The Strange Flame Rekindles in Battle Through the Heavens

Chapter 68 The Match Ends

"He actually managed to defeat you! It seems this Xiao Yan has quite a talent for cultivation! I'll have to go and meet him sometime. Where does he live?" Xiao Yan asked in surprise.

"He lives in the Xiao family in Wutan City!" Nalan Yanran said, enunciating each word clearly.

"Wutan City? Never heard of it, it's a small place, right?" Xiao Yan pretended not to know anything.

"Mr. Nie Feng, my grandfather is in critical condition. Saving his life is more important, so please state your terms!" Nalan Yanran knew that this test had failed again, so she had no choice but to give up.

"This pill was made by me for Guild Master Fa Ma to repay him for taking care of me these past few days. So..." Xiao Yan said earnestly.

Xiao Yan had originally planned to give this pill to Fa Ma, since it wasn't anything particularly precious, and the medicinal materials belonged to Fa Ma.

Upon hearing Xiao Yan's words, Nalan Yanran immediately felt a sense of unease. The situation with Xiao Yan was completely different from that with Fa Ma. With Xiao Yan, they could use threats and inducements, but with Guild Master Fa Ma, they wouldn't dare even if they were given ten lives!

Even if you gave Fama all the wealth of the Nalan family, it wouldn't matter if he wasn't willing to give it to them. Besides, this pill was extremely precious to the elderly Fama.

"Such a precious pill shouldn't be wasted on me. I'm not close to death yet, so it's more important to give this pill to Nalan Jie to cure my illness. Besides, I can ask Brother Nie Feng to refine another one for me later!" Fa Ma was very touched to hear that the pill was specially refined for him by Xiao Yan, but he still refused.

Nalan Yanran was thrilled that Fa Ma was willing to give her the pills, but she also knew very well that the Nalan family would have to pay a hefty price this time. Strictly speaking, these pills were obtained from Fa Ma, so the price wouldn't be low. Having figured everything out, Nalan Yanran said directly, "My Nalan family will compile a list of all our treasured items, which Mr. Nie Feng can then choose from! We will also pay you a reward of ten million gold coins, just asking that you help us refine three more Longevity Pills."

"Why refine three more pills? You can only take two of these pills in a lifetime!" Xiao Yan asked.

"This...this is a secret, please forgive me, Mr. Nie Feng." Nalan Yanran apologized to Xiao Yan.

"I didn't expect him to still be alive!" Yao Ye, who was standing next to Nalan Yanran, was shocked when he heard that Nalan Yanran had asked for two more.

"She's really clever!" Xiao Yan glanced at Nalan Yanran. Xiao Yan naturally knew who Nalan Yanran had asked for these two pills for—Yun Shan, the former sect leader of the Yunlan Sect. Once Nalan Yanran handed the pills over to Yun Shan, her position would become very secure, and all the negative effects she had suffered from the annulment of the engagement would vanish with the payment of these two pills.

Knowing that Nalan Yanran was planning to give the pills to Yunshan, Xiao Yan fell into deep thought, considering the pros and cons.

The question troubling Xiao Yan was whether Yun Shan was cooperating with the Soul Hall at this time. Before cooperating with the Soul Hall, Yun Shan was a rational and discerning person. After cooperating with the Soul Hall, his soul was secretly tampered with, causing a drastic change in his personality. He went from being fond of quiet cultivation to being ambitious and intending to control the Jia Ma Empire.

If Yunshan hadn't cooperated with the Soul Palace, giving him two longevity pills to extend his lifespan by a few years wouldn't have been a big deal. It wouldn't have forced him to take the risk of forcibly breaking through to the Dou Zong realm, only to fail and become on the verge of death, leaving him with no choice but to cooperate with the Soul Palace and help them deal with the Xiao family. That way, the Xiao family would be safer.

If they had already cooperated, then these two pills wouldn't be of much use, and their value wouldn't be much different from that of candy beans.

"Sigh! Sometimes ignorance is bliss. The more you know, the more you have to think," Xiao Yan sighed to himself.

Seeing Xiao Yan's sudden silence, Nalan Yanran assumed that her earlier concealment had displeased him. She worried that if Xiao Yan got angry and refused to give her even a single pill, it would be troublesome. She was about to offer another explanation.

