"What are you doing?"
Protector Jun Mo, who had been fully focused on watching Elder Kang Xian's pill refinement techniques, frowned at the sudden distraction.
But when he turned around to see who had arrived, he almost jumped up in shock.
"Disciple Jun Mo pays my respect to Valley Head!" Protector Jun Mo hurriedly bowed.
Elder Gui Heng might have gone to seek the valley head's permission to sell the flexible armour earlier, but Protector Jun Mo would never have expected that he would directly bring the valley head back with him!
"Dispense with the formalities," the man beside Elder Gui Heng said calmly.
He looked to be in his mid-forties, with his long black hair tied neatly into a topknot. He had a lean body and sharp eyebrows, complete with rather handsome facial features. There was also an otherworldly aura about him, giving off the feeling that he had long transcended the secular world.
As Protector Jun Mo had said, this man was Nie Changyun, more commonly known as Valley Head Nie.
Within the Five Elements Valley, he had absolute authority below none other!
"What are you doing? Why is Elder Kang Xian suddenly refining a pill here?" Elder Gui Heng asked once more.
"Reporting to Master," Protector Jun Mo dared not be careless with his etiquette in the presence of the valley head. "Elder Kang Xian received some pointers from the young sir, and is thus giving it a try while waiting for your return."
"Some pointers?" Elder Gui Heng immediately understood the situation. "Is this about the Cloud Larvae Heart Stabilising Pill?"
"Master is wise," Protector Jun Mo nodded.
"How interesting, to think that the young sir knows about pill refinement too," Elder Gui Heng glanced over at Elder Kang Xian. "Elder Kang Xian has been troubled by this matter for a while now. I wonder if he will succeed this time."
"It looks like we will find out soon enough," Valley Head Nie Changyun said with a smile. "Elder Kang Xian is already entering the final phase of the pill refinement process."
At this moment, the temperature outside the guest house had risen to a level that ordinary mortals would find completely unbearable. Even the strongest of them would collapse from the overwhelming heat, while those with a weaker constitution might never wake up from that.
Fortunately, the four of them, including Elder Kang Xian, were cultivators who had physiques far surpassing that of ordinary mortals.
And it was not just about their physique either. As cultivators, they also possessed special means to guard themselves against the heat. This allowed them to remain in the vicinity without feeling much discomfort at all.
Sizzle-!
The pill cauldron released a cloud of purple smoke as the pill refinement process came to an end.
It was only then that Elder Kang Xian finally turned around and bowed towards them. "Kang Xian pays my respect to Valley Head. Please pardon me for the late greetings."
"Don't worry about it. You were in the midst of pill refinement, so it would be asking too much to expect you to stop in the midst of it," Valley Head Nie Changyun gestured for him to rise. "You must be curious about the results of the pill refinement. Don't mind me. Go ahead and check on the pills."
"Thank you for your understanding, Valley Head," Elder Kang Xian bowed again in gratitude before turning back to his pill cauldron.
As he prepared to open the cauldron, Elder Kang Xian could feel his heart palpitating in nervousness.
Just because the pill refinement process had come to an end did not mean that it was a success.
Many a time, an apothecary would spend much time and effort refining a batch of pills, only to find out after opening the lid that the concoction within the cauldron had ended up as a failure.
As an experienced apothecary, Elder Kang Xian was capable of sensing the minute changes happening within the pill cauldron, giving him a good sense of the outcome. However, that was ultimately just a sense of things. Even he would be unable to know for certain if the pill refinement process had succeeded or failed without opening it up to check for himself.
Moreover, he had never succeeded in refining the Cloud Larvae Heart Stabilising Pill in the past.
This time, he did change things up slightly according to the instructions from Wu Meng, but Elder Kang Xian still could not help but feel nervous about the result.
Adding Firegrass at the start was such a stupidly simple tweak to the formula. Would that really be enough to make things work?
Under the anticipating gazes of those present, Elder Kang Xian slowly reached out and grabbed the lid of the pill cauldron.
He lifted the lid in one go and peered within through the escaping purple smoke, then his eyes widened in astonishment.
"I-It's a success!" Elder Kang Xian exclaimed excitedly.
"Let me take a look!" Elder Gui Heng rushed forward immediately, with Protector Jun Mo following right behind him.
The purple smoke quickly cleared to reveal three small pills lying within the pill cauldron. They were a light shade of blue and about the size of a fingernail, continuously emitting weak ripples of mental energy.
