Reaching the pinnacle from Doupo

Chapter 541 Deliberation, Agent
"Good! Good! Good!" The Grand Elder stared intently at Lin Yuan, as if examining a rare treasure, his eyes filled with satisfaction: "To have achieved so much at such a young age, your future is limitless. The Pill Tower is truly fortunate to have you!"

Xuan Kongzi stepped forward and patted Lin Yuan on the shoulder: "Good lad, you've really made our Pill Tower proud!" The other two also nodded with smiles.

Such a young demigod is something that even those ancient races don't currently possess.

What's even more remarkable is that Lin Yuan achieved his current success not through the bloodline of a Dou Di, but through his talent, intelligence, and fortuitous encounters.

The talent and ability he displayed are so great that it would not be an exaggeration to say that he has the potential to become a top expert!

According to the records of the Pill Tower, the five strongest individuals a thousand years ago, including the patriarchs of the Xiao, Hun, and Gu clans who possessed divine bloodlines, all broke through to the Saint Realm no earlier than Lin Yuan. Furthermore, the Burning Flame Ancestor and the Heavenly Pill Saint broke through to the Saint Realm forty years later.

Lin Yuan's cultivation speed is faster than that of those with divine bloodlines, his combat strength surpasses that of the younger generation, and his talent in alchemy is unparalleled.

The people present were all high-level alchemists, so they naturally understood the value of a ninth-grade pill.

To successfully cultivate a ninth-grade elixir, even with only the final step remaining, there is a considerable chance of failure; it is by no means a matter of luck.

They were almost certain that Lin Yuan's alchemy skills had reached the peak of the eighth rank.

Thinking of this, Xuan Kongzi couldn't help but sigh – he had witnessed firsthand the tremendous changes Lin Yuan had undergone in the past four years.

In terms of strength, Lin Yuan has made a leap from Dou Zong to Half Saint; in terms of alchemy, Lin Yuan has also grown from Grade 8, Six Colors to Grade 8, Nine Colors; in terms of reputation, he has gone from an unknown newcomer to the most prominent person in Zhongzhou.

This rate of progress was clearly unbelievable, but when applied to Lin Yuan, it strangely gave Xuan Kongzi a sense of it being perfectly natural...

Hearing their praise, Lin Yuan simply smiled faintly, his expression calm and composed, and humbly cupped his hands in greeting to them.

"Hehe, Elder and the three presidents are too kind!"

"Personally, I'm just luckier than most people. In addition, I'm fortunate to have gained the trust of the Pill Tower and the help of everyone... I wouldn't be where I am today without the training of the Pill Tower and the support of everyone."

He paused for a moment, then said solemnly, "At the Pill Gathering several years from now, I will certainly live up to your expectations and win a crown for our Pill Tower."

Necessary platitudes should still be said when necessary!

Upon hearing Lin Yuan's words, the First Elder and the three giants, unsurprisingly, all showed a hint of satisfaction in their eyes.

Beside him, Tian Leizi pondered for a moment, then solemnly said, "Lin Yuan, I once said that if your alchemy skills and cultivation reach the required level, I would hand over the position of a giant to you! Now, you have surpassed me in every aspect, so why don't you..."

However, before he could finish speaking, Lin Yuan quickly interrupted him, cutting off his serious, not joking, words.

"Senior Tianlei, you're joking!"

Lin Yuan scratched his head, smiled sheepishly, and said, "I'd rather you take on the responsibilities of a leader for a few more years. In the next few years... I'll focus my energy on cultivation."

Although becoming a leader in the Dan Tower and wielding power over the tower is quite attractive, it's not yet time for that.

Strength is the foundation of everything.

Upon hearing this, Tian Leizi inwardly sighed with regret—he truly intended to step down and go into seclusion to break through to the Half-Saint realm, but he didn't say anything more, only calmly nodding.

"Speaking of which, Lin Yuan, your timing for emerging from seclusion is just right."

Xuan Kongzi seemed to have thought of something and chimed in, saying, "The three of us were just discussing a very important matter! As the future commander of the Pill Tower, you have many ideas, so why don't you participate in this decision-making process? It just so happens that the Grand Elder is here too!"

Seeing this, Lin Yuan raised an eyebrow and asked uncertainly, "Judging from your serious expression... could it be something related to the Soul Palace?"

As he spoke, he waved his hand and put his lotus seat back into his storage ring.

With this action, the array patterns on several arrays set up in the star field flickered erratically, and after a moment, they turned into light spots and dissipated because they lost their array eyes.

This Azure Lotus Platform, which Lin Yuan modified, is the core of many formations.