Xiao Yan sighed and said, "Provide the medicinal herbs yourself!"

"We would also appreciate it if Mr. Nie Feng could refine two pills for us as well. The reward is entirely up to you." Seeing that Nalan Yanran had successfully gotten Xiao Yan to refine pills for her, Yao Ye naturally couldn't be left behind. He quickly stepped forward to ask Xiao Yan to refine pills for them, after all, his great-grandfather was nearing the end of his life!

"Young friend Nie Feng!" Chemir said somewhat embarrassedly.

Seeing that Chemir also wanted it, Xiao Yan shook his head helplessly and said, "Since you want me to refine it for you, you'd better keep your mouth shut. I don't want to be chased around refining pills every day! You should give the payment to Guild Master Fa Ma first. If the payment satisfies me, I will naturally help you refine it. If not, I will naturally return all the herbs and fees. After I finish refining the pills, I will give them to Guild Master Fa Ma, and you can find out from him whether I have refined them for you or not."

"Why is he acting like an old fox? Is he still a young man?" Everyone had this feeling. This time they were definitely going to have to spend a lot of money. The young man hadn't said how much he wanted in return, only that he would refine it for them if they were satisfied. But how could they satisfy him? There wasn't anything of high quality, and given Xiao Yan's status, he might not even be interested in it.

"Now that the competition is over, we should be going. Yanran, I don't think your grandfather is doing too well. We should hurry back and prepare the reward, then exchange this pill for him and give it to him." Gu He saw that things were almost settled, and the competition results were in. Although Fa Ma hadn't announced it, wasn't the result obvious? Did they really have to make him announce his loss himself before they were satisfied?

"Mr. Nie Feng, I know this request is quite unreasonable. But could you please give me the pill first so I can revive my grandfather?" Nalan Yanran looked at Xiao Yan with a pleading expression, thinking of her grandfather's current situation, in which he could die at any moment.

"Then you can take it first!" Xiao Yan casually tossed the pill to Nalan Yanran.

Nalan Yanran carefully caught the pill, a smug smile appearing on her face. She carefully placed the pill into her storage ring and then kept thanking Xiao Yan.

After instructing Nalan Yan, Gu He turned to his disciple Liu Ling. Seeing that he remained silent, he knew that this blow had been quite significant for him, so he said, "Liu Ling, this defeat is actually a good thing for you. You must know that there are always people more capable than you, and there is always something beyond your understanding. Before, you stayed in the Yunlan Sect, surrounded by praise, which made you think you were the strongest among your peers. But the Dou Qi Continent is vast, and there are many geniuses like Nie Feng. So after returning to the Yunlan Sect, you must study hard with me and shine brightly again when you become an alchemist in two years."

Liu Ling felt a little better after hearing Gu He's words of indirect comfort and encouragement. After all, he had indeed been discouraged by Xiao Yan today, who was far superior to him in every aspect.

"Mr. Nie Feng, although I was defeated by you this time due to my inferior skills, I will not give up. I will compete with you again at the Alchemist Conference two years from now, and I hope you will definitely participate." Liu Ling walked up to Xiao Yan and issued another challenge to him.

Xiao Yan nodded. After all, he had already taught Liu Ling a lesson enough, and Xiao Yan wasn't one to hold a grudge. However, he decided to postpone the competition two years later, as Nie Feng was only a temporary identity for Xiao Yan.

"President Fama, Vice President Chemir, the two princesses, and young friend Nie Feng, we'll take our leave now," Gu He said with a smile.

After exchanging pleasantries, Gu He turned and left with his apprentice Liu Ling and Nalan Yanran.

"I'll take Yue'er back to the palace to prepare first. I'll bring the necessary reward and medicine tomorrow morning." Seeing that Gu He and his group had left, Yao Ye also wanted to hurry back to tell his great-grandfather, Jia Xingtian, about what happened today.

After Yao Ye left with his younger sister Yao Yue, only Fa Ma, Chemir, and Xiao Yan remained in the square.

At this moment, both Fa Ma and Xiao Yan turned their gazes to Chemir. Seeing that they were both staring at him, Chemir felt a little awkward and said with a smile, "You two talk! You two talk! I have something to do, so I'll be leaving now!"

(End of this chapter)