Chapter 149: Chapter 149: Letter of Challenge

Inside the Elder’s Hall of the Alchemy Master Guild.

Xiao Gu sat with a grim expression, listening to his disciple’s report.

Xiao Gu had more than just Bai Shu as a disciple; he had several.

Bai Shu was just one of them.

"Master, the Bai Family and the Ximen Family have been wiped out by the Jiang Family. The Jiang Family now stands alone as the sole power in Hanwu City."

Yuan Sheng, Xiao Gu’s eldest disciple, was now a First-Grade Alchemist and a Junior Steward, two ranks below Jiang Chen.

He held a considerable amount of power within the Alchemy Master Guild.

He was reporting on the major events that had recently occurred in Hanwu City.

But Xiao Gu waved his hand impatiently. "I already know about this. No need to say more."

"The power struggles in Hanwu City have nothing to do with us."

Yuan Sheng gave a bitter smile and spoke again. "Master, are we just going to let the death of my junior brother, Bai Shu, go?"

"That Jiang Chen is still at large."

At that, Yuan Sheng brought up Jiang Chen again.

Bai Shu was his junior brother, and the two had been quite close.

Yet in the end, he was killed by Jiang Chen—a mere substitute who had somehow become a Senior Steward.

He had long been dissatisfied with Jiang Chen and wanted to kill him.

"Enough! So what if Bai Shu is dead? It’s irrelevant."

Speaking of this matter, Xiao Gu was clearly incensed.

Bai Shu was indeed his disciple, so of course he was displeased.

He didn’t care that much about Bai Shu’s death, but as an Elder of the Alchemy Master Guild, he placed great importance on his dignity.

If his disciple was killed and he did nothing, he would inevitably become a laughingstock.

What he couldn’t stand was being mocked behind his back, not Bai Shu’s death itself.

Yuan Sheng and the other disciples were all shocked, not understanding why their master had suddenly erupted in anger.

Xiao Gu said coldly, "Jiang Chen... I certainly won’t let him off the hook."

"It’s just that he’s now a Senior Steward of the Alchemy Master Guild, so he’s not that easy to deal with."

Everyone fell silent.

It was true. Jiang Chen’s status as a Senior Steward in the Alchemy Master Guild made him an extremely tricky target to move against.

If Jiang Chen weren’t a member of the Alchemy Master Guild, they would have already taken a group of men to kill him.

After a long silence, Xiao Gu suddenly said, "I have an idea. Listen closely."

"That Jiang Chen is only sitting in the Senior Steward’s seat because of his master’s reputation. He himself has no ability whatsoever."

"I suspect he’s not even an Alchemist."

What?

Xiao Gu’s disciples were all astonished.

Everyone knew that Jiang Chen was using his master’s name to hold the position of Senior Steward, but they never imagined he wasn’t even an Alchemist.

Now this was getting interesting.

Yuan Sheng pondered for a moment, a cold glint flashing in his eyes. He immediately spoke up, "Master, in that case, why don’t we use the fact that Jiang Chen isn’t an Alchemist to make it impossible for him to survive in the Alchemy Master Guild?"

He had thought of a brilliant idea to target Jiang Chen.

The others looked at Yuan Sheng. Xiao Gu also had a worried expression; in truth, he had also been trying to find a way to make an issue out of Jiang Chen not being an Alchemist, but he hadn’t come up with a good plan.

So he asked, "Let’s hear it."

Seeing this, Yuan Sheng was quite pleased. ’If I can perform a meritorious service for my master, he will surely value me even more.’

He stepped forward and announced in a clear voice, "Master, it’s simple. We’ll challenge that Jiang Chen to a competition of Alchemy Skill."

"If he knows Alchemy Skill, so be it. But if he doesn’t, we can humiliate him in public."

As soon as he said this, the entire hall fell silent.

Then, someone immediately exclaimed in admiration.

"What a great idea! A great idea!"

"It doesn’t matter whether that Jiang Chen knows Alchemy Skill or not."

"We’ll just compete against him in Alchemy Skill. Even if he knows it, we’ll still defeat him. Don’t be fooled by his powerful master; for all we know, he’s just a useless good-for-nothing."

"We can all take turns humiliating him, making him lose all face in the entire Alchemy Master Guild. Wouldn’t that be satisfying?"

Each of the disciples began to voice their opinions.

They all agreed with competing against Jiang Chen in Alchemy Skill.

This way, they could find out what Jiang Chen was truly capable of.

If Jiang Chen’s Alchemy Skill was poor, they could crush him so thoroughly that he wouldn’t even be able to breathe, perhaps even forcing him out of the Alchemy Master Guild.

As long as Jiang Chen left the Alchemy Master Guild, Xiao Gu’s people could find a way to put him to death.

It was a truly brilliant plan.

Everyone began to grow excited.

Xiao Gu fell into deep thought.

After a moment, he abruptly raised his head, a murderous glint in his eyes.

"Good. It’s settled, then. Go and challenge Jiang Chen to a competition of Alchemy Skill."

"Remember, humiliate Jiang Chen mercilessly."

"And this competition—make sure everyone in the entire Alchemy Master Guild knows about it. From the President at the top down to the very last novice. The more fiercely you publicize it, the better."

Yuan Sheng was ecstatic. His plan had actually been approved by his master.

’This is great! From now on, my master will remember me.’

He nodded eagerly. "Master, in that case, we won’t wait. We’ll go publicize it right now."

"We are going to humiliate Jiang Chen mercilessly."

Xiao Gu waved his hand. "Go on, then."

After his disciples left, a savage smile appeared on Xiao Gu’s face.

He gritted his teeth and said, "Jiang Chen, oh, Jiang Chen... I can’t even be bothered to lift a finger against you myself. I will make you kill yourself."

"You just wait."

He began to brew his plan.

At the same time, the Alchemy Master Guild instantly burst into an uproar.

In the vast plaza of the Alchemy Master Guild,

letters of challenge were posted on several notice boards.

"Everyone, come look! Good news, major news!"

Xiao Gu’s disciples had specifically sent people to build up hype and create an atmosphere for their Alchemy Skill competition with Jiang Chen.

Many members of the Alchemy Master Guild were stirred by this news and went to look at the notice boards curiously.

There, they saw several letters of challenge posted.

"I, Yuan Sheng, wish to challenge Senior Steward Jiang Chen to a competition of Alchemy Skill."

"Jiang Chen, if you’re not a coward who hides in his shell, accept my challenge."

Below it were several other letters of challenge, all from Xiao Gu’s disciples. There were even a few from people who weren’t his disciples, who had somehow been incited by them to challenge Jiang Chen.

All of them were to compete with Jiang Chen in Alchemy Skill.

"This really is major news! Someone’s competing in Alchemy Skill. Interesting."

"It seems like it’s been a while since we’ve seen an Alchemy Skill competition in the Alchemy Master Guild. Looks like we’re in for a good show this time."

"Isn’t that the truth? But the ones making a move this time are Elder Xiao Gu’s disciple Yuan Sheng and the others. That Jiang Chen is just an impostor who’s trading on someone else’s name. Just because his master is powerful doesn’t mean he is."

"Yuan Sheng and his group are all extremely formidable among First-Grade Alchemists. Their Alchemy Skill is not to be underestimated. They rank at least in the top ten among the First-Grade Alchemists in our Alchemy Master Guild."

"Yeah, I’d also like to see what that Senior Steward is made of. I just wonder if he’ll dare to accept the challenge."

After the letters of challenge were posted, the clamor boiled over completely. The Alchemy Master Guild was plunged into an unprecedented state of excitement.