Empire's Youngest Second-grade Alchemist

"Little friend Xiao Jin, second-grade pills are not so easy to refine, especially pills that increase cultivation. They are among the most difficult to refine within their grade. Are you confident?"

Gu Ni looked at the young man before him with deep emotion. It had taken him a full thirty years to go from an Alchemy Apprentice to a Second-grade Alchemist, yet this boy was only sixteen and was already attempting to become a second-grade alchemist. Such talent was truly enviable.

"Master Gu Ni, I cannot claim a hundred percent success rate, but I can guarantee fifty percent," Xiao Jin said confidently.

Gu Ni felt somewhat unconvinced upon hearing this. He had been a Second-grade Alchemist for six years, yet even now, when refining second-grade pills, he did not dare claim a fifty percent success rate. Xiao Jin was only sixteen. Even with guidance from a famous master, his success rate should not exceed thirty percent.

He was still too young, Gu Ni thought. Then again, if I had become a Second-grade Alchemist at sixteen, I would probably have been even more arrogant than him.

Gu Ni led Xiao Jin into the Alchemy Room. Just then, Ya Fei and a maid arrived as well, bringing two sets of medicinal ingredients.

"Little brother, I have brought the ingredients. If you are not confident, you can still back out. If the refinement fails later, the cost of these two sets of ingredients will be deducted from your share," Ya Fei said teasingly as she looked at Xiao Jin.

"Rest assured, Sister Ya Fei. I will not disappoint you," Xiao Jin said confidently.

"Little brother Xiao Jin certainly seems full of confidence. Then I wish you success in your pill refinement and hope you become the empire's youngest Second-grade Alchemist." With that, Ya Fei and Gu Ni left the Alchemy Room.

Xiao Jin took out the pill furnace and sat cross-legged before it. He then began recalling the method for refining the Qi Condensing Pill, striving to succeed on his first attempt.

Xiao Jin opened his eyes and pressed one hand against the pill furnace. Dou Qi surged from within him into the furnace, and golden-red flames quickly flared to life. With a grab of his hand, a Second-Grade Wood Attribute Magical Core appeared in his palm. Xiao Jin tossed the magical core into the pill furnace, then pressed both hands against it as Dou Qi poured from his body into the furnace like a tide. The temperature within began to rise rapidly.

The blazing flames wrapped around the second-grade magical core, yet it emitted a faint green glow as it resisted the surging fire. The two remained locked in a stalemate.

Refining this Second-Grade Wood Attribute Magical Core would take quite a while. It would be nice if I had Heavenly Flames. Xiao Jin thought to himself. Looks like I need to work even harder to make money. The system should have Heavenly Flames for sale.

As time passed, the second-grade magical core finally could not hold out any longer and slowly began to melt. After all, it was rootless water. How could it possibly outlast Xiao Jin, who cultivated a Heavenly Rank Technique?

Looking at the second-grade magical core that had melted into a mass of liquid, Xiao Jin began tossing the medicinal ingredients from the tray into the pill furnace one by one. Before long, a faint medicinal fragrance began spreading throughout the Alchemy Room. Xiao Jin did not relax in the slightest, continuously changing his hand seals as the liquid inside the furnace gradually took the form of a pill.

Xiao Jin was overjoyed and continued nourishing the pill. Another ten minutes passed before he slowly withdrew his hands. With a slap against the pill furnace, an emerald-green pill lay quietly at its bottom. Xiao Jin picked it up and exclaimed happily, "Success! Haha!"

Xiao Jin played with the pill in his hand and examined it carefully. After confirming there were no flaws, he placed it into a Pill Bottle and began his next refinement.

While Xiao Jin was refining pills in the Alchemy Room, a crowd had already gathered outside the auction house.

"Young Master, the family's experts have all assembled. As soon as Xiao Jin comes out, we will definitely capture him and leave him for Young Master to deal with," one of the Jia Lie Family's lackeys said ingratiatingly to Jia Lie'ao.

"Good. We did not alert the Xiao Family when we came, did we?" Jia Lie'ao asked excitedly. "No, Young Master. This time, we did not send any family experts above the Dou Master level. We should not have alarmed anyone from the Xiao Family," a Nine-Star Dou Practitioner from the Jia Lie Family replied.

"Good. This time, I will definitely cripple that little bastard Xiao Jin," Jia Lie'ao said viciously.

Time slowly passed, and Jia Lie'ao became increasingly impatient. "Why has he not come out yet? What exactly is he doing in there?" Jia Lie'ao impatiently asked the thugs beside him.

Just then, Xiao Jin sauntered out of the auction house, with Ya Fei and Gu Ni following behind him. "Congratulations, little brother Xiao Jin, on becoming the empire's youngest Second-grade Alchemist." Ya Fei looked at Xiao Jin happily, her eyes filled with wonder. "Young Master Xiao Jin, you are the most talented alchemist I have ever seen," Gu Ni said, his face full of envy.

