This unexpected revelation left the Han brothers completely dumbfounded.
Never in their wildest dreams had they imagined that Young Master Shao Yuan would turn out to be none other than Pill King Zhen — the young lord of Peacock Sacred Mountain in Myriad Dragon City!
For a moment, the Han brothers exchanged glances, wry smiles spreading across both their faces.
Han Qianzhan was, after all, a man of easy temperament. Even though things had taken such an unexpected turn and he felt a pang of disappointment, he quickly accepted reality.
"Well, I truly envy the Great Peacock Emperor for finding such an extraordinary young lord. It seems the fortune of Myriad Dragon City remains immensely powerful," Han Qianzhan said, his tone laced with undisguised admiration.
Han Qiansui nodded as well. "So that means Pill King Zhen has defeated Pill King Jilang twice in a row. If word of this gets out, it's going to be quite the spectacle. His legend of invincibility will really have to be put to rest."
Jiang Chen smiled faintly but offered no comment.
"Pill King Zhen, since you're so famous, why did you conceal your identity? This would have been a perfect opportunity to make a name for yourself," Han Qianzhan couldn't help but ask.
"The enmity between Myriad Dragon City and Pill Fire City is public knowledge. If the people of Pill Fire City had known I was the young lord of Peacock Sacred Mountain, they would have done everything in their power to ensure I never left Pill Fire City," Jiang Chen replied with a touch of self-deprecation.
He noticed the slightly peculiar expressions on their faces.
Jiang Chen smiled ruefully. "Don't tell me you thought I went to Pill Fire City specifically to challenge their academy?"
"Wasn't that the case?" Han Qianzhan shot back with a wry smile of his own.
The Peerless Great Emperor laughed. "It really wasn't. I can vouch for that."
Everyone burst into hearty laughter.
"What a shame that Pill King Zhen, a talent of such caliber, couldn't join our Heavenly Sword Sect," Han Qianzhan sighed repeatedly.
The Peerless Great Emperor, however, smiled and said, "Even though my little brother can't stay at the Heavenly Sword Sect, that doesn't mean cooperation is off the table! Isn't there such a thing as a guest pill king in this world? The Heavenly Sword Sect is a massive organization — surely you can afford to bring on a guest pill king or two?"
Han Qianzhan and Han Qiansui exchanged a glance, a hint of delight flashing in each of their eyes.
Indeed — if Pill King Zhen couldn't formally join the Heavenly Sword Sect, then hiring him as a guest pill king should be perfectly feasible. Given Pill King Zhen's momentum, the entire Upper Eight Domains already considered him a figure at the Pill Emperor level.
A Pill Emperor this young — just how terrifying would he become given time?
The Han brothers were suddenly struck by the thought that Pill Fire City's supreme dominance over the pill arts in the Upper Eight Domains might genuinely be headed for upheaval.
In fact, the upheaval had already begun. Pill Fire City simply hadn't realized it yet.
Once Pill King Zhen truly burst onto the scene and swept through the pill arts world of the Upper Eight Domains, who in Pill Fire City could stand against him? Who could possibly rival him?
No one!
Their proudest champion, Pill King Jilang, had already fallen to Pill King Zhen twice. Could anyone else compete? Would the Pill Grand Emperor have to step in personally?
The Pill Grand Emperor was certainly formidable in the pill arts, but in terms of pure talent for alchemy, he might not necessarily surpass Pill King Jilang. His true strength lay in being exceptional in both the martial and pill arts simultaneously.
In pure pill refinement alone, with Pill King Zhen's kind of momentum, even the Pill Grand Emperor probably couldn't suppress him.
The Spirit Metamorphosis Pill, the Myriad Longevity Pill...
Pills that others wouldn't even dare dream of refining — in Pill King Zhen's hands, he handled them with effortless ease, as if they posed no challenge whatsoever.
Such terrifying depth of knowledge was something even Pill Fire City couldn't match.
The Han brothers couldn't help but wonder — where exactly had Pill King Zhen's pill arts lineage originated?
When the name Shao Yuan first surfaced, there had been rumors that he came from the mysterious Myriad Abyss Island. At the time, almost no one in the Upper Eight Domains had believed it.
But thinking about it more carefully now, if he hadn't come from that legendary place, could the human territories really possess such a powerful lineage of pill arts?
Regardless, such a future master of the pill arts was absolutely worth cultivating a relationship with.
With Han Qianzhan's far-sighted vision and his remarkable judgment, he felt certain that the pill arts landscape of the Upper Eight Domains would undergo a massive upheaval because of this young man.
Han Qianzhan took a deep breath and fixed Jiang Chen with a burning gaze. "Pill King Zhen — no, perhaps Qianzhan should address you as Pill Emperor Zhen. What does Pill Emperor Zhen think of Brother Mo's proposal?"
Jiang Chen regarded the Han brothers with a meaningful look, pondered for a moment, and then spoke. "Gentlemen, if I were to refuse, it would be a disservice to the regard you brothers have shown me. However, I do have one condition of my own."
"Name it. Whatever it is, speak freely."
Jiang Chen nodded and slowly said, "I want a single favor from Sect Master Qianzhan. Someday, when I need to call in this favor, Sect Master Qianzhan must step forward and may not refuse."
A favor?
Under normal circumstances, Han Qianzhan would never have entertained such an vague, open-ended request.
But after a brief moment of deliberation, Han Qianzhan agreed readily. "Very well, that's perfectly fair. Qianzhan accepts."