I Can Control Resources

The Thirteen Noble Families and the Nine Major Sects.

These were the strongest forces among the noble families and sects of the Human Alliance.

Of course, it wasn’t just the Thirteen Noble Families and Nine Major Sects in attendance today. Many other smaller families and sects had also come to participate.

After all, the theme of the day was Alchemists.

Gao Neng’s request to Li Tiannan had been to invite every famous Alchemist in the Alliance.

And so, Li Tiannan hadn’t been picky. He sent invitations to every sect and family involved in Alchemy, with just a single line written on them: "Please send your strongest Alchemist."

That one line was enough.

Although Li Tiannan didn’t belong to any noble family or sect, he was one of the Strongest. Moreover, he represented the will of the Military Department. What sect or family would dare to disrespect him?

Most importantly, everyone knew the purpose of this conference.

Alchemy!

This was a profitable venture!

Furthermore, the conference was personally organized by Wu Qingjing, the Speaker of the Supreme Council. With such a top-tier Alchemist exchange held in the Underground City, who wouldn’t come?

"That brat really knows how to put on airs, doesn’t he? Why isn’t he here yet?" Li Tiannan grumbled with some annoyance from a large, private loft on the second floor of the exhibition hall.

Sword Elder was seated beside him.

In addition to them, there were three other old men and one woman.

Six people in total.

If Gao Neng had been there, he would have recognized one of the old men as Elder Qin, the Strongest who had appeared at the South District City Gate.

With three of the Strongest gathered in one loft, the identities of the other three were naturally quite clear.

"Elder Li, did your disciple really raise that Cat King?" Elder Qin asked after taking a sip of tea, his gaze turning to the somewhat impatient Li Tiannan.

"I’ve told you already. Elder Jian heard it too. Speaking of which, weren’t you there that day? Don’t tell me you haven’t been looking for Bai Feixue these past few days?" Li Tiannan retorted with a curl of his lip.

"If I could find her, would I be here?" Elder Qin replied calmly.

"We’re holding an Alchemist conference today, and you came here to look for someone? What’s wrong with you? Besides... I didn’t invite you, did I?" Li Tiannan said scornfully.

"Elder Li, that’s not right of you. Elder Qin is a master in the Alchemy Realm, after all. If he didn’t attend this alchemy conference, how could it be considered authoritative?" Sword Elder waved his hand, trying to mediate.

"Authoritative, my ass! If he’s so great, he can help me refine a ’Celestial Thunder Extremity Pill’!" Li Tiannan continued.

"What, are you still holding a grudge over that? It’s just one Celestial Thunder Extremity Pill. I can’t believe you’ve held onto it for so long. Elder Qin, if I were you, I’d just refine it for this guy and be done with it!" Sword Elder said again.

"Hmph, naive! You want me to perform Alchemy for you without any money?" Elder Qin snorted, then added, "Stop with the act. If you really want a Celestial Thunder Extremity Pill, bring me two sets of ingredients!"

"Bullshit! Two sets of ingredients? Why don’t you just rob me instead?!" Li Tiannan cursed again, his face dark enough to drip ink.

"That’s the price. Take it or leave it. For something like the Celestial Thunder Extremity Pill, who else in the entire Alliance can guarantee a 60% success rate? Two sets of ingredients is just the base price to cover my risk!" Elder Qin didn’t waste any words.

"I’ll find someone here today who can do it!"

"Then take your time looking."

"..."

"Huh? Elder Li, your disciple’s here. Oho, not bad, kid. A beautiful girl on his left and right. No, wait... there’s another one following behind him?!" Sword Elder suddenly spoke up again.

In the loft, several pairs of eyes instantly focused on Gao Neng as he entered the exhibition hall.

In fact, it wasn’t just the Strongest in the loft watching Gao Neng; every Alchemist from every sect and noble family in the entire exhibition hall was staring at him.

Today, they, the Alchemists, were supposed to be the main characters.

But the one who had set the stage for these main characters was Gao Neng.

The news of the Cat Race riot at the South District City Gate had long since spread throughout the City of Hope. It was impossible for even the Federation Government to suppress its circulation.

What’s more, the major sects and noble families had their own intelligence-gathering channels.

Therefore, the fact that Gao Neng possessed evolutionary energy was no longer a secret in the eyes of the major sects and noble families.

"I always heard that Shen Changsheng’s granddaughter was close with Gao Neng. Looks like it’s true."

"I wonder how many attribute materials Gao Neng can produce today, after making such a big scene."

"If he wants to learn Alchemy, he has to be willing to bleed a little, right? According to a reliable source, Gao Neng went down into the Demon Abyss a few days ago. He probably has a fair amount of materials on him."

"..."

Amidst the murmurs, Gao Neng officially stepped into the center of the exhibition hall.

"He’s so handsome!"

"So handsome! How can a man be that handsome?!"

Some of the stunned young women in the crowd finally came to their senses.

Gao Neng could only offer a polite smile in response. After all, the fact that he was handsome was undeniable. He knew it even if these girls didn’t say it.

He took an hour to shower and put on his formal black military uniform.

After all, he had been officially awarded the rank of Captain, so when attending certain events, he was effectively representing the Military Department.

