141: Chapter 141 Forcing Through the Pill Tower: This Young Master Never Makes Appointments!

The Dan Tower stood at the center of Dan City, rising nine thousand nine hundred zhang high, piercing straight into the clouds.

The tower's body was cast from an unknown black divine iron, its surface engraved with countless complex and obscure pill patterns that constantly breathed the spiritual energy of heaven and earth. From a distance, this giant tower looked like an eternal alchemy furnace—majestic, solemn, and imposing enough to take one's breath away.

As the sacred land in the hearts of Central Province's alchemists, it was usually bustling with activity. Countless experts from major forces, even the Holy Lords of various regions, had to obediently restrain their auras upon reaching the tower, honestly lining up to submit their visiting cards and waiting for an audience with the tower's elders or even deacons.

But today, someone who didn't know the rules had arrived.

Xu Chen stood before the hundred-zhang-high bronze gates of the Dan Tower. He glanced up at the swirling pill clouds above and, without a moment's hesitation, walked straight inside.

"Halt!"

Two crossed halberds swung in front of Xu Chen with a sharp whistling sound.

Two guards wearing standard Dan Tower armor looked on with cold expressions, their bodies radiating spiritual fluctuations of the Great Power Realm. Great Powers, who were capable of founding their own sects in the outside world, were actually relegated to guarding the gates here; the Dan Tower's foundation was evident.

"The Dan Tower is a restricted area. Unauthorized personnel must stop."

The guard on the left sized Xu Chen up. Seeing that although he had an extraordinary temperament, he had neither a high-level alchemist badge at his waist nor a visiting card from a major Holy Land, his tone became somewhat stiff and businesslike.

"Regardless of which family's young master you are, if you want medicine, go queue at the side hall; if you want to become a disciple, wait for next month's assessment; if you want to see an elder, show your appointment jade slip."

Xu Chen stopped in his tracks, his expression calm.

"I don't have an appointment."

He paused, his gaze passing through the guards to look at the top of the tower, where the spiritual energy was most concentrated.

"I'm looking for Liu Hanyan."

As soon as these words were spoken, the originally noisy entrance of the Dan Tower instantly fell silent.

The cultivators lining up for medicine all widened their eyes, looking at this white-robed youth as if he were a madman.

Liu Hanyan?

That was the Master of the Dan Tower, the number one alchemist of Central Province known as the "Pill Dao Fairy"! Usually, even Great Emperor experts would politely address her as "Tower Master Liu" when they visited. This guy was something else; not only did he call her by her name, but he even used a casual tone as if saying, "Tell her to come out and see me."

"Presumptuous!"

The two guards' faces changed abruptly. Spiritual light surged on their halberds as they locked onto Xu Chen with murderous intent.

"Is the Tower Master's name something you can just call out? Considering it's your first offense, leave quickly, otherwise don't blame us for throwing you out of the Dan Domain!"

Just then, a delicate laugh filled with schadenfreude came from inside the gate.

"Hehehe, I thought you were so impressive on the street. How come you're being blocked at the door like a watchdog now that you're here?"

Xiao Yu walked out arrogantly with a group of Dan Tower deacons, her arms crossed over her chest.

She had clearly changed her clothes; although she was still in red martial attire, it was obviously more luxurious than the previous set. However, in her eyes as she looked at Xu Chen, besides her usual bossy attitude, there was a hidden, imperceptible trace of wariness and the pleasure of revenge.

"Big brothers, this person is just a troublemaker."

Xiao Yu pointed at Xu Chen, her exquisite little face full of pride as she said loudly:

"Just now on the street, he not only injured my Fire Cloud Kirin but also boastfully said that the Dan Tower's rules were useless to him. In my opinion, such an arrogant person should have his cultivation base crippled and be thrown into the 'Fire Refining Prison' to be used as fuel!"

With the Saintess speaking up, the surrounding Dan Tower guards instantly gained confidence.

"So it's an enemy of the Saintess."

