I Became the Alchemy Master by Picking Up Trash-Chapter 163 - 161: Fairy Tears

Qi Ming and Cui Tianxiao returned to the storefront base on the last day of vacation, both bringing lots of local specialties and gifts for Li Xing.

Cui Tianxiao took out a beautifully crafted square lacquer box inlaid with colorful shells, placing it in front of Li Xing, and said:

"Ah Xing, my uncle asked me to express his thanks to you. Thanks to your donuts, his fleet hasn’t been attacked by sea beasts, greatly improving maritime safety. If nothing unforeseen happens, he’ll soon recover the losses from previous years. This is the gift he asked me to pass on to you, he insisted you must accept it."

The lacquer box was not large, one foot square, with various floral, bird, and animal patterns inlaid in colorful shells on the black lacquer base, exquisitely beautiful.

Before Li Xing could say anything, Qi Ming exclaimed in surprise, "This is the most famous specialty of Haiwei Castle, the Mother of Pearl lacquer box!"

Cui Tianxiao grinned, "Who would have thought, Xiao Ming, you’re quite knowledgeable about things girls like! Have you bought one for a girlfriend before?"

Qi Ming reached out and gently stroked the Mother of Pearl shells on the box.

"I don’t have a girlfriend! I know about this box thanks to my third sister. When she got married years ago, she really wanted a Mother of Pearl lacquer box for her dowry, but couldn’t get one. She got very upset with my brother-in-law over it. I was curious as to why it was just a box, why it needed to be ordered three years in advance, so I looked it up online and found out why it was so precious."

Li Xing asked, "How precious is it?"

"The Mother of Pearl used to inlay the floral and bird patterns comes from the Heart Protection Armor of the Nightlight Conch Beast. These beasts reside in the deep sea, extremely hard to capture, and each has only one Heart Protection Armor. Due to its rarity, the Mother of Pearl is very expensive, a piece the size of a fingernail costs an average person’s annual income.

"Besides being rare, the Mother of Pearl is extremely hard. To carve it into patterns requires a talisman master of at least a profound level to make it by hand, a process that takes about three years to produce enough to decorate a lacquer box. The finished Mother of Pearl lacquer box displays a spectrum of colors in sunlight and emits a ghostly blue glow at night, exceptionally beautiful."

Cui Tianxiao nodded, "Exactly. But the Mother of Pearl lacquer box is not the entire gift, there’s something inside the box as well, Ah Xing, open it and see."

Following instructions, Li Xing opened the lacquer box, revealing it to be full of round beads. These beads were similar in size to pearls but far more beautiful. Their surfaces seemed to be coated with a layer of multicolored iridescence. Viewed from different angles, the colors and luster changed, and even Li Xing, who had seen so much, was struck in the heart by the dazzling display.

Cui Tianxiao exclaimed, "Wow, they’re Fairy Tears!"

Qi Ming and Li Xing both asked simultaneously, "What are Fairy Tears?"

Cui Tianxiao picked up a colorful bead, raised it to the sunlight for a detailed appreciation, and explained:

"Fairy Tears are a type of mineral found in specific sea areas. Originally they were industrial raw materials, but due to their beautiful appearance and unique color, they gradually were made into jewelry, and their price has been steadily increasing. Nowadays, Fairy Tears mines are scarce, so it wasn’t easy for my uncle to find so many."

"Ah Xing, I know some good jewelry craftsmen, would you like to have some pieces made?"

Li Xing thought for a moment and replied, "Alright, how about six necklaces?"

"Just necklaces? They’d look great as bracelets, hairpins, or brooches too."

Li Xing shook his head, "They are for gifts, necklaces are versatile and can’t go wrong."

"What about the rest?"

"I’ll see if I can use the rest for alchemy."

Cui Tianxiao pouted, Li Xing, this guy, with a rough warrior’s heart under a delicate exterior, choosing to use such beautiful Fairy Tears for alchemy is really a waste!

The short vacation ended, and the Special Group began intense pre-competition special training once again.

Although the results of the first match were good, to prevent arrogance, the instructors were specially instructed to uphold the principle of strict teachers producing high-achieving students, to raise training standards and increase intensity, aiming to upgrade the Special Group’s prowess by another level.

With the first battle won, the teachers were galvanized as if on steroids, full of energy, much to the misery of Li Xing and the group. In addition to being subjected to all kinds of intense training, they also had to fight in a simulated desert environment, tired and hot, with limited water intake — it was torture.

Luckily, after a week of special training, the new semester began.

Thanks to the Military Academy Competition, this year marked the highest number of enrollments at Harssas Academy in nearly twenty years. Many new students changed their applications after watching the competition, transferring from other schools. It’s no wonder people say the Military Academy Competition is the best advertisement for enrollment.

All the school’s teachers were involved in orientation work, even Luo Jun had no time to supervise the Special Group, letting them train on their own, allowing some laziness to creep in.

They studied the new semester’s courses while continuing special training, leading fulfilling lives. The only regret for them was that Ye Qingting had not yet returned to school. The team felt incomplete, missing one member.

No one knew what Ye Qingting was busy with recently, he wasn’t on the Star Network, calls went unanswered, and messages took two or three days to get a single reply.

When asked what was going on, he just mentioned he had some family matters to handle before returning, and this wait dragged on for over a week.

On Friday night, the trio unexpectedly received a video call from Ye Qingting. The boy on the screen looked haggard, with bloodshot eyes, as if he hadn’t slept in days.

Cui Tianxiao was shocked, "Oh my, Qingtian, who wore you out like this? Tell me, this young master will tear her apart!"

Ye Qingting lacked the strength to banter with Cui Tianxiao, looking tiredly at Li Xing, "Ah Xing, there’s something I wish to ask for your help with."

Li Xing responded, "Tell me, as long as it’s within my capability, I’ll definitely help."

Ye Qingting showed a grateful expression, saying, "It’s a long story, not convenient to explain over the phone. If possible, I hope you can come to the Ye Family tomorrow."

"Alright."

The next day was conveniently a weekend, Li Xing brought along Cui Tianxiao and Qi Ming, entered the Teleportation Port, setting foot on Cuihuan City’s land. The city lay on hilly terrain, expansive in area, known for its agriculture.

Upon exiting the port, a refined-looking young man resembling Ye Qingting by five or six points, along with a somewhat aged scholarly gentleman, came forward to greet them.

"Brother Xiao!"

"Qingyun? Housekeeper Hu? Why are you here?" Cui Tianxiao expected Ye Qingting to come himself, not anticipating the arrival of these two.

Ye Qingyun said, "Brother Qingting mentioned you’d be coming today, instructing me to pick you up."

Cui Tianxiao nodded, introducing Li Xing and Qi Ming, "This is Ye Qingyun, Qingtian’s cousin. And this is Housekeeper Hu, the head steward of the Ye Family."

Li Xing and Qi Ming greeted Ye Qingyun and Housekeeper Hu, the latter showing an unusual excitement in seeing her, not like meeting an honored guest, but more like grasping at a lifeline, which made Li Xing wonder, what happened with Ye Qingting and the Ye Family?

Cui Tianxiao asked, "Where’s Qingtian? Why didn’t he come?"

Ye Qingyun’s expression was somber, "Brother Qingtian couldn’t leave, the details will be clear once you reach the Ye Family."

The group refrained from asking more questions, boarding the flying device, roaring off towards the Ye Family.