Making their way down to the Alchemist's Association branch lobby, Jun Li listened to her new peer espouse the benefits of being an officially registered alchemist of the guild. "Since you're here, I assume you already understand the weight that the name of the Alchemist's Association carries."

  "I couldn't imagine making a living as an alchemist without at least possessing the credentials of being an official alchemist of the Association." He mused to himself. "I'm not sure there's a level of discount you could offer that would have people overlook such a lack of accreditation."

  "Well, not that you'd have to go out there and wave your credentials around anyway. You can buy and sell alchemical goods and Medicinal Plants through our own facilities. We have appraisers and clerks available every hour of every day for listing and purchasing goods."

  "And… although it's more of a personal matter than an official benefit, there are plenty of peers with whom to discuss matters of alchemical techniques and methodologies." Even as he continued to speak, the two descended the stairwell and eventually reached the enormous lobby of the first floor.

  "It's not just discussion, of course… Plenty of alchemists, myself included, would happily pay good money to learn a peer's more valuable methods." Though his words were neutral and innocuous, Jun Li could tell by his tone of voice that he was leading to a proposition.

  Playing along, Jun Li spoke up. "I've learned a few methods over the years that you can't find in the more orthodox and commonly available manuals. I'd be happy to write some of them down, if you wouldn't mind sharing some funds for my own endeavors."

  "Oh, I'd be happy to, after all, you're a new arrival. As your senior, it's only right that I help you find your footing." Beckoning Jun Li over to the other side of a staff-only counter near the base of the stairwell, the senior alchemist continued. "...I am quite interested in that method you used to protect yourself from that poison. You said it only took a minute to create a personal dosage of your anticoagulant? That speed is quite impressive…!"

  Unfortunately for the senior alchemist, no such method existed at Jun Li's disposal. Her claim of a rapidly concocted personal anticoagulant was entirely fabricated.

  It was, in truth, an unwise lie to claim such a thing, as a one-minute elixir was just outside the border of feasibility, even for Jun Li.

  "Ah, that…" Jun Li spoke slowly, following the senior alchemist to the quiet side of an unused lobby counter. "If rapid production is of interest to you, I think I have something of value…" Bringing a hand to one of her Spatial Rings, Jun Li looked through her possessions for a moment.

  She couldn't offer a method that didn't exist, so she decided to suggest a sort of 'sidegrade.' "Here we are…" Pulling a pencil and paper from her Spatial Ring, Jun Li laid the paper on the counter and quickly began to write. "I have a fairly intuitive method here that allows for batch production of pills."

  Under the senior alchemist's interested gaze, Jun Li continued to write. "It should take about… ten minutes per batch if you get familiar with the method, and it results in sixteen pills." Even at hearing just that much, the senior alchemist's shock was apparent on his expression, though Jun Li was not looking his way to see so.

  "The method takes advantage of the rounded geometry of a pill furnace, and uses a relatively simple method to 'segment' the interior of the furnace into sixteen equal vortices, capable of refining and condensing Medicinal Plants by using the 'negative space' outside of the sixteen segments to render them down."

  To someone such as this senior alchemist, someone with decades of preconceived notions regarding alchemy, Jun Li's claims were difficult to conceptualize.

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  Although methods for creating multiple pills at once were commonplace, they typically targeted batches in the range of three to seven pills; sixteen was an absurd number to aim for.

  Under most conditions, few alchemists would be comfortable working with sixteen pills' worth of materials at the same time. Even normal 'batch production methods' were so complex as to suffer from tangibly lower success rates than traditional methods, so this senior alchemist could not readily believe Jun Li's claims that it was a 'fairly intuitive method.'

  "Here." Having finished writing, Jun Li slid the paper over a hand's length, gesturing for her senior to observe it.

  Quickly peering past Jun Li to inspect her writings, the senior alchemist furrowed his eyebrows in scrutiny. 'Forming walls and gates…? Sorting rooms? Impurity detectors, filters, and expulsion procedures? And… the preparation seems difficult to grasp, but the refinement… could it truly be that simple…?'

  Jun Li's writings were not a comprehensive guide to the method, but an overview that would be nearly useless on its own. Even so, the concepts and implications held within that overview were captivating enough to drive this senior alchemist into a long period of silence.

  Jun Li watched as the man's expression changed over time, at first appearing suspicious, then confused, and finally, somehow, concerned. 'This… if this is actually possible, then it's not just an incredible batch production method, it's a better pill furnace method than anything I have altogether…'

  "I… I'll be right back." Before even finishing his words, the senior alchemist turned around and rushed out from behind the counter, audibly rushing up the stairwell out of eyesight.

  '...Is he alright?' Jun Li looked towards the paper where she had written her overview. 'Was that too much? I have so little context regarding the state of alchemy in the Jianghu…'

  Her only knowledge regarding the alchemy of this world was what was taught to her by Zhu Enlai and the manuals he had provided her. And although she thought well of her master, Jun Li couldn't be sure exactly where his skill level stood, nor how discerning or tolerant his taste in alchemical methods was compared to that of a 'normal' alchemist.

  'I don't think he reacted that strongly to that method, at the very least…' Jun Li wasn't left wondering for very long, as the clamber of footsteps descending the stairwell met her ears once more, and the senior alchemist returned, carrying an extra Spatial Ring and a Jade Slip that sported elaborate reinforcements around its surface.

  Walking past Jun Li, he quickly grabbed the paper off the desk and folded it before handing it to Jun Li. "Don't show that to anyone, please." When the senior alchemist stroked the Spatial Ring he held in his offhand, a purple glint flashed out across the counter, depositing a pile of Purple Jade so large that the Spatial Ring took more than a few seconds to release it all.

  The pure, luminescent glow emitted by the pile of Purple Jade, larger than a man's torso, threatened to draw the eyes of those roaming across the lobby, and in response, the senior alchemist drew a fabric curtain from the edge of the counter across for a degree of privacy.

  "...I'll offer five thousand taels of high-grade Purple Jade, on the condition that you don't tell another soul about that method, not in this branch, not in this city." He spoke without pretense or posturing. He had little mind to foster or maintain a sense of seniority over her; this matter was too important to his future to be compromised by minced words.

  Jun Li was somewhat taken aback at the enormous sum of money. Even if she wasn't keenly attuned to the economy of the Jianghu, she was aware that what laid before her was an absurd sum, the likes of which would be difficult to spend in any one place.

  "I can't offer anything more, I quite literally can't. That's… my lifeline, my savings, the sum total of my career as an alchemist…" The man's face turned pale, and Jun Li could see beads of sweat form on his brow. "But it doesn't matter, if that technique is real, if it works the way you say it does, then my career up until this moment was worth nothing anyway…!"

  Though the question burned in his mind, the senior alchemist did not ask Jun Li where she had come from, nor where she had learned her methods. The threat of overstepping was one he couldn't risk. "Here…!" He pushed the Jade Slip into her hands. "If this is enough, then please take your time and imbue this with your method…"

  "I… huh… alright then." Jun Li stuttered, taking the Jade Slip. "I didn't expect it to mean that much…" She spoke honestly, asking the senior alchemist as she readied to inscribe the details of her method on the Jade Slip. "It was probably a bit reckless of me to offer that method so easily, wasn't it?"

  "Indeed…" The man laughed dryly at Jun Li's words. "...And I am quite grateful for that reckless offer."