Translator: Silavin
Martial Kings were not rare in the Grand Empire, with several in each region. However, Human Grade Alchemy Masters in the entire Grand Empire could be counted on one hand.
How old was Qin Yichen?!
This was why Xia Zilin and the Chairman were so shocked.
“Incredible, simply incredible…” Chairman Hai looked at him, continuously muttering.
As for Xia Ziyi, there was even more to be said.
He was deeply grateful that Qin Yichen had not held his previous offense against him. Otherwise, if his Father had found out he had offended such a young Human Grade Alchemy Master, he would probably break his legs.
*Knock knock…* Just then, someone knocked on the door.
Xia Ziyi was startled, then hurriedly scurried over to open it.
It was the Seventh Princess, Xia Zilin.
Seeing Xia Ziyi opening the door, Xia Zilin was also startled, clearly not having processed everything.
As the Son of the Carefree Prince, Xia Ziyi was often courted by those powerful Princes and Princesses. Moreover, this Young Master of the Carefree Prince had great talent in Spiritual Energy cultivation.
Having such cultivation at his age meant he was destined to have a place in Alchemy Central in the future.
If this Young Master favoured someone, without doubt, their chances of being named heir to the throne would greatly increase. However, Xia Ziyi never paid attention to the Princes’ and Princesses’ attempts to curry favours with him, nor did he participate in the disputes for the throne.
And now, what was Xia Zilin seeing? This Young Master of immense power, was running errands here!!
“Ah, Seventh Princess, you’ve arrived. Come in, come in.” Having successfully refined the Jade Clear Ice Soul Pills, Qin Yichen was in a great mood and called to the stunned Xia Zilin at the door.
Xia Ziyi simply made way for her without any fuss.
“Zilin pays respects to the Chairman of Alchemy Central.” Xia Zilin first bowed to Chairman Hai.
“En.” Chairman Hai merely glanced at her before calling Xia Ziyi over to continue pointing out his shortcomings.
“Princess, you’ve come at just the right time. You’ve saved me the effort of having to deliver these to you later.”
Speaking thus, Qin Yichen prepared three Jade Clear Ice Soul Pills and presented them to Xia Zilin, causing her pupils to dilate.
Judging by the Pills’ quality, they were at least Level Six Pills!
Level Six Fifth Grade Pills!
From the looks of it, these seemed to have been refined by Qin Yichen himself.
At this point, Xia Zilin realised that even as they conversed, the nearby Chairman Hai said nothing.
Everyone in Twilight City knew Chairman Hai’s temperament. The fact that he allowed Qin Yichen to refine Pills in his personal Alchemy Room already said a lot.
“Thank you.” Xia Zilin lowered her head, speaking softly.
It was not clear whether her thanks were for the Royal Seal or the Pills before her. Perhaps both?
“Princess, if you don’t mind, could we speak privately?” Qin Yichen looked at her with a slight smile.
Actually, from Xia Zilin’s expression, he could tell that she had received rewards for presenting the Royal Seal.
It had worked as expected.
If Qin Yichen had given the Royal Seal to that Earl at the time, although he would have become an Earl, Xia Zilin would have had no chance to compete for the throne.
Presenting the Royal Seal was not just for the rewards, more importantly, it was to raise Xia Zilin’s prestige.
Apart from her maternal side, Xia Zilin was not inferior to any Prince or Princess in any aspect.
What Qin Yichen needed to do now was help her leverage this opportunity to rise to the seat of power!
Of course, this depended on whether Xia Zilin was willing.
The two left the Alchemy Room and came to Qin Yichen’s temporary quarters.
“May I ask what rewards the Emperor bestowed upon you?” After sitting down, Qin Yichen asked Xia Zilin with a smile.
“A region’s territory.” Excitement flashed in Xia Zilin’s eyes.
Having her own territory meant she could cultivate her own power. Otherwise, she would remain just a Seventh Princess with only a title.
“Just that?” Qin Yichen frowned.
“Yes.” Xia Zilin nodded, not understanding why he frowned.
*Haaaa…* Qin Yichen sighed, looking at her with complexity.
A region’s territory. Though this reward seemed substantial, the resource-rich regions had long been divided among the Grand Empire’s powerful Forces. Xia Zilin’s choices were actually quite limited.
And what use was an ordinary region?
Suddenly, Qin Yichen seemed to think of something and asked, “Has the ruler specified which territory you can take?”
“That… not yet.”
Xia Zilin clearly did not understand what he was planning.
Though she was smart, she had been confined in the Royal Palace and knew little about outside affairs. She only knew that fewer than three Princes and Princesses had been granted territorial domains of their own.
“That’s great.” Qin Yichen clapped his hands, then said to her, “In that case, choose the Black Cloud Region.”
“Black Cloud Region?” Even Xia Zilin, confined within the Royal Palace, furrowed her brow upon hearing of the Black Cloud Region.
The Black Cloud Region could be said to be several times worse than the Thousand Mist Empire.
Why? Because half of the Black Cloud Region was made of Black Cloud Stone.
Black Cloud Stone was harder than steel but was not considered an actual ore. It was a material that could not be smelted like steel, simply because Black Cloud Stone did not react to heat. Because of this characteristic, Black Cloud Stone became known as a useless rock. No, it was worse than rocks which could be used to build houses.
However, what Qin Yichen knew was that thousands of years later, Black Cloud Stone would become the main material for forging weapons, replacing steel.
Iron ore was now a resource fought over by all Grand Empires.
The value of Black Cloud Stone, or later known as Black Cloud Ore, would naturally be superior to iron ore. This need not even be mentioned.
“Yes, the Black Cloud Region.” Qin Yichen believed that if Xia Zilin chose the Black Cloud Region, it would certainly be approved.
Because currently, the Black Cloud Region was worthless to the Grand Empire.
Xia Zilin stared at Qin Yichen for a long time before finally nodding.
Although she did not understand why Qin Yichen wanted her to choose the Black Cloud Region, she believed he must have his reasons.
“Seventh Princess, you will find this to be a wise and brilliant decision in the future.” Qin Yichen said to her somewhat teasingly.
After all, it was certainly a wise decision, one in which she would realise soon enough.
“If there’s nothing else, I’ll take my leave…” Feeling there was nothing more to discuss, Xia Zilin stood up. She was eager to try the Jade Clear Ice Soul Pill and see its effects.
“Princess, why the rush?.” Qin Yichen called her back, and when she turned around, she saw him looking at her with a solemn expression.
His solemn expression made Xia Zilin sit back down.