Pill Arts

Xu Yuan hesitated between the two, ultimately choosing Pill Cultivator.

Law Cultivators sounded powerful, but the one he encountered wasn't diligently practicing "Dao Method" and instead dabbled in crooked "Merchant Law," making it easy for others to exploit him.

In comparison, Pill Cultivators possessed genuine abilities.

Pill Cultivators cultivated Inner Pills and Outer Pills.

The Outer Pill was for use, the Inner Pill was the foundation.

There was a saying among Pill Cultivators: "Externally seeking external objects to solidify oneself," pursuing the ultimate "Golden Pill."

Furthermore, the cultivation methods for Pill Cultivators were the most varied, involving Qi circulation, refinement, baiting, and more.

Therefore, after this ball of fire appeared in Xu Yuan's stomach, he felt an intense hunger.

He searched everywhere, but there was nothing to eat in the mountains.

Even if he saw wild fruits, Xu Yuan wouldn't dare eat them. Were things in Ghost Witch Mountain meant to be eaten casually!

Xu Yuan suddenly noticed the money pouch in his hand and swallowed.

Those gold, silver, and copper... didn't seem inedible.

Xu Yuan attempted to swallow a Silver Bean first—after it slid into his stomach, the "Inner Fire" began to refine it.

This was "Bait."

It was like how Martial Cultivators also mostly used the "Bait Method" for auxiliary cultivation.

They would eat metal and iron objects to strengthen their skin and bones.

The saying among Seventh Stream Martial Cultivators, "Bronze Skin Iron Bones," originated from this.

A single Silver Bean was refined quickly, and Xu Yuan's hunger hadn't diminished much, so he followed up by eating several more pieces of broken silver.

Then came the copper coins, and before he knew it, only the gold ingot remained in his hand.

Xu Yuan finally felt "full."

He then understood: this was the limit of his current cultivation.

This "life-buying money" was refined by Nine Streams Law Cultivators. Xu Yuan's Pill Cultivator level was temporarily not even Enter Stream, so refining this much was already difficult.

Xu Yuan went to where he had been chopping firewood and began swinging his axe.

An hour later, Xu Yuan suddenly felt that the Inner Fire had completely refined the "life-buying money."

He then stood firm on the mountainside, opened his mouth, and spewed out a Pill that shimmered with gold and silver light. It shot out from his abdomen with a whoosh and headed straight for a tree as thick as a bowl.

Crack!

The tree was cut in half.

Xu Yuan beckoned, and the Pill circled back, landing in his palm and spinning.

It felt heavy in his hand.

The weight of all the silver and copper coins he had eaten was concentrated in this single Pill.

However, the quantity was limited, so the Pill's power was confined to breaking a tree.

But this Pill also condensed the "Merchant Law" from the silver and copper coins.

Pill Cultivators could condense "objects" into Pills, and they could also condense "laws" into Pills. So, they should have been condensed into two separate Pills, but Xu Yuan was not yet Enter Stream and couldn't achieve such precision, so they were mixed together.

After this Pill was condensed, Xu Yuan became "hungry" again.

He then took out the gold ingot and swallowed it.

Before nightfall, Xu Yuan returned to the town carrying a bundle of firewood.

The "Yi Fang Ting" inn was in the center of town, right by the main road.

Master Qiao naturally occupied the best location.

As he passed "Zhao's Furs Shop" at the east end of town, Xu Yuan subconsciously glanced up at the building; the windows upstairs were closed.

Several people stood behind the windows and saw Xu Yuan through the cracks.

When Xu Yuan looked up, they quickly moved aside.

"Only this kid came back," said the owner of the fur shop, Zhao Yong, in a deep voice.

Everyone understood what this meant.

"Did he do in Huang Wanliang and Fatty Bao?"

"There's something seriously wrong with this kid!"

Huang Wanliang was that Law Cultivator.

Zhao Yong thought for a moment: "I'll go inform Saint Aunt."

Zhao Yong did not use the main entrance. Saint Aunt had instructed him not to reveal their relationship.

Zhao Yong was a Martial Cultivator, agile as a monkey. He easily climbed the outer wall and reached Saint Aunt's window.

