Tang Wutong stared with heavy eyes from the rooftop she was watching from. As Tian Long, gave away a jade box filled with very powerful yin and soul-enhancing pills to that short muscular man that their shared master knew.
Her small fists tightened at the sight of the pills. Their clear shine to them, their swirling pill lines so crisp to her Purple Eye's. All signs to the fact that they were of perfect quality. A quality which meant that if taken in moderation, woudn't hurt someone's foundation no matter how many were used!
Especially the soul power-enhancing pills. It was basically allowing someone to skip weeks of cultivation with each pill after they were digested!
"Tian Long... You truly are an alchemist." Tang Wutong spoke quietly with a heavy weight in her heart.
Then she looked away and pulled back in order for her teacher and that boy to not see her as she quickly headed off the edge of the roof. And then headed towards the back forest behind Nuoding Academy.
She passed through the forest until she reached the small yet deep river that separated the Nuoding Forest from the deeper forest outside of the city and academies' control.
Her footsteps were silent as she followed the river for a good way until she turned back into the forest to make sure she wasn't followed.
And then after making sure she wasn't followed, she went to an especially large tree in which she ducked down and slid into a hole in its thick roots without fear as blue silver grass parted around her form, allowing her entry into a small hidden cave.
She carefully climbed through the cave, and after a bit, she entered a larger main room with the roof of the cave carefully covered with thin Blue Silver Grass so that sunlight could stream into the cave yet still hide the cave.
Lying in the middle of the larger room was a woman lying on a bed of thick Blue Silver Grass that had red and gold streaks in that grass.
"Mother." Tang Wutong spoke softly as she strode forward and gently took her sleeping mother's hand into her own.
Tang Wutong's mother was a very beautiful woman. Very full of figure with soft blue and green hair that reflected the light that came through the patchy ceiling above her.
As Tang Wutong's breath hit her mother's hand, which was pulled up to her cheek. Ah Yin's dark blue eye's hazily opened. "Ahh... Wutong, you are back from school." She whispered tiredly.
"Mother, I made some good friends in school. And I even got a teacher with a strong reputation." Tang Wutong spoke softly but quickly as she knew her mother couldn't remain conscious for long.
Her mother's love-filled smile deepened at hearing that. Before she took a deep breath and said softly but firmly. "Very good... Just be careful, the world still thinks THAT man is running around. And members of the Clear Sky Clan are in exile."
Tang Wutong's smile turned into a murderous frown before she spat coldly. "I know mother. I won't use the Clear Sky Hammer until it is used to smash his face in!"
The blue-haired girl's heart filled with fury at the memory of THAT man. The man who took her mother who was living an innocent life as a newly reborn human and brainwashed her with a life of adventure and violence that wasn't what her mother was meant for at all!
Then... Even worse was how when he got her mother pregnant with her. He paraded her mother around Spirit City, captial of Spirit Hall. Arguably the seat of humanity's greatest power where she would easily be sensed by the dozens of Title Douluo that served Spirit Hall!
And then in that horrible chase that resulted in a weak hundred-plus-thousand-year cultivation spirit beast being found and hunted. She was forced to give birth to her, and had to give up most of her soul, and tie her own spirit bone as a hundred thousand year spirit beast to a sapling clone that was 'sacrificed' for THAT man!
To say the least. Tang Wutong was oh so 'proud' of her father. Coming from the great Tang Sect which was a sect focused on poison, assassination, and hidden weapons. She could proudly say that in this life...
Not even her previous life's father. The great Tang San, who became the most powerful Sect Master of the Tang Sect in history, was as cruel to those he loved as Tang Hao!
He would just kill his enemies with a masterfully stroked, poisoned knife to the throat and then rob them of anything he wanted! Not impregnate them if they were a woman, lead them across the continent on a horrible 'adventure' and then sell her up the river!
"Mother, I found a friend who might be able to help you as well." Tang Wutong spoke softly as she gently squeezed her smaller fingers around her mother's larger but almost limp hand.
Then Ah Yin sighed before she said helplessly but with love. "I am glad you made such a friend my little sprout... But unless I get my spirit bone back. My origin cannot be restored, to say nothing of how he took such a large piece of my soul in the soul ring."
After speaking so much, Ah Yin sagged in her massive bed of Emperor Blue Silver Grass, and her soft eye's closed helplessly as her weak soul meant that her body and mind couldn't remain active for long lest she relapse into a deep coma.
A coma in which she may very well not wake up for the rest of her darling daughter's mortal lifetime.
That still left Tang Wutong holding her now limp mother's hand. And she gently laid her mother's hand back in her lap... Lest her rage at seeing her beloved mother's weakness make her accidentally squeeze her hand too hard.
And thus Tang Wutong sat there. Staring blankly at her mother's comatose form knowing that her father was one of the strongest Title Doulou alive currently. So being able to take her mother's Spirit Bone from him woudn't be easy.
To say nothing of there being no love between this daughter and mother in question so it's not like he would give her a chance.
There was just one path she could see currently for the short term in helping her mother. She needed Tian Long's alchemy.
'Tian Long is obviously a reincarnated alchemist like I was reincarnated. As there is no possibility of a six-year-old being capable of making alchemical pills like the ones he made. That requires years of training and knowledge!.' Tang Wutong thought firmly as another thought struck her.
'The fact that he had a literal alchemy furnace as a martial soul was no mere coincidence as well!' Tang Wutong thought firmly before she shook her head as she realized something else.
Other than their shared connection with their Grandmaster they didn't have too strong of a connection. And Tang Wutong knew that making powerful elixer's was no simple thing and Alchemists were infamously proud for people who came to suck up for said elixers.
"Hmph, that boy is also busier playing around with that stinky rabbit as well." Tang Wutong spat at the reminder of that annoying rabbit girl who was clearly becoming Tian Long's lackey and would be used as a bodyguard and probably lover when they got older.
Still that left Tang Wutong with a clear issue... How would she go about getting Tian Long's aid. As she didn't trust him at all when it came to her mother and her current weakness.
Although killing her woudn't drop another spirit bone. She could still likely drop another red spirit ring, and that would make any organization move at the offer!
After she carefully hid the tunnel leading to her mother as well as getting rid of any tracks she made. She headed back to the academy with a newfound goal.
To find some form of leverage on Tian Long, besides his reincarnation as that would possibly just lead to him figuring out she was exactly the same... Or, likewise just building a strong connection with him.
As they both had their talents and could help one another. He could make heavenly poisons for her. And she could use said poisons to kill her enemies. It was a perfect friendship to be!