As soon as Li Yang spoke, it was clear whether she had it or not.
Li Yao Wan had already noticed during the assessment that this eighteen-year-old was not easy to fool.
Li Yao Wan said, “The research institutes of each department are highly confidential. As an auditing student, in principle…”
Li Yang didn’t waste time and said, “If I can’t enter the research institute as an auditing student, then Professor Li, since you’re busy, I’ll go ask that associate professor who offered the highest price…”
Li Yao Wan’s small eyes widened, her abacus at her waist clattering loudly.
In a blink, she was in front of Li Yang, grabbing her hand and saying with “deep affection,” “In principle, it’s not allowed, but don’t we hit it off? I’m a sentimental person, and I’ll definitely take you to the 716 Research Institute.
How about we go now, no time like the present?”
“How about I first refine a Star-Guiding Pill to further deepen our bond?”
Li Yang thought of a compromise and said, “How about this: I refine the Star-Guiding Pill at the 716 Research Institute.”
Li Yao Wan:
For the first time in her life, she felt she had met a formidable opponent.
Li Yang smiled and said, “Professor Li, what do you think?”
Li Yao Wan’s small eyes darted, and she put on a smile again, saying, “Fine, let’s head to the 716 Research Institute first.”
Li Yang also caught the hint in her words.
What did it matter if she went to the 716 Research Institute?
She’d only get to take a look.
And Li Yang really just wanted to take a look.
Her information was limited, and she only knew her family’s research institute had been acquired by the Alchemy Department, but she didn’t know which professor had taken it over.
Was Li Yao Wan’s word to be trusted?
She needed to verify it to be sure.
As long as she went to the 716 Research Institute and saw Li Yao Wan’s status there, Li Yang would have a good idea of the situation.
The two left the dazzlingly golden office and headed toward the 716 Research Institute.
Geographically, 716 was quite far from the Alchemy Department and not close to the Agriculture Department either.
The research institutes of each department were quite scattered.
Firstly, early construction lacked detailed planning, and secondly, institutes often changed hands.
For example, the 716 Research Institute used to belong to the Agriculture Department but now belonged to the Alchemy Department.
The research institute was a three-story building with a large footprint, surrounded by a protective fence, requiring a special access card to enter.
As soon as Li Yao Wan arrived, the assistant guard immediately saluted, “Professor Li!”
Li Yao Wan nodded and led Li Yang into the institute.
They didn’t swipe a card, and no one checked their identities, which showed Li Yao Wan’s status in the institute.
Upon entering, there was a large hall where many researchers in white coats bustled about, busy but orderly. Occasionally, someone would bump into Li Yao Wan, salute, and greet her.
Li Yao Wan would nod back, exchange a few words, and then take Li Yang to an office on the second floor.
It was clearly Li Yao Wan’s office, as the couplets and horizontal scroll were identical to those in her previous office.
Li Yao Wan’s gaze grew more intense as she said, “Student Li Yang, can you start refining the Star-Guiding Pill now?”
Li Yang was true to her word and nodded, “Yes.”
Li Yao Wan quickly pulled out a low-quality pill from her pocket, swept the documents off the desk with a clatter, and cleared a clean, neat surface, saying to Li Yang, “Please.”
Her eagerness was evident.
Li Yang was also curious about her so-called “Heavenly Luck” and wondered if this alchemy master could discern anything.
The low-quality pill on the desk was identical to the one from the assessment.
The pill was riddled with dense impurities, and removing them was like picking out millet grains one by one from a jar mixed with rice.
Li Yang picked up the low-quality pill but didn’t rush to use her life force.
Instead, she glanced at Li Yao Wan.
The sly-looking old lady was intently staring at the pill in her hand, her small eyes faintly glimmering with golden light, clearly using some kind of vision-enhancing star technique.
Li Yang didn’t bother pretending. Without using her inner starlight power, she said in her mind, “Consume one year, refine the pill.”
The system, as always, was venomous.
The pill was so low-quality that it didn’t even bother mocking Li Yang’s trash talent, instead unleashing a tirade against the pill, as if it wanted to verbally execute it.
Li Yang kept her eyes on Li Yao Wan, whose small eyes shone with brilliant golden light before she froze in shock.
“It’s done?” Li Yao Wan looked bewildered.
Li Yang lowered her gaze to the pill in her hand and said, “Done.”
Even a layman could see the difference. The pill, previously dull and gray, was now golden yellow.
If Li Yao Wan hadn’t been watching the whole time, she’d have suspected Li Yang swapped the pill.
“Too fast…” Li Yao Wan murmured, “It took less than ten seconds to refine it to the highest quality.”
