Tyrant Sky Martial Soul
Chapter 288 The Crime of Mo Xu_1

Chapter 288: Chapter 288 The Crime of Mo Xu_1

Studying alchemy under Lan Yu’er offered benefits that were naturally not limited to just the improvement of alchemy techniques.

The many pills Lan Yu’er refined were basically shared with Ling Xiao, giving him one or two each time, which allowed him to completely focus on tempering his body and improving his cultivation level when he returned to his cave dwelling at night.

Such pills might seem trivial to Lan Yu’er, who could give them away to Ling Xiao without a second thought, but to Martial Artists in the Martial Vein Realm, they were treasures that money couldn’t buy—a rarity indeed.

Seven days later, Ling Xiao had almost completely mastered Lan Yu’er’s skills, and even developed his unique insights, which made it impossible for Lan Yu’er not to acknowledge his talent.

At the beginning, Lan Yu’er felt somewhat uncomfortable in her heart, as after all, the once top medical talent of Moon Hua Sect was now easily surpassed by Ling Xiao, which was bound to cause some discontent.

However, as time went on, that feeling faded, and she even started to feel somewhat pleased.

After all, having a genius like Ling Xiao learn from her for so long, she considered herself to be his half-mentor. If there was anything that required Ling Xiao’s assistance in the future, wouldn’t that be very convenient?

Moreover, she had always been unable to break through to the Heavenly Man Realm, which at the end of the day was still due to the scattering of her focus.

Now that Ling Xiao had joined the Pharmacy Hall, she could devote more of her energy to cultivating. In fact, starting from the fifth day, some of the pills she was supposed to refine had been transferred to Ling Xiao to make.

This was a sign of trust in Ling Xiao and at the same time a way to train his alchemy skills.

One day, Vice Hall Master Qing Mu of the Pharmacy Hall arrived at the Pill Refining Room with a very ugly expression. He immediately questioned Lan Yu’er about why she had handed part of the precious pills to Ling Xiao for refining, claiming that the pills Ling Xiao made had problems and demanding to punish him according to the rules of the Pharmacy Hall.

Of course, these were trumped-up charges.

The quality of the pills Ling Xiao made had been inspected by both Lan Yu’er and Elder Master Yang and were even better than the ones they made, so how could there be any problem?

Just as Lan Yu’er was about to speak up, Ling Xiao, with a smile, stopped her, then turned to Qing Mu saying, "Vice Hall Master Qing Mu, are you certain that the pills I refined have issues?"

"Of course, do you think I would falsely accuse you?"

Qing Mu said with a cold voice.

"Heh, who knows? I’ve heard that Vice Hall Master Qing Mu is also skilled in pill refining. Could it be that you feel jealous because my pills are better than yours, and you’re picking faults on purpose?"

With Yang Dan Lin and Lan Yu’er backing him, Ling Xiao was not afraid of Qing Mu.

"You! Don’t spout nonsense!"

Qing Mu said angrily.

"Then you, Vice Hall Master Qing Mu, shouldn’t slander people without evidence!"

Ling Xiao said coldly, "Since you think there’s a problem with the pills I refined, why don’t we do this? Let’s openly refine pills in front of the senior members of the Pharmacy Hall and the disciples. Let’s compare to see whose pills are superior?"

"Hmph, I disdain to compete with you!"

Qing Mu humphed coldly.

"Qing Mu, haven’t you always wanted the position of the Master of the Pharmacy Hall?"

Yang Dan Lin slowly walked in from outside, smiling at Qing Mu and said, "In that case, if you can surpass Ling Xiao in a public alchemy contest, I will wholeheartedly hand over the position of Hall Master and will not go back on my word!"

"Elder!"

"Elder Master Yang!"

Ling Xiao and Lan Yu’er were both startled. Yang Dan Lin had recently been coming to the Pill Refining Room frequently, occasionally offering guidance to both of them in alchemy, so he had witnessed the progress of Ling Xiao and Lan Yu’er, but wagering his position as Hall Master against Qing Mu seemed quite risky.

