Age of Evolution

Chapter 648: Chapter 650: First Encounter with the Enemy (Triple Update)

The Sixth-grade elder had to report to the Association of Alchemists, and Nalan Chenxi’s actions were swift, completing Lin Zhen’s identity process in no time.

A purple robe with six Gold Stars on the chest was handed over, and Nalan Chenxi personally handed it to Lin Zhen.

“If it were anyone else, even if they reached the sixth grade, I would still call them Great Elder, but you’re different, Lin Zhen, you have an infinitely bright future, Dewey and I both unanimously believe that you will eventually surpass us two old guys in the path of Alchemy. So, I’m calling you ‘Lin brother’, I hope you don’t think I’m being presumptuous.”

“Haha, I am truly flattered by the affection of both elder brothers. Lin Zhen is truly terrified.”

Nalan Chenxi and Dewey both laughed heartily, with a few people patting each other on the shoulders, appearing like good brothers.

As Alchemists themselves, they understood how terrifying Lin Zhen’s alchemy skills were.

There’s nothing to nitpick about this young man’s alchemy skills anymore. As long as the opportunity arrives, he may become a Seventh-grade Alchemist and be on equal footing with them tomorrow.

But they have both practiced Alchemy for tens of thousands of years.

In their eyes, Lin Zhen will inevitably become the number one Alchemist in Southern Liang, it’s just a matter of time.

The two were also very willing to befriend Lin Zhen. Anyone who can be promoted to a Seventh-grade Alchemist must also be Longevity Warriors. Lin Zhen is close to the position of World King, and will inevitably enter the Longevity Realm sooner or later.

“Brother, although we may be a few years older, I have some advice for you. This kind of improved Divine Power Pill should not be produced in large quantities. The rarer it is, the more valuable it is. This kind of Elixir is worth a lot of money.”

Lin Zhen nodded, understanding very well that the refined Ancient Alchemy Recipe is a top-quality elixir.

A pill that could increase Star Power by 40%. The fewer there are, the more valuable it is. A single pill can even be auctioned off.

Upon becoming a Great Elder, Lin Zhen now owned a large courtyard within the Association, which was not far from the courtyard he had purchased outside, only about ten kilometers away.

To celebrate the addition of another Great Elder, Nalan Chenxi invited the other three Great Elders in the association to meet Lin Zhen and get to know him.

Both sides added each other’s Dimensional Universe numbers, and the five people had a group in which they could communicate about Alchemy insights.

Now Lin Zhen had also been pulled in. These six people were the top echelon of the Southern Liang Alchemist Association.

“Hahaha! Today is such a happy day! Our Southern Liang Alchemist Association finally has a successor! These years, the five of us old men have been holding on here. Comparing our association to those of other empires, it’s as if its glory has faded, and we have become look down upon. Now that Great Elder Lin Zhen has arrived, who dares to look down on Southern Liang! A thousand-year-old Great Elder, it’s simply scorpion shit– one of a kind, hahaha!”

Lin Zhen was somewhat speechless listening to Nalan Chenxi’s inappropriate analogy. This old man was a little too happy.

“Everyone, please go about your business. I’ll deal with the matters at hand and in half an hour, let’s go out and have a big meal. I’ll treat everyone. If this meal doesn’t cost a billion, you guys can’t call yourself worldly!”

The Great Elders and Dewey all laughed heartily. It’s rare for the president to be so generous. They must make sure this meal costs over a billion, and give the president a taste of being a wealthy local tyrant.

Lin Zhen was also quite happy. He now had a courtyard in the Association, and he would also receive two Longevity Warrior bodyguards. This was what Lin Zhen valued most.

With two Longevity Realm guardians, Lin Zhen’s safety would be completely worry-free.

However, Longevity Warriors aren’t cabbages, and it would take time for the Association to make arrangements. They wouldn’t be sent over in just three to five days.

Lin Zhen was not in a hurry. He needed to go out and check on the Alchemist Association’s available bones. He still had to unseal the Bone Etching Divine Needle.

As he was about to leave, Nalan Chenxi reminded him, “When we go out for dinner, let’s not wear our robes, wear casual clothes, and be low-key.”

Everyone nodded, and even if they didn’t wear the robes, nobody in the association wouldn’t recognize them.

Lin Zhen was also willing to comply. He didn’t want to be too ostentatious. Casual clothes were fine, and the receptionist at the Association already recognized him.

Lin Zhen took off his robe, changed into casual clothes, and left Nalan Chenxi’s courtyard to go to the Association’s front desk.

“Great Elder Lin Zhen, hello.”

The receptionist was a beautiful Elf girl who performed a salute in front of Lin Zhen, her eyes filled with curiosity. She had already been notified that there was a new Great Elder in the association.

“Hehe, hello Fu Ruoya.”

“Ah! Great Elder Lin Zhen actually remembers my name!”

The girl called Fu Ruoya was excited, “I’ve never seen such a young, handsome, and approachable Great Elder.”

“You won’t find it strange when we meet more often later.”

Lin Zhen deflected the topic with a smile, “Fu Ruoya, can you help me find some bones? I need them for alchemy.”

“Sure, please make a list, Great Elder. You can enjoy a 30% discount here.”

