The next morning, the Medicine Hall courtyard buzzed with energy. Rows of formation pillars gleamed faintly, their inscriptions glowing with rhythmic light. In the center stood Li Ming, his sleeves rolled up, vial in hand — the medicine he'd refined yesterday gleaming faintly with pale gold light.
Bai Guo perched on a nearby pillar, yawning. "Descendant, this looks suspiciously like one of those things where you get punched to 'test your progress.'"
Li Ming frowned. "It's a controlled combat simulation."
"Controlled," Bai Guo echoed, "until someone explodes."
Lan Yue crossed her arms. "He's not wrong. Try not to blow up the courtyard this time."
From the opposite end, Xue Yan stepped forward, her robes fluttering slightly in the morning wind. A faint smirk curved her lips. "You're going to spar against me, Li Ming. The master said it's the only way to test how your medicine interacts with live Qi circulation."
