After all these events, it was the middle of winter, and the monsoon winds swept through the streets.
Su Ming blew into his hands to warm them as he stood in front of the second-floor window, dressed in fur clothes to keep warm.
Then, with a caw, a bird as white as snow landed on the window ledge.
Su Ming approached, opened the capsule hanging from its leg, and read quietly:
"Zhang Yong, the profits of all the stores combined have exceeded one hundred thousand spirit stones."
Zhang Yong sat calmly, having left the store in the hands of the group he had established. It had been fifteen days since the expansion and renovation of this store.
He picked up the teacup on the table, took a sip, and said:
"That's good. After deducting the workers' wages in each store, and the investors' share, we will still have fifty thousand spirit stones left. In just half a month we've made such progress… but something will happen soon."
Zhang Yong's clothes were light, despite the bitter cold outside. The chill did not affect him; with the ice-fire chemical physique , he no longer felt heat or cold.
Su Ming looked outside, where snow heavily blanketed the road.
"Fifty thousand spirit stones… that can be converted into five crystal coins. Life isn't easy, but truly the snow looks beautiful, so pure white."
Zhang Yong stood up and walked calmly.
"Let's go out for a bit."
The two descended from the second floor. This floor had only been added recently—in truth, the entire store had been completely reshaped. With the organization's emblem, the store could be summoned from nothing with a single thought.
Business was thriving; a long queue of people filled the place. It had only been four months since the store was established, yet look at it now.
The boy, Bo Chi, whom Zhang Yong had rescued from another region, was sitting behind the counter. He was an ordinary person who had not practiced martial arts, but he was educated and clever despite his young age. Thus, Zhang Yong placed him in charge of the counter.
When Bo Chi saw the two, he bowed slightly.
"Greetings, masters."
Zhang Yong waved his hand.
"No need for that. We're leaving now, take care of the store."
Bo Chi nodded. The two turned to leave—when what Zhang Yong feared happened.
Suddenly, two men burst into the store in a hurry. One of them was pale and thin, clutching his stomach in pain, while the other was strong with a scar on his face, supporting him.
The strong man shouted:
"Who is the owner of this store?!"
Bo Chi glanced at his behavior and bowed slightly to Zhang Yong.
"No need for the boss to trouble himself, I'll handle it."
Everyone stared at the two intruders. The strong man's outburst caused a stir in the line of waiting customers, who stepped back nervously. The thin man groaned in increasing agony, clutching his stomach as if in unbearable torment.
With complete composure, Bo Chi stepped out from behind the counter and approached, the customers parting to make way. Standing before the two, he bowed slightly with respect, though his eyes shone sharply.
"Greetings, gentlemen. I am the one responsible for this store. How may I assist you?" he said steadily.
"Assist us?!" roared the strong man, his face twisting with anger.
"These pills my friend bought from your store are fake! They're causing him unbearable pain. How dare you sell counterfeit medicine!"
His voice grew harsher with each word, and whispers spread among the customers. Some looked suspicious, others slowly backed away—but Bo Chi stood firm, no trace of panic on his face.
He drew a calm breath and replied clearly:
"In this store, we guarantee the quality of every product we sell. But if the pill your friend took truly came from us, then let us verify it and find a solution. Could you give me the bottle, or any remains of the pill?"
The man replied coldly:
"We bought only a single pill."
Bo Chi's expression shifted slightly, then he refocused on them.
"Excuse me, but that is a lie. We keep records of every sale, and we have never sold a single pill—we only sell bottles."
The man's face paled slightly at those words.
"We bought just one pill because we didn't trust you at first."
Bo Chi's gaze sharpened.
"Oh? So you're calling all these customers here fools for trusting us?"
The strong man froze, caught off guard by Bo Chi's unexpected retort. The customers, who had been uncertain moments ago, now turned their anger toward the intruders. Murmurs spread, and the tension shifted against the two men.
The scarred man forced a cold smile, trying to regain control.
