"Icely Spiritual Spring?" Hearing the name come out of Xiao Yan's mouth, Frank and Otto clearly paused, then expressed their astonishment: "Little one, the Icely Spiritual Spring is indeed a rare and precious natural treasure. Moreover, with your current strength, it seems utterly impossible that you'd need such a thing." Xiao Yan smiled slightly and said, "Indeed, I do need this. Masters, do you know if anyone in the Medicine Master's Guild currently possesses it? If someone does, I'd be willing to pay a high price to acquire it." "A high price?" Frank replied, shaking his head. "You must understand, the Icely Spiritual Spring isn't something that can simply be measured in gold coins. Even if someone possesses it, it's quite difficult to part with it for trade." "Of course, I'm well aware of that," Xiao Yan said with a smile, nodding politely. "Could you kindly check on this for me, Masters? If someone actually has it, perhaps I can offer something truly satisfactory." Seeing Xiao Yan's determination, Frank furrowed his brows and then exchanged a glance with Otto, finally nodding with a sigh of resignation. "Wait a moment," Otto said, standing up and addressing Xiao Yan before turning and walking into the inner part of the study. "He's the vice president of the Black Rock City Pharmacy Guild. Though he's usually quite lazy and rarely involved in managing guild affairs, he's generally the one who handles matters related to transactions." Frank watched Otto disappear down the hall and smiled warmly at Xiao Yan. Xiao Yan nodded politely, his hand gently resting on the back of the chair, while his fingers unconsciously tapped lightly—on the surface calm, his face subtly reflected a growing sense of anticipation. Taking a slow sip of tea, Frank casually lifted his eyes to observe Xiao Yan's composed demeanor, his mind beginning to wonder: "Is the Ice Spirit Cold Spring truly that important to him?" "...After a quiet wait of quite some time, Otto finally stepped out of the inner room, carrying a thick, ancient book, and gently placed it on the table. Turning to Xiao Yan, he shook his head with a sigh of resignation, saying, 'I'm sorry. I've checked the most recent inventory records from the Gamma Empire and found no one possessing the Ice Spirit Cold Spring...' 'It's an exceptionally rare substance, and it has very strict preservation requirements. I recall once a Fourth-Rank Alchemist who, in a particularly cold region, managed to locate some of it by chance. However, due to improper storage, the entire supply eventually turned into a fine mist and vanished entirely.' Otto added, expressing his regret. Seeing Xiao Yan's disappointed expression, Frank could only shrug helplessly and turned his head slightly to whisper to Otto, "Really not available?" He tapped the thick book in his hands, then shook his head, "Indeed, not available at all." "If it's not here, I'd recommend you go to the auction. With a bit of luck, you might just happen to come across it," Frank offered gently. With a wry nod, Xiao Yan nodded in agreement, though deep inside he was very clear—should even the Pharmacy Guild not have it, then no matter how fortunate he was, finding such a rare treasure at the auction would be nearly impossible. "Ah well, since I can't find what I need, I'll be off then," Xiao Yan said, rising with a somewhat dejected air and bowing slightly to both of them before turning to leave the study. Observing Xiao Yan's drooping posture, Otto shook his head in resignation, paused thoughtfully, and then suddenly said, "Wait a moment." "Hm?" "Slightly taken aback, Xiao Yan turned around, gazing at Otto who was deep in thought. 'You really need the Ice Spirit Cold Spring?' Otto asked, frowning. 'Yes, I really need it!' He nodded firmly. Observing Otto's thoughtful expression, Xiao Yan felt a subtle spark of excitement in his voice, adding with a touch of warmth, 'Master Otto, do you have the Ice Spirit Cold Spring?' At the same time, Frank was also looking at Otto with some surprise, clearly equally unaware. 'Ah, of course I don't possess that thing,' Otto chuckled, shaking his head. He watched Xiao Yan's face fall with growing disappointment, and smiled gently. 'But I seem to have seen it mentioned somewhere—by a rather odd fellow.' 'Oh?' Xiao Yan's eyes lit up immediately, and he hurried to ask, 'Who is he? Where?' 'Well... I should warn you in advance—should you not be prepared to make quite a sacrifice, you'll likely have little chance of obtaining what you need from that man.' "Otto smiled. "Well... I'll do my best..." Xiang Yin hesitated, naturally unwilling to commit himself fully without knowing exactly what conditions the other party had in mind. "Old man... are you talking about that ancient, overly precious guy—Guter, the one who treats his treasures like they're lifeblood?" Frank, who had been frowning intently, suddenly exclaimed in surprise. "Yes, that's exactly the one. Last time I visited him, I heard him mention the Ice Spirit Cold Spring, but he's so stingy—he wouldn't even let me see it, not even for a moment..." Otto said with a cheerful smile. "If he actually has the Ice Spirit Cold Spring, I doubt very much that Xiang Yin will succeed in securing it from him." Frank shook his head in resignation, his gaze toward Xiang Yin now tinged with