Gu Zuo said with an embarra.s.sed face: "Uh, big brother, I don't need to hesitate… I'll be going with you."
Gongyi Tianheng stared blankly before responding: "Is it the system?"
Gu Zuo nodded. He didn't know whether to laugh or cry over the mission the system announced just now, so he just told Tianheng about it.
Also, because the system liked to fire before the horse so much, he was at a loss over how to feel about himself being forced to do something.
Tianheng shook his head and laughed: "It looks like the system's intention is to have you travel a lot and develop your skills." After he finished laughing, his expression turned slightly solemn, "But Ah Zuo, what concerns me right now is actually that new item the system gave you."
Gu Zuo blanked: "Big brother is talking about the >?"
This should be a new skill for him to learn?
Tianheng actually sighed: "Ah Zuo, you should be able to tell from the book's t.i.tle."
Gu Zuo thought about it, but didn't understand.
For lack of a better option, Tianheng reached out a hand to ruffle Gu Zuo's hair: "This item book is termed unorthodox by the system. Your cultivation's medicine refinement hand seals are naturally orthodox through the system's words. And since it gave you something orthodox, how could it have given you something unorthodox while you're still learning about the former? You're still young and the future is long. Don't tell that after waiting for you to get more experience, it'll give give you some unorthodox ancient books to let you properly master?"
Gu Zuo's heart clenched, and discovered the abnormal points here.
Ever since the beginning, the system had never done something inappropriate for the situation. There certainly must be some reason for it inside the book!
Tianheng continued his conjecture: "Thus, I think this item book should be something the system gave you to conceal your orthodox medicine refinement methods. With you just about ready to leave with me for the Qingyun Sect, isn't it proof that a pharmacist's way of refining medicine in that sect is totally unlike our Tianwu Continent's crude and simple methods?"
Gu Zuo immediately understood. This theory made lots of sense!
Tianheng saw his comprehension and grinned: "Your hand seals for refining medicine are too profound. Once they're detected by someone, you'll certainly experience a calamity. If you had other skills to hide behind, all your methods for refining medicine will be even safer."
Gu Zuo felt that these words made even more sense.
However, whether or not the specifics were as purported, it still had to be verified.
Because they'd already returned to Tianheng's courtyard, they didn't need to worry about security or confidentiality. As a result, Gu Zuo quickly sent his consciousness into his storage s.p.a.ce and took out the new item book.
After that, he opened it.
Tianheng laughed: "Go into the secret room and try refining for a bit."
He still had lots of faith in this little pharmacist's comprehension on medicine refinement.
The current Gu Zuo was much more confident in himself. He hurriedly entered the secret room in just a couple steps, and impatiently began learning this new medicine refining hand seal.
The moment he opened it…he suddenly understood a little bit.
In actuality, if a person ate the gourmet food of an exceptionally famous chef every day, and was suddenly given stuff at the standards of a three or four star cook, how could he get used to it in such a short time?
After Gu Zuo started learning the medicine refining technique written on the item book's first page, he already found it had a kind of feeling that was…many times more crude.
If one said > was a pill refining hand seal that gave a person the feeling that each movement was ch.o.r.eographed and suited to pharmacology, then this
Because he already learned the best and most complicated ones, and was now learning this kind of thing, Gu Zuo didn't strain himself. He roughly comprehended it within two to four hours. Filled with confidence, he started to use just this Archived Pill Refining Seal to refine pills.
— Similarly, it was also the Qi Generating Pill.
Just like this, twenty minutes pa.s.sed.
Gu Zuo unfamiliarly fumbled through the refinement of one cauldron of medicinal pills. He used the Pill Receiving Seal to catch those pills in a jade bowl. Afterwards, he lowered his head to take a look. There were precisely nine medicinal pills in the jade bowl. Not too many and not too few.
Compared to the sixteen pills he'd refine using Plucking Nine Stars, it was less than half. He succeeded in creating only one top grade Qi Generating Pill. Among the other eight pills, there were three high grade and five mid grade pills.
Moreover, no medicinal qi was generated.
At this time, Gu Zuo unexpectedly had a small realization.
His psychic power was able to perceive that the number of medicinal pills created was not enough. Not only that, it was due to his inexperience and this pill refining hand seal's errors that he was unable to perfectly gather the medicinal essence. Much of it had dissipated, so the successful pills were naturally few in number.
And the lack of medicinal qi was probably due to a problem with the hand seal.
Once the medicinal essence dissipated, the medicinal qi couldn't be formed.
Tianheng saw Gu Zuo's pensive expression, and called to him: "Ah Zuo?"
Gu Zuo snapped out of it, and told Tianheng his discovery. He said: "It's probably true that this is to act as my cover… Big brother, I feel that we can make use of this."
Tianheng was a little surprised.
Ever since he became aware of this item book, his mind had come up with very many notions. Only, the thing was Gu Zuo's. He intended to convince him, but he also wanted to take his little pharmacist's way of thinking into consideration.
He didn't expect that Gu Zuo would actually make the suggestion first.
Tianheng said softly: "In that case, Ah Zuo, what prices do you have in mind?"
In this aspect, if he wanted to take advantage of it, then they had to carefully talk it over. Ah Zuo treated him sincerely, so he naturally wouldn't fail to live up to his expectations.
