Ice Profound Pill

The Xiao Clan, the council hall.

Xiao Zhan and the three elders sat inside with grave expressions. The atmosphere was even more solemn than usual.

They had naturally received detailed information about the incident at the Jialie Clan at the first opportunity.

"The Dou Qi left at the scene was pure Yang, intensely hot, and undoubtedly Fire Attribute Dou Qi." The Great Elder spoke slowly.

"According to our people's careful investigation, its purity and domineering force far surpassed Jialie Bi's. The person who did this was probably... at least at the peak of Da Dou Shi, and might even have touched the threshold of Dou Ling!"

"Peak Da Dou Shi? When did a powerhouse like that arrive in Wutan City?" The Second Elder stroked his beard, his brows knitted tight. "And to act so ruthlessly. Jialie Bi and Jialie Nu were both Da Dou Shi, yet they were killed with a single strike. Liu Xi was deliberately tortured, too, left in a terrible state... This was clearly done out of deep resentment."

The Third Elder chimed in, "Most importantly, this person seems to have targeted only members of the Jialie Clan and Liu Xi. The ordinary guards and servants were mostly spared, though the treasury was completely looted. Could they have been after the wealth?"

Xiao Zhan, seated at the head of the table, pondered for a long while, then tapped the tabletop lightly and said, "Whoever this person is, and whatever their motive, the Jialie Clan has lost all its leaders in this incident. The clan is now a name in little more than name. The balance of power in Wutan City is about to change."

For the Xiao Clan, this was undoubtedly wonderful news.

Xiao Zhan looked at the three elders and said, "There are several important things we must attend to right away."

"First, strengthen the clan's defenses and raise the alert level to the highest. Until we learn the identity and intentions of that mysterious powerhouse, we must not let our guard down."

"Second, the Jialie Clan's markets and businesses are now leaderless and bound to descend into chaos. The Ao Ba Family certainly won't stand aside. Our Xiao Clan must make plans early and take the opportunity to expand our influence. But we shouldn't be too greedy about it. That doesn't mean we shouldn't take anything; we should take it slowly and methodically, so no one gets the chance to exploit the chaos and profit at our expense."

"Third..." Xiao Zhan paused, then continued, "With the Jialie Clan's downfall, the biggest beneficiaries appear to be our Xiao Clan and the Ao Ba Family. So we must beware of anyone using this to shift the blame onto us."

"Our clan must present a united front publicly. We should express shock and regret over what happened to the Jialie Clan, emphasize that we had nothing to do with it, and offer to help the City Lord's Mansion maintain stability in Wutan City."

The three elders nodded. Under the circumstances, caution was indeed necessary.

After all, that mysterious powerhouse capable of wiping out the Jialie Clan's leaders overnight might still be lurking somewhere in Wutan City.

In the face of absolute strength, the supposed balance among the three clans was as fragile as glass.

The Mite'er Auction House was the largest auction house in Wutan City and belonged to the wealthiest clan in the Jia Ma Empire, the Miteer Clan.

Ye Xiu walked into the auction house, where people bustled about and the place was lively.

He swept his gaze across the spacious, resplendent hall, then headed for a room off to the side. The words "Consultation Room" were printed on its door.

When he pushed the door open, he found the room rather bare. A clerk sat listlessly in a chair by the desk. Hearing the door open, the clerk looked up, saw Ye Xiu in his black robe, and asked, "Are you here to bid, young man, or to have something appraised?"

"To bid." Ye Xiu had heard over the past two days that the auction house would be selling a Medicine Cauldron with five fire apertures today. He wanted to practice alchemy, so he needed the cauldron. He had looted hundreds of thousands of gold coins from the Jialie Clan, which should be enough to buy it.

At that, the clerk immediately put on a professional smile. "There's an auction today, as it happens. The entrance fee is ten gold coins."

"Fine. Here." Ye Xiu took out gold coins from his Storage Ring and received a yellow token from the clerk.

With this token, he could enter the auction hall and participate in the bidding.

He put the token into his Storage Ring and was about to turn away when he casually asked, "How long until the auction starts?"

The clerk replied respectfully, "Fifteen minutes. You can look around the hall first. People often bring in good items for consignment at the last minute. You might find a bargain."

"Mm." Ye Xiu nodded and headed toward the hall.

After wandering around, he reached the western side of the hall, where seven or eight people stood scattered around a counter.

At the center of the crowd, an old man in a gray-and-white Alchemist's robe was examining something with his head bowed, his brows tightly furrowed.

Two silver stripes were embroidered on his sleeves, marking him as a Second-Rank Alchemist.

"Gu Ni?" Ye Xiu recognized the old man. Who else could the Second-Rank Alchemist in Wutan City be but Gu Ni?

Standing at the edge of the crowd, Ye Xiu's gaze fell on the thumb-sized pill in the old man's hand.

The pill was ice blue all over, with faint frost patterns flowing across its surface.

The memories bestowed by the Innate Medicine Body included this pill. It was none other than a Third-Rank Ice Profound Pill!

Ye Xiu raised an eyebrow.

Even among Third-Rank pills, this one was rare. Alchemists capable of refining it were rarer still.

The middle-aged man behind the counter asked cautiously, "Master Gu Ni, is there... something wrong with this pill?"

Gu Ni didn't answer right away. He gripped the jade bottle and turned it over and over in his hands, his brow furrowing deeper by the moment.

"The pill is in excellent condition, and its color is first-rate..." he muttered, though his voice was full of uncertainty. "It seems to contain a great deal of cold energy, but when I probed it with my soul, I got no response at all. I've practiced alchemy for decades, and this is the first time I've seen such a strange pill..."

He paused and cleared his throat awkwardly.

"My eyesight has failed me. I can't make sense of this pill's properties or effects, at least not right now. I wonder which master refined it?"

The middle-aged man froze, then said, "I found it in a cave in the Magical Beast Mountain Range last month. I don't know who refined it, but it's a pill, so I thought I'd bring it here to sell..."

Gu Ni returned the pill to the middle-aged man and shook his head. "I'm very sorry. This pill is clearly no ordinary item, but my knowledge is limited, and I can't identify it. So I can't estimate its value or put it up for auction."

The middle-aged man took the jade bottle, looking disappointed, and gave a bitter smile. "Even Master Gu Ni can't identify it... Looks like I won't be able to sell this pill."

Gu Ni felt a little guilty, too. After all, making a customer come all this way for nothing was a failure on the auction house's part.

He paused, looked around, then raised his voice:

"Everyone, although I can't identify this pill, if anyone here can, the Mite'er Auction House will offer a generous reward. For the rest of today, any item this person bids on will be sold to them at a twenty-percent discount!"