"Don't try to twist things. Maybe you didn't record the sale because you knew these were fake pills. My friend here is living proof—he's been poisoned!"
Bo Chi stepped closer, smiling coldly.
"You say he's poisoned? Then why didn't you take him to a doctor immediately?"
The man shouted again:
"Isn't it obvious? Instead of treatment, we came here to warn others about your shameless business so no one else becomes a victim!"
Bo Chi asked:
"When exactly did he take this pill?"
The man ground his teeth.
"Half an hour ago."
At this point, Zhang Yong stepped forward, clasping his fists politely.
"If that's the case, the situation is dire. Allow me to examine him—I am a doctor."
The man recoiled, his tone hostile.
"How could I allow that? What if you kill him to hide the evidence?"
Zhang Yong smiled.
"I will not kill him. But if he truly is poisoned and I do nothing, he will die anyway. Or perhaps his life doesn't matter to you?"
"I—" the man stammered, unable to respond.
Zhang Yong's gaze grew sharp as he smiled coldly.
"By now the poison should have spread. There's a simple test for this."
He grabbed the pale man's hand, sterilized a needle before everyone, and pricked his finger. A drop of blood emerged.
"First of all, the blood color is normal—not poisoned."
Then Zhang Yong walked outside, grabbed a stray cat, and let it swallow the drop of blood. The cat remained alive.
"As you can see, the blood is not poisoned."
The murmurs of the customers grew louder; now they scorned the two men. Exposed, unable to hurl further accusations, the pair fled in haste.
Bo Chi clasped his hands and bowed to Zhang Yong.
"Thank you for your assistance, sir."
Zhang Yong patted his shoulder lightly and smiled.
"What do you mean? You did most of the work—I only helped a little. But truly, who are you, Bo Chi?"
Bo Chi grew tense, scratching his face in mild embarrassment.
"Sir, I don't think this is the right time. There are too many customers here."
Zhang Yong smiled, letting him go. At that moment, Su Ming and Zhang Yong left the store.
Su Ming could not help but remark:
"Could it be that old man Qi sent them?"
Zhang Yong smiled calmly.
"That's right. Not certain, but very likely. It seems we must advance our plans—now is the right time."
Su Ming's eyes narrowed.
"Do you mean to use the authority of the Alchemy Association?"
Zhang Yong waved his hand, sunglasses appearing as he put them on.
"Exactly. If we can win over the Alchemy Association, it'll be a crushing blow to old man Qi. He won't be able to question our pills' quality, otherwise he'd be insulting the Association itself. That would grant us immunity. But the moment we gain their support… we'll have declared war , or we already did"
It was time to head to the Alchemy Association.
In the blue sky, a purple figure soared, leaving violent winds in its wake.
Kuro flew high above while the two rode on its back.
Zhang Yong wasted no time, training his spiritual power at least once a day, despite the strain it caused.
The journey was long—the Flame Province was far from the Heavenly Province. Even with Kuro's spatial teleportation, the distance remained immense.
Days passed during travel, with many stops along the way.
Zhang Yong sighed aloud.
"Truly, the Flame Province is so far away."
Su Ming smiled faintly.
"In fact, we're almost within the territory."
Zhang Yong's eyes narrowed slightly when he noticed an emblem on Su Ming's chest—showing a flame with two stars above it.
"What's this emblem?" he asked.
Su Ming glanced down at it.
"Ah, this? It's a Second-Rank Alchemist emblem. I forgot to update it to show that I've reached Third Rank."
Zhang Yong immediately straightened.
"Wait, wait—are you telling me there's an alchemist exam and I didn't know about it?"
Su Ming scratched his head.
"Well… in every province, there's an Alchemy Tower, all under the headquarters in the Flame Province. Many third-rank alchemists will gather, because the prize for first three places is an Origin Flame. A person can't possess more than one, so unless you are unlucky enough to obtain a high-grade one, the furthest you'll reach is Fourth Rank—or you'll die trying."
Zhang Yong smiled confidently.
