Chapter 21

Gradually, Bu Zheng got used to life here. The Alchemy Peak could be said to be entirely run by him alone. Li Laifu was very satisfied with Bu Zheng's work, even to the point of being highly satisfied. He began to appear only once every half month, approaching the state of Xu Fu.

This was not only because everyone was indifferent to the performance of the Alchemy Peak, but the most important reason was that Bu Zheng was running things very well, giving Li Laifu great peace of mind. Bu Zheng had also mastered alchemy, and every month he could produce more than the standard amount of basic elixirs. This was already sufficient for both Li Laifu and the sect.

If things continued this way, the Alchemy Peak would be completely run by Bu Zheng alone. Li Laifu would be lucky to come once a month, and Xu Fu had already gone on a trip.

This made Li Laifu think: Should he also take his wife and children on a trip nearby? Would that be too irresponsible?

Who cares, anyway? He was already being irresponsible, so he might as well go all the way, but he would wait a little longer.

For Bu Zheng, this seemed to be the best thing. Being the only one, he could freely arrange his time and do things more freely...

In the blink of an eye, half a year had passed!

The Alchemy Peak seemed to have changed. It was different from when Bu Zheng first arrived. It actually looked like an alchemy peak, with several newly cultivated medicinal gardens where the herbs were growing well.

Although there were many herbs outside, if he could grow some himself, it would be even more. More herbs meant more contribution points, which meant more silver.

Today was the day for alchemy. Bu Zheng got up early in the morning and started working on alchemy, preparing the herbs, processing them, putting them into the alchemy furnace, starting the furnace, and controlling the furnace to refine the elixirs...

Then, he repeated the process...

All of this was so proficient. If Li Laifu saw this, he would be very surprised. The technique seemed much more proficient than his own, and the alchemy methods felt even more natural.

It had only been half a year, and of that, three months were spent teaching Bu Zheng. In reality, it had only been three months, yet Bu Zheng was already more proficient than someone who had been doing it for over twenty years. How could he not be surprised?

In fact, Bu Zheng's alchemy skills were already on a different level from Li Laifu's, and there were some things that Li Laifu couldn't even see.

Bu Zheng's understanding of formations and techniques was much stronger than his understanding of text. Unconsciously, he had subtly changed his techniques, making them more perfect, or rather, more suitable for him.

This change didn't happen all at once but gradually, with each attempt bringing some insights and changes. Of course, since the basic techniques were already established, and each person had their own style, even if his methods were a bit different, others wouldn't find it problematic.

Bu Zheng didn't know this. He only felt that he was becoming more proficient, and performing the formations was becoming easier.

He didn't realize that this ease was not just due to proficiency but also because he had found techniques more suitable for him.

He now knew that he was not only more relaxed but also much faster. The entire process, which initially took more than two hours, now took less than one hour, reducing the time by almost half an hour.

Of course, the previous time was because he was a beginner. Normally, it would take about one hour, but now, he was already faster than the standard time by a full hour.

For someone who had just started alchemy, this was almost a miracle, no, it was a miracle!

"Alright, what should I do next? Should I tend to the medicinal gardens or go gather herbs... Wait, today is the second day of the month, the time to collect the monthly stipend. Uncle Laifu said I should go to the Stipend Hall to collect it myself this month." Bu Zheng suddenly remembered something important.

The Qingyun Sword Sect tallied the contribution points of the previous month on the first day of the month, specifically those that did not meet the standard. Those who met the standard did not need to be tallied, as the contribution points were updated in real time. Any changes were automatically recorded, and one only needed to check them.

These changes could not be faked, so once recorded, they would be recognized. On the first day of each month, the minimum required contribution points were automatically deducted and converted into the monthly stipend. Any excess needed to be exchanged at the Contribution Hall.

The Contribution Hall had many items. For a mystic-level sect, there was nothing you couldn't exchange for, only things you couldn't imagine. There were all sorts of miscellaneous items.

Even the Qingyun Sword Sect had many such items. Some people might never use these items in their lifetime, but everything inside had its use.

To get back to the point, Bu Zheng's monthly stipend was previously collected by Li Laifu. However, now he had to collect it himself because Li Laifu had gone on a trip and might not return for a few months.

Bu Zheng didn't need to collect Li Laifu's stipend for him. The stipend could be stored, and as long as one met the standard contribution points, it didn't matter when they collected it. This would be recorded.

The reason Bu Zheng let Li Laifu collect it was because he had a very rustic habit: his money had to be kept in his own collection, and he refused to let anyone else hold it. Silver and gold notes were acceptable because they were essentially money, but if possible, he would always exchange them for actual silver.

So, after finishing his alchemy work, Bu Zheng didn't even eat and ran directly to the Stipend Hall. If he could get it earlier, he would never wait, even for a moment.

This seemed to be the first time in half a year that he had entered other parts of the Qingyun Sword Sect. Previously, he had always been on the Alchemy Peak or out gathering herbs.

At this moment, he didn't think about these things. He just focused on running as fast as possible to the Stipend Hall. Although he had never been there, he knew the route and could read a map. Li Laifu had explained the map to him before.

However, because he had only seen the map and never actually walked the route, he took the shortest path, not knowing some places where he might need to take a detour.

He might take some unnecessary routes, and some were quite peculiar...

There was a famous path among the new disciples in the Qingyun Sword Sect called "Qingyun Straight Up," also known as the Qingyun Path.

The special thing about the Qingyun Path was that it tested one's lightness skills. It was a series of nine steel wires connecting two peaks. Given that they were steel wires, their thinness was evident.