Chapter 663: One's Own Things

Divine Void Mountain, Elixir Peak.

Amid the drifting clouds and mist, Daoist Qianfeng and Master Jinxue stood shoulder to shoulder, their gazes lowered toward the ground below.

"Do you think Lan'er can accept it?" the beautiful woman asked, somewhat worried.

"Heh, given Eldest Zhu Shixiong's temperament, let alone that Ye Lan, even the two of us and our positions as Peak Lords—if he were determined to take them, he could manage it."

Daoist Qianfeng's expression was cold. Although that day in Cheng Xiaoyuan on Elixir Peak he had been bluntly rebuffed by Ye Lan, as a Fourth-Grade Grand Unity Celestial Immortal, facing a junior who had been wronged, he still possessed that much magnanimity—hardly the sort to bear a grudge.

Only, the matter at hand was not something the two of them could change.

"Sigh." Daoist Qianfeng let out a breath, feeling an inexplicable irritation. Ever since the incident on Elixir Peak, the bonds of fellow disciples atop Divine Void Mountain had grown ever thinner and more hollow—looking at them was enough to breed disgust.

"Not accept? On what grounds would she refuse?"

With a cold snort, the black-bearded man turned and swept his sleeves away.

Master Jinxue hesitated, wanting to descend and have a word with Ye Lan, but unsure where to begin. After wavering for a long while, she still shook her head and likewise departed Elixir Peak.

And within that small courtyard.

Shen Yi was still holding the alchemy tome. He had already mastered these contents inside and out, but the jottings left behind by the predecessors of Elixir Peak condensed the heart's blood of those who came before; an occasional line alone could bring sudden enlightenment.

The two sisters sat nearby.

Ye Jing was in charge of pouring tea, while Ye Lan quietly gazed into the distance. She could sense the presence of the two senior martial uncles from earlier, and likewise hear the buzz of discussion drifting among the eight peaks.

Liu Ruifeng had presided over Elixir Peak for many years, and now at last he meant to step forward and display his attainments in the Dao of Alchemy before the disciples of the eight peaks.

And then?

If his Dao of Alchemy bore fruit, the next step would be to solidify his position, wouldn't it.

The radiance released earlier within the Alchemy Workshop had ultimately frightened that father and son pair, leaving them no longer daring to put on airs, compelled to reveal their greedy true faces before the sect.

At the thought of the two of them feigning composure while in truth looking so fearful behind the scenes, Ye Lan could not help wanting to laugh.

But a glance at Shen Yi, and she found she could not laugh after all.

This young man's intentions were sound, his abilities were sound—only the one he was relying on was the problem.

She herself, this so-called Ancestral Master Ye, held nowhere near the standing within Divine Void Mountain that he imagined; she was far too weak, without even a shred of voice.

Even the long-standing tradition of deliberation among the eight peaks, they could set her aside and have seven people decide the matter on their own.

The only thing Shen Yi needed from her was to buy a little time, but even something this simple, she could not manage.

"I'm sorry."

Ye Lan slowly rose to her feet and gave a solemn nod to the young man before her.

Having said that, she drew a deep breath: "I will propose to the eight peaks, to bargain with them for one chance to receive the imparting of the Grand Void Dao Fruit. It may not succeed, but I will do my utmost."

When the words fell, Ye Lan turned around, her back carrying a hint of loneliness as she walked down the mountain.

Ye Jing had just poured hot tea for Brother Shen when she heard these words, and could not help but stare blankly toward her elder sister.

Bargain?

The one thing her sister still had left on this Divine Void Mountain—wasn't it precisely that title of Elixir Peak's Ancestral Master.

Was she now planning to hand even that title over to Liu Ruifeng, to beg the remaining peaks to yield?

If so, then from this point on, the Fifth Peak would fall entirely into an outsider's hands—including this small courtyard, and everything within it.

"Wait."

Shen Yi finally lifted his gaze from the alchemy tome, his eyes carrying a hint of lingering reluctance.

This feeling of being able to comprehend the knowledge within the book and put it to use was, for him, exceedingly rare.

