Nine Astra Skies

Ye Chen heard his name being called and jolted upright in reflex.

The group of registered apprentices laughed.

Ye Chen was confused. What were these people laughing about?

Master Apothecary Xuanyi waved his hand and smiled. "You don't have to stand, just sit down and talk. It's fine with me."

Ye Chen now understood. Master Apothecary Xuanyi was quite a laid-back person. He did not require his apprentices to get up when answering him. Hence, Ye Chen sat back down and said, "It's not appropriate to control the flame by suppressing it using Fire-type Celestial Chi. In my humble opinion, apart from suppressing it, it's more important to guide it as things are often better when we allow them to flow as compared to blocking them. Although suppressing flames can enhance our Fire-type Celestial Chi cultivation base, we'll only be able to control the flame at our will when we truly become one with the flame."

Ye Chen's words stunned the group of registered apprentices. They had never thought of that before. At present, they could not understand the concept of controlling something at their will.

Something sparked in Master Apothecary Xuanyi's mind. What Ye Chen had said made his mind very unsettled. He lowered his chin and smiled. "To control something at will… Fascinating conclusion. Alchemists below the Advanced Apothecary rank usually suppress flames using Celestial Chi. Only after reaching the Master Apothecary rank would one be able to guide flames, which was exactly what you had just said. All of you are still at the foundation-building stage and it's incredibly difficult to reach that rank. So, I advise that you don't rush it. The fact that you can comprehend this concept shows that you have great talent but best not to waste it. Only by putting in enough effort can you achieve great things. Alchemy is vast and complicated. Even a tiny error may lead to a large discrepancy, so you must always be pious and cautious to reach greater heights. Don't rest on your laurels just because of a moment of laziness."

Master Apothecary Xuanyi was addressing Ye Chen's lack of punctuality earlier. Ye Chen's cheeks turned red as he replied, "I'll remember it by heart, Master."

Ye Chen's words earlier had impressed Master Apothecary Xuanyi and many apprentices were discussing it fervently. Until now, they still had not understood how to control something at their will and surprisingly, Master Apothecary Xuanyi said that one could only comprehend that concept after reaching the Master Apothecary rank. They wondered could this new kid on the block be a powerhouse who had not yet revealed his true strength?

There was an awful look on Xuan Yu's face. Master Apothecary Xuanyi's praise for Ye Chen had put him in a panicky mode. Ever since Xuan Yu was promoted into an intermediate apothecary, he had always been the center of attention among the many registered apprentices. Ye Chen's emergence had undoubtedly produced some sense of crisis in him.

Of course, it was impossible to judge Ye Chen's talents by hearing just a few words from him. Many registered apprentices had malicious assumptions that Ye Chen was only good at talking.

Master Apothecary Xuanyi nodded in approval. He then continued to explain alchemy, knowingly deepening the lecture content in the process.

The crowd of apprentices glanced at each other with puzzled looks. Xuan Yu and the others could only understand about fifty to sixty percent of the content explained by Master Apothecary Xuanyi. Meanwhile, ordinary apprentices could only understand about twenty to thirty percent of the lecture. While listening, Ye Chen linked the lecture to the contents of The Supreme Way of Alchemy as well as the notes in his armguard space. At that instant, he had discovered an endless enjoyment in learning.

Master Apothecary Xuanyi was very selfless when it came to imparting knowledge. He would teach the apprentices everything that he knew but as for how much the apprentices could absorb, it depended on their respective talents and efforts.

'I've really learned a lot by coming here!'

'If I go back and apply this knowledge, the success rate of my alchemy would increase. I have confidence that by then, I could even refine and produce some higher quality pills.'

It turned out that there were many theories in alchemy. Before this, Ye Chen only knew about the process of alchemy. He had no idea about the exact changes happening in every step of the alchemy process as well as how to rectify his mistakes and so on.

