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**
Hand holding the badge, Wei Yang casually flipped it over.
The badge was dark-golden in color, and it felt heavy in the hand. On its surface, flame patterns curled and danced.
Within the flames stood a towering pagoda piercing the sky. Upon the tower's body, seven dazzling purple-gold stars flickered, though the seventh star seemed a little dimmer compared to the others.
Inside the room, gazes were fixed on the shining badge turning in Wei Yang's hand. For a moment, silence and envy filled the air.
Tier 7 — this was a height many would never reach in their entire lives.
Yet now, this badge symbolizing honor and status had fallen into the hands of such a young-looking man. And that young man carried himself with an air of complete nonchalance.
Elder Han's face bore a smile. Stroking his beard, his eyes held a glimmer of satisfaction.
The world of alchemy thrived precisely because such outstanding youths continued to emerge, making it better and stronger with each generation.
Wei Yang put away the badge, then raised his head and asked, "Elder Han, if that's all, can I leave now?"
"Of course, the assessment is over." Elder Han smiled.
Wei Yang nodded, said no more, and pulled Xian'er along as they walked out.
Leaving the testing chamber, they returned to the outer hall. The two wandered leisurely through the trading area, exchanging for some herbs and seeds they fancied, and then departed.
When they stepped onto the street outside, they realized night had already fallen. Yet the noise and bustle still surged just as it had during the day.
It seemed that even at night, Holy Pill City remained endlessly lively, the streets glowing bright with lantern light.
Every day, countless streams of people gathered here from all corners of the continent.
And with those crowds came a mix of all kinds of folk — which meant countless strange and peculiar items were also brought, eventually circulating throughout Holy Pill City.
Among them, there were indeed true treasures to be found. Of course, that depended on whether your eyes were sharp enough. Otherwise, most of the time, you'd just be fooled.
Following the crowd, Wei Yang and Xian'er strolled along the streets. Now and then, they paused before a stall, or stepped into a shop by the roadside for a look.
But clearly, their luck wasn't very good.
After wandering for quite some time, they didn't come across anything worth getting excited about. This gradually dulled Wei Yang's initial enthusiasm for treasure-hunting.
Sure enough, in this world, it wasn't that easy to stumble upon hidden treasures.
After all, true fools who held treasures without recognizing them were rare. In truth, most who roamed the continent were shrewd and cunning.
Shaking his head, just as he was about to pull Xian'er back, he saw a group of people striding toward them aggressively.
Leading them was none other than the yellow-robed youth Qiu Lin, who had earlier failed the assessment and left in shame.
"Brother Yang, looks like we've got trouble." Xian'er whispered.
"Heh." Wei Yang chuckled softly.
His eyes swept over them casually — one high-level Dou Zong, the rest four or five Dou Huang, nothing to worry about.
The group stopped right in front of them.
"Seventh Uncle, it's them!" Qiu Lin pointed at Wei Yang and Xian'er, his voice full of resentment.
At the head was a yellow-robed elder. His eyes swept over the pair, and after a brief moment his brows furrowed, for he realized he couldn't see through these two young people at all.
Strange.
Of course, he would never believe that it was because their strength surpassed his own.
"You two, what business do you have?" Wei Yang asked calmly.
"I hear the two of you once spoke disrespectfully of my Qiu Clan?" the yellow-robed elder asked.
"Did we? I don't remember." Wei Yang glanced at Qiu Lin and said casually, "If you say we did, then we did."
"Seventh Uncle, you heard that, right? Look how arrogant they are!" Qiu Lin shouted shrilly.
The Qiu Clan juniors who came along all started shouting angrily as well.
"Truly country bumpkins from who-knows-where, daring to offend my Qiu Clan, utterly ignorant of heaven and earth!"
"Anyone who dares disrespect my Qiu Clan must be punished!"
"That's right."
The Qiu Clan Elder slowly raised his hand, silencing them. His gaze locked onto Wei Yang, and a powerful aura faintly spread out, pressing down as he said coldly, "My Qiu Clan has never offended you. Why then would you provoke us with words?"
