At this instant, Ou Yangming’s mind let out a “thud” as he thought, ‘Sh*t.’
Ou Yangming felt as though he had fallen into an ice cave. His body shivered, but his reaction was not slow at all. With a flash of thought, he forcefully cut off this hint of mental power. At the same time, he retreated from the state of the integration of Heaven and man, as well as the thoroughly meticulous. The young fellow forcefully swallowed back the blood in his throat. The corner of his mouth curled up, and his right hand gently rested on Ling Yue’s shoulder. He started to talk and laugh but in just an instant, his back was drenched in cold sweat.
After all, the pressure of a top-grade Venerable One was too forceful.
If Ou Yangming had not reacted quickly and forcefully cut off his mental power in a resolute manner while risking having his spirit damaged, he would be doomed when Ai Hongli’s Qi momentum locked onto him.
Wang Xiran and Li Xuanji were both Venerable Ones, so they naturally sensed Ai Hongli’s strange behavior and exchanged glances.
At the same time, they secretly transmitted messages through their minds. ‘Brother Ai, what’s going on?’
Ai Hongli’s gaze was as sharp as a falcon’s.
After scanning the area, he replied, ‘Earlier, I felt a faint spiritual fluctuation wrapping around the furnace. By the time I used my mental power to crush it, he had forcefully cut off the mental power and retreated. There are tens of thousands of cultivators present, so I’d be clueless even if I wanted to find that person.’
“You mean… Someone’s secretly learning from the alchemy masters without being known?’ The 2 other Venerable Ones responded at the same time and asked probingly.
‘Yes.’ Ai Hongli’s face was gloomy as if water was about to drip out. This was like pulling teeth from a tiger’s mouth. The secret technique was secondary; the Key was the Seven Stars Sect’s image, which had no place at this point.
“Hiss…” Wang Xiran gasped and wondered, ‘The Seven Stars Sect is the greatest sect in Zhangzhou and is incomparably powerful. During this once-in-a-decade Pill Feast, someone actually dared to steal knowledge from them. Does that person not want to live anymore?’ Even with his calm and collected nature, he felt that the world was somewhat chaotic.
Even Li Xuanji from the Beyond Heaven Pavilion had a weird look on his face as he pursed his lips. One could imagine how shocked he was.
After this interlude, Ai Hongli had been enveloping the furnace with his mental power. As long as the person dared to secretly learn from them again, he would make sure that the person would never be able to return. The anger in his heart had reached its peak. Under such circumstances, that kind of behavior was simply a provocation to the Seven Stars Sect.
Ou Yangming finally dared to release his Qi after waiting for a full 15 minutes.
He never thought that Ai Hongli would be able to detect such a tiny bit of mental power.
Ai Hongli’s perceptive ability was something that even the 10,000 Beasts Venerable One would be ashamed of. Ou Yangming had originally thought that Ai Hongli’s mental power was at most on par with the 10,000 Beasts Venerable One. Moreover, he had been very careful but still made a mistake. All in all, the young fellow gained a more comprehensive understanding of a top-grade Venerable One’s combat power.
As he chatted with Ling Yue, he vigilantly observed his surroundings and did not cause any more trouble.
Very quickly, all 10 furnaces were successfully opened.
Nevertheless, the 10 alchemists still did not stop. They still refined pills in a flurry.
Ling Yue smiled warmly and explained, “Brother Yu, the Pill Feast lasts for a total of 10 days. After these 10 great elders are done, another 100 alchemists will be refining at the same time. At the end of the day, tens of thousands of people are present. If there are only 10 elders refining the pills, they won’t be able to make it. Of course, the quality of the pills refined by the other alchemists won’t be as good as that of the 10 great elders.”
Ou Yangming nodded. “I didn’t expect this at all. When will the pills be sold?”
“They’ll be sold in 3 days, but they’re all low-quality pills,” Ling Yue answered with a smile.
The night was beautiful, and the stars and moon were shining down, but no one left. Among the people present, the ones with the lowest cultivation base were Extreme Grade cultivators. Not to mention not resting for a day, even if they did not rest for a month, what harm would it do?
※※※※
The moon was the same, but the person was different.
In a pavilion, a middle-aged man dressed in a white robe was shrouded in black fog. His eyes were like deep whirlpools. Other than being overbearing, he also carried a wild desire that could devour the void.
That said, he looked sickly pale, which was obvious that he was heavily injured. This person was Li Xin.
“There’s still no news of Ou Yangming?” He coughed heavily. His battle against the 10,000 Beasts Venerable One had directly injured his origin, and he had yet to recover.
“Yes, Ou Yangming seems to have disappeared into thin air. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t find a single trace of him,” a follower replied to him softly.
“He’s hiding well, but what’s the use? Spread the news of the Eternal Pill. I don’t believe that the group of old fogies from Zhangzhou won’t be moved.”
“Yes!” The believer immediately bowed and left.
Li Xin looked at the moonlight and sneered. “Outside help can be helpful. Let’s see where you can hide.”
There was one more thing he did not say. ‘After the news spread, Ai Hongli should take sides. Since he’s from the greatest sect in Zhangzhou, as long as he’s on my side, together with the strength of the believers in Zhangzhou and Danzhou, we could still make a move even if Ou Yangming has the support of the Humans from Danzhou. Besides, I’m in the dark while you’re in the open. Would you be able to defend yourself?’
