Xiao Yan directly ignored that shameless old fellow Hai Bodong. The idea of master and disciple working together and refining some kind of forbidden red pill had never even crossed his mind!
In the end, he still chose to proceed with the exchange because, in his heart, he felt that a mere Four Lines White Spirit Pill wasn't enough to repay Yun Yun for the many times she had helped him.
Whether it was with the Ten Thousand Beast Flame or the Green Lotus Core Flame, Yun Yun's assistance had been crucial. It could be said that she was his benefactor.
"Well, well, you little rascal are planning to bring down the Misty Cloud Sect from the inside, aren't you?" Hai Bodong raised his eyebrows and looked at Xiao Yan with an admiring expression.
What generations of emperors in the Jia Ma Empire couldn't achieve might just be accomplished by this young man.
Xiao Yan paid no heed to this old geezer acting in a manner unbecoming of his age.
He turned to Hai Bodong and said, "Old Hai, do you still want the Spiritual Recovery Purple Pill? We've gathered all the medicinal ingredients now."
Hai Bodong immediately dropped his wisecracking expression and turned serious when he heard Xiao Yan mention the Spiritual Restoration Purple Pill, "Do you have confidence in refining it successfully?"
Refining a pill always carried a chance of failure. The Spiritual Recovery Purple Pill was a high-grade tier 5 pill. If the refinement failed, who knew how long it would take to gather another complete set of ingredients.
"If I were to refine it now, the success rate wouldn't exceed 20%. So I plan to use the medicinal ingredients we've obtained this time to gradually familiarize myself with refining tier 5 pills. Then I'll refine the Spiritual Recovery Purple Pill for you," Xiao Yan explained.
"Alright, I've waited this long already; I don't mind waiting a bit longer." Hai Bodong revealed a gratified and excited expression upon hearing this.
"Rest assured, Old Hai. I will definitely refine the Spiritual Recovery Purple Pill before going to the Misty Cloud Sect."
Xiao Yan wasn't worried about the Misty Cloud Sect playing any tricks. What he was concerned about was the Hall of Souls!
He was now almost certain that the Hall of Souls was definitely within the Misty Cloud Sect. He had always been very wary of this mysterious and powerful organization.
He intended to use the Hall of Souls to become stronger, but this was undoubtedly akin to gazing into the abyss. One misstep, and there would be no turning back.
Finally, the auction concluded smoothly. This Tian Class Auction had thoroughly shocked all the alchemists in the Jia Ma Empire with Xiao Yan's name. Even the older generation of alchemists were convinced by his skills.
Especially after they personally witnessed the medicinal pills he had refined, they no longer dared to underestimate this eighteen-year-old champion of the Alchemist Grand Meeting.
All the pills were successfully auctioned off without any being passed over. Xiao Yan didn't go out to meet Yun Yun and simply handed the pills over to Ya Fei to handle.
After completing all the procedures, Ya Fei returned backstage from the auction hall. She sat down beside Xiao Yan, took a deep breath, and revealed a weary expression as she said, "Little Brother Xiao Yan, your Elder Sister has helped you a lot this time. How do you plan to repay me?"
Xiao Yan smiled and took out a scroll from his storage ring. "This is the pill recipe for the Appearance Recovery Pill that I obtained from Yan Li."
"Appearance Recovery Pill! The medicinal pill that can restore one's youth!" Ya Fei's eyes lit up upon hearing this.
Which woman doesn't wish to be forever young and beautiful?
"This pill recipe can only restore youth for a period of time. However, I might be able to try modifying the recipe to slow down the aging process and maintain the skin's condition. When the time comes, I'll give the first pill I refine to Sister Ya Fei," Xiao Yan said with a smile.
Ya Fei, who had just been elegant, poised, and in control on the auction stage, now nodded her head vigorously like a little girl, her eyes filled with excitement.
Standing aside, Hai Bodong couldn't help but secretly admire Xiao Yan. Appeasing women with pills? That should be illegal!
"Oh, by the way, Nalan Yanran asked me to tell you that she will come out from the sect's secret realm to challenge you in as soon as one month or as late as two months," Ya Fei recalled what had happened when she delivered the pills to Nalan Yanran.
Xiao Yan pondered for a moment and then slowly nodded. "One to two months' time is enough for me to properly consolidate my tier 5 alchemy skills. Then I can refine the Spiritual Recovery Purple Pill for Old Hai."
