Pausing in front of the doors to the Alchemist’s Association's pagoda, Jun Li hesitated to enter, paused by some transient fear of encroaching upon a domain she didn’t belong.

  Taking a deep breath, Jun Li cleared this feeling and pushed the doors open. The moment Jun Li stepped through the doorway, the stresses that plagued her slowly faded as a hazy warmth washed over her.

  Jun Li’s eyes immediately noticed a thin layer of smoke in the interior of the building, gently billowing above the exquisite furnishings of the lobby.

  Taking a breath, Jun Li identified the source immediately; the smoke carried with it the scent of incense, burning discreetly throughout the lobby.

  Despite the visible haze, the incense was not overbearing and emitted a calming scent Jun Li could not identify.

  Pulling herself away from her distractions, Jun Li walked further into the building and noticed she was not alone here.

  At various points in the lobby, about half a dozen individuals were seated, some waiting patiently, others reading from the many books scattered across the tables adjacent to their seating.

  All, however, had something in common. They were all well-dressed and carried themselves with a certain confidence or self-assurance. The rich and noble, in Jun Li’s eyes.

  At the far end of the room, a large, enclosed counter stood as the most prominent feature of the room, flanked by a number of doors at the back wall of the room, each adorned with signs reading ‘Private Consultation.’

  Though Jun Li hadn’t noticed, her entrance had garnered some attention from a receptionist seated behind the counter.

  Jun Li, though painfully aware of her lesser status, didn’t understand just how strange she appeared to those around her.

  When the receptionist behind the counter saw Jun Li, his eyes were drawn to her patchwork hat, immediately identifying her as a destitute stray, the likes of which he would normally ask to leave.

  Seeing her grey robe, however, befuddled the receptionist, who knew it as a symbol of the Glass Cloud Sect.

  With Jun Li’s garb striking a nauseating contrast, the receptionist felt somewhat at a loss. As Jun Li approached the counter, however, he resolved to act in deference to her apparent status as a Sect Disciple.

  Reapplying as businesslike a smile as he could muster, the receptionist greeted Jun Li. “Good morning and welcome to the Zhao Kingdom branch of the Alchemist’s Association. What can I do for you today?”

  This was the very first time Jun Li had received this sort of formal hospitality in her life, and though she realized it wasn’t a very personal gesture, it still helped alleviate the anxiety she felt approaching the counter. “Ah, I’m… I was wondering how someone would go about getting their hands on tools for Alchemy tools. Pill Furnaces and the like.”

  Hearing this line of questioning, the receptionist struggled to rein in his contempt. “The Pill Furnaces used by proper Alchemists are quite costly to produce, you see, the arcane Formations used in their construction require exceeding skill and exceptional resources to properly create, it’s not the sort of thing you can easily come across.”

  Realizing he was slipping into an impassioned lecture, the receptionist paused and cleared his throat. “…Thus, you see, the Alchemist’s Association is only willing to part with them in exchange for a considerable sum of wealth.”

  Looking at Jun Li, the receptionist found a hint of absurdity in his expositing to ‘such a person.’ “…Do you believe you can offer such a sum?”

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  Hearing the question pointed so knowingly towards the answer, Jun Li struggled to meet the receptionist’s gaze, a wave of humiliation pressing down on her.

  Yet even so, Jun Li continued. “Is… there no other way to get a Pill Furnace? A trade, or… uh, in exchange for some sort of work?” Even if it pained Jun Li to make her status so clear, she knew she wouldn’t make any progress by backing down now.

  Hearing Jun Li insist on an alternative, the receptionist’s expression slipped, revealing his scorn for just an instant before he regained his professional composure. “I’m afraid not. Nobody gets Alchemical tools for free.”

  Remembering something, the receptionist struck a wry smile. “…Unless you’re inducted as a proper alchemist of the Association. And to be accepted into the Association as an official member is no simple feat. I personally have been training to pass the aptitude test for the last 15 years.”

  Vaguely gesturing Jun Li away, the receptionist looked away and began sifting through some papers behind the counter, unceremoniously ending the conversation.

  Seeing the receptionist completely disregard her, Jun Li took a deep breath before speaking. “That aptitude test…” Hearing Jun Li, the receptionist raised his head. “Hmm?” Jun Li stepped over, up to the counter. “Am I… allowed to take that aptitude test? I would like to, if that would be possible.”

  The concept was so absurd to the receptionist’s ears that it took him a moment to process it. The moment he realized what Jun Li had said, he took a breath, ready to admonish Jun Li and send her away, yet he had to hold back.

  If it were to come to light that he had refused a Disciple of the Glass Cloud Sect their right to an aptitude test, he would surely lose his position.

  With a projectedly exacerbated sigh, the receptionist stood from his seat. “Very well. I can’t say I’d recommend it, but if you insist… I will request the presence of one of the instructors.”

  Stepping away, the receptionist opened a door behind the counter and turned one last time to Jun Li. “Wait here, if an instructor is willing and able, they will lead you to an appropriate testing room.”

  Watching the receptionist leave, Jun Li felt her anxiety spike. ‘An aptitude test? What am I doing… I’ve never even seen a pill or elixir, let alone made one…’ Jun Li felt she didn’t have any alternatives, but that certainly didn’t mean she was confident in her ability to clear the test.

  Jun Li wracked her brain, scrounging together as much Alchemical knowledge as she could wring out of her inheritance of memory.

  No matter how many mysterious and occult Alchemical Methods she knew, it was useless if she didn’t know how to operate a Pill Furnace at a basic level, especially when she had no frame of reference as to what would be required of her in the aptitude test.

  “Would you be the applicant I was informed of?” Jun Li’s concentration was quickly broken, an older man with a tidy presentation drawing her attention. ‘Augh… it’s not even been a minute…’

  Jun Li wasn’t afforded any time to ready herself and was now forced to try and figure things out on the fly. “Yes, that should be me, for the aptitude test.”

  The elderly man gently nodded in response. “Very well then, follow me.” As the old man turned to walk towards a staircase in the back corner of the room, Jun Li followed, being led up two floors.

  Now on the third floor of the building, Jun Li found herself looking out over a large, circular room, dozens of doors leading in every direction but one, a small hallway leading back to the staircase.

  The sheer difference in the appearance between this floor to the first made Jun Li doubt her eyes for a moment.

  Whereas the first floor had painted, wooden walls and numerous lanterns lighting the area, this floor appeared to be constructed of some sort of pale white stone, with an enormous crystal cluster in the center of the roof, glowing softly, yet strongly enough to illuminate the whole room.

  If the memories Jun Li inherited had been more intact, she perhaps would have been able to correctly identify the surfaces of the room as being comprised of some sort of smoothed quartzite, a mundane stone, but resistant to acids, making it perfect for the interior of an alchemist’s working space.

  Jun Li found her gaze drawn to a number of apertures at the edges of the roof, a dim reflection of sunlight visible inside of them. 'For ventilation, I suppose?'

  The elder who had escorted Jun Li to this floor cleared his throat, drawing Jun Li’s attention to him.

  As Jun Li was inspecting the room, the elder alchemist had walked behind a small podium in the center of the room, presented squarely in front of a row of seats.

  From behind the podium, the elder placed a metallic pot onto the podium, nearly half the size of his torso. “Now then, let's begin.”