Chapter 63

At the dining table, Xiao Yan glanced sideways at Xiao Yu, who was gnashing her teeth as she ate, the sound of her silver teeth grinding against the food almost audible. He pursed his lips, recalling the strange and wonderful feeling from earlier, and his right hand involuntarily touched his palm.

Across from him, Xiao Yu, who had been glaring fiercely at Xiao Yan, saw his action and her face immediately turned a mix of red and green.

Xiao Yan looked at Xiao Yu with a peculiar gaze, then glanced at Xiao Yan beside her, who seemed unaffected. Xiao Yan frowned in confusion, then shook his head helplessly, chewing his food slowly and swallowing it.

His gaze skipped over Xiao Yu and landed on Xiao Ning beside her. At this moment, the latter was beaming with joy, his mouth curved almost to half the length of his face. He lightly tapped the edge of the table, and Xiao Yan thought to himself with a hint of schadenfreude, "This guy must have already obtained the Foundation Building Spirit Liquid, but he doesn't seem to know that it has little effect on those above the eighth level of Combat Qi..."

Shaking his head with a smirk, Xiao Yan's gaze scanned the surroundings, looking at his father and the others who were smiling at the table. He was puzzled, "Family gatherings are usually only held on special occasions, right? What's so celebratory today? Could it be that the high price paid for the Foundation Building Spirit Liquid is worth celebrating?"

Xiao Yan, lost in his thoughts, had no idea that this family gathering was due to the casual words of the mysterious black-robed figure he had become earlier, suggesting a potential collaboration.

Collaborating with a second-rank alchemist would bring the Xiao family profits that would make many envious. They might even leapfrog the other two major families. No wonder even his usually calm and composed father was so joyful, and the elders were grinning from ear to ear, their eyes half-closed, clearly dazed by the unexpected windfall.

The gathering ended slowly in a festive atmosphere. When he saw his father wave, Xiao Yan immediately jumped off his chair and ran out of the hall, heading straight for his room without looking back.

Not long after Xiao Yan left, Xiao Yu, gritting her teeth, chased after him but found no one. Frustrated, she stomped her foot and left in a rage.

...

Back in his room, Xiao Yan, having learned from his mistake, did not immediately ask Old Medicine to start the alchemy. After closing the doors and windows, he lazily rolled onto his bed and fell into a deep sleep.

When midnight arrived and all was quiet, Xiao Yan suddenly opened his eyes, leaped out of bed, and carefully took out the herbs hidden in the cabinet, placing them on the table. He then turned to look at Old Medicine, who was floating a foot above the ground like a ghost, and asked softly, "Teacher, can we start now?"

"You've finally learned to be more cautious. Alchemy requires a very quiet environment. If disturbed, the consequences can be severe. I won't suffer any backlash now, but in the future, if you're still this careless, you might lose your life." Old Medicine walked to the table, his ethereal hand lightly touching the various materials, nodding slightly, his tone slightly stern.

Xiao Yan scratched his head awkwardly and nodded in acknowledgment.

Seeing Xiao Yan's obedient demeanor, Old Medicine let out a slight sigh of relief. He spread his palm, and after a moment of silence, white flames slowly rose.

His soul perception continuously controlled the temperature of the flames. Old Medicine took the opportunity to glance at Xiao Yan, who was staring curiously at the flame in his palm. After a moment of hesitation, he said softly, "Alchemists can generally determine their rank by the color of their flames."

"Most alchemists have pale yellow flames, and the higher the rank, the deeper the color and the greater the power."

Hearing this, Xiao Yan blinked and pointed at the flame in Old Medicine's hand, asking in surprise, "Then why is Teacher's flame white?"

"Ha ha, what I mentioned earlier is the common flame for alchemists. However, in the alchemy circle, besides relying on Combat Qi to catalyze the flames, there is another type..." Old Medicine smiled slightly, a hint of pride in his smile.

"That is, borrowing fire!"

"Borrowing fire?" Xiao Yan was familiar with the term, but its meaning left him puzzled. Could the fire for alchemy be borrowed?

"Exactly, borrowing fire." Nodding heavily, Old Medicine smiled, "In this vast world, there exist some heavenly异火, perhaps a flame carried by a meteorite from the sky, or a magma fire deep within a volcano that has been forged for thousands of years... These heavenly异火 are more powerful than flames catalyzed by Combat Qi. They can enhance the potency of medicinal pills, but they are extremely violent and rarely encountered. Even if you do find one, it's very difficult to harness it."

"Many alchemists spend their entire lives searching for a heavenly异火 but never achieve their goal. After all, to control a heavenly异火, you need to introduce the flame into your body. However, all heavenly异火 are violent and destructive. Even materials like Adamantine Gold, known for their durability, cannot withstand the burning of a heavenly异火, let alone a human's fragile body. This is akin to inviting disaster, so only a few lucky individuals, by chance, can refine a small flame of a heavenly异火 and cultivate it into their own fire seed. These people are all outstanding figures in the alchemy world..."

Xiao Yan listened, his eyes wide with amazement. After a while, he licked his lips and stared intently at the white flame in Old Medicine's hand, feeling a slight chill.

"Teacher's flame must be a type of heavenly异火, right?" Xiao Yan asked tentatively.

"Ha ha." Mentioning his flame, Old Medicine's face lit up, his eyes burning with passion. "In the alchemy world of the Combat Qi continent, the known heavenly异火 are compiled into a 'Heavenly异火 Ranking,' which has twenty-three entries. My fire seed is the eleventh-ranked 'Bone Spirit Cold Fire.' This type of heavenly异火 can only be encountered in extremely cold and yin places during the century when the sun and moon alternate..."

"Bone Spirit Cold Fire?"

Xiao Yan stared unblinkingly at the swirling, bone-white flame, murmuring softly.

(There will be another update tonight. Please give me some support...)