If Enemies Are Many, Buy Poison by the Pound

Extreme Misfortune Pill: When the user's emotions run high, they will burst into tears. Side effect: Overdeveloped tear ducts.

The Glazed Bottle's random pill output was indeed always unfathomable—either the ceiling was terrifyingly high, or the floor was utterly bottomless.

The ceiling high like the Life Creation Pill, the floor low like breast enhancement, beauty treatment, lactation, and virility boosters—and today, it had scraped a new low.

"Who the hell would eat a pill like that?"

Hanyu offered a feeble assessment in his mind.

"I never produce such low-grade stuff," Little Glazed said cheerfully from the side.

Just then, Hanyu suddenly noticed another pill in his mind. After carefully recalling it, his face turned pale.

Muscle Strengthening Bone Fortifying Pill: The user gains a robust physique. Side effect: No self-control around food, an irresistible urge to eat.

Wasn't this the pill that the stupid bottle had spat out on its own back when it coveted that eminent monk's Sarira!

Counting the time, today was exactly the seventh day. If it wasn't used before midnight, he'd have to digest it himself.

He clenched his palm, then opened it to reveal the pill already in his hand. Holding it between his fingers, he furrowed his brow.

The words "no self-control" and "urge" sent a chill through Hanyu. The last time similar words had appeared, Bai Jingliang had been dragged from the city into the mountains by a flock of pheasants.

The Mortal slipped in without a sound. Spotting the pill between Hanyu's fingers, curiosity sparked. His hand flashed past Hanyu's, and in the next moment, the pill was in his own palm.

"What good stuff are you eating?"

The Mortal grinned, making as if to swallow it.

Hanyu looked at him with eager anticipation. The Mortal, sharp as a tack, caught his expression and quickly handed the pill back.

"What kind of pill is this, really?"

The Mortal asked curiously.

Hanyu smiled faintly and explained the pill's effects, leaving the Mortal utterly astounded.

"You'd better stick to being a Body Cultivator! The Medicine Master path isn't for you. Even if cultivator medicine masters are rare, they can't let a chaotic pill-refiner like you sneak in!"

The Mortal shuddered at the thought—if he'd swallowed that pill, who knew what would happen.

Hanyu just smiled and said nothing. The Glazed Bottle was a secret he couldn't speak of.

Before long, the Cousin arrived too.

He pushed the door open listlessly and slumped down across from the two.

The Mortal gave him a surprised look, reached out to feel his forehead, and joked, "Not even warm!"

The Cousin shot him a glare, then sighed and said, "My Cousin Sister has grounded me."

Hanyu found it amusing. "You're wandering around like this, and you call that grounded?"

The Mortal nodded in agreement beside him.

So the Cousin sighed and recounted the whole story. Su Wanjun felt those two fires weren't simple, and the Zhu You Sect's attitude was far too indifferent. Though she had no evidence, she certainly believed the Cousin.

With so many disciples dead, and the Cousin even in the know, the mastermind behind the two fires was likely a high-level cultivator. If they still needed to silence witnesses, the three of them were probably in danger.

Worried that the arsonist was still in Shuzhou Prefecture, the Cousin had been grounded within the city by Su Wanjun.

"My Cousin Sister didn't restrict your freedom, though. If you're willing to wait in the city a few more days, until things become clearer or we confirm the mastermind has left Shuzhou Prefecture, you can go then."

The Cousin relayed Su Wanjun's words.

She naturally had no right to restrict their freedom, and the Cousin was envious.

"I'm not planning to leave until my leg's fully healed anyway."

The Mortal, confident in his speed and technique, probably wouldn't dare go out until he was fully recovered.

Hanyu was thinking about how to get these two pills out to someone in the city.

The Cousin was delighted to have company—it meant he wasn't truly grounded. In high spirits, he generously treated them to a meal.

