A few days later, Yue Qingqian, having calculated the time, went to Hundred Herbs Peak again for her second "lesson."
This time, her mindset was much calmer. Wearing the "Breath-Concealing Jade" gifted by her senior brother, she could feel the innate sword heart power that was almost overflowing within her being perfectly enveloped by a gentle yet unfathomable force, preventing even a hint of its sharpness from leaking out. This made her even more adept at playing the role of the "frail and sickly" but specialized genius.
She navigated her way to Elder Liu's private alchemy courtyard with ease.
Unlike the last time, Elder Liu was not waiting for her in the courtyard, but in a quiet room attached to the alchemy chamber. The room was filled with various ancient bamboo slips and beast-hide scrolls, and the air was filled with a peculiar fragrance, a mixture of books and herbs.
Elder Liu was sitting at a desk, his brows furrowed in deep thought over several tattered ancient texts. It was clear that the ancient theory about "Seven Star Iron Vine catalyzing medicinal properties," which Yue Qingqian had "unintentionally" brought up last time, had kept him engrossed in research for the past few days, though it seemed he had not made any substantial progress.
All of this was within Lin Fan's expectations. It would be a miracle if he could get any results from a theory that was completely fabricated.
Seeing Yue Qingqian enter, Elder Liu finally looked up from the scrolls. He seemed a bit tired, but upon seeing his "genius disciple," a glimmer of light reignited in his eyes.
"Disciple, you have come," he beckoned. "How are you feeling today? Is the spiritual energy within you stable?"
"Thank you for your concern, Master. I am fine," Yue Qingqian replied respectfully, perfectly portraying the image of a well-behaved and sensible disciple.
"Mm, that is good," Elder Liu nodded. "Today, we shall continue with our previous topic. I refuse to believe that with your talent in fire control, you cannot refine a single cauldron of the simplest Qi and Blood Pills!"
For the next half an hour, history repeated itself with precision.
Yue Qingqian first demonstrated her miraculous and incredibly stable fire control technique, which earned Elder Liu's praise. Then, during the steps of adding herbs and congealing the pill, she once again, in a new, creative, and unbelievable way, messed it up.
Boom!
With a muffled sound even louder than the last time, the lid of the alchemy cauldron was blown half a foot high by a puff of black smoke.
Looking at the freshly-baked, bubbling, black, unidentified paste in the cauldron, Yue Qingqian knew that the time was ripe.
She did not immediately apologize as she did last time. Instead, she stared blankly at her "masterpiece," a mist quickly forming in her clear eyes. She bit her lip tightly, her small nose twitching slightly, looking pitifully as if she wanted to cry but was stubbornly holding it back.
A moment later, she turned around, and towards Elder Liu, she bowed deeply, a grand salute.
Her voice, filled with a heart-wrenching tremble and self-blame, said, "Master... I... I am too foolish..."
"I... have failed to live up to your high expectations! I feel that I am simply not cut out for alchemy. Every time, I waste your precious medicinal herbs and time... Master, perhaps you should... expel me from the sect..."
Her performance of advancing by retreating was so emotionally sincere, her acting so superb, that she almost believed it herself.
Seeing the "uncut jade of the Great Dao" that he had found with such difficulty now heartbroken and even giving up on herself, Elder Liu became anxious.
His "rationalization" technique began to operate at an unprecedented power.
"Sigh! Poor child! That's right, her talent is so extreme, her temperament must also be more sensitive and fragile than ordinary people! A common failure, in her eyes, is perhaps a negation of her 'Dao'! It is my fault, my teaching method is too rigid, too inflexible! How can I use the method of teaching ordinary disciples on such a once-in-a-generation genius?"
"What she needs is not step-by-step, rote learning! What she needs is inspiration! It is a sea of knowledge, allowing her to roam freely within it and find the unique path of alchemy that is most suitable for her!"