sympathy. "So, who exactly is Guter?" Xiang Yin, slightly uncomfortable under Frank's steady gaze, asked with a touch of nervousness. "That fellow is also a pharmacist, though only at the third rank—his extensive collection, however, is truly worthy of envy even by any pharmacist within the Gama Empire." Otto shook his head, praising with admiration. "He's not a member of the Pharmacists' Guild, is he?" Xiao Yan asked in surprise. "No, he's simply too eccentric. Though he possesses a strong natural talent for potion-making, he's utterly obsessed with collecting rare and precious materials. This obsession has kept him stuck at the third rank—so intense, in fact, that it's almost pathological. As soon as he spots something valuable, he becomes relentless, pursuing it tirelessly until it drives others to frustration and headaches." Frank chuckled, his expression suggesting he had personally experienced this kind of behavior. "Hehe, who would have thought that when you were idle and restless back then, you'd pull out that precious Purple Blood Lingzhi you'd worked so hard to obtain and show it off! Well, I must say, Old Guo truly has patience—he's been annoyed with you for an entire year over this! Hahahaha..." Otto chuckled, a pleased, somewhat triumphant expression on his face, as if recalling the incident. "Ah," Frank sighed, shaking his head with a look of resignation. "Um... you two are both ranked higher than him—how dare he act so impertinent?" He glanced at the slightly exasperated expressions on the two others' faces, puzzled. "Indeed, our ranks are a bit higher than his, but this old man has a remarkable brother. In the Gamma Empire, few dare to challenge him." Frank offered a wry smile. "A brother? Who exactly?" At this, Xiao Yan was genuinely surprised—what person in the Gamma Empire possessed such influence that even two fourth-tier alchemists dared not approach them? "Who else could it be... Old Guo He, the King of Herbs." "Rolling his eyes, Otto sighed, 'Without this brother standing by him, I'd say that guy's treasure chamber must have been visited by countless people long ago.' 'Ah... Gohara? Now that makes sense,' said Xiao Yan, slightly taken aback, then nodded in realization. In the Gamma Empire, King of Dan Gohara truly commanded immense influence. 'Fortunately, though the old man can be quite bothersome, he's not entirely bad—just a bit rigid and stubborn. What he hates most is when others mention Gohara in his presence. Though he knows deeply that his current success stems from Gohara's support, as soon as someone brings up Gohara, he immediately springs into action and sends them away. So, be careful—should you offend him, even the finest rare treasures you offer won't secure a drop of Ice Spirit Cold Spring.' Frank added. 'Is Gohara actually in Black Rock City?' Xiao Yan asked, sounding anxious. 'Yes, he is,' replied Otto, smiling and glancing at Xiao Yan. 'You really intend to go see him?' "There's no way I can afford to give up the Ice Spirit's Cold Spring. Even if he demands a lot, if I can provide it, I'm afraid he'll still end up taking me down." Nodding with a sigh of resignation, Xiao Yan chuckled. "What a pity for the little guy. While everyone else barely manages to avoid him, you actually go out of your way to offer yourself." With a sympathetic pat on Xiao Yan's shoulder, Otto turned to Frank and said, "Then I'll take Xiao Yan to find that old man. And I suspect you won't be too eager to see him either." "Go on, go on. When you meet him, just deliver a message—ideally, avoid coming to our Alchemy Guild. I wouldn't want my branch to be left with no one at all. Even if there's Guo He protecting us, I'll have to find a way to make things difficult for him." Frank waved his hand, his expression clearly showing his genuine apprehension toward the troublesome man. "Heh." Smiling with a touch of envy, Otto turned to Xiao Yan and said, "Come on, follow me. I'll take you to him. But whether or not it all works out in the end depends entirely on you." Hearing this, Xiao Yan quickly nodded in gratitude, feeling somewhat relieved—thankfully, he had coincidentally come to undergo the pharmacy specialist assessment. Otherwise, how long would it take him to search the entire world for the Ice Spirit Cold Spring? ... After leaving the study room, Xiao Yan closely followed Otto as he stepped out of the pharmacy guild. Along the way, people respectfully greeted the composed Master Otto. However, when their eyes turned to Xiao Yan, who was trailing behind, they paused slightly, their gaze sweeping over the dark robe symbolizing a Second-Class Pharmacist, before settling with a sense of astonishment upon the young face of Xiao Yan. Clearly, the sight of such a young Second-Class Pharmacist left them deeply impressed. Ignoring the stunned gazes along the way, Xiao Yan followed Otto through more than a dozen winding streets within Black Rock City, until finally stopping in front of an unusual building in a quiet, remote corner near the southern part of the city. Looking up at the odd structure, Otto exhaled in relief and turned to Xiao Yan with a smile, saying, "This is where Gout lives. Before you enter, just a reminder—make sure you're ready for a good bloodletting!" Hearing this, Xiao Yan could only offer a wry nod and a smile.