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"So all that happened after you went to visit a friend?" Qing Wentian asked curiously. Qing Xuanling had already recounted everything that occurred that night. They were currently sitting on a grassy patch near the dormitories.
She nodded. "Yes—I often visit her, so I never expected anything to happen. Now that I think about it… she did tell me to stay overnight… I should've listened."
She sighed. It was frustrating that the entire horrific experience could've been avoided had she simply accepted madam Yechan's offer to stay.
'No… actually, I think I'd prefer the ambush over sleeping with her. I don't know if my heart could've withstood that!'
Qing Xuanling's face flushed slightly. To her, madam Yechan was a demon constantly tempting her—her heart constantly struggled to remain calm in her presence.
Qing Wentian curiously observed Qing Xuanling's blushing expression—then suddenly smirked.
"Wait—don't tell me you like the girl you visited that night?" His eyes sparkled with each word. "Ah—don't tell me you did something naughty with her, which is why you left so late that night!"
Qing Xuanling's eyes widened in disbelief as her face turned completely crimson. "How did you know I—I like girls?! No—wait—what nonsense are you spouting?! She's just a close friend!"
"Hehe—you really thought you could hide something like that from your good brother for so long?" Qing Wentian brought a hand to his mouth with a mocking expression. "I've never seen you show interest in any boy—but on the other hand, I've lost count of how many times you've secretly peeked at other gir—"
"Shut up!" Qing Xuanling suddenly kicked him in the face, sending him flying. "Don't say another word or I'll kill you! And absolutely don't go telling others about this!"
She stood up and immediately headed to her room—more embarrassed than angry. Qing Wentian watched her retreating back and sighed amusedly, not understanding her shame.
Although relationships between people of the same gender wasn't common, it hadn't been viewed negatively for thousands of years. Nowadays—while sects and clans didn't actively support it—they didn't condemn it either.
Although it hadn't always been this way. The children of talented people were more likely to be talented themselves. Therefore, clans and sects considered it a great loss if a genius couldn't have children because he was attracted to the same gender.
However, the world operated on the law of the strongest.
All those obsolete thoughts were eradicated at the moment when several same-sex couples began to cause problems in the world or against the forces that repressed their relationships.
Over time, clan resistance toward them also diminished—since it was proven that individuals who could accept themselves had greater chances of reaching higher realms.
Thus, Qing Wentian truly couldn't understand Qing Xuanling's embarrassment. But he shrugged—it wasn't as if he'd go discussing his friend's private life with others anyway.
'Though I do need to meet the woman who's got Xuanling so smitten… I wonder what she's like!'
He smiled and headed toward his own room.
As for Qing Xuanling—she'd already reached her room and was stepping inside. Though she'd chatted with Qing Wentian earlier, she still remembered Xuan Dan had been waiting inside her room with no news from the outside world.
She could imagine how worried Xuan Dan must have been. She took a deep breath and entered her room—immediately apologizing. "Xuan Dan—I'm sorry for not coming sooner! You wouldn't believe what happened to me—"
However, contrary to the warm, worried welcome Qing Xuanling had imagined, what greeted her was… silence.
Well—not entirely. A faint scratching sound of a pen on paper could still be heard.
Qing Xuanling smiled wryly as she looked at Xuan Dan—surrounded by mountains of papers, still scribbling all sorts of ideas onto a sheet.
Her appearance was horrifying. She didn't seem to have bathed in weeks—her eyes bloodshot, the odor emanating from her potent enough to make Qing Xuanling wrinkle her nose. Her expression darkened immediately.
She could tolerate her incarnation not greeting her warmly—but she'd never accept one of her incarnations smelling foul simply from neglecting to bathe!
She gritted her teeth and pushed through the paper mountains. She quickly reached Xuan Dan—face grim. "Xuan Dan—it's time to wake up!"
Qing Xuanling flicked Xuan Dan's forehead with her finger—jolting the mad alchemist from her reverie instantly!
"Ahhh—damn it—who the hell did that?!" Xuan Dan clutched her forehead, eyes watering. "I was about to make a major breakthrough in my research!"
Qing Xuanling regarded Xuan Dan's pitiful appearance with disdain. Though they shared the same face, their personalities differed greatly—even their pain tolerance. Qing Xuanling wouldn't have even blinked being flicked so lightly on the forehead.
Yet Xuan Dan was now rolling on the floor, face contorted in agony.
"Idiot—how could you not notice I'd returned? Much less that I've been gone for five or six full days?!" Qing Xuanling shook her head. "And why do you smell so bad?! Go take a bath!"
Xuan Dan rubbed her forehead resentfully. "Hey—it's not that I didn't notice you were taking long to return—but I couldn't exactly do anything! You didn't want me to just sit in the room doing nothing because of worry, did you?"
"And what does that have to do with you not bathing?" Qing Xuanling rolled her eyes. "Or did the worry you felt specifically prevent you from taking a bath?"
"Eh…" Xuan Dan scratched her neck sheepishly. "Fine, fine… I surrender. I'll go shower before we talk. I must really smell bad for you to make that face…"
Xuan Dan hurried to the bathroom under Qing Xuanling's glare.
"Sigh… Sometimes I wonder if we're really the same person." Qing Xuanling shook her head with a faint smile.
