Shedding Tears

Chapter 3: Not shedding tears till you see your coffin It had been three days since the clash between the two disciples, and despite the constant mediation, Anna still felt the humiliation and rage smoldering in her chest. Just imagining Emma’s face would cause the blood to rush to her heart, all tranquillity and calm ruined at the thought of her. She had sat at her fan, her enchanted flight treasure bestowed by her master before she left the Violet Mountain sect. Using its mystical abilities to block the wind and maintain a comfortable temperature, she had escaped from the mortal world below and was secluded at a dizzying height, preparing for what she hoped would be the final clash with Hanging Temple disciple. Having discarded the mortal clothes that brought her nothing but shame, she had returned to wearing her disciple's robe, a long, almost dressing-gown-like garment that was the typical attire of sect disciples. The robe was durable, would never be dirtied, and could be adjusted with a single thought, allowing a degree of personalization. It was a violet color, and when Anna wasn’t cursing or acting slovenly, it gave her an ethereal and otherworldly charm. With it on, she finally felt like a mystical immortal again, the noble and proud Ninth Miss of the Violet Mountain, rather than the depraved mortal she had been acting like three days prior. Other than dusting off her alchemy cauldron, she hadn’t touched it for the sake of practice. In the world of immortals, where a decade could rush by as though it were only a few months, what would a few days of practice do for her condition, other than disturb her calm. Not that she had done much other than feel disturbed. It’s almost time… She mused to herself. The two of them had arranged to meet at a nearby mountain, where they would have a formal competition of alchemy, each acting in her capacity as a disciple of her sect. Though, behind closed doors, with the two of them alone, Anna was truthfully unsure whether she or Emma would be able to restrain their tempers. Upon thinking of her bitter rival, Anna instantly began grinding her teeth in anger, ruining her ethereal charm. After huffing and puffing in frustration for a while, Anna decided to do one final check off her alchemy ingredients before leaving. She laid a finger on the bangle on her wrist, like her flying fan, it was a treasure indispensable to an immortal cultivator, a storage bracelet, that could almost be said to contain a small world of its own. Within the expansive bracelet were all the pills and elixirs she had concocted over the years at the sect, her ingredients and cauldron, spare robes, alchemy manuals, and secret texts, as well as other miscellaneous items, all easily accessible just by touching her finger to the bracelet. After doing one final check, and touching up her makeup slightly, she set off towards the mountain she and Emma had arranged to meet at. Contrary perhaps to expectations, Anna didn’t feel particularly nervous about the alchemy competition, instead, more concerned about her temper and conforming to the etiquette expected of someone of her position. After all, she had been told countless times how talented she was and had witnessed the talent of the usual, novice alchemists within the Violet Mountain sect, all of whom had mostly catastrophic results even when concocting basic alchemy pills. Even the older alchemists of the sect, whose longevity had almost run dry after countless years of life, couldn’t match her unique insights into alchemy, even if they could match her still budding talent with their many years of experience. That is why this ‘competition’ was mostly a joke to Anna.

Naturally, with the understanding of Emma she possessed, she knew the girl would have some tricks and schemes in mind, some level of confidence that allowed her to smirk so viciously when they admitted their strengths to one another. Still, she didn’t pay much heed to the other girl, whatever plots and plans Emma had, she would demolish them with her unparalleled talent and skill. If your bold claims can be backed up, it wasn’t arrogance, but instead confidence! Compared to the size of the Violet Mountain sect’s immortal world, Earth could be considered small, and accordingly, Anna arrived at the mountain in no time at all. Continuing the comparison between the two worlds, the mountain was a lot smaller than those she was accustomed back at the sect, but on the plus side, it meant she could find Emma with relatively little trouble. And when she did find Emma, Anna almost exploded in an instantaneous fit of anger. Her opponent was riding a flying treasure of her own, which of course is to be expected. What Anna did not expect is that it was also a folding paper fan treasure, almost identical to her own. She could see Emma standing comfortably on it, wrapped in a soft green robe that gave her a gentle and calm aura. Anna’s experience with Emma three days prior let her understand almost instantly, however, that the girl was anything but gentle and calm now. The opposing blonde attempting and failing to conceal her shock and fury at their identical flight treasures was as clear as day in Anna’s eyes. She was so capable at recognizing the shift in her