Ma Tai turned his head to look, only to see a young girl in green walking over from that direction. She had a sweet appearance — she had to be the so-called Junior Sister.
Wan Yingying said, "Eldest Senior Brother didn't send me. I came to deliver the pill."
Jing An hadn't reacted yet, but Ma Tai suddenly shuddered, his eyes bursting with light as he exclaimed in a low voice, "Deliver a pill? What pill?"
Wan Yingying was startled and quickly dodged to the side, looking at Ma Tai in confusion. "This person is..."
Jing An laughed and said, "Don't be alarmed, Junior Sister. This gentleman is the one who came this morning to commission a pill."
"Oh, so it's you!" Wan Yingying said in realization, covering her mouth with a smile. "Since this gentleman is here, I'll just hand the pill over to you then. You can inspect it while you're at it, see if there are any issues."
As she spoke, she held out a jade box to Ma Tai.
Ma Tai stared at the jade box in shock. "The pill... the pill I commissioned is finished?"
"That's right!" Wan Yingying tilted her head, looking at him, not understanding why he was making such an expression. She pushed the jade box forward again. "Please do inspect it, sir. Later, you'll need to go with Senior Brother Jing An to the steward stationed here for registration and filing."
"Oh, of course, of course!" Ma Tai finally snapped out of it. He rubbed his hands vigorously on his clothes, as if afraid that the grime on his fingers would taint the jade box, then accepted it with the utmost solemnity. Holding his breath, he gently opened it.
A plump, round spirit pill immediately came into view...
Wan Yingying said, "You're quite lucky, sir. Eldest Senior Brother produced a superior-grade pill this time. This is the one."
Ma Tai's hands trembled uncontrollably, and his eyes locked onto the spirit pill in the jade box like leeches, unable to contain his excitement. He cried out in astonishment, "A superior-grade Ten-Revolution Heartless Pill!"
As his voice rang out, in an instant, pairs of eyes from all directions turned their way.
Wan Yingying sidled up to her two Senior Brothers and whispered, "What's wrong with this man? Why is he making such a fuss?"
Jing An smiled and said, "Perhaps he's just too happy."
"Is... is this really refined for me by Pill Master Yang?" Ma Tai still couldn't quite believe it. Just moments ago, he had been ready to risk offending a Heaven-grade Pill Master just to demand his belongings back. Yet in the blink of an eye, a superior-grade Ten-Revolution Heartless Pill was in his hands. Life truly had its wild ups and downs.
A superior-grade Ten-Revolution Heartless Pill! He had never even dreamed of it. When he had come here, he had thought he would be perfectly satisfied with a middle-grade one...
After all, countless people came to the Pill Inquiry Hall every year to commission pills, but those fortunate enough to receive a superior-grade pill amounted to only ten percent. The majority could only get middle-grade pills, and some even received inferior-grade ones.
"That's right, it was just refined — still warm! Touch it if you don't believe me!" Wan Yingying prompted.
Ma Tai didn't know what had gotten into him, but after hearing her words, he actually reached out and touched it, immediately crying out again, "It really is warm..."
Wan Yingying curled her lip. "Why would I lie to you? I watched Eldest Senior Brother refine it with my own eyes, then brought it straight here without a moment's delay."
"Thank you for your trouble, miss!" Ma Tai said gratefully.
Jing An said, "Sir, there are too many eyes and ears here. You should put the pill away first."
Hearing this, Ma Tai finally realized that countless people around them were staring at the spirit pill in his hands with envy. He hastily closed the jade box and cupped his fists toward the three of them. "Please convey my thanks to Pill Master Yang on my behalf. For this great kindness, if the opportunity arises in the future, I shall surely repay it handsomely!"
Wan Yingying was somewhat at a loss, not quite understanding what Ma Tai was feeling at that moment. She quickly waved her hands. "You're too kind, sir. You came to commission a pill and have already paid the fee. We were simply doing our duty."
Jing An said, "Sir, I'll also need you to come with me to the steward's station for the handover and registration."
These were mandatory procedures. Every Pill Master who registered here to refine pills needed to have their success rate and pill quality recorded, as it affected their reputation evaluation and the amount of Contribution Points they received.
Ma Tai was apparently well aware of this. He nodded immediately. "Of course, of course. Please lead the way, young sir!"
Jing An then led Ma Tai to the steward's station. Ma Tai produced the superior-grade Ten-Revolution Heartless Pill for the steward's verification before taking his leave.
The steward then recorded the evaluation of Yang Kai's pill refinement in the registry.
Meanwhile, at the table that had been entirely desolate moments before, a large crowd swarmed over, surrounding Wan Yingying and another Junior Brother with a barrage of questions. Upon learning that Yang Kai could refine a Ten-Revolution Heartless Pill without much of a wait at all — and having personally witnessed Yang Kai produce a superior-grade pill for Ma Tai — many people immediately expressed their desire to seek out Yang Kai and commission pills of their own.