"Mm?"

Ye Lan halted her steps, turning her head back with some puzzlement: "Is there something else?"

Shen Yi looked at the panel before him, fixed on the numbers that had yet to change, and said softly: "What's the rush, wait a bit longer."

"..."

Ye Lan did not know what there was left to wait for now, but instinctively she turned and walked back, sitting down once more beside him.

Time flowed by slowly, until the afterglow of the setting sun, evening clouds filling the sky.

The courtyard was utterly still, save for the soft sound of pages turning.

The next moment, that turning sound ceased.

The two sisters looked up in puzzlement, only to see Shen Yi stretch his body, then toss the alchemy tome in his hand onto the "mountain of books" piled on the table.

Among the scattered prompts that sprang up, one finally appeared that was rather eye-catching.

【Slain a Sixth-Grade Great Jade Serpent Demon, total lifespan twenty-three kalpas, remaining lifespan eight kalpas, absorption complete】

And with its appearance, the pace of the prompts leaping up grew ever faster.

The lives of numerous demons and monsters were harvested clean in an instant.

【Remaining demon-monster lifespan: twenty-seven kalpas】

The afterglow fell upon the young man's face. He drained in one gulp the freshly replenished hot tea on the table and rose to his feet: "Please fetch me the formula for the Void Origin Treasure Elixir."

Before the words had finished falling, the two sisters' expressions had already fallen into a daze.

Even Ye Lan had not expected that, after waiting so long, this was the sentence that came.

Tomorrow was the day Liu Ruifeng would reveal his methods right under the noses of the eight peaks' disciples—and now, Shen Yi wanted a glance at that formula?

"Alright..."

Ye Lan came back to herself and nodded.

The Void Origin Treasure Elixir was a Fifth-Grade Kalpa Elixir; on Elixir Peak, it ranked only below the Fourth-Grade elixir that her master and fellow disciples had ultimately refined back in those years.

If Shen Yi were to cultivate immortal arts in the future and truly pluck the Grand Void Dao Fruit, then this elixir would indeed be of use.

Thinking thus, she headed straight for the Scripture Depository Pavilion.

This elixir formula was stored within the deepest restrictions of the Scripture Depository Pavilion; ordinary disciples had no qualification to open it at all.

Therefore, when Ye Lan stepped into the Scripture Depository and arrived before the restriction, she drew nearly every disciple's gaze around her.

"Why would the Peak Master come to take the Void Origin Treasure Pill's recipe at this time?"

They all knew what would happen tomorrow, and at this moment every one of them grew somewhat uneasy and suspicious.

Especially the few eyes Liu Ruifeng had deliberately left behind — their brows were tightly furrowed. Master Ruifeng was about to truly take charge of the Alchemy Peak, and the Peak Master had stayed in the mountain-top Cheng Xiaoyuan without coming out. Everyone had assumed she acquiesced to the matter, but no one expected that the moment she came down the mountain, she would make such a move.

Thinking of this, several of them had already taken out jade slips and begun transmitting messages to the Sixth Peak.

These little tricks naturally could not escape Ye Lan's eyes, but she acted as if she had heard nothing, and after taking the recipe, she quietly left the Scripture Depository.

……

The next day, the great sun hung high.

Golden radiance fell outside the main peak's great hall, and around this lofty summit, dense, countless figures all rose into the air; their surging auras scattered the clouds, revealing a stretch of clear, azure sky.

The only one seated in the venue was that half-dead old man.

He sat with his eyes closed, his palms resting lightly on the armrests; merely sitting here was enough to make every disciple of the eight peaks not dare even to breathe heavily.

And before the old man, the seven Peak Masters stood in two rows.

Whether by coincidence or not, the position that originally belonged to Ye Lan was now occupied by Liu Ruifeng.

"Father, she…"

Liu Ruifeng's gaze swept his surroundings — this was a scene he had dreamed of many times, the focus of ten thousand eyes, the attention of all of Shenxu Mountain upon himself.

But that woman was up to her tricks again.

