Days slipped by, and the moon waned to its end. Just as the new moon eagerly awaited its rebirth, so did Zi Xuan. He grew restless for the pill he had commissioned.
Three times within the moon's cycle, he had sent his servants to Arthur's courtyard. Three times, Arthur dismissed them with calm words, claiming the pill-making now was still not feasible.
In truth, Arthur had already made it, yet he chose to delay. To hand it over when he was still an Early Amber Radiance Cultivator would be equivalent to inviting scorn. If he were to hand it over late, it would make him lose Spirit Stones. Between the two, he chose to give him the pill on the final day."
So he kept Zi Xuan waiting.
It was the last day of the moon.
Arthur sat cross-legged within his chamber, his expression calm yet solemn. He had given Zi Yan the exact instructions as before: No disturbance, whatever the reason may be. To his parents, it would appear as though Arthur was immersed in studying a pill recipe. But to Zi Xuan, watching from afar, he would feel anxious for his long-awaited pill.
In truth, Arthur's attention was far from the pill. His dantian pulsed violently, brimming at the brink of transformation.
For all the days since completing Zi Xuan's pill, he had repeated the same rhythm, cultivating for a single shichen before abandoning the rest of the day to leisure. The only difference was that his cultivation pace was not the norm, nor the technique he relied on.
Arthur inhaled deeply. The Qi within him surged, flowing from his Spirit Root to the six ascending energy centers and finally cycling into the vast reservoir of his Dantian. His meridians thrummed like taut bowstrings, trembling under the torrent. Sweat beaded across his brow, but his gaze remained steady.
The cycles of Qi spiraled faster and faster, each revolution more furious than the last. His chest rose and fell sharply, veins pulsing along his neck as the energy strained against his mortal shell. The branch of pristine Qi flooded his dantian.
The chamber quivered. The wooden beams overhead groaned. Invisible waves of force rippled outward,
Arthur clenched his fists, his jaw tightened. The dantian within him expanded, stretching painfully before stabilizing.
His cultivation had surged. He was now a Half-Step Amber Radiance Cultivator.
As the flood of energy calmed, he slowly opened his eyes.
Arthur exhaled, long and steady, the breath carrying a faint mist of radiant Qi.
"Well, Uncle," Arthur whispered, "Now your pill is finally prepared."
After stabilizing his Qi circulation, he rose from his seated posture. His breakthrough was complete, and with it, his preparations for Zi Xuan were finished.
Should I dose him one last time?
He walked across the chamber. With a subtle press of his fingers, a hidden compartment clicked open at the far corner beneath his lacquered drawer. Inside lay an empty spirit stone pouch. It was unremarkable, except for its string.
The Venom Thread Seal.
The next day. As the first day of the new moon. Arthur collected his monthly earnings from the sect stewards. Though he had been on leave, it was a leave with pay. Yet another trick he had managed to wring from Zi Xuan's.
I made him bleed well, Arthur thought, the corners of his mouth tugging upward. Resources, freedom, and now spirit stones — he has paid them all. Now it is time to sprinkle a little poison over it.
In his quiet chamber, he poured the Solar Ascendance Spirit Stones into the Spirit Stone Pouch, which acquired the Venom Thread Seal. He then drew out the Void-Inscribed Jade Bottle and, with delicate precision, tipped the Whiteflare Bloom Breakthrough pill into a simple jade container.
He wanted nothing to suggest any foul play or that he had made it beforehand.
With utmost care, Arthur slipped the pill bottle along with the spirit stones. His hands didn't touch the thread while the thread was untied. He was careful not to complete the circuit, triggering the seal activation. Once the pouch was tied shut, it looked no different from a hundred others that passed hands daily in the sect.
Arthur leaned back, eyes narrowing with faint amusement. "Now… all that's left is to visit dear Uncle."
Arthur left his courtyard. To passing disciples, he was merely the young alchemist who had grown quieter these past months, diligent in study. None could imagine the schemes he carried in his sleeves.
He reached Zi Xuan's residence.
Arthur approached unhurriedly. The guards at the entrance stiffened, then bowed lightly. He nodded in return.
Ming Hao was not here this early. Arthur thought he was in Verdant Pavilion.
Inside, he found Zi Xuan. He sat on a high seat, his demeanor carrying the impatience of a man long denied. He sensed Arthur standing and rose from his seat.
Arthur bowed slightly.
"Uncle. Forgive my tardiness. Refining what you asked was not something that could have been rushed. But at last, your waiting bears fruit."
Zi Xuan's gaze locked on the pouch Arthur held.
"So it is finally ready?"
Arthur let out a low chuckle. "Of course, Uncle. I told you before. But the medicine demands time. You wouldn't want me to hand you a half-finished pill, would you? Even heaven's dew, if gathered too soon, is just water. But if ripened properly, it becomes divine nectar."
Arthur extended the pouch with his hands.
Zi Xuan's expression softened for the first time in weeks. His fingers brushed the pouch, and he opened it, the thread taut. He didn't notice, but at this instant, Arthur had made a slight breath of relief.
Ignoring the stones. His eyes gleamed at the pill bottle.
Arthur clasped his hands and bowed again, his lips curving in a polite smile.
"I've only managed to break through yesterday and make the pill. But don't worry, uncle. The pill won't disappoint you. He paused for a moment before continuing, "Because nephew has refined not a seven-tenths purity pill, but an eight-tenths."
"What? Nephew, you are not lying to me?"
"If you want, Uncle, I can swear a Heavenly Oath."
Zi Xuan, being the shrewd man he was, ignored it all. The Heavenly Oath was made specifically for a Whiteflare Bloom Breakthrough Pill. If one thought there could be loopholes in the Heavenly Oath, they would be sorely mistaken. For the laws of Tianyu, detect even the faintest trace of malice.
But Arthur had followed the oath to its letter. He made no alterations to the pill, nor tampered with the portion. His oath stood fulfilled, as he had no need to create a breakthrough pill for his father — the very possibility Zi Xuan had feared.
"Nephew, you have truly helped me. Make sure you don't forget what you spoke that day."
"Of course, Uncle, I haven't forgotten."
Arthur looked at Zi Xuan then, and in his heart, he saw not a man blessed by fortune, but one who had found gold only to be crushed beneath the weight of the treasure.