Story 3 - Spiritual Vines and a Smokey Pill Cauldron (24)

Story 3 - Spiritual Vines and a Smokey Pill Cauldron (24)

I had no proof. And as a Qi Condensation Practitioner with an ’imaginary’ immortal backing me, I wasn’t in a position to find it either.

Regardless, I didn’t mind laying the blame for Old Smokey’s untimely demise on her silk-clad feet. I mean, she was the same woman who managed a monopolistic take over of a single spiritual vine and raised the price on it by 120,000%. And people fucking thanked her for it because it was still cheaper than the previous herbs.

“I have a suggestion,” I spoke up with confidence. White Lily raised a brow at me. The Pill Otaku finally took his eyes off the bottles and considered me. Pill Master Burning looked like he just wanted to get the fuck out of here and wouldn’t listen to anything I had to say. Seriously, he should just take a break if he needed it.

“I fully admit that I am injured, and I’m sure there are others here who were also injured and require some time to recover. Once you’ve finished judging the pills, Why not allow us to take a short recess for recovery and to allow the guild to investigate this mishap, and then we can continue.”

Pill Master Burning rolled his eyes. “You don’t have a cauldron, if you pass, how are you going to have us continue the tournament?”

I grinned. “Let us have a pill debate for the final round!”

Violet raised her brows at me. “Interesting. How old are you? Eight? Nine?”

“Nine,” I said with feigned proudness.

“Yet you believe you could debate and hold your own against me?”

“What? Are you scared that you’ll lose face after you’ve lost to a child?”Visit no(v)eLb(i)n.com for the best novel reading experience

“I won’t lose.”

“They haven’t even judged our pills yet,” The poor extra Foundation Establishment cultivator said. “Who knows. I could come in first.” He smirked.

Violet and I shared a look, for once.

“Then it’s decided that we’ll take a recess and then you both shall participate in a pill debate for your final round... if Apprentice Lin passes and not Apprentice Golden Grass.”

The extra apprentice, who actually had a name, huffed. A vein ticked in his forehead, likely from being ignored.

We nodded.

With obvious impatience, Pill Master Burning grabbed all three bottles.

He brought out three white bowls and poured the pills from each into them.

Wow. White Lily was super sweet for a Nascent Soul. A little misguided, but still sweet.

I bowed. “Thank you for your advice, Pill Master.”

Pill Master Ruthless Divine Medicine brought the bowl over to him and studied the pill for way longer than I thought he would. I almost wondered if he were doing it on purpose to make Pill Master Burning Asshole over there suffer more.

“With this lovely color, clarity, and scent, this is a prime example of what a Nine Snakes Explosive Tempering Dan should look like. While that in and of itself makes this pill lovely, the fact that this pill was created under such circumstances and by such a young cultivator should be applauded. You pass onto the next round,” He turned, slightly to the other two, “With enthusiasm. Alchemists need to risk their lives to advance in their craft, just like other paths. So, while being careful is fine, taking chances to create something beautiful is also part of our profession.”

Damn. Well said, Pill Otaku. I knew you were my favorite for a reason.

I collected my pill and returned to the side to watch the assessment.

Finally, it was Violet Pill Fairy’s turn.

Pill Master Burning Tyrannical Stallion, who by this time had a skin color that was not unlike a cooked lobster, seemed to waver a bit between wanting to act suggestive and taking care of his problem. “Apprentice Violet Pill. Yours are almost all at the pinnacle. And your best one, when put next to Apprentice Lin’s appears to be equal in quality.”

Are you kidding me right now? We fuckin’ tied? No, wait. She had more pills so, if we tied for quality then she technically would have won this round. Bitch.

“When you realized that there was trouble with the exploding cauldrons. You immediately worked to protect yourself and your concoction. You even rescued a few nearby cultivators so the guild’s team of enforcers didn’t have to work as hard.” He sent her a brief smile, “Because of these reasons, I strongly approve of you moving onto the next round.”

And she even helped people? What? Was she having a guilty conscience for putting those poor cultivators in that situation in the first place?

“Thank you for your approval, Pill Master.” She bowed elegantly. The corners of her lips turned up even higher.

White Lily took the bowl and scanned the contents. “I agree with that assessment, and strongly approve of you moving onto the next round. Excellent work. And it was fantastic to see you helping your fellow apprentices.”

“Thank you for your approval, Pill Master.”

Pill Master Ruthless, pulled the bowl over to him. He squinted at it then nodded. “They are very similar, though I believe Apprentice Lin’s is slightly clearer and has a bit more efficacy. But not enough, unfortunately, to say that it is definitely better.” He rolled the batch of pills around in the bowl. “Regardless, there is no winner during the rounds only a pass or fail. So I will not say that anyone won this round. But I will point out, that while you were impressive in both your concoction and your ability to help others while creating such a high-quality pill. Apprentice Lin’s cauldron, literally exploded, where yours did not. She is a mere Qi Condensation practitioner while you are a glorified Golden Core. These facts should speak for themselves.”

He paused for a long moment and finally looked into Violet’s eyes. “You pass. Congratulations.”

Damn, Pill Otaku. You tell it like it is.

“Thank you for your approval, Pill Master.” Violet bowed but the smile had finally been wiped off her smug ass face.