Xi Sanji stoked the flames beneath the furnace. Watching it intently, she waited, red-blue leaf held tightly in her hand. She held her breath, her eyes narrowing at the pill furnace.

Hui squinted at her. There’s nothing in there. You’re just preheating an oven. What are you being so intense for? Elder Sister, it’s good to put on a show, but I’m the only one watching. I’m grossly unworthy of this kind of performance!

Though… is anyone worthy of a one-on-one performance of this caliber? I think we’re all unworthy. Xi Sanji, there’s no need. You’re too powerful a performer for this world, so it’s better for all of us if you simply give it up.

She waited, holding her breath. Abruptly, she thrust the leaf forward. “Now!”

Hui jolted, startled out of his mocking thoughts. He jumped forward, reaching for the pill furnace with the beans.

“Not you!” Xi Sanji shouted, startled. She shoved him back.

A bean squeezed out of Hui’s hand and dropped toward the pill furnace.

Xi Sanji squealed. She lunged for the bean, throwing herself full out, hurtling down toward the furnace.

“Elder Sister, allow me.” He waved his hand, calling it back to his palm. On second thought, he waved his hand again and caught Xi Sanji as well. I shouldn’t allow her to crash into the furnace. If nothing else, it’ll hurt! And it’s not as if I dislike her.

Hanging in midair, Xi Sanji crossed her arms. She put her feet down and stood upright, standing out of Hui’s hold. “I could do that myself.”

I don’t doubt that, Elder Sister, but were you going to? You were about to smash into that furnace, and I didn’t see any sign of you protecting yourself! Hui stood back, putting his hands up. Is Elder Sister clumsy, or is there a hole in your head? …Both?

“Hmph.” Xi Sanji brushed down her robes, then startled. “Ah! The furnace!” She rushed over to it, hunching over to squint intently at it again.

Bright flames licked the bottom of the furnace. Within it, the leaf spun alone, hovering in the center of the furnace. One second, its blue side pointed down, and the flames flickered, then it flipped over to face red-side-down, and the flames leaped. It spun faster and faster, the flames flickering faster and faster. Xi Sanji nodded along with the beat of the surging and dying flames, biting her lip. Her hands curled. Her eyes narrowed.

Hui watched her from a pace or two behind her, ready to jump in if she pitched over again. Elder Sister, take care. I can’t protect you from yourself all the time.

“Go, now! With the flames, enter the beans as they flicker!” She gestured Hui forward.

Hui obliged. As she’d ordered, he fed the beans in one at a time, in sync with the flickering of the flames. “How many?”

“Keep going until I say so!” she snapped, staring intently into the furnace. The flickering leaf shone in her eyes.

I guess we’re really playing this by ear, then. Hui shrugged to himself and kept going, while the beans in his hand diminished steadily.

Xi Sanji nodded along. “Yes, yes, more, more—stop! Stop!”

Hui clenched the beans in his hand tight, yanking it away from the furnace.

Inside the furnace, the red-blue leaf and the beans melted together, swirling into a three-colored liquid. As Hui watched, the three colors spun faster and faster around one another, until they merged into a warm green liquid.

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I’m not sure that’s right, but it at least looks better than the black liquid she made the first time. Hui pressed his lips together, then nodded. Ah, well, worst case, the Tier Master comes back and fixes it. And it’s not like she killed the female cultivator earlier. She’s bad, but not that bad… probably.

Xi Sanji leaned in, holding her breath. “Almost… almost. That’s nearly hot-cold equilibrium. Now we need to add a bit of Three Color Sage, and it should be complete.” She turned back to her medicine cabinet and ruffled through it, searching for the herb she needed.

Hui sat back. Three herbs? It’s a simple recipe, then. Surely Xi Sanji’s improvisation can’t ruin it. At the end of the day, if you’re boiling water for pasta, there’s only so much you can get wrong. He nodded, reassured.

