Chapter 556 Intimidation

The creases on the forehead of the elderly man in green only grew deeper as he sniffed at the contents in the jade vial. Then his expression shifted, and so did the gorgeous young lady in short skirt and Lord Black Sand when they realized it. Everyone in the hall peered curiously, their faces changing too as buzzing and murmurs began running through the hall.

Beset with doubt and disbelief, the teal-robed elder tipped over the vial and a round little pill – glowing palely with a gloss of opal-white with hardly any flaws – rolled out and fell on his palm and a rich, aromatic smell of herbs filled the entire chamber, its scent soothing and invigorating.

More furtive whispers began buzzing all around. Most might know little to nothing about concocting pills and elixirs, but it was apparent even to a layman that Xiao Chen’s handiwork had better quality than the teal-robed elder’s.

The teal-robed elder could hardly suppress his indignation anymore as his hands trembled. Xiao Chen’s pill might only be a Tier-2 elixir, yet its quality was top-notch. The Pill of Massing Vigor that he produced however was a Tier-5 concoction with potent effects and heavy side-effects too whilst Xiao Chen’s Tier-2 pill had only negligible or zero aftereffects.

Producing pills and concoctions of different grades depended greatly on one’s skill and level of cultivation; the higher-tiered one was, the greater the tier of the pills one could produce. Yet there were also a plethora of factors which could affect the quality of a produced concoction – choice of ingredients and one’s skill and talent among them.

The teal-robed elder knew full well, that he would never be able to replicate the quality Xiao Chen put into this Tier-2 pill. Whether he knew the full list of ingredients needed for this concoction or not, he lacked the sharp and strong Divine Sense needed to properly produce a pill of such quality.

With a thin smile on his face, Xiao Chen asked, “So, Senior? What say you of this?”

Frowning, Lord Black Sand gave the teal-robed elder a sharp, piercing look as the latter fumbled to calm himself, before finally managing to put up a stern countenance. “Where did you find this?”

Xiao Chen leaned back into his chair comfortably and muttered coolly, “As a matter of fact, I made it myself.”

“You made it?!” the teal-robed elder’s voice rose but a few decibels, clearly doubting what he heard. Even as the Annihilation Times loomed near, the standing of Elixir Masters in the Violet Manor remained very strong, especially those highly-ranked, whose crafts and skills hardly confined only to potion-brewing. Could it be that this young man, a young man only in his early twenties, be a highly-ranked Elixir Master?

Yet, Xiao Chen could never be viewed as an Elixir Master in the strictest sense. It was common for practitioners of the arcane arts to wield a certain degree of knowledge in concocting or brewing elixirs but that did not make them qualified Elixir Masters. To be one, one had to study a specialized field of medicine and Xiao Chen knew nothing about healing at all.

The teal-robed elder’s gaze turned keener and his voice deeper. “There are words that one such as you should never say, young friend. You’d better be able to back up what you just say, or you might not walk out of here alive…”

His tone was enough to make cold sweat break out on the backs of Yang Qing and his friends, yet Xiao Chen looked calm and composed enough. His casual and lackadaisical gaze turned as sharp as a blade as he hissed quietly, “If you’d like a test…”

The atmosphere congealed into a tense silence. The teal-robed elder was undoubtedly an Elixir Saint specialized in brewing elixirs, Xiao Chen was sure, but unlike Liu Liancheng, who was also an Elixir Saint himself, his healing skills paled abysmally.

Elixir Masters came in two breeds: masters of brewing elixirs and masters of healing. The former usually wielded higher levels of magical cultivation whilst the latter, despite their incredible and unfathomable talent in saving lives and restoring health, could hardly swing a sword as well as a child. Nevertheless, Elixir Masters skilled in healing were often regarded as “thwarters of Death”, for they could even reserve the direst state of a man’s sickness. Yet, Elixir Masters skilled in brewing elixirs were not without their own brand of terror, for they were skilled enough to concoct poison that could easily kill people without shedding not even a drop of blood.

