22 Chapter 22: Some People are Stars Behind the Scenes_1

In the current Great Cultivation Era, the quality of elixirs is divided into five levels, each with three sub-levels: high, middle, and low.

The elixirs from levels one to five can be easily differentiated by their colors, and are arranged from cheapest to most expensive as follows: green, blue, white, gold, purple.

At present, there are fewer than a thousand fourth-order elixirs on Earth, while fifth-order elixirs are so rare that there are no more than a hundred, and among those, upper-level fifth-order elixirs are exceedingly rare with only six in existence!

Fourth and fifth-order elixirs are nearly unthinkable, as those items are mostly found on Battlefield One, where the cost of materials is exorbitantly high and the chance of creation is incredibly low. Ordinary cultivators haven't even seen one before.

Therefore, outside of Battlefield One, a three-level pill is considered a top-level elixir in everyone's eyes, and those who can produce a three-level pill are either a local grandmaster or the chairman of some Elixir Guild.

Ah Ran looked at the silly smiling Jian Qi'er next to him and felt in his heart that she must think he had failed, which is why she was laughing like that. Otherwise, how could anyone not drop their jaw upon seeing such an elixir?

But hey, I'm a low-profile kind of guy. If others see it that way, why wouldn't Ah Ran just go along with it and play the part?

Ah Ran took out three white pills from the furnace, pretended to frown with a troubled expression, and said sorrowfully, "Judging by the color of the elixir, it must have failed. I regret throwing all the ingredients in just now."

"..."

The silly smile on Jian Qi'er's face nearly crumbled at his remark. The pair of small hands hidden behind her skirt was shaking vigorously, and she really wanted to give this scoundrel a painful beating right then and there.

What do you mean by 'judging by the color, it must have failed'?

What kind of international joke is this!

If a three-level white elixir is considered a failure, then what are those who can't even make Rejuvenation Pills supposed to do with their lives!

Indeed, words can kill; a single sentence could suffocate someone!

"Yes, yes," Jian Qi'er maintained the silly smile on her face while tightly clenching her fists behind her back, twisting her waist to hold onto her own flesh, "Ah Ran, you did so well in the exam yesterday, how could something have suddenly gone wrong today?"

"Ah, I don't know. I'm really the third from the bottom after all. Thinking about practicing alchemy before I've learned the theory well enough, I was too ambitious."

Sighing, Ah Ran put the three elixirs into a small iron box he carried with him.

"Wait!"

Jian Qi'er suddenly shouted.

"What's wrong?" Ah Ran glanced at her and saw she was still looking dazed, with no change in expression.

"Ah, well, I was thinking, since the elixirs have failed, maybe Ah Ran could give them to me as a souvenir?" Jian Qi'er said with a silly smile.

Ah Ran was surprised, "Why would you want a failed product?"

"But this is the first time we've managed to make a spherical elixir. I want to keep it as a keepsake," Jian Qi'er replied.

"..."

After hearing this, Ah Ran felt a question mark appear above his head. What do you mean 'we'? Miss, you only helped me pick up a stone; what help did you provide? You've got some nerve!

Jian Qi'er immediately lowered her head, pretending to be flustered, "If that's not okay, then never mind..."

Seeing her clueless look, Ah Ran felt helpless and gave her one of the white pills.

"Thank you!" Jian Qi'er showed a happy face.

Ah Ran didn't forget to say, "But you can't let anyone else see this elixir."

Joking aside, how could he allow others to see it? That would expose him. Phrases like 'a tall tree catches much wind' and 'a fattened pig is bound for the slaughter' would apply to him eventually.

"Why not?" Jian Qi'er asked innocently.

Ah Ran immediately entered his 'Oscar-winning actor' mode, speaking earnestly, "Think about it. I put in so much effort, used such good materials, only to produce this failure. If others saw it, where would I put my face?"

"Yes, yes…"

Jian Qi'er pinched her flesh hard. She really wanted to pin this guy to the ground, rub him hard, and then yank his ears, shouting, "Are you going to keep pretending? Are you!?"

While others might wish to boast and act cool every day, this guy was the complete opposite; a rare oddball indeed!

After tidying up the table, Ah Ran and Jian Qi'er left the lab. Once outside, Jian Qi'er at the door of the lab continued to play the role of the clueless younger sister while talking to him.

No way around it, her acting skills were too good, Ah Ran couldn't see through it at all.

To the public, Jian Qi'er was a girl who wore old-fashioned glasses and had her hair down, covering most of her forehead, with one-third of her face hidden by her hair, and she dressed very ordinarily, never wearing makeup, lacking that mature look that university girls usually have.

