"Junior Huoxun Mingcheng greets the Fourth Elder."
When Xiao Yan and the others noticed the newcomer, the latter first respectfully bowed to Xiao Ming. Xiao Ming, expressionless, glanced at him coldly and then ignored him. Huoxun Mingcheng did not care about this. The fourth elder of the Xiao Clan was well-known, and everyone in the Central Region was familiar with his habits, so naturally they had no complaints.
Turning his gaze back, Huoxun Mingcheng looked at Xiao Siyu, a hearty smile appearing on his handsome face, and said:
"This must be the second young lady of the Xiao Clan."
Xiao Siyu.
Xiao Siyu bowed slightly in return, and when Huoxun Mingcheng looked at Xiao Yan, the latter clasped his hands in greeting.
Xiao Yan.
As soon as the words left his mouth, Huoxun Mingcheng was stunned for a moment, then nodded, his gaze quickly sweeping over Xiao Yan before he clasped his hands in a fist salute and said:
"I heard early this morning that the Xiao Clan has produced a new talent, even the two young masters of the Bai Clan have failed one after another. I never expected that he would also be an alchemist. I admire him greatly."
"You're too kind. Brother Huoxun's mastery of the Great Dao of Fire is truly astounding; it's truly admirable."
"Hehe..."
After exchanging a few polite words, Xiao Yan inadvertently noticed that Yao Shiling had fallen silent. Occasionally, when she glanced in his direction, her eyes held a hint of fear, which surprised Xiao Yan.
"Judging from Mr. Xiao Yan's previous words, it seems he is also interested in the inheritance within this Nine-Character Soul Stele?"
After their conversation, neither of them had gleaned anything from the Fang Yan. Huoxun Mingcheng then changed the subject, returning to the Nine-Character Soul Stele. Xiao Yan immediately became interested, slightly raising his eyes and saying:
"Just out of curiosity. I just wanted to try and see if there was any hidden opportunity in this stele."
"The idea of 'chance' is indeed true..."
The words had barely left his lips when Xiao Yan's eyes lit up slightly, and Huoxun Mingcheng immediately followed up:
"It's not that I intended to discourage you, sir. I've tried various methods to find some clues about this stone tablet, but it's like a bottomless black hole, without roots or source, impossible to investigate. I'm afraid it really is as everyone says, requiring Tier Eight Alchemist to open it."
At the end, even Huoxun Mingcheng let out a helpless sigh, indicating that he hadn't put much effort into it either.
Xiao Yan nodded slightly, glancing again at the stone tablet. Even the person before him said so; perhaps this trip really would end in disappointment...
Just as Xiao Yan was in a daze, he suddenly heard several shouts from the crowd. He frowned and looked over, and there stood a girl in a blue dress in front of the stone tablet.
The young woman had a slender, graceful figure with a sexy, curvaceous body that was extremely alluring. As a result, the eyes of some of the young men in the surrounding seats kept focusing on certain parts of her body, their eyes filled with desire and greed.
After a series of tests, the girl's final result was just at the level of Tier Six High-Level Alchemist. Even so, it still made Xiao Yan, an old Daoist priest, slightly startled. In his opinion, this girl was probably much younger than Murong Qianqian beside him. To have such achievements at such a young age was truly astonishing.
"They're from the Qi Clan of the Southern Territory. It seems the Qi Clan has produced quite a remarkable individual."
Huoxun Mingcheng's sharp gaze swept over an old man beside the girl, and after noticing the special inscription on the old man's sleeve, he was able to determine the origins of the two.
" The Qi Clan?"
Xiao Yan raised an eyebrow and said he had never heard of it. However Xiao Siyu, who was standing to the side, thought for a moment before finding some traces of the Qi Clan in her memory.
" The Qi Clan of the Southern Territory? You mean the Qi Clan near the Eastern Region? It's said they have close ties with some magical beast forces in the Eastern Region. If it weren't for their remote location and low-key approach, they would probably have another member among the three major clans."
Upon hearing this, Xiao Yan nodded silently, but a slight ripple appeared in the depths of his eyes. He thought to himself that the more people he saw in the Central Region, the more he felt the insignificance of his own power. Although the Xiao Clan was renowned in the Central Region, judging from what he had seen and heard in the past few days, the Yao Clan, which was affiliated with the Pill Tower, the Huo Xun Huoxun Clan, which could specialize in cultivating the Power of the Great Dao, and now the Qi Clan, all possessed extraordinary strength. There were countless hidden talents in the Central Region, and he himself seemed to have become too complacent since returning to the Xiao Clan.
