"Proprietor, do you have any Heart-Tugging Grass, Green Oil Fruit, or White Snake Flower..."
Jiang Chen entered a shop and reeled off a list of several dozen materials in one breath.
The shopkeeper was quite surprised. It was rare for someone to know so many Alchemy Materials, let alone list them all in one breath.
With a customer at the door, he hurriedly offered a warm welcome.
"One moment, sir. Yes, we have those."
Jiang Chen smiled slightly.
"Alright. Please give me ten portions of everything on this list."
The proprietor cheerfully began preparing the materials for Jiang Chen.
Yiyi followed Jiang Chen. She was puzzled but didn't dare to say a word.
'This young master has really changed. To think he's actually studying Alchemy Skill now.'
Alchemists were highly sought-after in the world of Martial Cultivators.
However, not just anyone had the aptitude to become an Alchemist.
In fact, studying Alchemy could cause one's Cultivation to stagnate. It was true that you would become an Alchemist, but your Cultivation level would be unable to rise. Because of this, not many people chose this path.
Of course, becoming an Alchemist also required a certain innate talent.
Soon, the proprietor had the materials packed.
Jiang Chen took out a bag from his waist.
This type of bag was called a Qiankun Bag. You could buy one for a single Essence Crystal.
They were quite cheap, so practically everyone had one.
This type of Qiankun Bag contained a pocket of space for storing items.
"How much?"
Jiang Chen asked.
"That will be 103 Essence Crystals in total. But since you're buying so much at once, let's just call it an even 100."
The proprietor was direct, knocking three Essence Crystals off the price for Jiang Chen.
In business, what mattered were long-term gains.
A small discount like this might just be what turned a one-time buyer into a regular customer.
Jiang Chen was also very satisfied.
He took out one hundred Essence Crystals and handed them to the proprietor.
He then packed his Alchemy Materials into the Qiankun Bag.
"Take care, sir."
Amid the proprietor's polite farewells, Jiang Chen led Yiyi out of the shop.
'Now all I need is a Pill Furnace.'
'But Alchemy also requires a flame. That could be a problem.'
'In my past life, I had a Celestial Fire Source within my body, so I never had to worry about flames. I even nurtured a few Fire-Blowing Boys—Martial Cultivators who possessed innate flames—to assist me.'
'Now, I need to find a flame on my own.'
A normal flame could work for Alchemy, but the results would surely be subpar.
The best options were, of course, special flames like Earth Fire, Celestial Fire, Samadhi True Flame, or even True Sun Fire.
'Forget it. I'll make do with a normal flame for now and look for a better one when I have time.'
He abandoned the idea of searching for a special flame immediately. Taming one was no simple task.
With his current insufficient Cultivation, he would be burned to death if he encountered something like an Earth Fire.
Buying a Pill Furnace, however, was simple enough.
A place called the Treasure Elephant Pavilion specialized in selling such items.
He took Yiyi and headed straight for the Treasure Elephant Pavilion.
"Jiang Zuo, I heard you're the number one genius of the Jiang Family."
"I'd like to see for myself just what kind of skills the Jiang Family's number one genius has."
A young man with a wicked smile on his face blocked Jiang Zuo's path.
He was followed by seven or eight lackeys.
Each of them wore a sneer.
Jiang Zuo's expression changed the moment he saw the man.
He recognized the man. It was Ximen Jianren of Hanwu City's Ximen Clan.
This Ximen Jianren was an exceptionally rare genius among Martial Cultivators.
He also possessed an Eighth-Grade Martial Vein and was not to be underestimated.
More importantly, he was the son of the Ximen Family's Patriarch.
In Hanwu City, the Jiang Family, the Ximen Family, and the Bai Family were known as the three great clans. The Ximen Family was in no way inferior to the Jiang Family.
And now, Ximen Jianren's Cultivation had reached the Martial Artist Ninth Heaven.
Meanwhile, he, Jiang Zuo, was only at the Martial Artist Seventh Heaven.
