Cultivation of immortality begins with an eighty-year-old eunuch.

Chapter 598 The Golden Medal Offering! The King's Attitude!

The next morning, just as dawn was breaking, the Hall of Offerings sent a steward to deliver a message that the King would be summoning the selected candidates to the Hall of Supreme Harmony at noon that day, and that Chen Fan should be present on time.

Chen Fan changed into a clean robe and followed the steward toward the palace.

Qin Zhan originally wanted to go along, but was stopped by the steward on the grounds that the king only summoned those selected, so he had to stay at the camp and wait.

The Hall of Supreme Harmony is located in the very center of the imperial city of Zhao. The hall is built from a single piece of golden jade, and the roof is covered with purple and gold glazed tiles, which shine brightly in the midday sun.

Ninety-nine white jade steps lead up to the hall, flanked by two rows of silver-armored guards, all of whom were at the early stage of the Nascent Soul realm. Their eyes were fixed straight ahead, exuding an imposing aura.

Chen Fan climbed the steps at a leisurely pace, his expression calm and composed.

The palace doors were wide open, revealing a very spacious interior.

A high platform was set up to the due north, on which sat a purple-gold dragon chair. The golden dragon on the back of the chair was lifelike, with its eyes inlaid with top-grade spirit stones, and it exuded a faint sense of awe.

Sitting on the dragon throne was an old man dressed in a bright yellow dragon robe. He had a thin face, a wisp of silver beard under his chin, and his eyes were slightly closed, as if he were dozing.

There was no spiritual energy leaking out of his body, but the faint pressure shrouded the entire hall like an undercurrent in the deep sea, causing people to involuntarily slow their pace and hold their breath.

A Great Perfection of the Divine Transformation Realm, Zhao Yuanzheng, the King of Zhao.

Several civil and military officials and elders of the temple stood on either side of the dragon throne.

Han Cen and Ouyang Ye were among them, along with several other unfamiliar faces, whose cultivation levels ranged from Nascent Soul to Deity Transformation.

To Chen Fan's surprise, the Fourth Prince Zhao Yu was also standing to the lower left of the dragon throne, wearing a bright yellow python robe and a respectful and proper smile on his face, completely different from his arrogant and domineering appearance at the post station yesterday.

Only those eyes, the moment they saw Chen Fan enter the hall, flashed a hint of undisguised gloom.

The three candidates selected based on their cultivation level have already arrived.

Song Tianren stood with his hands behind his back in the hall, still wearing that jet-black robe. His demonic aura was restrained. The moment Chen Fan stepped into the hall, his indifferent black eyes fell on him, and the corners of his mouth curled up slightly, a smile that was not quite a smile.

The Nascent Soul cultivators from Great Yan and Great Chu stood on either side, maintaining a perfect distance from Song Tianren, their gazes towards Chen Fan filled with scrutiny and curiosity.

Chen Fan walked to the center of the hall and stood there, bowing respectfully to Zhao Yuanzheng on the dragon throne: "Chen Fan, the Great Yu, pays his respects to the King."

Zhao Yuanzheng slowly opened his eyes.

Those eyes, with their sharp, restrained glint, were like a bottomless, icy pool, and when they swept over Chen Fan, they carried an undisguised indifference.

He didn't tell Chen Fan to rise, but instead looked him down at him for a moment, his voice indifferent and devoid of any emotion: "So you are Chen Fan? First in both alchemy and formation, that's quite rare. However, I heard you backed out during the cultivation selection process, not even daring to step onto the arena. Is that true?"

Upon hearing this, the atmosphere in the hall suddenly froze.

Zhao Yu's submissive smile deepened slightly, a hint of schadenfreude flashing in his eyes. Song Tianren glanced sideways, his gaze towards Chen Fan now more playful.

Chen Fan's expression remained unchanged; he simply replied neither humbly nor arrogantly:

"Reporting to Your Majesty, I only registered for the alchemy and formation selections; I did not register for the cultivation selection. Since I did not register, there is no question of me backing down in the face of battle."

Zhao Yuanzheng stared at him for a moment, then suddenly snorted coldly: "Sharp-tongued. Very well, the selection rules are indeed like this, and I cannot be too harsh on you. But since you have entered my Zhao Kingdom to serve, you should prioritize the interests of Zhao Kingdom and not bring the cunning and deceitful habits of Yu the Great to my Hall of Worship."

These words were a blatant warning to Chen Fan.

Chen Fan lowered his head slightly and said calmly, "I will keep in mind the Archbishop's teachings."

