About an hour later, a bowl of chicken soup was brought over.
The rich aroma whetted Qinghe's appetite; with delicious food, all her worries vanished.
She took a bite; the meat was tender and the soup was rich—truly delicious. She immediately said to Li Jiang, "Senior brother, you have excellent skills. Thank you."
Li Jiang sat down and laughed, "It's not just my cooking, but also Master Boda's calming and qi-regulating pills, which will be very beneficial to your health."
Qinghe put down her bowl. "Speaking of which, I haven't visited her since I came back."
Li Jiang: "There's no need to go see her. She recently took on a new apprentice and is busy teaching."
"Oh?" Qinghe vaguely remembered that the last person to win Boda's favor was Mo Junqian. She wondered who had caught her eye this time. "Who is it?"
Li Jiang looked at her and said, "Xia Yixuan."
Qinghe thought for a few seconds, and a gentle and refined figure flashed through his mind.
At this moment, Lin Nan walked over, still wearing an apron around her waist. Upon hearing this, she said, "He has always been quite talented. I was thinking of asking my master to take him as a disciple someday, but Master Boda beat me to it. Seeing that Xia Yixuan had the potential to become an alchemist, she took him as her disciple without saying a word. I was stunned for a while after I found out."
Boda has extremely high standards, a fact well known to everyone in the Qingyun Sect. However, what they don't know is that besides having high standards, Boda is also very autocratic and domineering. She absolutely forbids her disciples from having two masters, which is why she has never accepted any disciples. Fortunately, she has finally found a good disciple this time, and that disciple is willing to become her disciple without any complaints.
"Master Boda is skilled in alchemy. It's truly a good thing that her excellent skills have finally found a successor. Have you completed the apprenticeship ceremony?"
Lin Nan said, "Master Boda doesn't care about formalities. She only kowtowed and that was considered a formal introduction."
Qinghe nodded: "That's fine."
Qi Rong suddenly spoke up: "Bo Da? Is she the foremost female alchemist in the field of alchemy?"
"Hmm." Qinghe looked at him. "What's wrong?"
Qi Rong lowered her gaze slightly and said, "It's nothing."
...
Dan Pavilion.
In the courtyard, a woman dressed in a green dress stood in front of the medicine cauldron, holding a sieve of herbs in one hand and turning the herbs back and forth in the other. She had a smile on her lips and was humming a little tune leisurely, looking very happy.
"Senior Boda."
Boda turned her head to look at the newcomer and said with a smile, "Oh, isn't this Qinghe's young master, Young Master Qi?"
She put down the sieve and, in a familiar manner, pulled Qi Rong's arm, "Oh my, it's true that a distant view is not as good as a close-up view. Qinghe has excellent taste; he really is a handsome man."
Qi Rong changed into a blue outfit, a lighter shade than the previous one, which made his handsome features stand out even more. "Senior, you flatter me. It was my oversight that I hadn't come to visit you before."
Boda laughed loudly, "You shouldn't be saying that. Qing and that girl should say it. But considering she's sick, I won't hold it against her."
Qi Rong cupped her hands and said, "Then thank you, senior."
Boda then invited him into the house, led him to a burning medicine cauldron, and asked, "What brings you here today?"
"I have come here because I have something I would like to ask you, senior."
Boda generously replied, "Ask me anything, and I'll tell you what I know."
Qi Rong pondered for a moment, "Senior is renowned among alchemists. I wonder how much you know about the Slaughtering Yuan Pill?"
Boda paused in her hand holding the herbs and looked at him. "Is that the Lu Yuan Dan, made from more than eighty kinds of precious herbs, which can reshape the soul and has the effect of bringing the dead back to life?"
"Exactly."
Boda frowned slightly, stopped preparing the medicine, and gestured for Qi Rong to sit down. "The more than eighty kinds of medicinal herbs required for the Lu Yuan Pill are extremely precious and rare in the Three Realms. They are as rare as phoenix feathers and unicorn horns. Therefore, the Lu Yuan Pill once became the most difficult pill to obtain. It can be said that 'one pill is priceless and cannot be obtained even with ten thousand pieces of gold.'"
The medicine cauldron made a gurgling sound. Boda got up, took out the medicine soup, and poured a cup for Qirong.
"Moreover, it is said that the refining method is special, the process is complicated and takes a long time, so to this day, very few alchemists have been able to refine it successfully. Even if they do succeed, once the news leaks out, they will inevitably face a deadly disaster. In all my years as an alchemist, I have only seen the true face of the Slaughtering Yuan Pill a handful of times, which is quite shameful. Why are you asking about this?"
Qi Rong lowered her eyes slightly, "To be honest, I have a friend who was seriously injured. I heard that the Lu Yuan Pill has the effect of bringing the dead back to life, so I came to ask you about it."
"I see. It's a pity I've never refined the Slaughtering Yuan Pill before, so I'm afraid I can't help you."
Qi Rong nodded to indicate that it was alright. After a pause, he asked, "Does Senior know where in the whole world can one find the Slaughtering Yuan Pill?"
Boda thought for a moment and said, "Perhaps you can go to Tianqi Academy. Tianqi Academy has always been famous for its alchemy skills. Dean Zhuge Hongming has mastered the art of alchemy to an extraordinary degree. Back then, I regarded him as the dream I pursued for my entire life."
Qi Rong understood and immediately stood up, saying, "Thank you for your explanation, senior. I won't disturb you any longer. Farewell."
"Hey, don't rush off. Drink a bowl of my special medicinal soup first. It's good for your health, especially for men." Boda picked up the bowl of medicine and looked at Qi Rong with a smile.
Under Boda's eerie gaze, Qi Rong couldn't refuse and could only take the bowl and drink it all in one gulp.
After he finished drinking, Bertha stared intently at him and asked, "How was it? How did it feel?"
Qi Rong answered truthfully, "I didn't feel anything special."
Bertha smiled mysteriously, "It's good that you don't feel anything. It would be bad if you did."
Qi Rong forced a smile, took her leave, and departed from Dan Pavilion.
On the winding, narrow path, a figure blocked his way.
Qi Rong smiled helplessly: "You heard everything."
Qinghe nodded.
He paused, then said, "I..."
“You don’t need to say anything,” Qing interrupted him. “When are you going? I’ll go with you.”
Qi Rong was taken aback, a smile appearing on her face. After a moment, she nodded and said, "Mm."
Several people were walking briskly ahead. Qing grabbed one of them and asked, "What happened?"
Upon seeing that it was Qinghe, the man respectfully said, "Senior Sister Qinghe, a guy has come to the sect who kicked down the gate and beat up all the disciples guarding it. He says he's here to accept a challenge. Do you think this is how you accept a challenge?"
"Accept the bet? Against whom?"
"It seems to be the eldest brother."
Qing and Qi Rong exchanged a glance and went to the front of the main hall with the disciple.
A number of disciples had already gathered in front of the hall. Qinghe looked around and, as expected, did not see Qi Changfeng. This clearly showed that he did not want to get involved in the matter.
Uncle Lu Chang was present, but he seemed to be watching the show, and even had a table of tea and snacks set out, which he was leisurely eating.
In the square in front of the main hall, two people stood in the center: Li Jiang and another person.
The man carried an unusually long sword on his back. The scabbard gleamed with a cold light, making it quite beautiful. A jade pendant was attached to the pommel of the sword, which did not seem like an ordinary object, but rather a family heirloom or some other precious artifact.
He wore a bamboo hat, but Qinghe could still see his face clearly. The scar on his left side reminded her that he was the swordsman who had a chance encounter with Li Jiang at the Tianqi Kingdom Inn a long time ago.
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