"I can’t believe she’s already an Intermediate Pharmacist. Three years ago, when I came here with Elder Yan, I heard that Elder Xu, a Top Level Pharmacist from the Pharmacist Alliance, had taken on a disciple—Princess Lan Yue. To think she’s already an Intermediate Pharmacist now."

After Xu Gaocen finished registering their information with Steward Ding Tong of the Pharmacist Alliance, he noticed Yang Chan’s gaze and began to share some details about Princess Lan Yue.

This also made Xu Gaocen sigh with emotion. They were both Intermediate Pharmacists, but she had achieved the rank so quickly.

He wore a complicated expression, which remained as he turned his gaze to Yang Chan.

"That’s truly amazing. Pharmacist Xu, are we heading to the Cyan Cloud Pavilion now?"

Yang Chan quickly interjected.

He didn’t want to give Xu Gaocen the chance to keep talking, lest he reveal more information about Yang Chan himself. Just as he could overhear nearby conversations, others might be listening to Xu Gaocen.

After all, there were quite a few Inner Masters here.

If he drew any attention, it would bring Yang Chan no good.

"Should we head back? Maybe we should ask Elder Yan?"

Xu Gaocen wasn’t sure either and looked toward Elder Yan. By now, Elder Yan was already deep in conversation with some acquaintances from the Pharmacist Alliance.

To be precise, while Xu Gaocen was registering their information with Ding Tong, Elder Yan had already found a few acquaintances in the Pharmacist Alliance to chat with. Yang Chan had noticed, but he hadn’t paid them much mind since they were all strangers to him.

He did, however, listen in on their conversation. It was mostly just pleasantries with no valuable information. If there was anything of value, it was learning that these men were all Advanced Pharmacists, and he also caught their surnames.

Beyond that, there was no other useful information.

Xu Gaocen saw that Elder Yan was occupied and didn’t go over to interrupt. He was perceptive enough to know better.

"So, who is Princess Lan Yue’s master, the Top Level Pharmacist?"

Yang Chan, noticing Xu Gaocen’s awkwardness, took the initiative to ask a question.

The Cyan Yuan Sect had no Top Level Pharmacists. As for whether one had ever existed in the Sect’s history, Yang Chan didn’t know. Once he was promoted to Intermediate Pharmacist, he should be qualified to learn more.

The more important the information, the stricter the requirements to access it. As a mere Pharmacist’s Assistant, he wasn’t qualified to know much about Intermediate Pharmacists, and he could only access a fraction of the knowledge pertaining to Basic Level Pharmacists.

The monopolization of knowledge was a hallmark of this era. It was nothing like the internet age of his previous life, where you could look up anything online and so much knowledge was freely shared.

Different eras, different values.

"The Vice Alliance Leader of the Pharmacist Alliance, Elder Xu Chuan."

Xu Gaocen said slowly. "This isn’t really a secret for those who live in White Jade City. When Xu Chuan took Princess Lan Yue as his disciple, it caused quite a stir, so a lot of people know about it."

But since Yang Chan wasn’t from the Capital City, he naturally wouldn’t know. It was the kind of thing one could find out just by asking around, though.

"A Vice Alliance Leader... In that case, is the Alliance Leader of the Pharmacist Alliance a rank above Top Level Pharmacist?"

Yang Chan was surprised by Xu Chuan’s title, but he was more interested in what lay beyond the rank of Top Level Pharmacist.

Back in the Cyan Yuan Sect, he never even had the chance to meet a Top Level Pharmacist, let alone someone of an even higher rank.

"Alliance Leader Lu is also a Top Level Pharmacist; he hasn’t taken that next step. The stage beyond Top Level Pharmacist is said to involve a change in one’s Spiritual Energy—a metamorphosis of sorts. It’s incredibly difficult to achieve."

Xu Gaocen shook his head. The stage beyond Top Level Pharmacist was a true metamorphosis, and very, very few people ever reached it.

In the entire Great Zhou Imperial Dynasty, he had never heard of anyone who was a rank above Top Level Pharmacist.

Perhaps such individuals existed, but he didn’t know of any.

"Oh."

Yang Chan nodded after listening.

"Let’s go. We’re heading to the Cyan Yuan Pavilion now."

Just then, Elder Yan’s voice called out. He had finished his pleasantries with the others and was now ready to head to the Cyan Yuan Pavilion, which was one of the tasks for him, Ji Feng, and the others.

Hearing this, Yang Chan and Xu Gaocen nodded and fell in behind Xu Gaocen. The guards followed as well. After leaving the Pharmacist Alliance, the party made its way to the Cyan Yuan Pavilion.

...

The Capital City was a prosperous place, which naturally meant it was also rife with conflict.

As Yang Chan and his group traveled by carriage, they saw a person sprinting frantically, pursued by agents from the Six Gates. The Six Gates was a branch of the Great Zhou Imperial Dynasty’s Government Office, with personnel stationed in every region.

The Six Gates specialized in hunting down fugitives from the Jianghu wanted by the Government Office, as well as any other Jianghu members who broke the law. It was originally intended as a tool to keep the Sects in check, but it never grew powerful enough for that purpose, as it was constantly suppressed by the Major Sects.

There were agents like this in Qing State as well. As long as they didn’t interfere with the Cyan Yuan Sect, the Sect would turn a blind eye. But if they ever targeted the Cyan Yuan Sect, those agents would simply disappear. The Sect’s attitude was just that simple and brutal.

Consequently, the Six Gates in Qing State rarely provoked anyone from the Cyan Yuan Sect.

This current pursuit clearly meant another criminal was on the run, a common sight in White Jade City.

Revenge killings were a frequent occurrence, and often, innocent civilians were caught in the crossfire. Such perpetrators were naturally targeted by the Six Gates.

In White Jade City, the standing of the Six Gates was far greater than in the various states, because they were backed by powerful masters. As a result, the Six Gates acted with much greater ferocity within the capital.

"The audacity! To think you can step on the Cyan Yuan Sect’s carriage!"

Elder Ji Feng’s furious roar suddenly rang out. He struck without warning, sending the person in mid-air flying backward.

The man had actually tried to use their carriage as a foothold. How could Ji Feng allow such a thing to happen? He threw a single punch that sent the man crashing to the ground. At the same time, his Flood Dragon Demon Strength pierced the man’s body, severely injuring him.

The agents from the Six Gates caught up just then and immediately apprehended the man.

"Take him away."

The Six Gates agents dragged the man away without so much as a word of thanks to the people from the Cyan Yuan Sect, nor did they make any further contact.

In a way, the Six Gates stood in opposition to the Sects, so it was natural they wouldn’t interact much.

The group quickly disappeared from sight.

Elder Ji Feng’s firm reaction, however, was nothing unusual.

If the man hadn’t tried to use their carriage for leverage, he wouldn’t have interfered at all. And even after interfering, he had no desire for excessive contact with the Six Gates.

To people of the Sects, the Six Gates were nothing more than the Court’s attack dogs—hounds specifically meant to target the Sects. There was no need to interact with them, as there was nothing to be gained, and one might even get dragged into their troubles.

"Let’s go. We’re moving on."

The encounter with the Six Gates and the fugitive was merely a minor interlude for Ji Feng and his group, having no real impact on them.

’Is this a test of our strength?’

Yang Chan, however, sat in the carriage with a slight frown, thinking to himself.

According to his perception, under normal circumstances, the fleeing man shouldn’t have aimed for the Cyan Yuan Sect’s carriage. He should have used the nearby wall for leverage to escape. But for some reason, the man had suddenly changed his path, leading to the scene that had just unfolded.