Chapter 60: Failure
The cat’s frequent visits to She Yuwei’s room had attracted the attention of the Ejian Sect elders. An investigation had revealed She Yuwei’s collection of forbidden writings.
Poor She Yuwei had been confined to solitary confinement, her precious stories confiscated.
Bai Jingxue couldn’t help but feel guilty. In this dull and austere sect, the only source of entertainment had been silenced. Countless disciples were undoubtedly mourning the loss of their favorite author.
But all Bai Jingxue could offer was remorse.
“Boom!”
She quickly covered her ears, sighing. “Here we go again.”
This was the thirty-sixth alchemy chamber Luo Nianshang had destroyed. Thankfully, her power was immense. She had managed to contain the explosion before it could cause too much damage. Otherwise, even the vast Ejian Sect wouldn’t be large enough to accommodate her destructive tendencies.
Luo Nianshang emerged from the cloud of black smoke, her white robes spotless. She opened her palm, revealing three small, charred pills.
She swallowed one, confirming that it wasn’t harmful, then turned her attention to the cat and dog.
Lü Qingyan sniffed the air, then gagged. “What is that smell?” she exclaimed. “It’s disgusting!”
Luo Nianshang, pinching her nose, her eyes gleaming with a hint of excitement, said, “Just eat it.”
Lü Qingyan’s ears perked up. She couldn’t believe those foul-smelling things were supposed to be transformation elixirs.
She quickly grabbed Bai Jingxue in her teeth and dashed off, her short legs carrying them away as fast as they could.
But the Sword Saint’s reputation wasn’t unearned. Lü Qingyan, in her haste, crashed into Luo Nianshang’s leg, which had materialized before them. She yelped, clutching her nose.
The original story hadn’t mentioned Luo Nianshang’s alchemy skills. Bai Jingxue had her doubts about the Sword Saint’s ability to create a functional elixir. They couldn’t outrun her, they couldn’t fight her, and they certainly didn’t want to eat those things.
She stared at Luo Nianshang, her expression pitiful, meowing softly, hoping to awaken the Sword Saint’s maternal instincts.
Luo Nianshang, seeing the cat’s pleading eyes, hesitated. But transformation was important. She crouched down, her voice soothing. “It might smell bad, but it doesn’t taste like anything,” she said. “Be good.”
“No way,” Bai Jingxue thought. “Your tongue can even handle the Demon Lord’s cooking. Your taste buds are unreliable.”
She intensified her pitiful act, her large eyes fixed on Luo Nianshang.
Luo Nianshang almost gave in, but she steeled her resolve. She quickly pinched Bai Jingxue’s mouth open, popping the pill inside.
The pill dissolved instantly, and Bai Jingxue, her eyes widening, rolled around on the ground, her tongue lolling out.
It was horrific. It tasted like rotten garbage, the flavor lingering in her mouth, clinging to her throat, her stomach churning.
“Jing!” Lü Qingyan barked, her voice filled with alarm.
Before she could finish, Luo Nianshang quickly shoved another pill into her mouth.
Another victim claimed.
Bai Jingxue, the taste finally fading, managed to sit up, her head spinning. She shook her head, but her vision blurred, multiple Luo Nianshangs appearing before her.
They all reached out, their hands aiming for her head.
Not today!
She backed away, her eyes narrowed with suspicion.
Luo Nianshang, her heart sinking, turned to Lü Qingyan, who had also regained consciousness. She reached out a hand, wanting to pet the dog.
Lü Qingyan, however, backed away, barking furiously.
“Woof! Woof! Woof!”
Luo Nianshang couldn’t understand the words, but she knew they were insults.
She felt a pang of regret. “I’m sorry,” she said, her voice soft.
Bai Jingxue simply wanted water. The taste still lingered in her mouth.
She turned and ran, heading back to the mansion, to her water bowl.
Lü Qingyan, seeing the cat flee, barked. “Jingxue, wait for me!”
Luo Nianshang, abandoned by both cat and dog, reached out a hand, then sighed, letting them go.
The elixir was supposed to be instant, but it seemed she had failed.
Seeing that they were alone, she pulled at a patch of grass, her frustration growing.
But she wasn’t one to give up easily. She straightened her back, her resolve renewed, and entered another alchemy chamber.
Bai Jingxue, after several gulps of water, felt her strength returning. She glanced at Lü Qingyan, who was also guzzling water, then sighed.
She examined her paw pads. There was no change. Luo Nianshang’s elixir had failed.
But at least she had managed to create pills this time. Her previous attempts had ended in explosions, the ingredients reduced to dust.
She decided it was pointless to rely on shortcuts. She would simply focus on her cultivation. Once they reached the Nascent Soul stage, they could transform without any side effects.
Seeing that Lü Qingyan was still drinking, she jumped onto the table, grabbing a small pouch in her teeth, then leaped down, pouring some of the powder into Lü Qingyan’s water bowl.
The powder, shimmering, floated on the surface of the water.
Lü Qingyan, however, grimaced. The powder had a faint fishy smell and a gritty texture. It wasn’t a pleasant experience.
She closed her eyes, forcing herself to drink it, but the elixir had left her feeling unwell. She felt nauseous during her cultivation practice.
Seeing her discomfort, Bai Jingxue abandoned her attempt to get Lü Qingyan to cultivate.
