Chapter 133 - Master Apothecary Xuanyi (1/2)
Chapter 133: Master Apothecary Xuanyi
Even the slightest improvement made Ye Chen overjoyed. Throughout this process of learning alchemy, he felt that he had gained more mastery over his Fire-type Celestial Chi and had understood the characteristics of Fire-type Celestial Chi better.
Ye Chen stayed in the cabin for a few days and nights, and kept on experimenting. His clan members would deliver his meals while he remained completely immersed in learning the art of alchemy.
Ye Chen’s repeated failures did not make him feel dejected. For the sake of removing the poison in the bodies of his second uncle and Ye Meng, he had to succeed no matter what it took. He was determined to create an antidote for them within the next two to three years!
‘I have to become a master apothecary!’
To become a master apothecary, Ye Chen needed to not only be adept at alchemy but to also have a Venerable Rank cultivation base! While Ye Chen was confident that he would be able to break through into the Venerable Rank in his cultivation base, he was worried that it might be quite a challenge for him to master alchemy on his own without any guidance from a good teacher.
Nonetheless, Ye Chen had made up his mind to rise to this challenge!
The clan members did not know that Ye Chen was learning alchemy since none of them had noticed any refining furnace in his room. Therefore, they were all under the impression that he was concentrating fully on his isolated cultivation.
In a corner of the valley, the Zhan cohort of the Ye Clan was cultivating beside a Chi-amassing Formation. The rich Celestial Chi here had enabled them to improve their cultivation at an amazing speed.
“What has Little Chen been up to these days?” Ye Changxuan asked as he opened his eyes.
“He’s been staying in his residence every single day. It seems like he’s cultivating,” Ye Zhantian replied.
“If that’s the case, why didn’t he come to the Chi-amassing Formation to cultivate?” Ye Changxuan was puzzled.
“I’m not sure either. I heard he has also led tens of our clansmen to a forest in the valley and fenced it up to plant Lingzhi,” Ye Zhantian said.
“Plant Lingzhi?” Ye Changxuan burst out laughing. “Little Chen is being unreasonable. How is it possible to plant Lingzhi? Lingzhi mushrooms are natural treasures that are born of the World Celestial Chi around us, so it’s impossible to grow them as crops.”
“Many clan members said so too but Little Chen refused to believe it. In any case, I can’t bring myself to interfere with what he wants to do,” Ye Zhantian replied while laughing in resignation. Ye Chen’s cultivation base had far surpassed his. Although he was proud of his son, Ye Zhantian could not help feeling like he had failed as a father. Instead of keeping his son safe from harm, he had to rely on his son for shelter and protection.
“Just let Little Chen do what he wants. In any case, our clan members are the ones managing these affairs on his behalf. It won’t take up too much of his time.” Ye Changxuan thought about how Ye Chen had already attained such an astounding level in his cultivation base and figured that Ye Chen would not be able to continue advancing to a higher level simply by cultivating diligently. They should let nature take its own course.
Time passed by day after day. A month later, the news of the deaths of the Second-rank Prince of Donglin Liu Xun and the Minister of War Liu Kan, reached Capital City and caused Great Emperor Mingwu to fly into a rage.
West Jade City was a prosperous metropolis in Capital City and was at least twenty times larger than Donglin City. It had a population of more than fifty million people and was divided into five districts namely the eastern, southern, western, northern, and central districts. The eastern, southern, western, and northern districts flourished independently and were like county cities. The central district was the imperial family’s inner court and was vast and boundless while the outer city walls stood tall and were heavily guarded. In the inner court, one would be able to find just about everything one could imagine including a mountain range, lakes, rivers, pavilions, and pagodas as well as buildings with painted pillars and carved beams. All the riches of the world could be found in this place.
On the northern side of the inner court, a small island stood in the middle of a vast open lake. A few buildings stood tall and upright on the island and were surrounded by the natural beauty of the lake and mountains. The centermost building was called Xuan Pavilion and was Master Apothecary Xuanyi’s residence.