The Eternal Saint of Alchemy

Xiao Fan opened the envelope and took out the letter inside. The pattern on the wax seal was the Ye family crest, and the handwriting was indeed Ye Ruolin's, but it was somewhat messy, as if it had been written in a hurry.

Xiao Fan: There's been a problem at Zixiao Pavilion. Yesterday, Elder Song suffered a qi deviation during his seclusion, damaging his meridians.

Chen Yuan was sidelined, and a man surnamed Zhong took over the outer perimeter. This man had a hardline stance on the Burning Bone Abyss and had already sent people south to search for the entrance to the ruins. "You'd better watch yourself." "Mm."

Xiao Fan checked the letter twice to make sure nothing was missing before placing it next to the charcoal fire and burning it to ashes.

Old Song has gone mad.

If this old monster who truly reigns supreme in Zixiao Pavilion has an accident, the balance of power within the pavilion will be broken, and the radical faction that was originally suppressed will naturally surface.

The fact that the man surnamed Zhong was able to replace Chen Yuan's position overnight clearly indicates that he had planned it all along, waiting for the moment when Old Song would get into trouble.

Xiao Fan stood up, walked to the window, opened it, and the cold wind blew in, mixed with some snowflakes.

The snow outside the window was already more than half a foot deep, and the blue stone steps and roof in the courtyard were covered with a layer of silver frost. The distant mountains and the nearby trees were also covered with a layer of snow.

He closed the window and walked into the yard. Han Fei was sweeping the floor. Seeing Han Fei, he immediately stopped. Xiao Fan briefly recounted what had happened in the capital. Han Fei's expression shifted, he put down the broom, and went to prepare the carriage.

The monk Gu Yuan walked over from the corridor and, after listening to his words, said, "If you go to the capital, you'll be walking into a trap."

"Old Song once advised me that Chen Yuanren is a good person. If the radicals really obtain the Purple Cloud Pavilion and the entrance to the Burning Bone Abyss, it will be theirs sooner or later."

"If I don't intervene, the furnace and the underground array's core will malfunction."

Xiao Fan straightened his cloak, turned to Master Gu Yuan, and said, "You stay here, Ruoxi and I will go together. I'll give you half a month."

Master Gu Yuan didn't stop him, but simply nodded, took out two talismans from his storage bag, and handed them to Han Sen. "These are for preventing slipping. Be careful on the road."

The road through the snow was more difficult than expected. The carriage trudged through the snow for five days before finally reaching the capital, two days longer than usual.

After entering the city, Xiao Fan walked straight towards the Zixiao Pavilion mansion. The two guards at the gate immediately stood up straight when they saw him, obviously knowing beforehand.

Just as he was about to go inside, a thin, middle-aged man dressed in a dark green brocade robe came out. "Young Master Xiao, you've arrived quite quickly."

My surname is Zhong, and I am in charge of external affairs for the Zixiao Pavilion. Elder Song is currently in seclusion and unable to receive guests, and Attendant Chen has other important matters to attend to. Young Master Xiao, please feel free to give your instructions.

Xiao Fan walked in without stopping. "On the way here, I heard people say that your esteemed pavilion has been heading south to search for the entrance to the Burning Bone Abyss."

Elder Song had instructed everyone not to interfere in the affairs of the Burning Bone Abyss. I came here today to see if that rule still applied.

A lean, middle-aged man surnamed Zhong followed closely behind, a faint smile on his face. "Elder Song has set the rules, but he is currently in seclusion to recuperate, so someone has to take over the affairs of the pavilion."

Moreover, the entrance to the Burning Bone Abyss is outside the country's borders and does not belong to any force. Sending someone from the Purple Cloud Pavilion to investigate shouldn't cause any problems, right?

Xiao Fan stood in the center of the main hall and turned to look at Mr. Zhong. The two were less than five steps apart. The door to the main hall was half open, and the cold wind blew into the room, making their clothes flutter.

"No man's land?" Xiao Fan glanced at him, his voice not loud, but each word resounding, "The entrance to the Burning Bone Abyss was personally sealed by the Taixu Pill Saint with the Fire of Creation, and cannot be opened by anyone other than a successor of the Taixu lineage."

Even if you send people to explore a hundred times, you might not be able to get in. I'm not exaggerating; Elder Song knows that place well, and you should know that too."

The smile on the middle-aged man surnamed Zhong's face vanished, and a glint of shrewdness flashed in his eyes.

"Young Master Xiao, you're mistaken. Although the legacy of the Grandmaster of Alchemy is yours, the spiritual energy contained in the alchemy furnace within the Burning Bone Abyss is of great benefit to the entire alchemy world of Daqing. It would be a waste to have you guard it all by yourself. The Purple Cloud Pavilion didn't intend to monopolize it; it only wanted to get involved."

Xiao Fan pondered for a moment, then took out a jade bottle about the size of a thumb from his pocket, unscrewed the stopper, and poured a drop of dark golden liquid onto his fingertip.

The liquid emitted a faint glow and exuded a rich fire-attribute spiritual energy, making the temperature in the entire hall seem to rise slightly.

"This is the essence that the Grandmaster of Pill Refining spent twenty-three years extracting from the furnace of the Burning Bone Abyss."

Xiao Fan rubbed the drop of liquid between his fingers, then put it back into the bottle and sealed it. "If Zixiao Pavilion really wants to participate in the research, they must first analyze the flame composition of this liquid. If they can't even figure that out, then they shouldn't even think about burning the gate down."

The middle-aged man surnamed Zhong glanced at the jade bottle, his expression shifting between light and dark.

Just as he was about to continue speaking, a series of heavy footsteps came from the back of the hall.

Old Song, dressed in a worn-out cotton robe, walked out step by step.

His face was very pale, and his aura was indeed not as strong as when they last met, but his eyes were as sharp as knives.

His gaze slowly swept over the two people in the hall, his voice hoarse but unhurried: "Steward Zhong, since when did it become your place to make decisions?"

The middle-aged man surnamed Zhong's face immediately darkened. He was about to explain when Elder Song waved his hand and said, "Go down. I will handle the matter of Burning Bone Abyss. If you interfere again, get out of Zixiao Pavilion immediately."

The middle-aged man surnamed Zhong's face flushed red, but he dared not say anything more and bowed as he withdrew. Only Xiao Fan and Old Man Song remained in the hall. Old Man Song slowly sat down in his chair, looked at Xiao Fan, and sighed.

"You're smart to come so quickly. In two more days, the man surnamed Zhong will send someone to find us."

Xiao Fan sat down in the chair, took out a jade bottle from his pocket, placed it on the table, and pushed it in front of him. "Elder Song, I have a drop of Flame Essence here. Please keep it safe."

If anyone in the Purple Cloud Pavilion wants to harm the Burning Bone Abyss, you can use this to shut them up. Let them know whether they have the right to do so.

Old Song stared at the jade bottle for a long while before tremblingly reaching out and taking it in his hand. He paused, then chuckled softly.

"You little rascal, you understand human relationships better than your Master Taixu."

Old Song looked weaker than he appeared, but his mind was clear and he spoke eloquently.