Can Ye and Yuan Cheng He also left Big Trade City. They headed to the vast mountain ranges outside the Big Trade City, where they would battle against bandits and improve their combat skills. They had stayed in the Black Tower for far too long, and if they didn’t gain any battle experience, it was possible that they would become negative-star idiots like Hu Feiyun.
In this peaceful environment, Ling Han continued to study the Berserk Blood Spirit Pill.
Theoretically speaking, Level Eight Divine Pills were the limit of what Sun Moon Tier elites could refine. However, one’s cultivation level wasn’t a reflection of their alchemy level. Perhaps a Level Seven alchemist would only be at the low extreme of the Sun Moon Tier, while an elite at the consummate level of the Sun Moon Tier could only become a Level One alchemist.
One’s cultivation level simply determined the limit of their alchemy level. After all, alchemy required one to have a powerful divine sense as well as control over powerful flames.
Ling Han had already reached the Sun Moon Tier, and thus the highest level of pill he could refine was Level Eight Divine Pills. Moreover, with a divine sense as powerful as his, perhaps he could even refine Level Nine Divine Pills when he reached the peak stage of the Sun Moon Tier.
***
Treasure Forest Pavilion.
“Oh? The Han Lin Pavilion actually has an alchemy prodigy who defeated Alchemist Li?”
The person who spoke was a shapely woman. She sat with her legs crossed, and her split dress revealed one of her long and pale legs. It was especially slender, and it was as smooth as jade.
Her voice was sweet and enchanting, and those who were present all felt an itch in their hearts. However, upon remembering her status, none of them dared to let their feelings show. They simply answered her question with a respectful “yes”.
She was the person in charge of the Treasure Forest Pavilion’s Big Trade City branch. Her name was Lin Yuqi, and she had only been here for less than three months. According to rumors, Lin Yuqi was the lover of some great elite in the headquarters of the Treasure Forest Pavilion. However, that person’s wife couldn’t tolerate her, so she was assigned to this branch to escape her wrath.
Who dared to have any improper thoughts about her?
Chapter 1229 - Level Eight!
Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations
Lin Yuqi looked around the room, and those present all remained silent.
This woman had a lofty status, so no one dared to talk back to her. It was frightening to even take an extra glance at her—this wasn’t because she was ugly, but rather because she was too seductive and beautiful. They were afraid that they wouldn’t be able to control themselves.
If they lost control, they would die before they even knew it.
“Milady, our business has fallen by at least 20%. The Han Lin Pavilion has stolen these customers,” a protection officer said.
Lin Yuqi, who was resting lazily on a chair, said, “It’s already been so many days. Haven’t you people devised a solution yet?”
“Milady, we lost all of the high-level alchemy matches, and as a result, many customers lost confidence in us. If we want to turn the tables, we must defeat the Han Lin Pavilion in alchemy,” an old alchemist said.
Although alchemists enjoyed a transcendent standing, how could beings of this world break free from the lure of fame and riches?
Lin Yuqi had a powerful background, and thus even the alchemists treated her with utmost respect.
Lin Yuqi waved her hand, and said, “Enough with the nonsense! Where’s my solution?” She appeared especially annoyed.
“There are two solutions,” the old alchemist said. He paused for a moment before continuing, “Number one: the Han Lin Pavilion is completely reliant on the alchemist called Ling Han. If we can convince him to join us, the Han Lin Pavilion will naturally be put back in their place.”
Lin Yuqi nodded, and asked, “What about the second solution?”
“That Ling Han claims to be a Level Seven alchemist. If we can enlist the help of a Level Eight alchemist to have a match with him, we’ll definitely achieve victory, regardless of whether they refine Level Seven Divine Pills or Level Eight Divine Pills.
“However, we don’t have Level Eight alchemists permanently stationed at our pavilion. Even if we immediately ask for help now, it’ll still take them two to three months to reach our city. If they get delayed, it might take even longer.”
Ling Yuqi pondered for a moment before saying, “We’ll try both solutions at once. We’ll persuade Ling Han to join us first, and if he obediently accepts, that will naturally be the best. However, if he isn’t willing to join, we’ll have no choice but to suppress him.”