He planned to refine tier 5 pills while honing his alchemy skills, allowing his abilities to fully reach the tier 5 level. He would use this one month to stabilize the cultivation he had raised through medicinal pills.
"Also, Princess Yao Ye sent an invitation letter saying that she would like to meet with Little Brother Xiao Yan. She has something to discuss and hopes you can make a trip to the palace," Ya Fei said. She and Hai Bodong gave Xiao Yan a strange look. This boy seemed to be a little too popular with the ladies.
"Princess Yao Ye currently doesn't have a candidate for Prince Consort," Ya Fei said with a playful smile.
"Sister Ya Fei is joking. How could Princess Yao Ye fancy someone like me from a small clan? It's probably about recruiting me or asking me to refine pills," Xiao Yan waved his hand and accepted the invitation letter.
…
In the imperial palace garden.
"Princess Yao Ye invited me here. May I ask what the matter is?" Xiao Yan raised his hand slightly and asked softly.
Princess Yao Ye gestured for Xiao Yan to sit down and said, "Grandmaster Xiao Yan, we've met a few times now. I won't beat around the bush. Our imperial family hopes to request Grandmaster Xiao Yan's assistance in refining a medicinal pill."
Xiao Yan furrowed his brows, perplexed. "As far as I know, Chairman Fa Ma has a close relationship with the imperial family. Why doesn't Princess Yao Ye ask Chairman Fa Ma for help and instead come to me?"
Although he possessed a Heavenly Flame, he knew that in terms of pure alchemy skills, Chairman Fa Ma, who had been at the peak of tier 5 for a long time, was definitely superior to him.
"Because the medicinal pill the imperial family needs is the Tier 6 Mixed Bone Molding Pill." Yao Ye handed a handwritten scroll to Xiao Yan.
Xiao Yan took the scroll and glanced at the description on it. "This pill is specifically used to heal old injuries in magical beasts, restore their strength, and remove hidden ailments. Could it be that the imperial family possesses a Rank 6 magical beast?"
Yao Ye didn't conceal anything and nodded. "Please come with me, Grandmaster Xiao Yan. Perhaps you will understand once you see it for yourself."
The journey took only a few minutes. After smoothly passing through layers of strict security, the two of them arrived at the shore of a huge lake before halting their steps.
When Xiao Yan arrived, he immediately spotted Jia Xing Tian, who had been waiting there for some time. The latter also noticed the two of them at the same moment and quickly stepped forward to greet them.
Xiao Yan smiled and swept his gaze toward the vast lake. Here, he could vaguely sense a powerful aura concealed in the depths of the lake.
"It's in the lake?" Xiao Yan said slowly.
Jia Xing Tian's eyes revealed a hint of astonishment. Xiao Yan's spiritual perception was actually this strong!
"Great-Grandfather, please summon the Serene Sea Scaly Beast," Yao Ye said with a slight nod.
Upon hearing this, Jia Xing Tian's figure flashed and appeared above the lake. His feet landed on the water's surface, and then he plunged both hands into the water. Powerful Dou Qi surged forth, and as the Dou Qi poured in, the calm lake surface suddenly seemed to boil, bubbling with countless ripples.
On the shore, Xiao Yan could clearly sense that a magical beast aura far surpassing that of the Amethyst Winged Lion King was gradually surging up from the bottom of the lake.
Although it wasn't as strong as Queen Medusa back then, it wasn't far off. It had probably reached the level of a 7-star Dou Emperor.
As if sensing a threat, Xiao Yan felt the Seven-Colored Heaven Swallowing Python within the Green Lotus in his storage ring showing signs of awakening. However, it quickly returned to slumber.
A massive water pillar suddenly shot up from the lake with a loud boom, and eventually transformed into a rain of water droplets that fell back down.
Roar!
The water pillar shot into the sky as an unusual, deep beast roar suddenly resounded from the lake. After which, an enormous figure that instantly took over half of the lake emerged.
The magical beast that appeared before Xiao Yan had an enormous, meandering body covered in deep blue scales. On its gigantic head was a blue, spiral-patterned single horn. A pair of lantern-like giant eyes made it look quite terrifying to look at.
"This is our imperial family's guardian magical beast, the Serene Sea Scaly Beast."