Looking at Jian Qi'er, who earnestly pocketed the elixir and hopped away happily, Ah Ran felt a pang. Just like that, he had given away a three-level pill.

"Better go home, try it myself first and see the effects, then give it to Sister Hui Qing. If it's not good, I'll have to refine it again."

...

In the big garden on campus, Jian Qi'er, holding the elixir she had just received in one hand and her phone in the other, took a picture of the white elixir and sent it to a contact. She then immediately started making a phone call.

Her face no longer bore the usual dull, foolish, and easily shy expression, as a hint of sharpness emerged from behind her glasses.

"Dudu dudu..."

"Master, the image I just sent you is of the pill that Fang Ren concocted right in front of me," said Jian Qi'er, glancing around and speaking softly.

"He concocted it? Are you sure?" A middle-aged woman's voice filled with disbelief came through the phone.

"Very sure. From the beginning to the end of the concoction, I was watching. If it weren't for my pretending to be dumb and foolish usually, I doubt he would have allowed me to watch," Jian Qi'er said.

"This is a genuine Three-level pill! The youngest person capable of concocting such a pill is already forty-two years old! How could a college student possibly..."

"Master, can you tell what kind of pill it is?"

"Not yet, the size looks somewhat like a Rejuvenation Pill, but the pattern on it is complex and not smooth. I've never seen such a pill before," said the woman on the phone.

"Then I'll bring the pill to see you tonight. I still have some work this afternoon," Jian Qi'er said.

"This afternoon? You've taken on a new role?"

"Accepted it the day before yesterday, but only finalized it today."

"Then go ahead, but as your teacher, I must remind you to avoid the social events in the entertainment circle as much as possible, there are too many corrupt people."

"Yes, Master."

After hanging up the phone, Jian Qi'er left the school gate and then made another call. Within minutes, a black sedan stopped in front of her.

Jian Qi'er looked around once more, making sure there were no familiar faces, before getting straight into the car.

"Qi'er, why are you dressed like this again? You're a popular star now, what if someone snapped a photo of you looking like this and used it?"

As soon as Jian Qi'er got in the car, a plump woman with heavy makeup sitting in the driver's seat frowned and spoke.

"Sister Feng, I should be unrecognizable like this, right?" Jian Qi'er, no longer the dazed presence she had in school, brushed her hair from her forehead and laughed as she spoke.

"Better safe than sorry, these paparazzi love to target rising stars like you," Feng Mei said with a furrowed brow, "Quickly tidy up your appearance in the car, I'm taking you to the location. Once there, you should at least be immediately recognizable."

"Got it."

Jian Qi'er lazily agreed, reached for a hairband, and pulled her hair, which covered a third of her face, back into a ponytail.

In an instant, a very pretty oval face appeared in the car; compared to her dumb little sister image with hair covering her face, she now looked like a ravishing beauty.

With a simple motion, she also took off the outdated, unattractive glasses from her face, making her eyes appear clearer, her pupil size more striking, and her long eyelashes, previously obscured by the old frames, became visible.

Just a ponytail and removing her glasses had made her look completely different from before.

Some people seem like the third from the bottom in class but are actually capable of casually concocting Three-level pills, a genius masquerading as a dunce.

While others may appear to be the dumb and foolish girl in class, but behind the scenes, they are the current internet sensations.

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"Ah Ran, why are you home so early today?"

In Fang Ren's room, Mu Huanqing was in front of the computer watching a soap opera when Fang Ren suddenly ran in with a look of joy.

"Sister Hui Qing, look!"

Fang Ren immediately took out a newly concocted pill from a small box he carried with him and ran happily to her.

Mu Huanqing took off her headphones and saw his joyful expression as he returned; she couldn't help but smile involuntarily.

"An Upper Level Three-tier pill?" Mu Huanqing said with slight surprise while looking at the pill in Fang Ren's hand, yet her expression wasn't too stirred.

After all, she had seen far too much while on Battlefield One.

"Guess how I got it," Fang Ren said with a smile.

"I don't know," Mu Huanqing shook her head, smiling at the pill, "But I have never seen this type of pill before, what is it called?"

"It doesn't have a name yet?" Fang Ren said.

He decided it was okay not to tell her about the Space Ring for now, because that could genuinely shock the world.

But the matter of the pill was harmless to share; after all, she would eventually be his wife, and she surely wouldn't make him do anything he didn't want to, right?

"No name?" Mu Huanqing's expression froze a bit, and her beautiful eyes looked at Fang Ren as if asking for an answer.

"What if I told you I concocted it myself, would Sister Hui Qing believe me?"