“Understood!” the old alchemist said with a nod.
Lin Yuqi hesitated for a moment, and then said, “It seems like that Ling Han is fairly skilled in alchemy. So, there’s no harm in promising him more benefits. Mm-hm, treat him as if he’s a Level Eight alchemist.”
“Understood!”
The old alchemist nodded in understanding. He believed that Ling Han would definitely accept their offer… unless he was retarded.
However, much to his disbelief, he was shooed away by Ling Han’s two followers before he even got to see Ling Han. He reported this to Lin Yuqi, and the seductive beauty naturally became infuriated. She demanded that they get a Level Eight alchemist over as soon as possible. She was going to crush Ling Han once and for all.
Unfortunately for them, the Level Eight alchemist was in seclusion at this moment. He had apparently obtained an ancient pill recipe, and he had placed all of his attention on studying it. Thus, he couldn’t come to the Big Trade City any time soon. The Treasure Forest Pavilion couldn’t do anything about this, and they could only sit by idly as they watched the Han Lin Pavilion grow.
However, that alchemist would definitely come out from seclusion in half a year at most, regardless of whether he mastered the pill recipe or not. After all, he had to take a breather from time to time. When that time came, someone would naturally tell him the news, and request that he come over to defeat Ling Han.
Meanwhile, Ling Han had also entered seclusion to study the Berserk Blood Spirit Pill.
This kind of pill had been called the “saintly pill of the Sun Moon Tier” during ancient times. Not only did it have astonishing effects, but it was also tremendously hard to refine. Extracting the divine patterns from medicine and intertwining them together was almost as difficult as refining lower-grade Level Nine Divine Pills.
Half a year passed, and Ling Han finally managed to understand all of the steps and procedures.
Now, it was time to put everything into practice.
Ling Han’s heart throbbed slightly. This was because he definitely wouldn’t succeed in one go. However, each failure would mean wasting one Red Rain Divine King Fruit. This represented the loss of one sub-minor level of the Sun Moon Tier.
However, it would be an even bigger waste if he didn’t attempt to refine the Berserk Blood Spirit Pill. As valuable as the Red Rain Divine King Fruits were, they only represented wealth, not power.
He began his attempts.
Failure! Failure! Failure! Failure!
Level Eight Divine Pills were indeed very difficult to refine. Even though Ling Han already understood all of the steps and procedures, as well as the intertwining of the divine patterns—he had comprehended these under the Reincarnation Tree, which meant that he had spent over 100 years familiarizing himself with these—he still made mistakes when he refined the pills in real life.
Understanding and putting to practice were two very different concepts.
Ling Han’s heart throbbed. The Red Rain Divine King Fruits continued to decrease, going from an initial 129 to the current 87. This revealed just how many times he had failed.
Only when the Red Rain Divine King Fruits decreased to 46 did he finally succeed in refining a cauldron of Berserk Blood Spirit Pill.
; However, there was only one pill.
This wasn’t due to his ability. In fact, one could only refine one Berserk Blood Spirit Pill per cauldron. The only difference would be in terms of quality. There couldn’t be any difference in the number of pills.
‘Success! I’ve finally succeeded!’
Ling Han laughed in delight. He wasn’t in a hurry to ingest this pill. Instead, he immediately sat down cross-legged, and began to reflect on the mistakes that he had made during refinement. In fact, it was exactly because of this habit that his alchemy skills were able to improve in leaps and bounds.
With the help of the Reincarnation Tree, he naturally improved even faster.
Two days passed, and he completed his session of reflection. He continued to refine the Berserk Blood Spirit Pill.
He succeeded again, and this time, the quality of the pill was slightly higher.
A smile spread across Ling Han’s face. If he could ingest these Berserk Blood Spirit Pills one after another, his cultivation level would rapidly advance by two sub-minor levels. Along with it, his battle prowess would also be elevated by two stars.
However, a Berserk Blood Spirit Pill would take three days to digest. Ling Han realized that he had already remained secluded for a long time, so he decided to head out to check on the current situation.
