Nie Kong looked up and saw that the speaker was Tan Zhong, the Eighth-Rank Medicine King from Everlasting Spring Mountain, and a faint smile touched his lips.

Over these last few dozen days, he had traveled from south to north, from east to west, challenging nearly twenty Spirit Apothecaries. Not everyone had accepted the challenge as calmly as Ling Xiao or Hua Zhan; many sparrings had been thick with hostility, none more so than those with Tan Zhong.

Before competing in pharmaceutical skill with Tan Zhong, Nie Kong had first engaged him in a contest of martial prowess. After realizing he could not possibly defeat Nie Kong, Tan Zhong reluctantly agreed to the challenge.

Even after the duel concluded, with Tan Zhong admitting defeat and leaving his note, he treated Nie Kong with perpetual coldness. His behavior today was entirely predictable. Nie Kong, however, paid it no mind; he never sought to win over Spirit Apothecaries through virtue. Domination through prestige, superiority through sheer power—that was the true way.

Prestige, naturally, came from the might of Spirit Control City, the shadow of the Nether Ruins, the power of the Ancestral Heaven Divine Luo Tree, and, crucially, the momentum of Nie Kong defeating Spirit Control City and achieving successive victories over the great Medicine Kings! Power, of course, referred not to martial strength, but to Nie Kong’s mastery of alchemy. The combination of the two left them no choice but to bow down in submission.

"Since Elder Tan Zhong puts it so, then this junior will not waste any more time."

Nie Kong surveyed the hall with a smile, "Our Heavenly Spirit Continent is vast, possessing countless herbs. However, because we Spirit Apothecaries either hoard our knowledge or deliberately muddy the waters, the names of herbs vary across regions—North and South, East and West—take that common herb, the 'Heaven's Heart Seed.' In the Great Accomplishment Empire, it's called 'Heaven's Heart Seed,' but in the Shatu Empire, it becomes the 'Mystic Heart Fruit,' and in the North Sea Kingdom, it’s known as the 'Sand Ball.' Some apothecaries even deliberately list it in prescriptions as the utterly unrelated 'Joy Flower Herb,' solely to prevent formularies from leaking."

To Nie Kong's words, the crowd felt a profound sense of recognition.

Yet, a lingering doubt troubled them: why bring this up now? While ordinary Spirit Apothecaries might be unaware of this issue, those present—Seventh-Rank Spirit Apothecaries and Eighth-Rank Medicine Kings—knew it all too well. This practice had become an unspoken rule among them, its purpose being natural secrecy.

Centuries ago, a Medicine King from the Heaven and Earth Sect invented a Seventh-Rank Spirit Medicine capable of boosting cultivation. When news spread, someone schemed meticulously, infiltrating the Heaven and Earth Sect and spending over a decade finally becoming the Sect Master's direct disciple, successfully stealing the formula. Only after escaping did the thief discover that ten of the fourteen herbs listed in the prescription were incorrect substitutes. Over ten years of effort turned to dust.

Following this incident, Spirit Apothecaries became even more convinced that this deliberate confusion of names was essential.

At this point, Nie Kong smiled again, "And then there are the medicinal properties and efficacy of the herbs. When some Spirit Apothecaries discover a new property in an herb, they mostly keep the secret to themselves, rarely making it public. Even when they do share it, it is often incomplete, easily leading others astray. Initially, this junior thought there was no harm in it, but after acquiring this Spirit Residence, I realized that we Spirit Apothecaries have become the sinners of the Heavenly Spirit Continent."

This heavy accusation caused an uproar in the Serene Heart Hall. A Seventh-Rank Spirit Apothecary couldn't help but frown, "Nie Kong, those words of yours seem rather inappropriate, don't you think?"

"Precisely. Without Spirit Apothecaries, the speed at which Spirit Masters advance their cultivation would slow by at least half. How have we become sinners?" Tan Zhong was even more displeased.

"..."

The hall buzzed with righteous indignation, but Nie Kong offered no rebuttal, merely smiling faintly, "Do the esteemed elders here know the level alchemy has reached on the Phantasm Spirit Continent?" Without waiting for an answer, Nie Kong continued, "Within this Spirit Residence of mine, there are numerous Ninth-Rank, and even Tenth-Rank, elixirs left behind from the Phantasm Spirit Continent. Back then, those elixirs were equivalent to our current Spirit Medicines, and the apothecaries who refined them were not even Spirit Gods."

"What?"

Except for a select few who had prior knowledge, everyone else was utterly shocked, glancing at each other in stupefaction. They had always believed that for Spirit Apothecaries below the Ninth Rank of Heaven Spirit, refining a Ninth-Rank Spirit Medicine was a rarity achieved once in a millennium. They never imagined that the Phantasm Spirit Continent had actually forged medicines of the Tenth Rank.

Tan Zhong said gravely, "Nie Kong, words are cheap. How am I to know you speak the truth?"

"This junior does not require anyone's belief in what I say."

Nie Kong smiled, "After acquiring this Spirit Residence, this junior conceived a singular ambition: to compile an official pharmacopeia for our Heavenly Spirit Continent! This pharmacopeia must illustrate every herb vividly and record its complete medicinal properties and efficacy, then be distributed across the entire continent."

Compiling a pharmacopeia?

The assembled crowd was dumbstruck. Nie Kong's ambition was immense! The Heavenly Spirit Continent held tens of thousands of herbs; he intended to illustrate and catalog them all. Such a task could not be completed in one or two years. Countless high-ranking Spirit Apothecaries had attempted such a feat over the millennia, all ending in failure.

After a long silence, You Li raised an elegant eyebrow, "Nie Kong, did you summon us all to this Spirit Residence to help you compile this pharmacopeia?"

"That is not the case."

Nie Kong laughed heartily, "As for compiling the pharmacopeia, this junior alone is sufficient."

Hearing such audacious claims, many sneered, yet secretly felt a wave of relief. Let him compile his pharmacopeia alone; as long as he didn't rope them in, they were fine. Everyone present was either a Sect Master or a Clan Elder; who would willingly dedicate ten or twenty years to such an endeavor?

Though the creation of a pharmacopeia would undoubtedly elevate the standard of alchemy on the Heavenly Spirit Continent, what did the affairs of the Continent have to do with their individual sects, clans, or nations?

But their relief was short-lived, for Nie Kong's next words caused their hearts to instantly tighten: "In my pharmacopeia, I will also record the formulas for various grades of Spirit Medicines that I have researched. Furthermore, every known Spirit Medicine formula on the Heavenly Spirit Continent will be included. This part will require the strong support of all you esteemed elders."

"..."

You Li, Tan Zhong, and the others exchanged looks, each quite astonished. Nie Kong wanting to compile a pharmacopeia was shocking enough, but he intended to publicly release all Spirit Medicine formulas? If he succeeded, what secret, proprietary medicines would the great sects and noble clans of the Heavenly Spirit Continent have left?

After a prolonged silence, Tan Zhong roared angrily, "Nie Kong, is this the small favor you wished for us to lend?"

"Precisely."

Nie Kong smiled slowly, "Providing a few Spirit Medicine formulas for the pharmacopeia is merely a trivial matter for all of you—a small favor, naturally. If any elder is willing to remain and assist this junior in jointly compiling the pharmacopeia, that would be a great favor. However, whether small or great, this junior will not let anyone suffer a loss."

Tan Zhong sprang to his feet, exploding with indignation, "Great favor, I have no interest in it. Small favor, I have even less interest in it. Nie Kong, I shall take my leave now."

"Wait!"

Suddenly, Nie Kong called out to him with a beaming, profitable smile.

... ...RO