiao's words. He scratched his head and said, "Boss, meditating all the time is getting boring. It's not as fun as refining pills."
"Tch, do you even know how to refine pills?
What's the use of only concocting some medicine? It's better to hurry up and increase your strength. Once you reach the Mystic Knight rank, you can refine any first and second stage pills you want, "Ling Xiao said with disdain.
"Boss, you don't have to be so direct. I'm also a first rank alchemist!" Hua Xiaogui said with a drooping face.
Ling Xiao shook his head and said, "If you really want to reach the third rank in three years, then talk less now, practice more, and reach the Mystic Knight level as soon as possible. Otherwise, your Xiao Xue will belong to someone else."
"Ling Xiao is right. Xiaogui, you should work hard on your cultivation. Before you reach the Mystic Knight rank, I won't teach you how to refine any pills," Nangong Changle said as he slowly walked in from outside.
"Greetings, Master." Ling Xiao and Hua Xiaogui immediately bowed.
"There's no need," Nangong Changle said. He then said, "Follow me to the alchemy room."
The two knew that Nangong Changle was going to teach them alchemy, so they immediately followed him.
After entering the alchemy room, a dark green cauldron was placed in the middle. There were restrictions and spirit patterns around it.
This spirit rune wasn't used to guard against theft. It was used to prevent the medicinal effects from spreading when refining elixirs.
"Ling Xiao, refine a cauldron of first stage pills for me to see," Nangong Changle said.
Ling Xiao nodded, walked to the side of the cauldron, and began to refine the Qi Strengthening Pill.
Beside him, Hua Xiaogui's eyes became fanatical.
Ling Xiao didn't dare to casually use the Flame Shadow Hand. He could only rely on his experience to control the fire. Even so, with his experience, he didn't waste a single stalk of spirit grass.
Nangong Changle looked carefully, and from time to time, he nodded in satisfaction. It seemed that he was very satisfied with Ling Xiao's performance.
Soon, a cauldron of Qi Strengthening Pill was refined, forming nine pills.
"Ling Xiao, how long have you been learning alchemy?"
Nangong Changle saw that Ling Xiao had such a high success rate and was very happy. At the same time, he wondered if this kid had been learning alchemy since he was in his mother's womb. His success rate was actually so high.
When he was at Ling Xiao's age, he was only a first stage alchemist, and his success rate was less than 40%.
Ling Xiao pondered for a moment and said, "It's been two years."
He naturally didn't dare to say that he had only learned for less than a year. Even if he did, Nangong Changle wouldn't believe it.
"To reach the second stage in two years, Tenbin isn't bad!" Nangong Changle reluctantly praised.
In his heart, he thought, "This kid isn't tricking me, right?"
Nangong Changle had spent a few years to reach the second stage, and his master had even praised him for being a Tenbin alchemist. However, Ling Xiao had only used two years to reach the second stage. This was really hard for him to believe.
Hua Xiaogui, who was beside him, also opened his mouth wide and exclaimed, "Boss, you're really abnormal!"
Hua Xiaogui was born in an alchemy family, so he naturally knew that to become an alchemist, one needed a strong Tenbin and a strong comprehension ability. He knew that an alchemist with a good Tenbin would need at least three to five years to reach the second stage, but Ling Xiao had only used two years. He was truly a genius in the alchemy world.
"Alright, your performance just now was not bad, but there are still many areas that are not good enough. Next, I'll tell you about the methods and experience on how to control the fire," Nangong Changle said, getting to the point.
Following that, he began to explain some of the basic essentials of fire control to the two of them.
Nangong Changle was already a fourth stage alchemist, and he could be considered a top-notch alchemist in the entire northwest region. His words of experience definitely had their own unique points.
Although Ling Xiao was already a third stage alchemist, he knew that he still had many areas that he was lacking, so he listened very patiently. Occasionally, when he heard the main points, he would be enlightened and gain a lot of insight into fire control.
Hua Xiaogui, on the other hand, made a mental note that he would be able to practice on his own once he broke through to the Mystic Knight Realm.
After half a day, the two of them had gained something.
Nangong Changle was also very satisfied with the seriousness of these two disciples.
"Alright, Ling Xiao, you refine well by yourself. Xiaogui, follow me." Nangong Changle knew that it was time to stop. He was afraid that they would not be able to digest if he spoke too much, so he immediately stopped them.
After Nangong Changle and Hua Xiaogui left, Ling Xiao refined a cauldron of Tendon Smoothing Pills and two cauldrons of Tendon Warming Pills. These Tendon Warming Pills were for Li Kuanghu.
Before he found the main ingredient for refining the Bone and Muscle Rebirth Pill, the Yellow Marrow Grass, he had to make sure that Li Kuanghu continued to take the Tendon Warming Pill. He could not allow his meridians to wither.
…
While Ling Xiao was refining pills in the pill room, Hua Xiaogui followed Nangong Changle outside.
Nangong Changle sat on a stone bench and looked at Hua Xiaogui as he asked, "How is your grandfather doing?"
"Grandfather's body is very good. Thank you for your concern, Master. Oh right, grandfather still has something that he wants me to give you." Hua Xiaogui replied and then went into the house to retrieve something before hurriedly running out.
Hua Xiaogui handed a brocade box to Nangong Changle.
Nangong Changle's eyes slightly moved as he stored the brocade box into his spatial ring. Then, he took out a book from within.
Nangong Changle handed the book to Hua Xiaogui and said, "Xiaogui, keep this book well. Master's lifetime experience in alchemy is recorded here. If you have time in the future, you must read it more. It will be of help to you in the future. Also, you must learn from your senior brother, understand?"
Hua Xiaogui carefully put away the book and immediately nodded. "Yes, Master. I know what to do."
Nangong Changle nodded and continued, "You are currently only at the Profound Realm. Logically speaking, you still cannot learn alchemy. Fortunately, your Hua Family has always been of the fire attribute. I believe that when you reach the Profound Realm, you will also be of the fire attribute. Therefore, the most important thing now is that you must first break through to the Profound Realm. At that time, Master will think of a way to help you advance to the Profound Realm. However, if you use alchemy to break through, your foundation will not be stable. In the future, your speed of advancement will be slow!"
"Disciple will work hard to break through to the Profound Realm as soon as possible. Please rest assured, Master," Hua Xiaogui replied.
He understood the reasoning behind Nangong Changle's words, but his own cultivation of Tenbin was not strong. If he did not use alchemy to break through, who knew when he would be able to reach the Profound Realm.