Chapter 557
This was when he finally found himself.
"Are you all saying that…"
"The Qingmu Sect is the leader of the alchemical path in the alliance. If we accept such rules, how will the Sect Master face our ancestors in the future?"
"…"
"Master Song, we don’t want to oppose the Jiushan Sect, but… we need a way to survive, right?"
"What kind of way?"
"We can join the guild, even unify our purchases and prices. We will all follow the orders of the alliance leader."
"But we absolutely cannot accept the matter of patent rights and teaching materials."
After listening, Master Song's expression remained unchanged as he said, "I understand what you all mean."
"To be honest, the various rules of this guild have given me some thoughts as well…"
"I will bring them up at the preparatory meeting."
Upon hearing this, everyone was overjoyed, bowing respectfully to Master Song, with some praising, "Master Song, you have backbone!"
In that moment, Master Song felt he had become the leader of the alchemical sects, the one everyone looked up to.
As they happily walked out the door, Master Song's gaze turned cold.
This group of people was certainly afraid to betray the Baixian Alliance—those who dared to betray would end up like the Chongxuan Sect, refusing to come to the Jiushan Realm for an audience, and even rumored to be courting some smaller sects, seemingly with intentions of rebellion.
But getting them to behave, they were unwilling. Otherwise, they would be like those sects in the talisman guild—though they surely had their grievances, no one dared to speak out.
They came to find him…
Naturally, one reason was to avoid blame.
The other was to have the Qingmu Sect, this tall figure, to lean on when the sky fell.
Yet, what they said did have its merits.
…
The next day, on University Island, Sister Zhang looked at the leaders of various alchemical sects before her.
This group seemed a bit strange, their expressions conveying some unspoken messages.
If one were to say that the greatest achievement of the technical alliance thus far was the alchemical guild, it was true.
After all, the weapon refiners had no Chongxuan Sect, and most relied on Madam Xuanhua.
The talisman makers of the Jiushan Sect were simply too strong.
Only the alchemists had previously been too weak, while the Qingmu Sect was strong enough. The alchemical alliance could be said to have filled a significant gap for the Jiushan Sect.
She glanced at Master Song, noticing he seemed deep in thought, lost in his own reflections.
Sister Zheng had only shared with her why he established the guild, or what he expected from it—
On one hand, the guild was certainly meant to develop various cultivation arts, fostering cooperation and mutual benefit to create profits.
On the other hand… it was also about integrating the Baixian Alliance.
Not just technology, but people.
According to Brother Zheng, alchemists who joined the guild would learn techniques from the guild, take on jobs from the guild, and receive rewards from the guild.
From then on, they would truly become professional alchemists—Brother Zheng referred to it as division of labor.
Over time, alchemists would no longer need to occupy any spiritual veins or cultivate medicinal gardens; they would only need to delve into alchemy, using better techniques to gain more profits.
At that time, on one hand, these alchemists would improve their skills more rapidly.
On the other hand… these people would no longer be able to detach themselves from the Baixian Alliance system.
The alchemical guild appeared to be a sect, but it was difficult to exist independently, heavily reliant on the resources and clients provided by the Baixian Alliance.
Thinking of this, she couldn’t help but feel curious—Brother Zheng, where did he learn all these things?
…
Once everyone had gathered, Sister Zhang took out a draft of the "Alchemical Guild Regulations" and distributed it, saying, "This is the proposed guild rules from our Jiushan Sect."
"If anyone has suggestions, feel free to bring them up."
"Our Jiushan Sect will consider them accordingly."
The group of leaders flipped through the draft, seeing that it was mostly in line with their guesses, their expressions varying, but their gazes couldn’t help but drift toward Master Song, who sat at the front.
Master Song also perused the draft, seemingly reading it closely.
Sister Zhang then asked, "Does anyone have any objections?"
Everyone stared at Master Song's back.
Master Song gently set down the draft, cleared his throat, and said, "The Qingmu Sect has some objections."
Here it comes!
The leader is going to speak up for us!
Master Song stood up, his straight posture seemingly hiding a backbone of steel.
"Oh?" Sister Zhang appeared somewhat surprised, "What do you have to say?"
"I believe there’s a rule missing here…"
Missing?
Wasn’t it too much already?
The group exchanged glances, feeling something was off, but couldn’t quite grasp it.
