Chapter 63: Return to the Divine Armory Pavilion

After purchasing enough provisions and fruit, Xu Wen went to the nearby medicinal and elixir market to gather all the ingredients required for the Breath Suppression Pill. As he could not contact the Hortonklin family for the time being, he was unable to draw on their gold or medicinal resources; for now, he had to rely entirely on himself.

Fortunately, before entering the Azure Cloud Academy, he had already established a connection with the West City family’s Divine Arms Pavilion. A single bottle of Breath Suppression Pills fetched twenty-five thousand gold coins—enough for him to accomplish many things.

Leaving the nearby inn, Xu Wen had changed into the Azure Cloud Academy student uniform prepared by Harman. He squeezed through the crowd into the main hall of the Divine Arms Pavilion.

The manager, Master Wang, glanced at the young man entering with a hint of surprise, then nodded imperceptibly and led him toward the teleportation point. Apparently, the white-haired elder upstairs had mentioned the Breath Suppression Pill to him; otherwise, he would not have remained so calm about Xu Wen’s diminished cultivation.

Some regular patrons in the store were well aware of the Pavilion’s rules. Seeing Master Wang personally escort a low-ranking mage upstairs, they could not help but speculate in hushed tones about the mysterious youth’s identity.

…

“Young man, before we proceed with the transaction, I’d like to conduct a little experiment…”

The white-haired elder seemed delighted by Xu Wen’s arrival. He poured out one Breath Suppression Pill from a porcelain bottle and sought Xu Wen’s consent. Such a move was considered quite rude to an alchemist, but considering the elder’s status and reputation, Xu Wen nodded his assent.

“Qian!”

The white-haired elder called for a maid—it was the same girl who had previously guided Xu Wen and introduced him to the Pavilion’s treasures on the second floor.

She bowed respectfully to the three of them, accepted the Breath Suppression Pill from the elder, and after listening intently, cast her bright, lovely eyes toward Xu Wen.

“My cultivation is low; will it work on me?” She was still a bit apprehensive about taking such an unprecedented pill.

Xu Wen chuckled softly, replying without missing a beat, “The Breath Suppression Pill works regardless of the user’s cultivation. With one pill, at least three stars of cultivation can be concealed. Qian, you are at three-star, fifth rank—after taking it, you will appear no different from an ordinary civilian to outsiders.” Previously, he had not been able to discern Qian’s cultivation, but now things had changed.

His answer startled all three present, including Qian herself.

“Thank you for the explanation, Young Master Xu.”

Regaining her composure, Qian parted her lips in a bright smile and swallowed the Breath Suppression Pill.

The effect was immediate. In the blink of an eye, all three clearly sensed that the elemental aura around Qian vanished, as did the spiritual energy within her.

Both the white-haired elder and Master Wang were visibly shocked.

“How do you feel?” Xu Wen asked.

In just a moment, Qian appeared to them as an ordinary civilian; not the slightest fluctuation of spiritual energy could be detected within her. If she could still cast magic, the efficacy of the Breath Suppression Pill would be proven miraculous; if not, then the pill would be a deadly poison to any cultivator—no wonder the two were so tense.

“The spiritual and elemental powers are merely masked by a trace of something within the pill, temporarily concealed from our spiritual detection,” Xu Wen explained, then said to Qian, “Could you please summon any spell at random?”

Qian herself felt no difference. At his words, she nodded; a compact, solid fireball appeared in her palm, rolling smoothly without the slightest hindrance.

“Are you convinced now?” Xu Wen turned to the two men, who flushed slightly in embarrassment.

The white-haired elder coughed. “Master Wang! Immediately give Young Brother Xu thirty thousand gold coins.” Seeing Xu Wen about to protest, he cut him off with a wave, “This is the Pavilion’s rule, young man—please don’t refuse. Since I made a mistake, I must make amends. Five thousand extra gold is not much; I hope you understand.”

Xu Wen’s expression softened—only a fool would refuse money. Even in his position, had a youth with no reputation come to sell something for twenty-five thousand gold, he would have sought confirmation before agreeing. Their actions were perfectly reasonable.

He accepted the card Master Wang handed over, glanced at it, and tucked it into his storage ring.

“If you ever have more, I hope you’ll continue to consider the West City family,” the white-haired elder said, producing a purple badge from his sleeve, neither gold nor not, “This is the West City family’s Purple Gold Token—a VIP credential. With it, you can purchase items from any West City merchant at a ten percent discount. Furthermore, if you need funds urgently, you can borrow up to one hundred thousand gold coins with this token.”

Old men truly are cunning. Having witnessed the Breath Suppression Pill’s efficacy firsthand, the elder had already realized its value. Although not high-grade, an exclusive pill like this had tremendous uses.

To secure Xu Wen’s exclusive supply for a mere one hundred thousand gold coins would never be a loss.

Xu Wen instantly saw through the elder’s intentions and nodded.

As expected, Master Wang soon followed up, “We hope for continued pleasant cooperation in the future.”

“Of course,” Xu Wen replied. Under their delighted eyes, he withdrew a second bottle of Breath Suppression Pills from his ring. “I’ve only made two bottles in total. This one I’d intended to keep for myself, but since Master Wang and the elder have been so welcoming, it would be ungracious to refuse. I’ll use this bottle as collateral… in exchange for some useful items from the Pavilion.”

“Excellent, excellent!” The white-haired elder and Master Wang exchanged a meaningful look.

“Qian, take good care of Young Master Xu.”

“Yes… Young Master Xu, please follow me.” Qian nodded sweetly, her bright eyes sweeping over Xu Wen’s face as she glided ahead—so young, already a West City family VIP, favored by both the manager and the master, with limitless prospects ahead, and so handsome—what girl could remain unmoved?

Xu Wen could easily sense Qian’s increased enthusiasm compared to their last meeting. Unfortunately, he was in no mood for such things. The West City family was one of the eight great houses of the imperial capital; for them to hold such a crucial position on the second floor of the Divine Arms Pavilion, they must constantly deal with the rich and powerful. Every maid here would have been rigorously trained and tested, possessing keen judgment and talent. Xu Wen had no wish to invite unnecessary trouble.

Besides…

He had just turned fifteen.

In his previous life on Earth, he would still have been a minor—a child. Matters of romance were much too premature!

Xu Wen unceremoniously selected a weapon suitable for fire magic, an inner armor, and a high-grade storage ring from the second floor, shamelessly accruing a debt of one hundred and twenty thousand gold coins. Only then, under Master Wang’s enthusiastic farewell, did he leave the Divine Arms Pavilion.

“That boy is really something,” Master Wang remarked upon returning upstairs, seeing the white-haired elder wiping sweat from his brow.

The elder gave a wry smile and shook his head. “Isn’t he? What kind of child is so shrewd? I almost suspect he’s used the Breath Suppression Pill himself.”

The white-haired elder’s hand paused as he looked up. “What do you mean?”

Master Wang’s brows knitted slightly. “He doesn’t seem like a child… Since he can produce Breath Suppression Pills, is it possible he’s also made pills to make himself appear younger?”

“You’re saying he made those pills himself?” The elder was momentarily stunned, then laughed. “Ha! Do you remember how tall he was when he first came here more than two months ago?”

Master Wang paused, then slapped his own forehead and laughed at himself, “How could I forget? Children grow so fast—I actually overlooked that sign.”

How could a boy so young possibly be a five-star alchemist?

With that, all doubt vanished from their minds.