Chapter 1505: The Panacea Gathering

  On December 30th, the news that Lingbao Pavilion will hold the "Thousand Spirit Medicine Conference" in Jizhou City spread throughout the Dacheng Empire in just a few days.

  So-called "thousand spirits", is not really a full thousand kinds of spiritual medicine, this is just a general term, but the varieties of spiritual medicine that appear in the "Thousand Spirits Medicine Meeting" will never be less.

  It is said that the imperial royal family, Lífēng Qū House, Yègē Kuí House, Jìyáng Niè House and other aristocratic families have all received invitations from the Língbǎo Gé, also known as the Luòchéng Mù House. For these big families, every "Thousand Spirit Medicine Gathering" of the Língbǎo Gé is a good opportunity to exchange what they have.

  Apart from the Xie clan, several spiritual sects and some middle-class families within the Da Cheng Empire, as well as a few renowned spiritual medicine practitioners, also received invitations from the Lingbao Pavilion. Of course, in such a rare grand gathering, more small families or spiritual masters would come uninvited.

  The main reason for this is that every time the "Thousand Spirits Gathering" takes place, some large families will take out their surplus spiritual medicine or herbs to sell at relatively cheap prices. This opportunity is one that small families or spirit masters without a family backing cannot afford to miss.

  Then, six or seven days before the thirtieth day, strange spirit masters began to enter Jicheng City from all directions. Moreover, as the date of the "Thousand Spirit Medicine Conference" held by Lingbao Pavilion approached, the number of people coming to Jicheng City began to show an explosive growth.

  In a boiling atmosphere, Jicheng City finally arrived on December 29th.

  There is still one day left, and the Thousand Spirit Medicine Meet will officially begin tomorrow. However, the area around the Spiritual Treasure Pavilion has already been filled with people's shadows. Many spiritual masters, even if they have nothing to do, want to linger around here, familiarize themselves with the surrounding environment, after all, tomorrow's medicine meet will be held in the manor on both sides of the Spiritual Treasure Pavilion.

  As for the commotion outside, Lingbao Pavilion wouldn't have any dissatisfaction. In these few days, the sales of medicine and spiritual herbs in Lingbao Pavilion had doubled.

  "Big brother, look, isn't that Tianxin Master from Nie's Medicine Refinery?" In the Lingbao Pavilion, a young man who was selecting herbs looked up carelessly and caught sight of three figures entering the second floor, his eyes suddenly lit up, and he couldn't help but nudge the sturdy man standing beside him.

  "That's right, it's him. You've got a good eye for people." The burly man grinned and gave the young man a hearty slap on the shoulder, with an air of "I'm in the know" about him, and said mysteriously, "Young brother, do you know who that young man is behind those two old men?"

  "Who?"

  The young man was indeed hooked and asked smoothly.

  The sturdy Han smiled and said: "Younger brother, judging from your appearance, you should have just arrived in Jizhou City for a few days. I'll tell you, that young man is quite something in the Nie family. My sister's husband's cousin works in the Nie family, and I also heard it from his mouth. I'm telling you, don't spread it around."

  "Uh-huh, I promise not to leak it out." The young man nodded repeatedly, looking at the strong man with shining eyes.

  "That guy was said to have been ill since childhood, and after cultivating for a whole decade, he only had the cultivation of gathering spirit first grade...". Seeing the young man's surprised look, and with several more onlookers around, the burly man became even more enthusiastic, "But just this September, his illness suddenly took a turn for the better, and his cultivation also rose rapidly, advancing from gathering spirit first grade to gathering spirit ninth grade in less than ten days. He then entered the Nie family's life and death illusion realm for training in October, and soon after entering, he was promoted to communicating with spirits second grade. Unfortunately, when he came out, there were some problems, not only did his cultivation not advance, but he almost lost his little life. Everyone thought his good luck had come to an end, but the result..."

  "What's the result?" Several people around asked in unison.

  "So, that's the result... everything afterwards is top secret, you're not allowed to spread it around everywhere, got it?" The robust man said in a hushed tone, reminding them.

  "Come on, tell us!" The crowd urged him hastily.

  "Cough cough, so in the end..."

