Chapter 63: Drug Manor

“Grand Ancestor,” Ling Qingshu asked, “why does this character fill me with such dread?”

Xu Yang smiled and explained, “I infused this character with the laws of heaven and earth and killing intent. You're feeling a bit uneasy, but it won't cause you serious harm. However, anyone with ill intentions towards the Tianlan Sect will have their minds severely affected upon seeing it.”

Hearing this, Ling Qingshu gazed at Xu Yang with profound admiration. At that moment, she felt her Grand Ancestor was truly omnipotent.

After properly setting up the Tianlan Sect's mountain gate, Xu Yang returned inside the sect.

Next, Xu Yang prepared to start refining elixirs.

Gazing at the mountains of spiritual herbs, Xu Yang felt his hands would cramp from the sheer volume. If he were to refine such a vast quantity of spiritual herbs alone, he would likely be at it day and night. Furthermore, Xu Yang, as a figure of the Grand Ancestor's caliber, now felt like a mere alchemy apprentice.

Xu Yang sat dejectedly on the ground, a blade of grass dangling from his mouth.

“Alas, it seems I need a few alchemy apprentices,” Xu Yang said, standing up and looking outside.

Ling Qingshu wouldn't suffice. While she possessed some talent for alchemy, it wasn't particularly outstanding. Even with Xu Yang's patient guidance, she might eventually become a master alchemist, but Ling Qingshu was the Tianlan Sect Master; she couldn't possibly spend all her time refining elixirs.

“I'll go down the mountain to find an apprentice,” Xu Yang sighed, walking outside.

Tianlan had endured ten thousand years, and it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say it had become a ruin. Rebuilding the Tianlan Sect was destined to be a colossal undertaking.

But Xu Yang didn't care in the least. No matter how great the difficulties, they couldn't stop him.

For Xu Yang, the Tianlan Sect was a spiritual anchor. He had lived too long. A hundred thousand years ago, he had founded the Tianlan Sect with his master, witnessing its creation from nothing. Over a hundred thousand years, the world had changed drastically. His master, junior brothers, and old acquaintances had all vanished into the river of time. A hundred thousand years was too long; it could erase all traces. Deep in his memory, even his master's appearance had become blurred. The only thing that could prove his master's existence was the Tianlan Sect, which he had watched his master build with his own hands. That the Tianlan Sect could still exist in the world after a hundred thousand years was all thanks to Xu Yang.

In Xu Yang's heart, there were only two priorities: first, breaking through the Qi Condensation stage to reach Foundation Establishment. Second, ensuring the Tianlan Sect's eternal existence. It not only had to endure but also become the most powerful sect in the world, restoring its former glory!

...

Before leaving the Tianlan Sect, Xu Yang assigned Ling Qingshu a task: to recruit disciples interested in alchemy from outside.

The next day, many people came to participate in the assessment. However, most of the applicants were from the vicinity; none were from other regions. Furthermore, most of these individuals were merely curious onlookers and possessed no alchemy talent whatsoever. Even those who did possess some alchemy talent failed to meet Xu Yang's recruitment standards.

“It seems I can't just wait here passively; I need to go out and look,” Xu Yang said, frowning as he looked at the talentless individuals before him.

The next day, Xu Yang left the Tianlan Sect and traveled extensively throughout Qizhou, searching for an alchemy genius to take as his disciple. However, after half a month of searching, Xu Yang hadn't found a single person with alchemy talent, let alone an alchemy genius.

“Searching like this isn't going to work,” Xu Yang said, frowning.

Suddenly, Xu Yang slapped his forehead, realizing how foolish he had been. Why was he going around searching? People with alchemy talent and a willingness to learn, while hard to find, would surely be abundant in one particular place.

With this thought, Xu Yang immediately headed towards Medicine Mountain Villa within Qizhou.

Medicine Mountain Villa's cultivators might not rank high in combat strength within Qizhou, but as an alchemy sect, if Medicine Mountain Villa claimed to be second in Qizhou, no other force would dare claim first. Almost all forces in Qizhou would invite Medicine Mountain Villa's alchemists to refine elixirs for them. Consequently, Medicine Mountain Villa was incredibly wealthy, enjoying a prosperous and comfortable existence.

Medicine Mountain Villa, as Qizhou's foremost alchemy sect, was also widely renowned, attracting many aspiring alchemists who wished to join. Now, it was time for Medicine Mountain Villa's annual grand recruitment assembly once again. Outside Medicine Mountain Villa, there was a sea of people, all of whom possessed some degree of alchemy aptitude.

Xu Yang mingled among the crowd, his gaze sweeping over them.

“No, no, still no...”

Xu Yang could instantly discern a person's alchemy aptitude with a single glance. Even after examining so many individuals, he still hadn't found a disciple with sufficient aptitude. Xu Yang couldn't help but feel a little disappointed.

Xu Yang even wondered if he should give up on finding an apprentice and simply have Medicine Mountain Villa's alchemists help him refine the elixirs.

As Xu Yang was pondering, an impatient voice suddenly rang out from ahead.

“Hey you, what are you dawdling for? Hurry up and come for the test!”

Xu Yang looked in the direction of the voice, seeing a youth in green robes shouting at him.

“Aren't you going to hurry up and get your aptitude tested?!” Zhou Che, seeing Xu Yang still standing there in a daze, roared even more impatiently.

Beside Zhou Che stood a four-legged stand, supported by four golden-yellow profound iron pillars, roughly half a person's height. On top of the four-legged stand was a white crystal ball. Xu Yang recognized this item; it was a crystal ball used to test a person's aptitude for alchemy. One needed to place a hand on the crystal ball and infuse it with spiritual energy. A person's alchemy aptitude would then be determined by the color the crystal ball turned.

White indicated no alchemy aptitude, blue was poor, yellow was moderate, red was excellent, and black was extraordinary. The specific grades within each color could be determined by the shade of the color. For instance, blue could be light blue or dark blue, and so on.

Xu Yang walked over to the crystal ball and placed his right hand upon it. A trace of spiritual energy flowed into it, circulating within the crystal ball for a moment. Many people stared at that wisp of spiritual energy. However, even after it vanished, the crystal ball's color remained completely unchanged.

“Disqualified. Next!” Zhou Che said with an impatient wave of his hand.

Since he showed no talent, it meant Xu Yang would be a mere mortal in the future. As a cultivator and alchemist himself, there was naturally no need for him to be polite to a mortal. Xu Yang didn't mind, as this was the normal attitude of cultivators towards mortals.

Since he hadn't found the person he was looking for here, Xu Yang had no intention of remaining. Just as he turned to leave, Xu Yang's gaze suddenly fell upon two siblings in a corner!

“Genius! Absolute geniuses!”

The next second, Xu Yang became excited.