Superficial Glory

By the time Zhou Chuan finished his tea, night had already fallen. The three-way talks between Starfall Pavilion, Burning Flame Valley, and the Toxic Sect had lasted from morning until evening—an entire day!

And that had only been a rough outline. They would need to continue discussing the details over the next few days, so rather than talk through the night, everyone chose to adjourn and resume the next morning.

One after another, the group filed out of the main hall. Two figures stood in the corridor outside, a man and a woman—Lan Yan and Lu Yue.

Tang Zhen had summoned them earlier, but after all the discussion, neither of them had been chosen. Instead, the obscure Zhou Chuan had been selected by Tang Zhen to become Venerable Yao's disciple.

Lan Yan's handsome face was especially gloomy. Among those who had reached the finals, his alchemy rank had been the highest, and he should have had the best chance of winning. Yet because of Ice River Valley's attack, he had fled the competition grounds, causing his pill furnace to explode.

As a group of elders emerged from the hall, Lan Yan quickly spotted his teacher. He hurried over, hesitating to speak. His teacher shot him an irritated glare, already knowing what he wanted to ask.

"Zhou Chuan has already taken Venerable Yao as his master, and Venerable Yao has accepted him!"

The matter was settled. His final shred of hope was gone, and Lan Yan's face suddenly twisted viciously as he shouted unwillingly, "Teacher, this isn't fair! Zhou Chuan is only a Fourth-Rank Alchemist, while I'm a Fifth-Rank Alchemist! Why does he get to become Venerable Yao's disciple? This isn't fair!"

Lan Yan's shout was especially jarring in the night. The Burning Flame Valley Elders nearby all turned to look,