Recalling the news received last night, Liu Ruifeng's eyes narrowed slightly, and a flare of fury leapt up in his heart.

All eight peaks had agreed, yet she still refused to back down — utterly shameless.

"Shut your mouth."

Daoist Uncle Mu Yang, gaze fixed straight ahead, cut off his son's words without ceremony: "Did you see her come? Focus on refining your pill."

Warned in a low voice by his father, Liu Ruifeng's expression shifted slightly in alarm, and he hurriedly suppressed the anger in his heart. He suddenly realized that today's matter had nothing to do with Ye Lan at all — the only thing he needed to pay attention to was gaining the recognition of the various peaks.

That woman was clearly using this move on purpose to disturb his state of mind.

He drew a deep breath, cleared the distracting thoughts from his mind, and looked ahead.

He saw a group of disciples walking over under the gaze of the crowd; on the trays in their hands, a total of two-and-a-half portions of medicinal ingredients were laid out.

"Elder Zhu Shixiong, all the Alchemy Peak's treasured reserves are here." Daoist Uncle Mu Yang cupped his fists toward the old man ahead.

In the matter of pill refinement, besides quality, success rate was also very important.

If one needed several portions of ingredients to succeed once, no matter how good the quality, where would one find the resources to sustain it?

Let alone for a pill like the Void Origin Treasure Pill, which Shenxu Laozu needed to replenish once every three years, used like a qi-recovery pill — if it failed once, he would fly into a great rage. Even though Shenxu Mountain was a great and wealthy enterprise, gathering the ingredients was no easy task.

"Mm."

The old man gave a slight nod of his chin.

Liu Ruifeng clenched his palms, striving to make his bearing more upright, and cast a sidelong glance at the dense, countless figures beyond the mountain.

Today, he would prove to everyone that he was more suited than anyone to take charge of the Alchemy Peak!

Having thought this, he suddenly strode forward and, before the crowd, took one portion of the ingredients.

Daoist Uncle Mu Yang extended his palm slightly, and a formation disk leapt out, landing beneath Liu Ruifeng's feet; immediately after, countless blue-green lines shot out from within!

These lines wove tightly together, quickly transforming into an angular, well-defined light barrier that blocked all auras and gazes.

"Go in." Daoist Uncle Mu Yang withdrew his palm.

Liu Ruifeng had just lifted his foot when Daoist Qianfeng's brow tips rose sharply once more: "Wait, what is this now?"

"The world's spiritual qi and tribulation force will interfere with each other, causing the tribulation pill's quality to drop."

Daoist Uncle Mu Yang glanced sideways: "Though I am the Peak Master of the Formation Peak, I am also Ruifeng's father. Helping with this small matter — does Zhu Shixiong have an objection too?"

"Heh." Daoist Qianfeng's eyelid twitched; he was clearly speechless.

That boy had consumed so many resources, and now he only needed to prove those resources had not been wasted, yet he still required outside help — it was simply a laughingstock.

Just then, he suddenly froze.

He saw three figures strolling up the mountain path.

The one leading them — who else but Ye Lan.

"Lan'er!"

Master Jinxue instinctively glanced at the Elder Zhu Shixiong, and immediately called out.

The matter was already settled; now, before the disciples of all eight peaks, if an argument broke out, Ye Lan probably would not even be able to keep that last bit of reputation.

Daoist Uncle Mu Yang, meanwhile, simply shifted his gaze away. He had no need to say anything more now, nor any need to quibble with a junior — if the other party did not know what was good for her, there was naturally the Elder Zhu Shixiong to step in and teach her a lesson.

Among the observing disciples, the calm was broken for the first time, and whispers rose in an unbroken stream.

The matters between the Alchemy Peak and the Formation Peak — any disciple with a bit of seniority actually knew something of them.

"Relax, I don't mean anything else."

Under the gaze of the crowd, Ye Lan walked up to those disciples, reached out and stirred the ingredients on the tray: "These are all the Alchemy Peak's treasured reserves. As Peak Master, taking one portion surely isn't too much to ask?"

