Lord of the Demon Sect

After hearing this, Jiang Chen felt immensely grateful. His generous master had given him a superior-grade spiritual artifact, something he had never even dared to dream of. Many foundation establishment stage cultivators still didn’t possess superior-grade spiritual artifacts, yet here he was, a disciple in the middle stage of Qi Refinement, already receiving such a treasure. If this got out, how many people would be wide-eyed in shock and envy him!

He repeatedly expressed his thanks, and now he truly felt a sense of master-disciple bond with his master.

At this moment, Master Luo shared his real name with Jiang Chen; it turned out he was named Luo Zhiyuan. As a senior alchemist, people generally referred to him as Master Luo. He was the head of the Alchemist Guild in Blood Shadow City.

Then, he took out two jade slips from his storage bag and handed them to Jiang Chen, advising, “These two jade slips contain my insights on alchemy and some pill recipes that you can use right now. Make sure to study them carefully when you have the time!”

“I’ll do my best…” Jiang Chen replied with a wry smile as he accepted the jade slips. It seemed he really wouldn’t have any free time on his hands.

“By the way, I’ve heard that after passing the assessment and registering with the Alchemist Guild, one can enjoy some privileges from the guild?” After placing the jade slips into his storage bag, Jiang Chen asked.

Luo Zhiyuan stroked his long beard and smiled slightly. “Hehe, that’s correct. Alchemists need an assortment of rare grasses and herbs to craft pills. However, one’s energy and time are limited, and alchemists frequently need to study alchemy. How could they possibly run around looking for materials every day? Therefore, to gather everything needed, exchanges are essential. Once you register with the Alchemist Guild, you’ll enjoy convenient exchange information services… For example, if you want to refine a particular pill but are missing a certain herb, and another alchemist has that herb, after we know your needs, we’ll facilitate the connection between both parties. With everyone willing, the guild can handle the transaction for you. Of course, you can also store surplus materials at the Alchemist Guild, and we can help sell them or trade for what you need.”

At this point, Luo Zhiyuan smiled and said, “Moreover, the higher your alchemist rank, the greater the services and rights you can enjoy. You may even gain access to some little-known pill recipes and material leads. Therefore, to acquire the materials, recipes, or items you need, you should strive to enhance your alchemy skills and aim to be assessed as an intermediate alchemist as soon as possible!”

“That’s a great policy!” Jiang Chen said, his face showing a hint of delight upon hearing this.

With this, Jiang Chen no longer had to spend too much effort collecting materials. He recalled the days of running around every day and felt it was quite unjustified. However, the Alchemist Guild did not operate on contribution points; instead, all transactions and storage of items were settled with spirit stones. Only items exchanged directly, with a note stating that they could not be traded for spirit stones, did not require such currency.

After exchanging more alchemy insights with his new master, Jiang Chen finally took his leave. As he passed through the hall at the entrance, those who had once mocked him were now wide-eyed in astonishment, their mouths agape.

“What? That kid from the Ghostly Slaughter Sect on the fourth layer of Qi Refinement really became a junior alchemist? Am I seeing things?”

“Yeah! It was already outrageous that the two young people who just walked out became junior alchemists. But at least they were disciples at the ninth layer of Qi Refinement, which was somewhat understandable. But if a fourth-layer Qi Refinement cultivator can become a junior alchemist, isn’t that groundbreaking?”

“Hey, you guys don’t know this-I just heard Captain Qiu say that this kid was directly taken as a disciple by Master Luo because his alchemy success rate reached thirty percent. Out of ten sets of alchemy materials during the exam, he actually managed to refine three pills! This level of talent in alchemy is something that even Master Luo didn’t achieve when he was young.”

The hall was filled with voices of surprise and admiration, and their gazes toward Jiang Chen immediately turned respectful. After all, he was a young alchemist who might one day surpass Master Luo, with a future that was impossible to measure.

At that moment, Liu Mo, who had been waiting for a long time, finally recognized that the boy from the Ghostly Slaughter Sect was the same reckless kid she had dismissed earlier. But now he wore a one-star alchemist badge, indicating that he had passed the assessment and truly become an alchemist.

“Ugh, how can someone with impure spiritual roots and only at the fourth layer of Qi Refinement become an alchemist, while I, Liu Mo, have no talent for alchemy?” Liu Mo couldn’t help but lament the unfairness of fate.

However, though she felt resentment, she was acutely aware that her family was facing an unprecedented major crisis. It was essential to find an alchemist willing to serve her. But with pressure from the Shang family, the alchemists in Blood Shadow City were too afraid to help her, leaving her with no choice but to focus her hopes on newly minted junior alchemists like Jiang Chen.

As Jiang Chen was about to turn down a small alley, Liu Mo stamped her foot, bit her lip, and finally steeled herself to step forward and intercept him. She said softly, “Esteemed alchemist, could you do me a favor? I promise I will reward you generously!”

