In Gianna's young mind, her teacher was a great figure, pure and kind as an angel. Not only was she beautiful, clever, and benevolent, but she was also brimming with strength.
When Gianna had barely managed to escape back then, covered in wounds, she had collapsed right outside this castle. By the time she woke, Isabel had already saved her.
Though profoundly grateful for Isabel's aid, Gianna felt compelled to confess: she was no ordinary runaway slave. Just as she was about to be sold, she had injured the buyer before fleeing.
To slavers, this was an unforgivable capital crime. She had to be dragged back, brutally tortured, and slain to give the buyer satisfaction.
In Gianna's eyes, she could not bring trouble upon Isabel, who was like an angel to her.
Yet Isabel had merely said in a calm, matter-of-fact tone, "Those slavers have already been here. Your matter has been settled. Don't worry—they won't dare cause you trouble again."
Gianna had never imagined she would hear such words. Those terrifying slavers had actually let her go? What kind of price had this kindhearted elder sister paid?
Only later did Gianna learn that Isabel hadn't paid much of a price at all. She had simply purchased her at the lowest possible price, and the slavers hadn't dared utter a single word of complaint.
For Isabel was a renowned alchemist, and the castle's former master was an even more exalted existence—a towering figure far beyond anything Gianna could ever hope to reach in her lifetime.
Gianna just never expected that after studying under Isabel for only a few days, she would meet that legendary great figure.
Was this the legendary Master Ultraman?
In Gianna's eyes, Anbaixiu was the most formidable slave master of all. Others merely sold people; he could sell deities.
Even Duke Washington, who was said to have sold hundreds of thousands of slaves, could not compare to him.
The more she thought about it, the more terrified Gianna became. She could only shrink behind Isabel, shivering uncontrollably, which left Isabel feeling rather embarrassed.
Isabel had wanted to introduce her newly accepted student to Anbaixiu. If Gianna could receive some guidance from this master, it would be the opportunity of a lifetime, yet for some reason, the little girl was frightened out of her wits.
Isabel couldn't understand it either. Her teacher was clearly so approachable, without any airs at all, and ought to be popular with children. When she had first seen her teacher looking like this, she had felt he was someone very easy to talk to.
This child really didn't know how to seize an opportunity.
With a helpless sigh, Isabel could only focus on conversing with Anbaixiu.
Today, Isabel was no longer the naive, ignorant apprentice she once was. After exchanging just a few sentences with Anbaixiu, she had already deduced most of his thoughts. She suggested, "Teacher, if you want to recruit the low- and mid-tier members of the Alchemy Association, holding gatherings like this might actually be ill-suited."
"Why do you say that?" Anbaixiu asked.
Isabel explained, "The Alchemy Association has far too many members scattered across every corner. While I know some of them, trying to spread word through gatherings would be terribly inefficient. Furthermore, most of them are fiercely loyal to the Alchemy Association. Many would guess your intentions, and some would surely alert the association's upper echelons, which would only hinder the spread of information even further."
The Alchemy Association's high-ranking members were few and mostly based in the royal capital, so inviting them wouldn't be difficult. But the low- and mid-tier members were another matter; they were the backbones of the various alchemical factories and could rarely tear themselves away.
"However, they all possess magic mirrors. When you left before, Teacher, the Alchemy Association ramped up investment into magic mirrors until nearly every alchemist had one. The Alchemy Association usually communicates through them as well. If you want to disseminate information, Teacher, using the magic mirrors would be far quicker."
Anbaixiu shook his head. "I know that, but I don't want Gustavo Fring to know I can manipulate the magic mirrors at will."
The magic mirrors currently in use by the Alchemy Association were products they had manufactured themselves. Theoretically, they were a separate system from the ones Anbaixiu produced, unconnected and unable to interface with each other.
Naturally, that was only theoretical.
The core of the magic mirror lay in the divine realm of the God of Alchemy, and Anbaixiu had long since merged with the true form of the Magic Mirror. His state as the Spirit in the Mirror granted him the power to commandeer any magic mirror at any time. Whether it was the Alchemy Association's mirrors, Ryan's independently developed mirrors, or the mirrors forged by devils in Hell, there was no difference to him.
Yet it was best not to expose this secret prematurely; Anbaixiu still intended to keep it tucked away as a trump card.
If he brazenly hijacked the mirrors, Gustavo Fring might cut his losses and discard them entirely.
Isabel hadn't expected Anbaixiu's concern. She pondered for a moment, then asked, "Teacher, the Alchemy Association added quite a few features to their own mirrors, such as recording experiments, automatically sorting data, and so forth. You should be able to modify the mirror's features at will, right? If the modifications are rolled out under my name, it shouldn't arouse their suspicion."
"That's a good suggestion. Let me think... Isabel, how exactly do members rank up in the Alchemy Association?"
Anbaixiu began pondering how to accomplish his objective. He wanted these alchemists to become dissatisfied with their current status, and then destroy the Alchemy Association's current promotion channels and hierarchy. To do that, he first needed to understand how those promotion channels worked.
Isabel was intimately familiar with the system. Under her detailed explanation, Anbaixiu's plan began to take shape.
Because the present Alchemy Association was subservient to the Dwarf Kingdom, its rules had changed from before.