  The pride of the strong Han was greatly satisfied, and he cleared his throat. However, just as he said two words, a snicker came from beside him: "As a result, not only did his good luck not come to an end, but he was even taken in as a disciple by the two fifth-grade spiritual medicine masters of the Nie family! This matter had spread throughout Jicheng City last month. Now, if you go to the street and ask any three-year-old child, they will know that person's name is Nie Kong, and it's absolutely confidential?"

  "Who! Who's stealing my lines?" The burly man was enraged, his eyes gleaming with a fierce light as he scanned the surrounding crowd. He spotted a fourteen or fifteen year old boy making faces at him and instantly flew into a rage, lifting up his clothes to jump over the medicine counter and teach that little brat a lesson.

  "Hmmph!"

  A cold snort came from the counter, and the old man who had been sitting with his eyes closed suddenly opened them. Two beams of light shot towards the robust man. This big and rough fellow involuntarily shivered and sullenly withdrew his arm that was pressing on the medicine rack, and slunk out of the Lingbao Pavilion.

  Although Zhuang Han left, everyone's discussion of Nie Kong's enthusiasm did not dissipate, but instead became even more abundant.

  ……

  At this time, Nie Kong, the subject of discussion, had followed Nie Xingyun and Lian Tianxin to the fourth floor of the Spiritual Treasure Pavilion. Since five days ago, the second floor and above of the Spiritual Treasure Pavilion were no longer open to the public, and a spiritual master was arranged at the staircase to guard against anyone causing trouble, so it was much quieter upstairs.

  "Wu Changlao, Tianxin Dashi, I didn't expect the two of you to come today. I haven't gone far to welcome you, please forgive me." A lean man in blue clothes, with a face full of smiles and a hint of respect, quickly walked over to greet Nie Xingyun and Lian Tianxin.

  "It doesn't matter, it doesn't matter." Nie Xingyun smiled and waved his hand.

  "This must be the disciple of the Fifth Elder and Tianxin Master, right?" The middle-aged man's gaze shifted to Nie Kong again, asking enthusiastically.

  Nie Kong has met Mr. Mo before.

  This middle-aged man, Nie Kong had met before. When Nie Kong first came to the Lingbao Pavilion to sell "Huishenlu", Mo Xingtu had even chased him out to ask about his whereabouts, and later asked the Nie family to search for him throughout the city of Jicheng for many days. After the matter was over, Nie Kong inquired about his origin from Nie Qingfeng, knowing that he was called Mo Xingtu, a fourth-grade spiritual pharmacist of the Mu family sect stationed at the Lingbao Pavilion in Jicheng City.

  "Do you know me?" Mo Xingtu was slightly surprised.

  "As a fourth-grade spiritual pharmacist, yet refining two grains of fifth-grade spiritual medicine 'Golden Jade Gourd', Mr. Mo's great name, who in the entire Jicheng City does not know." Nie Kong smiled and said.

  "Don't say that, in front of the Five Elders and Tianxin Master, I would be ashamed. " Mo Xingtu waved his hand repeatedly, but the smile at the corner of his mouth couldn't be concealed, revealing that Nie Kong's flattering words had hit his soft spot, making him feel a little self-satisfied. After a pause, Mo Xingtu said, "Five Elders, Tianxin Master, you two are here to see Zi Si Master, right? He just arrived at the Lingbao Pavilion today. Come, this way please."

  "Haha, looks like we arrived just in time." Nie Xingyun and Lian Tianxin chuckled and followed Mo Xingtu as he led the way forward...

  ……

  There were only two people in the room, one of whom was an old man who looked to be around sixty years old. He was thin and had white hair with a goatee, his face was full of wrinkles from the wind and frost of the years, but his eyes were exceptionally bright, making him look spirited and alert.

  Another was a green-clad girl, lively and lovely, with a pretty doll-like face.

  Jia's ninth elder also had a doll-like face, but his appearance looked extremely comical. On the other hand, this young girl with a doll-like face was even more delicate and charming, soft and tender, making people want to take a big bite of her cheeks with a faint blush.

  The green-clothed girl, Nie Kong also knew her, and the bottle of "Rejuvenating Dew" was hers. She seemed to be called "Little Ling Sister" by Mu Ruoyan. She looked like she was only sixteen or seventeen years old, but in reality, her age was older than Mu Ruoyan's, which was what he had vaguely heard after leaving home.

  As for that old man, he should be the "Master Zisi" mentioned by Mo Xingtu.

