Yao Xuan and the other man looked up at the sound, only to see that the newcomer was none other than—
The foremost figure among the younger generation of the Yao Clan's direct line, Yao Tian!
Yao Tian was also Yao Ling's older brother. The enormous Battle Qi wings spread behind his back made it clear that he was already a genuine Dou Wang expert!
Yao Tian's eyes swept coldly over Yao Xuan before he spoke again in a deep voice.
"Yao Ling, at this hour, shouldn't you be cultivating in the training chamber?"
"You slipped out without permission. Do you know what you did wrong?"
As soon as Yao Tian finished speaking, he lightly raised his hand. A remarkably gentle stream of Battle Qi flowed from his palm, lifting Yao Ling from beside Yao Xuan and carrying her directly to his side.
Yao Tian slowly turned his head toward Yao Ling and said gravely, "Yao Ling, remember your status!"
"The annual Medicine Assembly is just around the corner. If you still refuse to focus your mind on it and disgrace the direct line, the clan will not let you off lightly!"
Upon hearing this, Yao Ling first lowered her head and glanced at Yao Xuan, then nodded gently.
Yao Tian slowly turned, intending to take Yao Ling away. Yet in the end, he looked back, his icy gaze falling upon Yao Xuan.
"Yao Xuan, know your place. Do not covet what is impossible! Your duty is simply to be a guard!"
Yao Ling hurriedly said, "Brother, Brother Yao Xuan has merely never received the clan's preferential resources. Otherwise, with his talent, he might not be inferior to you!"
Yao Tian merely snorted with a cold smile. "Talent? Born into a collateral branch, his path in life was already decided!"
"We of the direct line are the direct line. We are absolutely not people whom collateral branches can compare themselves to!"
Yao Ling still wanted to argue, but before she could say anything, Yao Tian forcibly took her away.
Only Yao Xuan remained behind...
Watching the two depart, Yao Xuan let out a helpless sigh.
It had to be said that among the seven remaining ancient clans on the Battle Qi Continent, none distinguished so clearly between the direct and collateral lines as the Yao Clan.
In the eyes of the Yao Clan's direct line, just as Yao Tian had said, the direct line was the direct line—an existence collateral branches could never presume to rival.
Logically speaking, in an Emperor Clan like the Yao Clan, whose inheritance lay in alchemy, the Dou Emperor Bloodline was already showing signs of depletion. They should have placed even greater importance on uncovering the alchemical talent of the clan's younger generation!
Yet the Yao Clan did not see it that way. No matter how astonishing one's talent in alchemy might be, as long as one was born into a collateral branch rather than the direct line, the clan would not spend any effort cultivating them. On the contrary, it would suppress them at every turn!
Yao Chen from decades ago was the finest example. Though born into a collateral branch, his talent in alchemy far surpassed that of his peers in the clan.
He had once possessed the greatest chance of winning the Medicine Assembly, but that also threatened the interests of Yao Wangu's main branch!
To ensure that his younger brother won the Medicine Assembly championship, Yao Wangu chose to switch out the crucial materials Yao Chen needed for pill refinement during the finals. As a result, Yao Chen failed in his alchemy and lost his chance at the championship.
At the same time, Yao Wangu feared the alchemical talent Yao Chen had displayed. After the competition, he fabricated several charges against Yao Chen and threw him into the clan dungeon!
In the end, under the pretext that his bloodline was impure and that he had disgraced the clan, Yao Chen was stripped of his clan status and forbidden from ever returning to the Yao Clan!
Yet Yao Xuan knew perfectly well that after Yao Chen had been expelled from the Yao Clan, he relied on his talent and struggled his way upward, eventually becoming the publicly acknowledged number one alchemist of the Central Plains. He had even reached the level of a Peak Eighth-Grade Alchemist!
This showed just how exceptional Yao Chen's talent in alchemy had been. If the Yao Clan had valued such talent and invested clan resources into nurturing him—
Then the Yao Clan would surely have gained another Ninth-Grade Treasure Pill Grandmaster!
One had to know that even within the Yao Clan, Ninth-Grade Treasure Pill Grandmasters were exceedingly rare!
Yet because of Yao Wangu's suppression, the Yao Clan had lost such a Ninth-Grade Treasure Pill Grandmaster.
That was the Yao Clan of today. It might appear incomparably glorious to outsiders, but in truth, its hierarchy was rigid, and its interior had long since rotted and stagnated!
It could not tolerate collateral-branch geniuses threatening the direct line's monopoly over clan resources!
No wonder the Yao Clan would meet the fate of extermination in the future.
Thinking of this, Yao Xuan sighed helplessly.
"Ah..."
"This transmigration really would have been better off never happening..."
In his previous life, Yao Xuan had devoured all kinds of transmigration novels. Other transmigrators were always born into prominent families with cheat systems and golden fingers of their own.
Either they became the young clan chief of the Spirit Clan or the young clan chief of the Thunder Clan. Even the worst case was being born into the Xiao Household, with a Storage Ring containing an outrageously overpowered ultimate cheat like Xiao Xuan!
Even worse off, one could still cling to Xiao Yan's thigh!
But what about himself? Not only did he have no cheat system or golden finger, he had even been born into a collateral branch of the Yao Clan!
Without any preferential resources, even if he possessed talent in alchemy, what use could he make of it...?
"Brother System? Brother System, are you there?"
Still unwilling to give up, Yao Xuan called out a few more times, but received no response whatsoever.
Clearly, Yao Xuan was unlucky. He had no cheat...
Yao Xuan calculated the days. If things continued like this, if he went on cultivating in the Yao Clan as a member of a collateral branch, then within thirty years, the day the Yao Clan was exterminated would also be the day he died...
Yao Xuan calmed himself and thought it over. The Yao Clan's annual Medicine Assembly was about to begin.
From what Yao Xuan knew, the Medicine Assembly was an alchemy competition specially held by the Yao Clan for its younger generation!
Whether from the direct line or a collateral branch, anyone could participate!
Most importantly, if a collateral-branch disciple could win the Medicine Assembly championship, they would receive the same resources as direct-line disciples!
It seemed quite fair, offering every collateral-branch clansman a glimmer of hope!
But ever since the Medicine Assembly had been established, every annual champion had been monopolized by the direct line. The only collateral-branch member who had a chance to break that record, Yao Chen, had been framed and driven out of the Yao Clan!
Yao Xuan remembered that the previous Medicine Assembly's champion had been none other than Yao Ling's brother, Yao Tian!
When Yao Tian won last year, he had only been at the Dou Ling realm. Yet with the preferential support of clan resources, he had now successfully advanced to the Dou Wang level!
Furthermore, Yao Xuan had been able to sense earlier that Yao Tian was not only a Dou Wang; his soul power also seemed to have reached Mortal Realm Grand Perfection, only a single step away from the Spirit Realm.
Although he understood that his chances of winning the Medicine Assembly were slim—indeed, practically nonexistent!
Yao Xuan had no other options at the moment. After all, the resources he could obtain as things stood were simply too limited...
He had to win the Medicine Assembly championship in order to receive the Yao Clan's resources, grow stronger, and seek a sliver of survival when the Yao Clan faced extermination in the future.
Otherwise, only death awaited Yao Xuan!
After pondering for a moment, Yao Xuan had already formed a plan. His next task was to go all out and make thorough preparations for the Medicine Assembly!
After all, he had transmigrated. He could not possibly just wait here in the Medicine Realm for death...
Before you continue