Yang Cheng didn't hide anything. "Peach blossoms represent love and fate. When you gaze at them, your mind naturally starts to form thoughts connected to affection and desire.
When the pill takes shape, it absorbs your spiritual power—and along with it, a great deal of that emotional energy.
So this pill can be said to be something we all refined together.
It has an incredibly strong power of illusion. After taking it, one would fall into a dreamlike vision. It might even help one pass through an emotional tribulation or dispel a love gu."
Everyone suddenly understood, and their admiration for Yang Cheng deepened even more.
"Master Yang," a disciple from the Pill Academy said respectfully, "the two pills you spoke of, as well as your method of alchemy—we've never seen or even heard of them, not in any alchemy texts. Did you really create them yourself?"
"That's right."
Yang Cheng smiled calmly. "I don't mean to deny the importance of the pill scriptures—they're valuable. But I believe we shouldn't cling too tightly to them or let them shackle our thinking.
As the saying goes, 'To believe every word in a book is worse than having no book at all.'
The heavens, the sun and moon, all living beings and every grain of dust—from the vast universe to the smallest speck of existence—are books of their own, each a manifestation of the Dao.
The reason I can refine pills without having studied from the texts is because I take heaven, earth, the sun, moon, and all living beings as my teachers."
These words weren't something he made up.
His knowledge of alchemy came directly from the system.
And the pill principles he explained now were all derived from that system.
In other words, he was passing down the system's understanding of the Dao of Alchemy to the others—a level of mastery far beyond any alchemist within the Pill Academy.
By now, Yang Cheng had already attained a Two-Star Pill Domain, so he could clearly tell that the system's alchemy was on the level of sages.
Although most people already believed in Yang Cheng, a small number still hesitated.
After all, being "born wise" was something almost impossible to imagine.
They found it hard to accept that such an ancient-sage-like figure could really exist right in front of them.
Then they started throwing countless questions at him.
But Yang Cheng answered each one with complete ease.
He didn't rely on the knowledge written in alchemy texts; instead, he used simple logic and everyday reasoning to explain everything.
"So that's how it works!"
"This question has haunted me for years. I searched every book I could find, and none gave me the answer—until now!"
"I heard Master Yang is only twelve years old. At such an age, to possess knowledge this vast and profound—aside from being born with it, there's really no other explanation."
Even the veteran lecturer Master Zeng Li, who had been doubtful at first, was now completely convinced.
"Too incredible."
"It turns out the foolish ones weren't Master Yang—it was us."
"To think we've been lucky enough to meet someone born with innate wisdom!"
All the students were shaken to the core, feeling that they'd never met anyone as extraordinary as Yang Cheng in their entire lives.
Wang Rou stood in a daze.
Just a short while ago, she'd thought Yang Cheng was finished—and that she would be dragged down with him. She never expected everything to reverse so quickly.
Outside the hall—
Zheng Qiu had already walked out, but his feet seemed rooted to the ground.
His mind was completely blank.
At that moment, he felt a deep sense of despair.
How could someone like him ever hope to compete with a person like Yang Cheng?
The gap between them was simply too vast.
Lecturer Lu, who had been similar to him in rank, now looked deathly pale, feeling that his dignity had been trampled into the mud by Yang Cheng.
The louder his voice of doubt had been before, the uglier his expression was now.
"Xingyu, I've decided—Master Yang will be my faith from now on!"
Liu Hongfu was practically drooling in awe.
Tang Xingyu couldn't help but smile softly. Chengcheng truly was Chengcheng.
Since childhood, he'd always been capable of anything.
Though she was a year older than him, looking back now she realized that Chengcheng had always been the one quietly supporting her.
Before they knew it, the lecture was nearing its end.
By now, the area outside the hall was packed with people—half the Dao Academy had gathered.
Even teachers from other academies had arrived.
When one understands a single Dao, one can understand all Daos.
The principles of alchemy didn't only apply to alchemy—they could be used in all paths.
As Yang Cheng declared the lecture over and stepped outside, the dense crowd followed after him.
The Chief Supervisor immediately ordered people to surround Yang Cheng to prevent anyone from getting too close or disturbing him.
This made many onlookers sigh with regret—they hadn't even gotten a clear look at Master Yang's face.
But regardless, the influence Yang Cheng had unleashed did not fade in the slightest.
On just the first day, during the first class, Yang Cheng shocked the entire Myriad Phenomena Dao Academy.
Born wise.
At twelve years old, he displayed such vast learning that even the senior lecturers were left speechless.
Before everyone's eyes, he used ordinary peach blossoms to refine a Saint-grade pill and an Emperor-grade pill.
…
Each of these deeds, one after another, was nothing short of legendary.
For Yang Cheng, the only regret was that he hadn't been able to talk more with Tang Xingyu.
When he tried to find her afterward, she had already been pulled away by one of her female companions.
So Yang Cheng returned to his own courtyard.
"Have you heard?"
Dongfang Sheng spoke first. "I heard a new lecturer joined the Pill Academy today. They say he's someone born with innate wisdom…"
"That kind of person's too far from our world. What's it got to do with us?"
Xu Letian replied lazily, "A few days ago, a new batch of pleasure barges arrived at the foot of the mountain. Why don't I take you all there to relax?"
"Pleasure barges? Sounds like some kind of brothel to me," said Zeng Niu with a smirk.
"Not a brothel," Xu Letian said seriously. "It's actually quite an elegant place. Not just us—Qingzhi and her friends will be there too."
At that, Zeng Niu's interest immediately spiked.
Beneath Qilin Volcano ran a river called the Wudong River.
At the moment, several painted pleasure barges floated atop its waters.
Half an hour later, the group arrived at the largest of them.
Onboard, they once again ran into Yan Qingzhi and several other girls. Even Lu Lingyi had come along.
That instantly made Dongfang Sheng and Zeng Niu much more enthusiastic.
The barge offered many forms of entertainment—drinking games, riddle contests, and friendly duels of strategy, as well as a few flirtatious but not indecent games.
Ma Ruoruo and Wei Jia were clearly regulars. They handled every round with skill and laughter.
Before long, even Yan Qingzhi couldn't resist joining in.
Only Yang Cheng and Lu Lingyi remained seated quietly to the side.
The truth was, Yang Cheng had come purely to observe and relax his state of mind.
In his past life, he had been constantly on the run, always fighting for survival. In this life, though still young, he had never once visited such a place.
He had to admit—it was somewhat entertaining.
But he merely watched, with no real interest in taking part.
After all, he was already more than five hundred years old inside. There was nothing youthful left about his heart.
Perhaps bored by the noise, Lu Lingyi finally turned to him and asked, "Have you heard of Tang Xingyu?"
"I have. Why?"
"What do you think? Who's prettier—her or me?"
"Tang Xingyu."
"And why's that?"
"It has nothing to do with beauty. No matter how you look, in my eyes, she'll always be more beautiful."
"Hmph, that reason doesn't convince me."
"If you insist on a reason," Yang Cheng said calmly, "then it's because she's one of the people I'm closest to in this world."
"Hahaha, I didn't expect you to be such a smooth talker after all."
Perhaps it was because Lu Lingyi's smile was so charming that it caught the attention of a refined-looking man nearby.
"This fairy," the man said gracefully, "may I offer you a cup of Jade Dew Wine?"
That particular wine cost one hundred top-grade spirit stones per cup—a true luxury, known not only for its exquisite taste but also for its benefits to cultivation.
The man looked to be in his twenties, elegantly dressed, clearly someone of high status.