Martial Sage from the Vajra Skill

Three days passed. The Su Family’s spies had scoured Cyan Yang City, but they found nothing.

’It’s finally over!’

After shaping the last Blood Coagulation Pill, Xu Yang let out a long sigh. He hadn’t slept for three days and nights, engrossed in Alchemy. Even though his Cultivation had reached Gang Qi Minor Achievement, he still felt a touch of exhaustion.

A pile of Medicine Bottles lay beside him—forty-two in all.

From twenty batches of Elixirs, he had produced two hundred and ten Refined Pills.

He sat down and circulated the Fuyue Bear Scripture to recover some of his energy, then packed the Elixirs into a burlap sack. After changing his disguise, he got up and headed for the Zhu Family Pharmacy.

...

The Zhu Family Pharmacy.

Zhu Bin was on edge. He had received word that the Su Family was investigating the Pill Master who was working with the Zhu Family.

The Zhu Family wanted to help, but they didn’t know the Pill Master’s identity.

"Shopkeeper, that gentleman still hasn’t appeared," a shop boy said, running in from outside.

Zhu Bin said gravely, "He’s a cautious man. He won’t be found by the Su Family. Stop going in and out to look for him. You’ll draw unwanted attention."

’The good news is that not even the Zhu Family knows the Pill Master’s identity, so the Su Family probably can’t find him either.’

’But refining Elixirs requires a large amount of medicinal ingredients. If this keeps up, the Su Family is bound to discover his identity.’

"I’m just worried, is all. The Su Family are real pieces of work. They can’t stand to see our Zhu Family doing well," the shop boy muttered.

Zhu Bin sighed. "What can we do? The Zhu Family isn’t as powerful as the Su Family, and now our interests are in conflict."

The Zhu Family planned to use the Qi and Blood Pills to break into the Elixir market, which inevitably meant taking business from others. It was unavoidable.

Fortunately, their ancestors had all been disciples of the Purple Sun Sect. So, while they might compete for profit, they wouldn’t resort to open violence.

Suddenly, a shadow fell over him. He hurriedly looked up to see a familiar figure striding in, a large burlap sack slung over his shoulder.

Zhu Bin’s face lit up. "Sir, you’ve finally come."

Xu Yang, his Conical Hat hiding his face, spoke with a detached voice, "This is this month’s delivery. Shopkeeper Zhu, please count it."

Zhu Bin shook his head and said in a low voice, "That can wait. Sir, could I ask you to join me in the back room for a private discussion? You may not be aware, but the Su Family is searching the entire city for you."

Xu Yang nodded. "Alright."

’I didn’t know for sure, but I could have guessed,’ he thought. He had crushed a Su Family spy. Given their tyrannical nature, how could they possibly let it go? They were probably hunting for him like madmen.

’But Cyan Yang City is vast. Once I change my clothes, there’s no way they can figure out who I am.’

Zhu Bin gave the shop boy a meaningful look, signaling for him to keep watch outside, then led Xu Yang into the pharmacy’s back room.

A quarter of an hour later, Xu Yang emerged from the back courtyard.

He hadn’t revealed his identity to Zhu Bin, but they had reached an agreement. From now on, the Zhu Family would have someone deliver the required medicinal ingredients to his rented courtyard, and when the refining was complete, they would come to pick up the pills themselves.

This would greatly reduce the risk of the Su Family finding him.

Of course, in doing so he was taking a risk by trusting the Zhu Family. If they had malicious intentions, he would be in danger.

Fortunately, he had already reached Gang Qi Minor Achievement, which gave him some confidence in his ability to protect himself, so he wasn’t overly worried about the Zhu Family harboring any ill will.

After settling on the courtyard’s address and the delivery times, Xu Yang left with one thousand five hundred and eighty taels of silver and a Guiyuan Pill.

’The past three days had been exhausting, but he had earned another seven hundred taels of silver and a Guiyuan Pill.’

He returned to the courtyard without incident and changed his outfit again. He planned to go to the Ten Thousand Treasures Pavilion to buy some Eight-Treasure Body-Strengthening Pills before returning to the Purple Sun Sect.

After walking two blocks, he saw a familiar figure at the entrance of a brothel.

Hu Fengyi!

The man looked as if he had just woken up and was reluctantly parting ways with two women.

The two women seemed reluctant to let him go, pulling him back just as he tried to walk away.

Xu Yang didn’t watch closely. A cold glint flashed in his eyes as he quickened his pace to the Ten Thousand Treasures Pavilion. He spent four hundred and fifty taels of silver on thirty Eight-Treasure Body-Strengthening Pills, then immediately left the city.

Soon, he found a hiding spot with a wide, open view.

An hour later, he saw Hu Fengyi sauntering toward him in the distance.

He had a blade of grass between his teeth, as if savoring a pleasant memory.

Xu Yang looked away, put on a face covering, and secured the Elixirs he was carrying. He then slipped behind a large boulder by the side of the road.

"Those two little minxes were wild," Hu Fengyi muttered to himself. "I could barely handle them by myself. It must be because I’ve been smithing every day this month. I’ll rest up, and when I come back next month, I’ll make them beg for mercy."

The memory of the previous night started to get Hu Fengyi worked up again. He wished he could turn right around, head back to Cyan Yang City, and go another three hundred rounds.

’But I have to go to Li Fire Peak tomorrow. I can’t go back.’

’This Li Fire Peak opportunity cost me a great deal. I only managed to get selected after buying Profound Iron from someone else. I can’t miss it.’

"The Earth Vein Spiritual Fire can refine my Gang Qi and temper my Physique," he mused aloud. "When I get back from there, I should be able to reach Gang Qi Minor Achievement... Huh?"

Just as he was thinking about the selection for Li Fire Peak, he suddenly sensed something was wrong. His five senses flared, warning him it was as if a ferocious beast was staring him down.

’Not good!’

Hu Fengyi instantly realized it wasn’t a beast, but an expert watching him with a gaze full of killing intent.

His Gang Qi was at its absolute peak, just one step shy of a breakthrough to Gang Qi Minor Achievement. His five senses were incredibly sharp, capable of detecting a stare at close range. His reaction was just as fast. He instantly threw up his Protective Gang Qi, shifted his body rapidly to the side, and spun to throw a punch.

But Xu Yang had been lying in wait, poised to strike like a tiger ambushing its prey. The moment Hu Fengyi’s figure entered his line of sight, he was already in motion.

With his feet wreathed in glowing Gang Qi, he vanished from his spot like a clap of thunder, closing the distance to Hu Fengyi in a flash.

BOOM!

Only then did the spot where he had been hiding explode, sending dirt and soil flying.