"Inyan Alliance?" Adding a soft, thoughtful pronunciation of the name, Jian Xingtian turned his gaze to Xiao Yan, who was smiling beside him, and said, "Such a splendid name. I believe the Inyan Alliance will soon surpass Yunlan Sect in stature. I hope it will eventually claim a prominent place in the western and northern regions—perhaps even securing a seat within the Jima Empire." Xiao Yan nodded with a gentle smile, murmuring, "Xiao Yan will do his utmost." "Ah, well, since the alliance has now been established, there must be a leader to oversee the whole effort..." Fahma stood up, smiling, and said, "It seems this position truly belongs to Xiao Yan, doesn't it?" Hearing Fahma's words, Mu Chen, Na Lan Jie, and the others quickly joined in with warm nods and affirmations. After all, Xiao Yan had gone to such lengths to forge this alliance—how could they possibly believe he was acting purely out of altruism? The role of chief of the alliance had now become firmly secured. Naturally, no one would dare to voice any opposition at this point. As for this, Xiao Yan merely smiled, not hesitating to appear delicate or make excuses, and rose to speak with a warm tone: "The Yan Alliance is not solely the achievement of Xiao Yan alone; its future success will depend on the support of all of you, the esteemed elders present!" Seeing that everything unfolded exactly as anticipated, Xiao Ding nodded in approval and waved his hand. At once, a serving maid hurried to place the already poured wine before each of them. "Today's establishment of the Alliance marks a significant event. To celebrate the Yan Alliance, let us all raise our glasses and drink!" Xiao Ding said with a gentle smile, lifting his cup. "Haha—here's to it!" Amidst the laughter in the hall, the largest alliance force of the Gamra Empire finally took shape. Soon, this newly formed power would be frequently mentioned in the mouths of Gamra Empire citizens, and many would come to realize that this force would eventually replace Yunlan Sect. As for whether this successor would go even further than Yunlan Sect, that would ultimately depend on the capabilities of its leaders. ... In the hall, as the discussions concluded, the guests began to file out one by one, and the tense atmosphere gradually relaxed. After seeing off the last visitor, Xiao Yan exhaled deeply, sat down heavily in his chair, and sighed, "Finally settled. From now on, my family will have a reliable safety guarantee." "With your current strength, you could simply compel them to join—why go through all this trouble? You're truly making things harder on yourself." The Queen of Medusa, who had remained silent until now, finally glanced at Xiao Yan and spoke coldly. Hearing this, Xiao Yan rolled his eyes, unwilling to argue with her—after all, in this fiercely decisive woman's mind, everything was settled by force. "The Hong Alliance has only recently been established, yet it already encompasses the empire's strongest forces—its future potential is truly remarkable. From now on, I will ensure that the Hong Alliance's intelligence network extends to every corner of the Jima Empire. Once that is in place, any disloyalty toward our family will be promptly relayed to us. Even the Hu Dun Temple will find it far more difficult to act against our household than it has in the past." Xiao Ding ignored the objections of the two, smiled calmly, and said. "However, might the Hong Alliance be granting its members too much power? The Senate holds the authority to shape the Alliance's leadership—this could potentially become a source of trouble down the line." Xiao Li frowned, commenting. "Rest assured. At present, this is merely a measure to secure their loyalty. As time passes and their sense of familial identity fades, they will naturally begin to prioritize the Alliance over individual families. I will quietly implement strategies to ensure that the majority of the Senate members are either from our family or staunchly supportive of it. In the future, should my third brother make any decisions, no one will be able to interfere." Xiao Ding tapped his numb legs lightly and smiled casually. Xiao Yan chuckled, stretched lazily, and said, "The alliance has now been smoothly established. From here on, I'll leave the rest to Brother One and Brother Two. I'm not particularly skilled at handling such matters." "You young man..." Seeing Xiao Yan now eager to pass the responsibility, Xiao Ding shook his head in helpless resignation. "By the way, Brother Two, have you found all the herbs I asked you to seek?" Suddenly remembering something, Xiao Yan asked. "Over the past few days, the Miter family has distributed these herbs across all its auction halls. We've managed to gather all the needed herbs, though only enough for two pills. If we fail again, it might take another two months to collect enough for a third batch. Sea Elder mentioned that these herbs are exceptionally rare—indeed, even the Miter family holds only a limited supply." Hearing this, Xiao Li was momentarily stunned, glanced at Xiao Ding with a slightly dimmed expression, then continued. "There are two sets... I believe we should be able to successfully prepare one. Later, you'll deliver the herbs to my inner chamber." Xiao Yan hesitated slightly—though the herbs were somewhat uncertain, with Xiao Li's