Heavenly Flames Emerge
Frank's fingers trembled, crumpling the letter in his hand with a constant rustle. He said in alarm:
"He's only a Dou Zhe, yet he wants to come here and take the qualification tests for first- through Third-Tier Alchemist. Isn't this a joke?"
Otto patted his chest, panting heavily. "If this is true, then this young man really is an unparalleled genius!"
After all, scarcely any alchemist this young had ever appeared in the entire Jia Ma Empire.
Even Yao Yue, the little princess of the Jia Ma Imperial Family, was only twelve. Her physique had improved rapidly under the nourishment of countless body-tempering medicinal baths, but she had only just reached the Ninth Stage Dou Qi and still had some way to go before becoming an alchemist.
At the Dou Qi stage, the meridians were theoretically fragile, making it nearly impossible to forcibly raise one's cultivation with pills.
But the essence of cultivating Dou Qi was to improve one's physique, temper one's muscles and bones, and build a solid foundation for the dantian.
Thus, in theory, people could use medicine to temper the body and thereby increase the speed at which one cultivated Dou Qi.
Yet even a power as mighty as the Jia Ma Imperial Family had never raised a genius who had reached Seven-Star Dou Zhe at fourteen and was also proficient in the knowledge and pill-refining techniques of a Third-Tier Alchemist.
"Otto, let's hurry upstairs. We mustn't keep young friend Yan Xiao waiting."
Frank hurriedly grabbed Otto by the sleeve, pulled him up the stairs beside them, and immediately arrived at the assessment hall on the second floor.
"I understand, so let go already. I can walk myself!"
As soon as Otto was dragged onto the stairs, he nearly missed a step and fell flat on his face. Furious, he cursed up a storm and struggled free of Frank's grip.
Xue Mei and Lin Fei also arrived one after the other.
They wanted to see the young man's abilities for themselves, to find out whether he was really as impressive as the letter boasted.
The second floor was still extremely spacious. The surrounding walls were covered with illustrations of all kinds of precious medicinal ingredients and portraits of renowned alchemists.
The corridor was a hundred and eighty meters wide, and the paths across the floor were paved entirely with gemstones. At a glance, a dazzling array of colors flashed into view.
As one of the Alchemist Guild's premises, it was no less sturdy than the city gates and could withstand a barrage from a Dou Wang expert.
One could imagine just how wealthy alchemists were!
Xiao Yan leaned against a wall with his arms folded. He turned to look at Frank and the other three as they hurried over, a hint of a smile appearing deep in his eyes, and said softly:
"Master Frank, we can begin, can't we?"
Frank nodded. "Of course. Young friend Yan Xiao, please follow me."
The man straightened his posture and adjusted the front of his robes with both hands, then strode forward at a measured pace as a fierce ripple of Dou Qi appeared in his hand.
He turned his palm over, and a gale sprang up, elegantly pushing the jade doors open.
Xiao Yan walked in and swept his gaze across the distance, his eyes filled with nostalgia.
Two hundred stone platforms stood in a dazzling array across the assessment hall, each holding a pill formula and several portions of medicinal ingredients.
Expensive chandeliers hung from the ceiling, all carved from rare mineral crystals. Each was worth a hundred thousand gold coins.
But this was not the time for the Alchemist Guild's official assessments, so the hall was empty, leaving Xiao Yan somewhat disappointed.
He had come prepared to show off his skills, only to find no one watching. What a waste to have such abilities with no one to appreciate them.
"No, that's not right. At least there are four people here. That's some consolation."
At that thought, Xiao Yan suddenly turned and glanced at the four people beside him. His eyes met Xue Mei's and Lin Fei's, and a smile curled his lips as he thought with quiet delight:
Xue Mei, Lin Fei, I gave you both quite a fright when I tested for first-tier alchemist in my previous life. If I go for third or fourth tier this time, I wonder how you'll react?
Seeing this, the two women were about to step forward and greet Xiao Yan, only for Otto to shoo them away.
"Go on, go play somewhere else. Don't disturb young friend while he takes his alchemist assessment. Just watch from the side."
Otto waved his hand and impatiently pushed the two women toward the edge of the spectator seats, afraid that their personalities would affect Xiao Yan's impression of them.
"Hey, you lousy teacher! You were the one who called us over, so why won't you let us get close to Yan Xiao?"
Lin Fei pouted and protested with her hands on her hips.
Xue Mei remained silent, merely watching Xiao Yan quietly, her eyes full of anticipation.
Otto sighed helplessly. "You two little girls are so immature that you're liable to make people angry. You'd better behave yourselves."
Frank walked over at that moment and chimed in:
"Otto is right. Although we want to bring you and Yan Xiao together in marriage, you still have to know your limits. You kept questioning his abilities just now, and we realized you were going to ask him about it to his face, so we stopped you on purpose."
Lin Fei curled her lip. "Hmph, I understand. Anyway, I do believe he can become an alchemist!"
Xue Mei felt the same way, though she was still confident in her teacher's judgment. "I don't particularly believe in him either. I just trust my teacher's eye."
Frank smiled. "In that case, just wait and enjoy the show!"
With that, he turned and sat down with Otto in the elegant seats on the raised platform, then nodded to Xiao Yan below.
"Young friend Yan Xiao, find any spot and begin refining medicine. We'll be watching with great anticipation."
Xiao Yan cupped his fists in response. "Thank you, seniors, for granting me this opportunity. I will do my utmost."
The young man stepped forward, preparing to take a seat at one of the platforms in the hall, when another set of footsteps sounded and a group of figures suddenly poured in through the entrance.
They too wore black alchemist robes. Three flame patterns were embroidered over the chest of the person leading them-the unmistakable mark of a Third-Tier Alchemist.
Clearly, news of Xiao Yan's arrival had already spread throughout Black Rock City.
Nearly every alchemist had gone to the front desk to ask about Xiao Yan's registration details, and all had sucked in a cold breath upon seeing his age and Dou Qi cultivation.
They also wanted to see whether Xiao Yan could truly take the first-, second-, and even third-tier alchemist assessments one after another!
"What are you doing? Don't frighten young friend Yan Xiao. All of you, stand back."
Frank barked at them. Dou Qi gathered in his hand, forming a great net that enveloped the crowd, and with a casual movement he flung them into the spectator seats.
As a Dou Ling expert, he displayed to the fullest his ability to form objects with a mere gesture.
"Ow, my backside hurts!"
"Guildmaster Frank, couldn't you have been gentler?"
"Exactly! We only came to meet young friend Yan Xiao. Was there any need to make such a fuss?"
The crowd sprawled across the spectator seats, howling and complaining. Clearly, Flande had thrown them down hard.
After all, the materials used throughout the entire building were exceptionally sturdy. A truly hard collision could break bones.
Frank gave an embarrassed smile. "My apologies. I was afraid you might disturb young friend Yan Xiao, so I behaved rudely."
Seeing that Frank had dealt with the situation, Xiao Yan hesitated no longer and went straight to the stone platform at the center of the third row.
He picked up the formula and beckoned with his hand. A seven-colored divine dragon flew from his palm and hovered steadily overhead.
The temperature in the hall suddenly soared, yet it also carried a bone-chilling cold. Cries of surprise rang out among the crowd, but they all pointed to the same thing: "Heavenly Flames-!"