rival’s emotions that she could even pick out the amusement in the girl’s eyes as she in turn recognized Anna’s own frustration and annoyance at their near-matching fans. It was painful and frustrating how transparent they were in front of each other. In fact, from a certain perspective, it wasn’t even necessary to have a deep understanding of the other. They were so similar, both in body and mind, that Anna even had the impression that she could simply assume that Emma was thinking the same as her at any given moment, and 99% of the time, she would be right. It was by this unfounded, but strangely accurate logic, that Anna suspected that her hateful rival was about to try and throw her identity in the Hanging temple sect in her face because this was exactly what Anna herself was about to do. “Ninth disciple of the Hanging Temple sect offerings greetings,” Emma spoke, her voice melodious like the chirping of an oriole. The other blonde was overflowing with pride and arrogance as she greeted Anna, bringing her hands together in a traditional martial arts greeting, as was the common custom between immortal cultivators, looking down her nose at Anna as she did so. It was transparent that Emma was proud of her status within her sect. Referring to herself specifically as ‘Ninth disciple’ meant she wasn’t just a random nobody, but instead a direct disciple of the sect leader, and one of the leading figures of the Hanging Temple’s younger generation. Anna naturally wouldn’t be deterred, however, “Ninth disciple of the Violet Mountain sect offerings greetings”, Anna shot back, taking care to articulate the words as melodiously as possible, her youthful voice crisp and clear. Anna was the beloved treasure of her senior disciples, each of them having visited to offer greeting gifts over the years, and each being impressed with who was assumed as their master’s last disciple. The number nine had special connotations within the Violet Mountain sect, and across many of the immortal worlds. To many, it signified the apex: the completion of the path to immortality and the very heavens themselves. This was why many great sages only accepted nine disciples, and the importance of the ninth disciple was no less than the first. It was for this reason that Anna could take so much pride in her status, yet unfortunately, Emma was the ninth disciple of the Hanging Temple, a sect that existed on equal terms with her own Violet Mountain sect. “Ah, so junior sister is also a ninth disciple…” They spoke in unison, each taking the position and tone of a more senior disciple. The term ‘sister’ did not imply the same relationship that each had with their fellow disciples under the same master, but was instead a more general term, used as a courtesy between fellow immortal cultivators. Issues of seniority would often cause tension in the immortal world, however, as a great emphasis was placed on the concept. It was for this reason that the duo froze in shocked disbelief at the other's audacity at believing herself her senior. “Junior sister may not be aware,” Anna explained, sharpness apparent in her voice, “but in the immortal world, who is the senior and who is the junior is decided by both position… and strength.” “This is not something I need you to teach me, junior sister,” Emma stated coldly, hissing the words ‘junior sister’ through clenched teeth. “Naturally, I have the strength to dare act as your senior.” “I, your senior sister, am not convinced of those words,” Anna said plainly. The expressions of the two girls had warped into tight, forced smiles, both visibly straining to restrain their anger, as their flight treasures smoothly cruised closer and closer. “It’s a good thing we are both here for an alchemy exchange today then, junior sister,” Emma whispered. Despite her soft tone, a murderous intent seemed to be oozing from her body, her eyes containing a threatening shine. “It is a good thing,” Anna agreed, “I’m always happy to provide some advice to my juniors.” Anna’s demeanor was no less menacing. She seemed like a sheathed sword about to unveil its cruel edge. The two beauties exchanged a smile that didn’t reach their emerald, green eyes. Despite the tension between them skyrocketing to new heights, the duo maintained the façade of civility, riding side by side over to the mountainside, where they discounted their fans. With a thought, Anna’s flying folding fan shrunk down, until it was small enough to fit in her hand, at which point, she folded it up and put it into her storage bracelet. Emma having finished doing the same, the two turned to look at each other. An amused and scornful look passed through Anna’s eyes as she checked out her rival before she opened her mouth to speak. “Junior sister, your robe is looking a little small on you?” They both taunted in unison, causing both to cringe simultaneously. Anna’s words weren’t wrong, the other blonde’s outfit seemed more like a tight mini dress than a martial robe. The green robe only just covered her ass and crotch and left the entirety of her long, creamy legs exposed, their perfection clear for anyone to see. The fabric was obscenely tight around her hips and waist, leaving very little to the imagination, and even Emma’s moderate tits seemed generous and perky, looking as though they were about to rip out of the fabric. ‘God, you fucking slut. You just can’t resist, can you?’ She disdained inwardly. Much to Anna’s shock, however, Emma’s words weren’t wrong either. She couldn’t comprehend when it had happened, but her own violet robe was hugging her figure in much the same way as Emma’s hugged hers. Long, domineering legs exposed, with the crotch just barely covered as the robe clung desperately to her plump, well-sculpted thighs. Her hips seemed even wider than usual, her waist so thin it was about to snap, and even her tits that she never placed much attention on seemed to be elevated to sexier heights under the robe's complimentary new fit. She was certain that her robe had been in order when she had arrived at the mountain, and faintly recalled that when she first saw Emma, her robe didn’t look like that either. The two locked eyes as their faces exploded into an embarrassed flush. The only explanation is that as they flew over to the mountainside, exchanging words back and forth and trying to one-up the other, they were subconsciously shaping their adaptive, enchanted robes into a sexier form, their competitive desires getting the better of them without either Anna or Emma noticing. ‘This was meant to be a serious clash between noble disciples… So why do we now look like two sluts turning up at the club ready to fuck?!’ Anna bitterly complained. Emma was obviously thinking the same thing, her face warped in a mixture of embarrassment, shame, and annoyance. “You shameless junior,” They spat in synchrony, “Are you trying to seduce me?” Instantly the two girl’s restraint crumbled, and they flung themselves at the other party. As though there existed an unnoticed magnetism between their bodies, the duo found themselves pressed tightly together once again, their tight violet and green robes crushed without a single gap between them. Their hands wrapped around the other’s narrow waist so naturally, it was as if they belonged there, while breasts, stomachs, crotches, and thighs squashed against their counterparts as if eager to be ground and mixed together. Anna could feel the twinges of nervous anticipation shooting through her mirror image’s body, could feel the butterflies in the girl’s stomach through their navels that were practically glued together like the rest of their bodies. The only parts of them that still had some distance were their faces, keep apart as they glared into matching green eyes. Contrary to the excitement and desire their flesh seemed to possess for the other girl, their minds were still ice cold, each staring at her rival with eyes filled with loathing and venomous hatred. Being so close to Emma made Anna feel like she was going to be sick, but she just couldn’t resist the urge to get in the other girl’s face, knowing that her rival found such close contact equally as unpleasant. She closely examined the other blonde’s face, her small, cute nose, her wide, expressive eyes, soft, smooth cheeks, and cherry red lips. Emma was incredibly gorgeous, possessing an intoxicating charm that filled Anna with a jealous hatred and a desire to bite the other girl to death. “You think you’re so cute, don’t you, junior?” Emma hissed into Anna’s face, the girl’s tone informing her that her rival was just as close to biting Anna to death as Anna was doing the same. “Oh, I know I am,” Anna hissed back, “Sexier too, junior.” Anna knew that the argument about seniority was the last thing on her mind right now, but Emma was succeeding in her goal of trying to infuriate her, so naturally, Anna fought fire with fire, throwing the phrase back in the other blonde’s face. She was succeeding too, and feeling Emma’s nails digging into her back filled her with malicious glee. “We both know you’re no sexier than I am,” Emma spat. The words caused both girls to glare hatefully at the other, having been reminded of the results of their last clash. How could Anna be sexier than Emma, or Emma sexier than Anna, when their bodies were identical from the curves of their hips to even the placement of their pores, each girl a mirror image of the other. Anna felt her body begging her to continue arguing, to suggest another comparison so they could press bare flesh against bare flesh again, so their twin bodies could conquer and be conquered again, mutually succumbing to each other’s touch again. While feeling betrayed by her own flesh, however, she forced down the twisted desire, instead forcingly changing the topic, “Let's not get into this again,” She suggested. “How about we prep the area, and then get into this alchemy exchange?” “Fine by me,” Emma replied. With that the two pried their bodies apart, burying any reluctant to part deep in their hearts. The duo turned, walking towards the mountain rock. Both blondes pressed a finger against their storage bracelets, causing a strange sword to materialize in front of them, floating in the air. These two swords then shot towards the rocky surface of the mountain wall, the blades cutting into it like hot knives through butter. In very little time, the swords had carved out a cave in the mountainside. It was common practice in the immortal worlds for cultivators to reside in such ‘immortal