86: Chapter 87 Heading to the Upper Sect (Part 1)

"Big reward?"

Wang Qingya saw Chen Fan was quite curious and continued, "The main purpose of the Alchemy Conference held by the Superior Sect is to screen for talent. If you, Husband, can attract attention, who knows, you might be able to expand your connections, which would be of great help to your future path of the Dao."

Chen Fan was interested in this act of revealing his strength, but he remained extremely cautious.

Not long ago, saving Great Elder Qin Yuanshan had already aroused the suspicion of the Grand Elder of the Qin Family. If he were to shine brilliantly now, wouldn't he be targeted by even more people?

Moreover, if he concealed his aura and participated as a 12th Level of Qi Refining Cultivator, he would certainly be seen through at a glance by more powerful Cultivators.

After some thought, he slowly said, "We shall discuss this matter later."

In the following days, the two of them were intimate once more.

This time, Chen Fan put in extra effort; it was rare to see her, and no matter what, he wanted to get her pregnant this time.

After the storm, the two reluctantly parted ways.

As soon as he reached the mountain gate, he noticed something was wrong with the atmosphere.

A messenger Cultivator sent by the Ancestor of the Qin Family was looking left and right, his face filled with anxiety.

Seeing Chen Fan return, he hurriedly greeted him and said, "Alchemist Chen, you have returned."

"Is there something urgent? Please, speak plainly." Chen Fan wore a gentle expression; after many interactions, the two were very familiar with each other.

"It is like this: the Old Ancestor has ordered that in three days, you are to head to the Superior Sect to attend the Alchemy Conference."

Chen Fan raised his eyebrows, slightly surprised.

"I heard that the reward this time is very special. If you enter the top three, you can get a good reward. You are already at the 12th Level of Qi Refining, so who knows, you might be able to enter the Peak Qi Refining Stage by then. Or perhaps you might even be awarded a foundation establishment pill..."

The messenger spat as he spoke, seemingly even more excited than Chen Fan.

"Thank you for the reminder. Please tell the Old Ancestor not to worry; I will do my best this time." Chen Fan's expression remained calm as he slowly took the task Jade Slip, but in his heart, he was extremely unwilling.

...

After returning to his residence, he carefully examined the various details in the Jade Slip.

It turned out that this Alchemy Conference was a mandatory order from the Superior Sect for every major Family to send talented Disciples to participate, and the Qin Family had selected only him.

The competition was divided into three parts: the first day was for Qi Refining Cultivators, the second day for Foundation Establishment Cultivators, and the third day for Purple Mansion Cultivators.

The conditions were very broad; besides allowing local cultivation Families to participate, it also allowed various Loose Cultivators to come.

"If it is the competition on the second day, it seems I could..."

Chen Fan was slightly excited and quickly formed a bold plan.

However, a bad thought soon emerged; he did not know what the Ancestor of the Qin Family was actually planning.

Three days later, after bidding farewell to his wives, he headed straight in the direction of the Miaoyin Sect.

However, behind him were two personal guards of the Ancestor of the Qin Family, one tall and one short. The tall one was named Qin Shan, and the short, stout one was named Qin Yuan.

The two were unfamiliar faces, both at the 12th Level of Qi Refining. They had been guarding the back mountain for many years and were considered people whom the Old Ancestor was heavily cultivating.

Shortly after leaving the Qin Family, the Ancestor of the Qin Family, who was sitting cross-legged in his Immortal Cave on the back mountain, slowly opened his eyes.

"There is a foundation establishment pill as a reward for this competition. I want to see if you dare to gamble. If you can break through in the future, that would not be bad..."

Having said that, he slowly closed his eyes.

The flying boat whistled through the air; the route had already been arranged by the two Family Cultivators.

First, they would take the flying boat directly to Daoxuan City, where the Zifu Family was located, and then take a teleportation array. In short, the journey to the Superior Sect was extremely long.

The Song State had four major Purple Mansion Families, forty Foundation Establishment Families, and over a hundred Qi Refining Families.

