Chapter 136: The Match Was Unsuccessful
Gu Jin Fan and Yuan Tianchou were skilled in Alchemy, and both lectured on how to refine Pills at Number One Qihuang Hall and Number Two Qihuang Hall.
The Spiritual Energy Revival was only brought into the open after the earth-shattering Great Battle that erupted from Five Finger Mountain.
Although the Medical Affairs Department was the gathering place for Great Jin’s most elite Physicians and Pharmacists, apart from a small number who had long since allied themselves with Nobles and gained early access to refining Elixirs, most people in the Medical Affairs Department only learned about it in the past year or two.
To refine Elixirs, one needed a Pill Recipe, Spiritual Plants, and to be a Cultivator, as well as know Flame Control. While the Alchemy process was similar to refining Mortal Pills, the actual difficulty was like a chasm separating them.
Therefore, when it was announced that Gu Jin Fan and Yuan Tianchou would be teaching people to refine Elixirs, not only did people from the Disciple Hall and Apprentice Hall of the Medical Affairs Department mobilize, but many Physicians and Pharmacists from Ninth Street also flocked to attend, making the scene incredibly popular.
Mu Qingying did not lecture on Alchemy; she lectured on Spiritual Plants. Due to the limited opportunities to encounter Spiritual Plants, everyone’s desire to learn about them was unprecedentedly high, and many people came to attend her lectures.
After the three began their lectures, every session was packed with people.
Previously, when Hua Changxi lectured, quite a few Laborers also attended, but compared to them, it was nothing.
Seeing the three’s immense appeal, Hua Changxi couldn’t help but feel a bit envious.
However, this was something she couldn’t envy. The three had renowned Masters as their backing and were already somewhat famous within the Medical Affairs Department, whereas she was just a lowly Laborer, and those who attended her lectures were all Laborers who couldn’t afford to study medicine.
What caught Hua Changxi’s attention was that while the three lectured, apart from Number Six Qihuang Hall which she occupied, they chose different Qihuang Halls each time. They not only rotated through the other eight Qihuang Halls of the Labor Department but also visited the Qihuang Halls of the Apprentice Hall.
Observing their actions, Hua Changxi understood that they had discovered the connection between the Wooden Tokens and the Qihuang Halls.
She didn’t pay much attention to this.
Each Qihuang Hall taught different Medical Skills content. Unless they, like her, guessed the content taught by the corresponding Qihuang Hall and lectured on the relevant medical specialization, and were thoroughly familiar with it, they were merely lecturing, and the Wooden Token would not react.
While Gu Jin Fan and the other two were lecturing in rotation across seventeen Qihuang Halls, Hua Changxi followed her own rhythm, improving her Cultivation while also advancing her Alchemist rank.
Time flew by to the end of July. After lecturing in the Qihuang Halls for about twenty days, Gu Jin Fan, Mu Qingying, and Yuan Tianchou felt a sense of frustration due to their lack of results.
“The Wooden Token hasn’t reacted at all; it’s been a complete waste of time.”
In the Medical Affairs Department Building on First Street, Yuan Tianchou couldn’t help but complain, looking at Department Head Gu Qiming, “Master, could we have mistaken the direction? Is it possible that the Wooden Token has nothing to do with the Qihuang Halls?”
Gu Qiming remained silent. His intuition told him there was a connection, but he still had no clue how.
Mu Qingying thought for a moment and said, “Perhaps our lecturing in the Qihuang Halls isn’t wrong; it’s the content we’re lecturing on that’s incorrect.” She then looked at Gu Qiming and Yuan Tianchou.
“Hua Changxi doesn’t lecture randomly in the Qihuang Halls. In Number One Qihuang Hall, she lectures on Medicinal Herbs, and in Number Two Qihuang Hall, she teaches how to Process Medicinal Herbs.”
“In Number Three Qihuang Hall, she lectures on planting Medicinal Herbs; in Number Four Qihuang Hall, she lectures on the Meridians of Medicinal Herbs; in Number Five Qihuang Hall, she teaches the decomposition, extraction, and fusion of different Medicinal Herbs; Number Six Qihuang Hall teaches Alchemy; Number Seven…”
Listening to Mu Qingying, Gu Qiming and Yuan Tianchou felt increasingly convinced.
Yuan Tianchou: “Junior Sister, hurry and tell us, what does Hua Changxi lecture on in Number Seven Qihuang Hall?”
Mu Qingying shook her head, “Hua Changxi has never lectured in Number Seven Qihuang Hall, nor in Number Eight or Number Nine Qihuang Halls. However…”
Yuan Tianchou anxiously asked, “However, what?”
Mu Qingying: “Some Laborers whom Hua Changxi values highly have visited Number Seven and Number Eight Qihuang Halls. I think she knows what content should be lectured on in Number Seven and Number Eight Qihuang Halls, but for some reason, she cannot implement it immediately.”
Hearing Mu Qingying’s words, Gu Qiming directly stated, “Starting tomorrow, we will lecture according to Qingying’s speculation.”
On the first day of August, when Mu Qingying lectured on how to Process Spiritual Plants in Number Two Qihuang Hall, she indeed found that the Wooden Token would occasionally emit a faint white glow.
Seeing Mu Qingying’s speculation come true, Yuan Tianchou immediately lectured on the method of planting Spiritual Plants in Number Three Qihuang Hall and also saw the Wooden Token emit a faint white glow.
“Master, Junior Sister’s guess is correct. It turns out that lecturing in the Qihuang Halls isn’t random; each hall is for different content.”
