Lin Hai silently appeared in the Xiao Clan's courtyard.
He handed the Storage Ring filled with a vast quantity of medicinal herbs to Yao Chen, who was instructing Xiao Yixian in controlling the flame.
Yao Chen took the Storage Ring and swept it with his soul power. The mountains of rare medicinal herbs in a dazzling variety of types stunned him once again. The ten sets of Eighth-Tier medicinal ingredients and two batches of ingredients for the Pill of Breaking Sect, in particular, made his eyes twitch.
(The Storage Ring also contained the medicinal herbs Hai Bodong had sent over.)
He quickly bowed and replied, "Yes, my lord! This old man will begin preparations at once!"
Watching Yao Chen bustle about, Lin Hai's gaze shifted slightly.
Mass-producing low-grade pills could certainly boost the organization's lower ranks quickly, but the process was tedious and consumed an enormous amount of time and energy.
Having an Eighth-Rank Alchemy Grandmaster like Yao Chen spend so much time refining third- and fourth-grade pills, or even fifth- and sixth-grade ones, was an enormous waste.
His main focus should be on refining high-grade pills.
"The efficiency is too low." Lin Hai frowned slightly. "We need a laborer dedicated to handling these low-grade pills."
A name instantly surfaced in his mind—Han Feng.
Yao Chen's treacherous disciple, the Medicine Emperor of the Black Foot Domain, and a peak Sixth-Grade alchemist.
He was vile, had betrayed his master, and had tried to kill him, but his talent for alchemy was indeed quite remarkable. He was perfect for this kind of repetitive, low-grade work.
Making him atone through endless hard labor would be putting him to good use.
Once his mind was made up, Lin Hai didn't hesitate for a moment. He didn't even inform Yao Chen.
To him, going to the Black Foot Domain to seize someone was as simple as stepping outside to pluck a leaf.
His figure flashed, and he vanished from the spot.
Black Foot Domain, Maple City.
Named after "Medicine Emperor" Han Feng, this was one of the most prosperous cities in the Black Foot Domain.
At the center of the city stood a magnificent manor. It was Han Feng's lair.
At that moment, deep within the manor, Han Feng stood in the alchemy chamber, gazing smugly at a Sixth-Grade pill about to take shape in the furnace.
He was handsome, but there was a sinister edge to his features. A peak Spirit Emperor's aura radiated from him, along with the intense fluctuations of blue flames—the Sea Heart Flame.
Yet, just as the pill was about to solidify—
Buzz!
The space in the entire alchemy chamber seemed to freeze in an instant!
The smug look on Han Feng's face abruptly stiffened. He found that he couldn't move even a single finger!
The Dou Qi surging through his body and the Sea Heart Flame were like insects trapped in amber, completely suppressed and frozen by an unimaginable, irresistible force!
Even his thoughts seemed to grow sluggish!
His eyes filled instantly with boundless fear and shock. What kind of power was this?! A Spirit Sect? No! Even a peak Spirit Sect couldn't stop him from so much as thinking of resisting! Could it be... a Spirit Venerable?!
The next moment, the scene before his eyes twisted and changed!
The intense disorientation of spatial transfer made him feel as though he might vomit. The familiar sight of the alchemy chamber dissolved like a shattered mirror.
When he finally managed to regain his senses, he was horrified to discover that he was no longer in Maple City. He was in an unfamiliar courtyard belonging to what appeared to be an ordinary family!
The terrifying force pinning him down eased ever so slightly, allowing him to turn his eyes with difficulty.
Then he saw a young man in a blue robe, standing with his hands behind his back. His aura was calm, yet he seemed to be the center of the entire world.
Next, out of the corner of his eye, he glimpsed another figure—a soul floating in midair, with a face so familiar that it had haunted his nightmares for countless years!
"M-M-Master... Yao Chen?!!" Han Feng cried out, his voice shrill and distorted, filled with utter terror and disbelief!
Wasn't his soul supposed to have dissipated long ago?! How could he be here?!
And who was this blue-robed man, terrifying beyond all comprehension?!
Was he someone Yao Chen had called in to help?!
Yao Chen was stunned too. He had just finished preparing the medicinal ingredients when he sensed a fluctuation in space. Then he saw Lord Lin Hai toss a man into the courtyard like a piece of trash.
Taking a closer look, he realized it was the traitorous disciple he hated to the bone—Han Feng!
Yao Chen's soul form trembled violently. The bone-white Bone Spirit Cold Flame surged out of him uncontrollably, and his eyes blazed with fury and murderous intent. "Han Feng!! You ungrateful, treacherous beast!"
Terrified by Yao Chen's murderous intent and the bizarre, dreadful situation around him, Han Feng tried to struggle and beg for mercy. But aside from his eyes, his body remained firmly bound by that invisible, terrifying force. He couldn't even speak; all he could manage was a frightened, "Hrk, hrk."
Lin Hai's indifferent gaze swept over Han Feng, who was lying there like a dead dog. He calmly said to Yao Chen, "Keep him alive. His alchemy skills are still somewhat useful. From now on, he'll be responsible for refining the low-grade pills we need. Let him atone for his crimes through service."
With that, he flicked a finger. A complex, pale-gold rune instantly sank into Han Feng's forehead and branded itself deep within his Soul Origin.
"I've placed a restriction in his soul. His life and death are now at my whim. He'll obey your orders and refine pills without question, but he won't be able to leave this courtyard or do anything to resist you or harm any of you," Lin Hai told Yao Chen. "Once you've wrung all the value out of him, you can decide what to do with him."
At his words, Yao Chen immediately understood Lord Lin Hai's intentions.
He was making Han Feng, that beast, repay his sins for the rest of his life in the most despicable manner possible!
That was more satisfying than simply killing him—and more useful, too!
Yao Chen took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing his surging murderous intent and fury, then bowed deeply to Lin Hai. "Thank you, my lord! This is the best way to deal with him!"
Making Han Feng toil like a donkey at a millstone, endlessly refining the lowest-grade pills for the forces of the very teacher he had betrayed and the very junior brother he had once coveted, until he was utterly spent... There could be no crueler punishment.
Lin Hai nodded. He didn't spare another glance at Han Feng, sprawled on the ground like a lump of mud, his eyes filled with nothing but despair and terror. It was as if he had merely taken care of some trivial matter.
"Yao Chen, supervise his pill refining. You'll have full responsibility for producing low-grade pills."
"Yes, my lord!" Yao Chen replied respectfully. When he looked at Han Feng again, his eyes no longer burned with murderous intent. They held only a cold indifference, as though he were looking at a tool.
And Han Feng, the "Medicine Emperor" who had once held sway over the Black Foot Domain, now had an endless life of hard labor awaiting him.
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