Regarding this Alchemy Conference, all parties dared not be the slightest bit negligent and sent Cultivators to participate.

Along the way, they would occasionally encounter Cultivators from various parties. After all, they were all Cultivators of the Song State, so they were extremely polite to each other when they met, bowing and offering greetings.

After arriving at Daoxuan City, Chen Fan headed towards the Purple Qi Coming from the East Shop operated by the Lyu Family.

On the surface, he was there to buy Spiritual Plants, but in reality, he was communicating about Alchemy matters.

"Elder Chen, the Old Ancestor has repeatedly urged us not to delay on the road."

Seeing Chen Fan strolling around the shop unhurriedly, the tall Qin Shan hurriedly whispered a reminder behind him.

"We won't be late."

Chen Fan looked indifferent. After secretly sending a sound transmission to Lyu Yue and finalizing the arrangements, he instead headed towards a nearby spiritual tea shop.

Soon after, a pot of fine spiritual tea was brewed, and a rich aroma drifted out.

"Good tea." Chen Fan smiled, nodding repeatedly with a look of contentment.

Meanwhile, Qin Shan and Qin Yuan, who were standing behind him, looked extremely ugly.

In their eyes, although Chen Fan was an Elder, he was merely a Matrilocal son-in-law, and in the end, still an outsider.

"Elder Chen, if you delay the Alchemy Conference, the Old Ancestor will not be happy." Qin Shan's face darkened slightly, becoming somewhat impatient.

"The clan brother is right. If we continue to wander like this, who knows when we will reach the Sect." The short, stout Cultivator Qin Yuan, who had spoken very little along the way, also looked ugly now.

Seeing this, Chen Fan sneered in his heart. He couldn't be bothered to pay them any mind and instead ordered a few more spiritual fruits to taste.

When an hour had slowly passed, Qin Shan could no longer endure it.

He asked coldly: "Matrilocal son-in-law Chen, what is the meaning of this?"

The thick voice echoed all around, making people's eardrums buzz.

As soon as these words were spoken, the Cultivators in the shop cast surprised glances and began to whisper to each other.

"It's truly strange. Since he is an Elder, why are the Cultivators under him so rude?"

A beautiful female Cultivator, who was tasting tea, was somewhat puzzled. Especially after noticing that Chen Fan had an extraordinary temperament, was extremely handsome, and had a profound aura, she became even more curious.

She bowed slightly towards Chen Fan and made a crisp, soft sound: "I am from the Yan Family of Qinghe. Has this Fellow Daoist encountered a tricky situation?"

"I am Chen Fan, an Alchemist of the Qin Family. These two Cultivators behind me are guards of the Old Ancestor of the Family."

"Qin Family, Matrilocal son-in-law..." the beautiful female Cultivator muttered to herself, thinking for a moment, and soon understood.

"So that is how it is. However, the Qin Family Cultivators are very unruly; no wonder the Family's strength has been average for so many years." The beautiful female Cultivator shook her head slightly and mocked Qin Shan and Qin Yuan.

After hearing this, Chen Fan stood up and bowed slightly, looking at her with gentle eyes.

Although the female Cultivator in front of him wore a veil, her figure was excellent. Although she was only at the 12th Level of Qi Refining, her aura was profound, far stronger than an average Cultivator.

"This is our Qin Family's business; I hope you will not say more, Fellow Daoist." Qin Shan's face turned slightly angry after hearing this.

"Hmph, this is not your Qin Family's territory. How dare you offend my Young Miss?" The maid standing behind the beautiful female Cultivator was furious.

Seeing that a conflict was arising between the two groups of Cultivators, the shopkeeper hurriedly came up to greet them.

"Fellow Daoists, this shop is only a small business. Please do not get angry; let's talk things over. Besides, this is the territory of the Lyu Family, a Zifu Family."

After the shopkeeper smoothed things over, the originally tense atmosphere eased slightly.

"My name is Yan Xue, and I am skilled in refining Medicinal Pills. How about we travel together to the Alchemy Conference at the Superior Sect?"