Gu Qiming was also very excited; he had finally discovered some connection between the Wooden Token and the Qihuang Halls.
However, what was the effect of the white glow emitted by the Wooden Token?
Afterward, Mu Qingying and Yuan Tianchou lectured in Number One, Number Four, and Number Five Qihuang Halls on related content such as identifying Medicinal Herbs, medicinal herb anatomy, and medicinal herb decomposition and extraction.
Unfortunately, the Wooden Token showed no reaction.
Yuan Tianchou was puzzled, “What’s going on? Hua Changxi clearly lectured on the types of Medicinal Herbs in Number One Qihuang Hall, so why didn’t the Wooden Token react?”
Mu Qingying was also confused. They lectured on the corresponding content for processing Medicinal Herbs in Number Two Qihuang Hall and planting Medicinal Herbs in Number Three Qihuang Hall, and the Wooden Token emitted a white glow, indicating her guess was correct.
She actually understood why there was no reaction from Number Four and Number Five Qihuang Halls.
For the processing and planting of Spiritual Plants, they had not only studied systematically but also practiced them firsthand, so the content they conveyed was profound, hence the Wooden Token glowed.
However, for the meridians of Medicinal Herbs in Number Four Qihuang Hall and the decomposition, extraction, and fusion of Medicinal Herbs in Number Five Qihuang Hall, they had never delved into these areas. The content they lectured on was speculative and likely did not meet the standards of the Qihuang Halls, which was why the Wooden Token did not react.
But for the explanation of Spiritual Plants in Number One Qihuang Hall, she was confident she hadn’t lectured incorrectly, so why didn’t the Wooden Token light up?
Mu Qingying stated her confusion and speculation: “This disciple believes that the more thoroughly one understands the medical knowledge being lectured on, the brighter the white glow emitted by the Wooden Token will be.”
“Lecturing in the Qihuang Halls is not something anyone can do; the lecturer must truly understand the medical knowledge in that specific area.”
Gu Qiming nodded in agreement. Seeing his two disciples looking dissatisfied with themselves, he smiled and comforted them, “You can’t get fat in one bite. It’s already great that you’ve discovered the connection between the Wooden Token and the Qihuang Halls. Now you just lack some accumulation; strive for it in the future.”
Mu Qingying and Yuan Tianchou nodded in agreement.
Then, Yuan Tianchou began to hesitate again.
Gu Qiming saw this and said helplessly, “Tianchou, get rid of this habit of yours of hesitating. A man should be able to say what he has to say directly!”
Yuan Tianchou smiled sheepishly upon hearing this, then his expression turned serious, “Number Six Qihuang Hall should be teaching Alchemy. My Junior Sister and I both have an Alchemy inheritance, so perhaps if we lecture there, the white glow of the Wooden Token will be even brighter.”
Although they didn’t yet understand the function of the white glow, a brighter glow would certainly be more beneficial to them.
Gu Qiming and Mu Qingying both understood what he meant. Mu Qingying frowned at this, and Gu Qiming fell silent.
Yuan Tianchou immediately added, “We’re not trying to snatch Number Six Qihuang Hall from Hua Changxi. We can take turns using it, right?”
Gu Qiming thought for a moment and said, “You two go and talk to Hua Changxi privately. In a month, the three of you will each have ten days.”
Yuan Tianchou said happily, “That would be best.”
Number Six Qihuang Hall.
Tomorrow is the Mid-Autumn Festival on the fifteenth of August, and Hua Changxi was going home to celebrate. She had specifically refined a batch of Pills to give to her family.
As soon as she finished refining the Pills and put them away, she stepped out of the Courtyard Gate of Number Six Qihuang Hall and saw Yuan Tianchou and Mu Qingying waiting outside.
Seeing Hua Changxi emerge, Yuan Tianchou smiled and probed, “Steward Hua, what Pills are you refining in Number Six Qihuang Hall? You even have a security check; you’ve made us wait quite a while.”
Hua Changxi glanced at him and then turned her gaze to Mu Qingying, “Do you two need something?”
Seeing that Hua Changxi had ignored him, Yuan Tianchou awkwardly touched his nose.
Mu Qingying found it a bit difficult to speak, “. After the Mid-Autumn Festival, my Senior Brother and I would like to lecture in Number Six Qihuang Hall.”
Upon hearing this, Hua Changxi’s brows furrowed directly. Looking at the two, she understood that they had likely guessed that different Qihuang Halls taught different content, and based on her previous lectures, they had probably figured out the content to be taught in Qihuang Halls One through Six.
“Aren’t the remaining seventeen Qihuang Halls not enough for you? Why do you insist on lecturing in Number Six Qihuang Hall?”
Mu Qingying was quite frank, “My Senior Brother and I are more familiar with Alchemy, and our accumulation of medical knowledge in other areas is insufficient to make the Wooden Token react.”
Hearing this, Hua Changxi’s expression jolted, “Did your Wooden Token react when you lectured in Number One through Five Qihuang Halls?”
That’s not right. The Wooden Token Keys for activating the nine Qihuang Halls of the Labor Department should be the Wooden Tokens she lost. Why would other people’s Wooden Tokens still react?
Mu Qingying didn’t understand why Hua Changxi was so surprised, “Did your Wooden Token not react?”
Hua Changxi countered, “What reaction did your Wooden Token have?”
Mu Qingying looked at her, remained silent for a moment, and then chose to answer, “Our Wooden Token emits a white glow.”
Hua Changxi’s brows furrowed. What was going on? Had the Wooden Tokens she took previously not yet successfully paired with the nine Qihuang Halls of the Labor Department?