"Hah?" At those words, Wei Yang nearly laughed from sheer exasperation.
I provoked you?
The scene naturally drew a crowd of onlookers.
But when they heard the name of the Qiu Clan, and saw the crest embroidered on their robes, everyone chose to back far away, keeping their distance.
Among the Five Great Clans of the Pill Tower, aside from the Ye Clan which had gradually declined, the other four were anything but easy to deal with.
In Holy Pill City, in the eyes of the vast majority, they were giants.
Within the four families, alchemy geniuses had appeared in every generation. These geniuses, even when placed within the entire Pill Domain, carried quite the reputation.
Now that Wei Yang had provoked the Qiu Clan, many believed it was nothing short of courting death. Some even whispered as though watching a show, tones carrying schadenfreude.
"Heh, just look, obvious idiots who just arrived in Holy Pill City, daring to provoke the Qiu Clan."
"Exactly, some people get used to being called geniuses in their hometowns, and think their arrogance still works once they get here."
"Tch, they'll soon realize they're nothing but frogs at the bottom of a well."
Of course, there were also indifferent faces, as well as some who frowned with pity and sighed.
"I ask why you dared to provoke my Qiu Clan without reason, and you laugh?" The Qiu Clan Elder's expression chilled, his voice cold as he barked the question.
Wei Yang's expression slowly tightened. From his wide sleeve, his left hand slowly extended, lifted up, and he said flatly, "You want to know? Take one strike from me, and I'll tell you."
"Arrogant brat!" The Qiu Clan Elder instantly roared, anger surging. His aura burst forth like a raging tide, pressing down heavily, his robes billowing madly.
Had the Qiu Clan fallen so far?
Any stray dog or cat dared to come provoke them now?
Even if they had declined, it was not the turn of a junior to act so wantonly.
Take his strike?
The Elder was so furious he laughed, "Fine, fine, fine, this old man will see just how powerful your so-called strike really is!"
Wei Yang said nothing. He casually pushed his palm forward.
Yet in that very instant, as his hand thrust out, a black flaming dragon head manifested. The surrounding heaven and earth energy instantly gathered, condensing the dragon head into solid form.
The dragon head's mouth opened.
Wong~
A ripple of invisible sound waves spread out, slowly yet swiftly, sweeping toward The Qiu Clan Elder. As the ripple passed, space itself quivered like rippling water.
"Not good!" The Qiu Clan Elder's pupils shrank sharply at the sight.
He quickly stepped forward, blocking the younger clan members behind him. Dark-golden flames surged over both palms, and with a furious push, he struck out.
In an instant, two blazing palms of dark-golden flame collided with the invisible soundwave ripple.
Boom!!!
From the point of collision, a violent energy shockwave erupted, spreading in all directions. Along its path, fine black cracks split open in the air.
And then—
Ao~
A deafening dragon's roar exploded in everyone's ears.
Everything had happened within the span of a breath. Many hadn't even reacted before the sudden dragon's roar left them dizzy and their ears ringing.
One strike, head-on.
Wei Yang stood where he was, unmoving. He withdrew his palm, and the black dragon head in the air gradually dissipated.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The Qiu Clan Elder grunted heavily, his feet stomping back several steps. The bluestone beneath shattered into fragments under his retreat.
The shockwave ripple swept outward, about to slam into the surrounding buildings and the crowd of onlookers.
Many faces turned pale with fear. It was already too late to dodge. They could only stare in horror as the ripple, carrying the aura of destruction, surged toward them.
At that moment.
Xian'er, standing at Wei Yang's side, made her move. Raising her slender hand, she grasped the air.
Wong~
A surge of spatial power instantly spread, freezing the surrounding space solid.
The circular shockwave ripple froze as well. Then, as though time itself reversed, the expanding ripple began to shrink and retract at an eerie speed.
In the end, the shockwave compressed into a tiny point of light that hung in the air, before slowly dissipating.
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