Chapter 40
Grandmaster Bai Becomes a Keyboard Warrior?
"I'll register you now..."
Though Uncle Huang was confused for a moment, he didn't want to refuse since it was his master's request. He needed to provide excellent support—that was his duty as a first-rate butler.
The old butler proceeded step by step. Registration for the cultivators' community wasn't particularly difficult. It didn't require actual identity verification—only those who received a special password from existing members could access the website. It already acted as a filter.
Sometimes when conducting business or making trades here, people often didn't want to reveal their identities anyway.
"Grandmaster Bai, what name would you like to use?"
When Huang Zihuan reached the username field, he turned to ask her opinion.
"Can't I use Bai Fanxian?"
The young woman asked in surprise.
"You can, but in case you want to hide your identity to avoid troublemakers..." Uncle Huang was about to fill in the name when Bai Fanxian, hearing his reasoning, stopped the old man first.
"In that case, 'Alchemy Empress' then..."
Huang Zihuan paused at this name, then agreed. Grandmaster Bai truly possessed sublime alchemy abilities. Each elixir she brought out was one he'd never seen before. The image of her using them to cure Tang Yeye like a miracle remained unforgettably etched in his mind.
"Alright."
Huang Zihuan filled in the name and completed the registration. Bai Fanxian took the portable computer back. She looked at the upper right corner that had been empty—now it displayed the name "Alchemy Empress" in prominent, magnificent characters representing her identity.
Uncle Huang watched Bai Fanxian start typing slowly with a click-clack sound and smiled. At least during this time, Grandmaster Bai probably wouldn't be bored for a while. The old butler walked into the kitchen to prepare tea and snacks to serve, while both little girls had run outside to train since Bai Fanxian started learning to use the computer.
Bai Fanxian, whom Uncle Huang thought was simply browsing around, was now sweeping her gaze through that Elixir Problems Q&A thread with displeased eyes.
Comment 118 (Novice Alchemist)
Master Sun, I'm a Tier 2 alchemist. I'm currently stuck on a problem. The Yang Heat Elixir I'm refining—when it reaches the final step, it won't condense into pills. Can Master Sun help me?
The person who posted this question was studying a particular elixir. Besides the post, he also attached photos and videos.
Below the comment, a user with the name "Sun Mingchuan" replied:
Comment 118-1 (Sun Mingchuan)
Your fire isn't strong enough. Increase the fire power during refining by half again. And when it's condensing into pills, increase the fire power to double.
Not long after, the novice alchemist came back to comment again with great thanks, full of praise for this Master Sun.
Bai Fanxian frowned. She typed slowly since she still wasn't skilled, but composed her words:
Comment 118-3 (Alchemy Empress)
Are you kidding me? Sure, cranking up the heat makes it condense faster, but you're just forming an empty shell. How much potency do you think gets burned away with that reckless method?
In another corner of the country stood a large building structure alone in the middle of a mountain valley. Yet the environment here was full of convenience. Cars constantly drove in and out, picking up and dropping off people walking into the ancient-style building. An atmosphere of tranquility, sublimity, and knowledge emanated from this place. At the very front of the great gate was a wooden sign carved with exquisite, elaborate characters:
"Alchemists' Association"
One car drove up and parked before the gate. An old man slowly stepped down, his demeanor like a prestigious master. He wore ancient-style clothing. His assistant who followed opened a notebook and reported:
"Master has a lecture at the great conference room at two o'clock. Shall we go there directly?"
Hearing this, the old man waved his hand in refusal. "No. I'll go rest in the reception room. There's about an hour. Bring me the portable computer."
"Yes, Master Sun Mingchuan."
His assistant bowed and quickly proceeded as Master Sun ordered. Before long, they were resting in a luxurious-looking reception room. Sun Mingchuan opened his computer in a good mood. Lately he'd been frequently giving advice on the cultivators' community web forum.
People constantly came in to ask questions. Sun Mingchuan, who was a highest-level Tier 3 alchemist, was viewed like a god.
Among alchemist beings in this era, the highest was Grandmaster Lu Qing, who was a Tier 4 alchemist and also the director of this Alchemists' Association.
Next were the highest-level Tier 3 alchemists like Sun Mingchuan, who could occasionally refine lowest-level Tier 4 elixirs. Their cultivation power wasn't sufficient, though, so they couldn't advance to become sublime Tier 4 alchemists.
The old man opened the web forum to look at his thread topics in a good mood. Then he was surprised—the comment count that used to be only around 200 had skyrocketed to over 500 in a single night.
The old man was stunned. Had he unexpectedly gained popularity?
When he went in to read, though, his snow-white beard twitched. The old man scrolled through new comments with feelings beyond words.
Comment 118-4 (Novice Alchemist)
Who are you? Here to cause trouble?
