The Alchemy Peak Lecture
It wasn't quite like that. The Alchemy Peak was located not too far from the Sect Leader's Peak. After riding the clouds and passing over a couple of ridges, a new mountain range unfolded beneath them. Jin Wi waved his hand, and the cloud slowly descended. As her toes touched the stone steps, Baek Cheong lightly straightened her robes and looked around. True to the name Alchemy Peak, the faint scent of medicinal herbs wafted through the air.
Jin Wi stopped a step ahead and turned around. The corners of his mouth were curled up slightly higher than usual. "Young Miss Baek, please wait a moment."
"Yes?"
"There is something I would like to show you."
As Baek Cheong clasped her hands together with a puzzled expression, Jin Wi cleared his throat and squared his shoulders. It looked as if someone who had reached the Core Formation stage was trying to shed the pretense of being a child and show off his true form. As Jin Wi raised both hands, blue energy gathered quietly at his fingertips. Soon, six water-attribute spells formed into small droplets and floated up one by one.
'Multi-casting, huh.' Baek Cheong assessed it briefly in her mind. The first spell was a standard Waterflow Art, and the second was an Ice-Binding Art with a chill hidden inside. The third, just by the power it exuded, was clearly a 1st-tier Supreme-grade spell. The remaining three were also different types of water-attribute spells. Each of the six spells circled Jin Wi smoothly at different speeds. And there wasn't a hint of instability in any of them.
"How is it?" Jin Wi said in a proud tone, spreading his hands slightly. "Six water-attribute spells. I even cast a 1st-tier Supreme-grade spell along with them."
Baek Cheong widened her eyes slightly, maintaining her posture. "Senior Jin Wi, are you casting all of these at once?"
"Well, it's nothing special." Even as he said it was nothing special, Jin Wi puffed out his chest once more. The corners of his mouth refused to come down from their relaxed position. Baek Cheong added a small round of applause, pretending to be appropriately surprised.
'As expected of a Heavenly Spiritual Root user, he's good at everything.' Even among the users on Mumyungbang, the versatility of those with Heavenly Spiritual Roots was often a topic of conversation. Even if they dug deep into only one thing, the depth was extraordinary, and even when they reached out to side branches, there was no lack of skill anywhere. It was a different level from other spiritual roots that had to juggle multiple attributes.
'If I were a Heavenly Spiritual Root user, things would have been a bit easier.' A Heavenly Spiritual Root user like Jin Wi had the talent to easily solve whatever they reached for. Even when hearing the same word "genius," it was clear where the difference in talent lay. 'Well, it's not like I can do anything about it by being envious.' Baek Cheong tucked away her small jealousy and shifted her gaze back to Jin Wi.
The six spells slowly dispersed and turned into a calm mist. "It was worth the effort I've put in all this time," Jin Wi added in a deliberately deep voice. His tone was an imitation of an adult, but the excitement of a child remained buried in one corner. It seemed that the fact that he had received praise from her acted as a reward.
'If he's happy, then so be it.' Baek Cheong clasped her hands neatly and nodded slightly in response. There was no way Jin Wi could have guessed that the small jealousy that had risen in her chest had already rolled away.
Jin Wi took the lead again and stepped inside the ridge. The true scenery of Alchemy Peak unfolded beyond the ridge. The first thing that caught her eye was a wide field, groomed like stairs. Medicinal herbs of different colors were growing in neat rows in each field. Blue spiritual energy shimmered between the leaves.
"That side is where the sect cultivates precious medicinal herbs. Since each herb has its own preferred spot to grow, we've spread them out evenly across the peak. They might look sloppy from the outside, but they are protected by formations, so it's common for disciples who step in the wrong place to get a good scolding." Jin Wi explained, trying to keep the conversation going. Beyond the herb fields, a large pavilion stood straight. The unique scent of medicinal ingredients seemed to waft gently from the pavilion.
"That pavilion is where we specialize in handling medicinal ingredients. It's a place to trim the herbs before making pills, and to let them age when they need to be aged." Baek Cheong nodded and shifted her gaze inward. Beyond the pavilion, large and small buildings stood shoulder to shoulder along the path. The shapes of the roofs were all different. Some buildings had eaves that flowed down softly, while others rose in circles, modeled after the shape of an alchemy furnace.
