Lind barely remembered any of the lessons taught by the Elders during the day. Time had seemed to crawl as Lind had manned his position in the mission hall. The jade slips and texts normally would let time fly, but Lind had been looking forward to returning to the Stone Ward.
When his relief finally came, he had infused wind into his body and practically floated down the streets to get back to the Younger Twin's shop. Lind was almost glad for his status as the crowd naturally parted around him to avoid even catching his eye. Only when the quality of buildings began to decline did Lind bring his speed back to normal.
Strangely, the destitute and the shadier business stalls also avoided him but it did not feel the same. It was almost like the residents of the Stone Ward did 'see' Lind but knew not to hinder his path. It was a very different feeling compared to the avoidance at the Academy and the rest of the Inner District.
The brothel finally came into sight but here things were even stranger than the rest of the Stone Ward. Before, the prostitutes clearly were trying to rope Lind into following them, but now it was almost like they took special care to keep the pathway open for him to reach the shop near them.
"What is going on?" Lind had some theories but pushed it aside as he felt a familiar feeling of dislocation before he found himself back in the shop.
"You're late." Lind jumped as the flow of Qi once again condensed into the form of the Younger Twin. His powerful aura was not pushing Lind down this time, but Lind looked confused. He had left immediately after his shift at the mission hall. In fact, Lind had pushed his body with Qi to get through the district faster.
"I came as fast as I could after my shif–" Lind barely got a few words out before the bottomless eyes made sweat break out on Lind's back. The feeling of being laid bare once again filled his mind until the aura lifted.
"Preposterous! They have you while away your time doing nothing. Skip it!" Lind frowned but kept his objections to himself for now. It would be difficult to explain to the Elders that he was attending an Immortal Will located in the Stone Ward near a brothel. Lind would have better odds of growing wings to fly.
Lind followed the Younger Twin behind the counter but froze as they entered an entirely new room. It was not the comfortable tea room from before but a well lit brewing room. It looked similar to the pill room his mother had if far more profound formations lining the walls and cauldron.
Lind noticed a few other differences from pill making. There was a large barrel of water near the cauldron as well as large jade vials that could hold farm more than the pill versions Lind had been using since he left the Frey Clan. He had been to the Alchemy Guild supplies desks and never saw anything like these vials.
They had lines marking off division of its contents but LInd was unsure what quantity it meant to convey. There were some grade 1 herbs laid out on a small table but there were no mortars or pestles to grind them like an alchemist would for a pill. Lind also noticed that unlike when he prepared herbs for his mother, these herbs included everything from roots to leaf.
Lind knew that not all of these parts were needed for pills, but he had tried using raw herbs before to try and figure out what could be mixed together. Now that he knew he had stumbled on each of his broths, Lind wondered what steps he was missing to be consistent.
"First, as you likely know, trying to make a pill as an elixir master is impossible." Lind nodded as he carefully observed the Younger Twin pick up several herbs Lind immediately identified as needed for a grade 1 healing pill. "The reason is quite simple. To be an elixir master is to instinctively force Qi and herbal essence together even if one is unaware of it."
The cauldron suddenly had a steady flame as water was added to it to boil. Lind could see with his newly remade Eyes the flow of elements flying through the air at the Younger Twin's command. Instead of extracting powder and merging into a pill, the Younger Twin dropped all the herbs at once into the boiling water.
Lind was stunned to watch as the essence of each herb was extracted as pure energy while spiritual Qi kept flowing through the water. It had a profound feeling to it but Lind could not identify it. It was not a formation nor was it some kind of intent like a weapon could produce. It was too complex to parse with how quickly it moved.
Lind then realized the essence and Qi was reacting. He recognized what it was becoming! The water that was muddied by the herbs instantly changed colors into a deep azure before shifting to a pleasant violet color. The liquid was then extracted by wind Qi and separated into 2 vials precisely stopping at the uppermost mark on the jade.
They were stoppered immediately and sealed with a talisman. Lind could not stop himself from reaching out with his senses and was stunned. The ingredients were perfectly sound grade 1 herbs. The water was just water. It had no special properties that he could discern. The tools were only the cauldron at this time and while it was resilient and had excellent inscriptions to no doubt make it efficient, it was no more than a pot boiling water at that time.
Lind was stunned because it was not a grade 1 feeling in the vials, but peak grade 2! How was this possible?! Lind had broken through the grades but he had used much higher quality Qi to do it and a lot of luck. The Qi the Younger Twin had used, while complex, had also been repressed to grade 1 quality as far as Lind could tell. The wide smile on the Immortal Will's face clearly told Lind he was showing off but it was impressive!
"Elixirs are not like pills. Watch again." The same process ensued but Lind was confused as a peak grade 1 elixir that was a lighter violet color than the grade 2. Lind could evaluate herbs at a glance thanks to his many years helping his mother. There was almost no difference in the quality of the herbs.
Lind stared at the 2 elixirs carefully but could not discern what had resulted in the different grades. He also realized that he could not pick apart the energies of each elixir. A pill could be discerned by an expert for quality, herbs used, and even the quality of those herbs with a small shaving. None of that worked with the liquids before him.