“Hmm… no Three Color Sage? Ah… hmm. Maybe if I use some Two-Color Sage… but for the third color… Blue-Light Blossom? Close enough, surely.” So decided, Xi Sanji turned, two different herbs held in her hands.

Hui’s eyes widened. But you can still put the dry noodles in a half-pot of cold, un-boiled water, rest the dry noodles up against the metal pot, turn on the burner and walk into the next room! Even pasta can burn under the right conditions! I shouldn’t underestimate Elder Sister’s skills, I shouldn’t at all!

He coughed. “Elder Sister, perhaps you should ask your fellow disciples for some Three-Color Sage? It sounds like a common enough herb, I’m sure they’d lend you some if you asked nicely and explained the situation.”

“No. I need to do this myself!” Xi Sanji declared.

And I’m telling you, you don’t have to! Now isn’t the time to be a stubborn lone wolf, Elder Sister! Just ask for help, dammit! Hui laughed. “No, no, Elder Sister. Let me ask. You wait, and I’ll be right back—”

Xi Sanji tossed the Two-Color Sage and Blue-Light Blossom at the furnace. They hurtled toward the heat, turning into brightly colored light beams.

Hui’s eyes widened. He leaped, reaching for the light beams. “Elder Sister!”

“I can do this! All on my own. I don’t need anyone’s help!” Xi Sanji cried.

“Why not?” Hui asked. He closed his hand. His qi curled around the light beams and dragged them to a halt. The Two-Color Sage and the Blue-Light Blossom froze in midair, propelled by Xi Sanji’s qi, held back by Hui’s. Hui bit his lip. Should I exert my seventh-stage cultivation and drag them back? But… this is such a stupid way to reveal myself! I should just let her fail.

“Aha!” Xi Sanji tossed another set of leaves at the furnace, arcing them over Hui’s shoulder. In the blink of an eye, they reached him.

Hui looked at the beams, then sighed. If Elder Sister is that determined to sabotage herself, then who am I to get in her way? He let the two herbs pass him by. They flew into the pill furnace and instantly melted into the warm green liquid. The liquid pulsed, then shone with brilliant green light, so bright it exploded from the depths of the pill furnace. Beams of light shot through the gaps in the furnace, illuminating the room like a laser light show. At the same time, the furnace beat with loud, rhythmic pulses, as the liquid let off fierce waves of pressure.

Badabadabam, ba badabadabam—wait, hold on. Now isn’t the time to hum techno music. That furnace is about to explode! Without hesitating, Hui latched onto the furnace with his qi. He spun around and threw it into the sky. It hurtled off, flying high into the tier’s ceiling, and exploded, splattering green liquid over the ceiling.

The green liquid hissed as it ate into the ceiling. More of it rained back down. Eyes wide, Hui quickly drew a dozen barrier talismans and threw them out over himself and the downed cultivators. The rain hissed as it splattered over his barriers. As he watched, one of his barriers corroded through.

Startled, Hui threw out another talisman, this time angling it so the green liquid rolled off. I take it back! Everything I said about Elder Sister not being that bad, I take it back! Elder Sister could have killed all of us! Imagine if she’d had someone drink that… they’d directly become a skeleton, with no in between steps!

“Hey! What did you do that for?” Xi Sanji asked, scowling.

Hui stared at her. This sect is even more bloodthirsty than I imagined! “Did… did you want me to do nothing as the liquid rained down—”

“I mean throwing the pill furnace away in the first place! I could have recovered it,” Xi Sanji insisted, huffing aloud.

Forgive me for doubting you, Elder Sister, but I don’t think you could have, Hui replied silently. Aloud, he cleared his throat. “Elder Sister, shall we try again? This time, following the recipe.”

“Eh? I don’t need it,” she said flippantly.

“Ah, that’s, that’s right, but small cultivator is only a beginner in the way of pill cultivation, and I want to follow the rules as simply as possible,” Hui said, nodding vigorously. Definitely not because you need it. Definitely not!