After arriving at the alchemy room, Lai Li’an explained the refining method for the Greenwood Unity Qi Pill from beginning to end.
Ruan Se listened quietly at first, but as she listened, her eyebrows slightly raised. The fire control technique Senior spoke of was completely different from what she had learned.
Using wood-element spiritual power as a guide, she allowed the herbs to self-catalyze within the spiritual flame. She reflected that she had trained in the main sect of the Alchemy Sect for many years and had seen no less than a thousand alchemy techniques, but she had never imagined one could operate like this.
Senior asked her to split her wood-element spiritual power into several strands, simultaneously protecting the medicinal properties of each ingredient, and continuously adjusting the strength of each strand as the spiritual flame heated up. This required extremely precise spiritual sense control.
Just hearing the entire operation procedure made a thin layer of sweat break out on her back.
After the spirit herbs entered the furnace, she strictly followed every step of Lai Li’an’s instructions, her movements precise and crisp.
Under the guidance of her spiritual power, the spiritual flame beneath the furnace slowly heated up, the flame shifting from orange-red to pale blue.
Ruan Se closed her eyes and sank her entire mind and spirit into the furnace. Four strands of wood-element spiritual power each performed their duty within the blazing flames, protecting the medicinal properties of the four auxiliary herbs, while the fifth strand firmly locked in the essence of the main herb, the Green Wood Spirit Fruit.
Everything proceeded in an orderly manner, and a trace of relief even arose in her heart. Although the method Senior taught her was extremely demanding on her spiritual sense, she was not incapable of handling it. As long as she could maintain this rhythm, the Greenwood Unity Qi Pill would be formed in another half hour.
Just then, an extremely subtle yet extremely overbearing wave of dry and hot qi overflowed from the furnace, spreading along her spiritual power through her limbs and bones.
The heat came without warning. She didn’t even have time to identify from which herb it had leaked before she felt something gently plucking at her Dantian, followed by a tingling numbness that spread from her scalp to her fingertips.
Ruan Se snapped her eyes open, a flicker of panic flashing in her pupils.
The spiritual flame lost control in that instant. The four strands of spiritual power in the furnace collided violently. The furnace emitted a dull hum, and the lid was blown off by a surge of qi. A large cloud of pink mist erupted from the furnace mouth, instantly filling the entire alchemy room.
The strange fragrance struck the nose, so thick it was almost suffocating.
The moment she smelled that fragrance, Ruan Se knew something was wrong. Her reaction was quick; her right hand had already pulled a pre-prepared Heart-Clearing Pill from her sleeve and shoved it into her mouth.
As the pill went down her throat, a chill rose from her Dantian, barely suppressing that dry heat. She steadied her mind and let out a long breath of turbid qi, about to turn around and apologize to Senior.
Then she saw Lai Li’an standing not far behind her, one hand propped against the wall and the other frantically tugging at his own collar.
The front of his dark blue robe had already been pulled open wide, revealing a sharply defined collarbone underneath.
An unnatural flush spread across his face, his forehead covered in sweat, his breathing ragged.
Those eyes that were always calm were now hazy with a misty fog, staring straight at her.
“Fellow Daoist Ruan,” Lai Li’an called out with a sticky sweetness she had never heard before, “Don’t you feel… very hot?”
As he spoke, he pulled his collar open even further. The dark blue fabric slipped from his shoulder, revealing half of his arm.
Ruan Se’s gaze shifted slightly. She had considered that after the furnace exploded, the medicine mist would spread, and that she might be affected herself, so she had prepared the Heart-Clearing Pill in advance.
But the one thing she never considered was that Senior would be affected. Before a great master like Senior, what was mere scattered medicine qi?
‘I thought he wouldn’t even need any pills, that he could dissolve the medicine power with his cultivation alone. But now Senior is leaning against the wall with his robes in disarray—clearly completely defenseless.’
‘There’s only one explanation: Senior devoted all his mind and spirit to instructing me in alchemy and never bothered to protect himself.’
At that thought, Ruan Se’s heart sank slightly. She took out another Heart-Clearing Pill from her sleeve and stepped forward.
“Senior, please take this pill.”
She held the pill out to Lai Li’an, but he waved his hand carelessly, brushing hers aside.
The pill flew from her fingertips, rolling away to the corner of the wall and disappearing into the shadow of the medicine cabinet.
“Senior.” Ruan Se’s voice turned colder.
Without hesitation, she took out a third Heart-Clearing Pill from her sleeve. This time, she didn’t intend to let Senior take it himself. With her left hand, she formed a Body-Binding Seal. Her spiritual power turned into several pale green light cords shooting from her fingertips, trying to bind Lai Li’an’s arms, while her right hand held the pill and brought it directly toward his mouth.
The moment the light cords of the Body-Binding Seal touched Lai Li’an’s body, they hit an invisible wall and dissipated silently.
Lai Li’an didn’t even assume any defensive posture. He was still approaching her, his mist-shrouded eyes reflecting her shadow.
“Fellow Daoist Ruan,” he tilted his head, a hint of admiration in his tone, “How are you… so beautiful?”
Ruan Se’s movement paused. She hadn’t heard such words in many years. It wasn’t that her looks were insufficient, but the cultivators around her had never dared to look directly at her face.
And yet Senior, in this situation, with this tone, was saying something like this.
“Senior, sober up.”
Since spells were useless, she would have to resort to force. She took a deep breath, gathered full spiritual power into her right palm, and struck hard at Lai Li’an’s chest.
Against a Golden Core cultivator, she didn’t need to hold back. She put all her strength into this palm strike, hoping only to force him back a few steps and buy a moment’s space.
Then her palm landed solidly on Lai Li’an’s chest.
Suddenly, her hand was caught. The hand holding hers was a full size larger than her own, with long, distinct fingers and a burning palm that wrapped entirely around the back of her hand.
Lai Li’an lowered his head, looking at the pale hand cradled in his palm. The corner of his mouth curved into a smile.
“Before your palm force, what arrived first was the little fragrant wind that Fellow Daoist Ruan brought.”
Ruan Se’s face flushed bright red. She had never known she carried any “little fragrant wind.” Standing before the furnace year-round, smoke and fire had only left her smelling of herbs.
More importantly, no one had ever gotten this close to her. Right now, the distance between her and Lai Li’an was so short that she could feel the heat of his breath brushing through her face veil.
“Senior!”
Her voice rose a pitch, her embarrassment finally breaking through her cold mask.
She tried to pull her hand back, but found it stuck as if welded in place.
Ruan Se channeled her full spiritual power and pulled again. Still, it wouldn’t budge. Even without using any spiritual power, his sheer physical strength made it impossible for her to move him.
Lai Li’an pulled with a little force, drawing her hand—and her entire body—to him. Through the thin fabric of her robe, she could clearly feel the burning heat beneath and the steady, powerful heartbeat.
The scent of Senior flooded her nose, and Ruan Se’s mind went blank for a moment.
When she came to, she found herself encircled by Lai Li’an’s arms in a very small space.
Her hands pressed against his chest, trying to push him away, but his body was as immovable as if cast in iron.
Ruan Se’s back pressed against the cold medicine cabinet, with nowhere to retreat. Lai Li’an’s chin rested on the top of her head, his breath scorching hot, each exhalation stirring the small hairs on her crown.
“Fellow Daoist Ruan…” Lai Li’an murmured vaguely, “Why do you always have a stern face? You must look beautiful when you smile…”
Ruan Se bit her lips tightly, saying nothing. She turned her face away, trying to gain even a sliver of distance.
Her face veil twisted slightly from the struggle, revealing the pale curve of her jaw.
Lai Li’an’s gaze landed on that exposed sliver of skin, as if drawn by something. He lifted one hand, and his fingertip gently brushed past her ear.
“Senior!” Ruan Se panicked. “Let go!”
“Mm.”
Lai Li’an responded, but his movements didn’t stop.
His fingers slid from her earlobe to the edge of her veil, as if he wanted to lift it.
Ruan Se pressed down hard on one corner of her veil, her heartbeat nearly exploding. She had never been in this situation before and didn’t know how to respond.
Just as Lai Li’an’s fingers were about to hook the edge of her veil, his movement suddenly stopped.
Those hazy eyes refocused in an instant. The fog was blown away like a sudden gust of wind. An extremely overbearing power exploded from the depths of his Dantian, traveling along his meridians straight to his crown, crushing the hot medicine force mercilessly wherever it passed.
The Nine Abyss Soul Refining Art triggered passively, sweeping away all external forces that had invaded his spirit sense in a destructive manner.
Lai Li’an woke up.
He lowered his head and saw Ruan Se curled in his arms.
Her back was pressed against the medicine cabinet, her face veil half-off, revealing a face so delicate it took one’s breath away.
That face was covered in a thin redness, spreading from her cheeks to her ears. Her eyes were slightly red, and a thin watery light covered the surface of her amber pupils.
Lai Li’an abruptly released his arms encircling her and stumbled backward until his back hit the opposite medicine cabinet.
His mind rapidly retraced the scene. What on earth had he done to Ruan Se?
“Um… Fellow Daoist Ruan.” Lai Li’an hastily straightened his disheveled robes and said awkwardly, “Just now, Venerable Self… just now I…”
He found that he couldn’t even say the words “Venerable Self” anymore. The young woman was curled in the corner of the medicine cabinet, looking like she would cry at any moment.
‘I just said things like “How are you so beautiful” and “little fragrant wind.”‘ Lai Li’an mentally slapped himself several times.
“It’s fine.”
Ruan Se spoke first.
Her voice was unexpectedly calm. After straightening up from the corner of the cabinet, she unhurriedly adjusted her crooked veil and smoothed her disheveled hair.
She didn’t look at Lai Li’an, only lowered her eyelashes and focused on tidying her robe and sleeves.
When everything returned to normal, she raised her eyes. Those eyes showed no trace of emotion, only the faint residual redness around them.
“Accidents during alchemy are common. Senior need not dwell on it.”
Her tone was flat.
“That a sixth-rank pill’s aura was so intense was beyond my expectations. It was my own unstable mind that caused the furnace to explode, and I implicated Senior. That was my fault.”
She finished speaking, lowered her eyelashes, and bowed deeply to Lai Li’an.
“I failed to meet Senior’s expectations. Senior generously taught me everything, but I fell short halfway. Next time, I will be more careful and never make the same mistake again.”