Lin Zhen immediately gave Fu Ruoya the list of the remaining six bones, “Check which ones you have available at the association, give them to me directly, and if you don’t have them, please help me purchase them.”

“Hmm, let me see… we have a Soul Devouring Beast bone, a Dragon Clan bone, and a Kunpeng bone. We don’t have Phoenix, Kirin or Violent Ape bones right now, but I can try to help you purchase them.”

As expected of the Empire’s Alchemist Association, Lin Zhen was overjoyed to have found three out of the six needed bones.

However, Lin Zhen knew that acquiring the remaining three bones would not be easy, as these Super Star River Beast bones were extremely rare. If it wasn’t for his status, he wouldn’t even have a place to obtain the first three.

“Alright, try to purchase them anyway.”

Having spent over twenty billion, Lin Zhen obtained the bones of the Dragon Clan, Kunpeng, and Soul-devouring Beast.

After obtaining the items, Lin Zhen returned to the rest area in the hall to wait.

Lin Feng had also come with him, currently taking the assessment to become a Fourth-grade Alchemist. He felt that he needed to improve his abilities as Lin Zhen’s follower.

Lin Zhen understood his intention. Lin Feng thought that if Lin Zhen became a Sixth-grade Alchemist, he might no longer need a World King guard, and instead require Longevity warriors. Lin Feng was afraid that his future would be uncertain.

However, in Lin Zhen’s heart, Lin Feng was never thought of as merely a servant or guard. Even if he had Longevity warriors to protect him, Lin Feng would not leave. Lin Zhen was fully prepared to keep supporting him financially.

From Lin Zhen’s view, Lin Feng’s chances of passing were not very high, at most fifty percent. Although he had an excellent talent, he did not have Lin Zhen’s miraculous ability to absorb memories. It wasn’t easy to become a Fourth-grade Alchemist.

While waiting for Lin Feng’s assessment and Nalan Chenxi to come out, Lin Zhen overheard a conversation nearby.

“Please do not worry, Your Highness the Imperial Grandson. As soon as these medicinal materials arrive, I will quickly refine them into elixirs. My master will also be here soon, and we will work together to turn these materials into money as soon as possible.”

“You must be quick. I desperately need money right now and have gone out of my way to obtain these materials from other places. You and your master must hurry and try to process all these materials into elixirs within two days, and then transfer the money to me as soon as possible.”

“Two days… Your Highness, that is too soon. With such a short time and so many materials, even if we invite a few more stewards to help, the elixirs produced would be rough and of poor quality. They might not sell well in the market.”

“I don’t care! You have your ways. All I need is the money, and don’t you dare tell me you can’t do it!”

“Alright… we’ll do our best.”

Listening to this conversation, two people immediately appeared in Lin Zhen’s mind.

This alchemist was Steward Feng, and as for the other person, wasn’t he the one who had always challenged Lin Zhen?

Although Lin Zhen knew this person was a member of the royal family, he didn’t expect him to be the Imperial Grandson of the Nan Liang Empire.

This explained it; he was the son of the Crown Prince and had been living with the Crown Princess Ning Qingxuan, Liang Chen.

Though the Emperor had other grandsons, only this one was the son of the Crown Prince and had the qualifications to inherit the throne of Nan Liang. His status was far beyond that of other royal family members.

But upon hearing their conversation, Lin Zhen couldn’t help but smile.

It seemed that Liang Chen had exhausted all his options. He had lost 320 billion and then 100 billion more, and with no money left, he had managed to obtain some medicinal materials from somewhere and asked Steward Feng to refine them into elixirs so he could accumulate more wealth.

There was no doubt the reason for amassing wealth was to challenge Lin Zhen again.

He really was a perfect little money-delivery soldier.

As Lin Zhen thought about this, he let out a soft chuckle.

His laughter immediately disturbed the two men who were still plotting together.

“Who?!”

The two men turned around at the same time, saw Lin Zhen, and simultaneously uttered the same sentence.

“It’s you!”

After speaking, Liang Chen and Steward Feng looked at each other. Liang Chen asked, “Do you know this guy?”

Inside the Alchemist Association, Steward Feng was now full of confidence. After the previous encounter with Lin Zhen, he had sought out his master, an elder with the last name Wang. His master then spoke to Charles, the Great Elder.

The Great Elder didn’t take the matter seriously and merely told them not to bother him with trivial matters while he was busy refining elixirs.

With the Great Elder’s backing, Steward Feng’s heart settled down, and he was no longer worried about being blackmailed by Lin Zhen.

Now, upon seeing Lin Zhen again, the shame from before surged into Steward Feng’s heart.

“Your Highness, this guy is despicable, deceitful, and a shameless imposter. A month ago, we had some conflicts, and I let him off the hook. I didn’t expect him to actually show up at the Alchemist Association!”

Then he asked Liang Chen, “Your Highness, how do you know this person?”

“This man… I wish I could turn him into ashes!” Hatred flamed in Liang Chen’s eyes. Having lost hundreds of billions to Lin Zhen, Liang Chen had become obsessed with defeating him, feeling like he could not accomplish anything else without doing so.

Hearing Liang Chen’s words, Steward Feng’s confidence swelled. “Kid, you’ve brought misfortune upon yourself by coming here today. You’re finished!”