Chapter 55 - 53: The Face Under the Mask

Chapter 55: Chapter 53: The Face Under the Mask

"M-My Lord?"

"Father, it really is him."

The moment Nalan Yanyu saw the black-robed figure wearing the grimace mask, it was as if she had seen her savior. Her words instantly drew the gaze of countless eyes. The members of the Nalan family were especially shocked when they heard Nalan Lin and his daughter.

"Is... is he the Pill Master that you mentioned?"

Many experts of the Nalan family breathed heavily. Although they had never seen this figure before, they had heard plenty about him over the past three years. The grades of the pills he had provided to the Pill Storage Tower during this time were so high that many even surpassed the top-tier Spirit Pills of the Divine Pill Pavilion. At this moment, it wasn’t just the Nalan family that was stunned. Even the countless terrifying figures besieging the Pill Storage Tower froze in place. Seeing Nalan Lin and Nalan Yanyu practically jogging out of the Pill Storage Tower, everyone’s hearts skipped a beat.

"Is there really such a Pill Master?"

"Could it be that Nalan Lin wasn’t lying? Did the Nalan family actually manage to curry favor with a terrifying Alchemy Master, and this person has now actually shown up?"

The expressions of the elders who participated in the siege of the Pill Storage Tower changed drastically. After all, the Spirit Pills that the Pill Storage Tower had distributed over the years were enough to shock the entire Earth Realm of Celestial City. The Alchemy Master providing these pills was unimaginably terrifying. This was a peerless Pill Master capable of refining Foundation Establishment Pills! A conservative estimate would place him as at least a Tier Two High Grade Alchemy Master.

"We’re doomed. We’re completely doomed."

"What do we do? What should we do now?"

Many representatives of the Pill Workshops breathed rapidly, consumed by panic. Offending a Pill Master capable of refining Foundation Establishment Pills was sheer madness. In truth, the reason these numerous Pill Workshops dared to besiege the Pill Storage Tower was because they were certain the Pill Master backing the Nalan family would not make an appearance. After all, to a Pill Master capable of refining Foundation Establishment Pills, a Little Pill Workshop like the Pill Storage Tower simply wasn’t worth their intervention. It was precisely because of this certainty that they dared to join forces, intending to wipe out the Pill Storage Tower in one fell swoop. But now that the man had actually appeared, panic set in.

Meanwhile, Nalan Lin and his daughter rushed out into the snowstorm to personally welcome the mysterious Pill Master.

"I, Nalan Lin, greet you, My Lord. Yanyu, hurry and greet the Pill Master," Nalan Lin said as he bowed to Jiang Hao and urged Nalan Yanyu beside him.

She didn’t dare to hesitate and immediately curtsied. "Yanyu greets you, My Lord."

Facing that grimace mask once again, Nalan Yanyu’s heart pounded wildly. Ever since this Pill Master began cooperating with the Pill Storage Tower, she felt incredibly nervous every time he visited. Perhaps this was just the anxiety of standing before a terrifyingly powerful figure.

As the father and daughter paid their respects to the black-robed figure, Nalan Feiyan quickly followed them.

"Lin, is this the Pill Master you spoke of? The mysterious Pill Master who has been providing pills to the Pill Storage Tower for the past three years?" Nalan Feiyan asked, her breathing noticeably quickening as she stared at the figure. This was the absolute heavyweight who had refined quite a few Foundation Establishment Pills for the Pill Storage Tower. Even if it was just a transaction, he was still a great benefactor to the Nalan family.

Hearing her voice, Nalan Lin’s expression changed slightly, and he quickly said in panic, "Feiyan, don’t be rude. Hurry and pay your respects to the Pill Master."

Reminded by her brother, Nalan Feiyan snapped back to reality. Realizing her breach of etiquette, she hastily bowed to the black-robed figure.

"I am the legitimate daughter of the Nalan family and Matriarch Qin, Nalan Feiyan. I pay my respects to the Pill Master."

Nalan Feiyan’s attitude was exceedingly respectful. Although she was the current Lady of the House of the Qin family, her status was simply not enough to boast about in front of a Pill Master capable of refining Foundation Establishment Pills.