The window was open, and the sound of water could be heard from inside.

Saint Aunt was bathing.

Zhao Yong quickly pulled his head back from the window.

Saint Aunt's delicate laughter echoed, "If you want to look, just look."

Zhao Yong whispered, "I dare not."

It wasn't that he didn't want to look, he truly dared not.

"A good-for-nothing with lustful thoughts but no courage."

Zhao Yong reported in a low voice, "Huang Wanliang and Fatty Bao haven't returned."

The sound of water stopped. After a moment, Saint Aunt said, "I know. You may go back first."

Zhao Yong responded with an "Understood" and slipped down, returning to the fur shop. Not long after he entered, the sky completely darkened.

Saint Aunt, from the bathtub, commanded, "Have Wu Haishan give him a dose of medicine."

Soon, Wu Haishan arrived. "That medicine can't be given to him. If he could handle Huang Wanliang and Fatty Bao, he must be a cultivator. My medicine only works on ordinary people. If a cultivator takes it, it will backfire on me."

Saint Aunt waved her hand in annoyance, dismissing him.

Wu Haishan left, drenched in sweat.

He was merely a Nine Streams Pill Cultivator, but Saint Aunt always brought him along when she went out, precisely because he had a medicine that could make people obedient.

If this medicine was no longer valuable to Saint Aunt, then he himself would be worthless.

After Saint Aunt sent Wu Haishan away, she was attended by her maids as she dried herself and put on her clothes. She ordered, "Go and test the young man's true capabilities!"

The maid bowed and accepted the order. After a moment's thought, she advised, "Saint Aunt, the bait will be delivered tomorrow. Although that young man has some tricks up his sleeve, we should prioritize the greater plan."

Saint Aunt said coldly, "I know what I'm doing!"

The maid dared not speak further. She walked to the candlelight. Beneath the flickering flame, her shadow swayed—it suddenly detached from her body and floated away, slipping through the gaps in the wooden floor. It avoided all light and flew rapidly towards the backyard.

Reaching the backyard, the shadow straightened up along the wall. With a sudden opening of its eyes, it revealed a pair of blood-red pupils.

The maid, controlling the Yin Soldiers, began searching the backyard.

In a large room near the kitchen, the plump cook snored thunderously, reeking of alcohol.

The Yin Soldiers instinctively disliked the smell of alcohol. They merely peeked inside before retreating. Then, following the base of the wall, they found the second room. They sniffed and detected no human presence inside.

Thus, they slipped to the outside of the third room and squeezed through the door crack. Inside, there were two broken wooden beds, but only one had a person sleeping on it.

The maid frowned. She recognized this person; he had delivered meals twice. His eyes were lecherous, and he would surely become the "delicacy" Saint Aunt spoke of sooner or later.

There were no other rooms in the backyard. Where had the young man gone?

Saint Aunt asked, "How is it?"

"The young man is not in the backyard."

Saint Aunt said displeased, "How is that possible? With the Forbidden Night Travel in effect today, even if he is a cultivator, he couldn't have left the compound."

The maid was a Divine Cultivator. Even at night, she only dared to control Yin Soldiers to travel, not daring to leave the compound herself.

"Your servant will search again."

The Yin Soldiers sniffed around Er Liang's room. Indeed, there was only one person's life force.

It floated out and then drilled into the kitchen, which had no human presence. They even searched the stove and chimney, but still found nothing.

Finally, they could only enter Uncle Rong Kui's large room.

The strong smell of alcohol made the Yin Soldiers want to sneeze, and the loud, long snores made their heads ache.

They endured it and searched the entire room.

"There's really no one..." The maid muttered to herself, puzzled. Saint Aunt had already figured it out: "Can't find him? Could that young man be hiding in one of the inn's empty rooms?"

The maid immediately recalled the Yin Soldiers and had them search room by room. After busy for over an hour, they still found nothing.

"Enough," Saint Aunt said, covering her mouth with her hand and yawning. "Let it be for now. We'll rest today."

The maid felt ashamed for her incompetence. She retracted her Yin Soldiers and hid them in a clay pot in the backyard.

Tomorrow morning, she would see where that young man had gone!