The carriage traveled eastward.
"Master, we have entered the territory under the Alchemy Tower's jurisdiction. Fire City lies within their administered area," Fengyun Jue suddenly said to Ye Yunfei.
"Hmm," Ye Yunfei nodded slightly.
As they ventured deeper into the Alchemy Tower's domain, Ye Yunfei could feel the wood-attributed energy within heaven and earth becoming exceptionally active and dense.
Ye Yunfei understood this was because the Alchemy Tower's territory was extensively planted with medicinal herbs on a massive scale, saturating the air with particularly rich wood-attributed energy.
Whoosh…
Ye Yunfei activated his Greenwood Emperor Body. The wood-attributed energy in the surrounding space began to converge toward Ye Yunfei's body in an unending stream.
Absorbing more wood-attributed energy could make the Greenwood Emperor Body more solid and refined.
As he continuously absorbed the wood-attributed energy, Ye Yunfei's physical body began to shimmer with streaks of green light. The dense green radiance even spilled out from the carriage, enveloping its surroundings in a dazzling, extremely brilliant azure glow.
This peculiar phenomenon caused passersby to look over, wondering which formidable expert sat within that carriage. Some martial artists even wanted to step forward to pay their respects, but they were directly rebuked and sent away by Fengyun Jue. Fengyun Jue was an expert at the Late Stage Mystic Liquid Realm; most martial artists in the entire Central Continent were no match for him.
"Master, we have arrived at Fire City," Fengyun Jue announced as the carriage suddenly stopped one day.
The Alchemy Tower, as one of the top forces in the Central Continent, ruled over a vast territory, its area equivalent to the combined land of over a dozen ordinary empires! Numerous cities of varying sizes were, of course, distributed within it.
Fire City was one of the Alchemy Tower's more famous cities, rumored to be second in scale only to the Tower's headquarters. It was said that beneath Fire City, a fire dragon lay buried—one formed through the transformation of a millennium-old earth lung fire vein. Only the most skilled alchemists had the faintest chance of sensing it.
"There really is a fire dragon!"
Ye Yunfei projected his Soul Power forward to sense Fire City. In the sky above the city, he faintly saw a giant dragon wreathed in raging flames crouching there, occasionally emitting subtle roars.
Of course, such roars could only be sensed by those who, like Ye Yunfei, were versed in the principles of heaven and earth, capable of discerning the earth's formations, and possessed of high alchemical skills.
"If I could capture this fire dragon and use it for alchemy, it would definitely be a case of half the effort yielding double the results. Moreover, supplemented with fire-attribute cultivation arts for combat, its power would be immense."
Watching the fire dragon above Fire City, Ye Yunfei's heart was stirred.
Of course, the fire dragon in the sky was merely a projection. The true dwelling of this fire dragon was deep beneath Fire City's foundations.
"Let's enter the city first and meet with those few First-Grade Treasure Pill Masters," Ye Yunfei said.
"Yes," Fengyun Jue responded immediately, driving the carriage into the city.
At this moment, within Fire City...
Inside a luxurious palace, several alchemists were casually discussing matters of the Pill Dao, accompanied by over a dozen experts.
The Alchemy Tower's once-every-five-years Pill Battle Competition was not only a grand event in the alchemical world but a major occasion for the entire Central Continent. By this time, every large and small faction across the Central Continent would inevitably send representatives to the Alchemy Tower, all striving to identify and befriend skilled alchemists.
For every faction, befriending a superior alchemist brought immense benefits, as a martial artist's cultivation path was inseparable from elixirs.
One could say that behind every alchemist stood a host of experts and forces linked to them.
"Heh, we issued a Pill Battle challenge to that so-called Master Liuyun, but so many days have passed without a peep. This proves that Liuyun is indeed just a fraud seeking cheap fame and hoodwinking the world," a white-robed elder spoke up. "Before, hearing all sorts of legends about him, I truly thought our Central Continent had produced another formidable alchemist."
"I heard this Liuyun is just a youngster. The Pill Dao is vast and profound; which alchemist hasn't undergone long periods of tempering and exploration to achieve something? A junior claiming the title of 'Master' is clearly fake at a glance," a short and lean man sneered.
"What's more hateful is that lad even calls himself a First-Grade Treasure Pill Master. It's an outright insult to us actual Treasure Pill Masters," a green-robed man shook his head.
If anyone recognized the alchemists present here, they would be utterly shocked.
Master Qihuang, Master Qianyao, Master Xinglin, Nine Crooks Vagabond, Master Tianmu!
Five alchemy masters, all First-Grade Treasure Pill Masters, renowned across the Central Continent, had gathered in this hall!
Among these five masters, Master Qihuang and Master Tianmu held positions within the Alchemy Tower and commanded the highest prestige. The white-haired elder seated in the center of the main position was Master Qihuang.
"Haha… I've heard that the title of Treasure Pill Master needs recognition from the Alchemy Tower to be legitimate. For an ignorant brat to dare call himself a Treasure Pill Master is no wonder these masters despise him so," a tall, skinny, middle-aged man whose hands hung past his knees like giant palm-leaf fans said ingratiatingly.
"Sirs, please rest assured. If that so-called Master Liuyun dares not come, let it be. But if he does dare show up, even if you masters do not take action, I will teach him a good lesson!" a black-robed elder declared with a hearty laugh.
"No rush. If he comes, we shall first test his true alchemical skills. If he genuinely is a First-Grade Treasure Pill Master, then he deserves to enjoy the title of Alchemy Master. But if it's proven that he is indeed hoodwinking the world, then naturally he should be taught a little lesson," Master Qihuang spoke unhurriedly.
"Very well, we shall proceed according to Master Qihuang's suggestion," Master Tianmu nodded.
"In my opinion, this Liuyun is absolutely a fraud. If someone so young can become a First-Grade Treasure Pill Master, wouldn't that mean his alchemical talent rivals those three pill dao prodigies—Hu Qing, Situ Yue, and Luo Han? Is that even possible?" Nine Crooks Vagabond sneered.
Hu Qing, Situ Yue, and Luo Han were all core disciples under the Alchemy Tower's intensive cultivation, the pride of the Tower, and the three most likely candidates in this Pill Battle Competition to be taken as closed-door disciples by the Tower's high-ranking masters.
"Heh, that's true. Hu Qing, Situ Yue, and Luo Han are all alchemy prodigies, the future hope of our Alchemy Tower. How could some Liuyun have the qualifications to even be mentioned in the same breath as our Tower's three young geniuses? It seems this Liuyun is mostly a charlatan," Master Qihuang couldn't help but nod in agreement.
"Heh, actually, why waste our breath discussing this Liuyun? He simply doesn't dare come to Fire City," Master Qianyao, who had remained silent, suddenly spoke with a cold laugh.
It was at this very moment.
"My master, Master Liuyun, has arrived!"
A thunderous shout boomed in the air above the palace, reverberating through the halls.
Instantly,
An absolute dead silence fell within the palace.