Heretical Demon, Three Seats, the Formation of the Wind and Cloud Association, I Want to Become a Hall Master??

Fire Kiln, Medicine Lodge.

Huang Xuan crouched beside the furnace fire, his face dark as he refined an extremely cumbersome, complex, and time-consuming ninth-rank pill, his lips pressed tightly together.

The Medicine Boys assisting at his side were all silent as cicadas in winter, not daring to make a peep.

The Medicine Boys who had spent a long time in the Medicine Lodge all knew this.

Yellow Medicine Master had a habit.

Every few days, after finishing his orders, he would shut his doors to visitors and focus entirely on refining a kind of "ninth-rank pill" that no one else could understand.

Once he finished refining it, no matter how many there were, he would swallow them all in one gulp.

With every pill he ate, his complexion would grow a little rosier.

But the longer they stayed, the more apprentices and Medicine Boys noticed.

He was eating more and more of those pills, and refining them was becoming increasingly beyond his strength.

Whenever he went into the county to order and purchase ingredients from other medicine shops, such as those belonging to the Three Great Gangs, he had to buy a huge pile just to sustain his daily consumption.

No one knew what effect they had.

Bang!

Suddenly.

A choking "smell" exploded from the Medicine Lodge, instantly blasting Huang Xuan into a soot-covered mess. Brown and gray medicinal paste splattered all over his face and hair.

Crash!

The pill furnace toppled over!

Furious, Huang Xuan kicked over the small golden furnace, his chest heaving.

"No, no. I've spent too long lately refining these Cold Dispelling Pills and Hundred Herbs Pills."

"And the 'deep-rooted flaw' left behind in this body means I have to swallow ten or twenty of them every day!"

"Three to five a day used to be enough to maintain it, but now..."

"Relying on my own refining alone, I simply can't keep up!"

Seeing an hour of work go to waste because the furnace had exploded, his eyes burned with anger.

Pill refining, especially ninth-rank pills, was not something one could do without failure just because one's pillcraft was superb.

Once ordinary people reached mastery, their success rate was generally sixty or seventy percent.

Unless one transcended the shackles of the "mortal realm" and reached the level of a Qi Path Pill Master, able to sense with one's thoughts and command fire with qi.

Otherwise, no matter who came, failure and furnace explosions were always possible.

"But that boy Ji's talent in pillcraft is truly extraordinary!"

"This old man has devoted himself to training him and observed him for ten days. In these past two days, his pill completion rate has actually reached eighty or ninety percent. It is simply unbelievable."

"And I deliberately increased the heat and dosage, raising the odds of producing more pills in one furnace, yet that boy could still refine several pills from every batch."

His gaze flickered.

"The path of life and death seeks not outside itself."

"Now that this old man has been buying Cold Dispelling Pills and Hundred Herbs Pills in large quantities throughout the county, some attentive people have likely already guessed that this body of mine bears an old ailment."

"Rather than buying them outside and drinking poison to quench thirst, I might as well train him further."

"I had planned to speak to him about this today."

"But why hadn't that boy come today?"

He paced back and forth through the pill room. As time ticked away, Huang Xuan grew somewhat anxious.

"Forget it. I won't wait for him today. I'll go buy some from the medicine shops of Lion Hall, Tiger Leopard Hall, and the Falcon Gang."

"I bought too much before from the medicine shops of the Four Great Halls. I've probably already drawn some people's attention, so I can't go there again."

Thinking this, Huang Xuan ordered the Medicine Boys to clean the Medicine Lodge with a dark expression, then hurriedly changed into clean clothes without pause.

Lion Hall, Tiger Leopard Hall, Falcon Gang!

They were the "Three Great Gangs" among what the Five Hundred Li Mountain Road called the "Three Great Gangs and Four Great Halls"!

These gangs were all local tyrants from the mountain towns and manors along the Five Hundred Li Mountain Road, crouching dragons and coiled tigers gathered together, collectively known as "Breaking into Anning."

