In a secluded courtyard within the academy, amidst birdsong and fragrant flowers, Lin Feng and Yao Chen sat facing each other, chatting and laughing. Although they were different ages, their demeanor was quite similar.
Xiao Yan, serving nearby, had been imitating them, but had never surpassed them. Moreover, upon closer observation, one could sometimes see Xiao Yan glancing at Lin Feng with a hint of fervor in his eyes.
With Lin Feng's keen observation skills, how could he not notice? Yet, he seemed oblivious, calmly sipping his newly concocted spiritual tea.
"Hahaha, Lin Feng, your style of pursuing research is quite similar to mine back in the day."
After taking another sip of tea, Yao Chen stroked his beard and sighed.
Logically speaking, Yao Chen, as the top alchemist in Zhongzhou back then, could be considered the strongest below the ninth-grade alchemist. Even if Lin Feng had some strange and unusual creations, it shouldn't warrant his感慨 (gǎnkǎi, a feeling of mixed emotions, often including nostalgia or reflection).
This brings us back to what was mentioned earlier. Yao Chen took a small sip of the spiritual tea. As a soul being, he no longer possessed a real, tangible body, so how could he possibly drink tea?
This was the reason for Yao Chen's sigh. The spiritual tea that Lin Feng had researched not only slightly enhanced the tea itself but also incorporated the existence of atoms and molecules from his previous life. The moment the tea rose into mist, Yao Chen's soul power could absorb it, creating the sensation of drinking it with his own body.
"It's just a mere cup of tea. If Elder Yao likes it, you can take some more back later,"
Lin Feng smiled slightly and then spoke up.
"Junior Brother Xiao Yan, you've been standing here from the beginning. Is there something you want to say?"
"Well, Senior Brother Lin Feng..."
Xiao Yan scratched his head sheepishly, then his eyes hardened, and he said seriously.
"Senior Brother Lin Feng, half a month ago, after subduing and killing the people of the Black Corner Region, you returned a strange flame to the academy."
"Junior Brother Xiao Yan, that strange flame is the academy's most precious treasure, ensuring its long-term prosperity. I cannot give it to you!"
Lin Feng took a small sip of tea. Although he already knew Xiao Yan's meaning, as the one in control, he didn't need to rush. He only needed to bring up this topic, and given Xiao Yan's personality, he would naturally fall into the trap he had dug.
However, he had almost completely exploited Yao Chen; it seemed he would have to find new clients for his transactions.
"Lin Feng, stop teasing this silly boy," Yao Chen, who was already prepared to be taken advantage of, glanced at his disciple who was awkwardly laughing while scratching his head, and calmly said, "Just tell me what you want. As long as I have it, I can trade it."
"The Fallen Heart Flame you gave to the academy half a month ago has a very different aura from the one that broke the seal back then. With my years of research on strange flames, it must be a new strange flame."
Yao Chen's eyes revealed a hint of sharpness. "So, can you trade the original strange flame?"
"Hahaha, Elder Yao is still as quick-witted as ever. Since we've come this far, I'll just say it directly."
Under Xiao Yan's tense gaze, Lin Feng slowly stood up and said seriously.
"Master Yao, Junior Brother Xiao Yan, after several transactions, you must know my true situation." "
I am indeed a native of the Northwest Continent, on the border of the Jia Ma Empire. My current level of cultivation is due to a combination of luck and hard work, but also largely thanks to Master Yao's help."
"Given my current situation, once I arrive in Zhongzhou and join the Pill Tower, I can become a core disciple or even a steward. At that time, I will have access to all knowledge of alchemy and pill formulas."
"Besides alchemy, Master Yao must only possess a few top-tier cultivation techniques."
Seeing Xiao Yan's increasingly downcast expression, Lin Feng didn't keep him in suspense any longer.
"However," seeing their expressions, Lin Feng changed his tone, "consider this my investment in Junior Brother Xiao Yan. A very generous price—all of Master Yao's insights into alchemy!"
Hearing Lin Feng's request, Xiao Yan, who had been somewhat expectant, immediately lost his composure. Although he desperately wanted the Strange Fire, and it had always been his master who had given him everything. However, the object of this transaction was none other than all of his alchemy techniques, which was far too important for an alchemist.
