Cultivating Chai

52:

Xiao Feng was surprised to find that he had arrived second to the Alchemy Vaults, as he stepped inside only to find a familiar green-robed figure conversing with Alchemist Jun. .

“— he wanted me to use my father’s alchemist flame to refine his chai. Can you believe it?” Lianhua asked, her tone sounding incredulous even as she narrated the sequence of events.

To Xiao Feng’s surprise, the normally reserved Alchemist Juni softly giggled at Lianhua’s narration before demurely replying, “That does sound like him.”

Xiao Feng would’ve traded all the refined tea leaves in his possession to hear more of that conversation, but unfortunately their conversation came to an end as both women turned their gazes to face him.

“Uh, hi?” He offered, as his own cheeks betrayed his cause.

“Oh, you’re here,” Lianhua acknowledged, her expression seeming amused, while Alchemist Jun suddenly found the ceiling of the reception area very interesting.

“Here to create my magnum opus,” Xiao Feng replied, any embarrassment forgotten in favor of the excitement that he was essentially vibrating with.

“Before that, me and Alchemist Jun have been talking…,” Lianhua trailed off, as her lips curled up into a mischievous smile.

“And?” Xiao Feng asked, arching an eyebrow at Lianhua’s expression.

“We’d like to ask you to train with us,” She explained.

Xiao Feng blinked.

“Why?” He asked, having been caught completely off-guard.

“Are you not an exceptionally skilled martial cultivator?” Lianhua countered.

“Uh, well– yes, but…,” Xiao Feng trailed off, realizing that he had no valid reason to turn her down. She didn’t know that he was in the process of reclaiming his skill in the martial way, after all and there was no possible way for him to explain that to her.

“I would like that,” Alchemist Jun spoke up, her nervous gaze meeting Xiao Feng’s. Her ocean-blue hair was drawn into an elegant ponytail by a jade ringlet, her ordinary brown eyes shimming with an earnestness that he could not bring himself to deny.

“I guess it’s fine. Though I won’t be teaching you any martial techniques, that would be both disrespectful to your current instructor and possibly damage your foundation if you haphazardly jump into it,” Xiao Feng replied, offering the most comprehensive reasoning he could on the fly.

“That is acceptable,” Lianhua replied, visibly pleased by the response.

“But, there’s no way that I’m going anywhere before brewing a pot of masala chai first,” Xiao Feng reminded, as his gaze turned to Lianhua.

“Alchemist Jun was just telling me about how she’s been helping you assess the taste of your chai blends,” Lianhua explained, her eyes narrowing as she met Xiao Feng’s gaze. “I suppose the opinion of two will hold more value than that of one?” She asked, before offering him a polite smile.

“Of course,” Xiao Feng beamed at her. “Once I’ve refined the formula enough, I plan to distribute free samples to all that are willing. Feedback is worth its weight in gold.”

Lianhua blinked, not having expected such a… unique response.

“Very well,” She replied. “Alchemist Jun, could we get an Alchemy Vault?” She asked.

Alchemist Jun nodded.

“You know,” Lianhua began as she watched as Xiao Feng brought spring water to a boil. “I had only brought up training before Alchemist Jun as a jest. I did not expect her to agree, given how introverted she is, but I suppose she is rather fond of you,” She probed.

Xiao Feng chucked, before he shook his head lightly, “She is fond of masala chai. The first time I offered her a cup, she immediately asked for a second.”

“Mm,” Lianhua hummed in thought before continuing, “Well the more I thought about it, the better of an idea it seemed. Your honed senses will take you far in the Dao of Alchemy and perhaps, if you were the one teaching me, I could glean some insight.”

“It’s the least I could do,” Xiao Feng replied as he considered the ingredients arrayed before him.

“Are you really a martial cultivator?” Lianhua asked, in a tone that was thankfully more jesting than accusatory.

“Last I checked,” Xiao Feng replied, piqued at what had brought upon such a comment.

“My father told me that martial cultivators like to guard their techniques and combat styles far more fiercely than even an alchemist does his flame’s recipe. Is that not true?” She asked.

“To know the ins and outs of a martial cultivator’s techniques is to know how to defeat them. Such weakness is only granted to those they trust with their lives. However, that is no excuse to be unhelpful. I do not need to teach you the intricacies of my techniques to help you hone your senses,” Xiao Feng explained.

“I understand,” Lianhua replied, before she gave Xiao Feng a thoughtful look.

“Now, for the fun part,” Xiao Feng declared, as he reached for the jar that contained firedust diamonds.

One and a half firedust diamonds tumbled into the boiling water.

Lianhua watched with piqued interest as he continued adding spices to the mix, all besides the sweet Emberfruit Gems and the citrusy Pureflow Gel.

“Are you not going to add the sweetners?” Lianhua asked, as she stared at the melange of ingredients with mock trepidation.

“Nope, decided to tweak the recipe just a bit,” Xiao Feng replied, his lips curling up into a conspiratorial smile. “You’ll see,” He said, as he pulled out the vial full of the bitter, astringent Mystic Palms that had been refined by Lianhua’s alchemist flame and then crushed into small flecks.

Lianhua raised an eyebrow as the vial was unstoppered, filling the small Alchemist Vault with an overpowering aroma.

Xiao Feng’s eyes stung as he emptied about a fifth of the vial's contents into the already spicy mixture, his expression carrying the zeal of an artisan in his zen.

The faded silver of spices warred against the dark bronze hue of chai, their battle reaching no conclusive result as Xiao Feng kept using a ladle to stir the mixture. He poured a Ge of bi-horn milk, about a third of the milk contained in his glass bottle— a quantity that was proportionally far less than what he had used in the original recipe.

Then, before a victor could be announced, Xiao Feng dropped in three Emberfruit Gems and a large dollop of pureflow gel in quick succession.

At that moment, he knew.

Lianhua and Alchemist Jun were in for a treat.