Alchemy Master

Chapter 1014, Unsheathed Brilliance

Translator: Silavin

For the first time in her life, Feng Qianxue encountered an impossible choice.

Within the Feng Family, she lived as a Princess. She was cherished, protected, elevated above all hardship. Never had she faced a moment like this.

What should she choose?

If she refuses to go with this person, Qin Yichen might face a disaster.

But if she left with him… when would she see Qin Yichen again?

“I’ll go with you!” After struggling through the contradiction for what felt like an eternity, Feng Qianxue’s gaze suddenly solidified with determination. She bit her lip until it turned pale, forcing out those four agonizing words.

The moment she spoke to them, all strength seemed to drain from her body. Her delicate face turned ashen, and even her Phoenix Martial Soul dissipated.

“No!!” Qin Yichen roared inside his heart, but no sound emerged from his throat. He bit down hard, managing only a single hoarse word, “Don’t…”

*Hmph!* How could the Phoenix Clan expert tolerate interference with his objective? With a cold snort, Qin Yichen could not even maintain his footing. His entire body felt as though mountains had been piled upon it. His legs began to buckle, and throughout his skeleton, the grinding of bones produced sounds that set teeth on edge.

*Crack… crack…* Qin Yichen clenched his jaw, refusing to submit before this man. Under this pressure, he felt his very bones fracturing.

No matter how talented he was, no matter what techniques he possessed, before this absolute suppression of strength, everything seemed pale and powerless.

“Envoy from the Phoenix Clan, that’s more than enough.” A resonant voice descended from Saints Heavenly Manor above, seeming to pierce through everything and break through Qin Yichen’s predicament.

The Phoenix Clan expert’s expression shifted, though he said nothing.

Undeniably, as the overlording Force of the Nine Heavens Flaming Sea, their strength and foundation vastly exceeded the Human Race by an unknowable degree. Yet his actions here had indeed crossed a line.

This was, after all, the Human Race’s territory!

Moreover, to assault a Human Race prodigy before so many witnesses, forcing him to submit. This too damaged his own dignity.

“Let’s go!”

The Phoenix Clan expert’s voice fell. His hand landed on Feng Qianxue’s shoulder, and in the next moment, his form transformed into a red cloud, vanishing into the horizon in an instant.

“Qianxue!!” Having just escaped the shackles of that pressure, Qin Yichen knelt on one knee, his entire body trembling.

He hated this!

Because of his own incompetence, he could only watch helplessly as someone took Feng Qianxue away right before his eyes!

He hated his powerlessness!

Of course, this was also because he remained nothing more than an unknown nobody.

If he were a Core Disciple of Saints Heavenly Manor, who would dare disregard him like this?

Would Saints Heavenly Manor have simply turned a blind eye?

Though they ultimately stopped the Phoenix Clan expert’s excessive behaviour, everything stemmed from one truth: Qin Yichen himself carried insufficient weight!

At this moment, he questioned once more. [Was my choice to remain low-key truly been a mistake? What has all of this earned me? Nothing but humiliation! What else is there!?]

“If Heaven demands my death, I’ll defy Heaven! If Earth demands my destruction, I’ll shatter the Earth! If the Myriad Races reject me, then I’ll annihilate the Myriad Races!”

He no longer wished to remain low-key!

He would make Heaven itself change colour for him!

He would make Earth tremble before him!

He would force all those who looked down from above to regard him with new eyes!

Qin Yichen had never been some unknown nobody!!

“Junior Brother Qin…”

“Brother Qin…”

Mu Yanfeng, Lin Fengying, and Xuan Mingge approached, intending to help him up. But Qin Yichen had already risen to his feet.

For reasons they could not articulate, seeing Qin Yichen stand caused all three to freeze. The person before them seemed fundamentally different from the one who had knelt just moments ago.

Previously, Qin Yichen’s sharp edges had been concealed, his entire bearing gentle and warm, like the surface of a tranquil lake.

But the Qin Yichen who now stood before them radiated unsheathed brilliance, like a vast and turbulent ocean, waves surging, mighty and unstoppable. It was as though nothing before him could not be levelled flat!

Qin Yichen said nothing. Like an ancient pine, he stood there, his gaze fixed directly upon the Heaven Stairway.

[Fine. If the world wants me to be high-profile, it would begin right here!]

He possessed the True Dragon Martial Soul. He carried the inheritance of the Demon Subduing Great Saint, first beneath the Human Deity. He… feared nothing!

*Dong! Dong! Dong!*

As three resounding bell tones descended from Saints Heavenly Manor, they proclaimed the commencement of the ascension of the Heaven Stairway.

The moment the third tone finished falling, Qin Yichen moved. Without even acknowledging anyone beside him, he walked straight toward the Heaven Stairway.

Though ascending the Heaven Stairway had begun, no one dared step forward.

Because to everyone gathered here, the Heaven Stairway remained an unknown mystery.

They dare not attempt it lightly.

Because every person possessed only one chance in their lifetime to ascend the Heaven Stairway!

If they failed, they would lose all qualification to enter Saints Heavenly Manor.

Therefore, they must exercise extreme caution!

It was not that they would not ascend. They were waiting for someone to attempt it first, to learn from their experience.

While they hesitated, still wavering, Qin Yichen had already arrived before the first step of the Heaven Stairway!

“Hm?”

Countless curious gazes immediately converged.

After all, this was the first person attempting to ascend the Heaven Stairway.

Even from atop Saints Heavenly Manor, eyes turned to observe.

Many below recognized Qin Yichen.

After all, the situation between Qin Yichen, Ying Xinghui, and Nie Shengrui had caused quite a commotion. It was difficult to remain ignorant of him.

Those above Saints Heavenly Manor knew him from the recent incident.

Though they did not understand Qin Yichen’s background or fully grasp his talent, his ability to stand before that Phoenix Clan expert, that unyielding determination, that resilience, it was not something everyone possessed.

Therefore, they were curious what made this youth so different from ordinary people.

However, when they observed that Qin Yichen’s cultivation had not even reached the Martial Ancestor Realm, disappointment was inevitable.

Though Qin Yichen was only in his teens, a cultivation level that anywhere else would mark him as a once-in-a-millennium prodigy, this was Saints Heavenly Manor!

Within Saints Heavenly Manor, countless individuals even younger than Qin Yichen had long since broken through to the Martial Ancestor Realm.

Moreover, each possessed enviable Physiques that made them superior to all others.

Judging purely from the perspective of talent and cultivation realm, Qin Yichen simply did not possess the qualifications to enter Saints Heavenly Manor!

…

Before even ascending the Heaven Stairway, standing before its first step, Qin Yichen sensed a vast and profound aura rolling forth from above. It was like surging river waters threatening to sweep him away.

Yet Qin Yichen’s gaze remained unwavering. His movements didn’t falter for an instant as he lifted his foot and stepped onto the first stair!