Dyon chuckled. He didn’t know the story behind all of this, but he was good at reading people.

Venerable Piers had felt fear toward his words, so there was definitely something forcing his hand to accept his certification exam. In addition, it seemed that he believed the fact Dyon didn’t know about the death penalty meant he had used whatever was forcing his hand as a last effort to save his life.

‘Interesting, I wonder what the story behind that is….’

Dyon regretted not asking his grand teacher more about the immortal plane. But the reality was that he simply hadn’t been very interested in it originally. His focus had been entirely on raising his strength to defeat the entity.

But, it was fine, he would slowly figure these things out for himself.

On the bright side, though the penalty for failure here was death, the trade off was that Dyon didn’t have any fees to pay. It was quite convenient.

In reality, for others, it was a terribly nerve-racking experience. Most of the old folk who had set up stalls outside hadn’t dared to take this step, which was why they could only stay outside.

The light ringing of a bell suddenly snapped Dyon out of his thoughts. He realized that Venerable Piers had already disappeared and was likely the one who caused this change. What Dyon hadn’t expected was for the sound to travel across the city.

“Oh, I guess we should go.”

Dyon pulled along Saru and Lilith, ignoring the sneering face of the young receptionist who seemed to think he had paused out of fear.

Despite not following Piers himself, Dyon’s gaze easily saw through the network of arrays in the hidden hallway. Finding the most recently used one, he stepped in, disappearing to appear on a rooftop exposed to the sun.

“Such fanfare for a mere Lower Venerable title?” Dyon raised an eyebrow, finding all of this to be too over the top.

The rooftop was actually quite simple. There was just a single platform in the center surrounded by several meditation platforms.

Robed alchemists began to appear one after another on these circling platforms. In the end, 20 of them sat cross-legged, facing Dyon, Saru and Lilith.

However, this wasn’t all. This was seemingly a great attraction for those of the city as well.

Flying was impossible both due to city rules and the fact their cultivations were too low. But, there were several projections and some who even boldly hopped onto the tops of buildings after paying certain fees.

‘This isn’t bad either. It probably would have been a pain in the ass to get anyone to buy pills from a mortal. But with this level of spectacle, things should go my way.’

“What’s going on here Piers?”

One of the robed female alchemists furrowed her brows, looking toward Dyon as she spoke.

It was no wonder her expression was weird. Firstly, there were three mortals before her. Secondly, one of them, the man, was dressed as though he didn’t have a care in the world. What were those baggy pants and simple shirt? Who dared appear before them like this?

Thirdly, he actually brought two women with him? Her disdain deepened.

Piers was stunned for a moment. He had been waiting on Dyon to follow him, and when he hadn’t, he sneered and entered the formation himself hoping to use Dyon’s non-appearance as a reason for failure. Never did he believe that Dyon actually had the ability to follow him, let alone take these two women with him.

“This boy is here to take his certification exam.” Piers said after clearing his throat to hide his surprise.

Dyon smirked and didn’t say a word.

“I’m aware of what the bell means.” The female alchemist’s nose twitched as though she couldn’t bear a smell. “But since when did we allow… helpers for such an exam. And did you properly explain the penalty of death? I’d rather not waste my –.”

“Hey lady.” Dyon’s gaze set in on the female alchemist, his smirk disappearing and his eyes becoming dull. “Say less words and maybe you’ll be able to keep your life.”

Calling Saru and Lilith “helpers”, how could he not know what she meant? For implying that his women were prostitutes, she was lucky he didn’t separate her neck from her body.

A stunned silence overcast the city, leaving only the delicate sounds of a bell to resonate over its streets.

Dyon walked to the platform and sat Saru and Lilith to his sides. He had no intention of leaving them for even the smallest moment. It was for the good of the city that he acted like this too, or else he wouldn’t mind razing it to the ground if a single hair on their heads was harmed.

“Can we begin now. I’d rather not waste my time.”

The words she had wanted to speak felt like stinging bees to the female alchemist’s eardrums. It was only after she fantasized about being the one to take Dyon’s life when he failed that she finally calmed herself.

“I, Venerable Taline, swear a Heavenly Oath to judge the certification of this –”

Dyon smirked. “Dyon Sacharro.”

The female alchemist and her peers all shuddered at this name. None of them seemed to know why, but it had become an instinctual reaction that none of them even noticed. It was like a veil had covered the entire city, fogging their minds from the truth.

“—Dyon Sacharro fairly and impartially.”

“I, Venerable Piers, swear a Heavenly Oath to judge…”

One after another, they spoke those fateful words.