As for the materials used for the modification, they were Yellow Spring Stones that Lin Yuan had Zi Yan collect when the group was in the Nine Nether Yellow Springs. These stones were the kind of materials that could lock up Dou Sheng (a high-ranking martial artist), and they had excellent hardness and energy transmission effects, making them extremely suitable as materials for refining weapons and setting up formations.

On the other side, upon hearing the words "Soul Palace," Elder Lin Mo frowned slightly, turned around to look at Xuan Kongzi and the other two, and a hint of inquiry flashed in his eyes.

Seeing the two solemn faces, Xuan Kongzi thought for a moment and then began to speak.

"The details are as follows..."

Before long, he told us everything without reservation about the recent developments of the Pill Tower, the Soul Palace's activities outside the Central Continent, the three people's decisions, and many other matters.

"So the Soul Palace has indeed taken action?" Lin Yuan nodded, showing no surprise.

"With hundreds of millions of casualties, this matter definitely deserves intervention."

Elder Lin Mo nodded in agreement, but then changed the subject: "However, the conflict with the Soul Hall is a matter of great importance and must be reviewed by the Grand Elder Council before a full-scale conflict with the Soul Hall can take place... I'm afraid the others won't agree so easily!"

"The Pill Tower, in the end, is a loose alliance organization with weak control over its members, especially the elders of the Lesser Pill Tower... This is even more true!"

"Many of them already had identities outside of the Dan Tower."

"But the vast majority of them are from the Central Plains, and very few are from the border regions outside the Central Plains."

"If the Pill Tower or the Central Plains were threatened by the Soul Hall, they would be willing to lend a hand, but if problems arise in the border regions that are not directly related to them..."

He shook his head, a hint of helplessness flashing in his eyes.

"Based on my understanding of the people in the Little Pill Tower, unless the threat from the Soul Palace is truly unavoidable, most of them would prefer to act cautiously rather than risk a full-scale war by actively interfering with the Soul Palace's actions in the peripheral areas."

"Your proposed intervention plan sounds good, but if it were put to a vote in the Grand Council, it probably wouldn't be so easy to win everyone's support."

"Even if it is barely passed, the lack of sufficient consensus will easily lead to problems during implementation..."

The three leaders remained silent on the matter, unable to offer any rebuttal—the principle of "everyone sweeps the snow from their own doorstep and doesn't care about the frost on someone else's roof" applies in most places.

The alchemist community, being largely unskilled in life-or-death combat, naturally tends to act conservatively. This is especially true of the elders of the Lesser Pill Tower, many of whom hold considerable status and position in the Central Continent; unless absolutely necessary, they naturally do not want to risk their lives against the Soul Hall.

The Pill Tower and the Soul Palace are fundamentally different forces.

The Soul Palace is a one-man show organization supported by the Soul Clan, and is naturally very aggressive; the Pill Tower is an alliance of alchemists. Although it is strong on paper, its style is conservative, and it is in a state of 'more than capable of maintaining the status quo, but not enough to make progress'.

If the Soul Palace were to attack, the members of the Pill Tower would naturally unite against a common enemy, but to voluntarily abandon peace and start a great war... this is not a simple matter for the members of the Pill Tower!
As for the three giants of the Pill Tower, they are more aggressive because they often face the threat of the Soul Palace.

As everyone's thoughts wandered, a deep silence fell over the room.

At one point, Lin Yuan spoke first, breaking the silence among everyone: "In that case, why don't we change our approach? Since the time is not yet ripe, instead of directly engaging in conflict with the Soul Palace, how about we support proxies to fight against them?"

"After all, compared to the Soul Palace, our Pill Tower has the huge advantage of 'abundant financial resources,' so why not make good use of this?"

"We don't need to get directly involved, but rather provide some support behind the scenes..."

"The Soul Hall is domineering and ruthless, and there are already many powerful people who have grudges against it. Our Pill Tower might as well invest some resources to act as a bridge and unite these powerful people together to establish an organization and let them confront the Soul Hall head-on."

"As for our Dan Tower, we just need to do a good job of providing the necessary 'logistical support' such as pills and intelligence."

"In this way, the Pill Tower will not have to get involved in the front-line battle, and can take this opportunity to either invest or win over some powerful people, and prepare for a major battle with the Soul Palace in advance."

"The Soul Palace and the Pill Tower will clash again sooner or later, so it's best to prepare early."

"With the covert support of our Pill Tower, those who are willing to fight against the Soul Hall can also strengthen their power and better deplete the Soul Hall's strength."

"Of course, those inside the tower who have old grudges against the Soul Hall can also change their identities and cause trouble for the Soul Hall."

"As far as I know, there are quite a few people in the Pill Tower who have grudges against the Soul Hall and support going to war with the Soul Hall. Although they are not the majority... it is not appropriate to ignore their opinions for a long time!"

“Give them a way to get revenge, and they would be happy to do it.”

