by Translator: BornToBe; Author: Ordinary Magician (平凡魔术师); Licensed From: 17k
Once he completed the refinement, he revealed nine shining medicinal pills that had a halo of light around them.
“Boss, you really are amazing. That’s another full furnace of high grade pills.” Both Guo Ran and Gu Yang were full of praise.
A full furnace referred to a furnace containing the absolute limit of nine medicinal pills. But the odds of a full furnace were extremely low. Refining just five or six pills in one furnace was already very good. The rest was usually just pill dregs.
Furthermore, amongst those five or six pills, their quality was not usually equal. Some tended to be trash pills or low grade pills. For an ordinary Pill Master, when they attempted to refine a high grade pill, it would be a great success if a single pill in that furnace managed to be high grade. The normal standard was one high grade pill, two middle grade pills, and the rest were either low grade or trash pills.
This was all common knowledge that even Guo Ran and Gu Yang knew. But Long Chen’s success rate when refining had completely toppled their understanding.
They had already watched him refine thirty-nine furnaces of pills, and each time it was a full furnace. There were only two times when a middle grade pill popped in. The rest were all high grade.
Even having personally seen it over thirty times, they were still filled with shock and were unable to believe it. They looked at Long Chen like he was a freak.
Long Chen just smiled slightly. These were not even his own accomplishments, but all thanks to his Pill Sovereign memories and the violet flame. It wasn’t something to be proud of.
The only regretful thing to him was that his current pill furnace was absolute garbage, and he didn’t dare use his full strength when refining. His pill furnace wouldn’t be able to handle the full power of his flame and would explode. Otherwise, he would be able to refine ringed high grade pills, which were the pinnacle of the high grade classification. The medicinal effect would multiply.
It had to be known that once a pill’s medicinal essence had reached the level of a high grade pill, each little further advancement in the pill’s quality was very difficult. But at the same time, each little advancement would multiply its effect, and its price would soar by dozens of times.
This was also a reason why Long Chen could let everyone undergo complete tempering.
After running into Bai Ling and learning about the Huayun Sect, his mood had become much more lively. He had such powerful alchemy arts, but he hadn’t been able to use them much. Now, he was thinking of collaborating with the Huayun Sect. He could use his alchemy arts to exchange for even more cultivation resources in a way that both sides would profit greatly.
Furthermore, from Bai Ling’s gratefulness and worship towards the Huayun Sect, he could tell that it was a pretty good existence. Although it seemed more like a business than a sect, they were very fair. Within the cultivation world, just how luxurious was fairness?
“Don’t just stare. They’ve cooled down enough to be thrown into a bottle.” The two of them were still looking at the pills in the furnace with an intoxicated expression, so Long Chen prompted them.
Even as he said this, he was already preparing a second furnace to continue refining. He was refining while switching between two furnaces to give them time to cool down. If he repeatedly refined without that step, it was more likely to cause cracks in the furnace. There was no way around that, as his pill furnaces were really just absolute garbage.
For higher grade pill furnaces, their quality improved the more they refined pills. It was like stir-frying food. The more you cooked with it, the more savory the stir-fry would become.
However, Long Chen didn’t have such a thing, and so he could only do his best to get the most out of his few pill furnaces. He had no way to get more here, and so each one that was ruined was permanent. If he ended up with excess ingredients but no usable pill furnace, he would be in trouble.
“Boss, there are quite a few people in the distance watching us sneakily. What should we do?” asked Guo Ran as he carefully placed the medicinal pills into a bottle.
“There’s no need to bother with them. If they dare try to provoke us, just directly kill them,” said Long Chen as he refined.
“Kill them just because of a provocation?” asked a stunned Guo Ran.
“Yes. Provoking us now is different from normal times. If they were to provoke us, they definitely have some ulterior goal, and they most likely were sent by our enemies. Just kill them all.
“Right now, Meng Qi and the others are in the other tent, doing their best to absorb the energy from the Bone Tempering Pills. Although being disturbed won’t bring any danger, it will slow down their rhythm.
“We don’t have time to waste on that. Each little bit of growth will give us a greater chance of survival in the upcoming battle.
