Liu Xi, You Really Deserve to Die

Jia Lie Bi stopped at the door as an overwhelmingly rich medicinal fragrance rushed toward him.

When his gaze swept past Wang Teng's shoulder, he saw small jade bottles scattered across the floor, piled high like mountains.

So much Return Spring Powder refined in just half a day!

Jia Lie Bi's heart shook violently. He could hardly believe his eyes.

When Wang Teng had arrived at the Jia Lie Clan, it had only just passed noon. Now, the sun had only recently set.

What a terrifying refining speed—far faster than his senior brother Liu Xi.

However, that was not the only thing that shocked Jia Lie Bi. He noticed there was no pile of black ash beside the meditation cushion.

What did that mean?

After refining for most of the day, Wang Teng had not failed even once!

Not once!

When Liu Xi had refined Return Spring Powder, his failure rate had been as high as thirty percent. Every failure had been money going up in flames!

Damn it! Master Liu Jiang, you've ruined me! With such an outstanding disciple, why did you push Liu Xi onto me?!

Thinking back to how, over the past few months, the Jia Lie Clan had treated Liu Xi like some grand lord, only for his performance to be utterly disappointing—

Jia Lie Bi could not help but feel grief well up inside him, his eyes stinging.

Wang Teng, who had opened the door, saw that it was Jia Lie Bi. The battle qi surging through his body gradually calmed.

Seeing Jia Lie Bi's reddened eyes, he was utterly baffled. "Clan Head Jia Lie, did something happen?"

Don't tell me that after I only arrived in Wu Tan City today, your Jia Lie Clan—one of the three great powers—has already fallen apart?

I'm still counting on you to supply the medicinal herbs!

"Master Wang Teng, you misunderstand. The clan head is simply overwhelmed because he sees that the clan can be saved." Jia Lie Ku stood behind the clan head and explained with a smile.

Jia Lie Bi nodded repeatedly. "I'm truly sorry, Master Wang Teng. I've made a fool of myself before you."

Wang Teng inwardly breathed a sigh of relief and said wearily, "Is there anything to eat? I'm hungry."

"Yes! What would Master Wang Teng like to eat? Just say the word, and I'll have someone prepare it immediately. I guarantee it will satisfy you." Jia Lie Bi's tone unconsciously carried a hint of respect.

Unlike when he faced Liu Xi before, the respect he felt for Wang Teng came entirely from the bottom of his heart.

"Clan Head, take Master Wang Teng to eat. Leave this place to me," Jia Lie Ku said.

Jia Lie Bi had initially wanted to instruct the steward, because he still harbored a trace of doubt toward Wang Teng and intended to see things for himself.

It could not be helped. Wang Teng was simply too young.

Hearing Jia Lie Ku say this, he gave him a meaningful look before turning to Wang Teng with a smile. "Master Wang Teng, you've worked hard all afternoon. Please follow me."

Jia Lie Ku remained at the doorway, watching them leave until their backs disappeared from sight. Only then did he turn and enter the pharmacy.

He first inspected the medicinal herbs on the shelves.

"Half of them are gone." Jia Lie Ku had always managed the clan's storehouses, so he knew the quantities of medicinal herbs well.

After checking everything, he returned to the center of the room and casually picked up a small jade bottle.

The moment he opened it, a rich, pure medicinal fragrance burrowed into his nose.

Jia Lie Ku poured out the medicinal liquid, and his eyes immediately went wide. He said in shock, "This color, this viscosity—clear and translucent, without a trace of impurity."

Damn it, compared to this, the Return Spring Powder Liu Xi refined before was practically a mouthful of spit.

"They clearly had the same teacher. How could the gap between fellow disciples be this great?" Jia Lie Ku shook his head, unable to understand.

He summoned the guards outside and had them count every small jade bottle on the floor. In the end, they arrived at a number.

Eight hundred and ninety-nine bottles!

"How many?" Jia Lie Ku could not believe it.

Only after repeated confirmations did he believe that he had not misheard.

