The next day, Wu Long visited Yu Huan whose alchemy pavilion was still being prepared. Her alchemy room and at the same time office was already finished by this time, so she was in the middle of practicing alchemy skills necessary to produce the pill from the Liquid Fire Flower.
"Please come in, Mister Wu"
When she saw him entering after she answered the knock on the door with a "Yes", she stood up with a modest smile, giving off a calm and collected impression. There was already no sign of her flustered appearance from the last time they met as it seemed she was able to regain her cool.
'Good, she has strong willpower and mindfulness'
Wu Long smiled at this sight. It was a very important quality for alchemists who had to keep their cool under any circumstances, otherwise their flame control could be disrupted at the most important moments of pill refinement, when the fatigue and stress accumulated.
'Granted, it has already been a few days but in a way her mind was greatly disrupted from what I could tell'
"I have fully studied the process to produce the pill you asked but I still have some reservations about my skills.
Regarding the Pavilion, I have received a schedule of delivery for the ingredients and an approximate dates for when the different parts of the building would be ready, and a few of the warehouses are already in use"
"Hahah, I am not asking about the progress, but how are you adapting to life here"
Yu Huan's eyes very slightly widened in surprise, and then her gaze moved to the side and down as her cheeks almost imperceptibly blushed. She unconsciously tucked a lock of hair that broke out of her ponytail behind her ear as she cleared her throat and looked back at him with a normal expression.
"Hmm, I've mostly got used to the new office and people from the Soaring Feather Trading Company have been very helpful so I got everything I need.
The house is also very spacious and comfortable, much more that the place we lived in when we were in the Imperial Capital. I am also not separated from Sister Rui, at least for the most part.
And more than anything, it is peaceful and quite here, which helps concentrate.
I wanted to thank you once again for giving me this precious opportunity"
As she spoke, her voice became more even and a little bit of warmth was mixed into it. Wu Long noted that she did not mention anything about getting used to the people of the sect, but then again she was not a very social person so it made sense.
"I wasn't seeking gratitude, I was just wondering if you have been well. But it seems there is no cause for worry. Now that that's established we can go over the things we need to discuss, I imagine there are a few"
He smiled at her as she nodded, gesturing to a seat at the sofa not far. As they sat down, they started first with the discussion of the pill, and then went on to discuss what pills would she develop for the Soaring Feather Trading Company for the first year of this new partnership.
After all, Sui Luxiao invested quite heavily in the Alchemy Pavilion and Wu Long couldn't make her take a loss on it.
He also brought a new scroll with alchemy techniques to her which she hurriedly and almost reverently received with gratitude as if he was bestowing her all of the riches in the world.
In the process of them talking, she gradually relaxed as their discussion was mainly in her comfortable domain of alchemy, even if she was still attentive and respectful the barely perceptible stiffness and nervousness that was there in the beginning of the conversation had eased and eventually completely dissipated.
"Haha, you still insist on calling me so formally..."
"But don't you call me 'Fairy Yu Huan' as well?"
As she replied Wu Long slightly paused and she also froze, realizing that her words could be interpreted in various ways.
"I mean... I don't want to seem to disrespectful to my benefactor"
She then explained and he inwardly chuckled, not pressing her about her earlier slip up. He certainly liked teasing beauties, but he also knew when such teasing would become a negative experience for the lady.
"I understand, please call me however you feel comfortable, and you can always specify how you would like to be called"
He simply brushed off the topic but still left a bit of leeway in his words for her to feel free to change their distance of her own will.
She silently nodded, her neutral expression concealing her thoughts. Only a slight glimmer in her eyes betrayed that she was swayed by the conversation in any way.
"I have also been studying the procedure for Her Highness' treatment, and I was wondering, if we could develop some of the connections prior to it would it not increase the success rate?"
"It certainly would, but that would require a certain period of time for a meaningful effect to appear"
After thinking for some time, Wu Long nodded, as having Song Lingfei first try to develop her own Neidan inside her Dantian with a specialized cultivation technique, and then use the external purified core to simply replace the seed that she would develop would be far less dangerous and less painful procedure.
Though he could only theorize this possibility for now, and would require more research to actually devise such a procedure in detail.
However, even if it was not as long as the slow method he proposed earlier, it would still require at least a few months to half a year of time.
"If this is a possibility I believe it is worth exploring, and His Highness would also be more comfortable with the procedure"
Yu Huan sighed with some relief as her idea did not turn out to be some foolishness that made him disappointed with her.
"You are right, thank you. It is indeed a good proposal"
"I am glad to be of use"
Wu Long smiled at her and a smile touched her lips, allowing him to see a rare scene of beauty.
"You are helping me a lot even now, so being useful is not something you should be worried about"
He softly shook his head and stood up to leave, as she got up mirroring his movements.
"Then, the next time I will be seeing you will be after my trip"
"You are going on another trip?"
"Mm, I need to be away for some time"
"Will the trip take long?"
"I don't think it would, is there something you need from me in the near future? You can always contact me via communication talismans, I will make sure you have access to them"
"Ah, no, I was just asking to make sure I have time to prepare everything before you are back"
"You don't need to hurry, take your time as it is important not to stumble because of being pressed on time"
Yu Huan replied showing subtle signs of being flustered so Wu Long only smiled as he nodded to her and left her office.
As she closed the door behind him, she leaned her back onto it, sighing as a very subtle blush reappeared on her cheeks.
"Haah~, what is it with me these days?"