So much so that, although Xiao Yan yearned for it, he had already prepared to give up.
Yao Chen's expression remained unchanged. After taking another sip of spiritual tea, he smiled slightly and slowly spoke.
"You little fox, you haven't been unreasonable this time. I agree to this transaction. Hand over the Strange Fire!"
In Yao Chen's mind, the value of a single Strange Fire couldn't compare to his most precious collection as a peak eighth-grade alchemist. In fact, at the Dou Zun realm, Strange Fires ranked lower on the Strange Fire Ranking, unless they had extremely special uses, didn't offer much benefit to Dou Zun experts or eighth-grade alchemists.
The reason he felt Lin Feng hadn't been unreasonable this time was because this Strange Fire was truly too important to its user. Knowing that Lin Feng possessed the Burning Technique, he could even make any demands, which was the reason Yao Chen was happy.
"This little fox has finally spared me this time!" A sense of relief welled up in his heart, but then turned into unease. "This little fox, could it be that there's some trap waiting for me to fill?"
"Master, you..."
Seeing that his master had agreed to take out the last of his collection, Xiao Yan hurriedly spoke, his face anxious, but he was interrupted by Yao Chen waving his hand.
"No need to say more. Although these things are precious, they are insignificant compared to your future. Xiao Yanzi, instead of acting like a little girl here, you should strive to catch up and absorb these two strange flames to close the gap with your senior brother Lin Feng."
Yao Chen continued, "Moreover, with Lin Feng's talent, once you enter Zhongzhou and come to the Pill Tower, these seemingly precious things will be easily obtained by him."
"Master, senior brother Lin Feng, I..."
"Junior brother Xiao Yan, there's no need for that. As Elder Yao said, instead of wasting time, you should cultivate diligently and strive to become a strong person as soon as possible."
Lin Feng said as he handed the strange flames to Xiao Yan and took a storage ring from Elder Yao's hand.
"Oh, right," Lin Feng said, as if remembering something, and waved his hand. A heavy thud sounded as a massive medicine cauldron appeared before the three. Yao Chen reacted first, speaking with slight shock.
" It's crimson red, covered in various strange patterns of primordial beasts. From its open mouth, one can almost hear its roar, like a dream." Yao Chen circled the cauldron several times, observing it closely, his gaze burning. " Lin Feng, isn't this the Myriad Beast Cauldron, ranked thirteenth on the Heavenly Cauldron Ranking?!" "Hahaha , as expected of Elder Yao, you have a discerning eye. Indeed, this is the Myriad Beast Cauldron." Lin Feng smiled slightly, seeing the burning desire in Yao Chen and Xiao Yan's eyes, and continued, "Junior Brother Xiao Yan, whether an alchemist can continuously and deeply learn can be roughly divided into several key points." Seeing Lin Feng about to share his insights, Xiao Yan, who had always looked up to Lin Feng, quickly focused his attention, and even Yao Chen turned his gaze to him. After all, although Lin Feng inherited most of his alchemy skills from him, a genius's ideas always attract attention, and he might even broaden his thinking because of them. "As we all know, whether one can become an alchemist depends first on whether their Dou Qi attribute is fire or wood. Currently, the most prevalent attribute on the continent is fire, with only a trace of wood to neutralize the raging flames." Although Lin Feng was merely stating the ironclad rules of the Dou Qi Continent, Yao Chen and Xiao Yan were not distracted. With Lin Feng's current level, he was sure to have his own unique understanding. Sure enough, Lin Feng then revealed some unknown secrets of the alchemy world. "However, I think this view is too one-sided. For example," Lin Feng suddenly raised his palm, and a wisp of Dou Qi rose up, which, in the eyes of the three, appeared to be five colors. "As you can see, I possess the extremely rare five-attribute Dou Qi, with all five elements evenly balanced. Fire and wood each account for 20%, while the other three elements interfere. According to what's said on the continent, I shouldn't meet the requirements to become an alchemist." "However, I have now reached the seventh-grade alchemist realm. There's also a powerful figure from Burning Flame Valley who only possesses a single fire attribute, but he also forcibly became an alchemist through his powerful fire control techniques." Looking at Yao Chen, whose expression remained unchanged, and Xiao Yan, who was surprised, Lin Feng continued. "Although the Valley Master of