caves’, though these abodes would be dug in places with highly dense and pure qi, so that their training would progress at twice the speed with half as much effort. While this cave was only intended to be a private space for their duel, rather than any sort of long-term residence, the makeshift arena had smooth surfaces, with a corridor leading to the main room. Trying her best to ignore Emma for now, else another argument erupts, Anna went to work inserting luminous pearls into the walls, to provide light, as well as decorating the room with miscellaneous knickknacks she found in her storage bracelet. Even if the cave was just for temporary use, she still wanted to breathe some life into it! Having finished her work as an interior designer, and ready to finally do some alchemy, she turned around to see that Emma had been decorating the other side of the cave. The result was, much to Anna’s chagrin, very tasteful and well-coordinated with her own side of the room. Rolling her eyes, and noticing Emma doing the same, she walked to the table placed in the middle of the room, before placing her hands on it and staring across at the other blonde, who was unsurprisingly doing the same. After fixing the other with a stern glare, the two began to discuss the details of the alchemy exchange. Assuming there wasn’t a huge disparity in skills that rendered the entire competition a joke, they would first compete to see who could produce the highest quality medicinal pill when both were unfamiliar with the recipe and had no previous experience concocting it. Then, should the results require further competition, they would examine a previously concocted pill or elixir provided by the other, to see who could distinguish the ingredients first. The competition would then continue, testing the various other aspects of alchemy, though, Anna doubted they would even need to go that far. She believed without a shadow of a doubt, that while Emma and she were physical clones of the other, her skills and talent in alchemy were truly unmatched within her generation. This wasn’t a confidence that was born from the praise of her fellow disciples or the senior alchemists from within the sect, but a belief that stemmed from the depths of her heart. When she was a mortal, existing within the tedious confines of Earth, she had always felt as though she were meant for more, that she was missing something fundamental to her existence. The feeling had disappeared the second she started practicing alchemy, and she believed that if the heavens far above the immortal worlds truly did exist, then it was such heavens that bestowed her talent for alchemy, her purpose! This was something Emma would never be able to match, no matter how identical their bodies were! Thinking this, her eyes ignited with a prideful fire, she began to look through her storage bracelet for pill recipes she hadn’t yet studied, as Emma did the same. After some back-and-forth, the two decided on a pill to compete with. It was called the ‘mind-sea expansion pill’, a rare pill of great use to cultivators who had focused their efforts on the development of the mind and soul. Whether these immortal cultivators developed the mind and soil for the sake of controlling armies of battle puppets or beasts, maintaining colossal magical array formations, slavery techniques, or any of countless other fields that relied on this foundation, the mind-sea expansion pill was almost like a super drug that could dramatically improve their strength. In fact, the pill was actually quite valuable to alchemists like Anna and Emma too, which is why both girls had been intending to eventually concoct a pill for their own consumption. As young, spoilt scions of great talent from their respective sects, each girl had enough ingredients for three attempts at the pill sitting in their respective storage bracelets. ‘Seems this bitch really isn’t too shabby at alchemy if she’s carrying around ingredients of this rarity,’ Anna mused internally. ‘Regardless, I’ll show her the difference between the sort of talent you can find in any old sect, and the kind of talent that only appears once in a generation- no, once in history!’ Having bolstered her spirits, she matched away from the white-jade table in the center of the room, over to where she had placed her cauldron, an extremely rare treasure of the sect called the ’Violet-Heavens Cauldron’. It was a violet-gold color, adorned with silver dragons that snaked around the cauldron, not unlike the streams of silver qi that flowed through the violet skies above the Violet Mountain sect. Made from mythical materials unknown to her, she couldn’t comprehend how ancient and illustrious the history of the cauldron was. That she, a ‘young’ disciple not even a century old had been entrusted with it by her master demonstrated his attitude towards her, even if she had never seen him since he found her on Earth and brought her back to the sect. It also demonstrated his confidence in himself and the Violet Mountain sect, daring to entrust a treasure rare enough to blind the countless immortal world with greed, to a disciple as weak as her. That she dared to expose the treasure in front of Emma was truthfully a great display of trust that she