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Xuan Dan brought a hand to her chin. "Wow… You did experience several exciting and worrying things. I never expected the Mo Clan and Ink Sword Sect were actually targeting the clan…"
Qing Xuanling shrugged. "There's not much we can do about it. The good thing is I managed to inform the clan beforehand… For now, we need to focus on increasing our strength. Only then can we do something when the clan is in danger."
"By the way—what did you accomplish this past week? Did you make any progress with the Demon Blood Pill?" Qing Xuanling asked curiously.
Xuan Dan instantly forgot about the Mo Clan and Ink Sword Sect's schemes. To her, nothing was more important than alchemy! Besides—she was certain the primary body would handle everything just fine!
So without remorse, she began radiantly recounting her progress.
"The Demon Blood Pill is truly difficult—even impossible for someone below late-stage Qi Refinement to refine. But after constant research this week, I believe I can do it!" Xuan Dan breathed heavily, nostrils flaring wider than normal.
She grabbed Qing Xuanling's hands. "But I'll need your help! It's impossible for an early-stage cultivator to refine a high-grade pill—but if we both try it, according to my calculations, our success rate will be high!"
Qing Xuanling looked at Xuan Dan with slight bewilderment. She hadn't considered it before—but talking to someone who looked exactly like her yet made completely different expressions was… unsettling.
She slid her hands from Xuan Dan's grip and nodded. "Fine—I don't mind helping you. Enter my divine sea so we can begin immediately. I want to start body cultivation as soon as possible. That ambush left me seriously doubting my survival capabilities."
Xuan Dan stuck out her tongue upon noticing Qing Xuanling's discomfort. She understood the unease—but didn't care much and simply nodded.
"Alright. Actually, the situation wouldn't have been so dangerous if you'd delved into body cultivation earlier. At the very least—you wouldn't have had to be so cautious about poisons."
Xuan Dan transformed into a beam of light that shot toward Qing Xuanling's glabella. A sharp headache immediately assaulted Qing Xuanling's mind.
She gasped, clutching her head tightly. The pain was horrific. Xuan Dan's week of study and research was been extensive and profound.
The process of receiving the information took slightly longer—over a minute—before finally concluding. In the end, she was drenched in sweat while Xuan Dan regarded her with slight concern.
"Hey—are you alright…? I didn't expect my knowledge would be so profound that you couldn't comprehend it quickly—and it even caused you discomfort…"
Qing Xuanling rolled her eyes. "Stop boasting—you don't even know what it's like to experience this!"
Xuan Dan laughed and fetched some water for Qing Xuanling. They rested for ten minutes before beginning to tidy the room from Xuan Dan's mess and prepare for the alchemical process.
Both stood before the cauldron, gazing deeply into it—especially Qing Xuanling.
"I have to say—you've certainly devised an interesting… and stupid method." Qing Xuanling shook her head, somewhat amused.
She was beginning to comprehend just how terrifying Xuan Dan's divine talent—Alchemy-Blessed Fanatic—could be.
Normally, early-stage cultivators couldn't refine mid or high-grade pills because these required something cultivators at such low levels simply didn't possess: divine sense.
Divine sense—the extension of the divine sea—was preliminarily obtained at mid-stage Qi Refinement. Though initially usable only within the body, even then the improvement divine sense brought to Qi control was overwhelming.
They were two different worlds.
The next stage of divine sense came at late-stage Qi Refinement—when cultivators could extend it one full meter beyond their bodies. Extending divine sense one meter held little utility in combat or cultivation—but things were entirely different for cultivation arts.
Being able to extend your divine sense was what enabled—or prevented—you from becoming a grandmaster in any existing art.
Thus, initially, it should've been impossible for Xuan Dan to prepare Demon Blood Pills. The Qi control requirements for creating these pills were simply unattainable for an early-stage cultivator.
But this was where Xuan Dan's divine talent came in.
Like a madwoman, she'd begun mentally simulating how she'd refine the pill. Luckily, she had a kind of instinct that told her when she was doing something wrong, even if it was only in her mind. So she was aware of when she was doing something wrong.
So without giving up, she performed tens of thousands of mental simulations nonstop—jotting down things that felt strange and potential solutions. After thousands of mental simulations, Xuan Dan found a remarkably simple answer:
Elevate her Qi control to a level far beyond that of an early-stage cultivator. Thus, over the past week, Xuan Dan had practiced her Qi and Clear Flame control relentlessly—day and night—without even time to use the bathroom.
Qing Xuanling couldn't help but think of something.
'More than talent—this is obsession. A mad, harmful obsession with alchemy. I finally understand why it's called Alchemy-Blessed Fanatic—not genius.'
She sighed and retrieved several items from her storage pouch. "Good thing I bought the pill materials that night I went to the Immortal's Junkyard."
The pill materials weren't extravagant—just seven spirit herbs and five liters of mid-stage beast blood. None were particularly expensive.
"Hehe—I've been waiting for this for so long…" Xuan Dan grinned, drooling as she received the materials.
Qing Xuanling regarded her with disgust. "Ugh—I truly hate seeing that expression on my own face…"
"Oh come on—I still look good!" Xuan Dan laughed, lowering her gaze toward the cauldron. "Ready?"
Qing Xuanling nodded seriously. Success in creating this pill would determine whether she could begin body cultivation today.