  As soon as he entered the room, Nie Xingyun sat down in front of the old man with a smile and said: "Old Mu, it's been many years since we last met, nine or ten years? I heard that you've been studying how to break through the fifth rank and become a sixth-rank spiritual pharmacist every day. How come you're willing to leave your old nest and come to Jicheng City now? I don't believe you, are you really here to participate in this 'Thousand Spirit Medicine Conference'?"

  In Nie's family, Lian Tianxin often used the low fusion degree of medicinal properties to attack Nie Xingyun, and he couldn't find a counterattack, feeling somewhat stifled.

  In front of this old man, Nie Xingyun's confidence immediately returned.

  Because, no matter what Mu Zixi refines, as long as it's successful, the degree of fusion of the medicinal properties is always six-tenths. Even the top-grade "Rejuvenating Dew" is no exception. Compared to Mu Zixi, Nie Xingyun has refined many spiritual medicines that exceed six-tenths, giving him a strong sense of superiority and accomplishment.

  No choice, sometimes people have to compare with those who are worse than themselves in order to regain confidence. If they always compare with those who are stronger than themselves, what they can find is probably only inferiority. Like Nie Xingyun, although he is Master Nie's disciple, he never compares his medicine fusion skills with Master Nie's.

  After listening to Nie Xingyun's teasing words, Mu Zixi shook his head helplessly: "There's no way, I've worked hard for ten years and still can't become a sixth-grade spiritual pharmacist. It just so happens that this 'Thousand Spirit Medicine Conference' is a good opportunity to come out and relax, maybe after relaxing, my level will improve."

  Nie Xingyun laughed so hard his eyes narrowed into a small slit: "Keep dreaming!"

  Lian Tianxin couldn't help but cough twice, if he relaxed his mood a bit, he could be promoted from fifth-grade to sixth-grade, then all the spiritual medicine masters would relax. To be honest, Lian Tianxin was always puzzled, how did this old man Mu Zixi become a fifth-grade spiritual medicine master?

  "Hey, you two, stop it! Don't let the kids laugh at you."

  "Right, right, Nie Laowu, Tianxin, why don't you introduce the little guy behind you?" Mu Zisi pinched his goat whiskers and said with a smile.

  Nie Xingyun smiled and said, "No need for introductions, I wouldn't believe you if you said you'd never heard of him. Nie Kong, from now on, just call him Shifu."

  "Have seen Master Mu's uncle."

  Nie Kong hurriedly bowed and greeted them. He figured that his two masters were extremely familiar with Mu Zijian, otherwise they wouldn't be teasing Wuji so much.

  "Good, good, Old Five, Tianxin, your Nie family really produces talented people. Unlike our Mu family, although we have the Lingbao Pavilion as a signboard, there are not many spiritual medicine masters in our clan. In terms of alchemy, excellent young talents are even more scarce."

  "Generally speaking, there are only two people who can match me - Nai Kong and Nai Fenghua." Nai Xingyun deliberately put on a nonchalant expression, but everyone could see the pride written all over his face.

  Tian Xin shook his head silently: "Nie Laowu, stop pretending here. Lao Mu, has the Lingbao Pavilion received any rare items recently?"

  "Good stuff, indeed there is. What about you?" Murong Zhi nodded and said.

  "If we hadn't, would we have come looking for you today?" Nie Xingyun chuckled.

  "Good!"

  Mu Zixi clapped her hands and laughed, saying to the green-clothed girl, "Xiao Ling, take Nie Kong to floors two and three for a stroll first. Grandpa will call you later."

  "Uh-huh."

  Xiao Ling nodded cleverly, and her watery eyes blinked at Nie Kong. Nie Kong looked at Nie Xingyun and Lian Tianxin with some suspicion, wondering what precious thing it was that they wanted to get rid of him and Xiao Ling for. As he thought about it, Nie Kong walked out of the room first. When Xiao Ling also came out, the door behind them had already been quietly closed by Mo Xingtu.

  Looking at Nie Kong walking in front, Xiao Ling was about to call out, but when her eyes fell on Nie Kong's back, she couldn't help but pause for a moment, with a hint of doubt flashing in her eyes. Nie Kong turned around and looked at the doll-faced girl, saying: "Little Spirit sister, where do you plan to take me for a stroll? I'll follow your lead."

