Spending fifty million spirit stones was exhausting work.
Jiang Fan sat on a bench in the Alchemy District of Sky City, fanning himself with his new stack of receipts. Yun Xi stood behind him, looking like a terrifying statue in a frilly apron, holding twenty shopping bags with effortless strength. Gu Ling was inspecting a new set of precision tools she had just bought.
"We have weapons," Jiang Fan listed, counting on his fingers. "We have a maid. We have a tank. But we lack consumables."
"Consumables?" Gu Ling asked, looking up from a wrench.
"Pills," Jiang Fan said. "Healing pills. Mana pills. 'I-ate-something-bad' pills. We need a supply chain."
Boss Pang, who was currently carrying Jiang Fan's extra shoes, nodded enthusiastically.
"The Pavilion of Everlasting Medicine is right there, Brother Jiang! They have Master Alchemists who can refine Stage 5 pills! Very expensive, very flashy!"
Jiang Fan looked at the massive, gilded building Boss Pang pointed to. There was a line out the door. The alchemists inside were shouting, explosions were happening, and the air smelled like sulfur and arrogance.
"Too loud," Jiang Fan grimaced. "And they look like they try too hard. Is there anywhere... quieter?"
[ System Alert: Rare Talent Detected. ] [ Range: 50 meters. ] [ Direction: Down that smelly alleyway. ]
Jiang Fan paused. He stood up.
"Follow me."
THE HIDDEN SHOP
They turned away from the main street and walked down a narrow, cobblestone alley that smelled of wet moss and dried herbs. At the very end, squeezed between a noodle shop and a warehouse, was a tiny, dilapidated shack.
There was no sign. Just a single wooden wind chime hanging by the door.
"Brother Jiang," Boss Pang whispered nervously. "This doesn't look like a shop. This looks like where you go to get robbed."
Jiang Fan ignored him and pushed the door open.
Ching.
The inside was small, dark, and cluttered. But the smell...
It didn't smell like the chemical burn of the main district. It smelled like rain on hot stones. It smelled like lavender, crushed mint, and something ancient, like old paper.
In the center of the room sat a large, bronze cauldron. It was simmering gently, heated not by a roaring fire, but by a precise, blue flame.
Sitting in front of the cauldron was a girl.
She was young, perhaps eighteen. She wore simple, rough linen robes that were stained with soot and plant juices. Her hair was a messy bun of chestnut brown, held together by a wooden hairpin.
She was stunningly beautiful, with features so delicate they looked like they had been painted with a fine brush. But her eyes were covered by a strip of white silk cloth.
She didn't turn around when the bell rang. Her hands were moving over a table filled with dried herbs. She didn't look. She touched.
Her fingers danced over the leaves, feeling the texture, the dryness, the flow of Qi within the veins.
"Star-Dust Flower," she whispered, her voice soft and melodious. "Dried for three days. A bit too brittle. Needs moisture."
She picked up a leaf, brought it to her nose, and inhaled deeply.
"Sun-Fire Root. Spicy. Angry. It needs to be calmed down."
She tossed the ingredients into the cauldron with a casual, fluid motion. She didn't measure them. She didn't use a scale.
"Who is she talking to?" Yun Xi whispered, shifting the shopping bags.
"Shh," Jiang Fan held up a finger. "Watch."
The girl reached out and hovered her hand over the steam rising from the cauldron. She wasn't checking the temperature. She was feeling the shape of the smell.
"Almost..." she murmured. "The harmony is off. It's too sharp on the left."
She reached blindly to her right, grabbed a small jar, pinched a tiny amount of blue powder, and flicked it into the pot.
WHOOSH.
The steam turned a brilliant, shimmering gold. A sweet, heavy aroma filled the small shop—a scent so pure that Boss Pang felt his fatigue vanish instantly.
"Done," the girl smiled. It was a gentle, satisfied smile.
She tapped the side of the cauldron. Three round, golden pills flew out and landed perfectly in a bamboo tray next to her.
[ System Analysis ]
Target: Su Qing
Status: Blind (Congenital).
Trait: [The Nose of the Heavens (SSS Rank)] - Can perceive the molecular structure of alchemy through scent and touch. Does not require recipes. The Dao guides her hands.
Current Craft: [Golden Soul Pill] - Quality: Perfect (100% Purity).
"Perfect purity," Jiang Fan muttered. "Even Grandmasters only hit 90%."
The girl turned her head slightly, her bandaged eyes facing them.
"Customers?" she asked softly. "Or are you just enjoying the smell? The ventilation in here is poor, I apologize."
