"Mr. Ye, you didn't just realize it now, did you?" Ya Fei asked with a teasing smile.
Ye Feng tilted his head. "Ya Fei, do you know that Little Medical Fairy has feelings for me?"
"Of course."
"When did that start?"
"I can't pinpoint the exact moment. But during these past few days while I was serving you, I kept noticing the way she looked at you—resentful, conflicted. It'd be hard not to notice."
"Really?"
"Absolutely."
Ye Feng turned toward Mu Qingluan and Zi Yan, half-joking, "Aside from Xiao Yixian… what about you two? You always ask me to ride you when we go out. Are you two hiding feelings for me too? Be honest—do my two proud mounts secretly want their master's affection, just like Xiao Yixian?"
"Master, I…"
Mu Qingluan blushed furiously, lowering her head and fidgeting with her fingers.
"Master, actually…"
Zi Yan opened her mouth to explain, but something in her heart surged forward. This was her chance—why should she hold back? If Ya Fei could be intimate with Ye Feng despite being a maid, why couldn't she as his contracted beast?
She hesitated, her voice soft but sincere. "Yes…"
Ye Feng was stunned.
As someone with an Duo Emperor Realm, his perception of emotional fluctuations was peerless. He could sense the stirring feelings in both Zi Yan and Mu Qingluan.
They weren't lying.
They truly had a crush on him.
"They really like me?" Ye Feng's heart quivered with realization.
"When did this even start? How was I so blind to it?"
But as the shock passed, joy took its place. Two goddesses—his own companions—were in love with him.
A sly grin crept across his lips. "Maybe it's time I set a new precedent for the Taixu Ancient Dragon and Qingluan Clans."
Before his journey across worlds, Ye Feng had admired four legendary figures:
King Zhou, who seduced a fox spirit.
Ning Caichen, who loved a ghost.
Xu Xian, who wed a snake.
And Tang Hao, who didn't even spare the wild grass.
Now Ye Feng had traveled through both the Douluo and Doupo planes. He had played with the rabbit Xiao Wu, shared nights with the female Pope Bibi Dong, tasted the goddess of life and the goddess of kindness, and even tamed the serpent queen, Medusa.
Wasn't it only fair to embrace the legacy with his own twist?
"Human form… or beast form?" he murmured, genuinely conflicted.
Both Zi Yan and Mu Qingluan were Dou Zun now. They could transform freely—either into majestic beasts or captivating human forms. Either way, they were his.
Just as Ye Feng wrestled with these delightful thoughts, the long-awaited Alchemy Conference officially began.
Held in the northern region of Shengdan City, the venue was a massive square spanning thousands of feet. Dozens of stone platforms floated in the air above, glowing faintly with mystical runes and ancient inscriptions.
Not just anyone could ascend those platforms.
There were two major trials before that.
The first required participants to enter a dark, gray dimension—an illusionary space born from a magical beast known as the Phantom Spirit Beast. It blocked vision and interfered with spiritual perception. Only those with strong Spirit sensitivity could navigate the maze of overlapping illusions and find their way out.
The second level brought them into the Dan Realm, the former headquarters of Danta. Though now in decline, the realm still brimmed with natural treasures. Participants were given a list of rare herbs, and only those who gathered enough of them could proceed.
Thanks to Ye Feng's position in Danta and the ancestral order held by the Ye family, Xiao Yixian was granted entry through a special channel—even if she had entered late.
Unsurprisingly, her Duo Qi perception allowed her to pass the first trial effortlessly. But in the second level, time passed, and she still hadn't returned.
"Master Ye... is she in danger?" Ya Fei asked nervously.
Despite knowing Xiao Yixian had reached Dou Zun level, worry clouded her expression.
"The Dan Realm is unstable," she added, "with cracks in time and space. If she slips into one…"
Ye Feng waved her concerns away with a gentle laugh. "Relax. She's not the type to get lost."
He paused, his eyes flashing gray as he peered into the realm with his Spirit Sight.
"There she is... She's not lost—she's looting everything."
Xiao Yixian had already collected all the herbs on the required list. Now she was gathering priceless rarities—some even thought extinct.
Danta's intention to gather resources through this contest had backfired gloriously.
With ease, Xiao Yixian cleared the second trial and reached the final round.
The third and final test took place high above, on the floating stone platforms. There were no strict rules. Every alchemist would simply refine their best elixir using whatever skills, flames, or cauldrons they possessed.
BOOM!
A resonating voice echoed across the heavens.
"The time has come. Raise your cauldrons—and begin refining!"
As Xuan Kongzi's declaration faded, medicinal cauldrons rained down like thunderbolts, thudding heavily onto the stone stages.
BUZZ!
A strange tremor swept through the air as Xiao Yixian summoned her Chaos Sacred Cauldron. The moment it appeared, all surrounding cauldrons shuddered—nine times, in fact—as if in protest.
"What is that cauldron?! Why did mine react to it?"
"It's grey... and those swirling flames... Don't tell me that's the Chaos Sacred Cauldron—the top-ranked cauldron in the world?!"
"Calm down! Even if it is, alchemy is more than just equipment. The flame matters too."
As if on cue, Xiao Yixian raised her hand and summoned a swirling green blaze.
Immediately, the air ignited, and the temperature soared.
"A Heavenly Flame?"
"No... That's the Netherworld Poison Flame!"
"Impossible! That's ranked twentieth on the Heavenly Flame List!"
"And she's wielding the Chaos Sacred Cauldron too?! Where the hell did she come from?!"
The once-mocking alchemists were now stunned into silence.
"Ye Feng," Mu Qingluan asked quietly, "I heard the top ten winners get the chance to subdue the Three Thousand Burning Flames. If Xiao Yixian places… do you think she'll be able to tame it?"
Before Ye Feng could answer, Zi Yan placed her jade hand over her heart, eyes fixed on the heavens.
"Zi Yan, what's wrong?"
"I... I feel something," she whispered, her voice trembling. "Something up there... it's calling to me."
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