Chapter 83: Life 61, Age 24, Martial Grandmaster Peak

While I was studying in an alchemy workshop the next day, LiPin came to see me. Steward Mao had returned, and he was ready to make a deal. “Alchemist Su, good to see you again,” he bowed to me as I entered the conference room. “Steward Mao,” I nodded, “I hear you have a deal ready for me.” “Yes,” he winced slightly. “The Mao Clan elders have decided to accept your proposal for Rank 0 pills. We are ready to hand over any mortal information you request in return for the equivalent value in pills.” “Only Rank 0?” I asked with a raised eyebrow. “Yes.” A worried expression crossed his face. “For now, that is all the elders have authorized.” I wasn’t sure what the elders were playing at. They knew the relative value of the information they were offering, and by specifying that only mortal information would be traded, it could be seen as slapping my face. They might be testing me to see what my reaction was. They might just want to know if I will hold to my word. What I believed, though, was that they were doing their best to take advantage of me. I made a note to check if the information they paid me with was available in the public libraries. I wondered if they realized that while they were testing me, I was also testing them. It seemed to be a common belief that only old foxes could play such games, and younger people were just there to be taken advantage of. I may frequently allow myself to be taken advantage of, but I always remembered who was earnest and who wasn’t. Looking at Steward Mao, I believed he understood everything, and he appeared genuinely contrite. He played the game from the front lines enough to suspect my motives, but the elders behind him were maybe too arrogant. Of course, I could be completely wrong in my suppositions. “Wonderful,” I smiled. I turned to LiPin. “Can I entrust the Pavilion to handle these matters? Just let me know what pills they need and in what quantities. If possible, you can have the books delivered to my apartment, if not, I can pick them up from the office. Take any necessary fees from my account.” “Yes, sir,” she said, writing down my instructions. “Alchemist Su,” said Steward Mao, “what information would you like? We have a wide range of books available for you to choose from.” “I will trust the judgment of the Mao Clan,” I said, opening my arms wide. “Any information you provide is appreciated, and you will know better than me what information you possess that will make this an equal exchange.” “Of course, it would be my privilege to do so,” Steward Mao said, giving me a bow and a martial salute. As he lowered his head, I saw a pained expression flash across his face. --------------------------------------------------- The main reason I didn’t care about getting a poor deal from the Mao Clan was that I planned to make a large number of the ‘Rank 0’ pills anyway. The ingredients to make them were far cheaper than regular pills, and I wouldn’t be stepping on anyone’s toes by purchasing them in bulk. If the Mao clan wanted to compensate me for something I was going to do anyway, I would accept it. I decided to first work on understanding the Nutrition Pill. I had been told that with only a few coppers worth of ingredients, an alchemist could make a pill that would solve any lingering problems in someone’s body caused by malnourishment. I didn’t have a great understanding of malnourishment, but I knew it was far more complicated than just being hungry. If someone was malnourished as a child, their bones will tell the story long after they grow old and die. A pill that could repair this kind of structural damage, even if it only worked on mortals, felt far more magical to me than simple cultivation pills. The Nutrition Pill only had a single ingredient. It was a large herb that looked similar to an ear of wheat. Looking at it in qi vision, I found that its structure was very different than I was used to. Using the ear of wheat analogy, the seeds were toxins, and the husk was the medicinal energy. The toxic energies were segmented into these small pods, and every one of them was completely surrounded by medicinal energy. To cleanse the herb, an alchemist needed to pierce the medicinal energy husk in multiple places to reach all the toxins. Taking the first herb, I didn’t use my affinities to move the medicinal energy out of the way. I used the thinnest needle of qi I could form and pierced into a toxic pod. I had gotten used to working with Rank 3 herbs where the medicinal energy was incredibly fragile, and the toxic energy was nearly impossible to destroy. This herb was the exact opposite. It took far more pressure to pierce the medicinal energy than I expected, and when I did, it caused very little damage. Then, the moment my qi met the toxic energy, it instantly destroyed it. It took me only seconds to quickly produce several qi needles and completely cleanse the herb. After that, I compressed the energy and formed the pill. I experimented with a few more pills until I understood the problem. The alchemist needed to damage the herb in many places to reach all the toxins, and if too much damage was caused, the herb would collapse. This was why a Master Alchemist was needed. Most Disciples wouldn’t have enough control. Very old Disciples Alchemists may have developed their soul sufficiently to succeed, but it wouldn’t be easy, and they would still lose a lot of efficacy if they weren’t careful. Wondering about my limits, I placed ten of the herbs on the workbench and began manipulating them simultaneously. I found I had sufficient focus to correctly direct needles at seven herbs simultaneously. After less than a minute, the first seven transformed into pills, and the other three quickly followed. “Right... Of course...” I turned away, but before I could leave, she spoke up. “No one new has contacted us, but several of the other groups you met with previously have stated their intention to purchase Rank 0 pills.” “Only Rank 0?” “Yes,” she said with a concerned face. “I understand,” I nodded. It seemed like someone might be orchestrating tricks behind the scenes, but I would let it play out. I thought about how to respond. “Tell them to go through the Mao Clan. I’ll provide all Rank 0 pills to them, then they can distribute them.” At this, Manager Bai who had been busy with her paperwork spoke up. “That isn’t a good idea.” I raised an eyebrow. “Why not?” “I’m not certain who the troublemaker is, but he is definitely a Grandmaster Alchemist, and they are possibly a member of the Mao Clan. If they are, this strategy will play right into their hands. If they aren’t, this could cause things to escalate unnecessarily.” I thought about what she was saying. Allowing things to escalate would give me potentially useful information for the future, but learning to play kingdom politics correctly would also be good. “Any idea why they are doing it?” Manager Bai chuckled. “They are fighting for the position of King. Contribution to the kingdom is a major factor in that decision, and they don’t want you to accrue any merit.” “Wait... what? Why does being the King have anything to do with this?” “The King selection happens in three years. All contenders must cultivate fire qi, and they need to have made substantial contributions to the kingdom. Blocking you from making these deals is blocking you from the position of King.” Grabbing such a position would be great for my cultivation, but I wasn’t ready for it. Not yet. I needed to expand my abilities and gain a firm understanding of the kingdom before I played at that level. “I have no interest in being King right now. How do you suggest I handle it?” “Back out of the deals.” She stated flatly. “At this point, you will gain nothing from them. None of the clans will provide any useful information. Those behind the scenes will mock you for breaking your word, and things will return to normal.” “Won’t this hurt future opportunities?” “Only temporarily. In a few years, after the new King takes over, they will come back. There should also be clans that approve of handling things this way.” “Is the Mao Clan involved, or is someone just using my agreement with them as leverage?” “I don’t know,” Bai shook her head. “Both options are possible.” “Alright, then. Sell these to the Mao Clan at the agreed price, but regretfully inform them that this will be the only batch. Tell any parties interested in purchasing my pills that I have decided to enter seclusion to improve my abilities." "Even if they ask for Rank 3 pills?” asked Bai. “Yes,” I nodded. “I actually will be studying, and these orders are a nuisance. If those clans are making offers in bad faith, I won’t play with them any longer. You can explain my reasoning to them as you see fit, but go ahead and turn everything down. Unless they directly offer something substantial in return, of course.” Bai gestured to LiPin who made a note of the conversation. I left to return to my workshop. Making Rank 0 pills was a good way to improve my mending abilities, but there were other skills I wanted to practice as well. No reason I couldn’t mix mending practice with learning more about secondary element herbs.