Monarch Of Time

Chapter 1049 ’Senior Han’ returns

Shun Long didn’t even need to turn around to know who the voice belonged to.

It was clearly the same overzealous guard who had seen him off the first time he left Amber Dawn.

And sure enough, a moment later, a beaming middle-aged man, clad from head to toe in gold-grade armor could be seen in the distance, the grin on his face nearly reaching his ears as he said

”Haha! It really is senior Han! How fortunate!”

The man quickly made his way towards Shun Long, completely ignoring the curious gazes from the surrounding cultivators in the process.

It was only the guard who’d just verified Shun Long’s identity that seemed to have realized something, as his expression abruptly changed. Unfortunately, the man didn’t have enough time to react before the middle-aged zealot appeared in front of them and continued

”Senior Han. You must be heading back to your shop, right? Let me escort you!”

From the fawning look the man had, to his overeager demeanor, Shun Long could infer quite a few things, as well. At the very least, he could tell that his shop must have been doing quite well during his absence. Otherwise, there was no reason for this guy to be acting like this, right?

In the end, he couldn’t help but let out a hoarse chuckle before he relented

”Alright. Come with me.”

The guard’s expression had turned almost reverent as he followed the ’old man’ while repeatedly nodding his head like a chicken, leaving behind a crowd of flabbergasted spectators.

”Fuck me! Old Lu is really crafty. So that’s why he’s been waiting around the gate for the last couple of days, even when he wasn’t on shift! He’s been waiting for this senior to arrive!” The guard who’d just inspected Shun Long’s credentials couldn’t help but curse under his breath, his voice unknowingly getting a little louder with frustration and unwillingness as he watched the two men disappear into the city.

Of course, who in the entirety of Amber Dawn hadn’t heard about the new alchemy shop by now? Word of it had already spread in every corner of the city and beyond. After all, this was the only shop that sold high-grade and top-grade pills to everyone out there!

How rare were top-grade pills? Even in the central part of the continent, one could only find them in auctions, and that also required not just immense amounts of money, but also connections and luck! And yet, a random alchemy shop in the heart of Amber Dawn was selling them like candies?

The more he thought about this, the more the guard regretted not paying more attention to ’senior Han’ who was right in front of him!

Still, it wasn’t his fault. The only reason he’d failed to recognize him, was due to how elusive of a figure the old man was. How many people in Amber Dawn even knew what he looked like?

”Old Lu, you bastard! Don’t even dream of reaping all the benefits yourself!”

...

Shun Long had no idea how much of a ruckus his appearance at the southern city gate had caused among the guards, or how word of it had already started to spread even in the upper echelons of the city guard.

He just made his way towards the heart of Amber Dawn, with ’Old Lu’ following diligently by his side.

As expected, the middle-aged man didn’t stop talking along the way, turning what should have been a quiet walk into a fervent, one-sided conversation.

”Senior, I have to say, your pill-refining skills are truly incredible. It’s not even an exaggeration to say that senior must be among the top 10 alchemists in the entire continent! I’ve never heard of anyone else selling so many high-grade and top-grade pills before! Everyone in Amber Dawn has been scrambling to visit your shop these days, too, to the point where it’s impossible to even get near the entrance anymore!”

Shun Long had to admit, Old Lu’s level of flattery was really at the level of a master. The man was confidently calling someone who sold high-grade and top-grade rank 6 pills, one of the top 10 master alchemists in the continent.

Although Shun Long knew that his alchemy skills were second to none, he could guess that every single one of the top 10 alchemists in the central continent was most likely an Earth Immortal who had lived for countless years.

Competing with any of those monsters right now would be a stretch, even for him.

Still, he didn’t wave away the flattery, which made Old Lu think that he was on the right track with his words.

”Senior is truly a peerless master. I’m in awe. No wonder even the Amber Dawn Sovereign regards you so highly!”

Shun Long was finally taken aback when he heard that, his footsteps suddenly halting. Turning to the man beside him, he then asked in a calm but curious tone

”The Amber Dawn Sovereign? What happened?”

Old Lu appeared genuinely surprised by his reaction, but the man didn’t miss a beat as he answered just as quickly and respectfully as before

”Senior, you don’t know? A few days after you left for the Scaled Mountains, our city guard received a report directly from the Amber Dawn Sovereign to make sure not to let anyone make trouble near your shop!

Naturally, we were going to uphold the peace in Amber Dawn anyway, but an order directly from the Sovereign is a very rare thing for us. We all thought that senior was acquainted with the city lord, hence why it came from him.

Shun Long fell silent for a moment as he quickly organized his thoughts. For someone like the Amber Dawn Sovereign to give out a direct order regarding his shop, he couldn’t tell if this was a good thing or not!

After all, ’alchemist Han’ shouldn’t have attracted the attention of the Sovereigns of Amber Dawn yet. Unless...

”Unless the upper echelons of Lunar Grave let any rumors spread.”

Shun Long didn’t know if he was right, but this was the only possible scenario he could think of. After all, there was no other reason for the Amber Dawn Sovereign to concern himself with a small alchemy shop, unless he suspected it was owned by another Sovereign!

Unfortunately, Old Lu seemed completely unaware of the political undercurrents behind his lord’s orders. Seeing Shun Long continue walking without saying anything, he quickly pressed on

”Ah, right! Senior, I’ve been meaning to ask you something. I heard that senior doesn’t allow people to buy more than 5 pills a day from your shop. Forgive my impudence, but is there a reason behind that rule? I’ve been desperate to buy some more ’Soul Purifying pills’, but it doesn’t seem possible at all.”