I rely on learning to achieve immortality.

With a Foundation Establishment cultivator as his backer, Ke Yanfeng holds a high position within the Hundred Herbs Hall.

His departure left behind countless benefits, which had already attracted the attention of many. Given enough time, they would all vie for them.

Ge Liancheng was relatively junior among the deacons and knew he couldn't compete with the others.

Since he couldn't get the big profits, he set his sights on some peripheral interests.

For example, Xu Zhou's alchemy room.

While an alchemy room may not be considered particularly valuable, it is a resource that ordinary alchemists can only obtain by offering gifts and currying favor. If managed properly, and with a few changes in personnel, one can accumulate considerable goodwill and benefits.

As for the risks?

Ge Liancheng didn't care.

Even if Ke Yanfeng returns in the future, all I need to do is return the alchemy room, give him a small gift, and say a few kind words.

As for offending Xu Zhou, he was even less afraid.

Ultimately, Xu Zhou was just a low-grade alchemist, with a cultivation level of only the first level of Qi Refining. Without the connection with Ke Yanfeng, he wouldn't even be as good as an apprentice in the Hundred Herbs Hall.

Ge Liancheng secretly felt that Xu Zhou and Ke Yanfeng's relationship wasn't that good.

If they were truly close, why would Ke Yanfeng have left him with only an alchemy room to fend for himself? Clearly, they were just ordinary fellow disciples who happened to have worked together for a while.

Therefore, acquiring Xu Zhou's alchemy room was a low-risk, high-reward endeavor for him.

That's how things should be.

The day after Xu Zhou visited him, he found Song Rou and discussed the allocation of this year's alchemy tasks with her.

He could be disdainful of Xu Zhou and arbitrarily decide the amount of work to be done for a year. But he wouldn't dare to be presumptuous with Song Rou. After all, although she was also a low-grade alchemist, she was a recognized alchemy genius with a promising future.

How many pills Song Rou wanted to refine in a year depended entirely on her mood; Ge Liancheng was only responsible for handling the handover details.

Fortunately, Song Rou was always easy to talk to and never made things difficult for him.

Today was no different. After a brief exchange, the two had already agreed on the total amount of alchemy tasks for the year.

Having finished discussing business, Ge Liancheng was in a very good mood. He cupped his hands and smiled at Song Rou, saying, "Junior Sister, your total amount of pill refining this year has increased quite a bit. It seems that your skills have improved again. I would like to congratulate you in advance on your advancement to a mid-grade pill refiner."

The entire Hundred Herbs Hall has over a hundred low-grade alchemists and only twenty mid-grade alchemists, each of whom holds a high position and deserves his careful attention.

Song Rou smiled in response and casually said, "It's a pity that the assistant apprentices in my alchemy room are a bit inexperienced. Otherwise, if I didn't have to worry about them, maybe this year's alchemy task could be improved even more."

Upon hearing this, Ge Liancheng chuckled and said, "Junior Sister Song, you think the apprentices aren't good enough? How about I help you find someone to talk to and get you a few more experienced ones?"

"never mind."

Song Rou shook her head: "If we're talking about assisting in alchemy, these apprentices can't compare to real alchemists. It's all the same no matter how many are replaced."

"That's easy," Ge Liancheng said with a smile. "If Junior Sister Song wants, there are quite a few alchemists willing to join your alchemy room. Just tell me who you want."

"Is this really true?" Song Rou seemed genuinely interested.

However, she quickly shook her head and rejected the idea: "Forget it, the person I'm interested in also has some connections, I'm afraid we can't invite them."

"Who is Junior Sister Song talking about?" Ge Liancheng couldn't help but ask curiously.

Song Rou smiled slightly: "Even if it is Senior Brother Xu Zhou, Deacon Ge may not know his name."

Ge Liancheng was about to laugh and say that he knew, but Song Rou continued, "Senior Brother Xu Zhou is favored by Senior Brother Ke, who once praised him for his meticulousness and many ingenious ideas in the Medicine Classic. Perhaps he can add another book to the Hundred Herbs Hall."

I once invited him to help me refine pills, but unfortunately he ultimately refused.

Ge Liancheng's expression suddenly turned somewhat unpleasant.

He hadn't been a deacon for long, and his understanding of Xu Zhou was limited to the fact that Xu Zhou had a past relationship with Ke Yanfeng, but he didn't know the specifics of that relationship.

He thought Xu Zhou was insignificant, but little did he know that Ke Yanfeng had such a high opinion of him.

