The female cultivator led Mo Tiange to a corner of the hall. She pushed open a completely inconspicuous wooden door. "Young Master, please."
Mo Tiange looked inside. It was a simple room compared to the grand hall, and it was empty. She nodded. "Thank you."
The female cultivator remained respectfully deferential, gave a slight bow, and withdrew.
Once the door closed, leaving her alone in the room, Mo Tiange let out a sigh of relief. She found a reclining chair and sat down, wearily wiping her face.
Truthfully, it wouldn't have mattered much if Jiang Chengxian had seen her. From beginning to end, Jiang Chengxian didn't know she had witnessed him seizing the pill. It was just her own guilty conscience; she still didn't want him to see her, to avoid unnecessary trouble.
Reaching into her Qiankun Bag to feel around, she confirmed the items were still safely stored. Then she closed her eyes and began to meditate, regulating her breathing.
An hour passed quickly. When she opened her eyes, the female cultivator who had escorted her earlier had already opened the door. "Young Master," she said respectfully, "the sales fair has concluded. You may leave now."
Mo Tiange acknowledged with a sound. "I understand. I'll wait for the crowd to thin out a bit before leaving."
This reason was perfectly normal. The female cultivator replied, "Yes, as you wish."
After waiting for about another quarter of an hour, guessing that few people remained, Mo Tiange left the room.
Sure enough, only the female cultivators were left in the main hall, tidying up under the direction of a few stewards. She swept her gaze across the room, didn't see Jiang Chengxian, and then swaggered out of the Hu Family's Qingfeng Pavilion, quietly returning to her rented cottage.
Today's incident made her realize the importance of the Illusion Transformation Art. If her Illusion Transformation Art weren't so poor, she wouldn't have needed to hide at all.
However, thinking of today's gains, Mo Tiange couldn't help but feel excited. Purple Ganoderma was somewhat hard to find, but Qingjue Grass was a common item. Once back, she could just commission the sect's shops to purchase it; it should arrive soon.
Lying down for a while in good spirits, Mo Tiange suddenly felt a sharp pain in her chest. Frowning, she thought for a moment, then her face paled in alarm. She pulled out the Life-Soul Tablet of her Second Uncle, which she kept close to her body. Indeed, the originally deep red color on the jade tablet had faded, turning a pinkish hue. Second Uncle. It's Second Uncle...
Her face turned ashen. Mo Tiange jumped up, gathered her belongings, opened the door without a moment's pause, and sprinted wildly out of the town.
The Life-Soul Tablet changing color meant Second Uncle's injuries had flared up! Second Uncle had indeed been comforting her. His condition was clearly bad, yet he told her to travel. And now, not even two months had passed, and this... Even if she rushed back desperately now, it would take at least ten days. She didn't know if Second Uncle could hold on.
Anxiety burning like fire, Mo Tiange raced towards Yunwu Mountain with all her might, not stopping at all along the way. Even when her Spiritual Qi was exhausted, she didn't halt, instead taking Spirit-Restoring Pills. She checked the Life-Soul Tablet from time to time; fortunately, it didn't fade further.
Ten days later, Mo Tiange burst into the small courtyard where her Second Uncle lived. "Second Uncle!"
There was no sound from inside the house. Mo Tiange rushed in and immediately turned deathly pale.
Second Uncle lay collapsed on the bed, unmoving.
She hurried over and felt his pulse. There was still breath, but his Spiritual Qi seemed very chaotic. She relaxed slightly, took out a Small Restoration Pill, and fed it to Second Uncle.
She waited anxiously, not knowing how long—perhaps only a moment, perhaps a very, very long time—until finally, she heard Second Uncle make a faint sound.
"Second Uncle!" she called.
Ye Jiang opened his eyes, managing a difficult smile, barely squeezing out two words: "The pills..."
Mo Tiange hurriedly pulled out all the Small Restoration Pills from her Qiankun Bag. "Second Uncle, is it this?"
Ye Jiang nodded. After she fed him all the medicine, with her help, he sat up to regulate his breathing.
This time, it took a full day.
Night fell and dawn broke. Finally, Second Uncle's complexion slowly improved, and he opened his eyes.
