Nalan Yanran Wants to Break Off the Engagement (Part 1)

"Liu Ling, do you still have something to say?" Qie Mi Er frowned, speaking in a deep voice.

Liu Ling quickly stepped forward, taking a deep look at Xiao Se in the direction Nalan Yanran was staring, and said unwillingly, "Vice President Qie Mi Er, to refine Ironwood Spirit Liquid ten times, it would require at least a top-tier four-rank alchemist like you to accomplish it. Across the entire Jia Ma Empire, only three people can do that: my master Pill King Gu He, President Fa Ma, and yourself. There's no way a second-rank alchemist like him could do it. Therefore, I suspect that there's an issue with the instrument, and I request to use a different set of instruments for a retest."

Seeing Liu Ling's unwilling expression, Xiao Se smirked coldly, used his Controlling Crane Capturing Dragon to retrieve the jade bottle from the instrument, and said calmly, "Why make things complicated? Just test the liquid you refined in the machine, and you'll know if the instrument is broken or not. If that's not enough, let Vice President Qie Mi Er personally verify it. That shouldn't be a problem, right?"

"Fine, I refuse to believe you got twelve points." While speaking, Liu Ling retrieved his own refined liquid from his storage ring and placed it into the testing instrument. A red light flashed, and the needle on the instrument finally stopped at the number 'eight'.

'Eight points,' which was quite good. If Xiao Se hadn't shown up, Liu Ling would have tied for first place with another skilled third-rank alchemist. But now that Xiao Se had scored twelve points, it didn't seem as impressive anymore.

"Vice President Qie Mi Er, I'll leave it to you." Xiao Se once again used his Controlling Crane Capturing Dragon to pass the jade bottle over, letting it float gently in front of Qie Mi Er.

"Such a powerful technique for controlling dou qi." Upon seeing Xiao Se move objects from a distance, everyone in the hall was visibly astonished. In their hearts, they became more convinced of the authenticity of Xiao Se's score.

Qie Mi Er nodded slightly, accepting the jade bottle for testing. His expression looked somewhat displeased. Liu Ling had gone too far. Everyone could see that the testing instrument wasn't broken. 

Questioning someone's results just because they got a perfect score was disrespectful to any alchemist. If it weren't for Liu Ling being Pill King's disciple, Qie Mi Er would have already had him thrown out.

After a moment, Qie Mi Er's expression gradually returned to calm. He looked at Xiao Se with a soft gaze and smiled, "The purity of your materials has reached an extremely high level. Even I may not be able to refine them to this extent. Twelve points are well-deserved."

After saying this, Qie Mi Er turned to Liu Ling and coldly asked, "Liu Ling, do you still want me to ask President Fa Ma to come for a personal assessment?"

As soon as Qie Mi Er finished speaking, everyone in the hall knew he was angry. They fell silent, waiting for Liu Ling's response.

Once again playing the fool, Liu Ling's face turned a deep shade of purple. Glancing at Nalan Yanran, he saw her casting a look of disgust at him. His resentment toward Xiao Se grew even deeper. Then, with a forced smile, he said to Qie Mi Er, "Master Qie Mi Er, Liu Ling admits his mistake."

"Hmph." Qie Mi Er snorted coldly and ignored Liu Ling. His gaze shifted back to Xiao Se, his face returning to its gentle demeanor. He then addressed everyone with a serious tone, "First of all, congratulations to all of you for passing the guild's internal test. Tomorrow marks the official start of the competition. In addition to our nation's alchemists, prominent alchemists from surrounding countries like the Izumo Empire will also participate. Their strength should not be underestimated. You must give it your all and bring honor to our country. If the championship is taken by another country, our Jia Ma Empire would be thoroughly disgraced."

Listening to Qie Mi Er's speech, Xiao Se let it go in one ear and out the other. With his spiritual strength now at the level of a fifth-rank alchemist, along with his repeated use of Long Kui's power to refine fifth-rank pills, winning the competition wouldn't be a problem.

However, when he heard the mention of the Izumo Empire, his expression became a bit more serious. According to the original plot, Little Doctor Fairy should have gone to the Izumo Empire. It's been two years since they've seen each other. Will she come this time?

After Qie Mi Er finished his long speech, everyone bowed to the four-rank alchemists and began to disperse.

"Mr. Xiao Huo, please wait a moment." Just as Xiao Se was about to leave, a crisp voice rang out from behind him, followed by a gentle and ethereal tone, causing him to stop in surprise. Turning his head, he saw Nalan Yanran walking quickly toward him. Feigning confusion, he asked, "Miss, you are...?"

Nalan Yanran smiled gently. "I am Nalan Yanran, disciple of Misty Cloud's leader, Yun Yun."

Feigning realization and ignoring the murderous look from Liu Ling, Xiao Se responded calmly, "May I ask what Miss Nalan needs?"

Nalan Yanran glanced around, hesitated for a moment, took a deep breath, and whispered, "This is not a good place to talk. Would Mr. Xiao Huo be willing to walk with me while we talk? I have a few questions I'd like to ask."

Xiao Se nodded slowly, having already guessed her intentions, and said lightly, "Very well."

With that, under Liu Ling's envious, jealous, and hateful gaze, Xiao Se turned and walked out of the testing hall. Nalan Yanran hesitated slightly before quickly following.

The two walked side by side, eventually disappearing from Liu Ling's sight.

Watching Xiao Se walk alongside Nalan Yanran, Liu Ling's face darkened entirely, his fists tightly clenched under his robes, his knuckles turning white. He muttered coldly, "He may have outdone me in fire control, but real alchemy isn't just about refining ingredients. Wait until the competition, and I'll show you what a true third-rank alchemist is."

Outside the hall, Nalan Yanran and Xiao Se walked side by side. Nalan Yanran occasionally cast curious glances at him, causing Xiao Se's lips to twitch involuntarily.

"Why is Miss Nalan staring at me like that?" Unable to bear her gaze any longer, Xiao Se asked with some helplessness.

Nalan Yanran looked him up and down once more and slowly said, "I was wondering if you're the same person my teacher spoke of."

"If you're referring to the Xiao Huo you met on the flying magical beast, then yes, it's me," Xiao Se admitted openly.

Upon hearing this, Nalan Yanran's eyes lit up, and she excitedly asked, "So you really do have...?"

"Shh." Xiao Se raised a finger to his lips, signaling her to keep quiet. "Please, Miss Nalan, keep it a secret."

Nalan Yanran excitedly nodded, blinking at Xiao Se and smiling, "I'll keep it to myself. But I still want to ask, why did you reject my teacher's generous offer? If you had accepted, you might have already been the Young Sect Master of Misty Cloud by now, and..."

"And become your junior brother, right?" Xiao Se smirked as he finished her sentence.

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