"Welcome to our home, Alchemist Yu. We are glad to finally get the chance to meet you," Han Haixu spoke on behalf of all the Han family members present there.
The other elders nodded and gave warm smiles to Alex, but none of them spoke as it was out of turn for them.
"Thank you for having me, senior," Alex replied back.
"Young man," Han Huaxian started speaking. "I remember hearing a report about your winning in the alchemy competition. Apparently, you created a miracle out there. I must congratulate you on that."
"Thank you, senior," Alex respectfully bowed.
"But, then we also came to hear the tragic news of your death. I hear my sons were on the expedition to search you, but they never found you and so everyone assumed you had died," Han Huaxian said. "Can you tell us what happened exactly?"
"First of all, I would like to thank seniors for going out of your way to search for this junior. I thank you for that," Alex said. "As for why I wasn't found back then, it's simple."
"No one searched far enough."
Han Hongqi and Han Haixu's faces changed instantly as their eyes narrowed. They understood the implication of Alex's tone.
"Are you saying my sons gave up too early?" Han Huaxian's eyes moved from Alex over to his sons, who immediately started getting nervous.
"Of course not, senior. I'm not blaming anyone here. Going out of their way to look for me was already enough. What I meant to say was that they searched as far as they could, but the place I was at was much further in the Icy Hell," Alex said.
"You were in a place where my Saint realm sons couldn't go?" Han Huaxian was obviously starting to get suspicious at this point.
"Yes, senior. Thanks to an artifact a senior of mine gave me, I was able to traverse more of the location in the Icy hell than anyone, including Saint realm cultivators," Alex said.
"If that is true, that does explain why they didn't find you. But what about the fact that you were gone for… what? Nearly 2 years? How did that happen? And why were you there in the first place?" the clan leader asked.
Alex sighed internally as he thought of something to say, and decided to go with something that was both absurd and yet believable.
"The senior that gave me the artifact, he also told me about a treasure in the Icy Hell that could help me. So, I went out of my way to such a dangerous place looking for that treasure exactly," Alex said.
The elders in the room got curious all of a sudden. "What treasure is this exactly?" the clan leader asked.
"It's a Saint fruit that grows in the center of the Icy hell. It's a healing spirit fruit that can heal anything and everything that is wrong with one's body," Alex said.
"Oh?" the clan leader couldn't tell if what Alex was saying was true or not. It was indeed so absurd to think that a fruit existed that could heal everything at once.
"And where exactly is this fruit?" he asked.
"I—"
"You ate it!" Han Hongqi's eyes went wide all of a sudden.
"Hongqi, what are you talking about?" the clan leader got angry.
"Father, forgive my interruption. This young alchemist had an arm missing previously and had even asked me for help." Han Hongqi turned towards Alex. "You really ate it and grew your arm back?"
"Yes, senior," Alex said with a smile. His fake story was weaving itself with the truth and making it that much harder to unravel.
"I see. Incredible," the Clan leader said. "How many fruits did you get?"
"Only 1, and that too I ate immediately," Alex said as he shook his head.
"What's wrong?" the clan leader got confused with Alex's expression.
"Nothing senior, I was just remembering my stupidity," he said. "I didn't realize how strong a Saint fruit could be for my True realm cultivation and ate the fruit. I had to cultivate over a year to consume its energy so as for it to not kill me."
"Is that why you were gone for so long?" the clan leader asked.
"Yes," Alex said. "And I only came back a few months ago and had to go into closed cultivation to fix my cultivation base."
"I see. Are you still with the Flowing Brush sect?" the clan leader asked.
"Yes, I'm a guest elder there," Alex said.
"Do they treat you well?" the clan leader asked.
"I don't have anything to complain about," Alex said.
The clan leader tried to learn more about Alex, so he asked about his age and background. He was surprised that Alex was only 27 years old, they all were.
As for his background, Alex straight up denied speaking about it, saying he wanted to keep it in the past.
"I hear you joined this day's competition. Are you joining on behalf of the Flowing Brush sect?" he asked.
"No."
"Oh, then the Alchemy guild?" the clan leader asked.
"I'm joining on behalf of no one," Alex said.
The clan leader got confused. "May I ask why?"
"I don't have anyone to thank for who I am today," Alex said. 'At least, not in the empire.'
"What about this senior of yours that gave you the information about the healing fruit?" the clan leader asked.
"I… don't know who he is, so I can't really use his name," Alex said.
"You don't know who he is?" the clan leader couldn't believe it.
Alex shook his head. "As far as I know, only the Emperor knows his identity, but I doubt he will speak," Alex said.
"So, if you do not have anyone you think you belong to, then would you like to join our family? Trust me when I say this, you will get whatever you want," the clan leader said.
"I thank you for the opportunity, but I will have to regretfully decline." Alex bowed a little.
"Are you sure? You can take your time with this," the clan leader said.
"I am sure, senior. I don't plan on joining any sect or family right now," Alex said.
"I see. Well, our family will welcome you no matter when you want to join us," the old man said.
"Thank you, senior."
"So, if you can't join us, then I'm sure you can help us make some pills right? We will pay handsomely of course," the clan leader said. "The competition is coming up and our disciples need to get stronger. Can you help us make some pills?"
"I would, senior, but I myself need to prepare for the competition, so I will not have the time. You will have to ask other alchemists, unfortunately," Alex said.
"Surely you don't need to be so hard on yourself for this competition. Especially with a cultivation base like yours," the clan leader said. "One should never reach for something they cannot grab, young man. You should do what you are good at."
"Besides, whether you are going to this competition for fame or glory or just simple money, I can promise you, you will make far more on alchemy alone," the old man said.
Alex started feeling a little annoyed. Still, he didn't lash out. "I thank you for the advice senior, but I will go with my heart for now," Alex said.
"I'm telling you, young man. Your cultivation base isn't good enough to even come in the top 100 of this year's competition. You should stop wasting your time with this—"
"Senior, please do not waste your breath. This junior already has his mind made up. As for whether my cultivation base is enough or not, time will tell," Alex said sternly. "I believe it's time for me to leave. They will be announcing the results of the registration soon enough. I should be out there when they do so."
"Thank you for inviting me into your house," Alex bowed to the elders once again.
"Uh… yes, I think we have kept you long enough. Thank you for coming along," the old man said.
Alex cupped his hand and bowed to all the elders before walking away with Han Daiyu following behind her.
"Father, I think—"
"Stop, I know. I made a mistake. Sigh, but that kid is still being so stupid. He has been given such an amazing talent and opportunity in alchemy and yet he wants to waste it in fighting," the old man said. "Well, he will find out soon enough."
The elders in the room nodded and repeated what the clan leader said like parrots.
"Right! Haixu, try to find out who this mysterious senior is and how he knows of something so incredible as a fruit to heal all injuries," the clan leader said.
"About that, father," Haixu spoke slowly. "I don't think there is a point in trying to learn about the person. Rather, I don't think we should try to learn about the person."
"Huh? Why not?" the clan leader got angry all of a sudden.
"Remember when we said that the Emperor spoke an oath to not reveal a person's identity and that the person had taken away the princess' healing crystal?" Haixu said.
The clan leader's eyes went wide. "Wait, that was this… right, I forgot this kid was the Royal alchemist for some time. I see, I nearly made a grave mistake."
The old man finally stood up from his seat. "Forget about what happened today and go focus on getting the disciples ready for the competition. We must have them bring glory to the family by winning this year's competition."
"Yes, clan leader."