The guard captain grinned savagely and waved his hand. Over a dozen Law Enforcers with powerful auras immediately rushed out and surrounded Xu Chen.

"Kid, since you've offended Saintess Xiao Yu, I'm afraid you won't be walking in today."

Xiao Yu stood on the steps, looking down at Xu Chen with a provocative curve at the corner of her mouth.

"Hey, weren't you quite the fighter just now? Didn't you want me to kneel?"

"This is the Dan Tower, suppressed by the Tower Protection Array. How much of that brute strength of yours can you still use? I want to see who's going to kneel to whom today!"

Although she was spoiled, she wasn't stupid. Having suffered a loss on the street and knowing she couldn't win a one-on-one fight, she immediately ran back to call for backup. This Tower Protection Array was jointly set up by several Pill Emperors; even a Quasi-Emperor expert would have thirty percent of their cultivation suppressed upon entering.

Xu Chen looked at this scene and shook his head helplessly.

"I originally wanted to get along with you all as an ordinary person, being polite before resorting to force."

He sighed and slowly looked up. Those eyes, originally as calm as water, instantly turned into brilliant golden pupils, and a long-dormant, terrifying aura erupted within his body.

"Since you insist on doing things the hard way..."

"Then don't blame this Young Master for not playing fair."

The moment his voice fell.

BOOM—!!!

A terrifying pressure originating from the primordial desolation, transcending all things, exploded outward with Xu Chen as the center without reservation.

That wasn't spiritual pressure, but pure bloodline suppression!

It was a True Dragon!

Behind Xu Chen, the void distorted violently, and a ten-thousand-zhang-long phantom of a Primordial True Dragon faintly emerged. Although the dragon shadow was only a fleeting glimpse, the Dragon Might released in that instant made the souls of all living beings within a hundred-mile radius tremble.

"Roar!"

In the distance, a vast and overbearing dragon roar echoed through the clouds, shaking the runes on the surface of the Dan Tower so much that they flickered wildly.

Crack! Snap!

The dozen or so Law Enforcers surrounding Xu Chen didn't even have time to scream before the weapons in their hands were instantly shattered by this Dragon Might. Their entire bodies felt as if they were being crushed by a primordial divine mountain; their knees buckled, and they all knelt on the ground in unison!

It wasn't that they wanted to kneel, but their physical instincts told them: if you don't kneel, you will die!

"You..."

Xiao Yu's face on the steps turned deathly pale. Being the closest, she felt it most deeply. That suffocating feeling as if being stared down by a natural predator struck again, and it was a hundred times stronger than when she was on the street!

Her legs trembled, and she had to grip the nearby stone pillar tightly to barely avoid embarrassing herself again, but the arrogance in her eyes had long since vanished, replaced by endless terror.

This guy... is he human or a demon? How could he have such terrifying Dragon Might?!

Xu Chen ignored the guards kneeling all over the ground and didn't look at the terrified Xiao Yu.

He stood with his hands behind his back, his robes moving without wind, as he spoke calmly toward the depths of the Dan Tower. His voice wasn't loud, but with the enhancement of the True Dragon's aura, it instantly penetrated through layers of arrays and echoed throughout the entire interior of the Dan Tower.

"Ancient Xu Family, Xu Chen."

"I'm here to discuss some business with Tower Master Liu."

"Within three breaths, if no one comes out to receive me, I don't mind tearing down this broken door and entering myself."

His voice was like rolling thunder, spreading to every corner of the Dan Tower.

One breath.

Two breaths.

Before the third breath could pass, a sudden panic of spiritual fluctuations erupted from the upper levels of the Dan Tower.

"We did not know the Young Master of the Imperial Clan had arrived! We have failed to welcome you properly! Please forgive us! Forgive us!"

Accompanied by an old but urgent voice, seven or eight streaks of light flew down from the top of the tower.

It was the Dan Tower's Council of Elders!

Usually, these alchemy grandmasters, who were so haughty that even Holy Lords had to flatter them, were running faster than rabbits now, fearing they would be a step late and annoy this living ancestor.