“So, if they provoke us, it’s no different from stabbing us with their blades. Whether they actually have any hostility against us or not, kill them all.”
Long Chen was currently rushing to increase everyone’s strength as much as possible. He wasn’t hoping that they would be able to help him with anything, but just that they would have a greater chance of surviving. The scene he dreaded seeing the most was each of them dying in front of him.
In truth, Long Chen was also a bit nervous. From his conversation with Mo Nian, it seemed that Han Tianyu was even more frightening than Yin Luo.
Although the two had not fought yet so there was no way to be sure, Mo Nian had said that he felt a kind of terrifying threat from Han Tianyu. He had also heard that Han Tianyu had found some amazing treasure in the secret realm and was in seclusion, attempting to refine it. It was unknown just what that thing was.
That filled Long Chen with a sensation of crisis. If he was on his own, then even if he couldn’t defeat Han Tianyu, he could at least flee. But what of the people by his side?
His enemies were all contemptible and shameless. Long Chen had already personally experienced their lack of morals. He needed everyone by his side to have the ability to defend themselves before he could fight with his heart at ease.
When it came to a one on one fight, although Han Tianyu seemed to have gained some treasure, Long Chen was not the slightest bit afraid of him. The greatest danger was being too afraid of an enemy to fight.
But only once everyone’s strength had risen would Long Chen dare to go all-out in a battle to kill as many as possible. He had the confidence to kill Han Tianyu.
“Alright, then Gu Yang and I will go out to keep watch. Gu Yang, you’ll be the obvious guard. Go protect the tent with the sister-in-laws. As for me, I’ll be the hidden guard. However, the ground around here is all bare, and there’s nowhere good to hide. I think I’ll set up another tent and lie in wait there, hehe…” Guo Ran laughed but his laugh contained indescribable wretchedness.
“Do whatever you like. Just remember not to disturb us.”
“Hehe…”
Guo Ran laughed mischievously. Since Long Chen didn’t warn him about anything, he left with Gu Yang. Seeing a few distant spies, he immediately hid himself. Boss really was right. Just from how sneaky they’re acting, they’re definitely not some good people. And since they’re not good people, it’ll be easier to handle them.
Following Guo Ran’s plan, Gu Yang obediently sat in front of the tent that the four women were secluded in. They were busy absorbing the Bone Tempering Pills’ energy and had already begun the bone tempering process.
As for Guo Ran, he set himself up in a small tent. From the outside, the only thing that could be heard was some light ringing. It was unknown just what he was doing inside.
In the beginning, those spies didn’t do anything. But as time passed, more and more people arrived. There were now hundreds of people present, and there were even several Chosen.
“Long Chen, you perverted traitor, get the fuck out here!” Suddenly, a loud shout shook all of Compass Mountain.
Chapter 418 Ruthless
“Long Chen, you pe
rverted traitor, get the fuck out here!”
Finally, a Bone Forging Favored stood out and roared. However, he didn’t climb up the mountain, and instead maintained a distance of several miles.
Following that person’s shout, there were immediately quite a few others who walked out, and under that person’s lead, dozens began to make noise.
Guo Ran, who had been almost bored senseless within his tent, immediately awakened, and from a small round hole in the tent, he looked towards those noisemakers. Hehe, the guests have arrived.
“You violently killed the innocent and are both vicious and merciless. You’re the scum of our Righteous path. Today, we’ll take the place of the entire Righteous path to condemn you, you homicidal devil!” shouted another Favored.
“You crazy, mental fellow, did you think that just your ruthless methods would be enough to make us afraid of you?”
“Our Righteous path has innumerable experts. Do you think you can kill them all? Just wait! When Han Tianyu comes out, he’ll personally cut off your head and use your blood to wash away the stain you’ve left on the Righteous path!”
Following one person’s lead, quite a few others began to loudly curse at Long Chen, turning him into the very picture of a villain whose crimes could not be redeemed.
Inside their tent, Meng Qi, Chu Yao, Tang Wan-er, and Lu Fang-er were all in a meditative state as they tempered their bones. They didn’t even hear the sounds from outside.
In the other tent, Long Chen merely sneered when he heard those curses. He continued refining pills.