"Call!"
With these thoughts racing through his mind, Xiao Yan glanced at Mu Leng and the other person beside him and secretly decided that perhaps after this matter was over, it would be time to make a good adventure in the Central Region!
While Xiao Yan was lost in thought, Huoxun Mingcheng seemed to have received some information. He gave a slight polite greeting to the group in front of him, then turned and went to the Nine-Character Soul Stele. When the others looked over, they saw an Pill Tower Elder bowing and speaking to Huoxun Mingcheng beside the stele. Seeing the Pill Tower Elder's respectful posture, Xiao Yan was somewhat taken aback. Xiao Siyu, who was standing beside him, then said:
"There are two major families within the Pill Tower. Although the Yao Clan is also affiliated with the Pill Tower, its prestige is far inferior to that of the other family. Compared to the Yao Clan, the Huoxun Clan can be considered the number one family in the Pill Tower."
No wonder...
Upon hearing this, Xiao Yan suddenly realized why the Yao Shiling had become completely quiet after Huoxun Mingcheng appeared; the reason was quite simple.
Under everyone's watchful eyes, Huoxun Mingcheng calmly raised his palm and gently placed it on the character "seven" engraved on the stone tablet. As his thoughts flowed, a vast amount of Spiritual Strength was quickly poured into it. This scene was quite different from the previous testers.
Seeing this, Xiao Yan was not too surprised. There are many ways to test the soul, but they all ultimately serve the same purpose. Huoxun Mingcheng's method is just more decisive and confident. The only difference is that it cannot attempt to test a higher soul level, but for him, it is already enough.
As the Spiritual Strength within the inscription grew increasingly abundant, the initial soft glow gradually became dazzling, until finally, the intense light seemed to flow out from it, and exclamations of surprise rang out throughout the hall.
"Tsk tsk... Tier Seven High-Level Alchemist, indeed. It's said that quite a few Tier Seven Mid-Level Alchemist have emerged in the past month or so, but only one Tier Seven High-Level Alchemist has appeared, and he seems to be an old man who is almost at the end of his alchemy career. I never thought that the younger generation of the Huoxun Clan would reach such a level first."
"As expected of the number one family in the Pill Tower, their foundation is unmatched even across the entire continent!"
Hearing the envious voices around him, Yao Shiling, who had been silent in his seat, looked much uglier. Xiao Yan, on the other hand, stared intently at the brightly lit inscription, his gaze sweeping over the stone tablet. His fingers, hidden beneath his sleeves, were also quietly stroking the inscription, his mind racing, yet he couldn't come up with a solution.
A moment later, after Huoxun Mingcheng finished his test, Yao Shiling followed closely behind. However, having witnessed Huo Xunmingcheng's brilliant performance, Yao Shiling undoubtedly felt considerable pressure as he stepped forward to take the test.
"Seventh Rank, Intermediate Level!"
After a while, the Pill Tower Elder beside the stone tablet announced the test results, which indeed caused a stir among the surrounding seats. Although not as great as the former, it did help Yao Shiling's originally unpleasant expression recover a lot. As he looked around, a hint of arrogance reappeared on his face.
Tier Seven Mid-Level Alchemist is undoubtedly a top-tier existence in the Medicine Realm. Even in the current Central Region, where heroes abound, there are very few peers who can rival him. At least, he, Yao Shiling, doesn't take some of the people present seriously.
With a thought flashing through his mind, Yao Shiling's cold gaze turned to Xiao Yan again. At the same time, the Pill Tower Elder in front of him also spoke slowly.
"Next!"
As soon as he finished speaking, the Pill Tower Elder looked directly at Xiao Yan and the others. The latter paused slightly, exchanged a glance with Xiao Siyu Xiao Siyu, whose arms were crossed over her ample chest, a faint smile on her beautiful face, but she remained unmoved. Seeing this, Xiao Yan could only shrug, slowly rise from his chair, and sigh softly:
"Very well, let me give it a try."
PS: It's noticeable that the pacing of these chapters is a bit different from the previous ones. Firstly, I wasn't really in the zone, secondly, I might have a certification exam at the end of the month, plus work, so I'm pretty disorganized. Fortunately, this short section mainly focuses on narration, interspersed with some other things to get the buffs; the main event comes later.