The next day, the Jia Ma Empire was shaken.
The Misty Cloud Sect, the Imperial Family, and the Alchemist Guild jointly issued a bounty!
"Track down the mysterious Yao Yan!"
"Anyone who provides a valid lead will be rewarded with a Sixth-Grade Pill personally refined by Elder Gu He, the imperial title of Viscount, a position as an Honorary Elder of the Misty Cloud Sect, and one million gold coins!"
The bounty notices were plastered across every major city in the empire. Countless experts set out to hunt for traces of the mysterious man in black robes.
Among the empire's Top Ten Experts, aside from Lion King Yan Shi and Wind Walker Feng Li, who had already agreed to help Gu He, the other Dou Wang experts all began investigating in secret.
Quite a few reclusive experts were also drawn out of seclusion by the lavish rewards.
For a time, winds rose and clouds surged across the Jia Ma Empire, while hidden currents churned beneath the surface!
The Nalan Family, Council Hall.
Nalan Jie sat at the head of the hall. Though advanced in years, his tiger-like eyes remained bright and piercing, carrying the sharpness of a veteran of countless battles.
Yet a closer look revealed a sickly darkness buried beneath his complexion, with faint wisps of black energy curling between his brows.
Years ago, he had fought a Branding Iron Poison Seal Python, and its deadly venom had seeped deep into his body. Though his formidable Dou Qi had temporarily suppressed it, his vitality had steadily declined, leaving him flickering precariously like a dying candle in the wind.
He held a bounty notice in his hand. His thin, withered fingers trembled slightly, and his clouded eyes were filled with shock.
"Yao Yan... Second-Rank Alchemist... mysterious expert..."
He murmured