Chapter 559: Ling Xianliu Didn't Die; He's Still Alive

Everyone at the Academy, including Wu Shushan, looked at Ye Qingran with an incredulous gaze.

Even so, they seriously suspected they had misheard.

Ye Qingran wants to give the remaining sixteen Imperial Pills to the Academy?

Impossible!

"Instructor Ye, stop joking." Wu Shushan gave an awkward smile, waved his hand, and didn't believe it at all.

One must know these are Imperial Pills—so precious and rare. If it were anyone else, they might have already hidden them; how could they be given away so easily?

"Don't want them? Then never mind." Ye Qingran pretended to put them away.

Wu Shushan's expression changed, "Instructor Ye, are you serious?"

Ye Qingran rolled her eyes, "Do I look like I'm joking?"

"Not at all." Wu Shushan shook his head.

Then the Academy's many disciple‑Instructors saw their venerable dean act like a robber, rushing to snatch the pills from Ye Qingran.

"Instructor Ye, then I shall accept without ceremony!"

Wu Shushan held on tightly, fearing Ye Qingran might change her mind.

The others shook their heads, embarrassed to look!

However…

"Instructor Ye, do you have any conditions?"

Nan Xin delivered so many pills to the Academy on the condition that Ye Qingran's family of four be expelled.

If Ye Qingran gives such precious Imperial Pills to the Academy, there must be a request, right?

"No. It's just a few pills—why make any demands?"

Ye Qingran said lightly.

That attitude, that tone…

It seemed what she was giving away wasn't the precious Imperial Pills at all, but something insignificant.

Yet, to the listeners, the remark couldn't help but be compared with Nan Xin's.

Compared with Ye Qingran, Nan Xin's actions—or rather Dan Valley's—were utterly inferior.

No conditions?

Wu Shushan felt a surge of joy, his gaze at Ye Qingran full of satisfaction.

She truly lives up to being the lady‑master of the Summit of the Hunt; her vision, her bearing—simply incomparable to ordinary people.

The Pill Emperor title is well deserved!

"Look at this spectacle, look at this bearing! Instructor Ye truly is beautiful, kind‑hearted, and of lofty vision—truly worthy of the Pill Emperor!"

Hong Wu tilted her head slightly and shouted.

When she heard some people kicking a man when he was down earlier, she felt so suppressed and angry; now she feels utterly delighted.

Hearing Hong Wu's flowery praise, everyone tacitly accepted it.

"Those who, for petty gains, used venomous words to try to drive Instructor Ye's family of four away—why are they silent now? Have they all become mute?"

Hong Wu's voice turned sharp.

The disciples who had previously berated Ye Qingran and forced her out of the Academy now bowed their heads, like turtles pulling into their shells.

Nan Yan had already recovered from shock, a raging fire of anger burning within.

She never imagined Ye Qingran could actually be a Pill Emperor!

She rolled her eyes, spotted the Academy disciple Ye Qingran had kicked, and hatched a plan.

"Instructor Ye, although your alchemy skill is strong, you still cannot arbitrarily mistreat Academy disciples!" Nan Yan whispered.

"I'm just that unreasonable; what can you do to me?"

Ye Qingran gave a disdainful smile.

She no longer wished to explain anything.

Since they think the fist is the ultimate truth, she would let the fist speak.

Nan Yan choked.

Ye Qingran sneered, "Oh, look at my memory— even all the Alchemists of Dan Valley combined can't match me, let alone you, you noob."

Noob?

She's a noob? Nan Yan trembled with fury.

"I just love seeing you look at me with disdain, yet unable to get rid of me."

The crowd was stunned.

Though the words were coarse, the reasoning wasn't at all.

This is a world where the strong reign supreme; strength is the true path.

Who told you Dan Valley didn't have a Pill Emperor?

"Alright, that's enough comparison…"

Ye Qingran's gaze shifted to Nan Xin, and his body involuntarily shivered.

Pill Emperor!

The two words pressed on his heart like a mountain.

It was the realm he had long dreamed of, yet also a peak he could never surmount.

Yet the very realm he had pursued all his life had already been attained by someone he once looked down upon.

The other was far younger and a woman.

It reminded him of the old Ling Xianliu.

That damned fellow who always has to outdo him in everything!

"Nan Xin, you lost."

Ye Qingran said lightly, exhaling.

Though her tone was plainly understated, it sounded as weighty and majestic as divine speech.

It shook both heart and spirit.

Nan Xin, you lost.

The Grand Elder of Dan Valley, the most prestigious Alchemist of Beimingzhou, a legendary Dan Saint renowned far and wide for creating pills from the void.

He lost to an unknown Instructor of the Academy.

Since rising ten years ago, Nan Xin's life had never faced a defeat like today's.

One misstep becomes an eternal regret!

Nan Xin is filled with hatred.

Endless resentment surged within his heart.

But he had to admit that he indeed lost.

"The victor is king, the loser is a bandit. Nan Xin, it's time to fulfill your promise."

Those words reminded everyone present that there was still a pact between Ye Qingran and Nan Xin.

If Ye Qingran lost, her family of four would leave the Academy.

If Nan Xin lost, he would kneel and call Ye Qingran "ancestor."

They still recalled when Ye Qingran said those words; at the time, they were unconvinced, believing Ye Qingran would surely lose.

But who could have expected such an unexpected outcome?

With the Pill Emperor's emergence, who dares to contend?

At just over twenty years old, he already held the title of Pill Emperor; such an achievement even made Ling Xianliu, who once dazzled Beimingzhou, sigh, "The younger generation is formidable!"

Make him kneel?

Nan Xin bit his back tooth, his heart filled with countless unwilling thoughts.

He is, after all, the Grand Elder of Dan Valley; wherever he goes, others bow and grovel before him.

When has he ever knelt before anyone?

Moreover, Ye Qingran is just a girl barely over twenty; if he kneels, wouldn't that tarnish his lifelong reputation?

"Ye Qingran, what exactly is your relationship with Ling Xianliu?"

Nan Xin asked loudly.

The crowd's gazes flickered.

"Ye Qingran, do you still have ties with Ling Xianliu?"

Everyone waited for Ye Qingran's answer.

Ye Qingran's lips curled up, smiling elegantly and mysteriously.

"Nan Xin, you want to know my relationship with Ling Xianliu, and I refuse to tell. However, I can tell you that Ling Xianliu is not dead; he is still alive."

Ling Xianliu is not dead?

That fact, for Nan Xin, was undeniably a massive shock.

Although the fate tablet in Dan Valley shattered, indicating that Ling Xianliu had fallen, years of nightmares had constantly made him doubt whether he was still alive.

Now, Ye Qingran tells him that Ling Xianliu is not dead, that he is still alive!

How could he accept that?

A huge wave of terror rose in his chest; his heart trembled.

Yet, to others, those words sounded odd.

Because, in their understanding, when Ling Xianliu left Dan Valley ten years ago, he did not fall, so his being alive should be normal. Why then was Grand Elder Nan Xin's reaction so intense?