"Nalan Yanran, have you no shame?
You know full well my cultivation talent is inferior to yours, yet you insist on competing over talent!
Even setting that aside, what resources do you get at the Misty Cloud Sect, and what do I get in Wutan City?
And you still have the nerve to compete with me?
If you really want to compare natural talent, why don't we see who's taller three years from now?
Now that would be purely a contest of natural talent! Do you dare?"
Nalan Yanran was stunned by Xiao Yan's shameless remarks.
How could anyone say something so shameless!
She was about to retort when Xiao Yan cut her off. "However!
You're right. On this Dou Qi Continent, strength ultimately does the talking. I, Xiao Yan, accept your wager!
But for the sake of fairness, I need to add a few restrictions."
Suppressing her anger, Nalan Yanran said, "Go on. What conditions?"
Xiao Yan said, "You must know what cultivation resources my Xiao Clan has. Compared to your mighty Misty Cloud Sect, we might as well have none.
So, for the sake of fairness, you must not use the Misty Cloud Sect's cultivation resources during these three years either.
Do you dare agree to that condition?"
The Xiao Clan disciples below joined in the jeering. "Exactly! What's so impressive about cultivating with the Misty Cloud Sect's pills? If I stuffed myself with pills, I might be even more talented than you!"
Hearing their mockery, Nalan Yanran lost her head and was about to agree!
But Ge Ye grabbed her and held her back firmly.
"You mustn't, Yanran! Squandering your golden years of cultivation over a wager simply isn't worth it!"
Nalan Yanran finally regained her senses and sneered. "Resources are part of one's strength too. If I have them, why shouldn't I use them?
If you're capable enough to find a Dou Zun expert to help you cultivate, I won't have anything to say about it either!"
Xiao Yan smiled. He had known Nalan Yanran wouldn't dare agree to that condition.
"Unwilling to give up the Misty Cloud Sect's resources? Heh, I knew it. That's fine too.
Miss Nalan, you said yourself that resources are part of one's strength. Then if I have resources of my own, I can use them too, can't I?"
Nalan Yanran sneered. "Of course! Use as much as you please!"
At her words, the quicker-witted Xiao Clan disciples below immediately paled!
Surely Xiao Yan wasn't planning to ride this wave of momentum to force the clan to pour all its resources into him for the next three years?
That would be a little too shameless!
Yet Xiao Yan said nothing about the Xiao Clan's resources. Instead, he changed tack and asked, "Miss Nalan, your Misty Cloud Sect has Alchemists too. I'd like to ask you something.
When an Alchemist competes against someone, must he fight alone, or can he invite helpers?"
Nalan Yanran didn't understand why Xiao Yan was asking this, so she answered instinctively:
"Alchemists can refine pills and have extensive connections. Naturally, they wouldn't fight alone in a contest. They would certainly invite plenty of helpers."
Smiling, Xiao Yan asked, "Then how many helpers does Miss Nalan think an Alchemist ought to invite?"
Nalan Yanran grew somewhat suspicious. She didn't understand why Xiao Yan was suddenly asking such questions, but she still answered, "Naturally, the more the better."
Xiao Yan laughed heartily. "You're far too generous, Miss Nalan! In that case, I'll be sure to invite plenty of helpers to lend their fists when the time comes!"
Nalan Yanran still looked bewildered, but Ge Ye had already caught on and cried out involuntarily:
"You're an Alchemist?!"
The entire room erupted!
Xiao Zhan sprang to his feet in excitement!
"Yan'er, you...!"
With a restrained smile, Xiao Yan turned toward Xiao Zhan and said:
"I hadn't had the chance to tell you yet, Father. Some time ago, an Alchemist came to Wutan City. I happened to meet him, and after examining my aptitude, he said I had a little talent for alchemy. He even casually taught me a few rudimentary alchemy techniques."
As he spoke, Xiao Yan held out a hand, and a burst of Dou Qi flame suddenly erupted from his palm.
A trace of wood energy ran through the flame's attributes. It was precisely the standard flame used to refine pills!
Every Xiao Clan disciple below grew excited!
An Alchemist had emerged within the clan. This was a momentous event that would benefit the entire clan!
Almost everyone present stood to gain something from it!
As everyone knew, Alchemists were exceedingly rare on the Dou Qi Continent!
With their requirements for Dou Qi attributes and soul perception, even ten thousand Dou Zhe might not produce a single Alchemist!
But rarity wasn't why Alchemists commanded respect.
Some people were born with mutations and had six fingers!
They were even rarer! What good did that do?
Alchemists commanded respect because they were simply so useful!
Every pill an Alchemist refined was immensely practical, and some could even save lives!
A beginner first-tier Alchemist might only have the cultivation of a Dou Zhe, but his usefulness and the respect he received were at least on par with a Dou Shi!
An advanced first-tier Alchemist could even enlist a Da Dou Shi!
On the Dou Qi Continent, people generally took it for granted that beginner Alchemists should receive treatment one rank above their own.
Advanced Alchemists, meanwhile, received treatment two ranks above their own!
Of course, this unwritten rule only applied below the Dou Emperor level.
Above the Dou Emperor level, personal favors no longer mattered as much, and the rule that the strong reigned supreme took over again.
Nalan Yanran fell silent as well.
The unwritten rules governing the treatment of Alchemists were common knowledge. She couldn't possibly deny them!
Although she didn't know how talented Xiao Yan was at alchemy, even with ordinary aptitude, he had a very good chance of becoming a beginner first-tier Alchemist in three years!
Then he could quite reasonably enlist several Dou Shi to support him!
But even using the Misty Cloud Sect's cultivation resources, she would at most become a Dou Shi herself in three years!
Then it would be one against many-a gang-up!
How was she supposed to compete?
If Xiao Yan even managed, through sheer luck, to become an advanced first-tier Alchemist in three years and invited several Da Dou Shi to help him fight...
She might as well declare the contest unnecessary and become Xiao Yan's slave and maid outright!
Nalan Yanran truly hadn't expected that she would now be the one at a disadvantage in this contest of talent!
But she had been the one to propose the contest, so she could hardly change her tune now!
She couldn't tell someone that strength did the talking on the Dou Qi Continent when her talent was superior...
Then start dredging up every excuse imaginable when her talent was inferior, could she?
Nalan Yanran scorned such behavior!
Gritting her teeth, Nalan Yanran said, "Xiao Yan, I admit that now you've awakened your talent for alchemy, your aptitude is no worse than mine!
But even if you bring others to help you, I won't necessarily lose this contest!
I accept this wager!
However!
There's one thing I must make clear beforehand. Even if you're an Alchemist, you can't invite an unlimited number of helpers for the contest, can you?
There has to be an upper limit!"
Xiao Yan nodded. "You're right, Miss Nalan. If I invited an unlimited number of helpers, there would be no point in holding the contest.
It would be far too unfair!
Hmm, then I'll invite fewer helpers."
Nalan Yanran inwardly breathed a small sigh of relief.
Hateful though Xiao Yan was, at least he could still listen to reason.
Xiao Yan smiled faintly and raised one finger.
At the sight of that finger, Nalan Yanran breathed a great sigh of relief.
If he invited only one helper, that would certainly be as fair as could be.
Xiao Yan spoke.
"Miss Nalan, I won't invite too many. Let's make it ten. How does that sound?"
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