In the end, they twisted themselves into a single rope. Under their leaders' guidance, they transformed in a flash into county giants.

The proprietors of the Three Great Businesses were businessmen. They kept retainers and strengthened their forces, but in the end, it was all for silver.

In Anning County, the Three Great Businesses and Fist, Spear, Saber, Sword held the upper hand.

But when it came to real skill and the forces capable of influencing and radiating through the territories around Anning County—

Outside Anning County.

Lion, leopard, eagle, and falcon covered the sky with one hand!

Huang Xuan clutched his clothes and hurried all the way by carriage to the medicine shop opened by Lion Hall.

Yet when he asked about pills such as Cold Dispelling Pills and Hundred Herbs Pills, he was told that only those registered in the records, after verification, were eligible to purchase them.

Other pills, even eighth-rank Bone Tempering pills, had no such requirement!

Upon hearing this, Huang Xuan narrowed his eyes and left without showing a trace of emotion.

Afterward, he went to the medicine shops stationed at Tiger Leopard Hall and the Falcon Gang.

The results were exactly the same.

"Was this arranged specifically for this old man?!"

At last unable to suppress his rage, Huang Xuan gritted his teeth.

Those dog bastards had truly seized the weak point of him, the number one pill refiner of the Five Hundred Li Anning County!

Speechless with fury, Huang Xuan slammed the door and left. He had only just crossed the threshold of the Falcon Gang's medicine shop—

When a tall figure draped in a black robe raised a hand and stopped him.

"Elder Huang, please stay."

Those brief words made Huang Xuan extend his claw-like hand, his eyes turning cold.

"Your Excellency is..."

His entire body tensed, as though he could burst forth and kill in a single step like an arrow released from the bowstring!

Pill Masters were all enormously wealthy and never lacked money.

Even by taking pills, they could cultivate impressive martial arts, much less someone like him, a seventh-rank Pill Master!

"Elder Huang, do not be hasty."

"I merely came to employ you."

The black-robed figure, his face concealed beneath his hood, smiled amiably.

"And..."

"I can cure the Pill Devouring Poison in your body."

His earnest tone made the veins bulge on Huang Xuan's forehead.

"Im-pos-si-ble!"

"Once that thing is planted, it gradually spreads. Unless one uses an earthly treasure to refine a spiritual pill, otherwise..."

"No mortal pill under heaven can cure it!"

"And I know my own worth. A homeless cur who secretly learned the pillcraft secrets of his master's household does not deserve such treatment."

"Unless you are..."

Whoosh, whoosh.

A cold wind blew.

The black-robed man's clothes shifted, revealing a jade token inscribed with the words "Central Yellow Grand One."

Huang Xuan's pupils contracted sharply, his heart shaken.

"Zhong Huang Taiyi Sect—the heretical sect of the 'Gods' lineage that had stirred up Jiangyin Prefecture for twenty years?"

"I heard that not long ago, the favored disciple of some noble person in Jiangyin Prefecture was bewitched by them, then stole a 'heavy treasure' and fled in fear of punishment. Even now, they have not been captured."

The old man lowered his gaze as if he knew nothing, tightened his collar, and said flatly.

"You know quite a lot, young friend."

"But this old man has only just stopped being someone else's dog. I haven't had enough of these peaceful days yet."

"Thank you for your kind intentions."

With that, he hurried away toward Fire Kiln Lu Estate!

Only the black-robed man remained, silently watching where he had gone. He pulled down his hood, revealing a cold face beneath blade-like brows.

"Lord Han, should we..."

Behind him, the shopkeeper of the Falcon Gang's store seemed to recognize the man before him. He approached respectfully, a gleam flashing in his eyes.

But the young man merely smiled and shook his head.

"No matter. Elder Huang is also a man of hardship. Why make things difficult for him?"

"But his pillcraft should not be buried."

With that, he gently put away the token hanging at his waist.

