Chapter 398: Sanctions!

"Junior brother, have you forgotten what I told you? Disciples under my master Xingyuan never have to bow to anyone—that's our confidence! The Seventh Prince injured you and tried to kill you, which is a provocation against our Daoyan lineage! Telling him to scram was already out of respect for Emperor Feng; otherwise, I would have avenged you!" Shi Haoran said calmly.

Ye Yuan hadn't expected that a mere alchemy king could possess such boldness!

Come to think of it... it really resembled Li Daoheng's character!

That guy was always very considerate toward him, treating him with the respect due a teacher, but toward others he was curt and acted as if he were the best in the world.

It seemed that flaw had been successfully passed down to his disciple, and then to his grand-disciple.

Though he hadn't yet met Xingyuan in person, he imagined it wouldn't be much different.

"Haha, no need! Revenge is something I enjoy most! It seems... everyone thinks I'm easy to bully because of my low cultivation!" Ye Yuan narrowed his eyes, lost in thought.

Shi Haoran thought Ye Yuan was feeling down, so he patted his shoulder and comforted him, "Junior brother, you're only sixteen and already at the second level of Crystal Condensation—that's incredibly fast. When the Seventh Prince was your age, he was at most in the Liquid Realm. You're far stronger than him! Advancing in cultivation can't be rushed; you need to build a solid foundation."

In Shi Haoran's view, Ye Yuan's achievements at such a young age must have made him quite proud.

But being humiliated by the Seventh Prince today must have been hard for Ye Yuan to accept.

If Ye Yuan ruined his foundation by rushing to break through, it would be a case of penny wise and pound foolish.

Ye Yuan smiled. "Thank you for your concern, senior brother. I know what I'm doing."

Seeing Ye Yuan's expression return to calm, Shi Haoran felt relieved and said, "First, focus on healing your injuries. In a couple of days, I'll introduce you to the other senior brothers."

Ye Yuan nodded and said nothing more.

...

The next day, Ye Yuan was notified to gather at the main hall.

By the time he arrived, six or seven people were already there, all curiously sizing him up.

Ye Yuan also looked them over curiously. If nothing unexpected happened, these were his new senior brothers.

Just then, Shi Haoran accompanied Xingyuan as they leisurely walked out.

"Master!" Everyone bowed in unison.

Ye Yuan, not wanting to stand out, followed suit and bowed.

Xingyuan nodded slightly and spoke, "As you all must know, I took on a new disciple yesterday—Ji Qing. Come, get to know each other. Haoran, make the introductions."

Shi Haoran stepped among them and said to Ji Qing, "Come, let me introduce you to your senior brothers. This chubby one is your second senior brother, Tang Zhi."

Ye Yuan said, "Ji Qing greets Second Senior Brother."

The fat man laughed heartily. "Little junior brother is indeed talented! I heard you actually reached the legendary realm—truly remarkable!"

Ye Yuan smiled. "Not at all, it was all luck yesterday."

Shi Haoran pulled over a blue-robed youth and introduced him, "This is your third senior brother, You Guang."

Ye Yuan bowed again. You Guang laughed, "Little junior brother is already a senior grand alchemist at such a young age. It seems you'll surely surpass your predecessors!"

Ye Yuan smiled and brushed it off.

Then came Fourth Senior Brother Zhu Liang, Fifth Senior Brother Cheng Su, Sixth Senior Brother Jiang Yuren, and Seventh Senior Brother Wu Huilong.

Among these seven, three were alchemy kings and four were senior quasi-alchemy kings, showing their formidable strength.

Though Li Daoheng's lineage had few members, each one could stand on their own.

Through Shi Haoran's introduction, Ye Yuan learned that only Third Senior Brother You Guang held a position in the Alchemist Association; the others had been cultivating under Xingyuan without involving themselves in mundane affairs.

It seemed Xingyuan was quite accomplished in training disciples.

After the introductions, Xingyuan suddenly spoke, "Don't underestimate Old Eighth just because he's younger than you. His alchemy skills surpass all of you! If you have any questions about alchemy in the future, feel free to ask him."

"What? Ask Little Junior Brother for advice? Master, isn't that a bit much?" said Fourth Senior Brother Zhu Liang.

"Yes, Master. It's not that we look down on Little Junior Brother, but we've studied under you for so many years and learned at least a thing or two. Surely we can't be worse than Little Junior Brother?" Seventh Senior Brother Wu Huilong was clearly unconvinced.

Xingyuan narrowed his eyes and said calmly, "Your little junior brother had a fortuitous encounter before joining our sect. His alchemy skills are profound and unfathomable. He's more than qualified to be your half-teacher. Don't make a fuss, and don't argue with me. If you're unconvinced, challenge him. But he's young, so don't bully him with your cultivation levels."

Shi Haoran and Second Senior Brother Tang Zhi were fine, but the others showed some discomfort, clearly disagreeing with Xingyuan's words.

They had heard a bit about Ye Yuan's performance at the alchemy competition yesterday.

But hearing is not seeing. Ye Yuan was certainly skilled, but was he really skilled enough to be their teacher?

Ye Yuan remained silent, but inwardly he cursed Xingyuan's ancestors countless times.

This old man hadn't even given him a heads-up, yet dared to make him train his disciples!

Having an alchemy emperor train his disciples—how could he even think of such a thing!

It seemed the old man had caught on and wanted to squeeze some value out of him.

Alas, who could blame him for owing the old man such a big favor?

Yesterday, Ye Yuan and Xingyuan had reached an agreement: Xingyuan would help him gather information about his senior brothers and, if possible, directly rescue them.

Ye Yuan's identity made it inconvenient for him to act, but Xingyuan was different—no one would suspect him!

With Xingyuan's help, rescuing his senior brothers should be much easier.

"Don't listen to Master's nonsense, fellow senior brothers. If you have any questions, let's discuss them among ourselves and improve together," Ye Yuan said modestly.

Hearing this, the others' expressions softened a bit.

They were all decades or centuries old; asking a kid for advice was a bit hard to swallow!

Xingyuan then spoke calmly, "Something else happened yesterday. The Seventh Prince nearly killed Old Eighth on our Qixia Mountain. That displeases me greatly! It seems the Alchemist Association has been too docile for too long—no one takes us seriously anymore!"

"Hiss... something like that happened?"

"Zhao Chengqian is very domineering; this does seem like something he would do."

"Hehe, it looks like Master is about to lose his temper! I haven't seen him angry in a long time—I'm really looking forward to it!"

Sure enough, Xingyuan said leisurely, "From today onward, the Alchemist Association and our Daoyan lineage will cease refining any pills for the royal family. We will impose comprehensive sanctions on them!"