He was no match for him at all.
His expression turned ugly.
"Ximen Jianren, I don't want to fight. Step aside."
He was afraid that if a fight broke out, Ximen Jianren would utterly crush him, which would be a huge loss of face.
However, Ximen Jianren remained unmoved, continuing to block Jiang Zuo's path.
His lackeys unceremoniously blocked Jiang Zuo and his companions.
Jiang Zuo was accompanied by a few members of the Jiang Family's younger generation. They were on good terms with him and naturally saw him as their leader.
At this moment, all their faces were pale.
They knew they were no match for Ximen Jianren.
Ximen Jianren looked at Jiang Zuo with a grin.
Not only did he refuse to budge, but he slapped his own forehead and chuckled. "Oh, I almost forgot. The number one person in the Jiang Family... isn't you, is it, Jiang Zuo?"
One of his lackeys immediately roared with laughter.
"Young Master, the number one person in the Jiang Family is supposed to be Jiang Chen."
"Right, right, right, it's Jiang Chen, not Jiang Zuo."
Suddenly someone else retorted.
"That's wrong. Jiang Zuo has always been the number one person in the Jiang Family. That Jiang Chen kid might have an Eighth-Grade Martial Vein, but he let his Cultivation go to waste. He's not even as good as Jiang Zuo."
"And..."
He suddenly raised his voice, shouting, "I heard that guy, Jiang Chen, had his Eighth-Grade Martial Vein ripped out of him a while ago! Now, he's nothing but a cripple!"
BOOM!
Those who hadn't heard the news were stunned.
"That really happened?"
"If that's true, then Jiang Chen really has become a worthless cripple."
"Heh, he's always been a good-for-nothing. Nothing more to say."
Ximen Jianren had known this all along. Slapping his thigh, he closed in on Jiang Zuo, laughing boisterously as he pressed him, "Jiang Zuo, is it true? Tell me, nice and loud, is it true?"
Hearing these vile insults, Jiang Zuo suddenly grew furious.
Before, he wouldn't have cared if they called Jiang Chen a cripple; he used to think so himself.
But during the clan meeting, Jiang Chen had emerged from obscurity.
He hadn't just suppressed him, a Martial Artist at the Seventh Heaven.
He had also ruthlessly humiliated Qin Muxue when she tried to break off their engagement, preventing the Qin Family from succeeding.
Most terrifying of all, Jiang Chen had even declared that he would personally go to Guyue City to annul the engagement himself.
In other words, the Jiang Chen of today was no longer the defiant brat of the past, but an extraordinary figure.
At least, that was what Jiang Zuo believed.
It just seemed that no one else knew.
He immediately retorted in anger.
"My big brother is not a cripple! All of you, shut your mouths!"
For some reason, he couldn't stand hearing others call Jiang Chen a cripple.
Perhaps he had been completely won over by Jiang Chen.
In his heart, the Jiang Chen of today was a towering, respectable figure.
Therefore, Jiang Zuo was vehemently opposed to anyone who would insult the genius of the Jiang Family.
"HAHAHA..."
Seeing Jiang Zuo's furious reaction...
Ximen Jianren roared with laughter. They had clearly struck a nerve.
He was incredibly smug.
"Jiang Zuo, don't fly into a rage out of shame."
"Everyone knows your big brother is a cripple. Why bother denying it?"
"With that cripple out of the way, won't you be the future Patriarch of the Jiang Family?"
Ximen Jianren was overflowing with self-satisfaction.
The lackey beside him immediately chimed in.
"That's right! You're the future Patriarch of the Jiang Family. So if our Young Master thrashes you today, it's like he's thrashing the Patriarch of the Jiang Family!"
"Thrash him! Thrash him!"
Amidst the jeers, Jiang Zuo was finally enraged.
"You're courting death! I'll fight you all to the bitter end!"
Jiang Zuo charged forward recklessly. He could no longer bear their taunts. Even knowing they were deliberately humiliating and provoking him, he still rushed in.