There was no denying it — Yan Qingsang's performance was nothing short of monstrous. Even Ziche Min, after hearing Yan Qingsang's answer, felt a stirring of emotion. He gazed at the young man for a long while, momentarily unable to believe what he had just witnessed.
"You are Yan Qingsang?" Ziche Min took a deep breath.
"That's right. This junior is Yan Qingsang." Yan Qingsang answered with an easy confidence.
"You struck twice in a row, hitting the mark on both questions. Where did this depth of alchemical knowledge come from? Could it be that the Yan family's reserves of alchemical heritage run so much deeper than anyone suspected?"
Ziche Min was clearly taken aback and couldn't help probing further. After all, while these two questions might not seem especially difficult, answering them properly required an astonishing breadth of experience and a truly profound foundation. For young geniuses, that was a tall order.
It was precisely this that explained Ziche Min's astonishment.
"Senior Ziche, I'm afraid my ability to answer both questions was largely a matter of luck. Last time I traveled to the Blue Mist Island Domain and attended the Ancient Jade Grand Assembly, I came away with some ancient jade inheritances. Among them was one left behind by a senior alchemist — it contained many of his alchemical memories, so…"
The moment these words left his lips, the entire hall erupted in murmurs. Every gaze in the room flickered with a hint of envy. What kind of heaven-defying fortune was this?
If he had truly inherited the memories of an ancient alchemy master, then in this alchemical exchange, wouldn't Yan Qingsang simply run away with the whole thing?
And Ziche Min, upon hearing this, was rendered momentarily speechless.
No wonder this kid was performing so impossibly well — it turned out he'd had such a fortuitous encounter. That put Ziche Min in a rather awkward position. Given Yan Qingsang's performance, if this continued, it would be far too demoralizing for everyone else. It would be a complete slaughter.
Forget about these young geniuses — even Ziche Min himself wouldn't dare claim he was more skilled than the ancient alchemists.
Ziche Min couldn't help asking, "The memories you inherited — at what level were they?"
Yan Qingsang suddenly adopted a modest air. "It was only a Pill Emperor. It hadn't reached the Heaven Rank."
Not at the Heaven Rank? Ziche Min felt somewhat relieved upon hearing this, though he still harbored some doubt. He looked Yan Qingsang up and down. "You're certain it was only at the Pill Emperor level?"
"Yes. Honestly, I wish it had been Heaven Rank, but if it were, I probably wouldn't have been able to fuse with the inheritance jade at all."
Yan Qingsang wore a look of genuine chagrin — the performance was flawless.
With this explanation, the others were more inclined to believe him. If the level really had been too high, and Yan Qingsang's own cultivation hadn't broken through to the Heaven Rank, he certainly wouldn't have been able to absorb the inheritance.
"Very well. Your answer to the second question is correct." Ziche Min shook his head in mild exasperation. If it was merely a Pill Emperor's inheritance, that was more manageable — at least it wouldn't be a complete rout.
Now the Xiahou family found themselves in an increasingly uncomfortable position. This situation was becoming rather embarrassing for them. The very family they least wanted to see succeed — the Yan family — was turning in the best performance.
Two questions in a row, and no one else had even gotten a chance. If this trend continued, things would grow decidedly strange, and the Xiahou family risked making enemies.
You organize this alchemical exchange, and in the end it only benefits the Yan family while slapping everyone else in the face?
The Yan family might have nothing left to lose, but the Xiahou family was in the midst of its ascendancy. They naturally didn't want to make too many enemies or earn the hostility of other factions.
As a result, Xiahou Ying very nearly felt the urge to warn Yan Qingsang — to tell him to rein it in and stop being so brazen. She even contemplated having him removed altogether.
Yes, Xiahou Ying had organized this birthday banquet as a means of putting herself on the market, so to speak. She hoped to use the occasion to identify the most outstanding young talents from the major factions, raise her own profile, and establish connections with those elite prodigies — all to ease tensions between the Xiahou family and the other powers.
As for Yan Qingsang, in Xiahou Ying's eyes, he was a nobody — an ant. The entire Yan family, including even a standout talent like Yan Zhenhuai, was not something she considered part of the mainstream. If anything, she would never have given Yan Qingsang a second thought.
It wasn't that Yan Zhenhuai lacked ability — it was that the entire Yan family was simply not on her radar. A woman as ambitious and prideful as Xiahou Ying held the Yan family in utter contempt. Why would she ever consider their younger generation?
And so, this alchemical exchange was precisely the event where she least wanted to see anyone from the Yan family shine.
That was exactly why Yan Qingsang's performance had put her in such a foul mood.
However, she was wise enough to know that expelling the Yan family at this point would be indefensible. For one, it would completely alienate them. For another, it would make everyone see her, Xiahou Ying, as nothing more than a snob. That was the last thing she needed while working so hard to build her image.
So Xiahou Ying shot Yan Qingsang a meaningful glance — a clear warning that he had better know when to quit and stop pushing his luck.
But Yan Qingsang completely ignored her, pretending he hadn't even noticed.
On the Yan family's side, Yan Zhenhuai once again gave a thumbs up. "Qingsang, brilliant work. Don't let it weigh on you — whatever talent you have, let it all out!"
Yan Zhenhuai had come to realize that in this alchemical exchange, he himself was likely going to play second fiddle to Yan Qingsang. Perhaps his own alchemical gifts weren't anything extraordinary, but as the Yan family's foremost young talent, he understood his duty to the clan.
In times like these, he knew that if Yan Qingsang performed too spectacularly, it was bound to ruffle some feathers. But right now, the Yan family needed to reverse its decline, and they couldn't afford to let any opportunity slip by.
Even if it meant upsetting the Xiahou family. Even if it meant offending the other factions. They couldn't afford to care.