The Extreme Alchemist of the Mighty Cauldron

Chapter 1582: Chapter 1680: Difficult to Accomplish

Hearing Fang Lin’s words, Dragon Haotian’s expression remained unchanged, but deep down he felt quite complex and pensive.

Fang Lin was right; Dragon Haotian was acutely aware of the Pill Alliance’s foundation, as well as the situation of the Alchemy Familys.

Although the Pill Alliance seemed to be declining, like a candle flickering in the wind, about to be extinguished by the slightest breeze,

the Pill Alliance has stood strong in the land of the Nine Countries for thousands of years, having weathered countless storms. This endurance was not due to good luck, but rather for very significant reasons.

Not to mention anything else, just the cultivation of talents by the Pill Alliance was incredibly impressive.

The Alchemy Tao Talents who rose to prominence within the Pill Alliance were mostly like shooting stars, bursting onto the scene and vanishing just as quickly.

Outsiders simply assumed these talents faded into obscurity after their decline, but in reality, most were secretly nurtured by the Pill Alliance.

This has been the case for thousands of years. The Pill Alliance openly had only a few well-known talents, but there were nearly a hundred others being cultivated in secret.

Among them, some Alchemy Tao talents have been cultivated by the Pill Alliance for over a thousand years, possessing extremely profound alchemical strengths and realms.

This is the true foundation of the Pill Alliance; even if the Pill Alliance is now in decline, unparalleled in its desolation, its foundation remains solid.

Dragon Haotian, once second only to the Four Heaven Kings in the Pill Alliance, could well be considered its chief; he naturally knew about the massive cultivation of talents in secret by the Pill Alliance.

Because he knew, Dragon Haotian was quite worried about this competition.

In comparison, the talents of the Alchemy Tao Families, whether in the open or in secret, were far from matching that of the Pill Alliance.

Even if the Long Family had a talent like Long Zhixin to bolster their reputation, the situation remained the same. Dragon Haotian understood the Pill Alliance too well; among the talents being secretly nurtured by the Pill Alliance, at least five or six were on par with Long Zhixin. And there were even talents whose qualifications surpassed Long Zhixin’s in the Pill Alliance.

Besides the Long Family, how many Alchemy Tao talents from other families could truly compete? Perhaps all combined, they would not even amount to half of those secretly nurtured by the Pill Alliance.

“You all may leave now,” said Dragon Haotian to a few members of the Long Family by his side.

The senior members of the Long Family showed reluctance on their faces, but Dragon Haotian had already spoken. If they stayed, they would be disobeying Dragon Haotian’s command, so they had no option but to leave the hall with darkened expressions.

With a wave of his hand, Dragon Haotian set up an array outside the hall to block sound and sight, preventing those outside from seeing or hearing anything that happened within.

“Now, there are only myself and Master Fang here. Speak freely about whatever you wish,” Dragon Haotian said in a deep voice.

Fang Lin smiled faintly: “As the former power holder of the Pill Alliance and now the helmsman of many Alchemy Tao Families, the Chief of the Dragon Family must have a thorough understanding of both sides. The strength of the Pill Alliance and the strength of the Alchemy Tao Families are surely clearer to you than anyone else.”

“And what comes next?” Dragon Haotian asked with a furrowed brow.

Fang Lin picked up the teacup, took a sip, and deliberately smacked his lips twice, as if savoring the taste of the tea.

“And then, the Chief of the Dragon Family should also be aware, if this competition were to proceed in an orderly fashion, what would the chances of victory for the Alchemy Tao clans be?” Fang Lin put down the teacup and asked.

“Our Alchemy Tao clans are brimming with talent—I dare not overstate but there’s at least a seventy percent chance of winning,” said Dragon Haotian confidently, appearing quite self-assured.

Fang Lin gave Dragon Haotian a glance, a somewhat strange smile on his face: “The Chief of the Dragon Family really has a lot of confidence in the Alchemy Tao clans. However, in my view, the Alchemy Tao clans have, at most, a forty percent chance of winning—and that’s still viewing them quite favorably.”

“With all due respect,” Dragon Haotian said, “since Grandmaster Fang is not from the Alchemy Tao clans, I’m afraid his evaluation might not be very accurate.” The underlying implication was that since you, Fang Lin, are not of the Alchemy Tao clans, you simply do not understand the situation of the Alchemy Tao clans.

Fang Lin nodded: “Indeed, I am not from the Alchemy Tao clans, but I’ve had many dealings with people from them. To speak the truth, my impression of those from the Alchemy Tao clans is really quite poor; most of them rely on their ancestors’ fortunes, especially the younger generation of the Alchemy Tao clans—they truly are quite disappointing.”

Dragon Haotian did not retort this time; he agreed with Fang Lin’s words. Indeed, there are too many in the Alchemy Tao clans who rely on their ancestral fortunes to act arrogantly, thinking themselves superior just because they were born into such clans, paying no heed to others.

Even within the Long Family, there was no shortage of such people.

This was an inevitable matter, after all, with so many Alchemy Tao clans, there were bound to be some good-for-nothings.

“Speaking frankly, in this competition, the Pill Alliance is basically guaranteed to win because the Heaven King of the East Pole will definitely spend a fortune to secure the victory. As for the Alchemy Tao clans, at most, losing this competition would merely reduce their momentum. For the Long Family and other Alchemy Tao clans, the loss wouldn’t be significant,” Fang Lin said, shifting his position to a more comfortable one—as there were no others present, he was at ease to sit as he pleased.

So, Fang Lin slouched in his chair, looking utterly relaxed.

The corner of Dragon Haotian’s mouth twitched; this youngster really knew how to take it easy, showing not a care for his own image.

“It seems Sky Swallowing Palace hopes the Pill Alliance will win this competition, but what benefit does that bring to Sky Swallowing Palace? The longer the standoff between the Pill Alliance and the Alchemy Tao clans, the more chaotic the Alchemy Tao World of the Nine Countries becomes,” Dragon Haotian asked with some puzzlement. This question had been lingering in his mind for a long time, and he had been seeking an opportunity to ask either Fang Lin or Dugu Nian for clarity.

“Speaking of this, does the Chief of the Dragon Family believe that if the Pill Alliance vanished, allowing the Alchemy Tao clans to replace it, would that be feasible?” Fang Lin countered.

Dragon Haotian fell silent, not because he didn’t know how to answer, but rather because he was reluctant to do so.

Ling the Alchemy Tao clans completely replace the Pill Alliance? Dragon Haotian had also pondered this for a long time and considered it thoroughly. At one point, he too thought it was feasible, but reality told Dragon Haotian that it was difficult to expect the Alchemy Tao clans to make a complete replacement, at least for now.

Even if the Pill Alliance truly disappeared, the Alchemy Tao clans would collapse due to various reasons, reverting to a state where everyone only looked after their own interests.

Ultimately, the interests of the Alchemy Tao clans lie within the clans themselves, not with the alchemists of the world. Each clan will act and think only for the benefit of their own family, without considering other clans’ or Pill Refiners’ interests. With such divisiveness and lack of unity, how can the Alchemy Tao clans achieve anything significant?

Don’t be misled by the current grand union of the Alchemy Tao clans; it probably won’t be long—perhaps only a few years—before various problems start emerging.

ps: The first update is here; I’ll continue to write, and don’t forget to cast your recommendation votes.

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