Jiang Chen paused in surprise and recognized her as the young woman in green he had encountered before entering. Had she been waiting for him this whole time?

However, with a beautiful woman approaching him, he couldn’t just turn her away with a stern expression. Besides, it was clear that her cultivation level was significantly higher than his, so it wouldn’t be wise to offend her.

Thus, he respectfully cupped his hands and said, “May I ask what this esteemed friend needs help with? Your cultivation level appears to be much higher than mine! If what you seek is beyond your abilities, then it’s likely beyond my capabilities as well!”

He preemptively placed those words to avoid any unreasonable requests from this higher-level female cultivator.

Liu Mo smiled sweetly, performed a slight bow, and then softly said, “Dear friend, my name is Liu Mo. I would like to invite you to work at my Liu family’s alchemy workshop as an alchemist. I can offer you a monthly salary of fifty spirit stones. In addition, for the pills you craft, you will receive a ten percent commission on the sales. How does that sound to you?”

Seeing Jiang Chen hesitating, she hurried to add, “While other alchemy workshops in the city also offer a ten percent commission, they calculate that from pure profit. My offer is based on ten percent of total sales!”

Upon hearing this, Jiang Chen was taken aback. If what she said was true, it meant that Liu Mo was indeed investing a considerable amount into their partnership.

However, he knew that nothing comes for free; there must be some catch behind Liu Mo’s generous offer. If she could afford such favorable conditions, why hadn’t she found other alchemists instead of waiting at the Alchemist Guild for a novice like him?

Moreover, Zhang Li from the Bloodshadow Sect and Liu Nian from the Ghost Spirit Sect had already passed their junior alchemist assessments and had come out before him; they hadn’t been attracted by Liu Mo’s offer either, suggesting there might be reservations on their part.

“Well… esteemed friend, it’s not that I don’t want to help; it’s just that my sect, the Ghostly Slaughter Sect, is about to conduct a minor examination in three months. I really need this time to review my spells and martial skills so I can achieve a good ranking in the sect competition!” Jiang Chen politely declined.

Upon hearing Jiang Chen’s response, Liu Mo grew anxious. The first two junior alchemists she had encountered-one from the Bloodshadow Sect-were not likely to be swayed, and the other belonged to an unfamiliar sect, the Ghost Spirit Sect. That woman had a frosty demeanor and didn’t even acknowledge Liu Mo. Now, her only hope rested on this young man from the Ghostly Slaughter Sect. If he turned her down as well, the family’s alchemy workshop would truly be beyond saving.

It seemed she would have to invest a bit more of her family’s resources. With her brows furrowed and biting her lip, she gathered her resolve. “Esteemed friend, if you’re concerned about the sect’s minor examination, I can gift you a medium-grade defensive spiritual artifact!”

“What? A medium-grade defensive spiritual artifact?” At her words, Jiang Chen, who had initially intended to leave, halted once more.

The market price for a medium-grade artifact was at least a thousand spirit stones, and that was for offensive artifacts. Defensive artifacts required even more materials with higher quality standards. Their prices were nearly double that of an ordinary medium-grade artifact.

In Ghost Mist Peak, even Lin Yushang and Zhang Fei, both senior disciples at the late stage of qi refining, did not possess medium-grade defensive artifacts, underscoring their rarity.

If he had a medium-grade defensive artifact, combined with his current hundred souls banner and assistance from Xiao Qian-who was at the same cultivation level-he could potentially rival many disciples at the middle stage of qi refining, and perhaps even hold his own against those at the late stage.

Thinking of this, Jiang Chen’s interest was piqued. However, he couldn’t shake the feeling that there was something off about this situation. If everything were as straightforward as it seemed, why hadn’t the other alchemists in Blood Shadow City accepted her offer? He didn’t believe it was purely due to good luck.

Slowly, he turned to face her and said firmly, “Esteemed friend, I think if you truly want to hire me, you should explain why you specifically need me. I can’t accept that a craftsman like yourself couldn’t find other junior alchemists to assist you and chose someone like me, who just recently passed the junior alchemist exam!”

Liu Mo, hearing his words, looked him up and down, her beautiful eyes shining as she assessed Jiang Chen. It seemed this young man wasn’t merely an empty-headed fool; his thoughts were indeed perceptive. Perhaps it would be best not to try to outsmart him. Honesty might sway him, but if she concealed the truth or lied, it could backfire spectacularly.

With a sigh, she said softly, “Let’s walk and talk, shall we? There are too many people passing by here, and it’s not convenient to discuss things openly…”

Skeptical yet curious, Jiang Chen followed her into a narrow alley, listening as Liu Mo began to explain the difficulties her family was facing. After nearly an hour of conversation, he finally understood why Liu Mo had been waiting at the Alchemist Guild-she was hoping to catch someone like him by chance.