Lü Qingyan, her ears drooping, lay on the floor, whimpering. “Jingxue, I feel terrible.”
Bai Jingxue touched her forehead with a paw, her fur bristling as she felt the heat radiating from the dog’s body. Something was wrong.
The usually calm and collected cat panicked. “What’s wrong?” she asked, her voice frantic. “I’ll get a healer.”
She dashed out of the room, her worry transforming her into a black blur.
Lü Qingyan, her mind hazy, but her awareness heightened, realized something was wrong.
By the time Bai Jingxue returned with a healer, Lü Qingyan had lost consciousness.
The elder, crouching down, touched Lü Qingyan’s forehead, then circulated her spiritual energy through the dog’s body. She chuckled. “Who did this?” she asked.
“Meow?”
Seeing the cat’s questioning gaze, the elder elaborated. “She consumed something she shouldn’t have,” she said. “Who would dare to feed such a thing to the Sword Saint’s pet? Tsk, tsk.”
Something she shouldn’t have? Could it be…
Bai Jingxue frowned. If it was the elixir, then she should be experiencing the same symptoms. But she felt fine.
She was starting to doubt the elder’s medical expertise when Lü Qingyan’s eyes fluttered open. She smiled at Bai Jingxue, her voice unusually sweet. “Jingxue~”
Bai Jingxue shuddered. Lü Qingyan had used that same tone when she had been sick in their past life.
Her doubts vanished. She quickly circulated her spiritual energy, relieved to discover that she was fine.
Lü Qingyan, swaying slightly, stood up, her movements clumsy, as if she were drunk. She stumbled towards Bai Jingxue, collapsing onto her.
“Jingxue~”
Bai Jingxue’s fur bristled.
“Jingxue~ You smell so good~”
Bai Jingxue couldn’t handle this. She pushed Lü Qingyan away, then, seeing the dog writhing on the floor, her heart softened.
Lü Qingyan suddenly stood up, turning around to face Bai Jingxue with her backside, her tail held high.
Bai Jingxue stared at her, speechless.
Luo Nianshang, having destroyed another alchemy chamber, stared at the two charred pills she had managed to salvage, her heart sinking. She had run out of high-quality alchemy chambers.
She reluctantly abandoned her attempts at alchemy, her gaze fixed on the recipe as she analyzed her failures.
The transformation elixir had been lost for centuries, but she had seen it before. She had lived a long life.
However, she wasn’t an alchemist. She had only glanced at the recipe, her interest waning quickly.
Time had faded her memories. She could only recall some of the ingredients. The precise timing and temperature control eluded her.
Perhaps by the time she figured it out, the cat and dog would have already reached the Nascent Soul stage.
She sighed, then noticed someone approaching. She quickly composed herself, resuming her usual aloof expression.
“Disciple Chang Biyu greets Ancestor.”
The Ejian Sect had so many disciples. Luo Nianshang, a recluse, didn’t recognize her.
She nodded curtly.
Chang Biyu, noticing the lingering scent of smoke and herbs emanating from Luo Nianshang, assumed she had encountered a bottleneck in her alchemy practice.
Curiosity, a trait common to all healers, compelled her to speak. “Ancestor, may I see the recipe you are working on?” she asked.
Luo Nianshang, not particularly attached to the recipe, readily agreed.
Chang Biyu, taking the recipe, her gaze scanning the ingredients, suddenly remembered the dog’s symptoms and the faint scent of dragon scale powder in the room.
Her image of the cold and detached Sword Saint shattered.
She couldn’t believe Luo Nianshang was attempting to create this kind of elixir.
Although she was surprised, it seemed the Sword Saint hadn’t identified the crucial missing ingredient. The dog must have accidentally consumed the dragon scale powder, inadvertently completing the recipe.
“Ancestor, perhaps you are missing dragon scale powder,” she suggested.
Luo Nianshang’s eyes widened. “You know this recipe?” she asked, her voice laced with surprise.
Chang Biyu stared at her, her expression a mixture of awe and disbelief. She nodded slowly. “Don’t worry, Ancestor,” she said. “I won’t tell anyone.”
Special recipes were usually kept secret. Luo Nianshang assumed that was what she was referring to.
But she didn’t care. “Have you tried it?” she asked. “Does it work?”
Chang Biyu shook her head. “Someone else used it,” she said. “Their body became incredibly hot, their mind clouded. They fell into a deep sleep, followed by a period of heightened arousal.”
Those were the exact symptoms of the transformation elixir. Luo Nianshang’s gloomy mood lifted, her social anxiety momentarily forgotten.
She smiled, then quickly schooled her expression. “You’re quite talented,” she said to Chang Biyu.
She turned and walked away, leaving the bewildered elder standing there.
Before she even reached her chamber, she heard a rhythmic slapping sound and Lü Qingyan’s barks.
The barks sounded rather… pleasurable.
A bad feeling settled in her stomach. She quickly opened the door.
The dog was presenting her backside, her tail held high, while the cat, her expression impassive, was repeatedly slapping her.
If her mind hadn’t been corrupted by those storybooks, she might have assumed they were simply playing. But her innocence had been shattered.
She slammed the door shut, then crouched down, burying her face in her hands.
“Stop thinking about it, Luo Nianshang,” she muttered.
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