Chapter 4949 — Uproar in the Hall
The Blossom Guardian · Page 1 of 3
"No need to think it over, because there is no need at all." Wei Zhao saw that flicker of irritation in the other man's eyes clearly enough, and sighed inwardly that there was, after all, no such thing as a free lunch in this world. Zhuang Yifan had gone to such lengths, inside and out, to grant him favors, all for the sake of the Earth-Solidifying Pill.
Though the man said aloud that failure in refining would not matter, who could say whether he would turn shame into rage once it truly failed? That was something no one but Zhuang Yifan himself could guarantee.
My own strength is still too weak! Wei Zhao lamented silently. If only I were strong enough, why would I ever need to watch these people's faces, coming and going as I please—who would dare bar my way?
This time it was only good fortune, relying on the Divine Farmer's Cauldron, that wondrous alchemical artifact, to bring forth the Earth-Solidifying Pill with danger narrowly averted. Otherwise, whether he could even leave the Thunder Plains Isle would have been a genuine unknown; and even if Zhuang Yifan did not resort to murder, he would at the very least have placed him under house arrest without hesitation, making escape harder than climbing to the heavens.
"It seems Master Lin has made up his mind." Zhuang Yifan set down his wine cup with an unfathomable expression. From the look of him, his next words might well be a warning that one who refuses a toast will be made to drink a forfeit.
The atmosphere at the head table abruptly turned tense and delicate. Even the people at the other tables began to look over one after another, every gaze settling upon Wei Zhao.
"Heh heh, President Zhuang need not overthink. Have a look at this first." Wei Zhao smiled faintly, unhurried, and a small box had somehow appeared in his hand, which he held out to Zhuang Yifan on his open palm.
"This is..." Zhuang Yifan took the small box and opened it. In an instant he froze entirely, unable to react for a long while.
At the sight of Zhuang Yifan's expression, the bystanders could not help murmuring among themselves, while Wang Xinyan and the others who knew the truth only smiled without a word. Wei Zhao had never once disappointed them. What others deemed harder than ascending to heaven came effortlessly to his hand, and alchemy above all had always been a source of unending surprises. This time was naturally no exception.
Watching Zhuang Yifan's shocked face, Liu Ziqi and Li Ren at the same table were also stunned into silence. For Zhuang Yifan, a man of his stature, to humble himself personally and beg someone to refine pills, it could only be a Mystic-rank pill beyond doubt. And Wei Zhao had actually refined a Mystic-rank pill, spending less than a single day from start to finish. This was defying the heavens!
After a long while, Zhuang Yifan slowly put the small box away. Under the astonished gaze of everyone in the hall, he bowed solemnly to Wei Zhao: "Master Lin, you are truly a prodigy of our age. Zhuang is filled with admiration!"
At these words, the entire hall erupted in uproar.
Who was Zhuang Yifan? Ever since he took over the Yellow-rank Academy Alliance, he had purged everyone from top to bottom within a single month, his methods so forceful and domineering that none could compare. Everyone beneath him could only play the yes-man in his presence, not even daring to utter an extra sound.
Such a forceful figure—not to mention within the Yellow-rank Academy Alliance, even before those local old monsters of the Yellow-rank sea region who shunned the world, he had never once been seen to lower his head. Yet now, for the first time in history, he had bowed publicly to a young junior like Wei Zhao. Had the man drunk too much?