At the same time, he lowered his eyes.

"Huang Xuan, heh."

"A dog for others his entire life, yet unable even to cross the threshold of a Qi Path Pill Master."

"His old rival obtained an earthly treasure one day, acquired a pill manual from the master's household, and entered the ranks of Qi Path Pill Masters. Then he directly knocked him down into the mud of the ninth abyss, pinned a crime on him, and planted pill poison in his body..."

"How tragic."

"The weight of one's family gate was like a mountain."

"But look instead..."

"One need only worship the Gods, cultivate divine shrines, and offer devout reverence day after day to receive an empowerment. One's martial path could ascend to godhood, allowing all under heaven, regardless of whether their family gates ranked high or low, a chance to knock upon the gates."

"Was that not far fairer than a mud-legged commoner having to exhaust every scheme and effort just to climb upward!?"

"Immortals, Pure Land, heavenly beings, Gods."

"Master, the heretical path is not made of demons. It is only that the world crushes people!"

"Great Xuan has already reached its first millennium, yet it is already like a boat tossed in wind and rain. How much longer can it hold on?"

"I will prove that you are wrong."

"And that I am right!"

The young man's eyes were deep and mad.

When his murmur faded, he vanished into the shadows.

Meanwhile.

Fire Kiln, Lu Manor!

Inside the largest main hall.

When Lu Hongyu hurried over with Ji Xiu—

They saw—

Besides the seat originally belonging to Fire Kiln Lu Manor's master, Lu Chengfeng, at the head of the hall.

There were two more seats, arranged neatly beside it.

And both were already occupied.

One wore a purple robe embroidered with cranes, with long brows and a tall build.

The other had broad shoulders and a round waist, thick brows and a full beard, with shrewd eyes.

The moment he stepped inside and looked up.

Ji Xiu looked left and right. He saw that there were not merely three seats; the hall itself was packed with people.

He roughly counted about a hundred of them.

"Purple Robe Crane, Butcher Knife!"

Seeing the two men beside Lu Chengfeng and matching them to their images, Ji Xiu quickly identified them by the titles of Anning County's Ten Great Experts, and his heart tightened!

Purple Robe Crane referred to Xu Zhuang, the chief steward of the Firewood Market. He usually affected refined tastes, dressed in splendid clothes embroidered with cloud cranes, and was said to have come from a collateral branch of some Jiangyin clan, with a bit of family connection.

Butcher Knife.

Referred to Wei Dingchang of the Cattle and Sheep Market. Starting as a butcher, he had used two kitchen cleavers to subdue more than a dozen men.

From chopping minced meat and selling offal, he first built his foundation, then went to Jiangyin to learn fist techniques. In the end, he monopolized the meat business of all Anning County. He was a model figure who had chopped from the east end to the west end!

They were all ruthless men...

Ji Xiu had only just sighed inwardly.

When he arrived at the door, Butcher Knife Wei Dingchang smiled.

"Brother Lu, is this the fellow you recommended to become the deputy hall master of the Medicine Hall among the seven halls of our Wind and Cloud Association?"

"At such an age..."

"I'm afraid he's not quite enough."

Elsewhere.

With a dark face, Huang Xuan rushed frantically to Lu Manor.

"You little bastard, you son of a bitch! This old man trained you for ten days. How much bright silver did you cheat from me at the start?"

"Just when there were results, you vanished?"

"This old man had the misfortune of running into heretical demons and getting targeted by those people. This little county is one thing, but if the Northern Garrison Envoys catch hold of a trail..."

"The pain of poison in my body would be nothing compared to the cruelty of their punishments!"

"What major matter could this rotten manor possibly have? This old man wants to see..."

Hong Jiang yawned. After learning that Ji Xiu did not need the carriage, he had come back to guard the manor.

He had only just arrived not long ago and opened his eyes.

When he saw the master from the Medicine Lodge, who never came visiting, stride up and slap him so hard that he was left dazed.

"You, move aside!"