Chapter 319

The Pill Gathering, even to Xiao Yan, who grew up in the remote Jia Ma Empire, was no unfamiliar term.

The Pill Gathering is hosted by the Alchemist Guild's headquarters in Zhong Zhou—the Dan Tower—once every thirty years, aiming to nurture young Alchemist geniuses; the Jia Ma Empire's own Alchemist Convention, held every four years, is merely an imitation of the Pill Gathering.

Unlike the Alchemist Convention, the Pill Gathering is a grand feast for all Alchemists on the Dou Qi Continent, a massive gathering where all Alchemists compete together—its scale is incomparable to the small-scale Alchemist Convention.

Moreover, only Alchemists of Five-Grade or higher may participate, and the victor receives an extremely precious reward.

And the master within Xiao Yan's storage ring, the Alchemist Sovereign, was the Champion of the previous Pill Gathering.

Xiao Yan frowned deeply and asked in a low voice: "Enter the Xiao Dan Ta? With your strength, obtaining a Spirit Stone Formula from the Dan Tower shouldn't be difficult."

Hun Xu Zi narrowed his eyes, revealing a sly smile: "I could never enter the Xiao Dan Ta."

"Why?"

"Hehehe, because I once studied within the Xiao Dan Ta—until the moment I was about to claim that Spirit Stone Formula, the then Tower Master discovered my Soul Sovereign identity. I killed him and escaped. Afterwards, the Soul Sovereign and the Dan Tower erupted into a great war."

Hearing this, Xiao Yan's scalp prickled—this Hun Xu Zi had not only trained in Alchemy within the Dan Tower, but had also killed its Tower Master!

The Dan Tower's Tower Master could not possibly have been weak—at minimum, a Nine Grade Alchemist with Sage Emperor power—yet he fell to Hun Xu Zi's hands; his cultivation realm was immensely powerful!

Xiao Yan's gaze sharpened—he sensed Hun Xu Zi was hiding something.

After a moment of silence, Xiao Yan asked: "What Spirit Stone Formula are you asking me to retrieve?"

The relationship between the Dan Tower and the Soul Sovereign is extremely hostile—recall that the Dan Tower was founded precisely to oppose the Soul Sovereign's widespread abduction of Alchemists, uniting Alchemists to resist the Soul Envoys, Guardians, and Sovereigns of the Soul Sovereign.

And the Soul Sovereign is the faction established by the Soul Clan—this relationship speaks for itself.

"You Soul Clan are already a Dou Emperor Family—why not just exchange for any Spirit Stone Formula with the Yao Clan?" Xiao Yan asked, puzzled. Didn't the Yao Clan descend from the Alchemist Emperor? Could any Spirit Stone Formula be superior to those created by the Alchemist Emperor?

"Those Yao Clan fools are stuck in the past, believing everything left by the Alchemist Emperor is the best. For over ten thousand years, their Spirit Stone Formulas have barely changed, and their Pill Refining Methods remain unchanged—only a handful are worth referencing. But certain things of theirs? My Soul Clan will claim them eventually. Hehehe."

Xiao Yan shrugged—the Yao Clan also possess the Tuoshe Ancient Jade; war between them is inevitable.

Without further words, winning the Pill Gathering Champion title is the Soul Sovereign's test for Xiao Yan—just like the previous test involving the Soul Token.

After all, to refine the Emperor Pill, neither the Dan Tower nor the Yao Clan possesses the capability—even Hun Xu Zi, so arrogant and self-assured, requires another peak Alchemist of equal strength to collaborate with him to even have a chance of completing it.

If he cannot even win the title of Pill Gathering Champion, he has no qualifications.

And Mu Gu, the Sovereign, was likely sent by Hun Xu Zi to compete in this Pill Gathering as well—either to win the title himself, or perhaps Hun Xu Zi favored Xiao Yan and deliberately assigned him an Eight-Star opponent.

Seeing Hun Xu Zi finish speaking, Xiao Yan's eyes flickered with a strange glint, growing fiercer.

Seeing this gaze, even Hun Xu Zi felt curious: "What do you desire with such an expression? As a candidate of the Imperial Pill Plan, our clan will naturally provide resources befitting your status—Mu Gu and Han Feng both received certain things to achieve their current accomplishments."

Hun Xu Zi had just said the Imperial Pill Plan requires only one person—not because more would be worse, but because even the Soul Sovereign, to push one individual to Imperial Soul status, would suffer devastating losses; they cannot spare a second set of resources.

"Spirit Stone Formula? Pill Refining Method? Elixir? Treasure? Dou Technique? Cultivation Method? With your current potential, you can indeed receive some rewards—as a gift." Hun Xu Zi waved his hand, and within the black mist, a collection of treasures appeared—among them, even Heavenly Rank Dou Techniques and Eight-Grade Elixirs, each one heart-stopping.