Xiao Jin had just been about to reply when he saw Jia Lie'ao leading a group of thugs to surround him.

"Kid, you finally came out. Do you know how long this young master has been waiting for you?" Jia Lie'ao sneered.

"Waiting for me? What do you want?" Xiao Jin asked indifferently.

"What do I want? Did you think that what happened when you beat me up at the Marketplace last time would simply be forgotten?" Jia Lie'ao said angrily.

Xiao Jin replied without concern, "So what if I beat you up? Trash will always be trash. Even if you call over another bunch of trash, it will only take me a little more effort."

"You do not think I will say something as childish as 'if you have the guts, fight me one-on-one,' do you?" Jia Lie'ao said disdainfully.

The commotion at the entrance of the auction house gradually drew the attention of passersby. "Isn't that Jia Lie'ao from the Jia Lie Family? Who is he bullying this time?"

A passerby asked his companion, "It is Xiao Jin from the Xiao Family. That kid is no simple character. Two days ago, he gave that bastard Jia Lie'ao a beating at the Xiao Family's Marketplace. It was truly satisfying to watch."

One onlooker who knew both of them said, "Things do not look good for Xiao Jin. He is surrounded by so many Dou Practitioners from the Jia Lie Family. I am afraid his chances are grim," a passerby said pessimistically.

"Little brother, do you need Sister to settle this for you?" Ya Fei asked calmly. She hated it when people interrupted her conversations. In Wutan City, the Mite'er Auction House was the absolute ruler, but the Mite'er Auction House had always focused on business and had no interest in fighting for power and profit, so it had remained neutral and supported neither side.

Xiao Jin considered it for a moment before saying, "Then I will have to trouble you, Sister." He did not want to reveal his strength right now. Otherwise, it would certainly bring him trouble and affect his ability to make money.

Ya Fei smiled. "Watch your sister."

Ya Fei elegantly stepped in front of Xiao Jin, and her aura instantly changed. "Get lost. Mister Xiao Jin is a distinguished guest of the Mite'er Auction House. Are you saying you do not take our Mite'er Auction House seriously?" Ya Fei said domineeringly.

"Ya Fei, do not think I would not dare touch you just because you have Mite'er backing you. You are merely an auctioneer of Mite'er. Even if I deal with you today, Mite'er will not do anything to me. Get out of my way."

Jia Lie'ao looked at Ya Fei disdainfully, a lewd glint flashing through his eyes. He had long coveted this famous enchantress of Wutan City, but he knew that his father, Jia Lie Bi, also had his eye on her, so he had not dared make a move. Hearing their young master's words, the Jia Lie Family thugs began to snicker and grew restless.

Ya Fei froze. She had not expected anyone in Wutan City to dare speak to her like that. For a moment, she did not react. Then fury surged within her.

"Jia Lie'ao, go back and ask your father whether he would dare speak to me like that." Then she said to the auction house guards behind her, "Men, break one arm of every piece of trash in front of me. Let us see whether that old fool Jia Lie Bi dares come to my Mite'er Auction House and cause trouble." Ya Fei said angrily.

"Yes!" The guards behind her rushed forward. Soon, screams echoed throughout the area. The Jia Lie Family had only brought a group of mediocre Dou Practitioners. How could they possibly be a match for the guards of the Mite'er Auction House? Before long, they were sprawled everywhere, clutching their broken arms and howling in pain. Jia Lie'ao was naturally among them.

Looking at Jia Lie'ao rolling around on the ground, Ya Fei was filled with disdain. Then she turned around, lifted Xiao Jin's chin, and slowly asked, "Little brother Xiao Jin, Sister helped you solve such a big problem. How are you planning to thank Sister?"

Smelling Ya Fei's faint fragrance, Xiao Jin felt his entire body heat up, and his little face turned red. "Sister, please stop teasing me," Xiao Jin said, his face completely flushed. After all, he had never dated in his previous life and could not withstand such teasing.

Seeing Xiao Jin's bright red face, Ya Fei could not help laughing. Then she became serious. "You need to be careful lately. That old bastard Jia Lie Bi probably knows my identity and will not dare trouble me, but I am afraid he will turn his anger toward you." Ya Fei spoke with concern, as she still needed Xiao Jin's help.

Xiao Jin replied carelessly, "Do not worry, Sister Ya Fei. I usually stay in the Xiao Family, so Jia Lie Bi may not dare come after me. I still have matters to attend to in the family. I will leave the Qi Condensing Pills to you, Sister Ya Fei." "Do not worry. Just wait to collect your share of the money." Seeing Xiao Jin so confident, Ya Fei smiled again.

"Then, Sister Ya Fei, see you tomorrow." With that, Xiao Jin headed toward the Xiao Family, not even sparing Jia Lie'ao a glance as he lay on the ground. Watching his departing figure, Ya Fei said to Gu Ni, "Uncle Gu Ni, send a Da Dou Shi to protect Xiao Jin. He is our hope of returning to the family." "Yes, Miss," Gu Ni replied.