Chapter 464: Elder Tao’s Disciple

’I’ll really have to create my own pill formulations...’ Yi Chen couldn’t help but mull over that thought, not paying attention to Elder Tao, who had started reminiscing about his past.

’...and not just one, but ten of them, in fact.’ He couldn’t help but find the task more and more daunting the longer he thought.

The only pill formulation he was completely familiar with at the moment was that of Sleeping Crane Pill, which he had imprinted in his memory after trying it out dozens of times.

However, it was precisely because he was so familiar with every detail of the pill formulation that the entire process felt even more daunting.

First, he would have to decide what properties the refined pill should possess. Then, he would need to find the right combination of herbs that would react with one another in precisely the required manner to produce the desired effect. After that, he would have to devise a suitable refining method to successfully create the pill. And the process didn’t end there...

Just thinking of the thousands of variables that lay on this path, Yi Chen couldn’t help but feel completely overwhelmed.

Letting out a silent sigh, his gaze landed on Elder Tao, who had just finished reminiscing about the time when he was preparing for the Tier 3 tests.

It was also at that moment that their gazes met.

"I believe I’ve answered your question, right?" Elder Tao asked with a slight smile.

"Y-yes, Elder Tao. Thank you." Yi Chen thanked him gratefully the very next moment as he pushed the worrying thoughts deep in his mind.

It was still too early to worry about such things. He had yet to become a High-Grade Pill Apprentice, a rank that might take him several years to attain, having only just become a Basic-Grade Pill Apprentice that day.

"Mhm." Elder Tao nodded with a satisfied smile at Yi Chen’s response before saying, "Since you’ve finished the exam much earlier than the rest, you can either choose to be briefed now on all the details about the guild you should be aware of as a member, or you can wait until the test’s end and be briefed on it together with them. Which one do you want to choose?"

Yi Chen gave Elder Tao’s words a thought and answered a few moments later, "It will still take more than an hour for the third test to finish, so if it’s okay, I would like to be briefed now..."

With only a week left until his duel with an Inner Sect disciple, Yi Chen wanted to return to the sect as soon as possible and devote himself fully to practising his swordsmanship. For the past several days, he had focused much more on pill refining than on swordsmanship.

"Sure, that won’t be a problem at all." Elder Tao nodded and gestured for Yi Chen to come out of the secluded room, and started walking deeper into the hallway.

"As a Test supervisor, it should be my responsibility to explain everything to you, but since I’ve left the Testing Hall for long enough, I’ll have to return soon. However, don’t worry, I’ll assign a suitable person to inform you about everything that you need to know."

With that said, Elder Tao kept walking before finally taking a right turn.

A doorway that led towards a bright room entered Yi Chen’s sight the very next moment. As he followed along Elder Tao, he soon realised what the place was.

’Such a beautifully arranged library...’ Yi Chen thought while looking at shelves of various shapes that had been made in a way that would allow them to store the maximum number of books inside the library.

As Elder Tao passed by the reception table, the Pill Apprentice on duty behind the table greeted him respectfully.

"Greetings, Elder Tao!" The man greeted Elder Tao with respect evident in his eyes before curiously looking at the young man who was following behind him.

’I’m seeing him here for the first time? Is he a new apprentice?’ the man thought with curiosity evident in his eyes.

"Haha, Greetings. This kid here became a Pill Apprentice just today, so it’s only natural for you to be seeing him for the first time," Elder Tao said while letting out a soft chuckle when he noticed the man’s changing expression and asked, "Where’s Duan Wen? Did he leave already? I had some work for him."

Elder Tao asked with a curious expression.

"Ah, Senior Duan hasn’t left, so he should still be sitting at his regular spot...Should I call him for you, Elder?" the man answered after a brief thought.

"No, there’s no need for that." Elder Tao gestured for the man to relax and, turning towards Yi Chen, said the next moment, "Come, I’ll introduce you to my disciple."

’Disciple?’

Yi Chen thought with a frown as he was soon guided further inside the library. Passing by various tables, he saw several other Pill Apprentices dressed in the same robes as the one he had received from Elder Tao a few moments ago.

