Elder Cheng had never once refined multiple Elixirs with accompanying Danwen.
When he practiced alchemy, it was either quantity without quality, or some quality without quantity.
Unexpectedly, today, after merely watching Mu Jinyu's alchemy process and being occasionally guided by him, he successfully refined a furnace of Elixirs that had both quantity and quality.
This was despite the fact that during his previous attempts, even with Mu Jinyu's guidance, he still made several mistakes. If he could fully digest Mu Jinyu's earlier alchemy insights, wouldn't this mean he could eventually refine a furnace of Four Pills with Four Danwen?
Elder Cheng was overwhelmingly excited, tears streaming down his face.
Mu Jinyu stood to the side, seeing Elder Cheng's excitement, and felt a bit speechless, not understanding his state.
It's just two Elixirs with two Danwen, is it worth getting so excited?
Mu Jinyu truly didn't understand.
If Mu Jinyu knew Elder Cheng's thought process, thinking that this furnace was high quality and in large quantity, he would probably be even more speechless.
Just two Elixirs, not even reaching the fine quality line, how could that be considered quantity and quality?
After his initial excitement, Elder Cheng finally snapped back to reality. He turned his head, eyes flashing with an inexplicable light, staring straight at Mu Jinyu.
Mu Jinyu felt a bit uneasy under his gaze.
"Teacher..." Mu Jinyu opened his mouth, not knowing what Elder Cheng wanted.
The light in Elder Cheng's eyes grew brighter, though his expression appeared somewhat hesitant and a bit embarrassed.
Finally, he gritted his teeth and said in a low voice, "Why don't you stop calling me teacher? I truly have nothing to teach you, those Sacred Wood Branches and Pill Formulas, just consider them my apprenticeship gift. Can you be my teacher instead?!"
"Ah?"
Upon hearing Elder Cheng's words, Mu Jinyu was momentarily stunned. When he realized what Elder Cheng was proposing, he felt a wave of dizziness and almost fainted.
"Teacher, please don't say that. How could I be your teacher? I'm not capable..." Mu Jinyu quickly shook his head in refusal.
It was not out of humility or embarrassment.
Rather, he had only been practicing alchemy for a short time himself, and his purpose in coming to the Kunlun Ruins was not to promote the Alchemy Dao, but to help Jian Ruyan and Wen Rou reclaim their bodies.
He was currently staying at the Heavenly Sword Faction just to gather more information and prepare for the upcoming Hidden Dragon Conference.
Elder Cheng also felt quite embarrassed, not knowing how to approach Mu Jinyu for alchemy techniques in the future.
Mu Jinyu thought for a moment and realized that turning down Elder Cheng outright could strain their relationship, but it was truly impossible for him to be Elder Cheng's teacher. So, he proposed:
"Teacher, let's not address the issue of who is whose teacher. How about this, we exchange ideas, mutually discuss the Alchemy Dao, you can ponder the Pill Formulas, and I'll exchange alchemy experiences and techniques with you, does that work?"
"Really?" Elder Cheng's eyes lit up at Mu Jinyu's words, replying excitedly, "Good, good, then in the future let's exchange ideas whenever we have time, haha..."
Elder Cheng laughed heartily, sweeping away his previous gloom.
To be honest, after seeing Mu Jinyu's alchemy skills, he really couldn't shamelessly act as Mu Jinyu's teacher. But, due to various reasons, Mu Jinyu didn't want to be his teacher either. Now, turning into mutual Alchemy Dao partners seemed perfectly fitting.
He found it entirely acceptable and didn't feel devalued from being Mu Jinyu's teacher to just a Dao partner!
After that, the atmosphere between them no longer felt so awkward. Mu Jinyu continued to ponder the Pill Formulas given by Elder Cheng and proceeded with his alchemy.
After completing a batch of Elixirs, he would summarize the previous mistakes and continue to exchange insights with Elder Cheng, then let the other attempt alchemy while occasionally offering suggestions, minimizing Elder Cheng's errors.
...
While Mu Jinyu was studying various Pill Formulas and exchanging ideas with Elder Cheng.
At Tianlan Peak, on the mountain path leading to the residences of the Inner Gate disciples on the List of Outstanding Talents.
Chen Qiuqiao, who had just completed the Inner Gate formalities, was heading towards the summit with an Inner Gate Senior Brother!
"Qiu Qiao, what happened today? Why didn't you even make it into the top three of the grand exam?"
As the Inner Gate Senior Brother guided Chen Qiuqiao along the mountain path, he asked curiously.
Chen Qiuqiao remained silent, his face darkening, fists clenching tight, making cracking sounds upon hearing his brother's words.
Seeing this, the Senior Brother raised an eyebrow, asking, "Did you perhaps encounter that Spirit Root prodigy ahead of time?"
Upon hearing this, Chen Qiuqiao's expression became even more unpleasant.
At this moment, he would have rather lost to Mu Jinyu like Wu Lei in the first round, rather than being defeated by Jian Ruyan.
Losing to Mu Jinyu wouldn't have drawn much ridicule due to the vast difference in their abilities. However, losing to Jian Ruyan made others question his reputation as one of the Outer Gate's top three experts!
Chen Qiuqiao's current mood was one of intense regret!
If he had known the outcome would be like this, he would have preferred failing the initial selection test rather than suffering this second humiliation!
Seeing Chen Qiuqiao's worsening expression and his silence, the Senior Brother sighed, "Qiu Qiao, your performance really was poor. Now as we go to visit Senior Brother Fang, I don't know if he'll still want to take you in, sigh…"
"Remember, don't be as aloof as you were in the Outer Gate. In the Inner Gate, especially among the List of Outstanding Talents' senior brothers, you should be more obedient and say pleasant things to Senior Brother Fang. Maybe he'll allow you to stay at the Tianlan Peak Summit if he feels pleased."
The Senior Brother earnestly advised.
"Mm, I understand..." Chen Qiuqiao nodded lightly, responding bitterly.
Like Li Xiaoxiao, Chen Qiuqiao, one of the Outer Gate's top three experts, also had his own backing in the Inner Gate.
This Senior Brother was actually his cousin from the same clan.
His strength was not particularly outstanding but he worked for a talent ranked in the fifties on the List of Outstanding Talents.
Now that Chen Qiuqiao had entered the Inner Gate, his cousin helped with all the formalities, leading him up to visit Senior Brother Fang at the Tianlan Peak Summit, hoping that Chen Qiuqiao, as one of the Outer Gate's top three experts, would catch Senior Brother Fang's eye and become his confidant.
Seeing Chen Qiuqiao finally respond, his cousin smiled, patting his shoulder encouragingly, "Mm, you must perform well. If you follow Senior Brother Fang, you won't have to fear anyone in the Inner Gate except the List of Outstanding Talents' senior brothers and sisters!"
"If that Spirit Root prodigy bothers you again, maybe Senior Brother Fang will even help you teach him a lesson!"