The ancient sounding voice reverberated in John's ears, like a thunderclap directly inside his mind. He hastily flared his cultivation base to wash away the lingering effects of the voice, just barely managing to maintain his consciousness.
The source of the voice was a man who was seated on the opposite side of the large room with his back turned to John and the Elder. A large cauldron sat on the floor in front of him, and exquisite glowing runes were carved into its surface. An extremely powerful flame emanated from the man's hands and onto the cauldron, causing the room to be quite hot.
A dense medicinal aroma wafted out from the cauldron.
"Pill Emperor Thunderpill, apologies for the interruption, but we come here on important business," the Elder escorting John hastily spoke up in an attempt to quell Thunderpill's anger. The Elder alongside John was in the Meridian Forging realm, and so the Heavenly Tribulation aura that pressed down affected him as well.