"Tch, not too much…" Daoist Uncle Mu Yang lowered his head and smiled: "Do you know that all of these things are tied to your Grandmaster's Great Dao? What do you take this for — a toy for your amusement?"

In just a few words, a whiff of fury suddenly rose.

"It has to become a pill first before it can be tied to that Great Dao."

Ye Lan took the jade tray from the disciple's hands, turned, and handed it to the black-robed youth behind her.

She appeared unhurried and composed, yet no one noticed the faint hesitation in her eyes.

Ye Lan knew better than anyone what her current move meant.

If she had not come up the mountain today, she could still have used the name of the Alchemy Peak's patriarch to go to the various peaks and trade for a chance at an inherited Dao Fruit — after all, the desire of this father and son to control the Alchemy Peak in both Yang Mingli and reputation had persisted for many years.

But if she came up the mountain, no matter how she argued, in others' eyes it would look like she had come to fight for it.

To the old bastard sitting there, this was the behavior of someone who didn't understand propriety.

If you lose the contest, trying to negotiate a swap afterward will be meaningless.

Are you sure?

Ye Lan stared intently into Shen Yi's eyes—he had come solely for the Grand Void Dao Fruit; why stir up trouble now?

"…"

Shen Yi casually swept his sleeve, absorbing all the herbs on the tray into his ring.

Besides the Grand Void Dao Fruit, the protection of Divine Void Mountain was also one of his goals this trip.

If he lost the position of Peak Master, he didn't believe the Sixth Peak's nature would still stand by him.

He wanted both.

At this act, all the peak disciples instantly erupted in uproar.

By now, how could they not see? This was Grandmaster Ye's defiance of the peak council's decision—she was forcibly reclaiming what she believed was hers!

Several peak masters exchanged glances.

"Ha…"

Liu Ruifeng had watched silently from start to finish, but now he couldn't help letting out a bitter, laughing sigh.

Everyone knew he took the pill formula yesterday; today he's coming to climb the mountain and brew pills.

What the man surnamed Shen is doing now is no different from declaring to all that years of Dan Peak's resources have been fed to dogs.

This is too much!

"It's rare for Sister Ye to have such filial devotion."

Liu Ruifeng grinned, showing his white teeth, and pointed to the few remaining herbs on the tray: "This half portion is yours too—I only need one portion."

"Take it well, and don't let your Master Grandfather down."

Saying this, he stepped cleanly into the light array.

Liu Ruifeng's carefree demeanor surprised those nearby; his decision to take only one portion clearly revealed his formidable confidence.

Master Qianfeng rubbed his chin, glanced at Mu Yang across from him, then suddenly pointed at the array plate: "Since this is a pill-brewing contest, fairness must be observed—why not give the other side one too?"

Never mind anything else—after being annoyed for so long, an opportunity to annoy back must not be missed.

"Hah."

Master Mu Yang chuckled lowly, not the least angry; in fact, he felt considerably lighter.

Under normal circumstances, Ruifeng would need to brew at least an Eight-Calamity Void Essence Pill to earn sufficient respect.

But now it was different: with someone willing to make a fool of himself, the contrast made the whole matter easier.

"Mu Yang is not such a petty man."

He casually pulled out another array plate and launched it into the air.

Smiling, he gestured grandly toward Ye Lan and the others: "Please."

The actions of father and son, regardless of their true intentions, at least outwardly displayed the grace of elders and senior brothers, easing the earlier awkwardness.

The old man on the seat finally opened his eyes and nodded slightly, looking satisfied.

"I'll get that half portion for you."

Ye Lan gritted her teeth—she'd already lost face enough today; one more time wouldn't matter. Better to take extra herbs now and save them for later.

Hearing this, Shen Yi strolled toward the light array and said casually: "No rush—I'll take it after it's over."

He wasn't a fool. If he took it now, people might think he was secretly hoarding Divine Void Mountain's rare treasures. But once the brewing ends, all the Dan Peak's herbs belong to Ye Lan… and she won't use them anyway—so they'll be his.

Why rush for something that's already yours?

(End of Chapter)