What a joke! The Ancient Xu Family!

That was a family famously known as protective maniacs. If the Xu Family knew their Young Master was being pointed at with halberds by guards at the Dan Tower's entrance, that madman Xu Changsheng could bring an extreme dao imperial weapon and level the Dan Tower tomorrow!

"Is that... the Grand Elder? And the Hall Master of Punishment?"

The surrounding cultivators were completely dumbfounded. They watched as those high and mighty figures, who were usually above everyone else, were now surrounding the white-robed youth with fawning expressions, bowing and scraping while breaking out in cold sweat.

"Young Master Xu! A misunderstanding! It's all a misunderstanding!"

The leading Grand Elder wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and glared fiercely at the guard captain who was already paralyzed with fear.

"Get lost already! You offended the Young Master of the Imperial Clan; how many lives do you have to pay for that?!"

After scolding his subordinate, the Grand Elder turned back, his face instantly piling up with a smile like a blooming chrysanthemum. He bent his waist ninety degrees and made a gesture of invitation.

"Tower Master Liu is currently reviewing ancient texts in the top-floor medicine pavilion. Young Master, please! This way, please!"

Xu Chen withdrew his Dragon Might, and that terrifying sense of oppression instantly dissipated, as if everything just now was merely everyone's hallucination.

He glanced at Xiao Yu, whose face was pale as she bit her lip and remained silent. As he passed her, his footsteps paused slightly.

"Next time you want to call for backup, remember to find someone who can actually fight."

Leaving behind a casual "finishing blow," Xu Chen walked into the Dan Tower's gates, surrounded by the Grand Elder and the others like stars surrounding the moon.

Leaving Xiao Yu alone, standing in the wind, completely bewildered.

She watched Xu Chen's arrogant back, her nails digging deep into her palms, her heart filled with both grievance and shock.

Ancient Imperial Clan... Young Master of the Xu Family?

This bastard who had ground her into the dirt actually had a background ten thousand times tougher than hers?

"Dammit..."

Xiao Yu gnashed her teeth. Not only did the fire of anger in her eyes not go out, it burned even brighter.

"So what if he's the Xu Family Young Master? Once you're inside the Dan Tower, it's a place where your alchemy skills do the talking!"

"I don't believe that a guy like you, who only knows how to use brute force, could possibly understand alchemy!"

...

[Ding! Detected that the host's behavior was overbearingly dominant, successfully intimidating the people of the Dan Tower!]

[Reward Settlement: Family Contribution Points +2000!]

"Young Master Xu, this way please."

The Grand Elder led the way attentively and soon brought Xu Chen to a teleportation elevator engraved with ancient arrays.

"The Tower Master is at the very top in the 'Cloud Top Medicine Pavilion.' She likes quiet and usually sees no one except for Saintess Xiao Yu. However, since the Young Master has graced us with his presence, I'm sure the Tower Master will make an exception."

Xu Chen nodded slightly and stepped into the teleportation array.

A flash of light.

The next moment, the surrounding noise completely vanished.

In its place was a quiet space that felt as if it were situated amidst the clouds.

There were no luxurious decorations here, only rows of towering bookshelves filled with yellowed ancient texts and jade slips. The air was permeated with a strange fragrance—a mixture of thousands of rare spiritual medicines—that brought peace to one's mind upon smelling it.

And in the deepest part of that sea of books, an elegant figure sat with her back to him at a red sandalwood desk, looking down and flipping through something.

Although it was just a back view, the plump curves faintly outlined beneath the loose alchemist robes and the long black hair casually pinned up like a waterfall all exuded an indescribable mature charm.

That was the finest aged wine that could only be brewed through the precipitation of time.

"I have said that no matter who comes, I will not perform alchemy today."

Hearing the footsteps, the woman didn't turn her head. Her voice was as cold and clear as spring water hitting a stone, carrying an unquestionable refusal.

Xu Chen stopped in his tracks, looking at that figure, a flash of admiration in his eyes.