Dawn was just breaking over Qingyun City, and the blue stone slabs of the Dantai Square were already packed with people. A vendor holding a bundle of candied hawthorns squeezed into a corner, while a storyteller cracked his wooden clapper with sharp slaps. "Listen up, everyone! Today's pill competition is likely to turn the world upside down—"
Ye Fan stood at the entrance of the square, his black brocade robe fluttering in the morning breeze. He gazed ahead at the bronze Dantai, where twelve pill furnaces were lined up in a row. The four seal-script characters, "The Source of Alchemy," engraved on the furnace bodies were still frosted with ice.
Qín Wǎnshuāng's fingertips gently brushed against the back of his hand. Following her gaze, he saw Manager Sun of the XuanDan Sect standing on tiptoe beside the third pill furnace on the far right, arguing with an official. The golden thread cloud patterns on his dark daoist robe gleamed coldly in the morning light.
Chapter 197