Zhao Yuanzheng stopped looking at him and waved his hand.

A palace attendant dressed in purple robes stepped forward carrying a jade plate containing four tokens.

The first three are silver plaques, with the words "offering" engraved on the back and their respective names and ranks engraved on the front.

The last piece is a gold medal, carved entirely from the finest spirit jade. The center of the medal is engraved with an ancient character "Zhao," while the back bears the four seal characters "Gold Medal Offering." The edges are inlaid with fine, hair-like dark gold patterns. It feels warm to the touch and faintly radiates a spiritual light.

"Song Tianren, Duan Tiande, and Chu Huaiyuan, the top three in cultivation, are hereby awarded silver medals as tribute." Zhao Yuanzheng's voice echoed in the hall.

The eunuch presented the three silver plaques to the three men respectively.

When Song Tianren received the silver medal, his gaze lingered on Chen Fan for a moment, a smile on his lips that seemed both cold and mocking. He then casually stuffed the silver medal into his sleeve, as if he had only received an ordinary piece of iron.

"Chen Fan, ranked first in both alchemy and formation, is hereby awarded a gold medal as a tribute, holding a rank equivalent to a third-grade official, and is granted a mansion, 100,000 spirit stones, and a number of rare and precious materials." Zhao Yuanzheng's tone remained indifferent, as if he were reading an official document that had nothing to do with him.

The eunuch presented the gold medal to Chen Fan.

Chen Fan took the gold medal with both hands. It felt slightly heavy in his hands. The array patterns on the medal lit up slightly the moment his fingertips touched the surface of the medal, and then disappeared.

This is the process of the gold medal recognizing its master. From this moment on, he is officially registered as a gold medal worshipper in the Zhao State's Hall of Worship.

"Thank you, Your Majesty." Chen Fan put the gold medal into his sleeve, his face remaining calm and composed.

Zhao Yuanzheng gave a few more routine admonitions, nothing more than platitudes like "be conscientious in your duties and loyal to the country," and then waved his hand to signal everyone to leave.

Throughout the entire process, his gaze towards Chen Fan remained cold, a stark contrast to the indifference he displayed when looking at the other selected candidates.

After the court session ended, Chen Fan had just stepped out of the Hall of Supreme Harmony when he heard a series of hurried footsteps behind him.

"Please wait, Mr. Chen."

The one who called him was Han Cen.

The fifth-grade peak alchemy master quickly caught up, with Ouyang Ye by his side.

The two men, one on each side, led Chen Fan to a secluded corridor outside the hall. Han Cen then sighed and lowered his voice, saying:

"Master Chen, you saw the King's attitude today. Elder Ouyang and I couldn't say much in the hall, but I have to tell you privately that it was the Fourth Prince who complained about you to the King."

Chen Fan's eyebrows twitched slightly, but he remained silent.

Ouyang Ye picked up the conversation, his voice hoarse and low: "After the selection last night, the Fourth Prince went to the palace to pay homage to the King. He told the King that you were arrogant and disrespectful, that you had publicly contradicted him at the post station, and that you had backed down at the last minute in the martial arts competition, causing the Palace of Offerings to lose face. The King has always doted on this Fourth Prince, and although he knows he is domineering, he is unwilling to embarrass him in public. His cold attitude towards you today is for the Fourth Prince's benefit."

Han Cen shook his head with a wry smile: "Consultant Chen, don't take it to heart. The Fourth Prince has been spoiled by the King since childhood, and he's vindictive. There are few officials in the court who haven't been made things difficult by him. He suffered two setbacks at your hands yesterday, and he won't swallow this insult. However, although the King's attitude was cold, he didn't shortchange you on anything he was entitled to. The gold medal consultant's token is real, and the spirit stones and rare treasures in your mansion are also real. The King has always been fair in separating public and private matters. No matter how much he favors his son in private, he's never ambiguous when it comes to official business."

Chen Fan paused for a moment, then nodded slightly: "Thank you for your guidance, elders. I understand."

He had been a eunuch in the palace for over sixty years and was very familiar with such social customs and etiquette.

Zhao Yuanzheng's attitude was actually irrelevant to him.

After all, he obtained the gold medal to travel to the Qin Dynasty via the teleportation array, not to climb the ranks in the Zhao Kingdom's officialdom. Whether the king liked him or not, or whether the fourth prince made things difficult for him, was irrelevant.

As long as the gold medal offering order is genuine and the mansion's spiritual stones and rare treasures are real, everything else is fake.