Gu Zuo looked distracted: "What?" After he let that slip, he realized Tianheng's meaning and promptly shook his head, "You don't need to ask me for a price."
Saying this, he even emphasized, "It really isn't needed."
When he mentioned this, Gu Zuo's expression was very earnest: "Making use of this was originally for the sake of protecting my secret and maintaining my safety. Big brother has such a clear understanding of everything, so you don't have to ask this little brother. Isn't that so?"
He still remembered that this person had taken him in from the very beginning and gave him the greatest trust. Otherwise, he might've not had enough time to draw support from the system; he would've died from the first mission. He even felt that if it wasn't this big brother, had he relied on someone else, not only would he have faced the problem of losing his freedom, but even greater dangers or developing disputes were a possibility.
Nothing could be like the present situation. Besides refining medicine and upgrading his strength, what else was there to think about? In addition, apart from this person, how many people with two years left would have the courage to dare have this botched guy with "destroyed" medical beads treat an illness?
He'd been here for a long time, and wasn't stupid enough to think that his initial threat had played a big role. Because the contract wouldn't take his life, but would instead put him through severe torture, if the person was changed, would he have had the courage to cut off all means of retreat and take the other person down with him? Don't even talk about equal treatment afterwards.
Gu Zuo believed in Gongyi Tianheng, and considered him to be like his own flesh and blood in this world. When treating one's flesh and blood, what would one consider a few mere worldly possessions?
Tianheng was emotionally moved, and lightly sighed soon after.
After he tiled his head and began thinking, he extended his hand once more to ruffle Gu Zuo's hair.
"I will never let you suffer a loss."
Gu Zuo showed a great, big smile.
In the following couple of days, Tianheng was very busy. Gu Zuo was also very busy.
As Tianheng bustled around, he received proposals from other aristocratic families. All kinds of probings, enticements, and solicitations — Were they not for the sake of those placements that appeared?
Moreover, it wasn't just him. The Huangfu Clan and the royal family similarly received many proposals. That sect's attractive power was really too great.
Of course, while some of these actions had a few keen touches the top ranking aristocratic families could sense, their ranks were insufficient. The Five Great Clans also made supreme efforts to guard their secrets. In the end, this sect matter couldn't be leaked.
To put it briefly, even the generations of the Five Great Clans' elders and heads had just found out. Let alone those of a lower cla.s.s.
…For the past several hundred years, the Cangyun Empire already had its martial artists, who were sent to the Hundred Countries Tournament, completely wiped out over and over again. Even the people who were aware of the information in those days had all faded away in the long river of time.
Only, each outer sect disciple had a number of placements for nominal disciples at hand. Their expenses, safety, and so on were all recorded under that outer sect disciple's name. If the placements were divided among the people of other aristocratic families, there would be a dispute over benefits. It would become very complicated. Those from the other aristocratic families who wanted to obtain those spots would certainly have to pay an enormous price.
The Huangfu Clan auctioned off four placements, and the royal family auctioned off three. As for the Gongyi Clan… There wasn't a single one.
This matter created a huge controversy among the aristocratic families!
However, besides Gongyi Tianheng, not a single child of the Gongyi Clan was going. After the other aristocratic families found out, besides being unhappy in their hearts, what could they still do?
On the contrary, regardless of what they thought in their hearts, it was the royal family intermediaries and the members of the Huangfu Clan who unexpectedly joined hands to suppress the discontent of the other aristocratic families.
The people who likewise partic.i.p.ated in the Hundred Countries Tournament clearly understood that those two households heavily regarded Tianheng's potential.
Even though the inner workings of the Cangyun Empire contained numerous fights and schemes against one another and had many of those left in low spirits, once they entered the sect, they would all be on the same side.
Naturally, they couldn't simply suppress or offend Gongyi Tianheng: This person whose strength was the highest, whose talents were bestowed by the heavens, and whose intelligence was close to monstrous. If not, then once they left the empire's reach, they feared that their own clansmen would suffer from dreadful schemes.
…Because a younger generation was afraid of the consequences up until now, quite a few seniors from the aristocratic families couldn't help laughing bitterly in their hearts.
At the same time, Gongyi Tianheng moved his hand against the Helian Clan.
Of course, because Gu Zuo wanted to go with him to the Qingyun Sect as soon as possible, he started thinking up all sorts of plans in response to this aristocratic family in order to control them. If the Helian Clan wasn't given a single lesson, then it was unavoidable to bully it.
Thus, intentionally or otherwise, Tianheng got in contact with the Huangfu Clan and the royal family, and hinted at his disregard for the Helian Clan as well as the dissatisfaction of his Clan's child. Afterwards, those two households got the drift, and on top of all that, the Helian Clan's younger generation indeed suffered some restlessness. Consequently, they put forward the auction's seven placements. By happenstance, it went all according to "plan".
After that, the Duanmu Clan obtained four spots and the Sima Clan obtained two spots. As for the Helian Clan, they only got one.
As for Gu Zuo, while Tianheng busied himself outside, he shut himself in the secret room to research the entire book's one hundred types of medicine refining hand seals.
He wanted to find the most suitable ones from within its pages.
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