Now, Ye Chen had a deeper sense of reverence toward the profoundly knowledgeable Master Apothecary Xuanyi. Only at this moment did Ye Chen start regarding Master Apothecary Xuanyi as a genuine teacher who wanted to share knowledge and help dispel confusion.

Very soon, one morning had passed.

"Since Ye Chen has just arrived, let me repeat my tutelage's house rules. The Xuanyi Tutelage freely accepts apprentices, old and new alike, to come and go freely. But as long as you're my apprentice, you must help each other and treat each other kindly. I will not tolerate any forms of bullying and if you do, you'll be evicted from the tutelage. When facing foreign enemies, all of you should work together as one. When you're outside the tutelage, don't cause anyone trouble. You must behave in a low-key manner and not offend anyone with your words or actions. Other than that, I don't really have any other requirements. Just remember, members of the Xuanyi Tutelage cannot bully and harm people but if somebody bullies us, you can always direct the matter to me. If I find that they're at fault, I will, of course, help you obtain justice," Master Apothecary Xuanyi said meaningfully.

Master Apothecary Xuanyi had a high status in the Xiwu Empire and his apprentices rarely caused any trouble outside the tutelage. So, any instance of that could be regarded as an anomaly. Ye Chen could see that Master Apothecary Xuanyi's tutelage had very few restrictions set, which mirrored his kind and laid-back personality.

"We'll remember it by heart," the crowd of apprentices replied and Ye Chen followed suit.

"You may go back now. Ye Chen, you stay. I still have something to say to you." Master Apothecary Xuanyi waved his hands.

The crowd of apprentices exited the hall in a beeline. Xuan Yu glanced back at Ye Chen, who remained sitting still. Xuan Yu's face was a little somber. However, he had no choice but to walk out of the lecture hall.

"Senior Brother Xuan, do you know where Ye Chen comes from?" a registered apprentice about twenty-three or four years old looked at Xuan Yu and asked.

"I heard he's from the Ye Castle of Donglin," Xuan Yu answered in a deep voice.

"Ye Castle of Donglin? Why haven't I heard of it before?"

These registered apprentices rarely inquire about outside affairs. Most of them came from various clans of the Xiwu Empire. Usually, their families would deal with these matters, so it rarely concerned them.

"Let me ask my father about this kid's origins when I go back this time."

"Senior Brother Xuan, Master seems to adore that kid very much." A few registered apprentices gathered around Xuan Yu and laughed. They were Lei Yi's men with decent talents. Three of them had just reached the intermediate apothecary rank and they were just slightly inferior to Xuan Yu.

"Senior Brother Lei gave us the green light to give him a good beating." A dark-skinned young man grinned. He was called Cheng Xian, one of Lei Yi's confidants and an intermediate apothecary.

"He won't have his moment for long. He has just arrived. No matter how talented he may be, he won't be able to become an intermediate apothecary without at least two or three years. We have more than enough time to torment him slowly," Xuan Yu said viciously. "Kiddo, don't blame me for it. It's not my fault that you're brought in here by Li Xu."

Several registered apprentices got together and plotted how to force Ye Chen out of the tutelage. The only thing that troubled them was that Ye Chen was living in Li Xu's side courtyard and they did not dare to be too brazen.

In the lecture hall, Ye Chen and Master Apothecary Xuanyi sat facing each other.

"Ye Chen, about what you said earlier, did you gain enlightenment while cultivating or did you read it from somewhere?" Master Apothecary Xuanyi took a sip of tea and looked up at Ye Chen.

"I was enlightened while I was cultivating," Ye Chen said courteously..

"What cultivation base are you currently on now?" Master Apothecary Xuanyi smiled kindly.

"I'm on the Tenth Level."

"Tenth Level?" Master Apothecary Xuanyi was unable to hide his surprise. With Ye Chen's age, it was quite an incredible feat to reach the Tenth Level. Initially, he was worried that Ye Chen would be bullied by his senior and junior brothers. Now, it seemed that he had thought too much. Among his apprentices, none of them had reached the Tenth Level. Seeing that there was not the slightest bit of ego on Ye Chen's face, Master Apothecary Xuanyi nodded secretly. It was invaluable to see a kid so mature at such a young age. "Can you show me your Fire-type Celestial Chi? I'd like to see how good your Fire-type cultivation system is."