"In the Biun Sect, schools are divided according to their alchemy methods, and since the way they install furnaces or handle herbs differs by school, they build separate buildings for each." Jin Wi told her a story he seemed to have heard somewhere. As expected of a great sect, the scale of alchemy far exceeded that of her family's. The alchemy scale of the Yeonha Baek Clan was merely a small building (the size of another family's mansion). However, the scale of the Biun Sect's alchemy was on a level comparable to a decent cultivation village.
"And..." Jin Wi walked deep inside, telling her all about Alchemy Peak. Before long, after turning a corner, a large pavilion located in the center of the peak came into view. The eaves were higher and longer than the other buildings, and a small Dan-jeong (alchemy tripod) shaped ornament was placed on the roof. People were gathering in the wide courtyard in front of the pavilion. There were external cultivators dressed as guests, and cloud-patterned robes, which appeared to be inner disciples of the Biun Sect, were mixed in here and there.
"Today happens to be the day a lecture is held at the Danjeong-lou (Alchemy Pavilion)," Jin Wi said, pointing to the pavilion with one hand. "It's the most prestigious school on our Alchemy Peak. As it is a school the sect prides itself on, there are many people from other peaks who make the trip on this day."
"Then... may I go in and listen as well?"
"Of course. You must have wanted to hear it." Baek Cheong nodded slightly and followed Jin Wi into the procession. As she followed the procession, she was soon in front of the large platform of the pavilion. A cultivator dressed in cloud-patterned robes stood on the platform. His presence was different from the transmission disciples she had seen at the Sect Leader's Peak pavilion. It was much deeper, and the energy flowing out naturally was much stronger.
'Golden Core Perfection.' Baek Cheong gauged his realm in her mind. It was no wonder his depth was so great, as he was peering into the path of the Nascent Soul at the very edge of the Golden Core. Soon, Jin Wi leaned in close to her side and whispered in a small voice.
"That is Alchemy Uncle Dan-gyeong. He is someone who has long been marked as the next Peak Master of our sect's Alchemy Peak."
"The next Peak Master?"
"Yes. He is someone who can personally craft up to 4th-tier pills, so apart from the Peak Master, there is no one on this sect who can compare to him in alchemy. Furthermore, there is talk among the elders that he is knocking on the door of the Nascent Soul stage." Jin Wi could not hide his proud tone while politely introducing his alchemy uncle. Baek Cheong nodded and shifted her gaze back to the platform. Dan-gyeong opened his mouth slowly, with one hand neatly behind his back and the other spread lightly.
"The most difficult thing in alchemy is, in the end, how to raise the quality of the pill."
The inside of the pavilion, which had been noisy with many people, became quiet for a moment.
"Whether it is preserving the essence of the herb, or keeping the furnace heat consistent, if you think about it, everything gathers at the single point of quality."
The cultivators gathered below the platform added small nods. Jin Wi was a layman in alchemy, but he pretended to listen with a serious expression. On the other hand, Baek Cheong attended the lecture calmly, maintaining a polite posture. She had definitely intended to just listen quietly at first. However, as Dan-gyeong's lecture moved on to specific methods for raising pill quality, she felt a bit puzzled.
'Uh, that... you shouldn't go that way.' The furnace heat management that Dan-gyeong pointed out had no flaws when viewed as a general method. However, when considering the flow of trying to bind the herb's inherent energy to the surface of the pill without loss, the method of keeping the furnace heat constant could actually result in suppressing the medicinal properties.
While listening quietly, Baek Cheong's lips moved slightly without her realizing it.
"That's not it..."
It was a whisper, very small. It was a sound that couldn't even be heard by her own ears. However, the cultivator standing on the platform was at the Golden Core Perfection stage. His spiritual sense was so keen that he wouldn't miss even a small breath inside the pavilion. Dan-gyeong suddenly cut off his lecture.
"...Who spoke just now?"
His tone was calm, but a slight anger was buried at the end of his words. Then, the cultivators who were listening to the lecture all shifted their gazes to one side at once. Jin Wi was also startled and turned back to look at Baek Cheong. It seemed that Jin Wi had also heard the words that had slipped out of her mouth.
'He heard that?' Baek Cheong herself did not feel any particular agitation. She had only said that what was wrong was wrong.
"It seems you are nothing more than a Qi Refining stage cultivator."
Dan-gyeong slowly shifted his gaze toward Baek Cheong. As soon as he realized that not only was her realm low, but she was also a young child, his eyebrows lifted slightly.
"How dare you find fault with this old man's lecture?"