Yet facing these items, Xiao Yan didn't even glance at them; his voice was low: "The Gu Clan. I want all soul information about the Gu Clan."

Hearing this, even Hun Xu Zi showed surprise—amidst so many treasures, he chose this!

"Hehehe, Hahahaha! Such obsession—I like it! As you wish. Accept it—this is all our clan has gathered on the Gu Clan." A mass of black mist surged forth, enveloping Xiao Yan, as waves of Soul Information about the Gu Clan flooded into his mind.

After an unknown length of time, the black mist vanished. Xiao Yan took the Soul Token and left—no one knew what he was thinking inside.

Crack—when Xiao Yan stepped out of the Soul Sovereign's stronghold, he was met with a sea of low-ranking Soul Robes: Soul Envoys.

"Hail Lord Yan!"

Their unified roar thundered in his ears—among them were no shortage of Demonic Realm experts, their Dou Qi blazing like rainbows; this sight left Xiao Yan stunned. He'd only been inside for a moment—what was this?

Beside him, Xiao Li walked slowly forward and shrugged: "These Soul Envoys heard you, Lord Yan, had appeared—they all insisted on coming to see you."

Xiao Yan shook his head in disbelief, but it wasn't strange—Sovereign, after all, is the rank of a Demonic Realm expert within the Soul Sovereign.

If a Demonic Realm expert suddenly appeared in Jia Ma Sheng Cheng, even the royal family would come to pay respects.

Xiao Yan waved his hand and lowered his voice: "All of you, return."

"Yes, Sovereign!"

No Soul Envoy dared disobey Xiao Yan's words—in an instant, everyone dispersed. They had merely wished to see the legendary Sovereign. Even though Xiao Yan wore a Soul Robe with a Hood, concealing his face entirely, their fanaticism toward the Sovereign's status only grew stronger—this only deepened Xiao Yan's mystery.

"Done? If you need anything, just tell your second brother—even if my cultivation realm is no longer equal to yours, anything I can do for you, I will do." Xiao Li affectionately draped his arm over Xiao Yan's shoulder.

Xiao Yan could tell his second brother spoke sincerely.

"Nothing else—just the Puti Huati Yan. If you get any news, notify me immediately with the Soul Jade Pendant. That thing is crucial." Xiao Yan said gravely.

Xiao Yan had previously inquired about Puti Huati Yan through Hun Lao Gui, but since it's tied to the Bodhi Tree, it's extremely rare—likely only one exists on the entire Dou Qi Continent.

Even the Soul Sovereign doesn't know where the Bodhi Tree is now, so there's no information.

After everyone left, Xiao Yan returned with Xiao Li to the Yun Lan Sect—they would depart together for the Tian She Empire tomorrow.

Early the next morning, Xiao Yan had breakfast with his father, Xiao Zhan, drank tea for a while, then flew with his second brother, Xiao Li, to the Imperial Palace in Jia Ma Sheng Cheng.

When Xiao Yan and Xiao Li arrived, others were already waiting—a massive blue dragon-like beast stood before the palace, drawing gasps from passersby.

This time, they would not fly individually to the Tian She Empire—they would ride the Deep Sea Dragon Beast, whose endurance far surpassed that of ordinary Demonic Realm beasts, allowing prolonged flight.

Originally, the Deep Sea Dragon Beast had been unwilling to carry passengers, but

"Xiao Yan, hurry up! We're waiting for you!" Zi Yan waved from atop the Deep Sea Dragon Beast's head, ecstatic at the prospect of going to the Tian She Empire.

No matter how much the Deep Sea Dragon Beast resented it, it dared not protest. Having broken through to the Demonic Realm, Zi Yan's bloodline suppression over the Deep Sea Dragon Beast was no longer trivial—her gaze hardened, and the beast froze as if petrified, utterly motionless.

Xiao Yan smiled, flew to the Deep Sea Dragon Beast's head, and bowed: "This journey is a great trouble for you, Lion King."

"No trouble at all, Master Xiao Yan cured my chronic ailment—this is but a small thing, nothing to mention." The Deep Sea Dragon Beast rumbled.

"Don't be polite with it—if it says no, I'll twist it into a knot," Zi Yan raised her tiny fist, threatening the Deep Sea Dragon Beast.

"Of course, of course! To carry Miss Zi Yan is my honor. Hehehe." The Deep Sea Dragon Beast bowed obsequiously.

Seeing the Deep Sea Dragon Beast's behavior, Yao Ye and Jia Xingtian could only force a bitter smile—this beast had always been arrogant, even toward Jia Xingtian, who had broken through to the Sage Emperor. Now, he groveled before a young girl newly entered into the Demonic Realm—how could Jia Xingtian not be speechless?

