The Han brothers were dumbfounded by the sudden revelation. They’d never have dreamed that Sir Shao Yuan was actually Veluriyam’s Pill King Zhen! Wry smiles and glances were exchanged with each other. Han Qianzhan was a very carefree person. He was disappointed by the sudden turn of events, but quickly accepted the reality of things.
“Oh well. I must say that I’m extremely jealous of Emperor Peafowl for finding such an excellent heir. Veluriyam Capital’s fortunes are still as strong as ever! “ Han Qianzhan exclaimed with eny.
Han Qiansui nodded in agreement. “Pill King Zhen, this means that you’ve defeated Pill King Ji Lang twice in a row! It’ll be most entertaining if news of this gets out! His undefeated legend will be thoroughly ripped into shreds!”
]Jiang Chen smiled and made no comment.
“Pill King Zhen, why does a famous and well-celebrated person like you conceal your true ident.i.ty? It’s a good opportunity to make an even better name for yourself!” Han Qianzhan couldn’t help but ask.
“Everybody knows that Veluriyam Capital and Pillfire City are rivals. If the city finds out that I’m the young lord of Sacred Peafowl Mountain, I’m afraid they’ll won’t let me set foot out of their city ever again.” Jiang Chen answered in a self-deprecating manner.
Odd expressions flashed across the brothers’ faces. Jiang Chen smiled wryly. “Surely you don’t think I’d traveled all the way to Pillfire City just to take them down a notch?”
“Isn’t that the case?” Han Qianzhan answered ruefully.
Emperor Peerless laughed. “It truly isn’t! I can attest to that!”
The group immediately burst into hearty laughter.
“It’s a pity that the Skysword Sect has missed the opportunity to recruit you, Pill King Zhen.” Han Qianzhan breathed out a long sigh.
“Regrettably, my little brother can’t join the Skysword Sect, but that doesn’t mean we can’t partner with each other. Isn’t there such a thing as a guest pill king? Surely a sect as grand and distinguished as yours can afford to have him as a guest pill king?” Emperor Peerless said while smiling.
The Han brothers exchanged glances that were br.i.m.m.i.n.g with excitement. Emperor Peerless had made a good point! They’d failed to recruit him, but they could just offer him a spot as a guest pill king! The entire Upper Eight Regions placed his abilities on par with pill emperors at the moment, so one could only imagine how frightening the young pill emperor would become in the future.
They had a feeling that Pillfire City’s overwhelming dominance in the Upper Eight Region’s pill dao might soon be challenged. And in fact, change was already happening, Pillfire City was merely unaware of it. After Pill King Zhen took over the Upper Eight Region’s pill dao by the storm, who could possibly stop him then? Pillfire City? Impossible! Even their most vaunted Pill King Ji Lang had lost to Pill King Zhen twice. Was Emperor Pillzenith supposed to go up against him?
Emperor Pillzenith had a very strong foundation in pill dao, but in terms of raw talent, he likely was on par with Pill King Ji Lang. What Emperor Pillzenith was famous for was equal strength in both martial dao and pill dao, but he likely wasn’t a match for Pill King Zhen in terms of raw pill dao.
The Reformation Pill, Longevity Pill…
These impossibly complicated pills were child’s play to Pill King Zhen. His frightening foundation in pill dao wasn’t something that Pillfire City could possibly hope to measure up to.
The Han Brothers couldn’t help but wonder where had Pill King Zhen obtained his pill dao heritage. Shao Yuan had first appeared with rumors of Myriad Abyss Island swirling around him. Not many believed that gossip back then. But if he wasn’t from the legendary island, where in the human domain could he have possibly obtained such a powerful pill dao heritage?
Regardless of his origin, a future pill dao master like him was definitely worth a.s.sociating with.
Through Han Qianzhan’s incredible foresight and reasoning, he foresaw that Jiang Chen was going to turn everything upside down in the pill dao world. He sucked in a deep breath and looked at Jiang Chen pa.s.sionately. “Pill King Zhen, no, maybe we should address you as Pill Emperor Zhen instead? What do you think of Brother Mo’s suggestion. Pill Emperor Zhen?”
Jiang Chen threw a meaningful glance at the Han brothers and pondered deeply. “If I disagree, I’d be letting both of you down. However, I have a condition as well.”
“Please, do speak your mind.”
Jiang Chen nodded and spoke slowly. “I need a favor from Sect head Qianzhan. One day, when I need the sect head to return the favor, he would need to do so unconditionally.”
A favor? Under normal circ.u.mstances, Han Qianzhan wouldn’t even consider accepting such a vague condition. But this time, he immediately accepted the condition after a moment’s consideration. “Fair enough, it’s a deal!”
“Sect Head Qianzhan, aren’t you curious what I might ask from you?”
“Haha! Your reputation precedes you! No one has ever accused you of any immoral or unscrupulous atrocities. Because of that, I’m inclined to trust you.”
Jiang Chen nodded. “Sect Head Qianzhan, rest a.s.sured. I won’t use this favor to do anything unethical. However, there are some matters in which I might need an eminent figure like you to show up to bolster my side. Of course, we might offend some people, but I’ll make it up you.”