As for the Venerable Ones in Zhangzhou who were close to their ends, they would be his vanguard.
“Ou Yangming’s mine. The powers of the Dragons and the Phoenixes are also mine!” Li Xin coughed lightly, causing blood to flow from the corner of his mouth.
A fierce glint flashed in his eyes, and he snorted coldly, “There are also the 10,000 Beasts Venerable One and Master Kurong. I’ll surely take revenge for this!” Just as he finished speaking, a white light flashed in his palm, and he raised his hand to smash the table into powder.
Time flew, where 3 days had already passed. A gust of wind came out of nowhere and blew past the Seven Stars Sect.
Everyone had begun to discuss a problem, which was the Eternal Pill.
No one knew where the news came from, but judging from the pill’s name, one could tell that it was named after longevity, and they figured that it must be extraordinary.
Due to the news of the Eternal Pill, the Pill Feast had a slight change in flavor. As compared to the Eternal Pill, the pills that were refined during the feast could be described as trash, or worse. Everyone was guessing if Eternal Pills existed and if they did, where were they?
Ling Yue looked around and whispered into Ou Yangming’s ear, “Brother Yu, do you really think that Eternal Pills exist?”
“I believe so,” Ou Yangming answered.
“Yes, I believe it too. Also, I heard that there was one in Danzhou.” Guan Yue smiled like a flower.
“Really?” Ou Yangming looked puzzled and raised his voice.
“Of course, it’s true. Master Kurong, who’s the most powerful man in Danzhou, was about to die but was said to have found his path after taking an Eternal Pill,” she boasted. People of that level were too far away from her.
“Eternal Pills!” Ou Yangming uttered and felt a strong sense of crisis in his heart.
Nonetheless, the young lady was too engrossed in her words and did not notice Ou Yangming’s unusual behavior. She continued, “I heard that an Eternal Pill can bring one’s life back. It’s exceptionally rare for cultivators who are on the verge of death.”
Even Ling Yue joined in the discussion.
After hearing what they said, Ou Yangming thought of the old macaque and Master Kurong.
He really wanted to go back, and a touch of melancholy lingered in his heart.
“Crack…”
At that moment, a sound that sounded like glass cracking was heard.
Following that, numerous thin and dense cracks appeared on a furnace, and they interlaced each other like a spider web.
The beast-robed old man’s expression changed, and his reaction was not slow. He pointed to the sky with one hand and pointed to the ground with the other. His eyes narrowed like curved crescent moons. At the same time, the elder spat out a mouthful of blood, which turned into a ball of blood mist. He pushed both his hands forward at the same time, causing a strange and special aura to spread out. The furnace absorbed the blood mist, then the cracks on it disappeared at a visible speed.
“This… The Pill Peak’s Blood Refining Art?” An Intermediate Spiritualist exclaimed.
“Yes, it’s indeed marvelous!” A long-faced man remarked.
Ou Yangming’s eyes revealed a look of contemplation. ‘What a magical technique. Can this Blood Refining Technique be used in smithing?’ His heart was burning with passion. No matter how profound a blacksmith’s attainments were, one could still fail during equipment smithing as it was affected by one’s state of mind and environment. Now, the Blood Refining Technique had actually saved the furnace from being shattered, thus the young fellow felt as if he had just seen the door to a new world.
He turned his gaze and suppressed the thought.
On the platform, Ai Hongli was struggling inside. He knew the “Eternal Pill” was Li Xin’s signal.
‘What’s Wrong?’ Li Xuanji noticed Ai Hongli’s expression and asked through voice transmission.
‘Nothing.’ Ai Hongli waved his hand and looked at the Bluestone Square again. There was still a knot in his heart that could not be untied no matter how hard he tried. Li Xin’s move was too brilliant, causing him to fall into a dilemma.
Liao Qingsong looked at the pills that were piled up on the platform and timed the time in his head.
He flashed and leaped into the square, then he laughed heartily and announced, “Great, the pills are almost finished. Next, it’ll be the time to trade. Cultivators who need pills can use their contribution points or spirit ores to trade for pills.” His voice was clear and bright as it carried his spiritual power. It spread in all directions.
Ling Yue looked at Ou Yangming and said in a low voice, “Brother Yu, the Big Ruins is very dangerous. Even if you’re a caster and don’t engage in close combat, you still have to buy some detoxifying pills in case you need them.”
“Yes!” Ou Yangming nodded slightly.
He understood this principle very well. Once he entered the Big Ruins, he would not have the goshawk, Big Yellow, and even Multi-armed King Kong by his side, so he would have to rely on himself for everything. Therefore, the young fellow would not be stingy with pills that could heal injuries. Furthermore, after watching the Pill Peak’s elders refine the pills, he was confident that he could refine them all. Of course, he had to figure out the composition of those pills.
“Brother Ling, I want 10 of each of these pills. Thanks for the trouble.”As he spoke, he flicked his wrist and took out a storage bag, handing it over to Ling Yue.
Ling Yue was smart, so he naturally understood Ou Yangming’s meaning.
He gritted his teeth and responded, “The pills refined by the 10 elders on the first day can’t be bought.”
“Then the rest will do…” Ou Yangming’s expression did not change, and he settled for the second best option.