On Shuzhou City's main road, the streets were bustling with lively scenes. Pedestrians came and went endlessly, crisscrossing paths in a constant flow.

Hanyu would approach any thin passerby and strike up a conversation. "Brother, hold a moment—you and I have a connection..."

"What's he doing?"

The Cousin looked baffled at Hanyu's odd behavior, leaning in to whisper to the Mortal.

The Mortal squinted, seeming to catch a glimpse of the pill flashing through Hanyu's hand. Understanding dawned, and he quietly explained the pill's effects to the Cousin.

The Cousin's expression grew even stranger. He shook his head and said, "If you refine such a bizarre pill, why keep it instead of tossing it?"

The Mortal thought for a moment, then guessed in surprise, "Could he be looking for someone to test it on?"

That fit the image of an eccentric Medicine Master perfectly—except Hanyu's age was a bit off. If he were in his eighties, it would be spot on.

The Mortal suddenly recalled something and exclaimed, "That day, I saw him put something in his mouth too. He ended up dazed for three days. Could that have been a botched pill as well?"

The two exchanged grave looks and finally said in unison, "Better not touch any of his pills from now on."

As they whispered, Hanyu trudged back, looking dejected.

The Cousin and the Mortal quickly stifled their voices. The three walked in silence until they soon arrived at Shuzhou City's largest restaurant, Shuzhong Xian.

According to Cousin, the owner of this restaurant was so confident that his food was the best in all of Shu Prefecture that he dared to name it that.

Whether it was an exaggeration or not was hard to say, but the place had been running for decades without going under.

The three of them entered the tavern and went straight to the second floor, finding a spacious seat by the window.

"Order whatever you want to eat. During my house arrest, any spending I do in the city can be put on the tab."

Cousin waved his hand with an air of bold generosity.

Both of them rolled their eyes. No wonder he was being so generous—turns out he was being generous with someone else's money.

Mortal even teased him, "Didn't you say a while back that you made a huge sum designing a set of mechanisms for some wealthy household here? Why do you still need to put it on the tab?"

At that, Cousin's expression turned listless, which only piqued their interest, and they pressed him for answers.

Finally, Cousin stammered out, "Don't even mention it. The money was confiscated by my Cousin Sister."

That only made them more curious, and the explanation that followed was downright ridiculous.

He had indeed designed a set of defensive mechanisms for a wealthy family's home. But he got carried away and added some offensive ones on a whim. Who knew some random thief would be so unlucky as to pick that very house to rob?

The result was that the thief died on the spot, and the neighbor's courtyard next door was blown to rubble. Fortunately, it was an abandoned property, so there were no further casualties.

The matter naturally reached Su Wanjun. When she pulled a Spirit Stone out of the mechanisms with a dark face, she had a pretty good idea who was behind it. Only one person could pull off something like that.

With a bit of modification and mass production, that pile of machinery would be enough to siege a city. Su Wanjun immediately classified it as restricted military equipment, ordered the Prefectural Guard to destroy it on the spot, confiscated Cousin's money, and even locked him up for two days...

The two of them doubled over laughing, tears nearly streaming down their faces.

Just then.

Thump, thump, thump!

The stairs right next to them clattered with noise as two figures strode up with a commanding presence.

Hanyu suddenly noticed Cousin's face turn much darker, so he followed his gaze.

It was the two who had just come upstairs. One had a face like polished jade, dressed in white robes embroidered with green lotus patterns, carrying a longsword in hand.

The other had a sharp, narrow face, with a pair of long, thin eyes that gleamed with a sinister cunning. He wore a black form-fitting outfit, with a Three-Foot Long Blade hanging at his waist.

"What's wrong?"

Mortal also turned his head, only to see the two distant figures sit down and look back at them.

When their eyes met, the sinister man's face also soured, and he let out a few cold snickers.

The other man's expression remained as usual, but the way he looked at Cousin carried a subtle hostility.

"Enemies?"

Hanyu guessed after turning back.