Jiang Fan stepped forward.
"The smell is the best part," he said. "That was a Golden Soul Pill, right? But you added Moon-Dust to cool the fire. Unorthodox."
Su Qing tilted her head. She sniffed the air.
"You smell... interesting," she said. "Like ozone. And old books. And... cat fur?"
Snack, currently asleep in Jiang Fan's pocket, let out a muffled meep.
"I'm Jiang Fan. I'm looking to buy."
"I don't sell much," Su Qing admitted, turning back to her herbs. "The Guild won't license me. They say I can't read the safety manuals."
She gestured to her covered eyes.
"They say a blind alchemist is a hazard. That I'll blow myself up."
"Did you blow yourself up?"
"Once," she admitted with a small grin. "But it smelled like strawberries, so it was worth it."
Jiang Fan laughed. He liked her. She was calm. She was talented. And she clearly didn't care about the rules.
"I want to hire you," Jiang Fan said bluntly.
"Hire me?" Su Qing paused. "I can't work in a factory. I need quiet."
"Not a factory. A private retainer. I provide the herbs, the cauldron, and the quiet. You provide the pills."
Su Qing hesitated. She reached out and touched the table, tracing the wood grain.
"Why me? There are a hundred Masters on the main street who can see the flame."
"Because they use their eyes," Jiang Fan said, walking closer. "Eyes can be tricked. Illusions, glares, smoke. But the nose knows."
He picked up one of the Golden Soul Pills.
"This pill is perfect. Not 'good'. Perfect. You didn't measure the ingredients because you felt what they wanted to be. That's not skill, Su Qing. That's the Dao."
Su Qing stiffened. No one had ever said that to her. They called her a cripple. They called her a hazard. They called her a charity case.
"You... you can tell?"
"I have an eye for quality," Jiang Fan yawned. "And I'm extremely rich. I can buy you the rarest herbs in the world. Ingredients you've never even smelled before. Dragon's Blood Grass. Void Lotus. Phoenix Tears."
Su Qing's nostrils flared. Her imagination ran wild. To a scent-based alchemist, that list was like poetry.
"Phoenix Tears..." she whispered reverently. "They say they smell like sorrow and cinnamon."
"Come with us," Jiang Fan extended a hand, then realized she couldn't see it. He tapped the table twice. "I have a garden that grows itself. And I have a team that gets injured a lot."
He pointed a thumb at Yun Xi. "Especially the maid. She likes to punch things with her face."
"I do not!" Yun Xi snapped.
Su Qing turned toward Yun Xi's voice. She sniffed.
"You smell like... fresh linen. And dried blood. And suppressed anger."
Yun Xi blinked, taken aback. "That is... uncomfortably accurate."
Su Qing smiled. It was genuine this time.
"Okay," she said. She stood up and untied her apron. "If you really have Phoenix Tears, I will follow you to the ends of the earth."
THE EXIT
Five minutes later, the shop was empty.
Jiang Fan walked out with a new team member.
Jiang Fan: The Lazy Leader.
Gu Ling: The Tech/Tank.
Yun Xi: The DPS/Maid.
Su Qing: The Healer/Crafter.
Snack: The Mascot/Garbage Disposal.
"We are turning into a traveling circus," Gu Ling noted, watching Yun Xi help the blind girl step over a puddle.
"A rich circus," Jiang Fan corrected. "Now, Boss Pang. We have the goods. We have the staff. Book the airship."
"Airship?" Boss Pang asked. "Where to?"
"Back to the Sect," Jiang Fan's eyes narrowed slightly. "We have a Pocket Dimension to upgrade. And I have a feeling the Bloodfire Sect isn't going to let us leave without a goodbye party."
As if on cue, a loud explosion shook the main street. Screams erupted from the direction of the city gates.
"See?" Jiang Fan sighed, pulling out his fan. "I can never just have a nice shopping trip."
Su Qing tilted her head, listening to the screams.
"That explosion..." she noted calmly. "It smelled like gunpowder and... cheap cologne."
Jiang Fan groaned.
"Young Master Zhao. Of course."
[ System Quest Generated: Escape from Sky City ] [ Difficulty: Hard ] [ Enemies: The Bloodfire Sect Elders have arrived. ] [ Objective: Get everyone on the airship. ]
Jiang Fan cracked his neck.
"Yun Xi, put down the bags. Gu Ling, warm up the engines. Su Qing... stand behind the maid."
He looked at the chaos erupting down the street.
"Let's go home."