"Hahaha, Elder Master Yang, you must be joking."

Although Qing Mu was eager to agree, he was afraid that Yang Dan Lin was deliberately testing him, so he didn’t respond immediately.

"What’s the matter? Are you afraid, Qing Mu?"

Yang Dan Lin said with a cold smile, "Aren’t you a pharmacist with the Wenwu Sacred Fire Seed and master of the Wenwu Sacred Fire Martial Soul? While Ling Xiao only possesses a Mundane Fire Seed, you still don’t dare to bet against him?"

Qing Mu stayed silent, his face a bit red with embarrassment.

"If you’re afraid to make a wager, then don’t stir up trouble without cause. The pills crafted by Ling Xiao have been personally inspected by myself. If anyone says there’s a problem, let them come to me!"

Yang Dan Lin suddenly raised his voice.

"Elder Master Yang, you can’t show favoritism like this!" Qing Mu, his face an ashen hue, reprimanded furiously.

"I am showing favoritism? What about it?" Yang Dan Lin looked at Qing Mu, not giving him any room to back down.

"Fine! Since that’s how it is, don’t blame me for what comes next! Yang Dan Lin, you’ve said it yourself, if I win against Ling Xiao, will you graciously resign from your position as hall master?"

The expression on Qing Mu’s face twisted grotesquely, perhaps due to overwhelming anger, he had forgotten his fear and was becoming disrespectful.

"Indeed, those were my words!"

"Alright, then let’s have our formal competition tomorrow at noon in the Pharmacy Hall square!"

With a somber face, Qing Mu proposed, "The requirement is simple, using the same materials, to craft the same pills. Whoever produces pills of higher perfection wins!"

"No problem at all."

Yang Dan Lin nodded in agreement.

Qing Mu glared fiercely at Ling Xiao, then his gaze revealed a hint of scorn.

He simply didn’t believe that Ling Xiao could craft pills better than his own.

After all, how long had Ling Xiao been studying alchemy? And he only possessed the Mundane Fire Seed.

Whereas he was an experienced alchemist with the powerful Wenwu Sacred Fire Martial Soul which greatly aided in alchemy.

As for those so-called perfect elixirs said to be produced by Ling Xiao he had seen before, he always thought they were crafted with the help of either Yang Dan Lin or Lan Yu’er. Otherwise, wouldn’t that make Ling Xiao a true monster?

He certainly didn’t believe it.

"Elder, there’s no need for that. I just wanted to challenge him here to put an end to his nitpicking. But with you escalating things, it puts a lot of pressure on me as a junior."

After Qing Mu had left, Ling Xiao said with a wry smile.

"Lack of confidence?"

Yang Dan Lin asked with a smile.

"How could that be possible!"

"As long as you’re confident, that’s all that matters. If you win this duel, you’ll be earmarked for focused cultivation by the sect as an alchemist. No one will dare to touch you lightly, and you’ll even have strong protectors around you. That way, Qing Mu will naturally be unable to bother you again. Isn’t that good?"

Yang Dan Lin hoped this would resolve the issue once and for all, because if Qing Mu kept troubling Ling Xiao repeatedly, it would probably prevent Ling Xiao from having the peace of mind to study.

"Okay then, Elder, Sister Lan, don’t worry. I will certainly defeat this Qing Mu." Ling Xiao revealed a determined smile.

...

The next day, at the Pharmacy Hall square, gathered were the high-ranking members of the Hall and its disciples.

Many of them were Inner Sect Disciples, a stark difference from the previous Outer Sect challenges.

Moreover, this time the competition was not about martial arts or combat, but about alchemy!

An alchemist who had just begun less than a month ago was to compete in an alchemy trial against a seasoned alchemist with decades of experience. This was unheard of.

"It’s that Ling Xiao again!"

Some of the older Outer Disciples working at the Pharmacy Hall couldn’t help but stand up and exclaim upon seeing Ling Xiao’s arrival.