  "By age, you should call me sister."

  "In terms of seniority, I should be calling you Shifu's niece, but now I've already promoted your seniority by one rank."

  "What?"

  Nie Kong smiled strangely, and Xiao Ling suddenly felt embarrassed, muttering gloomily, "Then you'd better call me Little Spirit Sister... Let's go to the third floor first, I'll introduce you to a few of the five-grade spiritual medicines in the Spiritual Treasure Pavilion." After walking a few steps, he hesitated again, saying: "Nie Kong, didn't we meet before?"

  Of course, I've seen it! Nie Kong smiled to himself. On that day, he had changed his attire and appearance, but couldn't change his figure. It seemed that his appearance had stirred up some memories in her, but even if she really recognized him, it didn't matter. Anyway, there was no need to deliberately hide it now.

  "I must have seen it in a dream." Nie Kong made a joke and went downstairs.

  "Hiss!"

  The little spirit pouted and followed along.

  ……

  Inside the room, Lian Tianxin took out ten jade bottles from his bosom and placed them on the table in front of him one by one. Then he nodded slightly at Muzi Si opposite him.

  "What kind of spiritual medicine is it?"

  "Zi Wei Dan!"

  Practice the Tao with a calm and serene heart.

  "What's so special about this Purple Yun Dan? It's just a second-rate spiritual medicine!" Mu Zixi couldn't help but chuckle, and Mo Xingtu standing beside him also had an expression of wanting to laugh but not daring to. After laughing, seeing Lian Tianxin's calm and solemn face, Nie Xingyun's composed demeanor, Mu Zixi finally picked up the medicine bottle and opened it.

  "All 95% fusion rate!"

  "90%..."

  "Nine out of five! Hmm, and there are two more, estimated to be nine point six!"

  “……”

  "This pill... 97%!!"

  Looking at one of the purple pills in the last bottle, Mu Zi Si's expression became astonishing, and Mo Xing Tu was even more so. Ten bottles with over a hundred pills of 95% or higher fusion rate were placed out, even if they were all second-grade purple pills, it would have an extremely strong shocking effect, let alone there were several pills that were 96%, or even 97%.

  Nie Xingyun was very satisfied with the expressions of Mu Zixi and Mo Xingtu: "These were all made by our unaccomplished disciple Nie Kong. Recently, he has successfully refined 120 Purple Swallow Pills in a row. The fusion degree of the medicinal properties is above 90% for all of them, but only these 100 pills have reached above 95%. Hmm, barely passable, I'll still need to let him practice more."

  Refined one hundred and twenty times, the medicine was successfully created one hundred and twenty times, with a fusion rate of over 90% in all cases. Moreover, those with a fusion rate of over 95% accounted for six-tenths of them. And yet, the one who achieved all this was only a second-rate spiritual pharmacist at the Tongling realm!

  Boastful! This is sheer boastfulness!

  Seeing the smiling Nie Xingyun and Lian Tianxin with constantly twitching eyebrows, Mu Zixi suddenly had a strong urge to slap those two old faces until they were covered in bruises. After a long while, Mu Zixi finally let out a sigh and gave a signal to Mo Xingtu who was standing beside him with a dazed expression.

  Mo Xingtu came back to his senses and took out a small medicine bottle, placing it on the table...

  ……

  Facing Nie Xingyun and Lian Tianxin's inquiring gazes, Mu Zixi smiled slightly and calmly uttered three words: "Hui Chunlu!"

  "Rejuvenating Dew?"

  What Muzi took out was actually the lowest grade of spiritual medicine, Lian Tianxin was stunned for a moment, but Nie Xingyun couldn't help laughing so hard that he was almost out of breath, saying while bringing the bottle closer to his nose, "Old Mu, you're not joking with us, are you? This small bottle of Hui Chun Lu is worth...".

  Nie Xingyun's laughter came to an abrupt halt, his small eyes suddenly becoming dull and lifeless. He stared blankly ahead, his mouth agape: "I didn't get it wrong, did I?" As he spoke, he took another deep sniff of the medicinal fragrance, his eyeballs rolling back in a flash, his complexion transforming into a kaleidoscope of colors. "Ten percent? This is ten percent 'Rejuvenating Dew'?"

  "Perfect?"

