Han Yu made his way back to Li i’s personal alchemy hut that evening, the crimson hues of dusk spilling across the horizon as clouds lood low over the distant peaks.
In one hand, he held the miniature scroll Chitterfang had given him earlier, and in the other, a faint grin still lingered—half from irritation, half from anticipation. He had wondered where a few wisps of Anger Eight Emotions Energy had co from before, and now that he had the report, he knew it was the upset alchemists behind it.
He stepped in without knocking. As always, Li i sat on the floor cross-legged in front of a massive jade table littered with scrolls, alchemical tools, and a steaming cup of floral tea that filled the air with a bitter fragrance.
"Yo," Han Yu greeted casually, tossing the scroll onto the table.
Li i didn’t even look up. "What did you ss up this ti?"
"Nothing. Just so senior alchemists getting pissy about stealing their disciples."
Now she looked up—her eyes narrowing as she snatched the scroll, scanning it quickly. Her eyebrows twitched.
Han Yu waited a beat. And then, like a kettle left too long on the fire, Li i’s qi spiked ever so slightly.
"What a bunch of self-important fossil-breathers," she muttered, crumpling the scroll into a tight ball and incinerating it in a flicker of red flas. "I knew they’d act like this. Sa thing happened to ."
Han Yu raised an eyebrow. "Really?"
She leaned back against a small stack of dicinal texts. "Why do you think I barely show my face around the Alchemy Peak unless it’s to blow sothing up or deliver a pill?" Her voice dripped with contempt. "They hate anything that sses with their authority. Especially a ’little genius’ who gets too popular for his own good."
He scratched his chin. "So what should I do? Lay low for a bit? Maybe tutor more discreetly?"
Li i’s face turned into stone.
"If you back down now," she said coldly, "you’ll be crawling on your knees for the rest of your ti at the Alchemy Peak."
Han Yu blinked.
"You really think—"
She cut him off with a scowl. "You want to be an alchemist or a herb-gnawing pushover? Because if it’s the second, I’ll go ahead and feed you that Fire-Brained Donkey Pill you were whining about last week."
Han Yu held up both hands, mock surrender in his eyes. "Alright, alright. I get the ssage. No backing down."
Li i’s expression softened—just barely—and she slid a jade token across the table. "Then double down. Prove yourself. And make it hurt."
Han Yu picked up the token. "What’s this?"
"The sign-up for the Optional Pill Test. It’s happening in five days. Open to all alchemists—outer court to even so inner court folks. If your result is good enough, you can get promoted to interdiate-ranked alchemist instantly, no formal exam."
Han Yu perked up. "No exam?"
"But your pill has to be exceptional," Li i warned. "Not passable. Not decent. Exceptional. Only one or two ever get promoted like that each year. It’s a bigger stage than the normal test, and you’ll be in the eyes of the peak elders. Its not a test for re qualification but of excellence."
Han Yu stared at the token, weighing it.
"So... instead of laying low, I jump into the spotlight?"
Li i grinned. "Make so much noise no one can drown you out."
Han Yu’s grin returned. "Alright. I’m in. You’ve got a list of pill options for the categories, I assu?"
"Already picked out so for you." She reached behind her and handed him a stack of detailed scrolls. "Each of these has a different focus—recovery, elental enhancent, body tempering, ntal clarity, qi resonance..."
Han Yu sorted through them quickly, eyes flicking across complex diagrams and descriptions. But one in particular caught his eye.
He paused.
"This one." He tapped the scroll. "The Mind-nder Spirit Pill?"
Li i’s smile faded a little. "I thought you’d pick that. Of course you would, you reckless little bastard."
Han Yu read it aloud: ’A complex mid-high grade pill capable of rapidly accelerating ntal clarity and repairing minor ntal or spirit based injuries. Infamously unstable due to its volatile fus. Risk of hallucinations, fainting, or uncontrolled spiritual feedback if improperly handled.’
He whistled. "Yeah... sounds perfect."
Li i deadpanned. "It’s volatile, expensive, and most of the disciples who try it fail the refinent midway. Even elders rarely try making it unless the client’s paying triple."
Han Yu rolled his eyes. "And yet you wrote my na on the scroll next to it."
"I was hoping you’d surprise by picking sothing easier," she said dryly. "But no. Of course you go for the suicide mission."
"But," Han Yu said, pointing at the critical warning, "they all failed because of the ntal effects from the fus, right?"
"Yes."
"Well," he said, eyes gleaming with confidence, "I’ve got a little thing called a strong will. I can use it to suppress the ntal backlash. It won’t eliminate it, but it’ll let stay lucid." He gave an excuse but in reality he was going simply use mory Echo to get over the backlash.
Li i’s brow lifted but she didn’t doubt him, she knew just what kind of hell Han Yu had gone through. "...That might actually work. But you’d still have to control the fla, the timing, and the synchronization of the third and fourth ingredients. Most people ss that up because they panic during the hallucination phase."
"Then I just have to not panic."
"Han Yu, it makes people see giant snakes made of screaming grass."
"I’ve seen worse," he said with a chuckle.
Li i gave him a long look. Then she stood, brushing off her robes, and handed him a new jade key. "Fine. Use my high-tier pill room tomorrow. You’ll need better containnt and more refined fla control to practice this. If you pass this... you won’t just shut the senior alchemists up. You’ll scare them."
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