Potential - Problematic Alchemist.

*Clink* the sound of a lock rang out and the door to one of the meditation rooms slid open as Shu He strode out, he took a deep breath of 'fresh' air as his eyes adjusted to the lighter environment, it had been just over half a day since he had finally managed to create Alchemic Qi.

He had spent a while adjusting to it, manipulating it and seeing just what it could do, and it didn't let him down, when he had performed extraction before it was like using his own hands to undo a bolt, whereas using the Alchemic Qi it was like using a spanner made for it.

The properties on Alchemic Qi seemed to lay in decomposition, extraction and potentially reconstruction, he hadn't had much time to test the last part, but he felt he was correct, since it was used for pill creation.

Of course, he didn't just spend that half day playing around with Alchemic Qi, no, he had a far more important subject to think about-

His golden core flame!

It had been six- nearly seven years since he had obtained it, and while he had experienced struggles and changes involving it, he hadn't ever directly understood any of it, yet today something finally changed, he had glimpsed part of the flames potential!

Because of this he couldn't help but have a silly grin plastered to his face, even though he tried hard to hide it.

The flame core had eaten, absorbed the alchemic gate he created starting a transformation, and then he had made use of the copious amounts of Alchemic Qi in the tower to complete said transformation, and now he could use Alchemic Qi at will, he didn't have a comparison yet, but he felt it was incredibly fast in terms of conversion and the quality of the Qi was incredibly pure!

Of course, he wasn't going to overlook the potential application of this ability, if this worked for Alchemic Qi then who's to say it wouldn't work for other types of Qi.

Though, the obstacles to that objective seemed quite large, first of all, if his assumptions were correct, he needed to create a gate for that element to kick start the transformation, or maybe similar techniques may work; Getting such thing may not be too hard, just a few thousand points away from happening, however if he were to go around buying all the elemental gate techniques then he would be incredibly conspicuous.

Though…

'With what just happened, aren't as I as conspicuous as can be in this sect right now?' He wryly smiled.

'Maybe I can throw away the idea of hiding everything, inside the sect at least' He thought, though he would still try to keep the full details hidden despite seemingly have been given a pass from the sect master herself.

The other problem was the bigger hurdle, the ridiculous amount of Qi required to complete such a transformation, he had gotten incredibly lucky right now because he was in the Alchemy Tower with a massive surplus of Qi, but he couldn't think of any such areas he could access for the other elements.

'Maybe I'll ask one of the Elders later…' He put the thought on the to do list in his mind.

  Either way, it was now a goal he had for the future, the benefits of being able to create pure qi of every element should be massive, so he felt like he had to do it.

He too a deep breath and exhaled, rubbing his face.

'Gotta calm down, I'll give away too much if I'm giddy like this'.

He repeated this process a few more times before he managed to regain a neutral expression.

"Now then, where's Tao Ru?"

…

*Knock* *Knock* *Knock*

Shu He gently knocked the door he had been directed to, he had spent an hour walking around the tower asking for directions to where Tao Ru was, it turns out she had a personal room in the tower since she was a Tier 2 Alchemist, or rather the moment you become a Tier 3 Alchemist you get given one in the tower if you don't decide to move elsewhere.

The unfortunate part was that it was quite far up the tower, so when Shu He found out he began to grimace and imagine the legs of alchemists that move up and down these stairs daily; Though he was then informed of the elevator so that image popped.

The floor he was on currently had luxurious carpets and decorations that weren't too gaudy lining the hallway, something you'd imagine seeing in a lords castle or such, the door to Tao Ru's room was also a thick wooden door well carved with imagery of vines.

"…" He waited for a minute, and nothing happened.

He looked towards the top of the door and saw a metal knocker, so he tried it this time; He was still a bit short, so he had to reach up a little to grab it.

'I'll hit my growth spurt soon!' he thought as he swung it.

*BANG* *BANG* *BANG*

A much louder sound echoed in the hallway, being dampened by the carpet and curtains.

"…"

Another minute passed, nothing.

*BANG*

*BANG*

*BANG*

*BANG*

He knocked in a more spaced fashion, maybe she had just not heard it earlier.

"… Really?"

Another minute passed, nothing happened.

"Is she not in there?" He asked himself, doubtfully.

'But everyone I asked said she'd be here… did she somehow go somewhere else unseen?' He tilted his head as he thought.

