Pef considered his life for a moment. He wasn't a good teacher. Probably the same as the Iron Teachers of the Academy. A higher cultivation realm only meant stronger powers, not actual competence, not to mention the skill of teaching. A flash of memories rose up from the depths of his mind, pedagogy and all sorts of courses a proper teacher should graduate from, before being qualified to teach anything or anyone. Even a young child, not to mention the far more willful Tier 7s adults in his class.
Then again, the purpose of teaching mattered even more. What would your students do with their new knowledge? Most likely, go and abuse someone weaker than themselves, while planning to oust the stronger ones and take their positions in their clans and sects. It was how the cultivation world worked, which made exceptions even more exceptional.
"Why the sad face, hubby?" Aria asked him, although he was sure his body or aura betrayed nothing of the sort. Then again, his green-haired wife had been with him from the beginning.
"I'm doubting this Academy teacher thing. Only giving the little monsters more power, thus increasing suffering in the world." Pef realized in a grave voice.
Vela landed near him and kissed his cheek. "I'm also in your class, husband." she observed in a light tone.
Pef chuckled and returned her kiss. "You're in the Legion now, Vela..." Pef answered with a thoughtful voice. Of course, the Legion Method! Among the exceptions, the Legion was special as they were performing in a group effort, unlike others who just hid themselves as monks and wanderers.
Surely, the Dean purpose in creating the Celestial Academy was similar, to civilize the little monsters before they grew into sociopathic murderers. Sadly, Pef probably missed his window, once he Ascended in the Steel Realm. The Dean would not indulge his offer, not as a potential enemy. Should have thought of integrating the Legion Method while in the Iron Realm, before his rapid climb transformed Pef into an adversary.
Sighing inward, he made a note of it, to the guardian golem of his courtyard, such that the glove would analyze the problem and try to find a resolution.
"Aria, I know someone which might make for a great teacher for you. The Life Goddess." he proposed instead.
Just like the Elf Smith, old and powerful cultivators lacked good students. But Aria lasted 2 years under Indoctrination, and still held the record in the Legion. Pef only lasted one and half years, which was still likely 20 times the required duration. He didn't regret enduring that pain, but wished he had waited to be slightly older before starting his Awakening. Only it hasn't really been his free-willed decision.
"Isn't she...a poisoning bitch?" Aria asked with a confused voice.
"These people don't know any better, Aria. The pressure of the world shapes them, unlike our Legion method. But we aim to change the world, and have to start somewhere. The Life Goddess would be a great asset for us, just like the Elf Smith." Pef explained in a low tone, and Aria nodded while scowling anyway.
Decision made, Pef acted on it directly, and portalled himself and Aria next to the Life Goddess abode, only to find a situation somewhat strange.
The Demonhunter was holding the Life Goddess down, face scraping the ground, while the Dean himself was sitting at a small tea table, acting as a judge in some kind of trial.
"Errr. We're not interrupting some kind of kinky ritual from ancient times, I hope?" Pef asked in a curious voice, making Aria giggle for a second before restoring to a solemn face.
The Dean sighed, making the Demonhunter release the woman, who just sat back at the table as if everything was fine and natural.
Unexpectedly, both the Dean and Life Goddess focused their gaze on Aria, ignoring Pef for a long awkward minute. The old cultivators exchanged an inscrutable glance, then nodded at each other. "Divine Cook, I see you made good use of my tea." the Life Goddess observed with a strange voice, almost surprised.
Pef punched the Demonhunter in the face, with no effect, sadly, then sat at the table without a word, and just gestured for Aria to join them. "My wife Aria has a Life Dao calling. I am willing to allow her to be your apprentice, Lady of Life." he offered with a generous voice.
The Demonhunter raised a finger as if to interject, then gave up and just left.
"This will also work. Little Aria can take care of the Tea Branch, as a school project. We'll resume our talk once she joins our Steel Realm ranks." The Dean declared with a flat voice, then nodded towards the Divine Cook and vanished.
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"You have strange customs in this place, Master." Aria observed with a naughty voice, aiming her words as a tiny barb at the Life Goddess.
The Life Goddess sighed and coughed in pain, while visibly restoring herself to a pristine condition. The Demonhunter had not been kind, and someone without her skill at healing would have taken months to recover.
"Do I sense a Body of Steel on you, Aria?" The Life Eminence asked in a softer voice. Aria was only in Bronze Realm, but her body cultivation outmatched even herself.
Aria glanced at her husband with a kind face and nodded. "He just made me some food, and my body Ascended."
Pef smiled and took out another Cloud Phoenix Burger, then set the plate on the tea table. "I'm not good with poisons, so my meals are just nutritious, and not even painful." he apologized with a tiny shrug.
"The Heavens truly love idiots, Divine Cook. At least the Elder Phoenix didn't die in vain." The Life Goddess noted with a sad voice, just as Pef rose and began to walk away.