  Xian Tian Xin unbelievably snatched the medicine bottle from Nie Xing Yun's hand, and after a moment, his entire body stiffened, leaving only his right hand holding the bottle trembling. The legendary 100% medicinal efficacy fusion degree actually appeared on this small bottle of "Hui Chun Lu"?!

  Mozi stroked his beard, feeling a great sense of relief. He looked at Nie Xingyun and Lian Tianxin, who were both expressionless, and said: "As it happens, this bottle of 'Rejuvenating Dew' was purchased in your Jicheng City. I attended this 'Thousand Spirit Medicine Conference' for two reasons: one is to relax and unwind, and the other is for this."

  Tian Xing's eyes moved, and he muttered to himself: "I understand now. Last time the Lingbao Pavilion asked the Nie family to search the entire city, they were probably looking for the person who sold this Rebirth Dew!"

  "That's right."

  Mozi didn't conceal it either, and nodded his head with a smile.

  Ning Xingyun's eyes still retained an inexplicable meaning, and as soon as he heard this, he suddenly became angry: "Good, Old Man Mu, your Lingbao Pavilion actually concealed such an important matter without saying it, causing our Ning family to mobilize so many people, stirring up Ji City like a storm!"

  "Don't you already know now?"

  Nie Xingyun disdainfully rolled his eyes: "That's only because you haven't found that person yet, otherwise, would you be willing to take out this bottle of spiritual medicine?"

  "Nie Lao Wu, your words are a bit too much. Although we didn't tell you when searching for the person, I don't believe that after finding him, the Nie family would hand him over to Lingbao Pavilion without any conditions. Since you can force it out of them, what's the difference between telling or not?"

  “……”

  Nie Xingyun was taken aback, and Mu Zisi's words were not wrong. If the Nie family had found the person first, they would have definitely forced out the reason behind the matter.

  "Old Muo, why have you taken it out again?"

  "Upon returning this bottle of 'Rejuvenating Dew' to Luocheng, I tested it for a period of time and finally confirmed that the brewing time of this 'Rejuvenating Dew' does not exceed three months. Comparing it with the time of purchase, I am certain that the spiritual medicine master who brewed it is in Jicheng City, and the person who sold the medicine is likely to be the one who brewed it."

  Nie Xingyun and Lian Tianxin exchanged a glance, then Mu Zisi continued, "In this way, we can narrow down the scope of our search. We only need to investigate all the spiritual medicine practitioners in Jicheng City. Moreover, since that person could bring such spiritual medicine for sale, it's clear that he is a novice and has difficulty accurately judging the degree of fusion of the medicinal properties. It's very likely that he is self-taught in alchemy and his family background is not wealthy."

  "With these few points, the search scope can be reduced again. Lao Wu, this Jicheng City is indeed the Nie family's Jicheng City, and to find that person, we still need your assistance. Relying solely on Lingbao Pavilion won't work." Murong Ziyu stretched out his hand and beckoned, "Hui Chunlu" jumped from Lian Tianxin's hand into his own palm.

  Xian Tian's heart sank as he murmured: "If the clan leader and the council of elders were to hear these words, they would probably agree."

  "Newbie? Self-taught alchemist? Poor family background?"

  Nie Xingyun's mind buzzed, and the words flashed back and forth in his mind. He didn't even hear what Mu Zisi and Lian Tianxin were saying.

  Newbie, self-taught alchemy, poor family background, isn't this exactly Nie Kong's kid? He can refine a Purple Swallow Pill with a fusion degree of 97%? Then refining a bottle of 100% "Rejuvenating Dew" is also very possible. Moreover, his contact with alchemy has only been for these few months.

  It's him! It must be him!

  For a moment, Nie Xingyun was so excited that his whole body trembled, and his buttocks felt as if they had been pricked by needles, making him eager to jump up and run out to confirm with Nie Kong. If this bottle of 100% "Rejuvenating Dew" was really refined by that little guy, then what would he become in the future?

  "Old Five! Old Five!"

  "What?"

  Nie Xingyun suddenly snapped out of his trance.

  "Hey, what's wrong with you? Mu Zi and Tian Xin are discussing how to find the spiritual medicine master who refined this 'Rejuvenating Dew'!"