"Sure." Ye Chen nodded. He started circulating his Fire-type Celestial Chi, consolidating flames. A heatwave arose from within. Ye Chen had merely just released his Fire-type Celestial Chi. If he added his Wood-type cultivation system and utilized wood to ignite a fire, this Fire-type Celestial Chi could be several times more powerful.

"A very pure Fire-type Celestial Chi." Feeling this Fire-type power surging at his face, even Master Apothecary Xuanyi's calm and peaceful heart had begun undulating. In terms of the Fire-type cultivation system, Ye Chen was the most gifted that he had ever seen. He was probably the most talented apprentice Master Apothecary Xuanyi had ever encountered. Master Apothecary Xuanyi thought of his tutelage. Although there were numerous talents in his tutelage, it was rare to find geniuses such as Ye Chen.

"Tomorrow, we're going to fish in Lake Nekros. I'd like you to come and practice alchemy with me the day after tomorrow, so I can see how much you comprehend about alchemy," Master Apothecary Xuanyi said. An ordinary apprentice would undergo two to three years of apprenticeship with Master Apothecary Xuanyi before they could officially begin practicing alchemy. However, Master Apothecary Xuanyi did not want to wait any longer and yearned to witness Ye Chen's talent in alchemy. To be able to formally start alchemy so soon, Ye Chen could be considered as an outlier among the many other apprentices.

Lake Nekros? Fishing?

Ye Chen was perplexed. Why did Master Apothecary Xuanyi value fishing so much? Could there be some other meaning behind this fishing activity? Besides, where was Lake Nekros? It sounded weird just by hearing the name itself.

After thinking for a while, Ye Chen opted not to ask further. Either way, his doubts would be answered tomorrow. Ye Chen was very excited knowing that he would soon be learning alchemy from Master Apothecary Xuanyi. He had always been using the ancient alchemy methods to refine pills and as he did not have a refining furnace, he had never tried refining pills using the ordinary alchemy methods. Ye Chen thought that after all, he had just entered this tutelage, so even if his alchemy failed, Master Apothecary Xuanyi would not say anything either.

"Ye Chen, would you like to accept my tutelage and become my fifth official apprentice?" Master Apothecary Xuanyi asked after a moment's thought.

"But I haven't begun alchemy yet. I don't know if I'm able to progress further in alchemy." Ye Chen was momentarily stunned. If Ye Chen had the chance to be directly promoted to a formal apprentice, he would be more than willing to accept it.

"That doesn't matter. Just let me know if you're willing to." Master Apothecary Xuanyi smiled and flipped his hand.

"Of course, I'm willing to," Ye Chen said humbly. Master Apothecary Xuanyi was a man with high prestige, especially in alchemy where he had gained extraordinary achievements. It was a blessing to have an elder like him as his teacher.

"I've devoted many years of my life in alchemy and teaching, and I know that my days will be over soon, so you may be my very last apprentice. Everything that I've done throughout my entire life, I've done them sensibly and truthfully. I only have two things that I regret. First was that I wasn't able to return to my tutelage. The second was that I couldn't get an apprentice that I can truly be proud of. Li Xu, Lei Yi, and the rest have achieved quite some success in alchemy but none of them have been able to surpass me. To receive such a talented apprentice like you during my last few years, it's fair to say that I can finally put my mind to peace. If you can bring the Xuanyi Tutelage to greater heights in the field of alchemy, it'd be the best that an old man like me could ever hope for. Otherwise, I'll just have to give in to my fate," Master Apothecary Xuanyi said with a smile on his face.

After hearing Master Apothecary Xuanyi's words, Ye Chen froze and said, "Master, I can see that you're still very lively. Why do you say that your time will soon come?"