At this thought, Elder Liu felt his sense of responsibility as a teacher surge. He quickly stepped forward to help Yue Qingqian up, and in the gentlest and most benevolent tone of his life, he comforted her:
"Nonsense! Who says you are not cut out for alchemy! If I say you are, then you are!"
Just as Yue Qingqian was about to make her "request" according to the script, Elder Liu beat her to it, saying something that even surprised her.
"Disciple, I have figured it out!" Elder Liu slapped his thigh, as if in a sudden realization. "Your problem is not with your talent, but with your state of mind and your knowledge! It is my teaching method that is at fault! From today on, you don't have to come here to practice alchemy anymore!"
Yue Qingqian's heart leaped with joy. Could it be that the plan was successful, and she could go home directly?
But Elder Liu's next sentence made her heart skip a beat.
"I have decided to punish you... by sending you to our Hundred Herbs Peak's Scripture Pavilion to reflect on your mistakes!"
"Ah?" Yue Qingqian was stunned.
"What 'ah'!" Elder Liu's beard trembled as he glared. "Your theoretical foundation is so weak, yet you are so arrogant. It is only right that you go to the Scripture Pavilion to properly settle your mind! Go! Read every single alchemy formula, medicinal classic, and predecessor's insights from ancient times to the present! When you feel you truly understand what the 'Dao of Alchemy' is, then you may come out and see me!"
As he spoke, he directly thrust his own elder's token into Yue Qingqian's hand.
"This token grants the highest level of access to the Scripture Pavilion. From the first floor to the seventh floor, which is not open to the public, you may come and go as you please! Go! This is both my punishment for you and my test for you!"
Yue Qingqian stood there dumbfounded, holding the elder's token that granted even higher access than her own personal disciple token, her mind a complete blank.
She... she hadn't even had a chance to speak, and his "punishment" had perfectly, and even excessively, achieved all of her and her senior brother's strategic objectives.
This... this also works?!
With a feeling of extreme absurdity and unreality, Yue Qingqian respectfully bowed and took her leave. Then, she walked straight towards the knowledge sanctuary of Hundred Herbs Peak that she and her senior brother had long coveted—the Scripture Pavilion.
The Scripture Pavilion of Hundred Herbs Peak was an ancient seven-story pagoda, constructed entirely of a type of green jade that could calm the mind and spirit. The pagoda was surrounded by powerful restriction arrays.
When Yue Qingqian arrived at the entrance, holding Elder Liu's token, the two Foundation Establishment stage deacons on guard duty were so shocked their eyes almost popped out. But they dared not show any disrespect. They immediately and respectfully opened all the restrictions, allowing this seemingly harmless junior sister to walk in unhindered.
Suppressing the excitement in her heart, Yue Qingqian did not linger on the lower floors but, as per her senior brother's instructions, went directly up to the most heavily guarded and mysterious sixth and seventh floors.
Here, the collection was no longer limited to just alchemy classics. There were more geographical atlases of various rare treasures and minerals, incomplete array formations passed down from ancient times, and countless records of strange tales, perilous lands, and secret realms documented by powerful predecessors during their travels.
To Lin Fan, this was simply a priceless intelligence treasure trove!
Yue Qingqian found a cushion in a corner of the seventh floor and sat down. After confirming that no one was around, she slowly closed her eyes.
Her next mission officially began.
Her terrifying spiritual sense, comparable to that of a Golden Core master and perfectly concealed by the "Breath-Concealing Jade," spread out like an invisible tide, silently, towards every corner of this pagoda, every bamboo slip, every beast-hide book.
Her task was not to "read" with her eyes, but to use her powerful, eidetic memory and spiritual sense to "copy" this Scripture Pavilion, which was the crystallization of thousands of years of wisdom of Hundred Herbs Peak, into her mind, word for word, and then, bring it back, complete, to her knowledge-thirsty senior brother.
A world-shaking "knowledge theft" operation thus quietly began, unknown to anyone.