Against Heaven's Will

Emi's eyes widened at Lisa's confident declaration. She looked around at the rest of the group, each one nodding with unwavering faith in Lisa's abilities. It was clear that they were accustomed to her exceptional skills, and yet Emi could still hardly believe what she was hearing.

"I must admit, this goes beyond anything I've ever encountered," Emi finally conceded, a spark of excitement in her eyes. "If you can truly create Tier 5 pills in such a short time frame, you would change everything we know about Alchemy. Please, allow me to witness this process."

"No problem. Just tell me how many Tier 5 pills equal ten million Tier 2 pills and we can get to work," Lisa replied, preparing to leave the camp.

"Well… Founder Miara's Seven Soul Steps Soul Art is worth a single Tier 6 pill, which converts to a hundred Tier 5 pills, ten thousand Tier 4 pills, one million Tier 3 pills, and ten million Tier 2 pills," Emi explained, her expression sinking as she realized how powerful Lisa was. "I guess if you can really make Tier 5 pills, it shouldn't take you that long."

"There is no 'if' in my vocabulary," Lisa replied with a chuckle, and flew away from the camp with everyone following. They flew towards the Golden Earth Flame burning in the distance, and she landed directly inside the flame without worrying about being burned.

She looked completely at ease, as though the flame was a natural extension of her being. The flames danced around her while she communicated with the Earth Flame's Soul before finally getting into action. She withdrew thousands of herbs, casually sorting and melting them all at the same time. It took only a minute for the pills to form and drop into little glass vials that filled to the brim.

With a flick of her wrist, Lisa threw three vials towards Xuefeng and kept the rest while continuing with another batch. Emi's mouth was wide open the whole time, feeling like she was dreaming. "Is this really happening?"

"You can check for yourself," Xuefeng suggested as he pulled out three pills to give Emi solid proof. "Test them with the tablet. From what I can tell, they're a Healing Pill, a Body Strengthening Pill, and a Soul Tempering Pill. Let's see what tier they are."

Emi's eyes narrowed, and she took the pills, placing them on the Appraisal Tablet. Her eyebrows shot up as the results appeared. "All Tier 5? Aren't there at least a hundred in each vial?!" she exclaimed.

Xuefeng merely nodded, his face filled with pride. "Didn't she tell you she can make Tier 5 pills without any problem? She is more than just an ordinary Alchemist."

As he spoke, Lisa was done with another batch of a few hundred pills, causing Emi to shiver in excitement. "This… When Founder Miara learns about Lisa's abilities, she will do anything in her power to win her over. She might even give you her own Realms just to make sure this deal doesn't fall through. You might become the youngest Constellation in existence."

She looked down at the pills in her hands and questioned, "Do you know how effective those pills are? Especially the Soul Tempering Pills. They would be extremely useful for our race."

"Well, the one I used was much weaker, and I managed to advance four levels with a single pill," Xuefeng revealed. "Considering these ones are even more potent, I can only imagine how effective they must be."

Emi's eyes sparkled as she processed Xuefeng's words. "Four levels?! Are you trying to tell me one can complete their first refining with just a couple of those pills?" Emi called out eagerly, grasping Xuefeng's shoulders. "Do you know how much money you could sell them for? Every Constellation in existence would fight for them!"

"I already figured that much after seeing your reaction," Xuefeng replied, his eyes squinting at her words. "Can you slow down? You mentioned first refining. What does it mean?"

Emi's mind was still a whirlwind of thoughts, and she didn't seem to register Xuefeng's question. She continued to mutter under her breath with excitement, "Since I was the one who discovered you, I will definitely receive a reward. I'm sure I can ask for anything I want, even another Legendary Artifact from the Abyssal Vault is not out of the question."

"Emi," Xuefeng called, his voice firm, but she didn't respond.

"Emi!" he barked, his tone now commanding.

She finally reacted to his words, her body shivering as her eyes snapped back to him. Suddenly, she seemed to remember that he was not only her discovery but also her master.