"It really is the Cloud Larvae Heart Stabilising Pill!" Elder Gui Heng lit up in joy for his compatriot. "Congratulations to Elder Kang Xian on the successful pill refinement!"
"Hahaha! What a wonderful day this is!" Elder Kang Xian laughed boisterously as he continued to admire the three pills in his pill cauldron. "It is all thanks to Elder Gui Heng's help along the way!"
"How would I dare to take credit for this?" Elder Gui Heng shook his head. "It is Elder Kang Xian's hard work that finally paid off. And perhaps also due to the pointers from the young sir."
"That's right, the young sir!" Elder Kang Xian was suddenly reminded of the matter. "I should go thank him!"
"Shall we return to the house then?" Protector Jun Mo said. "Valley Head is here as well, so let's not keep him waiting."
"Right, let's go," Elder Kang Xian agreed. With a wave of his hand, the pills and pill cauldron vanished from its spot.
"Let's go meet the young sir now, Valley Head," Elder Gui Heng went over to him and said.
"Mm," Valley Head Nie Changyun nodded.
***
"Wake up, they are coming back," Wu Meng tapped Zhang Wanqing who was sleeping with her head resting on the tabletop.
The pill refinement process had taken hours. During this time, the accumulated exhaustion finally kicked in for Zhang Wanqing.
After all, being in the presence of cultivators had kept her on edge all day, so she could not help but feel exhausted – both mentally and physically so.
"O-Oh!" Zhang Wanqing hurriedly stood up and wiped the bit of drool from the corner of her mouth.
The next moment, knocking sounds came from behind the door.
"Young Sir, this is Jun Mo. May we enter?" Protector Jun Mo's voice sounded out.
"Come in," Wu Meng replied.
The door opened, and the group of four walked in to see Wu Meng still seated at the table with Zhang Wanqing standing at attention behind him.
"I didn't lie, did I?" Wu Meng was the first to speak.
"Please pardon this one for my earlier scepticism. I just tried Young Sir's method, and it truly worked like a charm!" Elder Kang Xian said embarrassedly. "If it is not too much trouble, may I know the theory behind it?"
"There's no harm in letting you know that," Wu Meng said. "Your pill cauldron might have been refined with numerous wondrous materials, but you focused too much on the fire aspect of pill refinement. This works in your favour when refining most other pills, but the Cloud Larvae Heart Stabilising Pill is a very delicate pill that places great emphasis on the Yin attribute – something that should have been obvious to you had you bothered to consider its most common effect of calming the mind. When you try to use your cauldron that is filled with Yang energy to refine the Yin pill, it results in an imbalance in the Yin and Yang attributes within your pill cauldron. As a result, the Yin attribute of the ingredients cannot spread out evenly within your cauldron, forcing it to congregate at the centre and thereby preventing an even formation of the pill."
"I see. By adding Firegrass at the start, it acted as a cushion to absorb the excess Yang attribute in my pill cauldron, making it such that the imbalance of Yin and Yang is not too apparent?" Elder Kang Xian concluded. "What a simple yet clever tweak to the formula! Thank you for the guidance, Young Sir. I have learnt much this time!"
"It's a pleasure doing business with you," Wu Meng waved him off before turning towards Elder Gui Heng. "So? Have you decided?"
"Before that, this is the head of our Five Elements Valley, Valley Head Nie," Elder Gui Heng introduced.
"Nie Changyun greets Young Sir," Valley Head Nie Changyun clasped his fists towards Wu Meng. "Please pardon my lack of propriety for not having greeted you personally upon your arrival."
"Eh?"
His words caused everyone to look at him in surprise.
As the head of the Five Elements Valley, even the arrival of elders from the other factions would not warrant his personal welcome. So it was more than just strange for him to make such a comment.
"Don't worry about it," Wu Meng was the only one who had remained calm. "You were unaware of my arrival, so you naturally cannot be faulted for that."
Wu Meng's response created even greater confusion among the people present.
It was already weird enough for Valley Head Nie Changyun to lower his status during his greeting, but Wu Meng actually accepted it as though it was only natural.
Could they have known each other before this?
After all, Valley Head Nie Changyun did not appear to be the least offended by his remark!
"Since Young Sir wants the flexible armour of my Five Elements Valley, and Elder Gui Heng is willing to give it up, I will not be opposed to it as well," Valley Head Nie Changyun got straight to the point.