doubted would be noticed by her arrogant rival. In the end, she felt that as hateful and insanity-inducing as the girl was, Emma was equally as prideful, that she wouldn’t resort to murder and theft for the sake of a treasure. Whether this trust was a result of a true understanding of Emma’s character or simple naivety to the cruelty and duplicity of the immortal world, none could say. Regardless, Anna’s trust was well-placed, as while she saw admiration flash through her rival’s eyes, there was no greed or envy, and soon enough the other girl moved her attention back to her own cauldron. Anna felt a mixture of relief and disappointment. Relief that the girl hadn’t attempted to rob her treasure, but disappointment because her reaction was so subdued. She understood why Emma’s reaction was so calm, however, when she turned her attention to the cauldron of the Hanging Temple disciple opposite. It appeared to be a mixture of green and white jade, with delicate patterns of constellations engraved across its body. It possessed an ancient aura no less than her own cauldron, and the sight of it almost caused her to gasp in admiration. Suddenly it was made clear to her why the other girl wouldn’t covet her cauldron. Even if Emma’s cauldron could be said to be inferior to her own, it wouldn’t be by much at all, so why would she be stewing in envy? Rapidly regaining her calm, she questioned Emma, “Are you ready to start, junior sister?” “Of course, junior sister, are you?” She responded near-instantly, sending Anna an irritated glance as she did so. “Naturally.” Anna spat back, shooting the girl an annoyed glance of her own. Like that, the two began heating their cauldrons ready for the concoction process, using rare and mystical firewood to ignite the flames. More experienced alchemists would possess mythic fires that they would use to control the heat of the cauldron with a signal thought, but the fortune of possessing one such fire could only be found and not sought. For a young immortal such as Anna, she had plenty of time to slowly roam the countless immortal worlds in search of fortuitous encounters later. Many alchemy recipes were incredibly vague, just stating the ingredients required rather than the actual process of concoction. It was because alchemy was an otherworldly process than could work differently for whoever attempted to enter the field. Each alchemist’s mythic fire or firewood would be different, their cauldrons would be different, and everyone’s qi, vital for condensing the pill at the end of the process, would naturally have its own uniqueness and personal flair. Some cold in nature, and others hot. Some soft and flexible, and others hard and rigid. To summarise, alchemy required far more than simply following instructions like a chef. It required intuition and perception in addition to focus and precision. As the cauldron bubbled, and more ingredients were added, Anna’s mind was devoid the anger and loathing she had felt brewing inside her since she met Emma. In fact, she had forgotten the existence of her rival entirely. The only thing that existed in her mind at that moment as alchemy. Her strengthened senses that had been wasted on vulgar and base pursuits days prior were now strained as she listened for the reactions occurring within the violet-gold cauldron, her nose twitching as the scent of the ingredients mingle and mixed, her ears listening for the intensity of the bubbling, and the viscosity of the liquid. Her eyes were like an eagle fixed on its prey, possessing an unshakable focus and her fingers twitched as she used her qi to control the flames burning under the ancient melting pot, the temperature needing constant adjustment. Eventually, though, the bubbling mixture turned a muddy brown, producing a foul smell and black smoke. Anna’s first attempt was a failure. Normally she wouldn’t be conscious of a setback like this, after all, even alchemy masters who had lived thousands of years longer than her would fail many times when learning to concoct a new pill, but this time was not a private attempt, but rather a competition. Having snapped out of her focused trance, it was only natural for her thoughts to snap back to Emma, her stomach churning in anxiety at the thought that her opponent may not have failed in her attempt yet. Thankfully when she turned her head, she saw Emma looking straight back at her in a fluster, black smoke and a foul smell pouring from the other girl’s cauldron too. Each exhaled a sigh of relief at the sight of the other’s failure. Their failure and desire to overcome the challenge of concocting this new pill outweighed their urges to taunt the other at this moment, contrary to even their expectations, as the two spoke in cold and determined voices, “Next attempt.” Before the duo turned back around to drain their cauldrons and prepare for the next concoction. Soon enough, Anna had reached the point where she had failed before. With her prior experience and aided by a subconscious understanding of the underlying laws of alchemy, however, this time she delicately avoided the pitfall, a bead of sweat dripping down her forehead. The process moved swiftly from there, as Anna demonstrated why she was worthy of her reputation as an unparalleled