Xuefeng reached out and gently lifted her chin, forcing her to look into his eyes. His touch was not harsh, but his gaze was unyielding. "Don't you know you should listen when your master speaks?" he asked, his voice soft but authoritative.

She nodded, her eyes wide, all thoughts of rewards and status momentarily pushed aside to focus on his words.

"Good. Now, tell me what you meant by 'first refining.' We have some time while Lisa is busy so explain it to me," Xuefeng ordered curiously.

Everyone gathered closer to listen as Emi explained, her voice clear and knowledgeable, "The first refining refers to the first time a cultivator reaches the peak of Ancient Celestial Rank and completes their cultivation. Normally that would be the end for many, but if you are talented, you can be chosen by the Constellation and receive a Celestial Blessing which allows you to break that limit. Once you open the Gate, you can create a true avatar of yourself which can go through the whole process again."

"What do you mean by a true avatar?" Xuefeng asked, his curiosity growing.

"It's exactly what it sounds like. A true avatar is an exact copy of you, except it has a completely new soul and a mind of its own. Think of it as creating a blank clone of yourself that can live its own life and collect experiences for you," Emi explained. "Once the True Avatar reaches the peak of Ancient Celestial Rank, you can connect with it to take all its power for yourself. The process of absorption is what we call second refining. Although you won't become twice as powerful, it will give you a noticeable buff to your overall strength."

"So, you are creating a living being just to kill it once it goes through all the struggles of cultivation? Isn't that cruel?" Yiren asked, her voice filled with sadness. "I don't think I could ever kill the second version of myself."

"Well, technically you are not killing it. You are just absorbing the clone you left to cultivate for you," Emi clarified. "The true avatar keeps all of your memories, so it knows their purpose in life. Their whole life purpose is to provide strength to the main body."

"Knowing myself, I would get too attached and even become best friends with them," Yiren replied, her eyes sparkling with sincerity. "Do you know anyone who failed to absorb their true avatar?"

"Well, the only way you can fail to absorb your true avatar is if they absorb you. Even though you made them, they have a mind of their own and can refuse to be consumed. I know a few cases where the true avatars rebelled against the main body and took over their creator's life. Since the true avatar is an exact copy, sometimes you won't even know who won," Emi replied seriously. "I suggest you refrain from befriending your true avatar, as they could easily betray you later. After all, even if they were created to assist you, they are still their own person."

"I guess that makes sense," Yiren admitted, albeit with a hint of disappointment.

"It's not like you would have to worry about that any time soon," Emi chuckled, lightening the mood. "Xuefeng needs to become a Constellation before you can open a Gate. You need a significant amount of life force to create a true avatar, and only Constellations have access to it."

"Does that mean Constellations can create endless versions of themselves?" Xuefeng asked curiously, his interest piqued.

"That's probably the biggest perk of being a Constellation. Most can only create a single true avatar with each opened Gate, but Constellations don't possess such limitations. They can create an endless number of true avatars and continue to grow in strength as long as they have enough life force," Emi explained, a touch of envy in her voice. "This is also why the Celestial Ranking exists. The more Realms you control, the more life force you can produce."

"I can imagine it's not only about strength but also about knowledge. If I created numerous versions of myself, I could instruct each of them to master a different path of cultivation and then absorb all their experience. I could quickly become a master of all trades," Xuefeng mused, excitement building in his voice. "For now, I guess I can only focus on becoming a Constellation so I don't hold you back."

"That's right. I will need you to help me open another Gate so I can undergo my third refining. I've been stuck on the second refinement for a long time since no other Constellation wants to associate themselves with Founder Miara," Emi mentioned, smiling sweetly at Xuefeng. "You will grant me your Celestial Blessing, right?"

Xuefeng pursed his lips and shrugged, a playful glint in his eye. "We'll see how well you behave. For now, tell me everything I need to know about Constellations. And don't forget about that Abyssal Vault too."