The reason this mysterious young woman was so enigmatic was because she was not only an alchemist but also a Xuan practitioner whose power had surpassed the fourth rank!
Countless people tried to uncover information about her, but unfortunately, they never even caught a glimpse of her shadow.
Before Senior Brother Mu could find any leads, he was chased into such a desperate situation by a seventh-rank fierce beast.
Gritting his teeth, he saw the cliff and jumped straight down.
After Ye Shaohua finished refining the pills inside the cave, she had originally planned to return. However, a spirit fruit within the cave happened to ripen today, so she waited until now to pick it before leaving.
She was afraid that if she left, this spirit fruit would be discovered by someone else.
Her strength had been steadily increasing over these three years. Becoming an alchemist was difficult to begin with; it took her a year to reach the low-grade Yellow Rank.
But from Yellow Rank to low-grade Mysterious Rank—covering three minor stages—she only used another year!
This time, the medicine she refined was a top-tier, high-grade Mysterious Rank pill, which had nearly triggered a lightning tribulation moments ago.
In terms of quality, it had already reached the Earth Rank.
As soon as she stepped out of the cave entrance, she found a large group of spirit beasts gathered around, all attracted by the medicinal aroma.
This was also the reason why she refined medicine here.
Refining medicine in the village caused too much commotion, so after reaching the Mysterious Rank, she started venturing out to find places to refine, making it less likely for her to be disturbed.
Just as Ye Shaohua was about to leave, she spotted a figure dressed in red lying on a white goat not far away.
Her initial intention to leave was abruptly halted.
She walked over to the white goat and looked at the handsome man in red robes, her eyes narrowing slightly.
“Mu Xuan.”
In the original storyline, he was the one the original host saved, who then brought the original host up the mountain, only to publicly abandon her in the end.
**
Meanwhile, at Old Man Xu’s courtyard.
A man in a cyan robe stood in the center of the small yard, gazing towards the direction of the courtyard gate. His eyes were slightly downcast, his pale lips pressed together lightly, a trace of disappointment tinging his exquisite features.
“She hasn’t returned yet?” Master Murong, who was watering the flowers nearby, saw his expression and couldn’t help but ask.
Bai Ziyun nodded.
Master Murong glanced at the sky. “You have to leave now, right?”
“Yes, the Sect Grand Competition is about to begin,” Bai Ziyun nodded. “Please tell her for me when she returns.”
After speaking, he walked directly towards the courtyard gate. His steps were slow, but each stride seemed to cover several dozen meters.
“Shrinking the Earth to an Inch,” Master Murong’s face showed a look of admiration. “I never expected that old fogey, not much of a person himself, to teach such an outstanding disciple.”
After saying this, he returned to tending the medicinal herbs. It was right at this moment.
A good while later, Ye Shaohua finally returned.
“Da Niu, take a couple of people and bring back the men in red and white clothes from the foot of the eastern mountain,” Ye Shaohua said to Da Niu as she stepped into the courtyard.
The moment she entered, she froze momentarily.
Seeing Ye Shaohua’s clearly startled expression, Master Murong said, “Ziyun had to leave on business.”
“Oh.” Ye Shaohua slowly picked up the scissors and began tending to the medicinal herbs.
“I also have to leave,” Master Murong added.
Ye Shaohua’s hand paused. She looked at Master Murong.
Seeing her like this, Master Murong chuckled inwardly, then spoke slowly, “Shaohua, I’ve thought it over. Your talent in Xuan Qi is no less than your talent in alchemy. Staying with me would be a waste. Go to the Profound Sky Sect. The Profound Sky Sect is holding a grand competition in five days. Those who place in the top three can go to the Holy City to participate in the selection. I never told you before, but I was also from the Profound Sky Sect. Remember, I will be waiting for you at the Profound Sky Sect. If you take first place, you will be able to see me.”
After Master Murong finished speaking, he bid farewell to Old Man Xu, gave Ye Shaohua a golden wooden token for participating in the competition, and then left.
The courtyard, which used to have many people, felt empty after the Master and Bai Ziyun left. Old Man Xu still wasn’t quite used to it.
He was already eighty years old, but over these three years, the villagers had watched as his vitality improved day by day.
He walked with such vigor, no less energetic than the young men.
Not to mention the Bai and Liu families visited every now and then.
This made the village regard this family with immense awe.
However, Old Man Xu’s family was very low-key. Their clothes were similar to those of the other villagers—not luxurious, but clean.
Old Man Xu’s courtyard was also very simple. Just by looking at it, one couldn’t tell much difference from an ordinary villager’s home, except perhaps that they were a bit more well-off.
When Mu Xuan woke up, he was startled by the kind and honest-looking woman. “Who are you?”
“Young man, you’re awake,” the woman grinned, handing him a bowl of medicine. “Drink this quickly. It’s medicine prepared by Miss Ye.”
“Thank you.” Mu Xuan took the medicine. These commoners’ medicine was useless to him, but he didn’t say this to the well-intentioned woman.
He could see she was just a lower-class person and found it strange that she wasn’t more surprised to see him.
Of course, Mu Xuan didn’t know that compared to him, the woman had met the even more exceptional Bai Ziyun, so she wasn’t overly impressed by him.
She went to find Ye Shaohua.
The man in white followed Ye Shaohua in and, seeing Mu Xuan awake, breathed a sigh of relief. “Senior Brother Mu, you’re finally awake!”
“This is Miss Ye,” the white-clad man said, noticing Mu Xuan staring at Ye Shaohua. “She was the one who healed us.”
Mu Xuan had truly thought he was going to die after falling from such a high cliff.
Therefore, seeing Ye Shaohua, he was genuinely grateful. Sincerely, he took out a top-grade spirit stone from his spatial ring. Though reluctant, he still offered it to Ye Shaohua.
Ye Shaohua had the woman accept it.
Her face remained calm and unruffled. She simply advised him to rest well.
Seeing that neither of them showed any reaction to the top-grade spirit stone, the white-clad man clicked his tongue in surprise. After the two left, he couldn’t help but say, “I forgot they are lower-class people and simply don’t recognize top-grade spirit crystals. They must think you just gave them some random thing. But she is really beautiful, even more than Senior Sister Fu Xue…”
He suddenly stopped here.
He sneaked a glance at Mu Xuan, then changed the subject, handing Mu Xuan a piece of paper.
The white-clad man had woken up before Mu Xuan and had inquired about Ye Shaohua’s background.
A resident of Little Tong Village, living with her grandfather. A very ordinary person, just with some knowledge of medicinal principles.
