Chapter 12

As the saying goes, "One does not visit the temple without a reason." Wei Changfeng had a vague idea of why Ye Quan had come.

Sure enough, after the introductions, Ye Quan got straight to the point and asked, "Little brother, I heard you want to leave the Alchemy Academy and return to the Martial Academy?"

Wei Changfeng nodded and said, "Yes!"

"That's such a pity!"

Ye Quan lamented, "You've studied alchemy for three years and have just advanced to Alchemist. It's really not easy. Now is the time to make great progress. Going back to martial arts might be a loss. I have a suggestion, I wonder if you're willing to listen?"

Wei Changfeng, with a clear mind, smiled and said, "I'm willing to hear it!"

Ye Quan stared at him, a glint of determination in his eyes, and said solemnly, "I hope you will join our Ye Family Alchemy Workshop as a resident alchemist!"

The Ye Family controlled most of the Jingyun Alchemy Academy and had a considerable number of alchemists, including some from other surnames who served as resident alchemists. In fact, with Wei Changfeng's qualifications, it wasn't worth Ye Quan personally inviting him.

However, in Ye Quan's view, Wei Changfeng had boundless potential. Born into the Wei Family but cast aside, he was like a pearl hidden in the dust, with great value for recruitment!

For ordinary alchemists, becoming a resident alchemist at the Ye Family Alchemy Workshop was also a very good opportunity.

"Our workshop's resident alchemists receive at least a hundred taels of silver per month. They get a 10% to 30% share of the profits from the sale of the elixirs they refine, and they can also study the alchemy books and formulas of the Ye Family."

Ye Quan continued, "If you like martial arts, we also have experts at the Qi Condensation stage in the Ye Family!"

He looked around and smiled, "At least you won't have to live such a frugal life anymore."

Wei Changfeng sighed inwardly. The manager of the Ye Family Alchemy Workshop had excellent eloquence, making his offer very appealing.

Unfortunately, his aspirations lay elsewhere. A small Ye Family Alchemy Workshop could not accommodate a grandmaster of alchemy. As for improving living conditions, he didn't need to rely on others.

Wei Changfeng thought for a moment and politely declined, "Thank you, Uncle Quan, for your kindness. However, I have already decided to return to the Martial Academy, so I can only disappoint you. Please understand!"

His words were neither humble nor arrogant, showing both humility and determination.

Ye Chaohai, standing beside Ye Quan, grunted in dissatisfaction.

But Ye Quan was not angry; he just showed a hint of regret on his face.

He knew Wei Changfeng had made up his mind and did not continue to persuade him. He stood up and said, "Since that's the case, we'll take our leave. However, the doors of the Ye Family Alchemy Workshop will always be open to you!"

Wei Changfeng escorted them to the alley entrance.

When he returned home, Murong Wan was setting the table and complained, "You didn't even invite them to stay for dinner!"

Wei Changfeng smiled bitterly, "Mother, they probably wouldn't have liked our simple fare!"

Murong Wan said seriously, "That's their own business. We shouldn't be impolite. Besides, they brought a large gift. If I didn't know their background, I wouldn't have dared to accept it."

Wei Changfeng nodded and changed the subject, "Where are Xiaoying and Xiaoyu?"

He was not the original Wei Changfeng and didn't feel much pressure from Ye Quan's favor. There would be plenty of opportunities to repay the favor, so he wouldn't be easily swayed.

However, from Murong Wan's words and actions, Wei Changfeng could see that his mother had a distinguished background. Despite their difficult circumstances, she maintained her dignity and grace.

When he first returned, the front gate and the hall door were open because two men had visited. The open gate symbolized transparency and avoided gossip.

The original Wei Changfeng knew little about Murong Wan's background and didn't care much about it.

His two sisters were playing at a neighbor's house, and Murong Wan called them back.

The family enjoyed a warm dinner together. Murong Wan sent Xiaoying and Xiaoyu to their room to practice writing. The two little girls were learning to read and write at the children's school of the Jingyun Academy.

Wei Changfeng was kept behind by Murong Wan. After tidying up the dishes, she asked seriously, "Changfeng, did something happen after you completed the Alchemist examination today?"

Murong Wan was observant and had noticed that Wei Changfeng's clothes were dirty and had some bloodstains, and his expression was different from usual.

She didn't ask directly because Ye Quan and Ye Chaohai were present, but she waited until now to speak.

Wei Changfeng was a bit surprised but didn't want to worry Murong Wan, so he said half-truthfully, "I ran into two ruffians, but I dealt with them. Nothing serious happened."

He showed her the Alchemist badge, "Mother, I'm now a初级 Alchemist. No one can bully me easily. I won't let you and Xiaoying and Xiaoyu suffer anymore!"