“Haha! As long as we’re not doing anything atrocious, why should we fear offending a few people? As cultivators, when do we not give offense! We’re bound to offend someone when we go about our business in this world!” Han Qianzhan burst into laughter.
“It’s so happily settled then.” Han Qiansui nodded. “Pill Emperor Zhen, please feel free to ask for any remuneration for your troubles.”
Jiang Chen smiled. “Let’s talk specifics then. I won’t ask for remuneration when I’m not offering my services. I’m sure that your sect won’t require my help for common issues. If you have pill dao questions that you cannot solve, I’ll ask for as little remuneration as possible, unless it has to do with a business transaction.”
Han Qianzhan clapped. “Deal! Your straightforwardness is truly a breath of fresh air!”
“Actually, the Ancient Reformation Pill is a rather good business opportunity!” Han Qiansui suddenly remarked. “There are many in need of a body reforming pill.”
The Reformation Pill was indeed a business opportunity, but Jiang Chen smiled with disagreement. “The Reformation Pill is indeed an exceptionally rare pill, but its manufacturing cost is too high, refining process too long, and skill requirement too arduous. The market returns will not be high because not many will actually be able to afford it.”
Han Qiansui seemed to agree after thinking about it more. The Reformation Pill was genuinely a good product, but it wasn’t suitable for ma.s.s production due to the various reasons mentioned. The common pill king wouldn’t be able to manufacture it, let alone the majority of pill masters.
With the partners.h.i.+p discussion concluded, the Han brothers and Jiang Chen’s group had swiftly grown closer to each other. They now had many common topics to talk about.
Jiang Chen and the rest ended up staying at the Skysword Sect for a total of five more days instead of three. The Han brothers earnestly tried keeping them for more, but they couldn’t delay their journey any longer. In forming a partners.h.i.+p with the Skysword Sect, Jiang Chen had gained a very important ally in the human domain.
“Pill Emperor Zhen, we wish to send a group of pill kings to Sacred Peafowl Mountain to study pill dao under you. We will offer 100 million saint spirit stones as remuneration per month. What do you think?”
It was a business proposal that the Han brothers had come up with after many nights of discussion. They wanted to send a group of pill kings to learn from Jiang Chen no matter what. Even if the pill kings wouldn’t learn much, gaining some insight and experience would be more than enough.
Jiang Chen smiled. “You’re more than welcome to do so. However, I have very limited time, so I’ll only conduct three to five lectures a month.”
“Haha! As long as your lectures comprise of condensed knowledge, we’ll be fine even if you only hold it once a month! We ask for quality, not quant.i.ty!”
When they concluded their discussions, Jiang Chen and the rest finally departed from the Skysword Sect. The young man had gained a lot from this visit. He’d become friends with a great sect and obtained three Reformation Pills.
The Great Yu Upper Region was extremely vast and it took them two days to clear the area.
Jiang Feng noticed that Liu Zhen had sunk in a very odd mood ever since they left the Great Yu Upper Region.
“Brother, you’ve been in a peculiar mood for the past two days. Have you encountered some problems in your cultivation?” Jiang Feng was concerned.
Liu Zhen sighed softly and shook his head. “Brother, this is the Horizontal Mountain Mid Region. My ancestral home is located in one of the bigger countries here…”
Jiang Feng and Liu Zhen knew each other’s backgrounds, and the former immediately realized that Liu Zhen was recalling matters of home.
“Little brother, I thought you no longer have family in your ancestral home?” He quietly asked.
“My parents and siblings are gone, but I once had a wife…” Liu Zhen’s grimace could just barely pa.s.s for a smile.
“Didn’t you say that she’s gone too?” Jiang Feng was curious.
“No.” Liu Zhen’s face began to twitch. “Brother, I’ve lied to you about this. She… she scorned my low status back in the day and ran off with somebody else.”
Jiang Feng frowned. “How could she?!”
Liu Zhen suddenly hugged Jiang Feng and bawled his eyes out. “Brother! I want to go home and take a look. Don’t worry, I don’t intend nor do I want revenge. I just want some closure and to find the answer to a question.”
Jiang Feng patted Liu Zhen on the shoulder. “Give me a moment. I’ll tell Chen’er.”
Jiang Chen glanced at Emperor Peerless after hearing Jiang Feng’s words.
“It’s right along the way. If Liu Zhen needs to go home, we should accompany him. It’s the least we can do.” The emperor shrugged.
Since the emperor had already given consent, Jiang Chen naturally wouldn’t say no. Liu Zhen’s eyes were bloodshot. Jiang Chen knew that the man had recalled some painful memories. Since Liu Zhen had contributed greatly in the search for Jiang Feng, Jiang Chen naturally wouldn’t sit by idly and just watch.
“Liu Zhen, lead the way. We’ll help you if you want to take revenge for the grievances you’ve suffered.” This was one of Jiang Chen’s principles.
“It has been so many years. I’ve long forgotten about things. However, there’s something I must confirm or I’ll die with everlasting regret,” Liu Zhen hastily responded.