Looking at Nalan Feiyan bowing to him, Jiang Hao felt quite helpless. He originally wanted to help her up for Qin Shiming’s sake, but it was too inconvenient for him to do so at the moment. Therefore, facing the greetings of the three, he merely gave a slight nod.

Seeing the black-robed figure appear, both Nalan Lin and Nalan Feiyan were deeply shaken. Nalan Yanyu, however, kept a clear head and immediately pleaded, "My Lord, I beg you, please save the Pill Storage Tower. Please save the Nalan family. You are the only one who can save us now."

As the young woman spoke, her beautiful eyes were filled with a heartbreaking mix of hope and despair.

Hearing this, Jiang Hao let out a slow sigh. He had appeared specifically to settle this matter for Qin Shiming’s sake, so he didn’t refuse. He gave a slow nod and walked toward the Pill Storage Tower. Seeing that he had agreed to resolve the Nalan family’s crisis, the three were momentarily stunned before becoming ecstatic.

At the same time, the countless spectating Cultivators began to whisper among themselves.

"They say Pill Masters always have eccentric personalities, and the truly terrifying ones act particularly aloof. I can’t believe this Pill Master is actually willing to intervene for the Nalan family."

"And he even showed up personally to handle this. It seems the Nalan family’s relationship with him is quite extraordinary."

"A Pill Master capable of refining Foundation Establishment Pills is absolutely a titan-level existence, even across the entire Earth Realm of Celestial City. Could it be one of those great masters?"

At these words, countless Cultivators of Celestial City drew in sharp breaths of cold air. If it really was one of those prominent figures, it would be someone whose mere stomp could cause the entire Earth Realm of Celestial City to tremble three times. But aside from those titan-level Pill Masters, they simply couldn’t think of anyone else in Celestial City who could refine Foundation Establishment Pills.

The moment the black-robed figure stepped into the Pill Storage Tower, everyone inside held their breath. That terrifying grimace mask was incredibly oppressive, making the crowd feel as though they were suffocating.

"What terrifying cultivation. I can’t even see through his cultivation base," an elder muttered.

As the black-robed figure walked in, countless experts attempted to sense the Spiritual Power fluctuating around him. If they hadn’t tried, they would have been fine, but the attempt nearly caused them to wet themselves in fear. They couldn’t see through the man’s depths at all. His aura was entirely concealed, making him appear just like an ordinary mortal who had returned to his natural state. And the more unreadable someone was, the more terrifying they were proven to be.

It wasn’t until the black-robed figure stood in the center of the Pill Storage Tower’s hall that everyone finally snapped out of their daze.

"We pay our respects to the Pill Master."

The numerous members of the Nalan family snapped back to reality and bowed deeply to the figure.

As for the experts besieging the Pill Storage Tower, they were gasping for air. Someone instinctively spoke up, "Are you the master who has been refining pills for the Pill Storage Tower for the past three years?"

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone’s hearts leaped into their throats. What a careless fool—what a true warrior!

When the grimace mask turned toward the speaker, the man instantly regretted opening his mouth. Cold sweat became visibly thick on his forehead. However, the imagined scene of fury never materialized. After a brief silence, an extremely hoarse voice slowly rang out from beneath the black robes.

"I am the one who refined them. Is there a problem?"

The moment the hoarse voice sounded, the expert who spoke began to tremble slightly. But the other terrifying, white-haired elders exchanged glances, their expressions incredibly grim. This siege and suppression of the Pill Storage Tower had been instigated by them, the most respected Workshop Masters among all the Pill Workshops. Watching this scene unfold, they knew they had likely run into someone they couldn’t afford to provoke. However, having established themselves as Workshop Masters in Celestial City, they naturally possessed considerable confidence and connections.

Taking a deep breath, one of the elders gathered his courage and said, "Hmph, so you expect us to believe you just because you say so? Who’s to say you aren’t just an actor hired by the Pill Storage Tower? Who can prove you are an Alchemy Master?"

As the elder finished speaking, Jiang Hao let out a cold smile beneath his mask. He instinctively looked at those figures. "Oh? It seems I need to prove my identity?"