Cousin shook his head, not intending to say much, and only said stiffly, "If anything happens later, try not to get involved. Let me handle it."

"We could just leave and skip the meal," Mortal said, sensing that the other party seemed to have a grudge against Cousin.

But Cousin shook his head. "Why should I avoid them?"

The three of them lost their appetite for conversation and sat in silence, waiting for the food to arrive.

"Isn't this the famous wastrel of the Mo family, Young Master Mo! Still acting like a kid running to his big sister?"

A grating voice, like a rusty gate, suddenly rang out behind them.

It was the sinister man, who couldn't resist walking over, his face twisted with mockery.

Cousin suppressed his anger and stood up, saying coldly, "I have guests today, Wang Shiyi. You'd better not push me into losing my temper."

Wang Shiyi sneered, "Someone like you has friends? They're probably just a bunch of worthless hangers-on."

With one sentence, he insulted all three of them, and their faces changed simultaneously.

Mortal suddenly let out a cold laugh, as if talking to himself, "I wonder if his family told him to bring his eyes when he goes out, to watch where he steps and not bump into people recklessly, so he doesn't die without knowing why."

Hanyu said nothing, but as he raised his right fist, the air around them suddenly grew scorching hot.

"Shiyi!"

The friend in the distance called out with a frown, and only then did Wang Shiyi glare at them, snort coldly, and walk away.

"That idiot, if he were overseas, I'd be failing his parents if I let him walk out alive."

Mortal said angrily, his voice muffled.

Cousin shook his head with a bitter smile. "You should have held back. My family and theirs have never gotten along. Every time we meet, it's like this. There's no need for you to make enemies for nothing."

"So what if we did? What can he do about it?" Hanyu, confident in his two great divine abilities, laughed indifferently.

"Overseas cultivators settle grudges on the spot. I'm still not satisfied."

The more Mortal thought about it, the more uncomfortable he felt. He suddenly turned to Hanyu.

"What about that pill you had this morning?"

Hanyu took out the Muscle Strengthening Bone Fortifying Pill, and Mortal snatched it away in a flash. Without even using the stairs, he flipped over the railing and jumped down, leaving the two of them staring in bewilderment.

Only after about a quarter of an hour did he leisurely ascend the stairs.

"What are you doing?"

Hanyu thought it over and had a few guesses.

The Mortal smiled mysteriously and said nothing.

Soon, waiters from both sides brought dishes up, and the Mortal kept glancing sidelong.

"How can you be sure he'll eat it?"

Hanyu suddenly asked in a low voice.

The Mortal's eyes flickered, and he bared his teeth in a cold grin. "Simple—I just slip the waiter a bit of money, don't I?"

Hanyu pondered but remained puzzled. "What if something goes wrong and someone else eats it instead?"

At this, the Mortal wore a completely unconcerned expression. "Do the deed first, worry about success or failure later. If someone else eats it, tough luck for them."

Were all overseas cultivators this ruthless?

Hanyu gained a new perspective on the Mortal.

Behind them, Wang Shiyi clinked glasses with another cultivator, and soon they picked up their chopsticks. When he lifted a piece of sweet-and-sour pork from the plate before him, a glint flashed in the Mortal's eyes.

"Isn't that done, then?"

The Mortal laughed with unrestrained glee.

"Next time you want to test a drug, just pick an enemy or someone you can't stand to mess with. See how simple that is?"

Hanyu seemed to be mulling it over, then let out a soft laugh. "I'm afraid I'll need quite a few test subjects."

The Mortal shook his head at that, tapping his chopsticks lightly on the table, crossing his legs, and letting out a long laugh. "You don't get it—if you have enough enemies, you'll be buying poison by the pound when you go out."

He had no idea that, because of these very words today, countless people would meet disaster in the future.

Hanyu only felt that his horizons had broadened considerably.

At the table behind them, the drug's effect finally began to take hold...