"Fine. You and I will both participate, doubling our chances of making the top three."
Su Ming tilted his head with doubt.
"Do you even know alchemy?"
Zhang Yong nodded.
"A little. My level is… decent."
Su Ming laughed bitterly.
"I'm worried about how good this 'decent' really is."
Zhang Yong replied firmly:
"Su Ming, I learned alchemy while struggling not to be devoured. I even went days without sleep. How hard can this be?"
Suddenly, a flash of light appeared beside them—a massive sword flying through the sky, carrying two young women.
The sword sped at tremendous speed, leaving trails of shimmering energy. As it neared, the two girls became visible: one had long sky-blue hair flowing in the wind, her purple eyes sharp; the other had pink hair and bright blue glowing eyes.
They stopped before Zhang Yong and Su Ming. The blue-haired girl clasped her hands politely and spoke softly:
"Greetings, young masters. Are you both heading to the Alchemy Tower competition?" Her gaze lingered on the emblem on Su Ming's chest.
Zhang Yong's reply was cold.
"Yes. What do you want?"
The blue-haired girl ignored his tone, keeping her gentle smile.
"We're heading there as well. The journey has been long and we are tired. We ask this handsome brother to let us ride along on your beast."
Zhang Yong raised his brows with faint mockery, staring at them for a moment. Both were undeniably beautiful, but to a blackened heart, such charms meant little.
"You say you're also going to the alchemy competition? That's an extra reason to refuse. Once we get there, we'll be enemies. Why should I help my enemies?"
The pink-haired girl stepped forward, poking her cheek playfully to appear cute.
"Big brother, can't you make an exception and let two beautiful sisters ride with you?"
Zhang Yong quickly shook his head.
"Two beautiful sisters? Where?"
A vein bulged in the pink-haired girl's forehead. She stomped the ground angrily.
"You! How dare you insult us? Don't you know who we are? Listen well—we are from the Xue family. Haven't you heard of us?"
Zhang Yong mockingly dug his ears.
"What's the Xue clan? Never heard of it."
"You—!" Her face flushed red with fury.
"How can someone so handsome be so poisonous? What clan are you from?"
Zhang Yong smirked.
"Not poisonous, just honest. You're inexperienced ones. We are brothers from the Fu clan. I am Fu Ling, and he is Fu Biao."
The pink-haired girl glanced at her companion.
"Fu clan? Never heard of them."
"What a coincidence. Neither have I." Zhang Yong laughed mockingly.
The pink-haired girl looked ready to jump down and beat him, but the blue-haired girl held her back.
"Surely the brother cannot just ignore us and leave, right?"
Zhang Yong's eyes widened slightly, his smile sardonic.
"Actually, yes. Watch me."
With a pat, Kuro vanished with her speed , leaving the two girls behind.
Moving forward—
Su Ming laughed nervously.
"Was it really wise to insult those two? The Xue clan is somewhat known in the capital. Though it's a pity—they really were beautiful."
Zhang Yong stared at the horizon, then turned his gaze sharply to Su Ming.
"Su Ming, say again that they were beautiful and I'll throw you off right here."
Su Ming froze.
"Eh? What?"
Zhang Yong grabbed his shoulders, shaking him violently.
"Su Ming, we're brothers! You can't let some girl come between us. I don't want you betraying me at a cliff someday and killing me so I reincarnate in disgrace. I don't want such a ridiculous fate!"
Su Ming didn't quite understand, but he realized if Zhang Yong kept shaking him, his brain would turn to mush.
Eventually, the weather grew hot, and winter clothing was no longer needed. Despite being winter, the Flame Province had a scorching desert climate; the snow they'd seen earlier was long gone.
The two lowered their heads and looked upon the city below—Black Rock City.
Landing inside the city was forbidden, so Kuro began descending slowly.
Upon entering through the city gates, the guards bowed after seeing Su Ming's emblem, allowing them inside.
After that, the two proceeded to register for the competition and waited for the appointed time.