Once everyone stood upon the Deep Sea Dragon Beast's back, it sprouted a pair of enormous blue Dou Qi wings—its power was no weaker than the Purple Crystal Winged Lion King's, and the Eight-Star Demonic Realm Deep Sea Dragon Beast flapped its wings violently, stirring a damp gust of wind.

The Deep Sea Dragon Beast carried the dozen or so people toward the center of the Northwest Region—the Tian She Empire, home to the Northwest Region's oldest heritage and strongest power!

Far away, in the heart of the Black Horn Region, stood a colossal academy renowned across the Dou Qi Continent.

Today was a particularly lively day at the Jia Nan Xue Yuan Nei Yuan—by tradition, the Inner Court organizes a monthly event where all students enter the Tian Fen Lian Qi Ta to cultivate; the students wholeheartedly support this, for on this day, no "Fire Energy" is required to enter the tower—and today was precisely this month's collective cultivation.

When Xiao Yan was in the Inner Court, he had heard of this activity before, but rarely participated, because as a man of great wealth, he had no need to worry about Fire Energy, so naturally he didn't have to compete with so many others for cultivation chambers.

Because when Han Feng led the attack on the Inner Court, many of the Inner Court's policies changed over these two years, and the total number of people in the Inner Court gradually increased significantly, adding more fresh blood to strengthen the academy's strength.

Thus, the current number of people in the Inner Court is far beyond what it once was.

Not long after the morning bell rang, groups began steadily making their way toward the Tian Fen Lian Qi Ta; by the time the sun hung high in the sky, the spacious square outside the Tian Fen Lian Qi Ta was already packed with a sea of people.

Around the Tian Fen Lian Qi Ta, a vast square had been constructed; at its center stood only the tip of the Tian Fen Lian Qi Ta, protruding slightly above ground, and beside the tower's entrance stood a statue—a young man in a black robe, holding a black ruler, his expression utterly calm, making his refined face appear exceptionally handsome.

Almost everyone in the Inner Court had seen this statue, so they passed by without surprise; occasionally, some students would pause and look down at the inscriptions on the pedestal below, each unable to help but marvel at the astonishing deeds of this man.

On the pedestal were carved titles and deeds: the youngest and most gifted Alchemist in the Inner Court, the hero who defeated Han Feng, the monster who attacked the Inner Court, the Founder of the Inner Court's strongest Faction, and more.

Before the statue stood a tall woman, poised gracefully, her gaze filled with some inexplicable emotion as she stared blankly at the familiar face of the statue. Her features were strikingly beautiful, but what drew the most attention were her long, rounded, sensual legs; every passerby couldn't help but sneak glances at her legs, though such glances were extremely subtle, never daring to show the slightest disrespect.

For they all knew her identity well: she was Xiao Yu, Xiao Yan's cousin, who had been exceptionally promoted to Elder of the Inner Court.

"I wonder how you are now," Xiao Yu murmured softly, a faint smile appearing on her cheek.

Only when alone did she reveal her true feelings for Xiao Yan; as for news of Xiao Yan, she could only learn bits and pieces through the Miter Auction House in Xiao City.

Now, Xiao City had become exactly as Xiao Yan had planned—not only a renowned city in the Black Horn Region, ranked among the top, but also, since half a year ago when Ya Fei personally came to host an auction of pills refined by Xiao Yan himself, combined with the former members of the Medicine Guild, Xiao City had become the undisputed center for Alchemists in the Black Horn Region.

If you sought Elixirs or an Alchemist to refine Pills, the best place in the Black Horn Region was Xiao City.

"Cousin Xiao Yu, the Grand Elder needs you." A sweet-faced girl with an extremely voluptuous figure walked over from afar; her curves bounced with every step, making passing men involuntarily swallow hard, silently crying out in horror!

Seeing Xiao Mei approach, Xiao Yu dismissed all her thoughts, nodded, and took a step forward—suddenly! A change occurred!

A terrifying infernal heat was rapidly rising from the tower's base! The ground trembled instantly, the entire Heavenly Flame Qi Refining Tower shook violently, and an extremely terrifying aura emanated from beneath the Tian Fen Lian Qi Ta.

"What's happening!!"

"What's going on!!"

Xiao Yu froze for a moment, then realized something, murmuring: "Could it be!"

The Grand Elder appeared instantly; even he, a Dou Zong, wore an expression of grave seriousness—he could guess what was happening, but this aura, this level of Cultivation Realm, was far more terrifying than he had imagined!

"How could her Cultivation Realm have increased so much!"

(End of Chapter)