Legacy of Hatred

Those ignorant of the subject abided by a simple equation. Rank 3 materials were beyond rooting experts, so only branching experts could interact with them.

Instead, masters knew exactly what the problem entailed, but their greater knowledge and expertise didn’t make the two-faced hurdle any more complicated.

A rooting expert didn’t have a strong enough Qi to refine rank 3 ingredients. Even if he did, his energy reserves couldn’t last for an entire rank 3 concoction. It was truly that basic.

The inability to use elixirs and Qi-Storage pills to compensate for that gap was more complicated since it involved the split-second decisions a concoction’s variables demanded. Still, no one had to go that far to label the practice impossible.

Which was why utter silence spread in front of Liam’s strange concoction. Most of it came from sheer confusion about something that everyone knew couldn’t be done, but there was curiosity, as well as timid hope that an exceptional spectacle was about to unfold.

As for Liam, his decision had many excuses. He wanted to repay Master Vermillion for what he had learned watching him, teaching him something in turn. Revealing the ability to concoct rank 3 products would also improve Liam’s fame, earning him safety and relevance.

Yet, the true reason was of far more innocent nature. Liam couldn’t reveal his great Master’s name yet, but he wanted to at least tell the world about how exceptional he was. Liam had become strong enough to do so.

The Messengers Guild had even given Liam a good cover-up story. He could blame everything on his core’s affinity. Fellow masters would be able to guess that his talent had to be great due to the Qi reserves required, but he could avoid telling the truth on that specific issue.

The inevitable exaggerated rumors would handle everything else. Liam had seen how unlikely it was for people to consider the Ancestral Snake’s lineage. Everyone would probably blame the matter on some secret art or unknown alchemical product.

Of course, Liam had to succeed first, but that had never been in doubt. The Demoness’ rewards included the rank 3 Devil’s Angelica that had allowed Liam to create a new rank 3 Cloud Pill and the rank 3 Boar’s Touch for his breakthrough. The testing phase around that ingredient was over.

As the compound concoction continued among the confused and stunned audience, Liam gained the best ally he could ask for.

Master Vermillion initially stood on his side of the balcony, inspecting the strange arrangement of two cauldrons and spirit stones from afar.

It wasn’t hard to understand what Liam was doing. As his great Master had said, the solution relied on basic elements of the cultivation world rather than advanced alchemy.

Liam was only one person, limiting what he could interact with simultaneously. He could fuel two alchemical flames at the same time, but that would prevent him from picking up ingredients. The spirit stones solved the issue, acting as charcoal that replaced the need for a second log.

The method was expensive because of the spirit stones, but the true challenge lay in its preparation. There had to be synchrony between the two cauldrons. The separate concoctions needed the same alchemical flame, meaning extensive fine-tuning.

That added to the expense, but Liam had clearly done it, and Master Vermillion began jumping around the balcony once he saw that. He never intruded on Liam’s laboratory, but he couldn’t help but want to inspect the revolutionary process from every available angle.

People could be ignorant, but anyone could recognize that behavior. Master Vermillion’s evident interest more than vouched for the procedure’s validity.

The concoction’s last phase eventually arrived, highlighted by Liam himself. Sweat covered his face. His back became drenched, and his black eyes grew bloodshot. He was approaching his limit. He was the first and final variable in that new alchemical field.

But Liam’s ninety-sixth minor root had fully developed right before heading for the competition. He still couldn’t handle general rank 3 concoctions, but he had been able to endure the poisonous ones when he had fifty of those. Now, he didn’t even need to come close to his limit to see them through.

Master Vermillion froze when Liam reached for the black rank 1 cauldron, the one with the rank 2 part of the concoction, and poured its contents into the white one. The last spirit stones turned into dust, but Liam kept the black alchemical flame high and strong for a few more seconds before slapping the item’s side.

The talismans activated as dark smoke erupted from the white cauldron, sending it into the sky due to its toxic nature. Even Master Vermillion flinched at its sight, but what came next kept him glued to the spot.

Liam took a few deep breaths, using a talisman to wash the sweat off him, before reaching inside the cauldron, lifting a dark-green pill to his face.

Master Vermillion didn’t wait for Liam to offer the product to him. He entered the laboratory, stopping at his side, checking the dark-green pill, reaching for it, only for his hand to freeze halfway through.

The Poisonous Cloud Pill was far from a stable alchemical product. It had come from Horace Rauret’s knowledge, but Liam was the only one in the world who could handle it safely after so many improvements.

Master Vermillion saw as much. His very survival instincts had screamed in fear, stopping his hand. That pill was a weapon beyond the world, one specific to cultivators, and Master Vermillion didn’t dare to interact with it recklessly.

But Master Vermillion saw more than danger through his alchemical expertise. He might be wary about that strange product, but something else had arrived with it, a certainty that he could only express in one way.

Master Vermillion stepped back, sternly cupping his fist and performing the politest bow he had even mustered in his life, his loud announcement conveying the full extent of his unwavering seriousness. "Master Black Qi, I concede."

The competition wasn’t really meant to have winners and losers. It was more of a way to confirm Liam’s skills, earning money and products in the meantime, but Master Vermillion couldn’t help himself after what he had witnessed.

That day, the Messengers Guild’s representatives across the area sent word that a rooting expert had brought a rank 3 concoction to competition, and the news spread beyond the northern region before night could fall, together with the name "compound concoctions".

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