Alchemy Master

Chapter 1072, You Call This Wine?

Translator: Silavin

“Everyone, please be seated.”

Shortly after, a voice of crystalline clarity rang through the hall. That voice was extraordinarily melodious, carrying within it a quality that seemed almost like a special enchantment. Several of the Foreigners present immediately showed a glazed, enraptured expression in their eyes.

[Amazing.] In Qin Yichen’s mind, the moment that clear voice reached him, a brief wave of disorientation passed through his thoughts. He shook it off quickly, and in the wake of it, a genuine flash of astonishment flashed through his eyes.

He understood at once that this was no deliberate action from the Elf Queen. It was simply the natural consequence of words spoken at her level, compelling all who heard them to feel an instinct of worship.

“Little Brother, you must not be discourteous!”

Fiery gave Qin Yichen a quiet pull, lowering his voice to a murmur, his expression suggesting he feared even a second glance in the wrong direction might bring catastrophe down upon them.

With the Elf Queen’s arrival, a number of Elves carrying Royal Bloodline also emerged from the inner chambers behind the hall.

These Royal Elves, however, seemed possessed of extraordinary arrogance. They paid not even a glance to the High Rank Elf Deacons seated at the rear of the hall.

Qin Yichen noticed that Fiery and the others seemed completely accustomed to this, not a trace of displeasure visible on their faces.

Watching it all, Qin Yichen allowed himself a quiet inward sigh.

He had the uncomfortable feeling of having been led somewhere under false pretences. He had parted with more than twenty jars of Tor Tier Divine Immortal’s Intoxication, and in exchange, all he had received was a seat at a banquet like this?

[Is this really the banquet where Fiery and the others had so confidently promised me I would be allowed to meet the Elf Queen?]

“Fire Deacon, just what kind of banquet is this…” Qin Yichen pressed a hand lightly to his temple and asked.

“Oh, this? It is a banquet celebrating the Princess’s forthcoming coming-of-age ceremony.” Fiery answered off-handedly.

“The Princess?” Qin Yichen blinked. [Could the Princess be Avril?]

The coming-of-age ceremony held profound significance for the Elf Royal Family. It was a rite capable of transformation at the most fundamental level. Those of Royal Bloodline who underwent the blessing of the Tree of Life would gain tremendous advancement and attain the ability every Elf envied above all others, the Power of Life.

That, above all else, was why the Elf Royal Bloodline commanded such exceptional reverence.

Before long, the Elf Queen took her seat upon the crystal throne at the centre of the hall. At her signal, the gathered company finally began partaking of the banquet.

A group of beautiful Elf maids entered the hall, dancing and singing, filling the space with lively warmth and a festive atmosphere.

*Pfft…* At the table where Qin Yichen sat, Fiery had barely raised a cup of wine to his lips before he sprayed it back out.

He immediately followed this with a theatrical dry cough, attempting to cover that lapse in composure.

The other three old men observed his reaction, exchanged glances, and eyebrows lifted in unison. They each poured themselves a cautious sip, then frowned as one. They then quietly disposed of the wine that was, in normal times, a rare privilege.

“Is this really Jade Spirit Brew?” The old Light Elves wore a look of suffering misery as he muttered under his breath.

Fiery and the others could only manage expressions of helpless resignation. The Jade Spirit Brew was actually comparable to the thousand-year-aged wine Fiery had kept in his personal collection. Under ordinary circumstances, they could only enjoy it freely at precisely this sort of High Rank Elf gathering.

Yet for reasons that defied explanation, the Jade Spirit Brew they were now drinking tasted like the dregs left at the bottom of a barrel. The moment it touched their tongues, it simply refused to go down.

“We are so finished…”

Watching the Deacons at the surrounding tables savouring their Jade Spirit Brew with expressions of evident pleasure, the four of them sat in collective despair.

After several encounters with Top Tier Divine Immortal’s Intoxication, how could they possibly drink this trash?

Yet, their supply of Divine Immortal’s Intoxication amounted to only twenty jars in total, and in these past few short days, they had already consumed half of that.

A few bottles remained in reserve, but the Divine Immortal’s Intoxication would run out eventually. When it did, what then?

At this point, Fiery and the others found themselves casting discreet glances in Qin Yichen’s direction.

They could see that his expression had soured. Perhaps that was a consequence of them deceived him into coming here.

Technically, he had been able to see the Elf Queen. However, this was, as expected, not what he had asked for.

“Oi, old Light, it is your turn. Take out a jar.”

Noticing Qin Yichen’s expression, the group decided this was not the moment to ask him for anything. Instead, following their established rotation, they turned their combined attention to the old Light Elf.

“*Hmph!* Fortunately, this old man had the foresight to anticipate exactly this situation. Otherwise, you trash would simply have had to sit here and stare.”

Apparently resigned to the inevitability, the old Light Elf acted decisively. He produced a small gourd from within his sleeve.

He poured himself a generous share first, then passed it to Fiery.

After each of them had received some, the old man hastily stowed the gourd away again, wearing an expression of acute, visible pain.

“Now this is proper wine.”

After a single modest sip, Fiery drew in a long, deep breath. He closed his eyes and sat with it for a long moment, savouring every trace of it, before finally exhaling slowly and murmuring in a suppressed voice.

The others said nothing. However, the expression on every face was identical in agreement.

The Jade Spirit Brew was considered among the finest wines the Elf Race possessed, which was precisely why it graced a gathering of this calibre.

Watching the other old men at the surrounding tables submerged in their contentment with that subpar wine, the four of them allowed a thin edge of pity to pass across their eyes.

These poor Souls were drinking that barely tolerable Jade Spirit Brew with such obvious fervour.

Though perhaps they had conveniently forgotten that at the previous banquets, the four of them had looked no different.

*Thud!*

Suddenly, at the table immediately to Fiery’s left, one of the old men’s necks lolled sideways and he slid directly under the table.

The commotion drew immediate attention from the surrounding Elves. A wave of amused and contemptuous glances swept towards the table in question, where several Elf Deacons sat in various states of distress.

Those looks carried mockery, directed at their apparent inability to hold their wine.

Fiery and the others returned these with equally derisive expressions of their own. Had there not been so many important figures present, they would likely have laughed openly.

The banquet had barely begun, and someone had already fallen?

Admittedly, Fiery and his companions had themselves ended up insensible on countless previous occasions, but on every one of those occasions, had they not waited until every member of the Royal Family had departed before launching into ‘serious mode’, and drunk to their wildest delight?

An old man going down beneath the table this early in the proceedings was a truly uncommon sight.

“Who is that old man? Is he a newly promoted Deacon?”

“Most likely. *Hmph!* Anyone keeping company with that group is clearly someone with no capacity for wine.”

Despite every effort to suppress the noise, murmurs leaked through the hall regardless.

In moments, the faces of the old men at Fiery’s left table had gone a deep and mortified crimson.

In truth, they were puzzled themselves. That particular man had not been considered a weak drinker among them. A few cups in and he was already like this?