  Nie Xingyun hummed, "You all discuss it, I'm too lazy to bother with this, go out and get some fresh air." As he spoke, he put away the Zixiandan on the table, muttering to himself, "Even a spiritual medicine with a 10% fusion rate isn't brought out early, almost got me losing face, fortunately Nie Kong that kid is quite impressive."

  Mu Zixi couldn't help but laugh, this old thing just ate a little bit of humble pie and can't take it, if he hadn't taken out the Huichun Dew today, with these ten bottles of top-grade Zixi Dan, who knows how smug he would be! He didn't mind in his heart, and continued to discuss with Lian Tianxin.

  Out of the room, after closing the door, Nie Xingyun could no longer hold back his inner excitement, wildly waving his two arms, like a child who had just obtained a rare treasure, with a face full of smiles, for a moment, even his bald head seemed to shine brighter.

  After a while, the old man slipped downstairs...

  ……

  The finished spiritual medicine in the Lingbao Pavilion is diverse and extremely rich, which is indeed not comparable to the Nie family. Along the way, Nie Kong listened to Xiaoling's tender voice introducing him, and he gained a lot of knowledge. According to Xiaoling, there are also sixth-grade spiritual medicines in the Lingbao Pavilion, but they are collected very secretly.

  "Hmm!"

  A cough interrupted the melodious voice of Little Ling's canary-like song, but it was Nie Xingyun who walked up to the second floor with a gloomy expression, his face sunken like a donkey's, his mouth twitching and his eyebrows jumping, looking like he was furious to the extreme, growling: "Nie Kong, come here!"

  Nie Kong hurriedly greeted Xiao Ling and quickly walked to Nie Xingyun's side. Seeing the old man grab Nie Kong's collar and pull him into a small room, Xiao Ling, who was already worried about the old man's face, became even more frightened and quietly followed them.

  As soon as they entered the room, Nie Kong broke free from the old man's grasp and laughed: "Master, what's got you so happy that your mouth is almost crooked!"

  Nie Xingyun's eyes narrowed, and he scolded, "Nonsense! Master is getting angry!"

  "Angry? Don't pretend, Master." Nie Kong adjusted his clothes that had been rumpled by the other's grasp.

  "Master doesn't have the mood to pretend with you! I'm asking you, didn't you sell a bottle of 'Rejuvenating Dew' to this Lingbao Pavilion?" Nie Xingyun's eyebrows furrowed in anger.

  "Master, you know everything!" Nie Kong smiled slightly, but his heart felt a bit strange. Could it be that the bottle of Rejuvenating Dew they saw on the top floor just now was...?

  "It's really you who sold it!"

  Nie Xingyun's mouth twitched, and he immediately turned his face gloomy as he looked at the little girl approaching him. He suppressed a loud scolding, saying, "You little rascal, you managed to refine 'Huichunlu' with a 100% fusion rate but didn't sell it to our family. Instead, you sold it to Lingbao Pavilion, causing an uproar throughout Jincheng City."

  Nie Kong shrugged, saying indifferently: "I didn't know that bottle of 'Rejuvenation Dew' had a 100% fusion rate. If I knew, I wouldn't have bothered to sell it either. As a result, not only did I get scared out of my wits, but the gold coins I earned from selling the medicine weren't even enough to spend, and almost got me killed. Luckily, I exchanged that prescription for some medicinal herbs."

  Seeing Nie Kong's expression so serious, Nie Xingyun also felt a bit fearful and hummed: "I'm asking you, how did you refine that bottle of medicine?"

  "Just messing around and it came out." Nie Kong said leisurely.

  "Want to just mess around?" Nie Xingyun growled, baring his teeth. Just messing around could also produce a 100% fusion rate of spiritual medicine, what a joke?

  Looking at the old man who seemed to be having a seizure, Xiao Ling's face turned pale with fear that Nie Xingyun might accidentally slap Nie Kong to death, and he quickly snuck away to run upstairs...

  ……

  When Xiaoling rushed to the second floor with Lian Tianxin, Mu Zisi and Mo Xingtu, they saw Nie Xingyun and Nie Kong chatting and laughing together. There was no sign of the intense argument that Xiaoling had mentioned, but instead a harmonious scene of a master and disciple getting along well.

  Several people were taken aback, staring at Xiaoling in shock. The little girl's delicate face flushed with a red glow, and she stuttered: "I... I... I... He... They..."