Seeing Second Uncle out of danger, Mo Tiange's nerves, which had been taut for a day, relaxed somewhat, but she was still tense. "Second Uncle, what happened?"
Ye Jiang shook his head. "It's nothing."
Seeing his face still ashen gray, Mo Tiange grew anxious. "How can it be nothing when you're like this? Second Uncle, tell me honestly, what exactly happened?!"
Ye Jiang gave her a reassuring smile. "Really, it's nothing. Second Uncle forgot—I ran out of Small Restoration Pills. As a result, my old injuries flared up, and I had no medicine on hand at the moment, so I couldn't hold on and had an accident." Then he looked at her with concern. "Xiao Tian, did you rush back because of Second Uncle? Ah, it's all Second Uncle's carelessness. I've burdened you..."
Mo Tiange quickly shook her head. "It's fine. I found something outside that will be very helpful for my Foundation Establishment, and I was just about to return. Second Uncle, are you really alright?"
"I said I'm fine, so I'm fine. Don't worry needlessly. What did you find?"
Mo Tiange examined him carefully. Although Second Uncle's aura was weak, it was much more stable than before, so she reluctantly believed him.
Taking out the Foundation-Solidifying Pill recipe, she smiled. "Second Uncle, look."
Ye Jiang took it with a mix of doubt and belief, sending his spiritual sense into it. Immediately, his expression turned grave. After a long while, he finally let out a sigh. "So it's the Foundation-Solidifying Pill. Where did you get this?"
Mo Tiange was surprised. "Second Uncle, you know about it?"
A look of reminiscence surfaced on Ye Jiang's face. "Two hundred years ago, this Foundation-Solidifying Pill stirred up a bloody storm. Any cultivator over two hundred years old knows about it."
"A bloody storm?"
Ye Jiang nodded slowly, as if recalling. "Back then, Second Uncle was just a Qi Refining cultivator. Your father's cultivation was still at the mid Foundation Establishment stage, and our family still had a Core Formation ancestor who hadn't passed away. This Foundation-Solidifying Pill emerged from some ancient cultivator's ruins, no one knows where. It set off a storm in Tianji that involved most Nascent Soul and Core Formation cultivators. Core Formation cultivators discovered it first and fought endlessly over it. Later, many Nascent Soul cultivators also joined the fierce battles. Our Core Formation ancestor was injured and died early precisely because of this. But in the end, the recipe was lost, no one knows who obtained it—where did you get it?"
Mo Tiange said, "From a Qi Refining rogue cultivator. I met him by chance." She then recounted the events of that night.
After she finished, Ye Jiang remained silent for a long time. After thinking for a while, he still couldn't figure it out. "Perhaps that person was just lucky. This is also a kind of opportunity." Then, looking at Mo Tiange with a smile, he said, "Xiao Tian, the value of this thing is hard to predict. It seems Heaven is helping you."
Seeing Second Uncle so happy, Mo Tiange was also delighted. "And also, I coincidentally bought a six-hundred-year-old Purple Ganoderma at the sales fair. What incredible luck."
"Oh? That's rare indeed. Six-hundred-year-old Purple Ganoderma isn't commonly seen."
"Yes, if not for the coincidence, who knows how long it would have taken to buy one—oh, right, Second Uncle, I've thought it over, and I think it's best if I learn alchemy myself. What do you think?"
Ye Jiang nodded slightly. "That's as it should be." Then he praised, "You're acting more and more steadily. Second Uncle is much more at ease."
"But, I really don't seem to have much talent for alchemy. I used over a hundred portions of materials refining low-level pills and only got six finished products."
Ye Jiang couldn't help but laugh. "That's perfectly normal. Don't look down on yourself. Most alchemists start out like that. Talent? Those with talent are always the minority. Those who persevere become masters. Take it slowly. You're still young; you have over a hundred years to 'waste.'"
"I understand, Second Uncle." Hesitating for a moment, Mo Tiange asked again, "Second Uncle, your injuries..."
Seeing he couldn't hide it from her, Ye Jiang finally sighed. "Alright, Second Uncle will tell you the truth. The situation is indeed not good... Before you returned, Second Uncle was unconscious for too long, so the injuries worsened. Since you're back, just accompany Second Uncle through this final time..."