"Thank you for understanding, Valley Head," Elder Gui Heng said, though he could not help but feel a pang of guilt for trading away one of the ten great treasures of the Five Elements Valley.
Protector Jun Mo, on the other hand, felt nothing but gratitude and relief. With that, it would be possible for his master to finally recover from his injury!
"If there is nothing else, the rest of you may leave us. I would like to have a word with the young sir in private," Valley Head Nie Changyun said.
"Yes, Valley Head."
Elder Gui Heng, Elder Kang Xian, and Protector Jun Mo said in unison before leaving the guest house.
Confusion would be an understatement when describing what they were thinking at the moment. But since the valley head had already said the word, they would naturally obey.
Zhang Wanqing hesitated for a moment before deciding to leave too.
"Where do you think you are going?" Wu Meng said just as she took her first step.
"Eh? What do you mean?" Zhang Wanqing asked. "Valley Head Nie wants to have a word with you in private."
"He was talking to his subordinates. You stay here and listen," Wu Meng sighed in disbelief.
"Is that really okay?" Zhang Wanqing turned towards Valley Head Nie Changyun.
"Why are you asking him when I have already said so?" Wu Meng said irritably. "Just who is your master here?"
"Don't worry, young lady. I don't mind you staying," Valley Head Nie Changyun replied with a smile.
"Oh, okay..." Zhang Wanqing obediently retreated back to where she was standing.
"Does Young Sir mind if I take a seat?" Valley Head Nie Changyun asked.
"Go ahead," Wu Meng gestured towards a chair across the table.
Looking at this scene alone, someone who did not know better might even think that their roles were reversed, with Wu Meng being the head of the Five Elements Valley and Valley Head Nie Changyun being the visitor!
Valley Head Nie Changyun gracefully took his seat, and Zhang Wanqing naturally poured a cup of tea for him.
And then, there was silence.
For the next ten minutes or so, Wu Meng and Valley Head Nie Changyun simply sat there sipping their tea, not exchanging a single word.
They appeared to be contented with this, but Zhang Wanqing felt extremely uncomfortable standing by the side. She could not help but feel that it was her presence that was preventing their conversation from flowing.
But just as she was about to suggest leaving once more, Wu Meng finally broke the silence. "So, what made you decide to sell off the armour instead of paying one hundred thousand spirit stones?"
The condition given to Elder Gui Heng had been to either produce one hundred thousand spirit stones or the flexible armour. While this might be an amount beyond the means of Elder Gui Heng, it was definitely within the authority of Valley Head Nie Changyun to draw such an amount from the faction's reserves.
However, he chose not to do so.
"I have a feeling that the Stone King's Flexible Armour will be put to greater use in Young Sir's hands," Valley Head Nie Changyun answered casually, almost as though he was talking about some random item instead of one of the ten great treasures of the Five Elements Valley.
"So, you know its name," the corner of Wu Meng's lips curled up upon hearing this. "Your Five Elements Valley has always been known for not interfering with the affairs of the world, but I heard that it has become more active recently."
"Is Young Sir familiar with my Five Elements Valley?" Valley Head Nie Changyun asked.
"I love reading about the records of the past, and the Five Elements Valley has been mentioned more than once for having refused to get involved in the past wars of the Thousand Race World," Wu Meng answered.
"Indeed. That is what the progenitor wanted, and also what I would have preferred," Valley Head Nie Changyun let out a helpless sigh. "Unfortunately, times have changed. It is getting increasingly difficult to survive alone in this day and age, especially since the Three Golden Prodigies are quickly becoming more influential and powerful. Even an established faction like ours cannot help but feel pressured by their meteoric rise."
"The Three Golden Prodigies?" Wu Meng smirked. "Has the valley been approached by any of them? Or are you perhaps planning to join one of them?"
"We have certainly received invitations from the prodigies. But as far as possible, I do not wish for the valley to be involved in the fight among them," Valley Head Nie Changyun shook his head. "I only hope that the Five Elements Valley could gain enough strength to not get swept away by the coming conflict."
"That is a wise decision," Wu Meng nodded in approval. "With the current strength of the Five Elements Valley, not hungering for power and influence is rather commendable."
"Young Sir has my gratitude for your kind words," Valley Head Nie Changyun answered.
"I'm just making casual talk, so there's no need to be so formal. More importantly..." Wu Meng leaned forward with a meaningful smile. "Does Valley Head Nie have anything troubling you that I can help with?"