Chapter 5

Yu Xiudan stared intently at Lu Xiaodeng. On the first day he brought her back, he immediately took her to see the sect leader.

After the sect leader and the fifteen peak masters carefully examined her with their divine senses, they all agreed that apart from her lack of soul and spirit veins, and her odd behavior and foolishness, there was nothing special about her.

Although she clearly seemed problematic and might be a treasure, making people want to investigate, seeing her foolishness and lack of common sense, taking her back would be more troublesome than raising an infant, so no one wanted her.

Yu Xiudan had also asked the sect leaders about why he couldn't use his divine sense to locate her. They all said it was because her soul was too weak, so those with lower cultivation levels couldn't sense her, but sect leaders at the Soul Transformation stage had no problem.

But now, the Ascension Pill was truly in his hands. Could everything be just a coincidence?

Yu Xiudan, unable to figure it out, grabbed her fiercely and asked, "Who are you really?"

"I'm Lu Xiaodeng, didn't you give me this name, Master?" Lu Xiaodeng looked at her master in confusion, thinking his memory was really bad, to forget even her.

"No, I mean who were you before you met me! Why do you have to carry this cauldron every day? It's not even a precious thing, why can't you leave it behind!" Yu Xiudan's mood was very complicated. If a Fifth Rank Ascension Pill could be so easily refined, then his previous failures in refining even a Fourth Rank would be too embarrassing.

The joy of obtaining the Ascension Pill and the inadequacy in his alchemy skills made his thoughts chaotic. It was very difficult for him to believe that this was just a coincidental refinement.

Lu Xiaodeng, with her hand being pulled, cried out, "Master, you're hurting me!"

Yu Xiudan refused to let go, shouting, "Tell me! Your senior sister was burned so badly, but why are you completely unscathed, not even a scratch!"

"I don't know, I really don't know!" The question was too complex for Lu Xiaodeng to answer. She couldn't explain why she wasn't burned, because she was a spirit of the cauldron! She had never heard of a spirit of a cauldron being afraid of fire.

Just as the two were arguing, someone finally couldn't bear it and burst out in anger, shouting at them, "You two are driving me crazy! Master, knowing I'm so badly injured and almost dead, you can't even let me rest properly. Master, what's there to argue about, it's just a Fifth Rank Ascension Pill. If you take it, you'll reach the Golden Core stage, and then the sect will provide you with countless spirit herbs. Why worry about not having the chance to refine it again?"

Lu Yaohang, cold and icy, glared at the two, her hand trembling as she propped herself up, spitting out, "The most important thing now isn't how the pill was refined. Lu Xiaodeng, this big fool, can't possibly explain it clearly! Reaching the Golden Core stage is what you should be doing now, do you think Lu Xiaodeng could be a spirit of the cauldron?"

"Senior Sister, you're okay!" Lu Xiaodeng, seeing her senior sister so energetic, smiled happily.

Yu Xiudan frowned, hesitated for a moment, and then let Lu Xiaodeng go. After calming down, he realized she was right. Even the sect leader and peak masters had confirmed she wasn't a spirit of the cauldron, so why was he still fixated on this?

He tightly gripped the Ascension Pill in his hand. The most important thing now was this. He needed to reach the Golden Core stage first.

So he told Lu Yaohang, "I'm going to see the sect leader. Reaching the Golden Core stage is no small matter, especially with this unstable factor. You'll have to keep an eye on things here. I'll have the sect leader send someone to help."

"Yes, I wish Master success in advancing." Lu Yaohang, now very weak, congratulated her master in advance. If two Ascension Pills couldn't help him advance, then there was no hope.

Yu Xiudan put the Ascension Pill in a jade box, tidied up, and went to the Unity Hall on Taiyi Peak. Even for just advancing to the Golden Core stage, it was best to have someone protect the process to avoid any accidents.

With only Lu Xiaodeng left in the room, she stood awkwardly at the bedside, looking at the sleeping Lu Yaohang, constantly rubbing the corners of her clothes, making a rustling sound.

Lu Yaohang's frown deepened, and she finally opened her eyes to scold, "Get out!"

"Ah..." Lu Xiaodeng's nose tightened, her eyebrows furrowed, and tears welled up in her eyes. Her senior sister could only say helplessly, "I want to rest properly. Go out for now. If you have nothing to do, change your clothes and go help watch the cauldron."

Seeing her senior sister no longer angry, she breathed a sigh of relief, nodded, and ran off with the cauldron on her back.

Yu Xiudan went to the Unity Hall and didn't return. Sect leader Lian Jing kept him there. Although having another Golden Core cultivator wasn't a big deal, this time it was different.

For Yunjian Sect, the lack of alchemists was the key factor limiting them from becoming a top-tier sect. Not everyone could be an alchemist. The talent that could only be gained through practice was the most lacking among cultivators. Without talent, a cultivator could only ruin a batch of good spirit herbs.