At those words, the elder was instantly struck speechless, a clear flash of wariness crossing his eyes. But Jiang Hao, who didn’t want to drag this out, didn’t hesitate. As soon as he finished speaking, he slowly raised his hands.

In an instant.

BOOM!!!

A terrifying burst of flame coalesced out of thin air in his palm. It surged upward, burning furiously, and the entire Pill Storage Tower instantly became unbearably hot.

When that Fire of Heaven and Earth emerged, the expressions of several elderly Pill Masters changed drastically.

"A Tier Two Third Grade Alchemy Master?"

Being Pill Masters themselves, these old codgers instantly deduced the black-robed figure’s Alchemy Dao realm just by sensing the power of the burning Fire of Heaven and Earth. But before they could even finish speaking, Jiang Hao’s palm trembled slightly. The burning flames instantly shot up like crazy, their scorching heat skyrocketing limitlessly.

The Elder Pill Masters’ eyes practically popped out of their sockets as they evaluated the flames with dry mouths.

"Tier Two Fourth Grade?"

"Tier Two Fifth Grade?"

In just a short moment, the might of the Fire of Heaven and Earth had already surged to the realm of Tier Two Seventh Grade. Suddenly.

"Heavens! A... a Tier Two Seventh Grade fire?"

"A Tier Two Seventh Grade Alchemy Master. He’s a Tier Two Seventh Grade Pill Master!"

RUMBLE!

The moment those words were spoken, a pin drop could be heard in the grand hall. Countless people stood frozen in place.

However, playing a little mind game, Jiang Hao’s hoarse voice rang out indifferently. "Do I still need to prove myself?"

The entire Pill Storage Tower fell into dead silence, but without giving anyone a chance to react, Jiang Hao’s palm trembled once more. The burning of the Celestial Fire became even more intense, making it feel as if the entire Pill Storage Tower was going to melt.

"Tier Two Eighth Grade?"

CLATTER!

When those words—Tier Two Eighth Grade Pill Master—reached everyone’s ears, it was as if a lightning bolt had struck the inside of the Pill Storage Tower.

Looking at the crowd’s reaction, the hoarse voice finally spoke again.

"It seems that is proof enough."

After speaking, Jiang Hao slowly withdrew his hand, and the flames gradually faded into nothingness.

For a moment, everyone felt as if struck by a bolt from the blue, their bodies trembling violently. They no longer had any idea what grade of Tier Two Pill Master the black-robed figure actually was. Some even began harboring the earth-shattering suspicion that he might be a Tier Three Pill Master. This was exactly the effect Jiang Hao wanted. He was indeed only a Tier Two Eighth Grade Pill Master, but keeping people guessing about his true depths was his greatest shield.

"Well, everyone? Is there any aura of an evil Cultivator mixed within this Celestial Fire?"

The moment he said this, the Elder Pill Masters didn’t dare utter a sound. Whether there was an evil Cultivator’s aura or not was already glaringly obvious. And as long as Jiang Hao wasn’t an evil Cultivator, the Pill Storage Tower’s crisis naturally crumbled on its own.

Seeing that the source of the pills had been cleared up, Jiang Hao didn’t want to linger any longer. He immediately turned around and prepared to leave.

"Thank you, My Lord, for proving the Pill Storage Tower’s innocence. Thank you, My Lord," Nalan Lin said, shedding tears of gratitude, almost weeping like a child. This was truly boundless grace.

Jiang Hao ignored him and abandoned his thought of exchanging for heavenly materials and earthly treasures at the Pill Storage Tower. Right now, he just wanted to retreat safely as quickly as possible to avoid any further complications.

However, to his surprise, there was a capable person hidden among the countless experts of the Pill Workshops. An authoritative and domineering elder took a deep breath. After a brief internal struggle, he finally bit the bullet and spoke out.

"Hold on," the elder said. He couldn’t help but swallow a mouthful of saliva, a trace of wariness in his eyes. "It’s true that you are a Pill Master, and it’s also true that you aren’t an evil Cultivator. Since you are not a follower of the evil path, then why not show us your true face?"