Wang Teng had truly used half the pharmacy's stock of medicinal herbs to refine eight hundred and ninety-nine bottles of Return Spring Powder.

That was a full thirty percent more than Liu Xi had made, yet he had used three times less time!

Faced with such a perfect result, Jia Lie Ku did not smile. Instead, his fat face turned bright red as he held himself back, his eyes seeming ready to kill.

Damn Liu Xi! You really fucking deserve to die! Why didn't someone like you die sooner?!

Wasting materials! Wasting time!

If I'd known you had such an amazing junior brother, why would I have waited for the Xiao Clan? I would've been the first to fucking kill you!

To ensure Liu Xi would properly refine medicine, the Jia Lie Clan had bought nothing but top-grade ingredients.

He wanted women? Granted!

He wanted to play with snake women? Granted!

But what had come of it? The Jia Lie Clan's markets had clearly seized the market first, yet an unknown alchemist from the Xiao Clan had stolen it right back.

Only after quite a while did Jia Lie Ku regain his calm and direct the guards to send the Return Spring Powder to the designated warehouse.

Once dawn broke tomorrow, he planned to immediately distribute this batch of Return Spring Powder to the clan's various markets.

"The rest of you, continue guarding the pharmacy." After giving that order, Jia Lie Ku left with light steps.

For some reason, his plump figure seemed a little lighter at that moment.

In the main hall.

Jia Lie Bi personally attended to Wang Teng, serving him dishes, pouring him water, and waiting on him as he ate dinner.

When Wang Teng was nearly finished eating, he summoned the two women who had long been standing nearby.

Both women had lovely faces and curvaceous figures. They might not compare to a beauty like Xun'er, but they were at least not far below Xiao Yu's level.

Wang Teng paused while wiping his mouth and looked at Jia Lie Bi in confusion.

"Master Wang Teng has worked hard today. I specially found them to attend to you, Master." Jia Lie Bi smiled broadly.

The two women had initially looked panicked and at a loss, but when they approached and saw Wang Teng's face clearly, their expressions immediately turned to nervous anticipation.

"Clan Head Jia Lie, what do you mean by this? What do you take me, Wang Teng, for?" Wang Teng suddenly slammed his palm on the table and rose to his feet.

Jia Lie Bi jumped in fright, while the two women instinctively took several steps back.

"Master Wang Teng, please don't misunderstand. When your senior brother Liu Xi came before, it was the same," Jia Lie Bi explained with an apologetic smile, not understanding why Wang Teng was angry.

"He is him, and I am me! I, Wang Teng, don't go for this sort of thing." Wang Teng said sternly, "Instead of spending your money and effort on this, you might as well buy some good medicinal herbs."

With that, Wang Teng did not even glance at the two women and walked straight out.

The women's eyes remained fixed on Wang Teng, their gazes filled with resentment. With looks like theirs, they had actually been rejected.

Just then, Wang Teng suddenly stopped and turned around.

The two women froze, delight appearing on their faces. They hurriedly thrust out their chests, drew in their stomachs, and posed their legs as they arranged their figures.

But Wang Teng did not look at them. Instead, he stared at Jia Lie Bi. "Where is the room where I'll be resting?"

Jia Lie Bi hurried over to Wang Teng with quick little steps. "Please follow me, Master Wang Teng."

He walked half a step ahead of Wang Teng to lead the way, apologizing as he went. "Please forgive me, Master Wang Teng. I meant nothing else by what I did just now. Wu Tan City is simply too small, and there is no better way for us to repay you."

"I know what kind of person my senior brother is. But Clan Head Jia Lie, I am different from him. I love refining medicine more." Wang Teng did not truly intend to fall out with Jia Lie Bi.

His actions just now had been more about making his stance clear.

Only that way could Jia Lie Bi willingly, even at the cost of staking the clan's fortune, purchase medicinal herbs.

Otherwise, relying on himself alone, how much money and resources would it take to make a name for himself in Wu Tan City?

Besides, how could women be as fragrant as the Threefold True Fire?

Once he got the reward, it would not be too late to enjoy himself. It was not as though the world would end tomorrow.