And since ages ago, the divide between both schools of medicine had only grown wider with the contest for standing and prestige between either faction raged on. The Masters exclusive in elixir-brewing have only the deepest loathing for Masters uniquely skilled in healing and similarly, the latter belittled the former for being ignorant and incompetent.

“Bring in the cauldron!” Lord Black Sand growled.

“No need!” Xiao Chen barked, “No Elixir Master travels without bringing his own cauldron.” He flailed his sleeve and produced his Wonder Wood Cauldron. The teal-robed elder gawked at the sight of the little purplish cauldron, unable to take his eyes off it.

Xiao Chen waved a hand, magically summoning the Pill of Massing Vigor to him. With a burst of True Energy, he broke down the pill into dust that hovered in midair, shocking everyone with his ability to instantly dissolve and anatomize pills!

The teal-robed elderly Elixir Saint’s gaze changed completely. A pill that he had worked for one full day and night to brew had just been easily broken down to its barest in just a single blink of an eye. Just how strong was his Divine Sense?! Right from that very moment, the Elixir Saint had no more reason to doubt the words of the young man before him.

A faint smile lined across Xiao Chen’s face as he magically directed the levitating contents of the pill into the Wonder Wood Cauldron. His other hand came up and pointed at the Cauldron, shooting three little spurts of greenish flames, and more voices cried out, “The True Fire of Samadhi!”

All three little flames formed three layers of conflagration that engulfed the Wonder Wood Cauldron, the sight of which filled the teal-robed elderly Elixir Saint with amazement, for he could not properly conjure the True Fire of Samadhi.

After a half-hour, the soft scent of medicinal herbs wafted from inside the Cauldron. Knowing that the pill was ready, Xiao Chen waved a hand, dispelling the magic of his True Fire of Samadhi and the Cauldron’s lid popped open with a thicker aroma flooding the room. A white little pill floated into the air, rising from inside the Cauldron. It remained the same Pill of Massing Vigor, glowing with a faint white luster, but without its former flaws.

“Th-This…” the expression on the face of the teal-robed Elixir Saint had utterly shifted. With just a half-hour, his Pill of Massing Vigor had been further refined to a higher tier. What incredible skills in brewing elixirs this young man wielded and what impossibly-powerful spiritual senses he possessed?

Even Lord Black Sand could no longer rein in his apprehensiveness and curiosity. He took the pill into his hand and studied it closely himself amidst the surprised and amazed looks around him. Yet the teal-robed elderly Elixir Saint was the only one person in this chamber who fully comprehended the wondrous skills Xiao Chen possessed in elixir-making – a testament to the young man’s prowess and talent which could easily eclipse his own rank and stature.

In truth, he overestimated Xiao Chen, who had had experience in brewing pills of similar nature and after much study with the Elixir King Scripture, it was hardly a wonder his skill in elixir-making improved.

The teal-robed Elixir Saint immediately put on a more respectful tone. Clasping his hands in salute, he spoke, “My name is Ouyang Zi. May I know yours, young friend?”

“I hail from the family Xiao, and my name is Chen. Xiao Chen,” said Xiao Chen coolly.

On by then, Yang Qing and his companions breathed easily, fully relieved at last. They did not expect Xiao Chen to possess such great skill in elixir-making. Even the other guests in the hall braced with awe and astonishment at Ouyang Zi’s sudden change of demeanor, which made Xiao Chen a more valuable guest than all of them put together. Still, only Lord Black Sand remained relatively glum and gloomy.

Ouyang Zi bowed again and said with a friendly tone, “If I may ask, from whence did you learn your skills from, young friend?”

He found it hard to imagine that anyone in the Wastelands was able to produce a student with such remarkable aptitude. He felt it unbelievable, if not dissatisfied and jealous.

Xiao Chen peered at him and said gently, “Truth be told, Master Ouyang. My teacher is a…” Every pair of ears in the hall were trained his way to pick up every syllable that escaped his lips. “… a Sage of Healing.”