Gao Neng, Shen Ning’Er, and Fang Tangtang were all in military uniforms.

The difference was...

Shen Ning’Er’s military rank was higher than his.

As for Yi Qinglian, who followed behind him and Shen Ning’Er, she wore a professional assistant’s short skirt, which made her figure look even more stunning.

In the Bright Sect’s designated area, a woman in a long blue dress stood up.

She was the current Saintess of the Bright Sect!

After glancing at Yi Qinglian, who was trailing behind Gao Neng, her gaze shifted to the West Alliance Yi Family’s section.

And in the West Alliance Yi Family’s section, a middle-aged man in a white suit also stood up.

He was the Patriarch of the West Alliance Yi Family, Yi Nanting.

What he didn’t quite understand was why his usually proud daughter was trailing behind Gao Neng, dressed like a little secretary.

’Shouldn’t she be wearing a noble evening gown on an occasion like this?’

"Qinglian, come over here!" Yi Qingge had naturally noticed the confusion on her father’s face and immediately called out to Yi Qinglian.

"..." Yi Qinglian didn’t answer. She just shook her head at Yi Qingge and continued to follow closely behind Gao Neng.

"!!!" Yi Qingge was speechless.

’No way!’

’Has my sister been possessed?!’

Yi Qingge couldn’t figure it out, but in this situation, she had no way to forcibly drag Yi Qinglian over. She could only watch for the time being.

After walking to the center of the exhibition hall, Gao Neng turned toward the main stage.

On the main stage sat Wu Qingjing and Yutian, along with another familiar figure, Liang Qi.

As for the others, Gao Neng didn’t recognize them.

But Gao Neng guessed that anyone sitting next to Wu Qingjing had to be either a member of the Supreme Council or a representative figure from the noble families and sects.

And the result was just as Gao Neng expected.

Just then, Wu Qingjing stood up, greeted Gao Neng, and began introducing the people beside him.

"Gao Neng, let me introduce you. This is Chairman Sheng of the Alchemy Master Association, and these two are Vice Chairman Lei and Secretary General Wang!"

"And, of course, Councillor Liang. You’ve met."

"This is Councillor Li..."

"..."

After a round of introductions, Wu Qingjing glanced at the time and then shot a look toward a spot not far away.

Soon, the lights in the exhibition hall changed.

At this moment, Wu Qingjing began to speak again.

He started with some pleasantries and greetings. By the time the formal opening remarks were finished, Wu Qingjing had made his way over to Gao Neng’s side.

"Alright, the Alchemist conference officially begins now!"

"The purpose of this conference is to emphasize participation and exchange. The Alliance also hopes to use this opportunity to allow all our Alchemists to learn more about Alchemy Techniques!"

"As the saying goes, ’When three people walk together, one of them is bound to be my teacher!’"

"Captain Gao, as the provider of the raw materials for this exchange, is there anything you’d like to say to everyone?" Wu Qingjing skillfully shifted the topic to Gao Neng.

The atmosphere in the exhibition hall began to grow more formal.

Everyone was waiting in anticipation to see just how many attribute materials Gao Neng would provide for them to "participate" and "exchange" with.

"I don’t think everyone wants to hear me talk. They want to see how many materials I can bring out," Gao Neng replied to Wu Qingjing with a smile.

"Hahaha..." A wave of laughter spread through the crowd.

Wu Qingjing wasn’t too surprised. As the Speaker of the Federation Supreme Council, he was quite skilled at managing such situations.

"Captain Gao is quite direct, isn’t he? So, how many can you provide?" Wu Qingjing didn’t waste any more words and cut straight to the point.

"Not that many. Around three thousand plants, I suppose," Gao Neng said with a shrug.

"..." Wu Qingjing was speechless.

"..." The members of the sects and noble families, who had been ready to laugh again, fell silent.

The exhibition hall was suddenly plunged into silence.

Then, it was as if a pan of hot oil had exploded.

"Three thousand plants!"

"He’s not kidding, is he?!"

"To think he has so many attribute raw materials!"

Before coming, everyone had speculated on how many attribute raw materials Gao Neng would actually provide, and the guesses had varied wildly.

Some guessed that Gao Neng would offer two hundred plants at most.

After all, attribute raw materials were too precious.

Gao Neng’s goal was to use this opportunity to learn Alchemy, so it was unlikely he would bring out too many.

However, others guessed that he might offer three to four hundred, because the scale of this event was quite high.

With Li Tiannan personally inviting the Alchemists from the sects and noble families, and Wu Qingjing himself presiding over it, offering only two hundred would seem a bit stingy.

But now, what were they hearing?

Three thousand plants!

Even if they were all low-tier attribute raw materials, that was still a terrifying number!

"Yi Qinglian." Gao Neng didn’t wait for Wu Qingjing and the others to recover from their shock, simply glancing at Yi Qinglian, who was following behind him.

"Yes, understood." Yi Qinglian immediately nodded and walked over to the pre-prepared attribute material display area.

HUM!

A wave of energy fluctuated.

The originally empty display area was instantly filled with a dazzling array of colorful flowers, plants, and ores—a veritable ocean of attribute raw materials.