You could destroy half a mountain with a single sword, but you couldn't control the spirit herbs to merge them bit by bit and perfectly condense them into a pill to maximize their effects. Sixth and Fifth Rank pills could be refined by Lian Jing at the Soul Transformation stage, but in the eyes of alchemists, the effects were laughable, and most of the spirit herbs were wasted.

Such pills were only good for personal use, and even giving them to disciples felt embarrassing due to their poor quality.

Yu Xiudan was the most talented alchemist in Yunjian Sect in nearly forty years. Unfortunately, he focused all his efforts on alchemy, and his cultivation stagnated at the late Foundation Establishment stage due to his mediocre talent.

Being able to reach the late Foundation Establishment stage was the result of the sect spending a huge amount of spirit stones. This level of cultivation could be achieved by anyone with decent talent. He spent over a million spirit stones, causing other Foundation Establishment cultivators in the sect to grumble, feeling it was unfair to cultivate only him.

Five years ago, Yunjian Sect decided to make one last effort, spending a significant amount of spirit stones to buy an Ascension Pill for Yu Xiudan. If he could successfully reach the Golden Core stage, he could cleanse and transform his body, making future advancements easier, and the sect's alchemy techniques could expand.

But if he failed, the sect would no longer provide any additional support. When his lifespan was up, they would choose someone else to manage the Wu Yao Hall, as anyone would do.

"Xiaodeng, do you know why Yunjian Sect's alchemy techniques are so poor?" Five days had passed, and Lu Yaohang's condition had improved a lot. She was leaning against the bed, looking out the window and speaking.

Her burns had been treated and were healing well, but the best medicine Yu Xiudan had still left large red marks, which would need to be changed later. Her legs couldn't touch the ground yet and needed more time to heal.

Lu Xiaodeng was holding a bowl of oily green, disgusting-looking soup, spooning it into her mouth. She asked curiously, "Why? Is everyone just very stupid?"

"Even if they are, they are still smarter than you." Lu Yaohang said lightly, "Because everyone here is a sword cultivator, and they are all very powerful. Those who come here voluntarily do so for one reason: to gain great power. You've only met the new disciples, but the disciples on other peaks are all extremely proud. Even the female disciples, known as immortals, give off an aura that if you provoke them, they will kill you."

"But what does this have to do with alchemy?" Lu Xiaodeng asked, puzzled. The person who used to kill many people could refine any pill very well. Just because someone likes fighting doesn't mean they can't refine pills.

Lu Yaohang smiled, "Because they have big mountains but no firewood to burn, and their brains are too dull."

"Senior Sister, once Master reaches the Golden Core stage, you can go to the Zhichu Hall to study. I believe you will be better than all of them." Lu Xiaodeng smiled sweetly, bringing the green soup to her mouth again.

Looking at the strange bowl, Lu Yaohang said lightly, "Xiaodeng, this soup can only be drunk by you. We will get diarrhea if we drink it."

"Ah!" Lu Xiaodeng, holding the bowl, was stunned, then muttered, "How can that be? The herbal soup is so delicious, but everyone says it's not."

"Drink it yourself. Next time, tell me before you refine a pill. I don't want to be embarrassed again." Lu Yaohang, lifting her bandaged hand, said coldly.

Lu Xiaodeng, however, looked at her quietly and said softly, "Senior Sister, aren't you curious about how I refined the Ascension Pill?"

Jumping into the cauldron to refine the pill had scared her senior sister that day, and even her master had acted differently. Her senior sister must be curious too, but how should she explain it? Should she write it down?

At that moment, she realized she couldn't write at all, not even a single character. She had never learned to write, which was really a lack of education!

"Curious? No." To her surprise, Lu Yaohang said uninterestedly.

Lu Xiaodeng looked up at her, puzzled by this reaction.

"Because you are my junior sister. No matter how you refined the pill, you are still my junior sister. Just don't tell anyone, or both Master and I will be in a difficult position." Lu Yaohang reminded her. She had seen more than Yu Xiudan, and it was clear that Lu Xiaodeng had stayed in the cauldron for a long time.

Seeing Lu Xiaodeng's foolishness, even half a year of learning human relations wasn't enough for her to survive in this world. It was best not to tell anyone, and to give Master an excuse, saying she pulled her out as soon as she jumped in.

Unfortunately, her plan was in vain. Under the protection of the sect leader on Taiyi Peak, Yu Xiudan successfully took two Ascension Pills and advanced to the Golden Core stage. Moreover, due to the excellent effects of the pills, the impurities and blockages in his 69 spirit veins were all cleared, and his 108 spirit veins were intact and undamaged. His talent, which was previously low, became excellent.

The sect leader and peak masters were so happy they almost smiled until their mouths hurt. With such talent, advancing to the Nascent Soul stage in the future wouldn't be difficult. The spring of Yunjian Sect was coming. As long as the Wu Yao Hall could develop, Yunjian Sect could enter the ranks of top-tier sects within a hundred years.

For this, Yu Xiudan had to seclude himself for a year to consolidate his cultivation, and the Wu Yao Hall sent an early Golden Core cultivator to watch over. The status of the Wu Yao Hall instantly rose.