Chapter 163: Chapter 162: Troublesome Regulations of the Alchemy Divison
Chapter 162: Troublesome Regulations of the Alchemy Divison
Rhain’s dark grey eyes were drawn to a specific corner of the massive hall where a large crowd of disciples had gathered.
At the center of the crowd, sat a massive bronze cauldron radiating an intense wave of heat
Standing before the cauldron was a young girl in her early twenties.
She wore the refined robes of the Alchemy Division, but what caught Rhain’s attention was the gleaming silver badges pinned to her chest.
First one was the Silver Badge of the academy, indicating her status as a mid-tier Inner Palace disciple.
But right beside it gleamed another silver badge, the distinct insignia of an Expert Rank Alchemist.
"She is an Expert Rank Alchemist in her early twenties... she can indeed be called a genius," Rhain murmured in surprise.
Even in the Inner Province, where resources were as abundant as the clouds, reaching the Expert Rank at such a young age required an extraordinary level of innate talent.
Listening to the murmurs of the disciples gathered around her, Rhain quickly pieced together her identity.
"Sister Neve is attempting the Epic-Grade refinement again!"
"She’s been trying to break through to the Master Rank since last year. Every single attempt ends in failure..."
"If she could just successfully refine this one Epic-Grade pill, she’d officially be recognized as a Master Rank Alchemist."
"A Master Rank Alchemist before twenty five... if she succeeds, even Dean might personally reward her!"
Rhain listened to the whispers, his interest mildly piqued.
He focused his gaze on the young woman’s hand seals and the fluctuation of the flames beneath her cauldron.
Inside, the medicinal essences were clashing violently.
The elemental balance was already tilting beyond recovery.
’She’s overcompensating on the fire-attribute herb’s extraction timing,’ Rhain concluded instantly. ’The residual heat is destabilizing the cold-attribute binding agent. In approximately forty seconds, the entire batch will collapse.’
Having seen through that, Rhain simply lost interest and turned around.
Sure enough, barely thirty seconds after Rhain looked away—
BANG!
"Ah! It failed again!"
"Sister Neve..."
The crowd offered sympathetic murmurs, and disappointed sighs.
Rhain spotted a young man in Bronze Badge robes hurrying past, carrying an armful of cataloged herb bundles.
"Excuse me," Rhain called out, "Can I ask you a few questions?"
The young man, wearing a Bronze Badge on his chest, didn’t even look up from his scrolls. "Can’t you see I’m busy? Go ask one of the attendants at the front desk, I don’t have time for—"
The disciple impatiently raised his head, fully intending to scold the person interrupting him.
But the moment his eyes landed on Rhain’s deep black robes and the gleaming Gold Badge pinned to his chest, the disciple’s annoyance evaporated into thin air.
""A-Ah! Senior!" The boy stumbled over his own feet, hurriedly bowing so low he nearly dropped his scrolls. "Forgive my blindness! I did not see your exalted badge! P-Please, ask me anything! I am entirely at your service!"
Rhain’s expression remained perfectly unbothered. The rigid hierarchy of the Stormveil Academy was truly absolute.
"I have a few questions about the Alchemy Division," Rhain said casually. "What benefits does a disciple receive upon joining?"
The young man’s eyes brightened, clearly relieved that it was a simple inquiry rather than some troublesome demand.
"Senior, the benefits of joining the Alchemy Division are quite substantial!" he replied enthusiastically, launching into a well-rehearsed explanation.
"First, there is the exclusive Alchemy Recipe Library. It contains hundreds of meticulously compiled pill formulas, ranging from Common-Grade all the way up to select Mystic-Grade recipes. Only disciples enrolled in the Alchemy Division are permitted access."
"Furthermore," the disciple continued, "all Alchemy Division disciples receive a significant discount when purchasing herbs and raw materials from the Division’s own stores. The discount ranges from twenty to forty percent depending on your division ranking."
"There is also the protection of the Alchemy Division itself. Senior, two years ago, I was just a small, weak disciple in the Outer Palace. There are dozens of ruthless factions out there that constantly rob newcomers and extort resources from those with weak strength.
He offered a sheepish, somewhat bitter smile.