A still silence pervaded the entire chamber as if the words “Sage of Healing” reverberated through the crowd like the echoing toll of a bell. Even Lord Black Sand’s expression shifted uncontrollably and the pretty young woman in short skirt hid her opened mouth behind a hand quickly, with admiration rippling in her eyes.

Ouyang Zi’s face turned a pallid pale. A Sage of Healing… Tier-7 Elixir Masters were acclaimed as Elixir Immortals, Tier-8 as Sages, and Tier-9 as Gods. One might have heard of Sages of Healing, but almost never clapped eyes on one; not even once in a lifetime for most people, for even Elixir Immortals came as rare as a hen’s teeth.

With hardly anyone able to make not so much as a croak, Xiao Chen’s chuckle broke the still silence, “And I am out on my pilgrimage of the lands. Unfortunately, two of my friends were taken away by the Black Horns. So here I am, hoping that I can solve this problem without bothering my teacher.”

The mood in the chamber began to soothe. Lord Black Sand, maintaining his sharp glare, growled, “Very well! Let’s dispense with the six million Spirit Stones. But in return for saving your people, you will produce twenty Pills of Massing Vigor with similar quality as this tonight! You’d have your friends back tomorrow night!”

Ouyang Zi thought he heard wrongly. Producing a pair of Medium-tiered Pills had cost him one full day and night, and one could almost argue that even gods or deities could hardly replicate the feat in half the time, let alone producing Pills of higher quality. But before he could say anything to object, Xiao Chen murmured calmly, “So be it.”

He peered at Ouyang Zi as soon as he finished and said, “If I might trouble you, Master Ouyang, to help me with the preparations.”

Ouyang Zi smiled weakly. A Elixir Saint, to do the menial jobs that acolytes and slaves performed? That sounded too ludicrous for words.

“Good!” Lord Black Sand hooted loudly, his fist banging into the table. To the gorgeous young lady in short skirt by his side, he said, “Ningyan, take our guests to have a rest.” His gaze quickly panned back to Xiao Chen and he leaned forward, his glare turning fierce and menacing, “And if you fail…” He let his voice hang as his eyes traveled up to study at everyone behind Xiao Chen and Yang Qing immediately felt a chill running down his back.

The young woman called Ningyan smiled. She came to Xiao Chen with the grace of a swan and smile at him. “Please come with me, Master Xiao.”

The company of six followed the young lady in short skirt to the back of the hall where they found themselves in a scenic courtyard adorned with bridges hanging over bubbling little brooks, gazebos and artificial rockeries and beautiful ponds. A tranquil and peaceful little garden. As if intentional, Ningyan left Xiao Chen there alone, while she arranged for the others further elsewhere, most likely under supervision.

Come evening, Ouyang Zi had people brought Xiao Chen the items he needed. To brew twenty Pills of Massing Vigor in one single night was no easy feat. In truth, he had zero confidence; it was all just a facade to intimidate the Black Sands.

As night descended mildly, Lord Black Sand sat in his chair in his penthouse, looking absolutely gloomy. The young lady called Ningyan stood before him, her legs clasped together nervously, her arms crossed before her little belly and her head lowered with not a word from her.

“Ningyan…” Lord Black Sand glared at her, hissing her name.

“Yes, Lord,” answered Ningyan meekly.

“Use whatever means tonight. Even if it means losing your chastity to him. I want to know about him – his truth and his origins… or else…” His voice stopped and he shot a sharp look at Ningyan that she shuddered and whimpered, “I’d do my best…”

“I don’t want your best. I expect only success!” snarled Lord Black Sand. “Or come the fifteenth of this month, I’d have you given as a gift to the Ancient Horror of the Mountains. Everyone knows how he loves chaste and pure maidens, especially on the night of a full moon…”

“Th-The… An-Ancient Horror of the Mountains…”

All color drained from Ningyan’s face as the grotesquely horrible image of a monster appeared in her mind. Her heart raced, and she panted wildly and rapidly, her fair chest heaving and puffing uncontrollably in terror.