"What was different?" Lind truly could not figure out how the same process and ingredients could produce a vast difference in grades. Grade 1 herbs could maybe make a low grade 2 pill, but the 2 elixirs were exactly 1 grade a part.
"There are no words I can give you for replication. I can only tell you I wanted to make a healing elixir. In this case the herbs are exactly what you need for a grade 1 healing pill." Lind saw the 4 herbs laid out on the table. Milk root, twin fern, 10 year old silvan grass, and a sleeping rose were perfect grade 1 herbs. Lind confirmed with both his Eyes and his senses via Touch to confirm there was nothing hidden in any of them.
Lind's hands froze as he held the milk root. It was not drained of the milk inside it. It was unprocessed entirely. He then checked the others and noticed again that all had their roots intact but the parts not needed for the healing pill were still present on each herb. In other words, if replanted, they would continue to grow once more.
Lind had not done this. He had always tried to mix herbs that had some kind of processing. He might keep the roots or other pieces, but they would always be separated. Was that the final key? However, why did some of his broths work then? What was he missing?
"You are overthinking this. The first time you succeeded, what was that like? What were you feeling?" Lind found the question odd but it was easy. His mother was gone and Teyla had been very ill. Lind recognized the disease but there was no time. The low tech level of this world meant they relied on alchemy to overcome issues. Unfortunately, some effects were gated behind higher grade pills and that had been the instance then. "Follow the memory and repeat what you wanted. Don't try to understand right now, just go with it."
Lind followed the words and closed his eyes. He had likely been in the Body Refining Realm back then but Lind was now in the 5th tier of the Soul Realm. He allowed his mind to take over and even though it was weaker, the desperate desire to create a cure for Teyla had been pushing him. His hands began to move as his World Touch guided him to what he wanted.
The few pastes Lind had made were the inspiration. There was a good paste to help clear up congestion and ease a throat at the same time. Lind opened his eyes and frowned. He had once more picked up the very herbs he had the first time but now some seemed wrong.
Whisper oak and violet spindle were catalysts in the creation of creams or pastes, but he somehow felt his desire was being held back by them now. Instead, Lind only took the other 2, crimson spindle and lightning root. Lind resumed his actions and used his Qi to move the water into the cauldron while lighting the fire at the same time.
Unlike back then, Lind could control it all. His goal, the medicine he had created so many times now seemed pathetic to his mind. It was weighed down with unnecessary things and Lind began to drop the herbs into the boiling water. His spirit Qi suddenly flowed through his body and carried elemental Qi in a much simpler pattern compared to Younger Twin.
The final piece fell into place for Lind and the process smoothed out from its shaky start as the essence was extracted and the herbs broken down. Nothing was wasted as the water first turned a deeper blue before turning crystal clear.
Lind felt like his lungs increased in capacity and some small impurities were purged just by inhaling the fumes of his first true elixir. Lind immediately assumed a lotus position to digest his breakthrough in comprehension.
****
Younger Twin was stunned but Lind could not see it. The Immortal Will moved the newly made elixir into 2 vials and sealed them. His slender fingers picked up the elixir and examined it. He had never seen anything like this recipe anywhere. The main body had only left him with some criteria to judge those that wished to apply or drew his attention.
"You surprise me, Lind Frey. Why have the spirits made you a 6 elemental?" It was frustrating finding such talent burdened by a near impossible wall to overcome. This mortal realm was lucky in many ways but talent such as this only comes along once in a few million years. While his senses could see a lot, an Immortal Will was still limited by its purpose. Some talents were beyond his ability to evaluate.
A few tests and he understood what the elixir could do. It was only a high grade 1, but that was due to the lack of expertise on Lind's part. It was possible it could break the barrier to grade 2 but there was not enough energy to do it for certain. Younger Twin had intentionally used all the herbs for a grade 1 healing pill to test Lind's instincts and it had surpassed his expectations.
"I know you can still hear me, Lind Frey. An elixir master is not a rote replication. Your intent, the quality of your Qi, and the quality of ingredients dictate the potential of your elixir. As to what can be made," The Immortal Will smiled down at the young man meditating on the floor of the shop, "How wide is your imagination?"
A frown marred the Immortal Will's face as he noticed a peak Iron Tier poking around outside the shop. It was not the usual curiosity but someone looking for Lind. Their intent was clear as day to the powerful being.
"Send a message to your master. This boy is mine. Do not interfere or pay the price." The feeling trembled in his senses but then quickly disappeared. Very few knew he was here anymore but it was time to remind this tiny power how far down the well they lived. A glance at the young man was full of worry now.
"You need to know when to bend, Lind or you will shatter when you try to break through." A flash of terrifying lightning falling from massive black clouds passed through his memory but the Immortal Will pushed it aside. It was the past and it could not be changed as so much worse things had occurred over the millions of years his main body had been alive.
Silence descended as master and apprentice waited for the next step.