Preparations for the Grand Spiral Symposium had begun.
While Rayen reviewed battle records of past research duels, Lin Xue coordinated with Sect logistics. Lab 7B had been transformed into a mobile development center. One half devoted to reactor stabilization, the other to counter-infiltration arrays—courtesy of Ji Rong, who had taken to booby-trapping entry scrolls with silent alarms.
"I don't trust couriers anymore," he muttered.
Han Bo, meanwhile, tested a communication node that pinged back any spirit transmission within ten miles. "If anyone tries to steal our blueprints this time, I'll auto-spam them with my mother's soup recipes."
Rayen raised an eyebrow. "Are they weaponized?"
Han nodded. "Emotionally."
Meanwhile, Lin Xue ran simulated debates with Tessa and Yao Min. Both girls took on roles as fake challengers.
"I represent the School of Traditional Flow," Tessa said dramatically. "And I declare your Quantum Path heretical!"
"You use Qi like an accountant!" Yao added.
"Incorrect," Lin replied calmly. "We use Qi like an architect."
:: Debate win probability: 91.2%. Counterarguments insufficiently structured. Suggest formal training in rhetorical alchemy. ::
Rayen grinned. "Q.E.D., we're not arguing formulas with cultivators who value calligraphy over coherence. We need something better."
He activated a rotating blueprint.
A triple-layered pill design appeared, each ring rotating independently. "We're going to demonstrate a Dynamic Cultivation Pill—one that adapts to the user's intent mid-ingestion."
Han Bo dropped his wrench. "That's insane."
Rayen nodded. "Precisely. We'll make them redefine sanity."
The next three days blurred into one.
Rayen micro-engineered the Philosopher's Core interface to synchronize with the prototype pill's Etherweave seed. Lin cultivated alongside the harmonic reactor to test integration effects on conscious intention.
The students worked around the clock.
Tessa restructured the reagent buffer to account for emotional bias. Ji Rong engraved an adaptive containment glyph. Yao Min composed a scent infusion that reinforced calm insight.
Finally, the pill was ready.
Rayen held it up in the stasis field. It pulsed like a miniature star.
"This," he said, "isn't just a product. It's a question.
What happens when a cultivator's intent becomes the formula?"
The night before departure, Elder Fan visited them.
She said nothing at first, simply walking the length of the lab, observing students asleep at their stations and a faint melody humming from the cooling chamber.
Then she turned to Rayen and Lin.
"I've seen arrogant geniuses, reckless inventors, and well-meaning fools. But what you're building isn't just radical."
Rayen straightened. "It's dangerous?"
Fan nodded. "And brilliant. There will be spies at the Symposium. Assassins, even. You'll have to prove not just your ideas—but your right to have them."
Rayen offered her a prototype communication crystal. "We'll broadcast our findings live. If they attack, everyone will see it."
Fan took it. "Good. Because if you die, I'll be forced to avenge you. And I have terrible patience for inter-sect diplomacy."
As the skycarriage lifted them toward the central continent, Rayen looked down at the Azure Serpent Sect, now a glowing sprawl of labs and pavilions far below.
"Ready?" Lin asked.
He nodded. "The world's about to see the Quantum Alchemist. Let's give them something they can't unlearn."