Li Yang:
You saw ten seconds, but I burned a solid year of my life.
Li Yao Wan quickly pulled out another Star-Guiding Pill and said, “One more!”
Li Yang, unusually, didn’t set conditions and obediently took the pill, consuming another year to refine it to first-grade high-tier.
Li Yao Wan excitedly said, “Again!”
“Again!!”
“Again!!!”
Li Yang effortlessly used five years of her life to refine five Star-Guiding Pills to first-grade high-tier.
Li Yao Wan’s breathing grew rapid, her old, bark-like hands trembling uncontrollably, and her quirky abacus clattered again.
“Try this one!” She swapped to another low-quality pill.
Li Yang couldn’t tell the difference but sensed it was likely a second-grade pill that had gone wrong during refining, resulting in excessive impurities, making it low-quality.
“Hm.” Li Yang took the pill, examined it briefly, and said to the system, “Consume one year of life, refine the pill.”
The system was still utterly disgusted, its words dripping with disdain—Get this piece of crap away from me!
Li Yang found it somewhat amusing.
The system always got under her skin, but today it was the system that was thoroughly rattled.
This time, it took two years of life to refine the second-grade impure pill to high-tier.
Li Yao Wan trembled even more, muttering something incomprehensible, though faintly, one could hear, “Heaven…”
“Try this one!” Li Yao Wan pulled out another new low-quality pill.
Li Yang asked, “A third-grade low-quality pill?”
Li Yao Wan: “Yes!”
Li Yang didn’t waste her life trying and said bluntly, “I can’t refine it.”
Li Yao Wan looked disappointed. “Why? Can you only refine below third-grade?” If so, this ability was significantly less impressive.
Li Yang smiled slightly and said, “Professor Li, I’m only at the second-grade realm.”
Li Yao Wan immediately understood and asked, “You mean your ability is growth-based?”
Li Yang:
How should I put it? It’s not just growth-based, it’s also accumulation-based.
This Longevity System can do a lot, but it all comes down to “life.”
With life, anything’s possible; without it, you’re really done for.
“I’m not entirely sure,” Li Yang said. “But I can only work with higher-grade items if my own realm improves.”
“Items… items…” Li Yao Wan gasped, saying, “You can also refine star weapons…”
Li Yang smiled without responding.
Li Yao Wan’s mouth twitched, excitedly saying, “No wonder you said you’re not an alchemy Heavenly Luck holder… no wonder…”
She suddenly looked up at Li Yang and said, “And you’re not just a Nature Department Heavenly Luck holder either!”
Li Yang shook her head and said, “Teacher, you don’t understand the Nature Department.”
“I…” Li Yao Wan seemed to recall something, her momentum faltering as she said, “The Nature Department is indeed vast and profound, but it’s a pity…”
Li Yang didn’t know what else to say, as she wasn’t confident about her own words.
Her teacher said she was a Nature Department Heavenly Luck holder, so she just went along with it.
As for what the Nature Department really entailed, she wasn’t entirely clear.
While Li Yao Wan was lost in thought, Li Yang quietly pocketed the pills on the desk.
No problem with that, right?
They were just a few low-quality pills. Would a dignified Alchemy Department associate professor care about them?
Besides, she’d burned her life to refine them, so she had to take them back to exchange for money.
With money, she could go to the combat training camp to “farm” life. Otherwise, how would she make up for the lifespan she’d consumed?
Five first-grade high-tier pills, worth 25 merit points each.
One second-grade high-tier pill, worth 50 merit points.
That’s 1.75 million Huaxia coins!
How could Li Yang bear to leave them on this cold, hard desk?
Li Yao Wan was out of it for a while. By the time she snapped back, Li Yang had already finished.
Li Yao Wan noticed the desk was unusually clean.
She suppressed the urge to ask for the pills back, telling herself that small sacrifices were necessary for bigger gains.
In the face of greater benefits, a few low-quality pills were nothing!
“How exactly do you refine pills?”
Li Yao Wan asked Li Yang.
Li Yang answered earnestly, “I don’t know.”
Li Yao Wan:
She pressed further, “You don’t need starlight power?”
Li Yang shook her head and said, “I don’t know.”
“It can’t just be some ‘energy’ appearing out of nowhere, right?”
Li Yang:
Li Yao Wan dug deeper, getting to the core, “What price do you have to pay?”
She asked again, “Is it related to the Nature Department?”
After a moment of thought, she looked at Li Yang again and asked, “Is it related to mutated wheat?”
Li Yang:
This unassuming little old lady was indeed formidable.
The chapter repeats a bit.
The chapter has been fixed , re-editted and split into 2 parts. The second part will be posted soon, so stay tuned~