Chapter 2023 — Notes Too?

"Tsk, tsk. You haven't even finished with one, and you've already got another on the hook. Don't you ever tire yourself out?" A sour voice sounded behind Wei Zhao. He turned and found You Panhu.

"Is that any business of yours, Second Young Master You? Don't tell me your skin is itching for another beating?" Wei Zhao gave You Panhu a cold look.

You Panhu had in fact taken a fancy to Han Jingyi and meant to chase her for a bit of fun, only to have Wei Zhao beat him to it. That had rankled him, so running into Wei Zhao here, he could not resist such a lukewarm jab.

"Wei Zhao, we're in Leader Bai's class now, so don't go threatening me. Who's afraid of whom? If you want to be expelled, then hit me!" You Panhu looked at Wei Zhao with utter contempt, wearing the air of a dead pig that no longer fears scalding water.

"What about being in Leader Bai's class?" Wei Zhao frowned slightly. Perhaps there was something here he did not know.

"You don't know?" You Panhu was startled too, but he hurried to explain: "Studying under Leader Bai, no matter what family or sect you come from, if you're a dragon you coil, if you're a tiger you lie down. If you *** in here, then just wait to be expelled!"

Having said that, You Panhu looked at Wei Zhao smugly, as if to say: now you don't dare do anything to me, do you? I may not be able to beat you, but I can disgust you to death!

"Oh, so that's how it is. That's why you're called You Panhu!" Han Jingyi nodded.

"What does that have to do with my name?" You Panhu's face darkened. "I'm only reminding you not to break the rules. Don't think being an alchemist gives you any special privilege—who isn't an alchemist? In here, everyone obeys Leader Bai!"

"Ah, Brother Wei Zhao, why did he say you're an alchemist? Are you an alchemist?" Han Jingyi asked, looking at Wei Zhao in some surprise.

"Of course he is, and a formidable one at that. If you want to learn alchemy, you can ask him—have him teach you!" You Panhu had no objection to making a little trouble for Wei Zhao.

"Brother Wei Zhao, then why did you say you don't know alchemy?" Han Jingyi looked at Wei Zhao, puzzled.

"Since You Panhu is so eager, let him teach you alchemy!" With that, Wei Zhao pointed at You Panhu. "He's an alchemist. Ask him."

"Ah, classmate You Panhu, could you teach me alchemy?" Han Jingyi turned to look at You Panhu.

You Panhu had originally wanted to sound Wei Zhao out, to see whether he truly was an alchemist and how skilled he was, which was why he had urged Han Jingyi to consult him—but he never imagined he would be lifting a rock only to drop it on his own foot!

"Haha, our You family's alchemy can only be passed down to members of the You family; it can't be taught to outsiders..." You Panhu laughed it off. "But you, Wei Zhao—you're a rogue cultivator, aren't you? You don't have all those restrictions. Hurry up and teach her your alchemy. If you want to court someone, you have to pay a little something!"

Earlier, when You Panhu saw Wei Zhao buy a shabby little cauldron, he had begun to suspect whether Wei Zhao knew alchemy at all—what alchemist would buy that kind of junk? And now he wanted to see whether Wei Zhao could actually work alchemy.

"I don't know alchemy," Wei Zhao said mildly.

You Panhu had not expected such a flat answer, which only deepened his puzzlement. Did Wei Zhao know alchemy or not?

"That's right, Brother Wei Zhao never knew alchemy to begin with. The two of us are both studying alchemy. Classmate You Panhu, if you know alchemy, then teach the two of us. We're all classmates—don't keep it to yourself..." Han Jingyi said.

"Ahem... I have something to do, I'll be going first." You Panhu did not dare speak carelessly. Though much of an alchemist's material was public knowledge, the You family's methods for kindling and controlling pill fire came from the Xuandan Sect lineage and had been improved upon. You Panhu feared that the more he said, the more he would give away, so he left first.

"Brother Wei Zhao, what kind of person is he? He won't share good things with others—he's just awful." Watching You Panhu's retreating back, Han Jingyi said, rather displeased.

"You really want to learn alchemy?" Wei Zhao looked at Han Jingyi, more incredulous by the moment. Earlier he had assumed she was merely curious and would lose interest in a few days.

But now it seemed that was not the case. Han Jingyi could no longer be described as merely interested in alchemy—she was utterly obsessed, her analysis and study of alchemy reduced to formulas...

"Ah? Brother Wei Zhao, why do you ask that?" Han Jingyi said. "I've been studying alchemy all along. How could that be anything but true?"

Wei Zhao nodded. It was plain that Han Jingyi did seem to have a particular fondness for alchemy. "Then have you studied alchemy before? Why do you want to learn it?"

"Actually... I came by a notebook of an alchemist's reflections, and that's how I started studying alchemy..." Han Jingyi said, a little embarrassed. "I'm sorry, Brother Wei Zhao. Before, I didn't know you well and didn't dare tell you, afraid you'd take my notebook. But now I've found that you're a good person, so I won't hide it from you!"

"A notebook of an alchemist's reflections?" Wei Zhao was startled. "You actually have such a thing? Where did you get it?"

"The antique market!" Han Jingyi said. "But I've already scanned it into images and put them on my tablet. Let me find it and show you!"

"All right!" Wei Zhao had not expected that Han Jingyi had actually bought a notebook of an alchemist's reflections—that such a thing could still be bought struck him as rather fantastical.

Han Jingyi quickly found the scanned version of the alchemist's notebook on her tablet and handed it to Wei Zhao. "Brother Wei Zhao, here it is. Take a look—we can study it together."

Wei Zhao took the tablet and examined it carefully. Silly as Han Jingyi seemed, she was evidently not so silly after all—at least, back when she had not known him well, she had kept the notebook to herself, and only now, as the two of them grew closer, had she brought it out.

What puzzled Wei Zhao, though, was that the notebook contained only some techniques for controlling the temperature of pill fire during alchemy and some records of the pharmacological reactions between various ingredients. In other words, from beginning to end it never mentioned how to condense pill fire—only these technical matters.

"Those things you've been writing on your tablet—what exactly are they?" Wei Zhao asked.

Wei Zhao had been curious all along. Yesterday Han Jingyi had spoken of scientific alchemy, but he had not quite understood what she meant, nor what those formulas stood for.

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