He exited the Black Tower. Just as he opened the door of his room, he saw Zhu Wu Jiu run over. There was a look of delight on his face, and he said, “Young Master Han, you’ve finally come out of seclusion!”
“What’s wrong?”
“The Treasure Forest Pavilion has written another notice of battle. They want to challenge Young Master Han,” Zhu Wu Jiu said. He paused for a moment before continuing, “The notice of battle was issued a little over two months ago. However, Young Master Han was in seclusion, so we didn’t give them a reply. Right now, everyone’s saying that Young Master Han is cowering from the challenge.”
Ling Han couldn’t help but chuckle. He’d never took other people’s thoughts to heart. After all, he was living for himself, not others. In any case, what could others think about him if he displayed absolute strength?
“Since that’s the case, let’s go and answer their challenge!”
Ling Han headed to the Han Lin Pavilion. Upon entering, he realized that the number of customers had dwindled considerably. The entire store seemed empty and quiet. Meanwhile, most of the store attendants were walking around aimlessly. There was genuinely nothing for them to do.
By the looks of it, Ling Han’s “cowardice” had brought the reputation of the Han Lin Pavilion crashing down. Few customers visited the store.
“Senior Elder, you’ve finally returned!” Yun Yong Wang’s and Kang Xiu Yuan’s frown finally eased when they saw Ling Han. It was as if they had seen their savior.
Ling Han chuckled, and said, “It’s always been them challenging us. Let’s go to the Treasure Forest Pavilion today and challenge them for a change!”
“Agreed!” Yun Yong Wang and Kang Xiu Yuan both nodded in excitement. There was a ball of fire in their bellies.
Chapter 1230 - Han Xinyan
Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations
“However, the Treasure Forest Pavilion has dispatched a Level Eight alchemist this time. Moreover, this alchemist is regarded as a genius,” Kang Xiu Yuan immediately said.
By heading over to challenge the Treasure Forest Pavilion, they were naturally aiming for victory. However, if they ended up being thrashed… Heh, that wouldn’t be very fun.
‘Level Eight alchemist?’
Ling Han chuckled to himself. If it were half a year ago, he would have to seriously reconsider his actions. If Level Eight alchemists refined Level Seven Divine Pills, their success rate would definitely be higher, and the quality of their pills would also be on another level.
He would be confident, but he wouldn’t be able to guarantee victory.
Now, however, he had already managed to refine the Berserk Blood Spirit Pill. The difficulty of refining this pill was close to that of refining Level Nine Divine Pills. So, why would he be afraid of a Level Eight alchemist?
“That’s not a problem!” Ling Han said.
Kang Xiu Yuan and Yung Yong Wang exchanged a glance. They then nodded in understanding. Ling Han was incredibly talented in alchemy, so a Level Eight alchemist might not necessarily be able to suppress him if they both refined Level Seven Divine Pills.
After a short while, the three of them arrived at the Treasure Forest Pavilion.
Compared to the Han Lin Pavilion, the time-honored Treasure Forest Pavilion seemed far more majestic. Just its size alone was 10 times bigger than the Han Lin Pavilion. It didn’t seem like an alchemy store at all. Instead, it seemed like a magnificent palace.
Due to Ling Han’s “cowardice”, this place had naturally regained its customers and reputation. The flow of customers was almost like a dragon as they streamed in and out of the entrance. It was as if there would never be a quiet moment.
Ling Han strode over, and shouted, “Ling Han, the Han Lin Pavilion’s senior elder, has come to challenge the Treasure Forest Pavilion. Does anyone dare to accept the challenge?”
The stream of customers instantly faltered upon hearing this. They all turned around to look at Ling Han.
‘The Han Lin Pavilion is accepting the challenge?’
‘It’s showtime!’
It wasn’t long before a voice traveled out from the Treasure Forest Pavilion. “Heh, Grandmaster Ling has cowered like a turtle for so long. Did you finally muster the courage to show your head?”
“Why is there a wild dog barking?” Ling Han immediately chided.
