"Fifty-fifty! In your dreams!" Chen Hui, standing behind Zhuo Bufan, couldnât help but blurt out.
Not only Zhuo Bufanâs team but even the Taoist priest and the chubby man behind Wang Qiang were filled with confusion. Their teamâs strength was obviously inferior to the other partyâs. Hoping for an even split seemed impossible.
Zhuo Bufan was stunned for a few seconds before shaking his head with a chuckle. "Captain Wang Qiang, thatâs an exorbitant demand!"
Wang Qiangâs gaze was firm. "My team members are the ones taking the risk, so naturally, I have to fight for their interests. The extra twenty percent Iâm asking for isnât for my team. Itâs meant exclusively for Ye Qingchen!"
Hearing this, Chen Huiâs face filled with disbelief. "Youâre giving twenty percent to a mere Outer Sect Disciple?"
Keep in mind, Zhuo Bufan had only promised Liu Wenzhuang a ten-percent share!
Zhuo Bufan continued to shake his head. "How about this? To show our sincerity, weâll take one share from our teamâs seven and give it to your teamâs Ye Qingchen. How does a sixty-forty split sound to you?"
Wang Qiang still shook his head. "Not enough. It has to be fifty-fifty. If you agree, we have a deal. If not, then Iâm afraid this is where we part ways."
He believed that since Zhuo Bufan had actively sought their cooperation, the matter must be more complicated than he let on. Their own team would definitely be insufficient to handle it alone. Therefore, before cooperating, Wang Qiang was determined to secure enough benefits for his team.
Seeing Wang Qiang stand his ground, the corner of Zhuo Bufanâs mouth couldnât help but twitch. "I need to discuss this with my team members."
Zhuo Bufan quickly gathered Hong Ye, Chen Hui, Liu Wenzhuang, and the other member of his team. They whispered amongst themselves for a moment before reaching a consensus and nodding in agreement.
Zhuo Bufan returned to Wang Qiang. "Fine! We agree to your termsâa fifty-fifty split. However, to guarantee both profit and safety, you must follow my commands once weâre inside. No acting on your own."
Ye Qingchenâs gaze landed on Zhuo Bufanâs eyes. As his Dual Pupil Martial Soul stirred, he heard Zhuo Bufanâs inner thoughts.
You little punk, still think you can get an even split? Just wait until weâre inside. Iâll show you how Iâm going to play you all to death!
Ye Qingchen instinctively wanted to warn Wang Qiang, but after a momentâs thought, he changed his mind.
Wang Qiang, unaware of Zhuo Bufanâs true intentions, nodded. "Alright! No problem!"
With an agreement reached, the group of ten walked to the edge of the poisonous mist.
The crimson earth was swallowed by the hazy fog, obscuring their vision and making it impossible to see what lay within. Moreover, a mysterious force in the fog suppressed their Six Senses, severely limiting their perception to only five or six meters ahead. A single glance was enough to tell that this place was filled with unknown dangers.
"Iâve already checked," Chen Hui announced, his gaze falling upon Ye Qingchen and Liu Wenzhuang. "The fog here can be cleared with Clear Fog Powder, made by refining Greenleaf Herb to a purity of over sixty percent. For me, thatâs incredibly simple. Now, we just need you to go gather the Greenleaf Herb for us."
"Go!"
"Ye Qingchen, be careful!"
The others all turned their attention to Liu Wenzhuang and Ye Qingchen.
Without hesitating, the two of them dashed directly into the mist. A peculiar, invisible energy rushed toward them. However, the Outer Sect Disciple Identity Tokens at their waists flashed faintly, and the strange repulsive force vanished instantly.
The poisonous gas on the periphery of the mist was very thin, but Ye Qingchenâs senses were extremely sharp. He could clearly feel faint wisps of mist entering his meridians through his mouth and nose, and a barely perceptible numbness began to spread through him.
Although the poison was weak, anyone who stayed inside for too long would become completely paralyzed, their meridians would be severed, and they would eventually die.
Thinking of this, Ye Qingchen couldnât help but speed up his harvesting of the Greenleaf Herbs.
On the other side, Liu Wenzhuang was clearly aware of this as well, and his harvesting speed was also extremely fast.
Ten minutes later, Ye Qingchen and Liu Wenzhuang rushed out of the poisonous mist one after the other. Their faces had taken on a sickly green hue, a clear sign of significant poisoning.
Chen Hui looked down at the hundreds of Greenleaf Herbs tossed before him and said, "Thatâs enough. You donât have to go back in."
It was clear that if Liu Wenzhuang had tried to gather so many Greenleaf Herbs alone, he likely would have already perished in the poisonous mist.
Chen Hui took a dark Alchemy Furnace from his Storage Ring, sat down cross-legged, ignited a Fire Stone, and tossed a Greenleaf Herb into it to begin the purification process.
Taking advantage of the break, Ye Qingchen and Liu Wenzhuang circulated their internal energy to expel the poison from their meridians.
An hour later, Ye Qingchen had purged all the poison from his system and opened his eyes to look at Chen Hui.
Chen Huiâs refining speed was undeniably fast. The hundreds of Greenleaf Herbs had all been purified, and the entire process was in its final stages.
"Alright, all set!" Having purified the last Greenleaf Herb, Chen Hui wiped the sweat from his forehead and laughed aloud.
He packed the hundreds of doses of Clear Fog Powder into ten porcelain bottles and distributed one to each of the ten people.
"Many thanks, Alchemist Chen!" Zhuo Bufan said, clasping his hands in gratitude.
Fortunately, they had specifically invited Chen Hui, who was skilled at purification. Any other apprentice alchemist likely couldnât have matched his performance.
"The Clear Fog Powder is ready! We can disperse the mist and enter!" Zhuo Bufan ordered.
"Good!"
The group grew incredibly excited.
Zhuo Bufan took the lead, scattering the Clear Fog Powder. The poisonous mist before him instantly dissipated, and he stepped right into the cleared path. Seeing this, the eyes of the others lit up, and they followed closely behind him.
As long as they could get through this poisonous mist, a true Martial Spirit expertâs treasure awaited them!
Ye Qingchen and Hong Yan walked at the rear of the group. Hong Yan scattered the Clear Fog Powder to prevent the gathering mist from touching them. Ye Qingchen had also received a bottle. He opened it, took a sniff, and his brows furrowed slightly. "Just as I thought. Itâs all only sixty-percent-purity Clear Fog Powder."
Hong Yan looked at him curiously. "Whatâs wrong? Is there a problem with the Clear Fog Powder? Did Chen Hui tamper with it?"
Ye Qingchen gave a wry smile. "The Clear Fog Powder itself is fine, but Iâm afraid *we* have a big problem."
Hong Yanâs beautiful eyes were full of confusion. "What do you mean?"
Ye Qingchen voiced his concern. "The deeper we go, the more toxic the fog becomes. I suspect this sixty-percent-purity Clear Fog Powder wonât be enough to get us all the way through."
Hong Yanâs eyes suddenly widened. "You mean we could get trapped halfway through the poisonous fog, unable to advance or retreat?"
If what Ye Qingchen predicted came true, they would be trapped midway, unable to move forward or back. Wouldnât that mean certain death?