Long Chen was able to remain indifferent to them, but Gu Yang’s expression sunk. He could tell these idiots had only come to intentionally disturb them. They were all standing far away as they cursed, not daring to get closer. Furthermore, they were all in postures that said they were ready to run at any moment.
That angered Gu Yang so much that killing intent surged out of him. Currently, he had also become a Favored, and after experiencing countless life and death battles, a powerful must-win will had formed within him. He now had the power level of a Chosen.
Standing up, he icily stared at those troublemakers. Pointing his spear at them, he shouted, “If you want to fight, then come. Don’t just shout abuse like fools, as that’ll make people ridicule you, and your ancestors will lose face.”
Those people almost ran when they saw Gu Yang stand up, but seeing that Long Chen hadn’t appeared and the fact that they had so many people by their side, they set aside their nervousness.
“Who do you think you are? Even a dog from the 108th monastery dares to randomly bark at us?”
“Those who stay by Long Chen’s side are definitely not good people. All of you just wait. Once Han Tianyu appears, your judgment day will come.”
“If you’re smart, you’ll just kill yourself now to avoid dying a tragic death in the future. All you idiots from the 108th monastery will…”
Those people were all hurling abuse and curses. Just listening to it caused Gu Yang to flare up. If Long Chen hadn’t told him to keep guard over Meng Qi and the others, he would have already charged out and killed them.
“Don’t get angry because of these idiots, as then you’ll have ended up falling for their trap. I’ve already locked onto all their positions. This brother will help you vent your anger.” Guo Ran’s voice came from the small tent. As soon as he finished speaking, a figure shot out like a bolt of lightning.
One of those experts that had been in the process of cursing suddenly had his body explode, a bloody mist filling the air, causing everyone to jump in fright.
But before they could even understand what was happening, another bang rang out and another person exploded.
“It’s exploding arrows!”
“Fuck, whoever’s secretly shooting arrows, if you have the guts, you’ll-”
A huge arrow silently pierced through that person’s body. A powerful force caused his body to explode, regretfully making it so no one knew what he was about to say.
“Bastard!”
BANG.
BANG.
BANG.
Frightened screams rang out as huge arrows continued to fly out one after another, each one taking a life. Eight people had already died, their broken flesh littering the ground. The air was filled with a pungent bloody smell.
For a moment, everyone was stupefied. They looked up in horror at that mountain. People had finally realized that the arrows were coming from that small tent. In truth, by the second arrow, some people had already realized the arrows were coming from there. However, those arrows were just too bizarre. There was no sound when they flew, and their speed was like lightning. By the time you reacted, it was already too late to dodge.
Eight arrows flew out, taking eight lives. Those eight people had been the ones to curse the most, the ones who had clearly just been trying to provoke them.
Even the few Chosen were alarmed, their scalps turning numb. Such bizarre arrows were practically unblockable. Even if you focused completely on them, it was very difficult to dodge. If they were used as a sneak attack, just how many people would be able to get out alive?
Those people began to flee in panic, trying to find somewhere to hide. They no longer dared to stand out and curse.
At this time, a person walked out of that terrifying small tent. The first thing he did was stretch out his waist and yawn loudly. Taking out a large signboard, he wrote some unsteady words on it and stuck the end into the ground. Putting a finger to his mouth to indicate silence, he swaggered back into his tent in front of everyone’s dumbfounded gazes.
Only then did people react and look at what he had written.
“I’m taking a noon nap, and I don’t like to be disturbed. I’ve prohibited making noise, and violators will have to bear the consequences.”
Seeing those words that had been written crookedly, quite a few people were so angry that their teeth itched. They had seen posers but never such a poser.
This was the secret realm, and there was only constant dusk. Who would know if it was noon or not? This was clearly just treating them as idiots to mess with.
“Fuck y-”
Someone had just shouted when an arrow shot out.
Although that person had hidden himself very well, that arrow still pierced through his body, turning him into mincemeat.
People were both shocked and infuriated. Although they had some suspicions about this person’s abilities, these practically magical arrows were too vicious. They were already far away, at least five miles from the tent. But these arrows were still able to one-shot people.
“Keep making noise, or I won’t have an excuse to kill you.” