"Can you complete it?"

Ye Jingzhou’s face showed no trace of emotion as he looked at the hemming and hawing Tributor Li.

After a long silence, Tributor Li finally grit his teeth and said:

"Based on the ingredients on the formula, this should be a Tier Two Pill Formula, which is truly beyond my abilities! I’m not sure if I can complete it. Besides, this..."

As Tributor Li spoke, he glanced down at the Bamboo Slips again, and his scalp began to tingle.

He had delved into the Alchemy Dao for decades and had seen all sorts of Pill Formulas, even refining a fair number of deadly Poison Pills.

But.

The Materials for the Pill Formula in his hands were beyond his imagination.

’Why come to me?’

’Why not go to Chen Che?’

’I’m not the only Tributor in the Valley!’

"You have been a Tributor for my Jinyun Valley for eighteen years, yet you have been embezzling the valley’s Spiritual Objects and have supported your younger brother until he reached the Qi Refining Eighth Layer. Tell me, what should I do about this?"

"Valley Master, spare my life! Spare my life!"

Just as Tributor Li was lost in thought, his expression twisted in horror at Ye Jingzhou’s words, and he dropped to his knees. He slammed his forehead against the floor—THUD, THUD, THUD—not daring to stop for a second, even after he started bleeding.

To Ye Jingzhou...

The entire Jinyun Valley was his private property. Stealing without the master’s permission...

Ye Jingzhou’s eyes were half-closed, his fingers tapping lightly. "If you can complete this Pill Formula," he said, "I will not pursue this matter. I can even reward you with a Foundation Establishment Pill."

’Not only will my crimes be forgiven, but I’ll be rewarded with a Foundation Establishment Pill?’

Tributor Li’s mind raced. Taking a deep breath, he made his decision without hesitation:

"Thank you for your trust, Valley Master. I will do everything in my power to complete this Pill Formula..."

"Mm."

Ye Jingzhou nodded slightly, then closed his eyes, saying no more.

His time was running out.

He had no choice but to find an unorthodox path, to seek a second life.

...

Meanwhile, Chen Che walked out of the main hall, his heart filled with doubt. He truly did not understand Ye Jingzhou’s reason for choosing Tributor Li.

After all.

On the surface, his own Alchemy Skill was a cut above.

It was like seeing a doctor; everyone would choose the most skilled one. If that doctor wasn’t confident, they might even call in multiple specialists for a consultation.

’What could be the reason?’

"Brother, hold on a moment!"

As Chen Che was pondering, he heard Hu Yao call out from behind him. Turning around, he saw the man approach in a few long strides.

"It’s been a while since we got together. Let’s have a couple of drinks later."

"Sure!"

"Perhaps the Valley Master felt you were too inexperienced, which is why he didn’t ask you to stay in the hall just now. Don’t take it to heart!"

The two walked side-by-side for a few steps before Hu Yao offered his words of comfort.

"Besides, Tributor Li was personally recruited by the Valley Master back in the day."

The implication was clear: as someone personally recruited by the Valley Master, Tributor Li was considered part of his Direct Lineage and was thus naturally more trustworthy than Chen Che.

Keeping him behind was, in that sense, normal.

It’s just...

Chen Che recalled the scene in the main hall. He had clearly sensed that when Ye Jingzhou was dismissing everyone, he had intended to have him stay, only to change his mind at the last second.

’Does he not trust my abilities?’

’Does he not want more people to know about the Pill he needs?’

’Or is it some other reason?’

"You’ve only been practicing Alchemy for a few years and you’re already on equal footing with Tributor Li. In a few more years, surpassing him will be a piece of cake."

Seeing Chen Che’s expression, Hu Yao smiled and patted his shoulder.

Obviously.

He had seen Chen Che walking with his head down and mistakenly thought he was deeply upset about Ye Jingzhou choosing to keep Tributor Li.

Chen Che forced a smile.

"I’ll take that as a blessing, my friend. It seems I’ll have to study Alchemy Skill even harder from now on."

He couldn’t care less about those things.

If he weren’t so preoccupied with the sheer strangeness of the whole situation...

He wouldn’t give it a second thought.

"That’s good to hear."

Seeing this, Hu Yao felt completely relieved, and the two continued walking side-by-side.

Along the way, the disciples they passed greeted them respectfully. Even Zhao Ping, who had always been at odds with Hu Yao, reluctantly cupped his hands in a stiff greeting.

As they were walking, Chen Che’s brow suddenly lifted.

At the entrance to the main hall’s plaza stood a Bronze Cauldron.

The cauldron was a full ten feet tall, impossible to miss.

According to tradition, placing a large cauldron in a plaza was significant. It was meant to suppress the feng shui and fortune, to pray to the heavens, and to ward off disaster and misfortune. Even some children’s playgrounds on the Earth Element Star had large cauldrons.

He hadn’t paid it much attention when he ran into Lu Yi earlier, but now, passing by, he gave it a subconscious glance and couldn’t help but frown slightly.

The reason being:

The patterns on the great cauldron were incredibly bloody, depicting scenes of disembowelment and ripping out hearts, flaying skin and pulling out bones... 𝒇𝓻𝓮𝓮𝙬𝙚𝒃𝒏𝓸𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝓬𝓸𝒎

It was like a scene from an ancient era, of human sacrifice to the heavens.

"That cauldron was already here when I joined Jinyun Valley. I’ve heard people say it’s already two hundred years old!"

Hu Yao casually explained when he noticed Chen Che looking at the Bronze Cauldron.

’That’s no cauldron, that’s clearly a Pill Furnace...’ Chen Che grumbled internally.

In truth, some cauldrons and Pill Furnaces shared similar features in their appearance.

’Something’s not right with this thing!’

he thought, his peripheral vision sweeping over the disciples scattered around.

He noticed that everyone else seemed to pay the cauldron no mind. He wasn’t sure if they didn’t recognize what it was, or if they were just used to seeing it.

"Is that so?"

Chen Che feigned realization with a nod, then took another long look, memorizing its appearance.

"This cauldron is quite imposing!"

As he spoke, he glanced back at the main hall, a growing sense of unease filling his heart.

’Perhaps it’s a good thing he didn’t pick me!’

...

The two chatted as they walked, soon leaving Jinyun Valley behind.

Cultivators bustled about, weaving between the stalls and shops.

The teahouses and restaurants lining the street even featured some scantily clad Female Cultivators. The clamor of hawking, the calls of vendors, and the sounds of sweet laughter made the entire Market extremely lively.

They strolled along the street for a while.

Catching sight of someone selling Spirit Fish in the Market, the two quickly walked over.

The stall owner knew one of them was a Tributor and the other a disciple from the Valley, so he didn’t dare ask for money.

But Chen Che insisted on paying.

He hated bullies who dominated the market more than anything, so how could he possibly do such a thing himself?

"If you catch any more Spirit Fish in the future, just deliver them directly to Chen’s Pill Shop."

Hu Yao threw out this sentence as they were leaving.

"Aren’t these Cultivators leaving?"

Chen Che was a little puzzled. The beast tide had subsided, so logically, they should be leaving and returning to where they came from.

"They’re not leaving. In fact, most of them will stay."

Hu Yao’s face was wreathed in smiles, and he seemed to share in the glory of the bustling Market outside the valley.

"This is all thanks to the Valley Master."

"Hmm?"

"When the Valley Master came out of seclusion yesterday, he immediately set a new policy. He’s allowing these outside Cultivators to settle here, and he’s also reducing the Market’s management fees. All Cultivators who settle here will be protected by Jinyun Valley. They just need to pay a small fee."

Gazing at the incredibly lively Market, Hu Yao couldn’t contain his excitement.

"The day of Jinyun Valley’s great prosperity is right before our eyes!"

"Great prosperity?"

Chen Che remained noncommittal.

’I hope so, anyway!’

...

Back home.

Chen Che recalled the great cauldron he had seen inside Jinyun Valley, and the more he thought about it, the more something felt wrong.

He was increasingly convinced that it was a Pill Furnace.

So, he drew the cauldron from memory, creating a Painting of what he’d seen, and sent it directly to Ding Dawei. He hadn’t expected Ding Dawei to call him back within two minutes, his tone exceptionally tense:

"Where did you see this thing? You must tell me every single detail!"

"Teacher Ding, what’s going on?"

Chen Che had never seen Teacher Ding so serious before.

’Could it be?’

’Is there really something wrong with that cauldron?’