“Y-you dare to call me a dog?!” the person shouted angrily.
“Heh, I simply made a remark. Why did you assume I was talking about you?” Ling Han laughed loudly, and said, “Perhaps you’re feeling guilty or in the wrong? Is that why you’re making connections to yourself every time I mention the word ‘dog’?”
“Detestable!”
Peng!
The sound of something shattering traveled out from the palace. It was clear that someone was infuriated.
“Grandmaster Ling sure is impressive. Your words precede your person.” Another old voice traveled over as an old alchemist walked out from the palace. Because of the stairs leading from the path to the palace, the old man instantly had the advantage of height. He looked down at Ling Han.
‘Heh, you want to play these tricks on me?’
Ling Han’s body shook, and he instantly transformed into a giant. A powerful aura emanated from his body. This was nothing difficult to achieve. The tables had turned, and now it was he who was looking down on the old alchemist. “I’ve come to accept the challenge. Whom is the Treasure Forest Pavilion dispatching?”
The old alchemist grimaced, and thought to himself, ‘This brat really isn’t willing to suffer any loss.’
He chuckled, and said, “Please wait for a moment, Grandmaster Ling. I’ll go and invite Grandmaster Han straight away.”
He turned around and entered the palace. Meanwhile, Ling Han shrunk back to his normal size. He had simply been messing with the old man.
True challenges were won through strength.
“Let’s go!” Ling Han said. He immediately walked toward the palace.
Kang Xiu Yuan and Yung Yong Wang exchanged a glance before hurriedly catching up. A strange feeling welled up in their minds when they looked at the person in front of them. It was as if they had returned to the Lower Realm, and were following their master as he defeated alchemist after alchemist, and eventually built his reputation as the Alchemy Emperor.
The three of them quickly entered the palace. Their opponents welcomed them with a wall of people who had their arms crossed before their chests. They appeared aggressive and overbearing.
Ling Han retrieved a chair from the Black Tower and casually sat down. He made himself feel at home.
The people from th
e Treasure Forest Pavilion were infuriated upon seeing this. ‘How f*cking confident are you? You’re making it seem as if you’re the owner of this place!’
After a short while, the wall of people suddenly parted, revealing a woman who was followed by a flock of followers.
This was an extremely aloof beauty. Her body was shapely and slender, her eyes were bright, and her teeth were white. Her skin was especially smooth and pale. If he were to nitpick, then it would be that her chest was a bit too flat. It wasn’t full and impressive enough.
“You’re Ling Han?” A hint of scorn and even disgust appeared on her face when she swept her gaze over Ling Han. “I’m a Level Eight alchemist, so why aren’t you paying your respects to me?”
‘Tsk! How domineering!’
Ling Han smiled faintly, and said, “How do you know I’m not a Level Nine alchemist?”
‘Isn’t that nonsense? How can there possibly be a Level Nine alchemist as young as you? Do you really think everyone’s called Han Xinyan?’
The aloof beauty was extremely haughty. She was a true alchemy prodigy. She was merely 10,000 years old, yet she was already a Level Eight alchemist. It was only due to the limit of her cultivation level, the insufficient power of her divine sense, and the insufficient might of her flames that she hadn’t advanced to become a Level Nine alchemist yet.
Her opponent looked much younger than her, yet he actually wanted to surpass her in alchemy?
That was simply impossible!
“Humph! So be it!” Han Xinyan said haughtily. “Let’s have a match. If you lose, obediently kowtow to me 100 times and admit that you disrespected me!”
Ling Han smiled, and said, “Being the gentleman that I am, I won’t make you kowtow or whatnot even If you lose. You can simply bring me some tea and admit that I’m better!”
A cold glint appeared in Han Xinyan’s eyes. The arrogance of this “junior” infuriated her.
Alchemy was similar to cultivation in that a gap of one tier was like the gulf between heaven and earth. Yet, this Level Seven alchemist actually dared to act arrogantly before a Level Eight alchemist! This was incredibly disrespectful!
Alchemy Emperor of the Divine Dao c1-1294 Page 632