talent across the immortal worlds, nearing the brink of success on only her second attempt, while others may require thousands or even tens of thousands of attempts to reach match her progress. There was a reason investing in, and raising an alchemist was an expensive and dangerous gamble after all! Only sects and clans with serious capital and resource channels could acquire the materials and ingredients for the countless resources needed to pave the way to an alchemist’s eventual success! As if being sucked into a miniature black hole, the liquid was flowing to the center of the cauldron in the final step of the concoction, the pill-forming process. As Anna used to qi to facilitate the process, however, she took a single misstep that caused the formation to fail. Demonstrating the attitude of a true alchemist, she instantly began to reflect on her failure, her mind racing as she watched as the nearly complete pill crumbled to ashes. After realizing where she went wrong with pinpoint accuracy, and planning what she would do differently next time, she took a deep breath to calm her mind, before turning around to check the process of the Hanging Temple disciple. What came next was a flurry of emotions that shocked her to the core. At first, upon seeing that Emma had also failed, and the other girl was also looking over at her, she thought it natural. Anna assumed the girl had been watching for a while, assuming that her rival had perhaps made a little more progress in her second attempt before the concoction failed. When she noticed the traces of the pill-forming process in the other blonde’s cauldron, however, she felt her knee grow weak as she felt as though she had been hit by a sledgehammer. ‘How is this possible?!’ She thought in panicked disbelief. ‘How could she possibly have made so much progress?!’ She felt a familiar feeling of deep dread and anxiety at the thought that the girl could be far more talented than she thought possible. In her sudden onset of terror, she could almost envision the previous outcome of their body comparison repeating itself, the two girls being stuck in a deadlock as even their alchemy talent was identical! ‘No! That is not possible! Anna thought as she felt a venomous hatred spread across her core as her eyes grew bloodshot. ‘This fucking bitch has already matched the body I’ve always been so proud of, I will not allow her to match my talent too!’ Anna’s sudden anger left her blind to the fact that her fingernails were cutting into her palms, causing blood to drip down her hands onto the floor around her. Her emerald-green eyes were locked with Emma’s in a stare-down brimming with hatred, jealously, and murderous intent. She didn’t have any interest in the girl’s jaw-dropping physique or even notice the blood running down Emma’s hands, as she was practically left breathless at the immense hatred that seemed to be pumped to every inch of her body via her boiling blood. Despite the faint smell of blood in the air, and the duo being on the edge of crossing a line neither could ever turn back from, neither moved, instead both frozen as though statues. After what seemed like an eternity, the two exhaled ice-cold breaths in unison. “I underestimated you, Anna.” The Hanging Temple disciple spoke, her voice sharp like a blade. “I underestimated you, Emma.” The Violet Mountain disciple replied, her words no less pointed. Despite having accounted for the possibility of the exchange lasting longer than this competition, Anna only anticipated having to partake in them should her enemy be unwilling to accept a loss. The thought that they would have to proceed with a second-round due to being so evenly matched hadn’t even occurred to her until now. She suspected that Emma had been under the same misconception, having now seen her talent in action. For reasons unknown to her, their mutual admissions sent a strange shiver down her spine and made her want to march to the middle of the room and press her body up against Emma’s. In fact, she had already taken an unconscious step forward to do just that before she managed to stop herself. It didn’t escape her attention that Emma had done the same, and it was at that moment she was aware that the other blonde had the exact same impulse as her. She saw an embarrassed flush blossom on her rival’s face and felt her own adopt a matching hue as if to mirror Emma. The pair couldn’t help but writhe in embarrassment at how transparent they were before the other. This mutual misstep did help to diffuse the tension in the room, however, as the atmosphere between the duo was slightly ambiguous, as each girl’s thoughts ran wild. ‘Why does my body seem to have a mind of its own?’ Anna cringed inwardly. ‘I want nothing more than to kill this bitch right now, but my traitorous body seems to have other intentions…’ Blaming her body for the ambiguous feeling she refused to acknowledge existed, she forced herself to concentrate on the alchemy exchange instead. “Our last attempt then.” She said in an obvious attempt to move past the embarrassment and awkwardness each girl was feeling, brushing some stray hairs behind her ear as she spoke. “Our last attempt,” Emma repeating, clearly wanting to say something to sweep away the ambiguous atmosphere they duo had accidently created. The blonde attempting to straighten out her robes, not knowing what to do with them in a rare moment of awkwardness, having forgotten, however, that her usually loose robes were now skin-tight, her hands ended up skimming past her perky breasts. The duo lapsed into another awkward silence before they turned back to their cauldrons in unison. While Anna had calmed down from her previous rage, she was just as unwilling to lose to her rival and just as angry and bitter at the narrow gap between their performances. Reminding herself of why it was so important to win this battle. It wasn’t just about pride or winning glory for the faction behind her. On a fundamental level, losing to Emma would damage her confidence in her ‘unparalleled’ talent to the extent that a heart-demon, a mental shadow of catastrophic proportions would be born within her. With such a failure weighing her down and destabilizing her psyche, how could she continue her rapid ascension along the immortal path. Her self-perception would affect her results, which would then cause her self-confidence to plummet even lower, creating a downward spiral until she was no longer a young talent, but just another piece of trash. ‘This is why I must win!’ She reminded herself, the long-legged beauty now feeling as though she had been drenched in cold water. The awkward and ambiguous atmosphere was like it never existed as each sent a fierce glare toward their rival, before stepping back to their workstations. Anna’s ancient cauldron bubbled and brewed as her progress raced like never before. Her mind was not as clear and calm as it was before, instead filled with a burning ambition to defeat her loathsome enemy. Usually, such a mental state would ruin a concoction attempt, but it would seem as though 100% of Anna’s talent and skill were squeezed out under the furious motivation, as her third attempt was a success, the pill forming into a perfect sphere that resembled a jawbreaker candy. She quickly encased the sea-blue pill in a wooden box intended to help maintain its medicinal properties, before turning and walking to the white-jade table in the center of the room. It was impossible for her to miss the fact that Emma was holding a similar box, causing her stomach to lurch uncomfortably. ‘It’s fine,’ she consoled herself, ‘She likely just barely managed to form the pill, while mine could be said to be a solid success.’ As the two stood at opposite sides of the small, square table, she flipped open the box to admire her work. Pills would be distinguished with a grading system from one to nine. Grades one-to-three were the lowest levels of quality, the pill slightly off-color or misshapen in places. Such pills would still get the job done, performing their purpose, but naturally, these pills were mostly sold in mass for a cheaper price. Grades four-to-six denoted the intermediate level of quality, the pills would be a healthy hue, with performance and efficacy ranging from 40% up to 80%, on the higher side of the bracket. Anna judged that her pill was between grades five and six, which could be considered an astounding result for a third attempt. With further attempts, she would be able to refine pills in the upper grade, hitting the ninth and highest grade before long. A pill of such quality would have golden lines and patterns appear on it to signify its perfection, bestowed by heaven itself. These pills would surpass the 100% performance of a grade eight pill, instead, bringing the pill to 150%-200% efficacy! Accordingly, such pills were incredibly rare to find, and they would be sold at auctions for sky high prices, regardless of what type of pill it actually was. Most alchemists wouldn’t have the confidence of refining a grade nine pill in their lifetime, and any that did would consider it a high point in their career, yet to Anna, bringing her concoctions to grade nine was matter of course, something she would naturally do to prove she had mastered a pills concoction before she moved onto the next pill. It could only be said that geniuses truly live in a different reality from the masses… Satisfied with pill she had made under such a ruinous mental state, she shot her opponent a taunting smirk, paying no attention to the fact that Emma shot her one of her own, instead she slid the wooden box across the table, for the other blonde to inspect. “You’re the one who wanted to compete in alchemy,” She laughed smugly, her emerald eyes brimming with pride. “So don’t blame me for the result.” “Ha, I would never blame you, I just hope you don’t blame me,” Emma replied with arrogance laced words. Each girl was a feast for the eyes, wrapped in their now skin-tight, mini-dress like robes, blonde hair cascading down their backs as their perky tits and firm asses seemed ready to burst out of the fabric. Each pair of long, divine legs brimmed with a seductive hypnotism that would make any onlooker wished to bend down to worship them. Yet neither blonde could appreciate the sight of their rival’s long legs and asses as they leaned on the table. Even as buttocks were about to pop out from the meager restraints of their robes, each was more focused on the pill in front of their eyes. ‘How is this possible?!’ Anna thought, her mind breaking down into a fluster haze. The pill in front of her was indistinguishable from her own, a deep sea-blue, perfectly spherical orb, around 2 inches large. She felt anger and unwillingness bubbling in her stomach like magma as she inspected the pill carefully, comparing it mentally with her own creation, before finally, she looked up with a huff. She and her near-identical twin locked eyes in an aggrieved stare, each girl gnawing on her lower lips in consternation. The similarities between their pills went beyond looking as though they were concocted by the same person, the pills were as flawlessly identical as their twin bodies. In unison, each grabbed the pill in front of them before quickly stepping to the side of the table. Standing side by side, with the left side of Anna’s body pressed tightly against Emma’s right side, the two placed the pills next to one another on the table, their creations matching their own positions. The aggrieved and furious duo then inspected the pills from every angle, their sharp eyes desperately seeking the slightest difference between the twin creations. To the delight of their bodies, they unknowingly plastered themselves closer and closer together as their searched, soft thighs rubbing as their robes hiked up and their touching ass cheeks glued themselves together. Their perky tits were squashed together too, an unseen magnetism existing between the robe covered orbs as left and right tits gently stuck together, with even their cherry red nipples being perfectly aligned. Their faces, wearing stern and focused masks to hide the panic and dread, were touching too, their soft cheeks pressed together as though to imitate their ass cheeks, while blonde hairs intertwined and knotted together. After there eyes had long grown bloodshot, and an indeterminate amount of time had passed within the cave, twin sighs echoed in unison as both Anna and Emma gave up trying to delay the inevitable. “You truly are talented,” Emma sighed helplessly, as the two looked away from the table, rotating their bodies so that they were face-to-face. “I doubt two pills have ever been so identical in the history of alchemy.” An unwillingness and bitter sense of irony were present in her words, two sentiments that Anna felt too. “You’re clearly no less talented,” She replied, neither girl sure if they were complementing or mocking the other. “You forced me to understand that bodies can be perfectly identical, but I never realized that talent could be too.” Despite the words that seemed to suggest the battle was over, and that the enmity could be buried, their bodies seemed to disagree, pressing and forcing themselves together as though they were attempting to fuse. Two pairs of tits squeezed together as lower navels and upper thighs were matched against their counterparts. With all the comparing and the constant, unconscious grinding of their bodies, the only part of themselves that the duo hadn’t forced together were their lips and the most intimate folds between their legs. Burning heat and a constant, synchronous throbbing in their crotches seemed to beg them to settle the dispute in another way in another way, however… Ignoring her body’s tempting cries, Anna still believed she could win, even after the constant stalemates and mutual defeats. Even if their bodies were identical, even if their talent was identical, she still had a few tricks and schemes, and a trump card yet to be revealed to her enemy. “I’ve got an idea for the next round,” She whispered, her hot breath grazing Emma’s wet lips that were so tantalizingly close to her own. “A way to make it a bit more exciting.” “What a surprise, I do too,” Emma purred. “A talented and skillful alchemist like you can naturally decipher the ingredients of a pill by consuming it, right?” The faint hint of danger in the blonde’s coy and gentle words went seemingly unnoticed by Anna, the curvaceous beauty distracted as she felt the other girl’s body push a little harder into her own, causing her violet-clad flesh to twitch and pound in yearning. A sensual moan escaped her lips as she pushed back against her copycat’s identical body, feeling Emma twitch in response. “Of course, I have some minor skills,” she muttered, her eyes flashing in weakness, “I’m not confident at all though…” “Oh, me neither,” Emma assured softly, the girl seeming ashamed and embarrassed at her perceived inability. “Back at the Hanging Temple sect, I was experimenting with my alchemy, attempting to recreate common pills using unusual ingredients, I was just playing around mostly…” “What a coincidence,” Anna injected with a small chuckle, “I’ve had similar ideas before, wanting to reproduce common effects with typically unused plants.” “Perfect then!” Emma exclaimed, joyfully grabbing Anna’s hands, and interlocking their fingers as though the two were a pair of best friends rather than two enemies desperate to crush the other beneath their feet. Under her humble and sweet façade, however, dark thoughts were swirling in Anna’s mind, ‘You dare to eat one of my medicinal pills? You are just begging to be humiliated…’ After all, in the field of alchemy, medicine and poison, healing and harm, are just two sides of the same coin…