Hogg Began to Act

But just because the medicine wasn't potent enough didn't mean it had no effect!

As the test subject, Hogg had experienced it firsthand. He could feel the restlessness stirring deep within his blood.

That was why he believed all the more that Lei Lin would one day be able to make a Dragonblood Potion that could help him awaken his bloodline.

Lei Lin was still researching how to truly awaken the Azure Dragon Bloodline within Lin Lei and Hogg, transforming them into the most authentic Dragonblood Warriors.

After going over all this in his head once more, Lei Lin reassured himself, "That's right. I'm doing this for Lin Lei and Uncle Hogg's sake!"

"How could an ordinary dragon bloodline compare to transforming into the most authentic Azure Dragon?"

"I'm only doing this for their own good~ I'm so great~!"

Still, Lei Lin wasn't the sort to disregard everything for the sake of an experiment. He had prepared a backup plan for Hogg.

With that in mind, Lei Lin said enthusiastically, "Uncle Hogg, this is the latest Burst Secret Medicine I've designed."

"Do you still have the Storage Jade Tablet I gave you before? I'll replace it for you!"

At that, Hogg handed Lei Lin the gold-inlaid jade tablet at his waist. The character "令" was engraved on the front, and "兹傲" on the back.

Lei Lin took the tablet and channeled magic power into it, unlocking the sealing magic array on its surface.

The array's patterns gradually lit up. Once the tablet was awash in golden light, its casing split open to reveal a blood-red pill inside.

This was the complete Dragonblood Awakening Pill, made primarily from the blood of a Saint Realm Silver Dragon. It could help Dragonblood Warriors awaken, though Lei Lin had made it in the form of a pill.

"Uncle Hogg, this latest Burst Secret Medicine I've developed won't make you die as soon as the burst ends, like the last one!"

"The time it can unleash your bloodline's power has also increased from one minute to three."

"But the consequences are still serious. After the burst, it'll damage your muscles and internal organs, weakening you to the point where you'll be even weaker than an ordinary person."

"And that weakness will be permanent!"

"In other words, once you use it, you'll spend the rest of your life living as an ordinary person."

"Remember, don't use it unless you're facing a life-or-death crisis!"

This was Lei Lin's safety measure: the Dragonblood Awakening Pill!

Apart from a side effect Lei Lin had deliberately added that would leave Hogg weak for one night (mainly to keep Hogg from noticing anything unusual after using it, and to make it easier for Lei Lin to carry out his rescue plan later), it had practically no drawbacks. It was as close to perfect as could be!

It could help Hogg awaken safely and quickly.

With Hogg's current physique—honed by taking one experimental medicine after another until he had reached the peak of the seventh rank—awakening his bloodline would let him unleash ninth-rank strength.

Within the Fenlai Kingdom, with no Saint Realm experts to stand in his way, he would be invincible!

The tablet itself was no ordinary item. In addition to the magic array that activated the concept of [Living Dragon Blood] in the Awakening Pill, it also contained a protective magic array.

Crushing it would create a powerful personal defensive spell. Even against an eighth-rank expert's attack, it could buy Hogg time to awaken his bloodline.

"Uncle Hogg, remember to carry this lifesaving trump card with you at all times. The world is still far too chaotic."

"You can be caught in the aftermath of a powerful expert's battle with the slightest bit of bad luck. Having a way to save your life is the only way to feel safe!"

Hogg thought of the devastation in Wushan Town when it had been caught in the aftermath of a Saint Realm battle. He couldn't agree more.

At the same time, a fierce glint flashed in his eyes, though no one could tell what he was thinking. He couldn't help but clutch the tablet even tighter.

After using Hogg for another bloodline experiment, Lei Lin left.

He had come this time to be prepared for any eventuality, but he wasn't going to stay by Hogg's side every day. After all, he had no idea when Hogg planned to investigate Duke Paterson.

After leaving Wushan Town, Lei Lin met up with Lin Lei, Yale, and the others.

At the dinner table, Lei Lin slyly hinted to Lin Lei that there were plenty of fish in the sea and he shouldn't fixate on just one woman. Then he went to visit Falling Leaf.

After all, those ten barrels of Saint Realm Silver Dragon Blood he received each month were an extremely precious resource to Lei Lin now.

He had returned to protect Hogg, so he wasn't going to head straight back after finishing the bloodline experiment, as he had before.

Falling Leaf had been supplying him for so long that it would have been rude not to pay her a visit!

During this visit, he received two pieces of good news and one piece of bad news from Falling Leaf.

The first piece of good news was that there were no suitable Saint Realm experts with a lightning affinity within the Radiant Church who could serve as his teacher.

The bad news was that Heidens had found an outside teacher for him. He planned to use Lei Lin's talent to attract the expert into the Radiant Church, then arrange for the expert to teach Lei Lin.

That was right: they were using Lei Lin as bait to draw an outstanding Saint Realm expert into the church!

These days, it was hard to find a good teacher, but an outstanding disciple who had grasped the profound mysteries of the laws before reaching the Saint Realm was even harder to come by!

So he was being used as bait!

The second piece of good news (for Lei Lin, at least) was that the Saint Realm expert was in seclusion and no one knew when they would emerge.

After taking care of these trivial matters, Lei Lin returned to the family estate to spend time with his family each day. He kept a close eye on any news concerning Hogg and Duke Paterson's household, however.

[The recent large-scale trade contracts in Wushan Town, which Lord Hogg had always handled personally, have been handed over to his butler, Hiri.]

[Someone in the black market is offering a reward for information about Duke Paterson's household. Their purpose and identity are unknown.]

[Hogg, the lord of Wushan Town, has not appeared for several days. The reason is unknown. Hiri and Hillman are handling most affairs in his place.]

[Hogg was spotted at...]

[A servant in Duke Paterson's household has gone missing. It is said he stole valuables from his master and ran away.]

Seeing this, Lei Lin knew Hogg had begun to act.

He took out a map-shaped magical device and looked at a glowing dot on it. "Good. At least Uncle Hogg didn't leave the tablet I gave him in his rented room just to hide his identity."

That was right. Besides storing the Awakening Pill, the tablet Lei Lin had given Hogg also had a tracking function that let him monitor Hogg's location in real time.

It might not have been very ethical, but Lei Lin thought it was necessary. After all, his goal was to protect Hogg.

"Reaching the seventh rank through physical strength alone leaves him with too few options. He probably won't get past Duke Paterson."

"But as long as Uncle Hogg remembers what I told him and eats this pill when he's in danger, his life will be safe."

"Then I won't need to intervene!"

"Perfect!"

"But to be safe, I should keep an eye on things nearby!"

At that thought, Lei Lin activated the protective and isolation magic arrays in his laboratory.

Then he used a concealment technique and slipped out of the estate unnoticed.

As he left, he glanced toward where Lantan and the others were secretly protecting him and curled his lip.

Lantan and the others were responsible for protecting him in secret, but Lei Lin had refused their close protection on the grounds that he wanted to protect his privacy.

He had even forbidden them from getting too close, so they wouldn't interfere with his daily life and research.

Besides, he had long ago developed a technique for concealing his movements, using the laws as its foundation. He had tested it specifically and confirmed that under normal circumstances, even Lantan, who was only at the ninth rank, couldn't detect him.