Challenge! The Crisis of Aldas

(Free Chapter)

Darkmoon City, a residential hall.

Allen listened to Gangke's report with a livid expression, then asked, "Did Athena really say that human is her friend?"

Gangke replied with lingering fear, "Yes, General! Many soldiers saw it at the time. Lady Athena even drew her sword on me in front of everyone; I nearly lost my life."

"Damn that human! What exactly does Athena see in him?" Allen gritted his teeth, feeling the flames of jealousy burning within him. Athena never gave him, the garrison commander, a pleasant look, let alone a second glance. Yet now, she actually called a human she had only just met a friend and even stood up for him. It was simply intolerable.

"That's enough, Gangke. You may leave." Another calm voice rang out in the hall.

"Yes, Lord Joseph." Gangke, who feared this man no less than his direct superior Allen, bowed and retreated.

"My friend, I really don't know what that savage woman sees in him that has you so obsessed. If you want women, you can grab a handful of them whenever you like. Do you want me to send you a few top-tier succubus slaves?" Joseph poured a glass of wine and spoke in a measured, leisurely tone.

Joseph possessed a human appearance, likely due to a mutated bloodline, and appeared elegant and composed—a stark contrast to Allen's violent, martial temperament.

"Hmph, no need." Allen snorted coldly. "Aren't you interested in the eldest princess as well? It's just that while Lady Shea is beautiful, she's like a block of ice with no charm at all. I don't understand why you like her either."

Foolish thing, my liking is different from yours! Joseph sneered inwardly, though his face remained as light as a breeze. "Like you, everyone has different tastes. I just returned to Darkmoon City and don't know what kind of background that human named Chen Rui has."

"He's just a piece of trash with freakish luck!" Allen spat. "This human fell into the Demon Realm about ten days ago and was captured by soldiers. During interrogation, he used the alias Arthur and claimed to be a noble with no combat ability. He was taken away by Master Aldas as a test subject, but a few days later, he miraculously became Aldas's apprentice, and his status was even publicly acknowledged by Lady Shea. I don't know what's so attractive about this guy; Athena and the little princess visit him almost every day."

Joseph pondered for a moment and said, "In that case, his greatest reliance is the regard of that Dark Elf master. I know the little princess well; she's just curious. The eldest princess is likely doing this to win over Aldas. However, Aldas can barely protect himself now and will soon leave Darkmoon City. Once this human loses his value, even if you want to chop him into seven or eight pieces, that eldest princess won't stop you."

"With that person from the Imperial Capital making a move, Aldas is bound to fail." Allen's anger turned to joy. He nodded and raised his glass to Joseph, "You're right. Come, let's have a drink!"

In Aldas's laboratory in the outer courtyard of the palace, after the three girls including Alice had left, only Aldas and Chen Rui remained. The Lesser Devil, who was adept at reading the room, saw that the master was in a bad mood and had retreated early.

Aldas brought out several thick books: Refining Essentials, Common Potion Formulas, Poison Supplements...

"Chen Rui, these books are all for you." The Dark Elf sighed. "When I am no longer by your side, you must study diligently. Although you carry the inheritance of a grandmaster, learning has no end, and you must never slacken. As long as you keep working hard, one day, your achievements will shock the entire Demon Realm."

Chen Rui was startled. "Master, what happened? Where are you going?"

"I will likely be leaving Darkmoon City." Aldas shook his head, his expression filled with gloom, and explained the reason.

The Demon Realm prizes strength above all else; it is not just about power, but competition in every field is exceptionally fierce. The rules of the potion world are quite unique. If one wishes to become a potion master, there are two paths. The first is to go to the Alchemist Union in the Imperial Capital and pass a series of complex assessments, including accurately brewing the highest-grade white potion within a specified time, and obtaining the recognition of at least two masters.

The second path is to directly challenge a renowned master under the witness of the Alchemist Union. If successful, one is immediately promoted to master rank, while the defeated master is stripped of their title and exiled for three years, only being allowed to re-challenge or take the assessment after that period. If the challenged party refuses, they are considered to have failed automatically.

However, the challenger is not without risk; they must stake a massive amount of wealth. If the challenge fails, the wealth belongs to the master, and they cannot challenge again for three years.

Chen Rui understood; it was just like gambling. Aldas continued to explain that money is extremely important to alchemists because alchemy is a discipline that requires massive expenditure. Whether it is potion-making or artifact-crafting, both require significant financial support. Even assessing one's alchemist rank or following an alchemist to learn requires expensive fees. Therefore, ordinary alchemists seek support from wealthy factions and work for them.

