Chapter 53: The Drunken Star Tower Makes Its Move

"Dean, the talent Ye Yuan has displayed is truly astonishing. I believe the academy should nurture him well! The Ten Nations Tournament is only half a year away, and we've lost for many years. If we end up in the bottom three again, we old faces will have nowhere to hide."

In a loft deep within the Alchemy Martial Academy, Hu Yan stood respectfully before a middle-aged man.

This man was none other than Jiang Yunhe, the dean of the Qin State Alchemy Martial Academy—a figure of immense importance in the entire Qin State!

His status in Qin State was even comparable to that of the Emperor himself!

However, Jiang Yunhe was a very low-key man who rarely appeared in public. He delegated most of the academy's affairs to the vice deans, acting as a hands-off manager.

Students who studied at the Alchemy Martial Academy for years might never get to see him even once.

Even among some instructors, Jiang Yunhe was an extremely mysterious figure.

Clearly, Hu Yan was one of the few in the academy who could meet Jiang Yunhe.

It was obvious that Hu Yan had come specifically to report to Jiang Yunhe about Ye Yuan.

He recounted Ye Yuan's astonishing performance to Jiang Yunhe, but Jiang Yunhe merely listened quietly without any reaction.

"Hu Yan, don't be so impatient. Victory and defeat are common in battle; there's no need to be so fixated. Fortunes change over time—when it's our turn to rise, no one can stop us," Jiang Yunhe said calmly.

"Dean! But Ye Yuan..."

Hu Yan wanted to say more for Ye Yuan, but Jiang Yunhe gestured for him to stop: "I told you to be patient. Ah, Hu Yan, you're always so impulsive. The competition hasn't even started yet, so what's the rush? Besides, we have quite a few talented students this time, like Long Tang, Zuo Bugui, and oh, that girl Nanfeng Zhirou—all good prospects. Hmm, that Ye Yuan you mentioned is indeed good, but a genius who hasn't grown up is no genius, and a genius who hasn't broken through to the Liquid Realm is no genius either, understand?"

Hearing this, Hu Yan finally calmed down. After a moment's thought, he seemed to grasp something: "Dean, are you worried... that Ye Yuan might have taken a crooked path?"

Thinking back, a month ago Ye Yuan was still a Qi Refining first-level rookie, and now in a month he had reached Qi Refining fourth level, with actual combat strength surpassing a Qi Refining eighth-level prodigy. Such a leap was indeed too exaggerated.

Not to mention anything else, from Qi Refining first level to fourth level, even a genius like Long Tang would need at least a year, right? Yet Ye Yuan had done it in just one month.

Such astonishing growth was indeed baffling, and the most straightforward explanation would be that he had overdrawn his potential.

And the price of overdrawing potential was sacrificing future development!

Jiang Yunhe smiled: "I didn't say that. Let's observe for a while longer. As for resources, you don't need to worry too much. Didn't Ye Yuan plunder tens of thousands of Qi-Enhancing Pills? That should be enough for him to cultivate to Qi Refining ninth level, right?"

Hu Yan sighed and took his leave.

After Hu Yan left, Jiang Yunhe clasped his hands behind his back and walked to the window, seemingly talking to himself: "Ye Yuan, I hope you truly are an extraordinary genius. Don't let me down!"

...

The alchemist examination was to be held in the imperial city four days later. Ye Yuan took Lü'er and simply skipped class to go home for a couple of days.

Having just broken through, Ye Yuan planned to use these days to solidify his realm, with the next step being a direct assault on Qi Refining sixth level.

Within a minor step of the Qi Refining realm, Ye Yuan could completely ignore the bottleneck of a single realm and cross it directly.

He had already deliberately slowed down; if not for concerns about a shaky foundation, Ye Yuan could have broken through several realms in a single day.

After all, for someone who had once been a Divine King, the Qi Refining realm was far too simple.

"If the master and mistress knew that the young master had become a Earth-level student, they would be overjoyed," Lü'er said with pride, as if she herself had become the Earth-level student.

"What's so special about a lousy Earth-level student?" Ye Yuan curled his lips, showing disdain.

"Of course it's amazing! You didn't see the expressions on their faces outside—they stared at the light screen as if they'd seen a ghost. I didn't know how impressive an Earth-level student was until I heard them say that no one in the Alchemy Martial Academy had ever advanced to Earth-level at Qi Refining fourth level. That's when I realized how amazing you are!" Lü'er said excitedly.

"Haha, they'll be surprised even more in the future. If you react like this every time, won't you be exhausted?" Ye Yuan laughed heartily, infected by Lü'er's mood.

"How could I be tired? I'd be happy every day!" Lü'er said innocently.

"Then I'll make sure my Lü'er is happy every day, okay?"

"Hehe, the young master is the best! Lü'er is already very happy now! Hey, why is the Fragrant Medicine Pavilion so empty today? Usually, by this time, the line would be stretching long."

The master and servant had unconsciously arrived at the Fragrant Medicine Pavilion, but Lü'er noticed something was off.

The entrance of the Fragrant Medicine Pavilion was always bustling with people, but today it seemed rather quiet.

"Let's go in and take a look."

Ye Yuan led Lü'er into the Fragrant Medicine Pavilion and found that there were indeed fewer people, less than half the usual number. What was going on?

"Young Master Ye, why are you back?"

The shopkeeper was obviously idle today. He spotted Ye Yuan as soon as he entered and quickly came over to greet him.

"Shopkeeper Feng, why is the Fragrant Medicine Pavilion so empty today? What happened?"

The shopkeeper's surname was Feng, and as the third child in the family, he was called Feng San. He was a veteran of the Fragrant Medicine Pavilion, loyal to the core, and even Ye Hang held him in high regard.

When Feng San heard Ye Yuan's question, he couldn't help but let out a long sigh: "Alas... it's all because of that Drunken Star Tower! I don't know where they got a pill formula called the Ju Yuan Pill, whose effects are actually fifty percent stronger than top-grade Qi-Enhancing Pills! They've been promoting this new pill for the past two days, drawing all the customers away. Our Fragrant Medicine Pavilion's business has plummeted! With this kind of pill, the Drunken Star Tower is in an unbeatable position. The boss has been frowning these past few days!"

"So it's the Drunken Star Tower again! Ju Yuan Pill, huh..." Ye Yuan fell into thought.

"Yes, this Ju Yuan Pill is priced similarly to top-grade Qi-Enhancing Pills but is fifty percent more effective. What martial artist could resist such temptation? Alas, our Fragrant Medicine Pavilion's days ahead will be tough."

Feng San sighed deeply, his face full of worry. Clearly, he had been racking his brains over this for days.

The Drunken Star Tower's move was too sudden, without any warning, catching the Fragrant Medicine Pavilion off guard and leaving them in a very passive position.

"Shopkeeper Feng, don't worry too much. A mere Ju Yuan Pill can't stir up much trouble," Ye Yuan said with a reassuring smile.

Feng San glanced at Ye Yuan and sighed: "Young master, you may not fully understand what a fifty percent increase in efficacy means. It's something that can change the landscape of the Qin State's pill market! With this, the Drunken Star Tower can dominate the market!"

Knowing that explanations were useless, Ye Yuan smiled and said, "Shopkeeper Feng, is my father in the shop? I'll go find him."

"Yes, the boss has been in seclusion in the alchemy room these past few days."