Chapter 10

Today, Shen Xiang did not immediately go to hasten the maturation of the spirit medicine. Early in the morning, he went to a huge square in the middle of the Shen Family Manor, because today was the day to finalize the position of the clan leader. The Shen Family had been without a clan leader for more than three months, causing some chaos within the family.

In the large square paved with stone bricks in the center of the Shen Family Manor, stood all the important descendants of the Shen Family, numbering about three hundred, all of whom were the elite of the Shen Family.

The crowd of the Shen Family surrounded the square, leaving a large open space in the middle, where five middle-aged men stood, one of whom was Shen Tianhu.

Shen Xiang was also among the crowd, watching the commotion, ready to step out and help his father vie for the position of clan leader when necessary.

A middle-aged man with thick eyebrows and a somewhat graying head, a cold smile on his face, said, "Shen Tianhu, do you know that there is a very important condition to become the clan leader of the Shen Family?"

This middle-aged man was named Shen Haohai, a relatively strong branch leader of the Shen Family, older than Shen Tianhu, and at the Seventh Level of the Mortal Martial Realm. This level of strength was quite good in the Shen Family, so he believed he had the qualifications to be the clan leader. In terms of seniority, Shen Xiang should call him Uncle.

Shen Tianhu glared at Shen Haohai with anger in his eyes and said coldly, "Of course I know. The relatives of the clan leader must have good potential to prevent the clan leader from misusing a large amount of public resources on their relatives."

Shen Xiang's mother had long passed away, and he had never seen her since he was old enough to understand. Shen Tianhu's only relative was Shen Xiang.

"Ha ha... Your son is a person without a spirit vein. If you become the clan leader, you will certainly use many precious elixirs on him! Haven't you been buying spirit medicines and elixirs all these years to prop up your son? But everyone knows his foundation." Shen Haohai laughed loudly, "Everyone knows he is a useless waste who will never amount to anything!"

Shen Tianhu naturally knew that his son was outstanding among his peers. He just wanted to keep his strength hidden to avoid attracting trouble.

"My son can release true qi fire! He has the potential to be an alchemist. Do you dare say he is useless? The elders of the Shen Family probably wouldn't think so." Shen Tianhu sneered.

At this moment, the crowd began to murmur. The news that the head of the Spirit Elixir Pavilion wanted to take on a disciple but was refused had long spread throughout Wohu City. Although Shen Xiang did not have a spirit vein, if he had true qi fire, he had the potential to become an alchemist.

Shen Haohai snorted coldly, "But he refused the head of the Spirit Elixir Pavilion. Without a master, he cannot become an alchemist."

Just then, Shen Xiang's calm and steady voice rang out, "I can now refine Lower Rank Mortal Level Body Tempering Pills."

Hearing Shen Xiang's words, the crowd was stunned, and Shen Haohai burst into laughter, "A mere child, only sixteen years old, can refine elixirs? Don't think that a few big words can help your father vie for the position of clan leader. Besides, lying in front of your elders will result in severe punishment."

"Do you think you are a genius from the Medicine Family? They are a family of elixir masters with a deep foundation."

Shen Xiang walked out from the crowd, his gaze clear and composed. He took out an alchemy furnace, looked at Shen Haohai, and said with a cold smile, "Dare you bet with me? If I can refine a batch of Body Tempering Pills, will you kneel and apologize to me in public?"

Shen Haohai's smile vanished, and the crowd was stunned. They did not expect Shen Xiang to be so arrogant as to say such things!

For a junior to be so presumptuous in front of him made Shen Haohai furious.

Shen Tianhu supported his son's actions. He knew that the moment for his son to stand tall and proud had arrived.

Shen Haohai's face was full of anger, and he said in a deep voice, "What did you just say!" As he spoke, a surge of true qi enveloped Shen Xiang, but it was dissipated by Shen Tianhu.

Shen Xiang stared at Shen Haohai and raised his voice, "I want to bet with you! If I can refine a batch of Body Tempering Pills, you will kneel and apologize to me in public."

Shen Xiang repeated himself with a serious expression, not at all like he was joking. His tone was full of pride, and a young man who could face his elders like this was rare in the Shen Family.

Shen Haohai was so angry that his whole body trembled. Seeing Shen Xiang's serious demeanor, he did not dare to immediately agree, and some of the people around were waiting for his answer.

Shen Xiang stared at Shen Haohai and continued, "You publicly slandered me as a useless waste. Now I want to prove myself and make you apologize to me! As a senior, are you afraid to bet?"

Shen Haohai wished he could strike Shen Xiang dead, but he did not dare to, as killing a young descendant of his own clan was a very serious matter.

An elder said, "Since that's the case, Shen Haohai, you should bet with him. But kneeling and apologizing is unnecessary; it's just a child's talk. If he can refine a batch of elixirs, you will lose, and you should give him the corresponding compensation."

"I agree. If my son loses, I will no longer vie for the position of clan leader!" Shen Tianhu said, nodding at Shen Xiang.

The crowd was once again in an uproar. Shen Tianhu had placed such a high bet!

Shen Haohai snorted, "Fine, let's bet. If I lose, I will give him the thousand-year-old Blood Spirit Mushroom I just obtained."

A thousand-year-old Blood Spirit Mushroom! The crowd gasped. It was a thousand-year-old Blood Spirit Mushroom, a very expensive Lower Rank Mystic Level spirit medicine.

"The thousand-year-old Blood Spirit Mushroom! How long will you need to refine the elixirs, Shen Xiang?" the elder asked. He was an elder of the Shen Family and had some authority.

According to the crowd's understanding, refining Lower Rank Mortal Level elixirs would take at least half a day, and the fastest would take two to three hours, let alone a sixteen-year-old boy.

"Very quickly, it won't take much of everyone's time!" As he spoke, Shen Xiang sat cross-legged, and the elder and Shen Haohai came over to check the alchemy furnace to prevent Shen Xiang from cheating.

"An inferior alchemy furnace, it seems you are quite poor, Shen Tianhu!" Shen Haohai sneered. Everyone knew that Shen Tianhu had spent all his money on Shen Xiang.

Shen Xiang took out the materials from his storage bag, organized and checked them, then released true qi fire to warm the alchemy furnace before putting the materials inside. His movements were very skilled.

The true qi fire also surprised the crowd slightly. Although many people could release flames through martial arts during attacks, those flames could only be released during attacks. Normally, they could not control them as freely as Shen Xiang, unless they practiced some fire control techniques, which were very rare and difficult to master.

The alchemy furnace was now filled with flames, and a faint medicinal fragrance began to waft out.

An hour passed, and the crowd saw Shen Xiang, who had been meditating, suddenly frown, clearly indicating that it was a critical moment. Shen Haohai was also sweating, worried about losing the thousand-year-old Blood Spirit Mushroom.

The crowd saw steam rising from the alchemy furnace, and Shen Xiang opened his eyes, a smile on his face. He stood up and said, "Please check."

"What? Completed in just one hour?" The crowd expressed their doubts.

The first to go over was the elder! Although he could not refine elixirs, he knew the process. He had been carefully watching Shen Xiang and knew that Shen Xiang had a certain foundation in alchemy. Although he did not know the situation inside the alchemy furnace, he could sense the subtle changes in the heat it emitted.

When the lid of the alchemy furnace was opened, the crowd immediately smelled the faint medicinal fragrance, which was indeed familiar to them. They could also witness the refining process. When they saw the elder take out five snow-white pills, they could not help but exclaim in surprise.