  The little girl hesitated for half a day and didn't say anything, but Tian Xiang gave her an excuse: "Nie Lao Wu, disciple, what are you doing here?"

  Nie Xingyun burst into the sky, furrowing his brow, and said to Mu Ziyu: "Old Mu, I heard that your little granddaughter is a second-rate spiritual medicine master. My disciple and Hong Mao's disciple are also second-rate spiritual medicine masters. Why don't we let the two kids exchange blows? Winning or losing isn't important, exchanging experiences is what matters most."

  "Good!"

  "Take a look at this little girl," said Mu Zixi with a smile, nodding his head. "I have no objection. This little girl's alchemy skills haven't improved much lately, so it's good for her to gain some experience." As Grandfather spoke, the little girl glanced over at Nie Kong and saw that she was staring blankly with her mouth agape, and couldn't help but giggle.

  Nie Kong was stunned. He hadn't expected Nie Xingyun to suddenly do something like this, so he hastily made eye contact with him, but unfortunately, the old man seemed oblivious.

  Nie Kong quietly pulled at his clothes, but the old man still didn't have a hint of realization. Seeing that Mu Zixi, Mo Xingtu and Xiao Ling had already gone upstairs, Nie Kong lowered his voice and sneered: "Master, I think this kind of sparring is unnecessary, don't you? Why not just call it off?"

  Nie Xingyun said seriously: "What are you talking about? Such things can't be done in a contradictory way. Even if you don't use all your skills, 80% will do. This way, you can deal with that little girl and also won't make Old Man Mu too embarrassed. Hmm, this is called killing two birds with one stone."

  The old man inadvertently used the two words "got it" he learned from Nie Kong, and was secretly pleased with himself. Admiring Lao Lao, he actually took out the "Hui Chun Lu" refined by my apprentice and showed it off in front of me, his master. If I don't teach him a lesson now, who knows how arrogant he'll become in the future!

  Tian Xing's face didn't change, he said in a low voice: "Lao Wu, what are you and Nie Kong up to?"

  "I'll tell you when I get back." said Nie Xingyun with a smile.

  "Don't blame me if you lose!"

  The two masters in front whispered to each other, Nie Kong followed behind and muttered a sentence, feeling very speechless. Must I tell you that my apprentice just refined the "Purple Swallow Pill" with the small medicine cauldron for an hour this morning? At least eight or nine hours need to pass before I can refine that top-grade spiritual medicine again.

  Can't use "Pharmaceutical Cauldron Transformation", and still want to get the little girl settled? It's not bad if she doesn't get you settled! But the reason for this is really hard to explain, Nie Kong can only take it one step at a time, as for the final result...

  ……

  The final result is... just half an hour later, Nie Xingyun transformed from Nie Kong's past life Red-Faced Guan Gong to Black-Faced Bao Gong.

  On the stairs between the second and third floors of Lingbao Pavilion, a bald old man walked down while saying with a pained expression: "You little brat, are you intentionally angering me? I let you keep some face, but didn't expect you to lose to that little girl. And yet, your medicine fusion degree is actually one percent lower than hers!"

  Nie Kong rubbed his nose, and dryly laughed: "Master, I warned you beforehand to cancel this spar, but you didn't listen. Alas, I practiced several Purple Swallow Pills this morning and was exhausted. The fusion degree of that 'Heart Return Dew' reaching 70% is already quite good."

  Nie Kong looked like a dead pig that wasn't afraid of boiling water, and Nie Xingyun was even more furious, blowing his nose and staring with wide eyes. Lian Tianxin couldn't help but say: "Alright, Old Fifth, you should think carefully too. Nie Kong has only been in contact with alchemy for two or three months, while that little girl has already studied for over a decade and successfully refined third-grade spiritual medicine several times. This time, she's even refining the 'Return to Heart Dew' that he's never seen before - what more do you want?"

  Nie Xingyun said with a huff: "I know all that you've said, of course. It's just that thinking about Mu Lao's smug face makes me angry. Nie Kong, Hong Mai is right. Master was indeed a bit too proud this time. Let's go back home and prepare well for tomorrow's Medicine Banquet."

  Nie Xingyun's complaints, Lian Tianxin secretly laughed in his heart. If Nie Kong had won this time, he would have been the one with a smug face!