Burning Flame Valley has a slightly lower level of alchemy than his Dou Qi, and only a few of them are alchemists, this is enough to prove that Dou Qi attributes are not a strict factor in determining whether one can become an alchemist." "Secondly, a strong soul power is required. Junior Brother Xiao Yan doesn't need to worry about this; your soul talent is extremely strong." "Senior Brother Lin Feng's talent is truly at the genius level; I'm just a genius from a small place." Xiao Yan rubbed his nose. Although he felt his soul power talent was good, it was much weaker than Lin Feng's. With his master's reminder, he also knew that Lin Feng's soul realm had now reached the Perfection of the Mortal Realm. Given enough opportunity, he could step into the legendary Spirit Realm soul. On the Dou Qi Continent, the soul's classification is different from Dou Qi; it's not as complicated, only having four realms: Mortal, Spirit, Heaven, and Emperor. The legendary Emperor Realm soul goes without saying; it's something connected to the Dou Emperor, and even among those ancient imperial clans, only a few extremely powerful experts could glimpse this realm. Even among those at the second tier, the Heavenly Realm soul level, there are perhaps only a few dozen individuals on this Dou Qi Continent. Among them, alchemists, due to their years of refining pills, experience faster soul advancement and constitute the majority. The third tier, the Spirit Realm, is also not to be underestimated; it's one of the thresholds to becoming an eighth-grade alchemist. In fact, it can be considered the most important condition, because the achievement of an eighth-grade pill differs from that of the first to seventh grades, requiring the imbuing of the pill with the legendary spiritual energy. This spiritual energy can only be controlled by those whose soul power has reached the Spirit Realm. Furthermore, Lin Feng's alchemy skills have already reached the seventh grade, meaning that becoming an eighth-grade alchemist is practically within his grasp. Of course, Xiao Yan hasn't given up on catching up with Lin Feng. With the Burning Flame Technique, he has even absorbed a Wind Fury Dragon Flame, proving that the Burning Flame Technique can absorb different flames for evolution. This confirms Yao Chen's earlier view: this is a technique even more bizarre than a Heaven-rank technique. Furthermore, with the presence of the Sea Heart Flame and the Fallen Heart Flame, the Burning Technique might even advance to the Earth-rank. At the Dou Ling level, in the Northwest Continent, this is absolutely top-tier. Moreover, the Burning Technique can even increase one's Dou Qi level when absorbing and fusing different flames. With his current four-star Dou Ling level, two different flames would guarantee him at least a mid-to-high-level Dou Wang. In terms of combat power, the Buddha's Fury Lotus unleashed by three different flames could easily kill a low-level Dou Huang. Of course, with the experienced Yao Chen guiding him, he wouldn't allow Xiao Yan to absorb two different flames at once. While that would allow him to advance to a mid-to-high-level Dou Wang in a short time, it would significantly diminish his understanding of the Dou Ling/Dou Wang realm. He would lack a certain foundation, and in Yao Chen's eyes, alchemy practice is equally important. Rapidly increasing Dou Qi means a decrease in control, which is extremely detrimental to alchemy. According to Lin Feng's analysis, Xiao Yan would likely absorb the Fallen Heart Flame, known as a cheat code for cultivation, first. At his current level, this strange flame would be the most beneficial. "Leaving aside soul power and Dou Qi attributes for now, for an alchemist, a direct lineage to the top is extremely important." At this point, Lin Feng bowed slightly to Yao Chen. "I must thank Elder Yao for passing on his alchemy skills to me; otherwise, I might only have just touched the threshold of the sixth rank." "You obtained all of this through trade; I have no leisure to teach you." Although he said this, judging from the smug expression on Yao Chen's face, he thoroughly enjoyed the gratitude shown to a super genius like Lin Feng. "Besides these three well-known points, a powerful alchemy cauldron is also extremely important for an alchemist." Seeing Xiao Yan's somewhat embarrassed expression, Lin Feng continued. "Even a sixth-grade alchemist would have a very high chance of their cauldrons exploding if they were to use three cauldrons to refine fifth-grade pills." Lin Feng suddenly looked at Xiao Yan and teased, "Junior Brother Xiao Yan, that expression... do you often have your cauldrons explode?" (End of Chapter)