"I heard from our Qingmu Sect's Grand Elder that after collaborating with the Jiushan Sect, he has completely changed his views on alchemy… having transformed many of the previous secret methods, and now our alchemical skills have greatly improved!"
"…"
"Our Qingmu Sect hopes to present all our secret methods for collaboration and transformation with the Jiushan Sect! To contribute to the Alchemical Alliance and the Baixian Alliance!"
The group of leaders gaped at Master Song, who spoke with such conviction.
Brother… wouldn’t it be better to propose that on your knees?
(End of this chapter)
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Chapter 415: Supreme Spiritual Elixir, Haori's Scheme
Master Song experienced for the first time what it felt like to have a thorn in his back.
If it weren’t for being on University Island in the Jiushan Realm, the people behind him would likely be in an uproar.
If looks could kill, he might already be riddled with wounds.
He sneered inwardly, contemplating: You all see me kneeling, but you don’t realize I’m just worried I’m not kneeling fast enough!
Not kneeling could truly lead to death…
The Jiushan Sect was genuinely rewriting the alchemical path!
These people behind him didn’t understand, but he had participated in the improvements of the spiritual elixirs, so he naturally knew how rapidly the project was progressing.
Though his alchemical skills weren’t as profound as Elder Xiong’s, he was still one of the few Yuanying masters in the Baixian Alliance.
For him, alchemy had long become a common affair.
Yet…
Thinking of each batch of elixirs being of higher quality, richer in spiritual energy, and with less toxicity, he still felt as if he were dreaming.
The Jiushan Sect’s measurement and analysis capabilities, combined with the Qingmu Sect’s previous alchemical foundations, had brought about visible progress in just over ten days!
It wasn’t just the quality of the spiritual elixirs that improved.
The alchemical skills of the Jiushan Sect’s foundation-building disciples also advanced.
Even Elder Xiong and the Golden Core masters from the Qingmu Sect felt as if they were undergoing a transformation…
At first, they didn’t quite understand, or rather, they didn’t dare to believe it. But after discussing it with Elder Xiong, they came up with an explanation:
Newcomers always progress the fastest.
And when they viewed alchemy through Zheng Fa’s framework, they returned to a novice state.
Every alchemical technique could be optimized.
How much spiritual power to use, the duration of the incantation, even whether the incantation was necessary or if there were better options…
Countless questions were raised, analyzed, observed, and resolved.
They had previously harbored such doubts but lacked systematic means to address them.
But the Jiushan Sect could!
Elder Xiong had a point:
The alchemical path in the Jiushan Realm was a rapidly growing monster.
At least in the eyes of Master Song and Elder Xiong, the alchemical path of the Qingmu Sect, and even the entire Baixian Alliance, would either be crushed by this monster or… become a part of it.
Master Song even felt that among the five sects, the Taishang Dao, which excelled in alchemy, would be crushed by the Jiushan Sect if they couldn’t eliminate it.
The Qingmu Sect didn’t want to perish, so they naturally had to kneel, and even do so properly in front of everyone, to demonstrate their value!
Sister Zhang looked at Master Song’s resolute expression and then at the astonished, flustered, and bewildered faces of the other leaders, and couldn’t help but smile inwardly.
This clever fellow…
"The thoughts of Master Song are naturally welcomed by our Jiushan Sect." She already knew Zheng Fa’s intentions, so she understood how to handle the situation, "If the Qingmu Sect selflessly submits their secret methods to the guild…"
Sister Zhang paused slightly, as if in thought, but then stated the conditions she had already discussed with Zheng Fa:
"Fifty years of patent rights, which the Qingmu Sect deserves."
"Even if the secret methods are modified, these patent rights will only belong to the guild and the Qingmu Sect. The profit-sharing ratio will depend on the rarity of the secret methods and the effectiveness of the improvements, but as the original provider of the secret methods, the Qingmu Sect’s share will not be less than thirty percent."
Upon hearing this, Master Song’s face lit up with joy.
He knew this was a reward for his "loyalty."
Both Sister Zhang and he understood that while the Qingmu Sect’s secret methods still counted as their own, what about the modified secret methods?
They could already be considered a joint achievement of the Jiushan Sect and the Qingmu Sect.
In fact, the more they were improved, the smaller the Qingmu Sect’s contribution might become.
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