Just like him, they too looked at him curiously, curious about his identity. However, with Elder Tao walking closely in front of him, none of them dared to stop Yi Chen.

A while later, they stopped in front of a table where a man in his twenties sat alone, completely immersed in a book. On the table in front of him, stacks of books could be seen.

"Duan Wen," Elder Tao called the very next moment, which instantly pulled Duan Wen out of his absorbed state.

"Master!" Duan Wen instantly stood up the moment he heard Elder Tao’s familiar voice as he turned to face him the very next second.

’Hm?’ Seeing Yi Chen’s figure standing next to Elder Tao, Duan couldn’t help but stare at him in confusion.

Meanwhile, Yi Chen too was looking at the man in front of him with a curious expression as he checked the man’s status panel the very next moment.

==== STATUS PANEL ====

Name: Duan Wen

Age: 23 years

Strength: 270

Cultivation: Third Qi Absorption Stage

Qi Nature: Water

Remark: Hates Huo Clan to the core [Regenerate: 10,000 EXP]

======================

"Master... he is?" Duan Wen asked with a confused expression while looking back at Elder Tao.

"Well, his name is Yi Chen. He just gained the title of Pill Apprentice after acing all three tests that were there." Elder Tao introduced Yi Chen with a smirk on his face and continued, "If Ru Qi hadn’t already set her eyes on him, I would have taken him as my second personal disciple..."

Elder Tao paused for a few seconds in regret and continued, "... Anyway, I’ll have to go and supervise the rest of the candidates, so just introduce him to the workings of the guild and everything he should be aware of as a newly accepted Pill Apprentice in my stead. I’ll be going then."

The moment Elder Tao finished speaking, his figure disappeared from the library, and Yi Chen, who had been standing beside him all this while, felt a cold breeze blow past his face.

"Master! Wai-"

Duan Wen, who still had a lot of questions in his mind, wanted to stop Elder Tao, but before he could even finish his words, Elder Tao’s figure had completely vanished...or so he thought, as Elder Tao instantly appeared right in front of them the very next second.

"Ah!" Exclaiming to draw their attention, Elder Tao turned towards Yi Chen and said while pointing towards Duan Wen, "I forgot to mention that, just like you, Duan Wen is also a disciple of the Heavenly Azure Dragon Sect. You can ask him for help whenever you need in the future."

Elder Tao winked at Yi Chen with a meaningful expression before disappearing once again.

"Master... He vanished again," Duan Wen let out a disappointed sigh as his face soon started to turn red for having let Yi Chen, who was a newly joined Pill Apprentice, witness such a situation.

However, at that moment he was suddenly reminded of Elder Tao’s last words and raised his head to meet Yi Chen’s eyes; the very next moment he asked, for the sake of confirming, "What was your name again? And...you’re really from my sect?"

"I’m Outer Sect Disciple Yi Chen, Senior Brother Duan. I joined the sect about two months ago..." Yi Chen instantly answered in a respectful manner, realising that the person in front of him was an Inner Sect Disciple, and continued.

"Yi Chen...Yi Chen..." Feeling a sense of familiarity welling in his mind after hearing his name, Duan Wen repeated Yi Chen’s name a couple of times before suddenly realising something.

"Wait...Y-You... Aren’t you that crazy brat who dared to challenge Wu Dong?" Duan Wen asked as a deep frown appeared on his face.

"Well... yes, that’s me, Senior Brother. It’s quite embarrassing that you already know me...hahaha," Yi Chen answered with an embarrassed chuckle while scratching the back of his head.

"You...Leave it. It’s nothing." There was a lot Duan Wen wanted to say, but after linking up a few things, he decided to swallow his words.

’Almost the entire sect knows about you by now, you crazy bastard, so how could I not...’ he thought while rolling his eyes, but didn’t put Yi Chen in an uncomfortable situation any longer.

"Whatever... initially, I thought you were just a crazy brat. But since you managed to leave such a great impression on Master during the test, it’s clear that you’re talented... which means you really are serious about defeating Wu Dong. Am I right?" Duan Wen asked, narrowing his eyes

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