Yuchi You, standing beside Shui Ruolan, also stared at her in utter astonishment.

’The Weak Water Army was something Shui Ruolan personally built from the ground up, and now she’s just handing over the leadership to me without a second thought? When did she become so irresponsible?’

"Ahem... Ruolan, this isn’t a good idea. Without you, I’m afraid the Weak Water Army’s morale will plummet," Yuchi You said, feeling helpless.

"It’s fine, we still have you!" Shui Ruolan said with a wave of her hand. Yuchi You was an expert ranked in the top twenty of the Dragon and Tiger List, and he was also the second-in-command of the Weak Water Army.

"I..." Yuchi You started to protest, but Shui Ruolan cut him off before he could finish.

"If you’re really that worried you can’t manage it, then how about we just merge the Weak Water Army into the Yao Sect!"

Hearing this, everyone present stumbled, and Zi Mo sprayed the tea in his mouth all over Su Xing’s face!

’Damn it! That’s the Weak Water Army! Their overall strength is in the top three of the entire Sect, and with a single sentence, you’re just handing them over to the Yao Sect! Milady, is this seriously how you lead?’ Zi Mo roared internally.

The corner of Shen Haoran’s mouth twitched. ’Most people really can’t keep up with her train of thought.’

"Ahem..." Yuchi You could only manage a dry laugh. ’Merging the Weak Water Army into the Yao Sect is completely out of the question! This is the culmination of years of hard work from both me and Ruolan!’

However, after hearing what Shui Ruolan said, Yuchi You couldn’t help but steal a few more glances at Shen Haoran. ’What kind of charm does this young man possess, to be able to turn the once incomparably aloof and icy Shui Ruolan into... this?’

Shen Haoran felt his skin crawl under Yuchi You’s stare and cleared his throat. "Ahem... Since you want to join, I can only welcome you!"

’In any case, the Yao Sect is short-staffed right now. One new member is welcome, two would be great, and three would be even better. Besides, Shui Ruolan is quite strong, so our logistics will be secure.’

Seeing Shen Haoran agree, Shui Ruolan’s face lit up. She then turned to Yuchi You and said, "Yuchi, you should head back first. The Sect Leader and I are about to discuss confidential Yao Sect matters, so it’s not appropriate for you to be here!"

Yuchi You shot Shui Ruolan a look. ’This girl really gets into character fast.’ But then his heart filled with gloom. ’I was just dragged over for a casual visit, and what happens? My own leader ends up becoming the head of logistics for someone else’s sect. This is so frustrating! Who can I even complain to?’

Yuchi You left the Red Flame Hall glumly. Meanwhile, Shen Haoran and the others launched into a heated discussion, quickly mapping out the Yao Sect’s development plan.

"Alright, it’s settled then," Shen Haoran said. "Brother Su will be in charge of recruiting disciples, Long Zhen will handle promotion, Ruolan will manage resource allocation and rewards, and Long Mo and Fatty will be responsible for running interference! Let’s get the Yao Sect through its initial phase first."

"What about you? And where will we get those resources?" Shui Ruolan asked, puzzled. Shen Haoran hadn’t assigned himself a task.

"I’ll take care of the resources," Shen Haoran said mysteriously. "As for where they’ll come from, you’ll all find out in due time."

"Are you planning on performing Alchemy?" Long Mo asked nonchalantly.

Shen Haoran shot Long Mo a dark look. ’This guy. Can’t he let me have a little mystery?’

"Alchemy? Shen Haoran is an Alchemist?" everyone exclaimed, looking at him in amazement.

The Alchemist was the most revered profession in the world. Many people dreamed of becoming one, but the requirements were so stringent that not even one in ten thousand might qualify. They never expected Shen Haoran to be an Alchemist.

"Ahem, not exactly," Shen Haoran replied with a dry cough. "But I will be soon!"

Shen Haoran wasn’t an official Alchemist yet. Although he possessed the legendary Alchemy Inheritance, he had been too busy improving his own strength to dedicate much time to studying it. But now, for the sake of his sect’s growth, Shen Haoran had decided to learn the Alchemy Dao.

When the others saw Shen Haoran admit it, their faces lit up with elation. Having a resident Alchemist was an incredible draw for any sect!

Elixirs were a scarce resource in the Sect, typically distributed only at a fixed time each month. If their own faction had an Alchemist, it would surely attract countless disciples to their banner.

After the initial excitement, the group felt even more motivated about the Yao Sect’s future. Shen Haoran gave a few more instructions and sent them off to begin preparations. He, on the other hand, went into his room and summoned Elder Yan.

"You want to learn Alchemy?" Elder Yan asked in surprise. He had offered to teach Shen Haoran before, only to be refused. He hadn’t expected him to take the initiative now.

Shen Haoran nodded and explained his intentions. Hearing this, Elder Yan nodded as well.

"Very well. You possess the Alchemy Inheritance, which is equivalent to having a wealth of alchemy experience. There isn’t much I can teach you, but I can guide you through the basics. Go prepare a Pill Furnace, and I’ll begin teaching you Alchemy," Elder Yan agreed with a nod.

Upon hearing this, Shen Haoran dashed out. A moment later, he was back in his room, taking a Pill Furnace out of his Storage Ring.

He had gotten this Pill Furnace from Elder Huo; it was just an ordinary one. Afterward, Shen Haoran took out the Spirit Medicines he had gathered in the Red Flame Mountain Range and looked at Elder Yan with anticipation.

Seeing that everything was ready, Elder Yan began his lesson.

"Alchemy isn’t necessarily a difficult task. Any Fire Attribute Martial Artist is qualified to attempt it. However, becoming a true Alchemist is something most people cannot achieve! It requires not only Fire Attribute Spiritual Power, but more importantly, a powerful Spiritual Thought! The entire process is about control—specifically, control over temperature and timing. This requires the Alchemist to use their powerful Spiritual Thought to perceive every change. Even the slightest mistake will render all your previous efforts worthless!

"But no matter how much I explain, there’s no substitute for hands-on experience. These are the materials for a First Grade Elixir, the Water Cloud Pill. Use them to get a feel for the alchemy process!"

"Now, do as I say. First step: warm the Pill Furnace."

At his word, Shen Haoran summoned his Fire Spirit Black Obsidian and tossed it into the Pill Furnace. Black Flames surged, and the temperature inside the furnace quickly rose.

"Next, refine the Spirit Medicine and extract its essence! This step requires you to have extremely precise control over the flame’s temperature. Give it a try!"

Shen Haoran then picked up a stalk of Spirit Medicine and tossed it into the Pill Furnace.

WHOOSH... The moment the Spirit Medicine entered the furnace, the black flames devoured it, turning it into a pile of black ash in the blink of an eye!

"The temperature was too high. You need to learn to control the Fire Spirit Black Obsidian’s temperature and raise it gradually," Elder Yan pointed out.

Shen Haoran took a deep breath, doing his best to lower the Fire Spirit Black Obsidian’s temperature before tossing another stalk of Spirit Medicine inside.

After tossing it in, Shen Haoran slowly began to raise the temperature. As it rose, the Spirit Medicine began to melt, and a faint, fresh fragrance wafted from within the Pill Furnace.

"It worked!" Shen Haoran exclaimed joyfully.

"Not bad. Continue!" Elder Yan said approvingly.

Hearing the praise, a look of confidence spread across Shen Haoran’s face. He picked up another stalk of Spirit Medicine and tossed it in. With his previous experience, the process went much more smoothly this time, and he soon refined all the Spirit Medicines on the table...