Chapter 146 - 146: Hard to Accept
Early the next morning, Fang Lin and Ouyang Jing stepped out from a courtyard.
Ouyang Jing owned a residence in Qian Capital, illustrating his wealth and status. Hence, Fang Lin and Dugu Nian naturally did not need to stay in an inn.
The three of them had spent the previous night exploring the city. Both Fang Lin and Dugu Nian got a taste of the city’s splendor. Dugu Nian in particular almost jumped into the city’s protective moat for a swim last night, only to be pulled back by Fang Lin.
After resting for six hours, Fang Lin had to rush again early in the morning to the Pill Alliance’s branch in Qian Capital to participate in the Pill Refiner examination.
Dugu Nian did not accompany him. as she was overly exhausted from last night’s escapades and just wanted to sleep in without any intention of getting up.
With Dugu Nian not going along, this suited Fang Lin perfectly, and so he and Ouyang Jing set off for the Pill Alliance.
Fang Lin was quite curious about this so-called Pill Alliance. After all, this is an organization composed solely of Pill Refiners, and its influence sprawled across the Nine Countries, making it exceptionally powerful.
In Fang Lin’s past life, there was no Pill Alliance. Back then, for Pill Refiners to obtain a genuine status, they had to come to the Pill Saint Palace where Fang Lin resided, and only after taking an exam would not the Pill Saint Palace provide them with a genuine Pill Refiner’s identity.
It could be said that the current Pill Alliance shares some similarities with the Pill Saint Palace from Fang Lin’s past life.
Ouyang Jing soon brought Fang Lin to the Pill Alliance. What caught their eyes was a majestic white tall building, a sight that was rare in the entire Qian Capital.
Typically, only exceptional forces could maintain a residence within such tall buildings, and the words “Pill Alliance” hanging above the entrance showcased the uniqueness of this place.
“Here we are, this is the Pill Alliance’s branch in Qian Country,” Ouyang Jing pointed at the gate of the Pill Alliance, smiling as he spoke to Fang Lin.
Fang Lin looked around to see four formidable men standing in front of the gate of the Pill Alliance, and they looked quite intimidating. When average citizens passed by this place, they would take a detour out of fear.
“Fang, do you know which three types of people are not allowed to enter the Pill Alliance?” Ouyang Jing suddenly asked.
Fang Lin shook his head, he naturally did not know.
Ouyang Jing then explained, “Those who have been stripped of their Pill
Refiner status, those who disrespect Pill Refiners, those listed on the Pill
Refiners’ blacklist. These are the three not allowed to enter. As long as any one of these conditions is met, one won’t be allowed to enter any branch of the Pill Alliance.”
Fang Lin nodded thoughtfully, finding the rule of the “Three Not Permitted to Enter” quite reasonable.
“What about the Poison Pill Masters?” Fang Lin casually asked.
Upon hearing Fang Lin mention Poison Pill Masters, Ouyang Jing’s expression flickered as he lowered his voice, “Fang, you must never mention Poison Pill Masters here.”
Fang Lin was curious and asked, “Why can’t we mention Poison Pill Masters?”
Ouyang Jing hesitated for a moment, before finally saying, “Nowadays, Poison Pill Masters are also recognized and accepted by the Pill Alliance, becoming a part of the Pill Refiners.”
Upon hearing this, Fang Lin was taken aback and his face darkened.
Poison Pill Masters had been accepted by the Pill Alliance and had even become a part of the Pill Refiners?
“Why would the Pill Alliance accept Poison Pill Masters? Have they gone mad?” Fang Lin said somewhat angrily.
Ouyang Jing shook his head, sighed deeply, and lowered his voice, “This is not something we can discuss. I heard that it was a decision made by the Pill Alliance fifty years ago to accept a group of Poison Pill Masters. But it seems there has always been controversy within the Pill Alliance about this. I am not very clear about the specifics. Anyway, the subject of Poison Pill Masters is a sensitive one within the Pill Alliance, it is better not to discuss it too casually.” Fang Lin’s face was filled with gloom, and he felt even more angered.
He never expected that in this era, Poison Pill Masters, who were despised by everyone, could brazenly become Pill Refiners, which was the greatest insult to Pill Refiners.
In his past life, Fang Lin was the Pill Sovereign of the Pill Saint Palace. He had a strong disdain for Poison Pill Masters and had personally executed countless Poison Pill Masters.
At that time, all the Pill Refiners in the world united to resist Poison Pill
Masters. There was absolutely no tolerance for the existence of Poison Pill Masters. So the idea that the Pill Alliance would accept Poison Pill Masters was just unimaginable.
With “poison” in their title, Poison Pill Masters were naturally not good people. Unlike Pill Refiners, Poison Pill Masters only refined poison. Most of them were cruel and ruthless by nature, often causing wide harm with their poison.
Fang Lin was well aware of the harm caused by Poison Pill Masters. A skilled Poison Pill Master could reduce an entire city to ruins.
Fang Lin had once killed a particularly horrifying Poison Pill Master who had created a deadly poison that turned a once prosperous island into a living Hell.
Millions of living beings died in agony, their corpses manipulated even after death. If there really was a Hell on Earth, this would be it.
When Fang Lin learned of this news, he was filled with rage and spent ten years hunting down that Poison Pill Master, eventually driving him into a corner, destroying his body and shattering his soul.
But even so, Fang Lin couldn’t save the millions of souls that had died long before. All he could do was silently concoct an antidote to restore the desolate island back to its original state.
Poison Pill Masters were the kind of people Fang Lin despised and hated most.
But such a group was allowed to openly become Pill Refiners, something Fang Lin found hard to accept.
Because of this, Fang Lin was extremely disappointed with the so-called Pill Alliance.
If they could accept Poison Pill Masters, who could wreak havoc at any moment, just how dire and contemptible must the Pill Alliance be? Fang Lin didn’t even want or need to think about it.
Seeing Fang Lin’s change in expression, Ouyang Jing asked, “Brother, what’s the matter?”
Fang Lin shook his head and said, “It’s nothing.”
Although he was very disappointed with the Pill Alliance, Fang Lin was powerless to do anything at the moment due to his lack of strength, no matter how much he despised Poison Pill Masters.
With that, Ouyang Jing took Fang Lin into the Pill Alliance.
“Ouyang, you’re back.” As soon as they entered, a number of people greeted Ouyang Jing. It seems that Ouyang Jing was quite popular within the Pill Alliance.
After greeting those people, Ouyang Jing told Fang Lin to rest for a while as he went to take care of some tedious procedures.
Fang Lin found a corner and sat down, his eyes lingering on the images of various pill furnaces hanging on the wall of the hall.
Before long, a group of people entered through the main entrance. An elder from the Pill Alliance walked up to greet them.
“Elder Li, I’ve been waiting for a while,” the old Pill Alliance member said with a smile.
Among the group, the leader was a thin-faced old man, followed by a group of young men and women. From the way they were crowding around a certain young man, it was as if he was the center of their universe.
Elder Li wore a slight smile, yet his expression was somewhat arrogant.
The young men and women, especially the young man surrounded by the crowd, all had an arrogant air, as if they were nobler than others..