Murong Wan looked at the badge in Wei Changfeng's hand, its jade surface gleaming softly in the candlelight.

She couldn't help but touch it gently, her eyes welling up, "Changfeng, you've really grown up and become sensible. Even if I die, I will be content and have no regrets!"

A warm feeling welled up in Wei Changfeng's heart. In his previous life, he was an orphan and had never experienced the warmth of family. Now, feeling Murong Wan's care, he was deeply moved.

He couldn't help but gently hold her hand, "Mother, you won't die!"

He moved his fingers and gently pressed on her wrist.

After a moment's thought, Wei Changfeng, under her surprised gaze, said, "Your pulse is unstable. You've been overworking yourself recently. Don't go to the textile shop anymore."

"I've bought some herbs and silver needles. Although I can't cure your illness completely, I can stabilize it!"

Murong Wan's illness was due to the loss of vital energy during childbirth. No matter how skilled Wei Changfeng was in medicine, without the right elixir, he couldn't cure her completely. However, he could easily alleviate her condition and extend her life.

As soon as he recovered some of his strength and refined the Nine-Zhi Nourishing Essence Pill, he could solve the problem.

Although Murong Wan didn't understand, she was very pleased with Wei Changfeng's filial piety and didn't question why he suddenly knew medicine and could take her pulse.

Back in his room, Wei Changfeng reorganized the items in his bag.

Most of what he bought today were herbs, some for Murong Wan and some for himself, which he separated into two piles. The last item was the Sumeru Cauldron he bought for five taels of silver.

This Sumeru Cauldron was very old and heavily corroded, making it useless. However, Wei Changfeng bought it as a keepsake, so he carefully used a knife to remove the dirt and rust from the cauldron.

After cleaning the surface, he opened the lid and prepared to clear out the accumulated dirt inside.

But as he scraped off a layer of yellow mud, a dark red object appeared.

Wei Changfeng didn't expect the old cauldron to have any secrets, so he became more curious.

He found a bamboo chopstick, cut it into a thin, long strip with a knife, and carefully removed the excess dirt. It took him three hours to completely remove the object.

The item hidden in the Sumeru Cauldron was slightly smaller than an egg, round and hard, with holes on its surface, leading to the core.

Wei Changfeng played with it for a while, becoming increasingly surprised.

If he was not mistaken, this was a mature thousand-year Xiazhu fruit!

The Xiazhu fruit was a rare and precious material, growing in remote mountains. The tree bore fruit once every ten, hundred, or thousand years. A mature thousand-year Xiazhu fruit was extremely rare and invaluable.

However, the thousand-year Xiazhu fruit in Wei Changfeng's hand had lost all its spiritual energy, was light, and seemed to be just the outer shell, as worthless as the Sumeru Cauldron.

He shook his head and casually placed the Xiazhu fruit on the table.

Crack!

To Wei Changfeng's surprise, the fruit shell cracked upon hitting the table, shattering into countless pieces, and a golden beetle rolled out!

The golden beetle was about the size of a copper coin, similar to a common golden beetle. After rolling a few times on the table, it lay still, its round belly facing up, and its six thin legs curled up as if it were dead.

Golden Thread Beetle!

Wei Changfeng's eyes widened.

The Golden Thread Beetle was a favorite pet of the Tianxin Sect disciples. It liked to eat spiritual herbs and had an extremely strong sense of smell for anything that contained spiritual energy.

Tianxin Sect disciples used Golden Thread Beetles to find herbs in the wild because older herbs often contained the essence of heaven and earth.

Finding a Golden Thread Beetle in the Sumeru Cauldron was not unusual, as the cauldrons used by Tianxin Sect disciples were not only for refining elixirs but also for raising spiritual insects and worms.

What surprised Wei Changfeng was that the Golden Thread Beetle didn't look like it had been dead for a long time, and the number of golden threads on its body was astonishing.

When a Golden Thread Beetle was born, its shell was pure black. After one year, it would show one beautiful golden thread, and the older it got, the more golden threads it had.

Wei Changfeng had once seen the Golden Thread Beetle of the Tianxin Sect's leader, Bi Xiuyun, which had about two hundred golden threads. But compared to the one in front of him, it was like a small fry!

The older a Golden Thread Beetle was, the smarter and more human-like it became. Therefore, in the Tianxin Sect, many carefully raised Golden Thread Beetles were passed down from master to disciple and were considered treasures of the sect.

Wei Changfeng couldn't count the number of golden threads on this Golden Thread Beetle, but it had to be four or five hundred, maybe even six or seven hundred!

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