The Extreme Alchemist of the Mighty Cauldron

Members of the royal family were all taken aback by Fang Lin’s words, never expecting him to utter such audacious remarks, essentially threatening to usurp Li Guanxin’s position as the prime candidate.

The Purple Mist Sect members applauded in approval. They had long found Li Guanxin distasteful, and Fang Lin’s bold counterattack was absolutely gratifying for them.

“Hehe, so you really are as arrogant as the rumors say,” Li Guanxin laughed. “However, arrogance without substance often leads to an untimely death.” Despite maintaining his composure outwardly, Li Guanxin’s expression was darker.

Fang Lin’s words had undoubtedly provoked Li Guanxin.

“I’m not joking. I genuinely believe you’re unfit for this prime candidacy. Save yourself the embarrassment and let me have it,” Fang Lin replied with a grin.

“How audacious!” Li Zhendong scolded sharply, glaring at Fang Lin.

Han Luoyun smiled and said, “Master Li, why let the squabbles of the younger generation ruffle you? We should stand aside and let them handle it.”

“Fang Lin, your arrogance knows no bounds!”

“Utterly unreasonable!”

“I think he’s lost his mind! He dares to challenge the top genius of our Li family?”

···

Many members of the Li family sneered, thinking Fang Lin was overestimating himself.

“Are you serious? You want to contest my prime candidacy?” Li Guanxin asked with a poker face, staring at Fang Lin.

Fang Lin nodded in response.

Everyone became silent at this moment; they all could see that a fierce duel was about to happen between Li Guanxin and Fang Lin before their journey to the Virtual Sky Sect.

If these two really began to clash, it would certainly be a spectacle.

“Hehe, I heard you had a bout with Yang Xuanfeng and barely managed to last fifteen moves. What gives you the confidence to challenge me? You’re giving yourself too much credit.” Li Guanxin said with a smirk, looking at Fang Lin with outright contempt.

Fang Lin, clearly annoyed, shot back, “Why so much pointless chatter?”

“Fine! If you’re courting death, I’ll oblige. Let’s see if your arrogance can match the price it demands!” roared Li Guanxin angrily.

Then he turned to Li Zhendong and said, “Master, I request a combat match with Fang Lin. I wish to show him the true strength of the Li family.”

Fang Lin looked at Han Luoyun and said, “Master, Li Guanxin is gifting the prime candidacy to me.”

Li Guanxin and the Li family members were infuriated by Fang Lin’s words. Who said they were handing over the prime candidacy? The battle hasn’t even begun yet and he’s already boasting such arrogant words. Was he not scared of losing face if he were to lose?

“Guanxin, if you must do this, do not hesitate. Teach him a lesson,” Li Zhendong coldly replied.

Han Luoyun patted Fang Lin on the shoulder and said, “A mere Li Guanxin is no threat to you. Just do your best.”

Now that both Han Luoyun and Li Zhendong had given their consent, a fight between Li Guanxin and Fang Lin was inevitable.

“If you wish to duel, the martial arts arena is the place. But make sure it’s not to the death. After all, we need to head to the Virtual Sky Sect ruins. It would be bad if either of you got injured.” said Yang Jianye.

Li Guanxin and Fang Lin both acknowledged this with a bow, but both understood in their hearts that avoiding injuries was impossible. Be it Li Guanxin or Fang Lin, each would seize any opportunity to strike without mercy, possibly even killing each other on the spot.

The feud between Fang Lin and the Li family ran too deep. Li Guanxin wished to kill Fang Lin, and Fang Lin wanted to dispose of Li Guanxin, the Li family’s top genius.

Then, everyone headed toward the martial arts arena.

Yang Xuanfeng went up to Fang Lin and whispered, “Why challenge him now? It’s not the wisest move.”

Fang Lin laughed. “I know what I’m doing.”

Seeing Fang Lin so self-assured, Yang Xuanfeng chose to hold his peace. But in his heart, he didn’t see Fang Lin having a high chance of victory in this duel.

Yang Xuanfeng had engaged with Li Guanxin in battle before, and he clearly understood Li Guanxin’s strength. In the whole of Qian Country, the only people who could meet Li Guanxin as equals were he and Han Xiaoxing.

The three of them were considered the strongest among the young generation of Qian Country. Their battles with each other rarely had a clear winner.

From Yang Xuanfeng’s perspective, Li Guanxin was extremely formidable. Even putting out his full strength without reservations, Yang Xuanfeng estimated that his chances of defeating Li Guanxin were merely forty percent.

And what about Fang Lin? Although his progress was rapid and he had broken through to the Ninth Layer of the Earth Element in such a short time, cultivation level didn’t reflect true strength. Martial artists at the same cultivation level can have vastly different strength.

When Yang Xuanfeng was at the Ninth Layer of the Earth Element, he could easily battle against ten average Earth Element Nineth Layer martial artists simultaneously.

Comparing cultivation levels, Fang Lin was not on par with Li Guanxin, and in terms of strength, Li Guanxin had a great advantage.

No matter how he looked at it, Fang Lin’s chances of victory were minuscule.

Not only Yang Xuanfeng but several people from the Purple Mist Sect were also secretly worried. Although they had seen Fang Lin battle with Qing Jianzi and display formidable strength, this time his opponent was Li Guanxin—one of the top three strongest young warriors of Qian Country who had almost never lost a fight.

Could Fang Lin defeat him?

Regardless, the entire match seemed unfavorable for Fang Lin. If he lost, it would become a laughing stock, challenging Li Guanxin despite being outmatched and subsequently getting defeated would be extremely humiliating.

Nevertheless, things had already progressed to this point. Members of the Purple Mist Sect could only silently hope that Fang Lin could defeat Li Guanxin and suppress the arrogance of the Li family.

The royal family members were also more inclined to see Fang Lin defeat Li Guanxin, not relishing the thought of Fang Lin losing.

Upon reaching the martial arts arena, Fang Lin and Li Guanxin stood across from each other, each sizing the other up.

“If you want to back down, I can allow you a graceful exit,” Li Guanxin said to Fang Lin.

Fang Lin chuckled, “Thank you for your kind offer. If you fear embarrassment, you can also concede now. I’ll let you bow out gracefully.”

Upon hearing this, Li Guanxin shook his head, his expression indifferent. “Although you’re hailed as the number one Pill Refiner genius in the Lower Three Kingdoms, I consider you to be nothing more than an arrogant and delusional person, not worth consideration.”

Fang Lin didn’t lose his temper and replied, “What others think of me isn’t my concern. In contrast, your Li family seems to have a notorious reputation recently. Don’t you feel humiliated going out in public? Aren’t you scared of being pelted with rotten eggs in the dark?”

These words made Li Guanxin and everyone else in the Li family extremely angry, almost wanting to tear Fang Lin apart on the spot.

“Very well, very well. If you’re seeking trouble, then you can’t blame me,” Li Guanxin replied with a cold smile.