Translator: Silavin
Hearing the Pill Hall Elder’s mocking words, the Northern Brilliant Hall Elder’s complexion immediately darkened. However, even though fury burned within him, he could not very well berate an Elder who was a Heaven Grade Alchemist.
“Boy, whether you possess such capabilities isn’t determined by your own verbal claims!” A cold gleam flashed through the Northern Brilliant Hall Elder’s eyes as he spoke in a grave tone.
Upon hearing these words, the Pill Hall Elder’s brows furrowed, sensing something ominous.
As the Northern Brilliant Hall Elder swept his sleeve, from behind him, a graceful figure slowly emerged.
This figure was a cold, beautiful woman dressed in a blue gown. Her figure was stunning, her face devastatingly beautiful. However, upon that delicate countenance resided a certain icy coldness that prevented anyone from harbouring improper thoughts.
At this moment, her gaze carried a trace of disdain as she regarded Qin Yichen, as though detecting that the latter’s cultivation was somewhat unbearably weak, causing her elegant brows to furrow slightly.
“Old Qiu, have you no shame? Calling out Yu Qing?”
Seeing this young woman, the Pill Hall Elder’s brows contracted as he rebuked in a grave tone.
Hearing his unrestrained rebuke, the Northern Brilliant Hall Elder’s elderly face reddened somewhat. However, he offered no explanation, instead addressing Qin Yichen. “Boy, sophistry serves no purpose here. Since you claim you can defeat Yi Buyan, then use your own strength to prove it to us! Yu Qing’s capabilities are comparable to Yi Buyan’s. If you can demonstrate that you possess the strength to defeat Yi Buyan, then this matter ends here!”
Speaking to this point, the Northern Brilliant Hall Elder’s voice suddenly intensified, his icy tone resonating throughout. “But, if you cannot, then today, regardless of who shields you, you must accept punishment from the Punishment Hall!”
“Can that useless wretch compare to your precious Personal Disciple? Old Qiu, as an Elder of a Hall, for the sake of your so-called dignity, you would stoop to such shamelessness!?” The Pill Hall Elder’s complexion darkened as he rebuked. Clearly, he was intimately familiar with this woman’s capabilities.
“As you wish then…” At this moment, Qin Yichen, who had remained silent until now, suddenly spoke.
“Boy, that young lady may have only entered the Sacred Land a year ago, but Old Qiu took her as his Personal Disciple. She’s already a Half-Step Martial Ancestor now!”
Seeing Qin Yichen actually verbally consent, the Pill Hall Elder hastily attempted to dissuade him.
“Half-Step Martial Emperor?” Qin Yichen’s eyes narrowed slightly. From the woman named Yu Qing, he could indeed sense an extremely powerful oppressive force. However, he understood that currently, the only way to resolve this conflict was to display the strength capable of killing Yi Buyan!
“Elder, rest assured. This is just a Half-Step Martial Emperor. I can handle her.”
Qin Yichen’s gaze fixed directly upon that cold-faced woman. Smiling gently, he addressed the Pill Hall Elder.
Hearing these words, the grand hall immediately fell deathly silent. A mere new Outer Disciple, a fledgling at the Early Stage Martial Emperor Realm, dared to be so arrogant!
Could he not perceive that this was the Northern Brilliant Hall Elder deliberately making things difficult for him? Even if he truly possessed the strength to defeat Yi Buyan, this genius, meticulously cultivated for a year within the Inner Sect by the Northern Brilliant Hall Elder, was hardly comparable to Yi Buyan.
“Shameless boasting!” As though sensing the arrogance in Qin Yichen’s words, frost covered Yu Qing’s delicate face. She stared at Qin Yichen, her voluptuous chest rising and falling slightly, clearly suppressing fury.
“Excellent! Truly worthy of being someone from our Pill Hall!” Hearing such spirited words, the Pill Hall Elder roared his approval, as though seeing in the latter the heroic, high-spirited shadow of his own youth.
This single statement directly acknowledged Qin Yichen’s identity. Although the latter had not yet entered the Inner Sect Pill Hall, in their hearts, they had already considered him part of their Pill Hall!
Alchemists were proud of their profession, but in the Inner Sect Pill Hall, they were exceptionally united. Pulling one hair from them would move the entire body!
Any Outer Sect Alchemist, even Manager Dong Yu, desperately yearned to enter the Inner Sect Pill Hall. This was one of the reasons!
“Junior Brother Feng, since he has already agreed, let us begin!” A cold gleam also flashed through Elder Qiu’s eyes from Northern Brilliant Hall as he addressed the Punishment Hall Elder.
The Punishment Hall Elder smiled bitterly, shaking his head. After glancing at the Pill Hall Elder, he sighed lightly. With a wave of his hand, a transparent barrier descended, enveloping both Qin Yichen and Yu Qing.
Seeing this, the surrounding crowd also retreated some distance, providing the two combatants with a space spanning several hundred metres.
Numerous gazes swept across the two figures. Even the confidence-filled Pill Hall Elder, upon observing the two individuals whose strengths were completely disproportionate, found his fervour cooling, his brows furrowing involuntarily.
Would Qin Yichen be brutally crushed, or would he uphold his dignity as his arrogant words suggested?
“Newcomer, you will pay the price for your arrogance!” Yu Qing’s expression was icy, even her voice carrying traces of chilling frost.
Qin Yichen’s gaze remained steady. Discovering the latter staring at him with a frozen countenance, the aura of a Half-Step Martial Ancestor faintly diffusing outward, he could only release a helpless, bitter smile before saying. “Senior Sister, girls who are too cold won’t find anyone willing to like them, you know?”
“At a time like this, you still dare to be glib!” Frigid energy surged through Yu Qing’s beautiful eyes. So enraged was she that her teeth clenched audibly. Whether in the Imperial Dynasties or after entering the Sacred Land, no one had ever dared provoke her fury.
“Since Senior Sister dislikes my glib tongue, then let’s begin!” Qin Yichen smiled gently, his expression also turning cold.
The next instant, the moment his voice concluded, his figure burst forth explosively. Upon his hands, five stacks of force instantaneously condensed, striking toward Yu Qing with absolutely no restraint.
Yu Qing released a cold snort. Her figure, however, neither dodged nor evaded. When Qin Yichen was about to reach her, her delicate body trembled. A powerful surge of Yuan Energy, like a collapsing glacier, erupted outward. In merely an instant, it sent Qin Yichen flying backward.
The gulf between a Half-Step Martial Ancestor and an Early Stage Martial Emperor was simply too vast!
“With just this much capability, you dare be so arrogant?” Yu Qing’s expression remained icy as she declared. “Bring out all your abilities. Otherwise, you won’t even have another opportunity to strike!”
*Roar!* Following a beast’s roar, Qin Yichen ceased making futile gestures, directly activating his Taotie Martial Soul.
The beast manifestation that materialised emanated an obscure fluctuation. Within it, a pair of silver pupils flickered, as though it would devour even light itself.
Witnessing this spectacle, nearly everyone’s eyes narrowed slightly. This Martial Soul imparted an exceedingly oppressive sensation. However, even with their extensive knowledge, they could not identify what Martial Soul this actually was!
*Boom!* The next instant, overwhelming dark energy surged forth, shrouding Qin Yichen’s figure within. Through that darkness, the crowd vaguely discerned arm guards covered in mystical patterns encasing Qin Yichen’s arms.
Facing a Half-Step Martial Ancestor, Qin Yichen understood that ordinary attacks would obviously produce no effect whatsoever. If he wished to prove he possessed the strength to kill Yi Buyan, he must exert his full strength!