Chapter 38: Seeking Offerings

The next morning, Chen Baolan packed his bags and left.

He left behind a book detailing his experiences during Foundation Establishment. He also gave Chen Xinglan a jade pendant, which had the effect of calming the mind and spirit. Worn on the body, it could increase a Qi Refining cultivator's spiritual sense by twenty to thirty percent. This was equivalent to a quarter of the effect of consuming a Spirit-Ascension Powder. It was a fortuitous find Chen Baolan had acquired while excavating ancient ruins.

Chen Xinglan didn't act coy; after all, it was a gift from his own brother, so he accepted it directly. However, he also stated that he would return it to Chen Baolan after his Foundation Establishment, regardless of success or failure. The latter nodded with a smile.

As for Wang Jianyuan and Chen Yulan, they presented a significant gift. It was 800,000 Merit Points. Originally, they had intended to purchase one of the 'Three Treasures of Foundation Establishment' as a gift, but they couldn't get their hands on any due to the high demand, so they had no choice but to give Merit Points instead.

However, Chen Xinglan and his wife naturally refused to accept it. Even between siblings, such a large sum of Merit Points felt undeserved. They had found it difficult to refuse that evening at the theater entrance. So, this morning, Tang Pancui had deliberately woken up early, intending to return the 800,000 Merit Points.

"Son, go buy some hangover medicine for your dad. I'm going to your aunt's house first."

After seeing Chen Baolan off, Tang Pancui hurried off by bus. Chen Xinglan had drunk too much last night, and his alcohol tolerance wasn't high, so he still hadn't sobered up.

"Got it."

Chen Mobai ate some breakfast quickly and then requested a day off from his homeroom teacher. Chai Deyun was very responsible; upon seeing the message, he specifically called to ask what was going on. After all, the college entrance exam was approaching, and every day was crucial. However, after learning that Chen Mobai was taking his father, Chen Xinglan, to Scarlet Cloud Academy to prepare for Foundation Establishment, he politely offered congratulations and granted the leave.

It was still the Evergreen Pharmacy at the street corner. Chen Mobai was more experienced this time. He walked in and waited a moment, and the girl in the white nurse's uniform came out. However, this time she didn't have the large iron pot in her hand; she seemed to be in the busy phase of extracting medicinal liquids. Fine beads of sweat were faintly visible on the fair skin exposed around the edge of her mask.

"What do you need this time?"

After two transactions, the two were somewhat acquainted. The girl first dispelled the medicinal scent from herself before walking over to ask.

"Hangover medicine."

"How much?"

"One box."

"30 Merit Points."

Chen Mobai took the dose of spirit water for hangovers that she retrieved from a compartment in the medicine cabinet and immediately pulled out his phone to scan and pay.

"Last time, I think I saw you packaging 'Qi Replenishing Spirit Water'?" Seeing that the girl was about to return to the back room, he finally couldn't resist and asked.

"Oh, that? My teacher refines those. They're exclusively supplied to Treasure Vase Pharmacy. Even if you wanted to buy it, I couldn't sell it to you." Qing Nü evidently knew what Chen Mobai wanted to ask and immediately cut off his line of thought.

"Aren't there any extra? I heard online that alchemists always refine an additional ten percent, just in case of accidents, to ensure they can deliver the full quantity."

But Chen Mobai didn't give up. If there was enough Qi Replenishing Spirit Water, his father, cultivating on a low-grade third-tier spiritual vein, might be able to reach the ninth level of Qi Refining completion within the next two years.

"There are extra portions, but my teacher sells them to long-time clients with whom he has a deep relationship. Even I don't get any." Qing Nü shook her head, speaking words that forced Chen Mobai to abandon the idea of buying Qi Replenishing Spirit Water from her.

"That's truly a shame."

Holding the packaged hangover medicine, Chen Mobai thanked Qing Nü and turned to leave. Just then, a quiet voice came from behind him: "If you trust me, I can actually refine this Qi Replenishing Spirit Water too." This made him immediately turn back.

"You! You can refine it?"

"First-tier should be no problem. Although I haven't passed the Immortal Sect's official alchemist assessment, I've learned most of the basic knowledge."

"But alchemists rely on practical experience for true understanding. No matter how well you master the knowledge, you still need to refine it for it to be useful."

"Oh, alright then." Qing Nü was merely speaking her mind. Seeing Chen Mobai's distrustful gaze, she didn't bother to explain further.

"Wait, can you really refine it?" Seeing Qing Nü lift the curtain to the back room, about to turn and leave, Chen Mobai couldn't stand still. With a "nothing to lose" attitude, he pressed further.

"Except for the final step of blending the medicinal liquids, which my teacher always handles personally, I've gone through the other basic steps and processes over a dozen times. My success rate can reach eighty to ninety percent."

"How can I cooperate with you?" After recovering from his shock, Chen Mobai's high emotional intelligence returned. Instead of pressing her on how confident she was about the final step, he humbly asked what he could do.

"You provide the materials, and I'll use them for practice. If I succeed, it's all yours; if I fail, the losses are yours."

Qing Nü's words made Chen Mobai ponder. The truth was, they had only conducted three transactions, and their foundation of trust was not deep. With Wu Wan's previous lesson in mind, Chen Mobai was now wary of everyone who ran a business.

"I have something to do today. Are you free after school tomorrow?" Chen Mobai decided to think it over carefully. It was a rare opportunity, but Qing Nü seemed to be around his age. Even if she had been refining pills since childhood, her skill level couldn't be very high. Although he currently had some Merit Points, he dared not waste them. Everyone knew that sponsoring an alchemist's cultivation was the most expensive endeavor! If artifact refining failed, some of the raw materials could still be extracted by machines and reused. However, if a batch of pills failed in alchemy, it was completely scrapped and unusable. But Qi Replenishing Spirit Water was refined using a water-based method. As long as the initial medicinal liquid extraction process was flawless, even if the final blending step failed the first time, one could gradually experiment. This method had a much higher tolerance for error than fire-based alchemy.

"I'm not exactly free; I have tasks assigned by my teacher to complete." Qing Nü had noticed Chen Mobai's no-haggling attitude when he bought the spirit testing device last time and assumed he came from a relatively wealthy family. Coincidentally, she was planning to apply for the Immortal Sect's first-tier alchemist qualification recently and needed some practical experience with water-based alchemy. Hearing Chen Mobai's need for Qi Replenishing Spirit Water, she subtly brought up the possibility. However, this was Qing Nü's first time seeking sponsorship, and she was a bit unpracticed. When it came down to it, seeing Chen Mobai's lack of enthusiasm, she also felt a little hesitant.

"I still have two tickets for the Jade Phoenix Opera Troupe. It's for Meng Huan'er and Jiang Yuyuan's 'Moon-Treading Melody,' front-row seats, which are the best positions apart from the private boxes." Of the ten tickets Chen Baolan had given, his family had used seven yesterday, and one was promised to his cousin Wang Xinying. He happened to have two tickets left and thought that the girl in front of him, being around his age, might be interested in the Jade Phoenix Opera Troupe.

But he had completely underestimated Jiang Yuyuan's appeal to all young women in the Immortal Sect. As soon as Chen Mobai finished speaking, Qing Nü's eyes lit up.