Chapter 168: Jia Xing Tian

After some casual conversation between the two parties, the group left the guild and proceeded southward towards the center of the city, talking and laughing along the way. Walking down the street, the continuous curious and respectful glances were so numerous that even the serene Xian'er couldn't help but press her lips together in a slight smile. This is the allure of an alchemist! It had been her dream since childhood.

Xiao Yan appeared somewhat energetic and confident at this moment. On the wide streets, graceful young girls laughed softly and teased each other, casting shy and admiring looks over. To these young girls—full of fantasies—mysterious and noble alchemists were like magnets, firmly attracting their attention. In this world, an alchemist could make a girl's heart flutter even more than the so-called princes of fairy tales.

The city was filled with an atmosphere of excitement and enthusiasm, erasing the usual stringent and solemn air of the imperial capital.

"The venue for this event will be held at the Royal Plaza," Otto explained as they walked down the street, "The area is large enough to accommodate tens of thousands of participants, perfectly meeting the needs of this alchemy conference." 

"With over 2,000 alchemists expected to participate this time, it's the largest turnout in recent conferences," Otto added.

"Over 2,000!" Xiao Yan, Xian'er, Qing Lin, and the others were taken aback at this number. Given the extremely strict conditions to become an alchemist—often deemed a one in ten thousand or even a million occurrence—this assembly of over 2,000 was likely more than half of the alchemists in the Jia Ma Empire.

"The conference is divided into several rounds of assessments," Otto continued. "Each round is an elimination, filtering out quite a few participants. As the assessments progress, they get increasingly difficult, culminating in deciding the final champion."

Everyone nodded. Just the thought of more than 2,000 alchemists igniting their fires and concocting pills simultaneously on the same plaza was enough to send a wave of excitement through the spectators.

Soon, the Royal Plaza that Otto mentioned came into view. It was a massive plaza, so vast that one could only see a section of it at a glance. The venue could likely accommodate hundreds of thousands of spectators. Heavily armed soldiers guarded the perimeter, maintaining order. Such an event attracted numerous strong observers from all directions; any unrest could cause significant impacts and losses to the imperial capital. Thus, the Jia Ma royal family took great precautions.

At the entrance, appraisers from the Alchemist Guild were stationed, allowing only guild members and participants to enter. Spectators took a separate route. 

Led by the honorary elder Wei Yang, the group had no trouble entering the plaza. After moving through a corridor and up some stairs, the colossal plaza was fully revealed before them. Standing atop a high platform, they marveled at the vastness of the stone-paved plaza, encircled into a huge circle with countless seats arranged around it.

Three sides were reserved for ordinary spectators, while the remaining side had specially decorated VIP seats for the guild's higher-ups and the heads of major powers in the imperial capital. Below lay an immensely spacious and smooth plaza, with thousands of uniformly placed stone platforms prepared for the participating alchemists. They were arranged neatly, like rows on a chessboard, reminiscent of a motionless military formation.

In the plaza, many alchemists were already seated on stone chairs behind the platforms, quietly waiting for the competition to begin. As time progressed, more alchemists arrived, finding their assigned positions according to their number cards.

The spectator stands were already filled, yet they remained quiet, waiting or whispering softly.

Otto looked up at the sky and smiled, "There's still some time before the conference starts. How about we wait in the VIP section?"

"Let's go," Wei Yang said, taking the lead. The others followed, and as they arrived at the VIP section, they saw that the front rows were already occupied by several familiar faces. 

Noticing their gaze, President Fama—who seemed to be dozing off—and Vice President Qiemier, who was chatting and laughing with someone, turned to look over, smiling as they did.

Vice President Qiemier stood up and warmly waved, "Wei Yang, come sit over here." Otto, Frank, and the others quickly bowed in greeting. Wei Yang chuckled and led the group to the front row, where they casually found seats.

After a brief chat, they settled into casual conversations.

Just then, a friendly voice said from the corridor entrance, "My, Master Wei has arrived early. Since your arrival in the imperial capital, I haven't had the chance to visit you personally. That's my oversight."

Everyone turned to see an elderly man with white hair, dressed in plain linen robes, smiling as he approached. Behind him were the exquisitely beautiful sisters, Princess Ziyue and Princess Yao Ye.

Many were surprised, wondering what had prompted the appearance of this mysterious royal guardian. The elderly man was none other than Jia Ma Empire's protector, Jia Xingtian. Despite his seemingly decrepit appearance, he almost single-handedly upheld the Jia Ma royal family's honor. If not for him, the empire might have changed dynasties long ago.

Seeing that his first greeting was towards Wei Yang, most people were not surprised. To those present with sharp insight, Wei Yang was likely not just a rumored sixth-grade alchemist, but an actual one. For the Jia Ma royal family, befriending such a person was something they passionately pursued. 

After all, near the imperial capital lay another formidable presence threatening their dominion—the Yun Lan Sect. With the existence of the Dan King Gu He, the sect's influence was overwhelming. For the royal family, this presented a significant obstacle. The emergence of Wei Yang was, to them, like rain after a long drought. While previous attempts to allure him with the offer of marrying a princess hadn't succeeded, they remained undeterred.

Considering the circumstances and the threat from the powerful Yun Lan Sect, befriending and maintaining a positive relationship with Wei Yang was currently their minimum requirement.