"That's true. Guess we'll be seeing each other more often, for a while at least." Pef added as he waved a hand and entered a Portal Array to return to the Academy.
The Dean was already waiting in his courtyard, and sampling the Royal Honey offered by the Queen Bee. "You saw something I'm not proud of, Divine Cook." the old man spoke in a grave voice.
"Proud of doing or proud of being seen doing?" our hero asked with faint humor.
"Both. The exercise of power is often soft and subtle, but some people just need a more vigorous hand. For example, the Pill Master is an expert at using soft power. You'll learn a lot from him, if he accepts you as a student." The Dean explained in a gentle voice, then nodded at the Queen Bee and stepped out, dragging Pef alongside at impossible speeds to reach the Alchemy Hall in mere minutes.
There were hundreds of Iron Realm Patriarchs waiting on the steps of the Alchemy Hall, and millions of lower ranks in the plaza below, both Sect Elders or promising disciples in need of a certain pill.
The Celestial Dean flared his cultivation for a second, making a path through the crowd by his simple presence. Pef followed along, receiving stares of awe or envy as he cut in line and entered before others who possibly waited for years at the chance to meet the Pill Master.
The aroma of herbs and medical tinctures filled the entrance into the Alchemy Hall, while thousands of Alchemy disciples and servants walked with purpose to numerous shelves along the walls, retrieving notebooks or herbs, sometimes depositing boxes and crystals.
"These are all donations from the people outside. The Pill Master doesn't have to buy anything." the Dean said in a low tone, as they walked towards a distant hallway.
Pef remembered finding Alchemist Rejin selling things in a market stall in another life, before he was convinced to join the Legion and give up the freelancer bussines.
Quite the difference indeed.
"I could do the same, I guess." Pef noted as they arrived at a dragon-bas-relief jade door, encrusted with strange Formations and precious gems as array locks. He pressed a curious palm on the door to observe the Formations, finding thousands of unknown arrays and gaining sparks of insights just from touching the door.
Then, as the Icefire poked a curious flame through his palm, a middle-aged man in long green-robes opened the door in a violent swing. "Who dares?" he yelled angrily.
"Oh? Did you fail another pill, little Yangzi?" the Celestial Dean asked in a mild voice, making the alchemist lose all the anger and step back in fright.
"Dean! You'll get the Demon Pills soon. No need to pressure me like this." the Pill Master blurted out in a lower voice.
Pef also remembered a few Demon Speed Pills he got from the Dean, which helped him defeat the Mercy Seat Emperor. Demon pills and Demonhunter...there was something else in play here.
"I am the Divine Cook. And I came to learn Alchemy from you." he stated in a clear voice.
The Pill Master blinked, then glared at the Dean for some reason. "This is abuse! First you cause me to fail my pill, then you bring your own student to steal my secrets?"
The old man sighed and patted Pef on his shoulder. "Yangzi is a difficult man to deal with. I think he is asking for a gift, in his own subtle way." he advised Pef in a casual tone, then turned and walked away.
"Why do you fail making pills so easily, Pill Master? There wasn't even a huge fight or a Tribulation taking place to disturb your concentration." Pef asked in a surprised voice.
The man just huffed and returned to his Alchemy lab, slamming the jade door closed, but not before Pef also rapidly entered the room.
"Disentangling a Demon's essence from their flesh is much like a battle, Divine Cook. You want to learn Alchemy, start helping!" the Pill Master demanded and pointed at a deformed winged creature nailed to a dissection table, with an aura resembling a weak Chaos Fiend.
Pef touched the creature for a second, and failed to grab its essence, although its cultivation realm was only somewhere between Tier 10 and Tier 11. Then the Icefire came out, and used his own dimensional claw flames to grab onto the soul essence of the Demon, and with great combined effort they managed to rip it off the flesh and into a ball of dark miasma.
"Hrm. You're not useless, at least. Not that the Dean would send me a useless student. So, a Divine Cook, are you? Make me something to eat, while I prepare this Demon pill." the Pill Master allowed in a gruf voice, and threw the Demon essence into a green jade pot, then some long red grass and other flower petals.
Pef just observed the process, as the renowned Alchemist fought a mental battle with his own Alchemy pot, while inside it a furious voice screamed in pain as it was dissolved. It looked to him like cooking raw lobsters alive, or maybe a winged frog. After an hour, a metallic pill jumped out, and the Pill Master caught it before it flew away.
"See? Iron Demon Skin, grants a Body of Iron to anyone, for at least one day. A great help during a hard battle, right?" the Pill Master claimed proudly, while Pef glanced up for the Tribulation, which never came.
Pef took out his Phoenix Burger and held it out instead. "Body of Steel to anyone. Permanent too." he stated in a modest tone.
The Pill Master's eyes bulged, then he simply fell on his face.
Icefire glanced down at the fainted Alchemist, then back at his Master. "I think we're wasting our time here."