'Is it possible she's busy doing something? But she said within 3 days, and it's nearly at that point…'

He reached up to the knocker once more.

*BANG* *BANG* *BA-BANG* *BANG*

*BANG*

*BANG*

Adding a bit of flair to it this time, he wailed away at the doorknocker.

And just as he finished-

*WHOOSH*

A door burst open.

But not Tao Ru's.

"Who is it making that racket?! Some people are trying to concentrate here!" A middle-aged man with short slicked back black hair wearing alchemist robes stomped out of the door, his eyes looking for the culprit.

"Uh- Sorry, I didn't think the other rooms would hear…" Shu He apologised immediately.

"Hmm? What's a disciple like you doing here?" His eyes narrowed, looking where Shu He was standing "And with that idiotic woman no less".

"Well… I was told to come here once I can create Alchemic Qi to learn how to create pills…" Shu He explained.

"You? With Tao Ru?" The man laughed "I do feel sorry for you".

"Why?" Shu He asked curiously, he did think she was a bit negligent, but was her reputation that bad?

"Isn't what's happening now a prime example, she'd been told to teach you, yet she's locked in her room in the middle of concocting a pill as if she's forgotten her task, rather she definitely has." He scoffed at her as he explained.

"She's in there then? How can you tell?"

"Experience; When you get used to alchemy you can pick up on the subtle scents created when concocting and the minor flows of Qi" He said as he tapped his nose with a smile.

"Really?" Shu He furrowed his brows, he couldn't smell anything more than a faint scent of dust from the decorations, he thought his Qi sense was considered decent, but he couldn't detect anything significant.

He then activated his sight, as the colours of the world changed he could faintly see incredibly weak streaks of Alchemic Qi drifting from between the cracks in the door, he then shifted his senses to combine sight and smell, he could see clouds as thin as a thread leaking out of the door as well, focusing on them he could only vaguely smell the bitterness of herbs.

He then deactivated his sight and looked up at the man, impressed.

"That's amazing!" Even with his sight it was hard to see, yet this man picked those up naturally.

"Aren't I? Compared to that woman I certainly am, look here I'll help you this once" The man seemed to have been put in a good mood as he pulled out a charm that looked fairly familiar to Shu He- literally.

The man held it up and whispered for a second before it began changing shape, into that of a spider.

It was a familiar charm that Shu He had seen used back during the tournament! Though it was a different form.

The man put it on the floor with an incredibly mischievous grin on his face as it walked off his palm and slid through the crack in the door.

"Wait, you aren't going to-" Shu He suddenly realised what was happening and wanted to stop it but-

"KYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA" A ear piercing scream came from inside the door as footsteps echoed and the door suddenly burst open, Tao Ru's figure came out as she dashed towards the railings and gripped them while looking back.

"SPI- SPIDE- SPIDER! IN MY ROOM!" She yelled erratically, pointing into her open door.

Shu He stared at her, exasperated.

'Aren't you a grown woman, a cultivator, why are you getting surprised by a spider?!' He spoke with his eyes, not his mouth.

"Huh?" She suddenly realised who was standing by door, adjusting the monocle that was on her eye.

"Shu He? Why?" Then she looked at the man and scowled.

"He Qiao!" She growled as she looked at the small 'creature' walking out her room, she squinted and then saw that it was merely a familiar.

"You bastard! Don't you know it's part of the alchemist code to never interrupt a concoction!" She yelled.

The man, He Qiao shook his head with a pitying look on his face "I'm doing you a favour you know, after all I hear you're on thin ice with our Tower Lord".

"What do that have to do with anything?!"

"A little birdy told me you are supposed to be teaching him, yet there you were off in your own world again" He happily spoke while tapping Shu He's shoulder.

Shu He on the other hand had a wry smile plastered on his face as he thought 'These two DEFINITELY have bad blood between them'.

"I- huh?" Tao Ru was going to reply before her expression froze as she looked at Shu He, eventually her face began draining in colour as she dashed forward, grabbing Shu He by the collar and running in to her open door.

"I don't owe you for this!" She yelled as her door slammed shut.

He Qiao sighed as the spider familiar unfolded in his hand returning to a charm shape, he shook his head.

"She never learns…" he mumbled as his nose twitched and he shut his eyes, a few moments later his eyelids opened, and his expression turned serious.

"She's gotten better…" He grit his teeth as he turned around.

"I can't let her get ahead of me" He murmured, returning to his room.