Pure Fragrance Cult, Three Refinements! Yang Xian!

Ten minutes later, the field mouse "came back to life" as well.

According to Cheng Ming's analysis, the medicinal potency was too strong for the field mouse to withstand, causing it to faint.

"There are no signs of poisoning. On the contrary, its blood and qi, as well as its strength, have improved considerably."

After examining the three animals, Cheng Ming turned and spoke.

He looked at Wei Luo, a strange light gleaming in his eyes.

With nothing but a pill formula he did not even understand the principles behind, he had refined pills successfully on his very first attempt, and their effects were not bad. What kind of genius was this?

All of Cheng Ming's previous doubts had been crushed before Wei Luo.

"Young and accomplished—truly young and accomplished!"

"After refining pills for so many years, I've truly lived like a dog..."

"Ah, there's no justice in this world!"

The pill masters all lamented, hating only that they did not possess Wei Luo's talent.

By the time Zhao Xiu and Cheng Ming saw Wei Luo off, the night had turned pitch-black.

The three carried lanterns through the corridor, while a shadow remained between Zhao Xiu's brows.

"Wei Luo, there have been some changes at home lately. If there's nothing urgent, don't come looking for me for the time being. After a while, I'll return to the side residence."

Wei Luo frowned slightly. Zhao Xiu clearly had something weighing on his mind.

But since Zhao Xiu had no intention of speaking of it, Wei Luo found it inconvenient to ask further. Carrying his lantern, he prepared to leave.

After saying goodbye, Wei Luo had just taken a step when he suddenly stopped.

In the darkness, a sharp glint flashed into view and vanished.

An unusual feeling suddenly rose in Wei Luo's heart, and every hair on his body stood on end.

Wei Luo stomped fiercely, shattering the stone tiles beneath his feet as he instantly retreated several steps.

Clang!

After a crisp ring, an iron spike over ten centimeters long stood where Wei Luo had been, having pierced straight through the stone tiles.

"Hehe, not bad reflexes. To evade one strike from me, you have reason enough to be proud."

A figure in white robes stepped into the lantern light from the dark night.

The embroidery of an incense burner on those white robes was painfully conspicuous.

Wei Luo's gaze hardened. The Pure Fragrance Cult!

The owner of the white robes had triangular eyes and a pointed chin, his smile sinister.

He first looked Wei Luo up and down, then spoke to Zhao Xiu.

"Zhao Xiu, this is the helper you found? Only at Two Refinements—are you planning to send him to his death? If you want to deal with me, you should at least find someone at Three Refinements, no?"

The moment Zhao Xiu and Cheng Ming saw this man, their faces turned incomparably ugly.

"Envoy Yang Xian, you misunderstand. He is only a friend visiting me. The Zhao Family has no intention of resisting you."

Cold sweat gradually beaded on Zhao Xiu's forehead as he stepped forward and spoke.

"Hmph. You'd better mean that."

Yang Xian swaggered up to Zhao Xiu. Even as he walked, Wei Luo could smell a thick scent of blood from him.

A chill ran through Wei Luo's heart. Who knew how many people this bastard had killed? He had practically been pickled in the smell of blood!

From this man, he could sense the blood and qi of Three Refinements!

An intense sense of danger rose within him. Wei Luo's entire body tensed, ready to strike fiercely the moment things turned violent.

Fortunately, Yang Xian did not seem intent on fighting. Instead, he opened his mouth and said,

"When exactly will my Bone Sculpting Pill be ready?"

Yang Xian's voice was not loud, but it was filled with pressure. Zhao Xiu lowered his head and bit his lips until they bled.

"Envoy, several of the main ingredients required for the Bone Sculpting Pill are far too rare. It cannot be refined in a short time. I ask that you grant the Zhao Family some time."

"How long?"

"Two months."

The moment he heard "two months," Wei Luo felt his vision blur. Yang Xian's thin, bony fingers had already clamped around Zhao Xiu's throat, lifting him into the air.

"Two months? Are you trying to fool me? I don't have that kind of patience."

Hah... hah...

Yang Xian's fingers gradually tightened. Even though Zhao Xiu was at Two Refinements, he had no ability to resist at all.

Seeing this, Cheng Ming's eyes immediately reddened. With a shout, he pounced toward Yang Xian.