Chen Rui mused that, compared to this, his own free apprenticeship had come far too easily.

Aldas himself had once been heavily in debt due to financial problems and had suffered cold shoulders. After failing his all-or-nothing attempt at the master-rank assessment, he had lost everything and nearly lost the will to live. It was during this lowest point that Aldas met the eldest princess, Shea. At the time, Shea was only sixteen and had just taken over Darkmoon City, yet she had the foresight to provide Aldas with precious funding. After Aldas became a master, he repaid her kindness by resolutely refusing invitations from the Imperial Capital and staying in Darkmoon City to serve Shea.

Chen Rui showed a look of realization. No wonder the Dark Elf master had such heartfelt respect for Princess Shea.

Aldas sighed. "A few months ago, I received letters from Master Zola and Master Kamp in the Imperial Capital, promising great benefits if I defected to Regent Heiyao. I refused them flatly. Today, the Imperial Capital branch of the Alchemist Union suddenly sent a magical message: Potion Master Sandru from the capital has officially challenged me. Now, two potion masters and Sandru are already on their way to Darkmoon City and will arrive in two days."

The polite invitation was refused, so the punishment had arrived.

Aldas was a capable aide to Shea. If he were defeated and exiled, the prestige of the Darkmoon territory and the strength at Shea's disposal would be greatly diminished. It was clear that this was a tactic by Prince Heiyao to weaken Princess Shea's power. The Imperial Capital was very far from Darkmoon City; even by the fastest flying beast, it would take nearly a month, yet the magical message had only just reached Aldas. It seemed the other party had deliberately intended to catch him off guard.

"Master, regardless of the other party's schemes, in the end, only strength can prove everything," Chen Rui thought for a moment and said, "As long as you defeat that Sandru, their conspiracy will fall through, and they will even have to pay a huge sum of wealth."

"I naturally understand that. The problem is, I am no match for Sandru." Aldas smiled bitterly. "Sandru is the most outstanding potion genius in the empire. When I was taking my potionist assessment, he already held the title of the empire's number one genius. Moreover, this person possessed master-level strength long ago; even many masters hold him in high regard. It is said that he once swore an oath that he would never take the master assessment unless he developed the strongest poison. Now that he has come to challenge me, on one hand, he is following the Regent's orders, and on the other, he has likely made a major breakthrough in developing a new type of poison and intends to use me as a stepping stone to advance to master rank. I discussed this with the eldest princess in the council chamber for a long time just now, and we couldn't come up with a countermeasure."

Chen Rui tried asking, "Master, if you contact Sandru's side right now and say you are willing to defect to Prince Heiyao, could this challenge be avoided?"

Aldas shook his head with a firm attitude. "Since I refused Prince Heiyao's recruitment back then, I will not accept it now either. Although we Dark Elves don't talk about hypocritical things like integrity or tolerance, we value gratitude above all else. I will never betray Lady Shea. Even if I am exiled for three years, I will do my utmost to become a master again and continue to serve Her Highness."

However, since Prince Heiyao was intent on dealing with Shea, it was hard to say whether Aldas could even keep his life during his exile. Even if the Dark Elf were lucky enough to survive and regain his master's glory, would the already precarious Darkmoon City still be under Shea's control after three years?

Even Chen Rui had thought of this, and Aldas surely knew it in his heart.

Aldas didn't say anything more and continued to clear out his potions and books, preparing to leave at any moment.

Chen Rui didn't help Aldas pack; he stood to the side, frowning in silence. Aldas was very rigorous in his academics, and although he had a bit of Dark Elf-style cunning, he had been unreserved in teaching him potion-making and had no so-called racial prejudice. At the same time, this master was also Chen Rui's best protective umbrella. For the sake of others and himself, he had to find a way to pull him through this.

Also, the startup progress of the Super System was currently stagnant. Perhaps Sandru's new poison could be an opportunity...

In his deep contemplation, a bold plan gradually took shape in Chen Rui's mind.

"Master, wait! Don't be so pessimistic yet. We might not necessarily lose. If my plan succeeds..." Chen Rui smiled after careful consideration, "Perhaps we can first discuss the distribution of that massive wealth in a relaxed manner."

This sentence made Aldas pause his movements, and his eyes, which had been somewhat gloomy, widened.

At this time in the Darkmoon territory, with interested parties spreading the word, the news that the Imperial Capital's potion genius Sandru would officially challenge Master Aldas in two days spread like wildfire. The entire Darkmoon was discussing this major event.

Two days passed quickly. Just as the magical message had indicated, the group from the Imperial Capital appeared outside Darkmoon City right on time.