Martial Sage from the Vajra Skill

"Just talk to him as I instructed. That Pill Master is a smart man; he won’t do anything foolish."

He was certain he had this Pill Master under his thumb. To outsiders, the Pill Master was already considered one of the Zhu Family’s own. Who would dare to hire someone who had abandoned their master?

"Yes, Patriarch!" Zhu Bin clasped his hands in a salute.

He also felt that Zhu Xiancheng’s analysis made sense. Besides, he was just a Shopkeeper and didn’t have the courage to disobey the Patriarch’s orders.

Three days passed in a flash. Xu Yang finished refining the two hundred Elixirs and quickly rushed to the pharmacy, where he received the money and the Guiyuan Pill from Zhu Bin.

"Please wait a moment, Your Excellency."

"Is there something?"

Zhu Bin called out to Xu Yang just as he was about to leave.

Zhu Bin smiled. "It’s like this: the Blood Coagulation Pills are very popular on the market, so much so that we can’t keep them in stock. Patriarch Zhu hopes that Your Excellency can provide the Zhu Family with three hundred Blood Coagulation Pills per month from now on. As for the price, that’s negotiable."

Xu Yang’s expression was hidden beneath his cloak. "How much is the Zhu Family willing to pay?"

Zhu Bin said, "Eight taels and three mace."

Xu Yang nodded. "Deal."

With that said, he didn’t linger and took his leave.

’The Patriarch really is amazing!’

Zhu Bin hadn’t expected things to go so smoothly. The Pill Master had agreed immediately upon hearing the price.

’Looks like I was wrong about him. This Pill Master is just greedy. He agreed as soon as he heard the price increase.’

’Give them an inch, and they’ll take a mile!’

As Xu Yang walked out of the Zhu Family Pharmacy, his expression darkened.

’My cooperation with the Zhu Family ends here.’

’This time they’re asking me to refine three hundred pills. Next time it’ll be four hundred. The time after that, they’ll probably just imprison me and turn me into the Zhu Family’s personal alchemy machine.’

He hadn’t refused them outright, fearing the Zhu Family would fly into a rage out of shame and attack him. When he didn’t show up after a month, they wouldn’t be able to find him even if they tried.

He had never once revealed his true face to Zhu Bin, nor had he ever told him his name.

After circling the streets a few times to make sure he wasn’t being followed, he avoided returning to his previous courtyard. Instead, he found a hidden alley, changed his appearance, and made his way to the Four Seas Escort Agency.

He hadn’t written to the little girl in seven or eight months, and he was starting to miss her.

Besides, based on his calculations, the little girl should have started her martial arts training by now.

In a place like Qingyuan County, Elixirs were a rarity. You couldn’t buy them even if you had the money.

He had suffered enough from a lack of resources and wouldn’t let the little girl go through the same hardship. So, along with his letter, he had also prepared some Blood Coagulation Pills for her and had the Escort Agency deliver them together.

The price for delivering a letter was different from delivering Elixirs.

The twenty Blood Coagulation Pills were worth two hundred taels of silver, and the Four Seas Escort Agency charged him a full thirty taels for the escort fee.

But to him, who was currently carrying tens of thousands of taels of silver, this small amount was just a drop in the bucket.

’The little girl should be thrilled to receive so many Elixirs.’

A smile touched his lips as Xu Yang left the Four Seas Escort Agency and headed to the Weapon Refining Workshop where he had ordered a custom Pill Furnace.

The nearly man-high, thousand-jin Pill Furnace had already been forged. Xu Yang paid the remaining balance, and the Weapon Refining Workshop found several laborers to carry the Pill Furnace out of the shop.

"Follow me!"

Xu Yang walked in front, with a group of laborers carrying the Pill Furnace behind him, drawing many curious glances along the way.

"Xu Yang?"

From a pavilion in the distance, a gaze fell upon him, its owner’s face dark and grim.

It was none other than Xiao Chen.

’He bought a Pill Furnace? That idiot won a Gathering Essence Pill Formula at the Ten Thousand Treasures Pavilion auction. Does he really intend to burn through his money learning Alchemy? Or has he latched onto Elder Li Yang’s coattails and already started learning?’

’If that’s the case, I absolutely cannot let Xu Yang live. If he has a talent for Alchemy and becomes the next Yuan Jie, getting revenge on my father and me would be as easy as saying a single word.’

"Chen Lang, what’s wrong?" Su Man asked with concern when she saw the unpleasant look on Xiao Chen’s face.

It had to be said that Xiao Chen’s methods were effective. After he had his way with her, a haughty young lady like Su Man, who usually looked down on everyone, became docile in his presence.

Xiao Chen said, "I just saw that Outer Disciple who got Father punished and sent to Garrison Cyan Mountain Town."

He pointed toward Xu Yang in the distance.

Su Man’s expression darkened. "So that’s the country bumpkin who caused Father to be punished by Elder Li Yang and sent to Garrison Cyan Mountain Town? Should I have some people take care of him?"

Xiao Chen shook his head. "Don’t. He’s a Ten Heroes Genius, after all. Besides, he might have already latched onto Elder Li Yang’s coattails."

