.
Knock…!
Creak…
The door opened.
Xiao Yang poked his head out cautiously, only to see Shen Xuan standing calmly in front of his room, hands behind his back, expression unreadable.
The moment he recognized him, Xiao Yang hurriedly opened the door fully and forced a smile onto his face.
"Young Master Shen, please come in!"
He stepped aside, and Shen Xuan followed him into the courtyard room.
The courtyard was modest but clean. A small pond sat at one corner, spirit fish lazily circling beneath floating lotus leaves. Xiao Yang gestured for Shen Xuan to sit, then busied himself brewing tea with practiced movements.
After pouring a cup, he respectfully handed it over.
"I don't know why Young Master has come to my place," Xiao Yang said carefully, "but if there's anything I can do…?"
Shen Xuan accepted the cup but didn't drink immediately. Instead, his gaze settled directly on Xiao Yang's eyes.
"Do you know alchemy?"
The sudden question made Xiao Yang pause.
"Alchemy…?" He blinked, then scratched his head awkwardly. "I know a little. I'm only a third-grade alchemist, barely fourth. Nothing worth mentioning. But my grandfather…"
"Xiao Ding," Shen Xuan said calmly.
"Yes!" Xiao Yang nodded quickly. "Grandpa is a seventh-tier alchemist. If Young Master needs help, he might be able to help."
Shen Xuan interrupted him.
"I don't need him to help me refine pills."
Xiao Yang froze.
"I need him not to interfere."
The meaning behind those words sent a chill down Xiao Yang's spine.
After a moment of hesitation, Xiao Yang spoke again. "Then… what does Young Master plan to do?"
Shen Xuan finally took a sip of tea. His movements were unhurried, his aura perfectly restrained.
"I intend to refine them myself," he said.
Xiao Yang's pupils shrank.
Before he could react, Shen Xuan's gaze drifted toward the pond, his voice turning calm and distant.
"Where is your grandfather?" Shen Xuan asked. "I went to his room earlier. He wasn't there."
"Grandpa left the inn this morning," Xiao Yang replied. "He said he had matters to attend to in the city. He should return by nightfall."
"Good," Shen Xuan said. "When he returns, tell him I wish to meet him."
"O-Of course," Xiao Yang nodded quickly.
Shen Xuan stood up.
As he walked past Xiao Yang, he suddenly stopped.
"There's something else," Shen Xuan said quietly.
Xiao Yang stiffened.
"Don't harbor foolish thoughts," Shen Xuan continued evenly, "such as killing me for my inheritance token."
The courtyard fell silent.
Xiao Yang's face turned pale.
"First," Shen Xuan said calmly, "even your grandfather cannot kill me."
"Second, even if I were somehow slain, I would reincarnate."
"Third," his voice grew colder, "even if the token fell into your hands, neither you nor anyone in this city, nor even those in the Chaos Dao Origin Realm, could access my clan's inheritance."
Xiao Yang felt his breathing grow heavy.
"And finally," Shen Xuan added, patting Xiao Yang's shoulder lightly, "even if you somehow subdued my soul… it would still be useless."
The casual certainty in his words was more terrifying than any threat.
"If you follow me sincerely," Shen Xuan continued, "with your talent, I can at least guarantee that you won't stop below the Supreme Realm."
With that, Shen Xuan turned and walked toward the courtyard exit.
Xiao Yang stood frozen.
Just as Shen Xuan reached the gate, he paused again and spoke without turning around.
"Oh… wait… one more thing."
Xiao Yang snapped out of his daze. "Y-Yes, Young Master?"
"I'll need your Heavenly Registry Token," Shen Xuan said. "I need it to purchase alchemy materials and certain resources."
"My… token?" Xiao Yang was startled, but after a brief hesitation, he nodded.
Without asking further questions, he placed his green Heavenly Registry Token on the table.
Shen Xuan picked it up.
"Thank you," he said calmly. "I'll return it soon."
Then he left.
Two Days Later
Heiyun City: Heavenly Trade Centre
The Heavenly Trade Centre towered over the city like a colossal jade pillar. Layers upon layers of formations shimmered faintly across its surface, suppressing chaos fluctuations and enforcing absolute order.
Inside, the main hall buzzed with activity.
Merchants shouted prices, cultivators negotiated fiercely, and guards in purple uniforms stood motionless at key intersections.
Shen Xuan stood at the center of the hall, calm amidst the chaos.
He glanced briefly at the grand architecture, then lost interest.
Walking toward the staircase leading upward, he was stopped by a guard clad in purple armor, a bronze mask covering his face.