  Nie Xingyun's spirit lifted at the mention of the Medicine Grand Competition, and he continued, "Nie Kong, by that time you will have even more and even fiercer competitors. With your current medicine refinement abilities, it will be extremely difficult to win. However, if you can emerge victorious in the end, the rewards will also be extremely generous. Especially since most of the prizes for the Medicine Grand Competition are prepared by the Mu Family of Luocheng, I am eagerly looking forward to seeing Old Man Mu's gloomy face, haha."

  Nie Xingyun's mood lifted, and a faint smile also appeared on Nie Kong's face.

  Just now, in the sparring match with Xiao Ling, if the refined product was a certain kind of two-grade spiritual medicine that Nie Kong was familiar with, he might still have had a chance to win. But Mu Ziyu, that old man, unexpectedly took out a newly obtained formula for a two-grade "Return Heart Dew". And Nie Xingyun had too much confidence in Nie Kong, thinking that the "Return Heart Dew" was just a kind of two-grade spiritual medicine used to treat external injuries of spiritual masters, and he agreed without hesitation.

  Nie Kong tragically lost in a beautiful manner! In the end, the little girl's "Return to Heart Dew" had an 80% fusion degree of medicinal properties, while Nie Kong only had 70%.

  As for the outcome of this match, Nie Kong didn't really care. He had put on that sulky face just now only to consider the feelings of his two masters. If he lost and still looked happy, wouldn't that be asking for Nie Xingyun to scold him?

  To be honest, after the just-concluded test, Nie Kong couldn't help but feel a little admiration for that young girl.

  Don't look at her delicate and elegant appearance, but her inner strength is extremely fierce. Almost as soon as her palms touched the cauldron, it started boiling violently, and then the entire room was filled with the deafening roar from within the cauldron, completely drowning out Nie Kong's alchemy movements...

  ……

  Lingbao Pavilion's fourth floor.

  Mu Zixi stood by the window, watching the silhouettes of Nie Xingyun, Lian Tianxin and Nie Kong walking out of the Lingbao Pavilion. He couldn't help but feel a sense of regret as he said, "This Nie Kong has a pretty good innate talent, and it's actually a spiritual power variation. His sensitivity to medicinal properties is also quite keen. Unfortunately, his physique is wood-attribute, no matter how hard he cultivates, it'll be difficult for him to achieve great things. Perhaps being a 4th-grade Spiritual Medicine Master will be his limit in the future, as for 5th-grade... the hope isn't big."

  Mo Xingtu nodded in agreement.

  The little spirit beside him thought of the small medicine cauldron that Nie Kong had used earlier, which was no bigger than a palm, and couldn't help but smile slightly. He looked out the window at Nie Kong's receding back and suddenly said: "Right, Grandfather, Master, I think his figure looks very similar to that guy who sells 'Rejuvenating Dew'."

  Mo Xingtu was shocked and exclaimed: "Xiao Ling, you mean that bottle of 100% fusion degree 'Hui Chun Lu' is refined by Nie Kong?"

  "I've thought of that too."

  "However, it's better if just the few of us know about this for now. Let's not disturb him or leak this out for the time being, after all, he is a member of the Nie family. We'll observe him for a while before making any moves. Xiao Ling, if you get the chance in the future, try to spar with him more often. If he only managed to refine one bottle of high-purity spiritual medicine, then that bottle of 'Rejuvenating Dew' could be attributed to luck. But if he refined large quantities of 'Purple Swan Pills' with a purity of 95% or higher, then it can't be explained by luck alone. Perhaps... he really did discover some secret we don't know about."

  ……

  As he walked back to Nie's house, Lian Tianxin just learned from Nie Xingyun about the relationship between Nie Kong and the "Hui Chun Lu" with a fusion degree of 10%, and was greatly shocked in his heart. He didn't expect that the person he and Mu Zi were planning to find would be right next to him!

  Listening to Nie Xingyun's narration, Nie Kong was also deeply moved.

  He thought he had been very secretive about selling "Hui Chun Lu" at Lingbao Pavilion, but unexpectedly, he had left so many clues in the eyes of Murong Ziyi. Through those large quantities of "Zi Xuan Dan" with a fusion degree of over 95%, perhaps Murong Ziyi had already guessed his identity. Fortunately, he was backed by the powerful Nie family, otherwise, he would probably have to spend this lifetime as a laborer for refining medicine.

  ……