The association's alchemists were divided into four straightforward tiers: Apprentice, Junior, Intermediate, and Senior. Apprentices went without saying—they were essentially unpaid servants, subjected to arbitrary exploitation and menial chores. Yet even becoming an apprentice required connections; without spending money to pull strings, no alchemist would take one in.
Apprentices had no rights to speak of, and how much they learned depended entirely on their master's mood and their own wits.
Yet apprentices had a way out: taking the official alchemist examination. Passing it granted them the rank of Junior Alchemist. The contents of this test were child's play to Anbaixiu, but to most apprentices, it was as difficult as ascending the heavens.
This was all thanks to those secretive alchemists who hoarded their techniques. To ensure their craft was never leaked, they rarely taught anything of real substance. If an apprentice wished to self-study the fundamentals, textbooks were notoriously hard to come by, and even when found, what was written in them wasn't necessarily accurate.
Just like certain potion-making books written by a particular person, which only listed which ingredients were used in a recipe while skimming over proportions, compounding techniques, and other critical details. For an ordinary person, trying to teach themselves from such texts was exceedingly difficult.
If someone was fortunate enough to become a Junior Alchemist, they could apply to study more advanced lore. The Alchemy Association had clear, posted rates for this: which tier of alchemist could exchange points for which knowledge was all laid out in meticulous detail.
However, much of that knowledge came with restrictions—it could only be studied individually and never disseminated. Before learning it, one had to sign a contract, subject to all manner of limitations, all designed to curtail the spread of knowledge.
Going from Junior to Intermediate still required an examination, and the difficulty jumped by dozens of times. However, an Intermediate Alchemist could serve as a supervisor in an alchemical factory, at which point the income became quite respectable.
As for advancing further, that was no longer a matter of examinations. Instead, one had to supply resources to the Alchemy Association, submit alchemical products, exchange labor for points, or contribute newly developed formulas and techniques to the association.
Senior Alchemists could receive stipends and provisions from the association while also directing major alchemical projects and taking a cut of the profits. At this stage, one lacked for nothing in daily life, though it might not be enough to sustain ongoing personal research.
Rising above that meant becoming a member of the Alchemy Association's council, followed by the vice guildmasters and the guildmaster.
Joining the decision-making body required a nomination from current council members and an affirmative vote to be admitted, and the guildmaster held veto power.
In short, Gustavo Fring wielded absolute power over the entire Alchemy Association, using knowledge as shackles to bind those who sought it.
Anbaixiu scrutinized the Alchemy Association's headcount. Apprentices couldn't be counted since they weren't even on the roster. There were twenty-eight thousand Junior Alchemists—the remnant stock left over from the City of Alchemy. Most of them hadn't qualified to live in that ascended city, which ironically had spared their lives.
Only some seven hundred Intermediate Alchemists remained. As for Senior Alchemists, there were fewer than fifty. And the high echelons of the association numbered merely nine, including Gustavo, of whom only three were at the legend rank.
Such was the composition of the Alchemy Association, and Anbaixiu set his sights squarely upon those Junior and Intermediate Alchemists.
"If all it takes to advance is passing an exam, that's far too simple. Isabel, you've reminded me: I don't actually need you to step forward in person to draw attention. All I need is to do this..."
Anbaixiu gestured through the air with both hands. Shadows and light flickered across the surface of the magic mirror, eventually coalescing into a distinctive icon.
Isabel looked at the strange icon. It depicted a burning mirror, dripping with infernal flair, and beneath the icon was a single line of text.
Isabel instinctively read the words aloud: "'Magic mirror, magic mirror, tell me...?'"
The moment she spoke the words, the icon enlarged instantly to blanket the entire glass. A devil shrouded in flames appeared before Isabel, asking in an alluring voice, "Mortal, what is it you wish to ask?"
Startled, Isabel paused for a moment before casually asking an alchemy-related question.
The devil let out a sinister, cackling laugh and replied, "Knowledge must be traded for knowledge. If you can answer my question, I will give you the answer. If not, you must pay with your soul."
Isabel jumped at the reply. Surprised, she asked, "Teacher, are you serious?"
The devil vanished, and Anbaixiu reappeared upon the glass. Smiling broadly, he said, "Don't worry, I don't actually intend to take their souls. It's just that when something is offered for free, people only grow suspicious.
"Devils, on the other hand, strictly abide by contracts—everyone knows that. They won't suspect that the knowledge they acquire is false; they'll only worry about whether they can pay the price.
"Spread the word: whenever night falls and the sun has completely set, reciting that phrase to the magic mirror will summon Hell's most knowledgeable devil. From his lips, one can obtain all the knowledge one desires—at the cost of a small price.
"I will enable a vast number of Junior and Intermediate Alchemists to earn promotions, but the Alchemy Association won't have nearly enough positions to accommodate them. When those alchemists who paid a heavy price find that ranking up brings them none of the promised benefits, my goal will be achieved."
With a soft bang, Anbaixiu transformed back into the devil, smiling as he said, "They'll merely assume devils from Hell have hacked into their magic mirrors. But by the time they try to put a stop to it, they'll find that no one can live without the magic mirror anymore. The temptation of acquiring knowledge so effortlessly is something they simply cannot resist!
"Besides, all blame falls on Hell. It has nothing to do with you or me."
Chapter 575