’Getting the Su Family involved would be troublesome if it leads back to the matter with Lin Wei. To kill Xu Yang, I am more than enough.’

"You’re always so thoughtful, Chen Lang."

Su Man’s heart warmed, thinking that Xiao Chen was worried about the Su Family offending Elder Li Yang.

...

’It won’t be long before I can use this.’

Xu Yang set the Pill Furnace in place, then went out to find a woodcutter and buy some firewood for Alchemy before finally leaving the newly rented courtyard.

"Greetings, Master Xu!"

As he walked into the Ten Thousand Treasures Pavilion, Zhou Yong greeted him with a smile.

"The usual," Xu Yang said. "Thirty Eight-Treasure Body-Strengthening Pills and one Ten-Perfection Rejuvenation Pill."

"Please wait a moment, Master Xu!"

Zhou Yong left and returned a moment later with the Eight-Treasure Body-Strengthening Pills and the Ten-Perfection Rejuvenation Pill.

"Master Xu, would you like to buy some ingredients for refining the Gathering Essence Pill? The Ten Thousand Treasures Pavilion has all three main ingredients," Zhou Yong asked casually.

Xu Yang’s expression didn’t change. "Not at the moment."

He took his things and left the Ten Thousand Treasures Pavilion directly.

Zhou Yong was puzzled. ’So he really isn’t the one who refines the Blood Coagulation Pills?’

He had no idea that Xu Yang had long been suspicious of him and would naturally not tell him the truth.

Besides, Xu Yang indeed had not yet learned how to refine the Gathering Essence Pill.

He wasn’t a traditionally trained Pill Master. Unlike others, he didn’t need to waste large amounts of ingredients for practice after obtaining a Pill Formula.

Xu Yang soon left the city.

With Xiao Hua having been punished and sent to Garrison Cyan Mountain Town, he wasn’t as cautious as before.

The exit of Cyan Yang City was bustling with traffic, but the number of people dropped off sharply on the road leading toward the Purple Sun Sect.

Most of the disciples had gone to the Yunling Mountain Range to hunt for treasures, so even fewer people were on this road.

Xu Yang had been walking for a while when a figure suddenly stepped out from behind a large tree.

He was dressed in the uniform of an Outer Disciple of the Purple Sun Sect, a refined Treasure Sword hanging at his waist. With his red lips and white teeth, he was quite handsome.

"Junior Brother Xu, what a coincidence!" Xiao Chen said with a smile.

Having waited so long, he was in a good mood now that he had finally caught Xu Yang leaving the city.

’My father, Xiao Hua, failed to get this done, but I will succeed.’

’Once Xu Yang is dealt with, the matter of killing Lin Wei will be completely behind me. All that’s left is Sun Tao, but even if I do nothing, with his level of talent, he won’t survive in the Outer Disciple division for more than three years.’

’Then I’ll find some time to make a trip to Qingyuan County and eliminate Lin Cheng. After that, the whole affair will be perfectly concluded.’

"So it’s Brother Xiao. It is quite a coincidence. Why don’t we go in there and have a chat?" Xu Yang said with a smile.

’I can’t kill Xiao Hua, but killing Xiao Chen first to vent some anger will do. I just haven’t had the chance until now.’

"Alright!" Xiao Chen nodded.

’This is still the side of the road. If someone saw me kill Xu Yang, I’d be in trouble, even with my father being a Steward.’

He turned and walked into the mountain forest, and Xu Yang followed him.

"How did Senior Sister Lin Wei die?" Xu Yang asked.

Xiao Chen’s voice came from ahead. "You really are a smart one. You guessed long ago that Lin Wei’s death had something to do with me, but you kept quiet about it, not even telling Lin Cheng, all in the hopes of buying your own safety."

"Your only fault is that your talent is too good. You might seek revenge on my father and me in the future, so I can’t let you live."

"I wasn’t the one who killed her."

"We had a good time together, after all. I couldn’t be that ruthless. My father killed her."

"When you see her down below, apologize to her for me."

His tone carried a hint of regret. If it weren’t for the sake of latching onto the Su Family, he truly would have been reluctant to part with Lin Wei.

"Perhaps it would be better if you told her yourself," Xu Yang said, his tone calm.

’He had long suspected this outcome, so it wasn’t a surprise. This was just a confirmation.’

Xiao Chen stopped in his tracks, turned back to look at Xu Yang, and said, "Don’t you know I placed twentieth in the Outer Disciple Grand Competition?"

By now, the two had reached a clearing in the woods. As he spoke, his eyes grew sharp, and his aura surged. "Do you have any last words? If not, then I’ll send you to see Ah Wei."

Xu Yang flashed a grin, revealing his snow-white teeth, and shook his head. "It would be better if you left your last words instead. I don’t think you can kill me." 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝒆𝒘𝙚𝓫𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

"Stubborn till the end! Die! I’ve wanted to kill you since the first time I laid eyes on you."

He hated Xu Yang’s all-seeing gaze.

From their first meeting, he had worried that Xu Yang would ruin his plans. It was a good thing Lin Wei hadn’t listened to him.

His figure suddenly shot up from the ground. Releasing the full might of his Gang Qi Great Success cultivation, Xiao Chen’s bones and sinews rang out as he struck out with a crushing Palm.