At this point, a sly smile crept across his lips as he chuckled, "In this proxy war model, our Pill Tower doesn't need to directly clash with the Soul Palace. In that case, the opposition from the Little Pill Tower should be much less, right?"

Upon hearing this, Xuan Kongzi pondered for a moment, then his eyes flashed with a brilliant light as he murmured, "Proxy warfare, huh... What a brilliant strategy!"

The strategy proposed by Lin Yuan maximized the power of the Pill Tower and satisfied the ideas of all parties.

Those inside the tower, regardless of whether they had any grudges against the Soul Hall, had their demands met to some extent.

Those who had no enmity with the Soul Hall were able to avoid direct conflict and continue to live peacefully, thus fulfilling their desire to do so. Those who had enmity with the Soul Hall were able to mobilize their forces and integrate their networks to seek revenge.

Furthermore, if the forces opposing the Soul Hall can be effectively integrated, not only can the Soul Hall's power be depleted in advance, but a steadfast 'ally' can also be gained.

This kind of organization, established to fight against the Soul Hall, will undoubtedly become a thorn in the Soul Hall's side.

This organization, whose contradictions are irreconcilable with the Soul Hall, will inevitably become a natural shield, blocking the Soul Hall's path to the Pill Tower and maximizing the depletion of the Soul Hall's power.

In this way, Danta only needs to adjust the level of support it provides to control the intensity of the conflict with Tonghun Hall.

Without having to engage in direct combat, the alchemists of the Pill Tower can better utilize their expertise.

It is an extremely wasteful act to send most alchemists, who are not good at fighting, to fight head-on against those Soul Hall experts who are good at fighting.

"This plan is brilliant!" The more Xuan Kongzi thought about it, the more ingenious he felt. He couldn't help but clap his hands and cheer: "It can effectively strike the Soul Palace, minimize the losses of our Pill Tower, and meet the needs of all parties. It can be described as killing two birds with one stone!"

"This plan is good, but it will be quite difficult to implement." Tian Lei Zi shook his head, his eyes flashing with a thoughtful light, and pondered.

"The most troublesome part is choosing who to support as an agent."

"Given the Soul Palace's infamous reputation for being able to stop a child from crying, there are very few people on the entire continent who would dare to confront them head-on."

“Without our Dan Tower officially taking sides, this agent is a symbol. If this person is to gather enough resistance, they need to have considerable appeal and a firm enough determination to fight against the Soul Palace.”

"In addition, the agent must also have considerable strength, at least enough to withstand the initial offensive of the Soul Hall, so as to buy time to gather the strength to resist the Soul Hall."

"Strength, reputation, hatred... it's not easy to find someone who possesses all these qualities!"

"Hehe!" Lin Yuan chuckled lightly, then asked in a low voice, "There aren't many people like that, but there is someone we all know who perfectly fits these criteria, isn't there?"

"Yao Chen?" "Old Yao?" "That damned bastard?!"

Upon hearing Lin Yuan's words, the three leaders were slightly taken aback. After regaining their senses, the same person appeared in their minds at the same time.

"It is indeed Senior Yao!" Lin Yuan nodded slightly and chuckled.

"In terms of reputation, he is known as the 'Number One Alchemist on the Continent,' and now he has become a renowned Medicine Saint on the continent, and he is an old friend of many senior powerhouses."

"In terms of strength, he has been a half-saint for several years, and the Starfall Pavilion's current strength has surpassed that of the two sects."

"As for the hatred towards the Soul Hall..." Lin Yuan stroked his chin and pondered, "As far as I know, Senior Yao's 'fall' decades ago was entirely due to the Soul Hall. He and the Soul Hall had an irreconcilable blood feud."

"Given Senior Yao's clear-cut nature of distinguishing between gratitude and resentment, he could not possibly forget this hatred. He is only keeping it hidden for now because he is accumulating strength."

"Furthermore, his disciple Xiao Yan is a descendant of the Xiao clan and has an irreconcilable feud with the Soul Palace."

“I understand Xiao Yan. He’s not the type to swallow his hatred. He’ll seek revenge against the Soul Palace sooner or later. Given how much Senior Yao loves his disciple, even if he can let go of his past hatred, he will definitely support his disciple. It’s only a matter of time before they clash with the Soul Palace!”

"In that case, let's help Senior Yao—someone we can all trust—and he shouldn't let us down."

At this point, Lin Yuan tilted his head slightly, looked at the silent Xuan Yi beside him, and asked with a smile, "Senior Xuan Yi, you have known Senior Yao for a longer time and have a deeper understanding of him. Was there anything wrong with what I said just now?!"

Before she finished speaking, several pairs of slightly amused gazes fell on the woman in the cheongsam.

(End of this chapter)