"Sir," the guard said respectfully, "from the second floor onward, access requires verification through a Heavenly Registry Token."
Shen Xuan said nothing.
He simply produced Xiao Yang's token.
The guard scanned it. When he noticed the alchemist insignia engraved at its edge, his posture straightened instantly.
"You may proceed, sir. With this token, you can access up to the fifth floor," the guard said, returning the token respectfully.
Shen Xuan took it and walked past him.
He stepped onto the staircase without hesitation and walked toward the second floor.
Stepping onto the second floor, Shen Xuan felt that it was vastly different from the bottom floor.
The noise softened. The air was soothing and filled with medicinal properties.
The chaos qi here was fully condensed into spiritual essence.
The second floor was mainly divided into sections helpful for cultivation, such as alchemy, formations, and weapon forging.
Finding the herb area, he walked toward the alchemy herb hall.
Herbs floated in transparent spirit containers, mineral powders shimmered like stardust, and jade trays displayed beast cores, bone marrow, and rare plant roots.
Each item in the hall was meticulously categorized, labeled with its origin, age, purity, and compatibility.
Most of the herbs Shen Xuan saw were below sixth grade. Sixth and seventh-grade herbs were rare, and as for eighth-grade ones, there were none.
Walking through the aisle, he glanced at the herbs on the shelves when a middle-aged person stepped in front of him, blocking his way.
"Esteemed guest, are you looking for fifth-grade flame herbs?"
"Sir, our shop specializes in blood-nourishing materials perfect for foundation refinement and body cultivation."
Noticing Shen Xuan's noble temperament, the vendor walked over and introduced his materials enthusiastically.
Shen Xuan acknowledged him but declined. He walked away toward the other shops in the hall.
He stopped before a bright jade box displayed in front of him.
Shen Xuan picked out fifth-grade Azure Grass, Azure Lotus, Yin Spirit Sand, and several other low-grade refining medicines.
He placed Xiao Yang's token and the blue card taken from Ji Yu earlier on the counter. There were enough heavenly crystals to cover the cost.
"Yes, honored guest; three fifth-grade medicinal herbs, five fourth-grade, and three third-grade herbs."
The shopkeeper calculated the cost, placed the token into a small formation, and began inscribing runes.
Meanwhile, Shen Xuan's eyes briefly turned purple-gold as he analyzed the process occurring within the token.
"Sir, the total cost is 39,700 heavenly crystals."
A fragment of light merged into the token, which was then placed back onto the counter.
"Mm. Thank you."
Shen Xuan stored the herbs in his storage ring and walked toward the formation hall.
"Si… sir?" someone couldn't help but ask.
"Hm?"
"Are you refining these yourself?"
"No," Shen Xuan replied calmly. "I was asked to buy them for an elder in my family. I'm just a low-level alchemist."
Shaking his head, he walked away.
He had already noticed something off earlier, but he ignored it. He didn't expect to be questioned so blatantly.
"Oh… okay."
The person stared at Shen Xuan for a moment before turning back.
Formation Supplies and Arrays Market
The moment Shen Xuan stepped into the formation hall, the atmosphere changed entirely.
If the alchemy hall was orderly and fragrant, the formation hall was precise and ruthless.
Hundreds of formation plates floated in the air like suspended mirrors, engraved with dense rune patterns. Array flags stood upright in racks.
Crystals of various attributes were arranged in geometric displays, while formation cores; some as small as fingernails, others the size of bowls, were filled with spiritual power.
Shen Xuan walked slowly, examining the formations.
He stopped before a third-grade formation plate and examined it carefully.
The engraving was neat, the rune flow smooth, and the energy circulation efficient.
Yet he noticed the same flaw in every plate.
Almost all were limited by material-driven design. While efficient by modern standards, they fell far short of what he knew.
To Shen Xuan, it was like comparing craftsmanship that relied on brute force to one that turned a great wheel with a mere breath of wind; the difference was fundamental.
Shaking his head, he placed the formation back where it belonged and walked away, searching for a better one.
It was not that he couldn't fix the formation; rather, he had to focus on his cultivation first. More importantly, he did not want Xiao Yang or Xiao Ding to fall into trouble.
After all, what he had seen in the alchemy hall had refreshed his view of the entire Chaos Universe. With just a few brief encounters, he became certain of one thing; he could not act recklessly in the current world.
Because even he had not seen such methods before, where everything one purchased was registered.
And he also knew that there was something wrong with the medicinal herbs he had bought, as well as something wrong with the formation arrays and runes, as if they had been deliberately flawed.