remaining lifespan growing increasingly limited, he couldn't afford any further delay. He then spoke. Xiao Li nodded slightly. As for the herbs mentioned by the two, Xiao Ding hadn't raised any suspicions at all. After all, as a master alchemist, Xiao Yan's regular practice of preparing pills was entirely natural. Thus, after their conversation, Xiao Ding glanced briefly at the coldly composed Medusa before giving her a subtle signal and pushing the wheelchair slowly toward the hall's entrance. Observing their actions, Xiao Yan shook his head in resignation and then turned his gaze to Medusa, remaining silent for a moment before softly saying, "Thank you." "Thank you," naturally, was a recognition of her willingness to come and serve as a presence here, to intimidate these older members—Medusa was the ideal choice. Yet she was too reserved, and when Xiao Yan had first asked for her help, he had already anticipated a refusal. He hadn't expected her to agree so readily. "I only came to kill," Medusa said calmly to Xiao Yan's gratitude. "Unfortunately, you haven't allowed me to fulfill that purpose." Perhaps even she hadn't noticed, but a subtle softness had now crept into the otherwise cold gaze of her eyes. "Xiao Yan, your pills have long since run out. Now that your injuries have healed, you must hurry and prepare me a new batch!" Zi Yan, who had been accompanying Medusa closely, murmured impatiently. Smiling, Xiao Yan gently rubbed her head and said, "Alright, I'll prepare one right away—your little greedy one." "Hurry up," he added, "I sense that I'm about to grow stronger again. I'll need a substantial amount of energy, or else I'll have to fall into a deep sleep." Zi Yan furrowed her brows slightly, having recently felt an odd, inexplicable sensation since she'd forcibly blocked the attack from Wu, the guardian of Yunlan Mountain. This had left her in urgent need of substantial energy. Upon hearing this, Xiao Yan and Medusa both blinked in surprise, then gazed at Zi Yan with bright, curious eyes. After a moment, they exchanged glances and exclaimed in astonishment, "Is she about to advance to the next rank?" Xiao Yan pondered for a while. When he first encountered Zi Yan in the inner academy, she had already been at the Duke-level rank—equivalent to a five-tiered beast. Given the abundance of rare and precious materials she'd consumed over the years, it was entirely natural that she would have progressed through the ranks. "The energy required for a dragon to ascend in rank is exceptionally vast. Therefore, dragons typically seek out various precious materials and treasures beforehand. However, this girl has consumed countless treasures over the years and is only now ascending—this clearly indicates that the energy she requires is indeed extraordinarily immense. I still have no idea what her true form is made of..." Medusa's tone carried a touch of astonishment. She had never before witnessed a dragon requiring such an overwhelming amount of energy to ascend. Generally, the greater the energy needed, the stronger the dragon; yet with Zi Yan—this seems rather excessive. "Don't worry. No matter how vast the energy requirement, I will secure it for her. This little one has been following me from the inner courtyard. I can't allow her to suffer any injury, or else I won't be able to face Su Qian, the senior elder, in the future." Xiao Yan gently stroked the delicate, porcelain-like face of Zi Yan, watching her adorable, flustered attempts to evade his touch, and smiled softly. Gazing at Xiao Yan's gentle demeanor now unfolding, Medusa was momentarily stunned, then calmly replied, "This young one has always been so warm and familiar to me. If you wish to cause her any harm, I won't agree." Observing Medusa's sudden protective instincts, Xiao Yan shook his head in resignation, as though remembering something, and then looked directly into her eyes, speaking softly, "In just another month or two, the promise we made last year will finally come due." As Zi Yan's hand gently traced along her purple hair, Medusa's expression, which had just been soft, gradually turned cold. Her eyes, radiating an otherworldly grace, fixed on Xiao Yan, and her voice grew distant: "Do you not know that once I take the 'Fulfilling Soul Pill,' you will be the very first person to fall at my hands? Or do you truly believe that, with your current strength, you can stand a chance against me?" Xiao Yan chuckled, saying, "I certainly know this, but as long as the agreement stands, I won't break it. Moreover, I see you're actively searching for the herbs—seems you're quite eager about it. Can I really ignore that?" Medusa stared at Xiao Yan with cold eyes, yet gently took hold of Zǐ Yán's small hand and turned toward the hall's entrance. As she neared the door, she paused, and softly added, "The herbs have already been entirely consumed by Zǐ Yán. If you truly need them for the elixir preparation, there's no need to go through all this trouble—just simply tell me, and I'll personally deliver them with a single palm strike." "Of course," she continued, "don't think I've changed my mind merely to give you a little more time." Upon hearing these words and watching Medusa walk out of the hall, Xiao Yan was filled with astonishment, his face displaying a mixture of surprise and bewilderment.