"Fortunately, I had a bit of talent for alchemy and managed to join this division! The moment I officially joined the Alchemy Division, those factions backed off immediately. No one wants to provoke an organization that supplies pills to the entire Academy."
The young man finished with a final point. "And lastly, if a disciple ever decides to leave the Academy, anyone who has reached Expert Rank or above can easily secure a prestigious position within any of the three Noble Families. A comfortable, wealthy life is practically guaranteed."
Rhain listened patiently to the entire explanation, nodding slightly at the end.
Most of the perks were entirely useless to him.
Library?
He possessed countless pill formulas of Master and Grandmaster Rank within his mind.
The Academy’s collection couldn’t teach him anything he didn’t already know a hundred times over.
Protection?
If someone dared to bully him, they had better pray their bones were made of something stronger than iron.
As for joining a Noble Family?
He had absolutely no intention of bowing his head to anyone, let alone serving as a pet alchemist.
The only thing that genuinely piqued his interest was the discount on herbs.
"Could you take me to the Division’s herb store?" Rhain asked.
The young man’s face lit up. "Of course, Senior! Please, follow me!"
The disciple eagerly led Rhain down a wide corridor, eventually arriving before a sprawling, heavily warded apothecary within the division.
The shelves were lined with thousands of specially designed boxes, each emitting a profound medicinal aura.
The disciple clearly knew the man behind the counter. He rushed up and tapped the wooden desk. "Uncle Luan! This Senior wishes to purchase some herbs. Please attend to him quickly!"
The storekeeper, a middle-aged man with sharp eyes, looked up lazily. But seeing the Gold Badge resting on Rhain’s chest, he instantly stood up straight, offering a deeply respectful smile.
"Esteemed Gold Badge Senior!" Luan cupped his fists, "What kind of herbs are you looking for?"
"I have a list," Rhain replied as he began listing the herbs he required.
Most of them were highly specific, extremely rare Epic-Grade ice-attributed herbs—materials he needed to refine a special batch of pills to accelerate Seris’s cultivation. The rest were the core ingredients necessary for him to concoct the Mystic-Grade Soul Forging Elixir.
He hadn’t been able to find even a trace of these specific ingredients in the Outer Frontier, but given the sheer scale and wealth of the Inner Province, he was confident they would be available here.
However, as Rhain listed off the names, Luan’s respectful smile began to stiffen.
His brows furrowed deeper and deeper into a tight knot.
"Esteemed Senior..." Luan interrupted hesitantly, his face pale. "I apologize, but... I haven’t even heard of most of the names you just mentioned."
Rhain frowned. "You don’t have them?"
"It’s not just that," Luan stammered, wiping a bead of sweat from his forehead. He repeated a few of the names Rhain had just listed. "The Nine-Petal Frost-Heart? Mandrake Root? Deep-Sea Marrow Orchid?" Senior Brother... are these... are these Epic-Grade herbs?"
"Yes," Rhain nodded. "Every single one of them is an Epic-Grade herb."
GASPS!
Both Luan and the Bronze Badge disciple sucked in a sharp breath of cold air, staring at Rhain with widened eyes.
"S-Senior!" Luan hurriedly waved his hands in a panic. "We absolutely do not sell Epic-Grade herbs here! That is completely against the Academy’s regulations!"
The disciple beside Rhain also leaned in, explaining nervously, "Senior, ordinary disciples—even Gold Badge ones—are strictly only allowed to purchase Common, Uncommon, and Rare-Grade herbs using their Aetherium Crystals or contribution points! Epic-Grade herbs can only be obtained after receiving stamped permission from a Preceptor!"
Rhain’s brow creased slightly.
’Special permission from a Preceptor just to buy herbs?’ Rhain thought, a flash of annoyance brushing past his eyes. ’How incredibly troublesome.’
Just as Rhain was contemplating whether he should simply go find Fabian to bypass this ridiculous rule, a sharp, highly irritated female voice echoed from the entrance directly behind him.
"Ugh! Give me a batch of Blood Striae Mushroom, Scarlet Sunflower, and one full root of Earth Heart Ginseng!"
Rhain easily recognized all the names of the herbs.
All of them were unmistakably the Epic-Grade herbs.
