Although the Bone-Melting Blood-Fusion Pill had been bought by the Misty Cloud Sect, Yun Yun, its sect master, wasn't in a hurry to leave after the auction ended.
Instead, she found Yao Chen and brought up Yun Shan's invitation for him to visit the Misty Cloud Sect.
She waited for his reply.
But Yun Yun felt that the chances of him accepting were probably... not very high.
As it turned out, Yao Chen's response only confirmed what Yun Yun had thought and suspected.
"Not interested." Yao Chen spoke coolly. He directly turned down Yun Yun, then rose to leave. Yun Shan might be a Dou Zong, but he had been forcibly raised to that level through Soul Hall's methods. He wasn't a true, genuine Dou Zong.
Besides, the Misty Cloud Sect was an early antagonist faction, so Yao Chen naturally didn't have a good impression of them. He refused outright.
For a Dou Sheng like him to go to their little Misty Cloud Sect—how could that be anything but an insult? Did their sect even deserve him?
Although Yun Yun had been rejected, she wasn't surprised. She said, "Mr. Yao, our Misty Cloud Sect is deeply honored to have won the auction for a Rank 7 Pill."
"Even if you have no intention of visiting our sect, if you ever need anything from us in the future, please don't hesitate to ask."
"If it's something our Misty Cloud Sect can do, we won't refuse. We'll do everything in our power to help you resolve it."
Yun Yun added, "Although our Misty Cloud Sect can't be considered a first-rate faction on the Dou Qi Continent, we still carry some weight in the Jia Ma Empire."
"Even the Imperial Family of the Jia Ma Empire has to think twice when it comes to our Misty Cloud Sect."
After saying all this, Yun Yun took Nalan Yanran with her, greeted Yao Chen, bowed, and left!
"Mr. Yao, we'll be going back to our sect now."
"If you're interested sometime in the future, you're welcome to visit our Misty Cloud Sect. We'll receive you as an honored guest. Farewell."
Nalan Yanran also bowed to show her respect for Yao Chen. He was one of the few Rank 7 Alchemists in the Jia Ma Empire. Though Nalan Yanran was willful and proud, she did have some sense.
"Mr. Yao, we'll be leaving now." After the two of them, master and disciple, said their farewells, they left the Miteer Auction House and headed back to the Misty Cloud Sect.
At that moment, in the Misty Cloud Sect, Yun Leng, its Grand Elder, looked at Yun Shan and sighed. So this was the imposing presence of a Dou Zong? He truly had an extraordinary bearing.
Yun Leng spoke, then said to Yun Shan:
"Old Sect Master, I never imagined you'd truly break through the barrier of a Dou Emperor and reach the Dou Zong level. It seems that from now on, no faction in the Jia Ma Empire will dare look down on our Misty Cloud Sect."
"Even the Imperial Family of the Jia Ma Empire, especially that old geezer Jia Xing Tian, will have to take our Misty Cloud Sect seriously," Yun Leng said.
The other elders nodded in admiration, chiming in from the side:
"That's right. Our Misty Cloud Sect will surely become the greatest faction in the Jia Ma Empire from now on, bar none."
"The Imperial Family will have to step aside."
Yun Shan didn't care about any of this. Right now, he only wanted to know how Yun Yun and Yanran's trip to Wutan City had gone. They'd attended the auction of the Rank 7 Pill at the Miteer Auction House that day.
A while later, Yun Yun and Nalan Yanran, master and disciple, left Wutan City and returned to the Misty Cloud Sect.
"Yun'er, did you win the auction for the Rank 7 Pill?" Yun Shan asked.
He looked at Yun Yun. She nodded, then immediately took out a pill and showed it to him.
"Teacher, this is the Rank 7 Pill, the Bone-Melting Blood-Fusion Pill. They say it's a peak Rank 7 Pill. If it's repeatedly tempered with Heavenly Flames, it might even reach Rank 8. But there aren't many Rank 8 Alchemists on the Dou Qi Continent!"
After Yun Shan took the pill, he examined it at once. Although he wasn't an Alchemist,
he knew full well how difficult Rank 7 Pills were to refine!
The strongest Alchemist in the Jia Ma Empire, Pill King Gu He, was only a mere Rank 6 Alchemist.
Yet in the tiny city of Wutan, an Alchemist powerful enough to refine Rank 7 Pills had appeared.
And he was also a Dou Zong, just like Yun Shan.
Yun Shan wondered to himself, considering what he could do to bring this powerful Alchemist into their fold.
If a Rank 7 Alchemist joined the Misty Cloud Sect, then forget the tiny Jia Ma Empire—even across the entire Dou Qi Continent,
their Misty Cloud Sect would have the strength to stand against the other factions on the continent.
Deeply concerned, Yun Shan looked at Yun Yun and asked, "Yun'er, before you left, I asked you to pass a message to Mr. Yao. Did you deliver it?"
"Was Mr. Yao willing to visit our Misty Cloud Sect?" Yun Shan asked.
Yun Yun replied, "Teacher, I already brought it up with Mr. Yao, but he didn't seem interested in our Misty Cloud Sect, so he refused."
Yun Shan wasn't surprised by this result. After all, the other party was a Dou Zong and a Rank 7 Alchemist!
A powerhouse like that could establish a sect and become a faction in his own right through his own strength.
Naturally, he had no need to join the Misty Cloud Sect, so Yao Chen's refusal had been within Yun Shan's expectations.
Yun Shan replied, "Still, if I get the chance in the future, I'd like to meet Mr. Yao and see which of us two Dou Zongs is stronger."
"I wonder how many stars Mr. Yao has as a Dou Zong. One of these days, I'll have to spar with him," Yun Shan murmured to himself.
That day, the auction of the Rank 7 Pill at the Miteer Auction House came to an end.
After the various families and factions returned home, it took less than half a day for Yao Chen's reputation to soar—not only in Wutan City, but throughout the Jia Ma Empire.
In just half a day, plenty of people in the Jia Ma Empire had heard that a mighty Rank 7 Alchemist had appeared in the tiny city of Wutan.
Fama, president of the Alchemist Guild, was naturally thrilled and excited. Even as president, he was only a mere Rank 5 Alchemist.
It would be a tremendous honor if he could invite Yao Chen to join the Jia Ma Empire's Alchemist Guild. But Fama only dared entertain the thought; he didn't dare hope for it.
Yao Chen was a Rank 7 Alchemist. How could he possibly join their little, run-down guild?
Surely the Jia Ma Empire's Alchemist Guild had nothing to offer Mr. Yao. And whatever they could offer, he probably wouldn't even care for.
After the auction ended, the system's reward immediately appeared before Yao Chen.