The Bone Cleansing Pill is a low-grade yellow-level pill, typically priced around 1.2 million. Although Xu Le is the manager of the inner sect at War God Peak, his yearly salary barely covers the cost of two pills of this level, and thatâs assuming he doesnât spend a single coin elsewhere. In reality, after deducting cultivation expenses, his annual savings are meager.
Xu Le, despite not having any offspring in the Bronze Bone Realm, could still sell the Bone Cleansing Pill for a decent profit.
"Manager Xu, this promotion of mine will rely on your assistance!"
At this moment, Xu Le had completely changed his previous demeanor. After carefully sealing the porcelain bottle, he grinned at Lin Miaomiao. "Ah! With your qualifications, you should have been promoted to an inner sect disciple long ago! Rest assured, thereâs definitely a spot for you this time!"
"Thank you so much!"
Receiving Xu Leâs definite answer, Lin Miaomiao left, overjoyed.
...
Cloud Saint Peak
When Qin Xue and Gu Sheng arrived, Lu Junyiâs pavilion barrier was still activated. Upon seeing the two, Baixue Yuzi expressed some surprise, "Aunt Xue, why are you here again?"
Baixue Yuzi knew of Qin Xueâs abilities. Having managed War God Peak for so many years, she rarely sought out Lu Junyi. Yet, for reasons unknown, this year sheâd come several times, and each instance seemed tied to Gu Sheng.
"Yuzi, quickly go report to the Grand Elder. Something major has happened!"
Qin Xueâs expression was grave, her eyes brimming with urgency. Realizing the severity of the matter, Baixue Yuzi responded promptly.
"Alright! Iâll go immediately. Please wait here."
Second Level of the Pavilion
Lu Junyi was staring blankly at a heap of black powder.
These powders were all the failed attempts at refining Bone Marrow Building Pills. Originally, he believed that his skills at mid-grade mystical-level were perfectly honed. With just a mystical-level top-grade formula, he thought heâd successfully advance to a mystical-level top-grade alchemist.
However, he had underestimated the difficulty of refining top-grade mystical-level pills.
Ever since acquiring the formula for the Bone Marrow Building Pill, he had been tirelessly studying and refining, working day and night. Over this period, he attempted twelve times, yet each and every time he failed.
Now, he was rather frustrated, his mood somewhat irritable.
"Master, Aunt Xue is here."
Upon hearing this, Lu Junyi frowned slightly. "Whatâs gotten into her recently? Why does she keep coming to me? She wasnât such an indecisive person in the past."
"Gu Sheng is with her as well. By the look of Aunt Xueâs expression, itâs likely something serious."
"Gu Shengâs here too? That rascal is never one to keep things simple. Let them in!"
Lu Junyi waved his hand to deactivate the barrier, rubbed his stiff face, and descended the stairs.
"Xiao Xue, whatâs the matter this time?"
Lu Junyi took a light sip from his tea, his relaxed demeanor clearly showing he wasnât aware of the seriousness of the situation.
Qin Xue directly placed a bag on the table before him. "Grand Elder, calamity has struck!"
Lu Junyiâs expression turned puzzled. As he opened the bag and found it filled with identity tokens from the Thousand Poisons Sect, he was momentarily startled and looked incredulously at Gu Sheng. "You killed all of these?"
Gu Sheng nodded silently in confirmation.
Lu Junyi casually rummaged through the tokens, noticing four belonging to inner sect disciples. He chuckled, "Heh! Didnât expect you to be such a bloodthirsty powerhouse! Looks like keeping you away from Spirit Pill Peak was the right choice. Not bad, not bad; with these tokens, youâre eligible for promotion to War God Peakâs inner sect. In a few days, Iâll speak to Wen Mingyan and have him start teaching you swordsmanship. With your martial arts talent, you might bring some glory back to our Holy Pill Sect in six months at the Red Cloud Secret Realm."
Seeing that Lu Junyi still hadnât grasped the gravity of the situation, Qin Xue directly pulled out Wu Xinyuâs identity token and placed it in Lu Junyiâs hand. "Grand Elder, he killed Wu Xinyu!"
Lu Junyi finally understood the severity of the matter. His brow furrowed deeply as he looked at Gu Sheng. "Didnât I tell you last time not to kill him? This is going to be trouble; that lunatic Wu Gui will probably stir some chaos now."
Lu Junyi was now thoroughly vexed.
Gu Sheng sighed helplessly. "I didnât kill him. I picked up this token. He was killed by Blood Demon Beasts."
"Picked up?"
Lu Junyi clearly didnât believe Gu Shengâs claim.
Strictly speaking, Wu Xinyu was indeed killed by the giant birds. Gu Sheng hadnât even laid a finger on him.
Gu Sheng nodded firmly. "I really just found it!"
After recounting the entire sequence of events, Lu Junyi, Qin Xue, and Baixue Yuzi all gave him peculiar looks.
At this point, Lu Junyi began to deliberate.
"Although it was you who led them there, you didnât lay a hand on Wu Xinyu. Technically speaking, he wasnât killed by you."
Qin Xue rolled her eyes upon hearing this. "Grand Elder, can you be more realistic? Do you think Wu Gui will accept that reasoning?"
If this had happened to any other disciple, Lu Junyi might have prioritized the big picture and handed the offending disciple over. However, given that Gu Sheng was placed in the sect by Ge Qing, handing him over was out of the question.
Since surrendering wasnât an option, the only choice left was to protect Gu Sheng at all costs.
Lu Junyi straightened his neck and said disdainfully, "I donât care whether he accepts it or not. The truth is the truth!"
"That being said, Wu Gui is indeed a lunatic. Weâll need to prepare ourselves. Go summon Wen Mingyan for me."
Qin Xue saw that Lu Junyi had fully made up his mind, so she didnât argue further and left to find Wen Mingyan.