Bang!

With a single palm strike, Cheng Ming was sent flying. He passed out in midair; if Wei Luo had not caught him, he would likely have lost half his life.

A trace of viciousness quietly flashed through Wei Luo's eyes as well. If he let Yang Xian kill Zhao Xiu, then he would be left as a lone tree unable to hold up the forest, and he too would find it hard to escape disaster.

The Great Thousand Revelation quietly emerged in his sea of consciousness.

It had been able to break down pill refinement step by step before. Perhaps it could prove useful in battle as well.

As for whether it would work, Wei Luo had no certainty. But in a life-and-death fight, he could only gamble everything.

Just as Wei Luo tensed his body and prepared to act, Zhao Xiu forced out a sentence from his throat.

"W-within... one month, I'll do... everything I can."

Thud.

Zhao Xiu's body fell to the ground in a miserable heap.

"Fine. If you cannot hand over the Bone Sculpting Pill by then, I'll wipe out your Zhao Family!"

A cruel smile surfaced at the corner of Yang Xian's mouth. Then he glanced at Wei Luo again.

"Hehe, of course, you can find more helpers. But in all of Pingjiang Town, how many can you possibly find?"

After leaving those words behind, Yang Xian's figure flashed and vanished into the night once more.

Only after he left did Wei Luo let out a breath and go help Zhao Xiu up.

"Brother Zhao, this man..."

"We'll talk after we return."

Inside the main hall, Zhao Xiu and Wei Luo sat facing each other, while Cheng Ming sat to one side with his eyes lowered.

Recalling Yang Xian's aura just now, Wei Luo could not help frowning.

Yang Xian was absolutely the sort who killed without batting an eye. If Zhao Xiu had said one wrong word earlier, he might truly have lost his life.

"Outside the town is now almost completely under the control of the Pure Fragrance Cult. No one knows exactly how many of them have come.

"But there are at least three to five at Three Refinements. I have also heard that there seems to be an expert in Force Training."

Zhao Xiu tapped the wick, his expression gloomy, then continued slowly.

"My Zhao Family has truly been unlucky, to have caught Yang Xian's eye. Even this life of mine probably won't last much longer."

Zhao Xiu touched the finger marks on his neck, his voice hoarse.

After their conversation, Wei Luo also understood the whole story.

It was not particularly complicated—a tragedy of a man being guilty merely for possessing a jade.

Several days earlier, Yang Xian had slaughtered his way into the Zhao Family under cover of night.

No one could stop the strength of Three Refinements, and quite a few members of the Zhao Family had died.

The Bone Sculpting Pill Yang Xian spoke of was the Zhao Family's inherited pill formula, but what he wanted was the finished pill.

And in order to control the Zhao Family and force them to refine pills for him, Yang Xian had compelled the Zhao Family members to consume poison.

When the poison took effect, more than a hundred members of the Zhao Family would all die!

The Zhao Family had originally been a medicine business, one of the foremost in Pingjiang Town. But Yang Xian's poison was bizarre, and the Zhao Family still could not produce an antidote.

As Zhao Xiu told the story, he sighed repeatedly, and Wei Luo listened in silence.

"Wei Luo, I never intended to drag you into this. What happened today was only an accident. As long as you do not spread this matter around, Yang Xian probably will not make a move against you."

There was always a trace of helplessness in Zhao Xiu's tone. He patted Wei Luo on the shoulder and continued.

"This matter has nothing to do with you. You should go back first."

Cheng Ming had long since awakened. Seeing the desolation on Zhao Xiu's face, he too sighed.

The Zhao Family's family motto was, "The more friends one has, the more paths one has."

Zhao Xiu was generous and loyal, with countless friends around him.

Yet these past few days, scarcely anyone had come to the Zhao Family's door. The Sun Family had once shared considerable friendship with the Zhao Family, but even the Sun Family had now refused them.

If nothing unexpected happened, the Zhao Family was not far from destruction.

Zhao Xiu stared blankly at the candle flame, but Wei Luo did not leave.

"Brother Zhao, if I simply left like this, wouldn't that be a little too ungrateful?"

"And a man like Yang Xian—now that he has seen me, how could he possibly let me go?"