Ge Liancheng suppressed his emotions and laughed, "It seems that Deacon Ke exaggerated. If Xu Zhou is really that powerful, why hasn't he made a move all these years?"

Song Rou smiled without saying a word, only shaking her head.

After a pause, she spoke again: "No matter what, I still can't invite Senior Brother Xu."

After all, he and Xiao Bing from the Xiao family entered the hall in the same year, and they had a good personal relationship. In contrast, I was just an ordinary alchemist at the Hundred Herbs Hall, so it wasn't appropriate to force him to come."

"Really... or not?"

Ge Liancheng's hands trembled slightly within his sleeves, and he forced a smile, saying, "How come I've never heard anyone mention this before?"

Song Rou fell silent for a long while before letting out a soft sigh: "I forgot, I can't talk about this carelessly. There were rumors that the Xiao family obtained the Foundation Establishment Pill through their connection with Baicaotang. If we talk about this too much, some people might take notice."

I accidentally let it slip just now, and I hope Senior Brother Ge won't spread this around.

Ge Liancheng forced a smile and nodded, saying he would never tell anyone.

When he stepped out of Song Rou's cave, he felt his legs go weak.

He could hardly believe that Xu Zhou, whom he thought was an insignificant nobody, actually had a past relationship with Xiao Bing.

"How is that possible!?"

"Perhaps Song Rou just remembered it wrong, or confused the people."

He suspected that Song Rou might be making this up and did not immediately believe it.

It's not difficult to verify. There are records of apprentices entering the temple every year, and these records are made public to the deacons. He can find the record for that year and know for sure.

Ge Liancheng didn't linger for a moment and went straight to the main hall to find the relevant files.

When he saw that Xu Zhou and Xiao Bing's names were indeed listed together, he almost felt a wave of dizziness.

It's true.

His fingers tightened slightly, almost crumpling the reel.

"Not necessarily...they might not actually have a relationship."

"If they were truly close, how could they have remained unknown for so many years?"

He forced himself to remain calm and reassure himself, but he dared not underestimate the matter.

As Song Rou had mentioned before, the Xiao family obtained the Foundation Establishment Pill by relying on Ke Yanfeng's information back then. Although everyone knew about this, it was still not something that could be said openly.

Xu Zhou may have played some role in this, and maybe he really has some connection with Xiao Bing, but on the surface, he still has to pretend that nothing happened.

Although this may not be true, what if it is?

Ge Liancheng's forehead was covered in sweat.

Xu Zhou and Xiao Bing at least knew each other. If he had said a few words to Xiao Bing before the Xiao family established their foundation, Xu Zhou would have ended up losing more than he gained by trying to steal a chicken.

Given the Xiao family's status within the sect, a few casual words from them could instantly wipe out the steward position he had worked so hard to obtain.

"Calm down first."

"The matter is not yet settled; there is still room for maneuver."

"It's not worth offending them to death over a mere alchemy room."

That afternoon, Ge Liancheng prepared gifts and personally went to Xu Zhou's courtyard.

The courtyard's protective barrier opened, and Xu Zhou walked out with an unfriendly expression. Seeing that it was Ge Liancheng, he casually cupped his hands in greeting and said in an icy tone, "So it's Steward Ge. What brings you here?"

Ge Liancheng walked up with a forced smile: "Junior Brother Xu, I'm truly sorry."

He bowed to Xu Zhou and then said, "After careful consideration, I realized that the previous task arrangements were indeed somewhat inappropriate, so I've come to discuss and revise them."

Xu Zhou snorted coldly: "Change what? I think it's fine."

He chuckled coldly, "It's just a few times the workload. In the end, it's just a matter of doubting my alchemy skills. Since that's the case, I'll give you a go at it, so that no one will doubt that I'm not worthy of having an alchemy room."

Ge Liancheng secretly groaned upon hearing this, and dared not let him actually refine the pills.

If Xu Zhou actually achieves the target amount and uses these pills as leverage, his scheme to bully others will be exposed.

If Xu Zhou didn't have any connections, things would be fine, but since the other party knows Xiao Bing, things are getting complicated.

He quickly grabbed Xu Zhou: "Junior brother, let's talk this out. I admit I was wrong, let's just pretend nothing happened, okay?"

As he spoke, he handed the gift in his hand to Xu Zhou.

Those were spirit stones he had already placed there, a full hundred of them. Within the sect, one spirit stone could be exchanged for ten contribution points, so a hundred spirit stones was a considerable fortune.

In order to ease his relationship with Xu Zhou, he was going all out.

Xu Zhou appeared annoyed, but still took the storage bag containing the gifts.