Comment 118-5 (Alchemy Empress)
Your fire control is completely backward. It's called Yang HEAT Elixir, so you're just blasting it with more heat? Stupid. Cut the flame in half. When it starts condensing, turn OFF the heat and let it cool. Let the excess energy dissipate naturally. It'll form pills easily after that.
Comment 118-6 (Novice Alchemist)
Holy crap, it worked! The potency is INSANE compared to my usual Yang Heat pills—there's no comparison!
That novice alchemist, after disappearing for a while, came back with excitement. He posted photos and videos showing test results of the efficacy of the just-refined Yang Heat Elixir compared to other Yang Heat pills.
Suddenly, those interested in elixirs came in to discuss in overwhelming numbers.
Comment 118-7 (Elixirs Are Life)
Wait, what? Master Sun's method IS the textbook standard for Yang Heat Elixirs. You're saying there's something better?
Comment 118-8 (Novice Alchemist)
I don't know how it works, but the new method's at least twice as potent. The results speak for themselves.
After that, many comments followed, until reaching comment 118-29, someone asked:
"But who is this Alchemy Empress?"
"You guys go look at other comments! This has become a big deal now!"
Sun Mingchuan trembled with anger. He scrolled through the entire thread and found that over half the answers he'd given people were being contradicted by this person calling herself Alchemy Empress in almost every sentence. People coming in to watch the fun were increasing. The comment count from around five hundred shot up to six hundred in just minutes.
He tried to respond to some of them:
Comment 129-2 (Sun Mingchuan)
Your ingredients look fine to me. I think the issue might be your technique. Try refining it again and record the process so I can see what's going wrong.
Comment 129-3 (Alchemy Empress)
Are you blind? Those two soybean roots weren't stored properly—they're practically ruined. You might as well be throwing regular beans into your cauldron at this point.
Comment 135-4 (Sun Mingchuan)
Fire control takes time and practice to master. I'd recommend reading my book "Fire and Medicine"—it covers the fundamentals that should help you reach Tier 2 faster.
Comment 135-5 (Alchemy Empress)
You wrote that garbage? That technique wastes an absurd amount of qi for pathetic results. What, you think everyone's got qi to burn on a single pill? How many can you even refine in a day with that method?
Comment 140-2 (Sun Mingchuan)
Take a breath. Alchemy requires a calm mind. Let go of your frustrations and focus on connecting with the medicine. Once your mind is at peace, refining Peaceful Mind Elixir will come naturally.
Comment 140-4 (Alchemy Empress)
Peaceful mind my ass! Are you people ALL blind?! The first ingredient batch is WRONG! Using Fire Lotus Root instead of Snow Lotus Root? You're lucky your cauldron didn't explode in your face!
The more he read, the more Alchemy Empress's comments seemed increasingly fierce, as if she was running out of patience explaining the correct way to these fools who believed the wrong things.
The old man hoped those who came in to watch would help him argue and counter-attack somewhat. After all, he was a master with quite a few students. Reality was opposite to what he thought, though.
"It's exactly like Alchemy Empress said! Just changing one ingredient fixed the problem I always had!"
"Look! I tried using the fire control method Alchemy Empress mentioned. Now I can refine Tier 2 elixirs!"
"Who is this Alchemy Empress? Where'd she come from?"
"That's right. Her advice is more useful and on-point than Master Sun's."
"Her knowledge is revolutionary! Master Sun's methods follow the principles, but what Alchemy Empress uses is way better—like, on a whole different level!"
"Who is she?"
They began endlessly debating about the true identity of this mysterious Empress. Since this was a cultivators' community, rumors about her began spreading widely.
Now cultivators across almost the entire country knew that a strange being had been born in the alchemy world!
.
.
.
Uncle Huang, after bringing fine tea to serve Bai Fanxian again in the afternoon, looked in surprise. He found that her face had relaxed completely. She nodded with satisfaction as if she'd successfully corrected something to be right again. The young woman closed the computer screen and sipped tea in a relaxed, comfortable mood.
"Huang Zihuan... this internet is quite enjoyable too."
"If Grandmaster Bai likes it, that's good." Uncle Huang smiled and acknowledged politely. Once out of sight, he wondered what she'd done. The old butler logged in with his own account through his mobile phone. When he saw the numerous messages from the account using the name Alchemy Empress, though...
The old man was speechless!
The more Huang Zihuan read, the more he didn't know whether to laugh or cry. Though she answered every comment directly on-point, the language she used in the online world seemed fierce and confrontational in a way he'd never seen before.
Different from her usual temperament—like a different person. Bai Fanxian, who looked sublime and elegant in the real world, looked like a keyboard warrior harassing people on the web forum!
The most pitiful one was Master Sun Mingchuan, though. He was minding his own business—who knows what he did to displease Grandmaster Bai!