Seeing that he accepted the gift, Ge Liancheng breathed a sigh of relief.

"Junior brother, please don't be angry. I was rude yesterday. Consider this as compensation for your apology. Please accept it without worry."

He said with a forced smile, "I promise I won't interfere with your missions anymore. Junior Brother Xu, you can refine as many pills as you want this year. I'll take care of all the handover issues."

This was also a great show of sincerity on his part, since if Xu Zhou simply stopped refining pills, he would still have to bear the losses for the year.

Xu Zhou opened the storage bag in his hand, scanned the contents, but his cold expression did not soften.

A moment of silence fell over the room.

Then, he sneered, resealed the storage bag in his hand, and threw it back.

"Does Deacon Ge really think I'm that short of spirit stones?"

Seeing the storage bag he had sent out being thrown back, Ge Liancheng's face froze for a moment. He forced a smile and said, "Junior Brother, just tell me what you want. As long as I can help, I certainly will!"

Xu Zhou smiled upon hearing this: "You really can help with everything?"

Ge Liancheng was overjoyed, knowing that there was room for negotiation.

"Yes, definitely," he said quickly. "As long as it's something I can afford as a deacon, I can definitely provide it."

"Could it be that even the inheritance of skills can be obtained?"

"this..."

Ge Liancheng said with a wry smile, "Junior brother, the inheritance of this skill is a bit different."

Although Baicaotang possesses numerous alchemical lineages, those are strictly controlled by the sect. While Junior Brother is highly talented, obtaining these lineages will likely be... quite difficult.

Xu Zhou shook his head: "Don't worry, I know how valuable the Dao of Alchemy is, and that's not what I want."

Ge Liancheng's eyes flickered slightly: "Could it be that what Junior Brother wants is...?"

"The inheritance of medical ethics".

Xu Zhou slowly said, "I remember that Baicaotang has three major medical lineages in its collection. These lineages are not alchemy lineages after all, so it shouldn't be too difficult to apply for them."

Ge Liancheng frowned slightly, seemingly somewhat tempted.

After a moment, he still looked troubled: "This is still too difficult. Although it's just a medical inheritance, it's still an inheritance, and the sect controls it very strictly..."

Before he could finish speaking, Xu Zhou said, "Of the three great medical lineages, you only need to help me apply for one."

"It's not that simple," Ge Liancheng shook his head again. "To apply for the inheritance, in addition to qualifications, you also need to exchange a lot of resources. Otherwise, the sect won't easily grant it."

Is it really that complicated?

Xu Zhou remained silent for a while before saying, "Anyway, Senior Brother Ke is missing, and it's just noisy for me to guard this alchemy room. As long as you help me get a medical inheritance, I'll give you this alchemy room as an extra."

Of course, if you really don't want to, that's fine too. I didn't want to get involved, but I've been having such a frustrating experience these past two days that I just had to talk to someone about it.

He didn't say who he was looking for, but the other party had already determined that he was definitely going to talk to Xiao Bing.

"Junior brother, it's no trouble at all," Ge Liancheng quickly advised, his heart pounding in his chest.

Xu Zhou didn't look at him: "Think about it carefully."

Ge Liancheng looked conflicted, unable to make up his mind. After all, the inheritance of medical skills was quite precious, and even if he helped apply for it as a steward, he would have to pay a considerable price.

But the thought that if Xu Zhou really went to find Xiao Bing, he could lose his position as a steward with just a few words.

While the inheritance of medical skills is valuable, it pales in comparison to the inheritance of alchemy.

If we could exchange it for Xu Zhou's alchemy room, it wouldn't be too bad a loss.

Having figured this out, Ge Liancheng gritted his teeth slightly: "Fine, but you have to promise me that you will swear an oath with your Dao heart."

Xu Zhou snorted coldly, but still said, "You're the same."

The Dao Heart Oath is an extremely important oath for cultivators. It is said that the Heavenly Dao bears witness in the dark. Those who break the oath will have their fortune damaged, and it will be extremely difficult for them to improve their cultivation. They may even die a violent death.

The two sides quickly made a vow: Ge Liancheng promised to apply for the medical inheritance within three days, while Xu Zhou promised to give up his alchemy room as long as the other party handed over the inheritance to him, and would forgive and forget the past.

Having made the vow, Ge Liancheng breathed a sigh of relief.

He would indeed have to spend a lot of money to apply for the inheritance of medical skills, but compared to the alchemy room, it was still a profit.

"Junior brother," he said, cupping his hands in greeting, "I will go back and apply for a medical inheritance for you. I will definitely visit you again within three days."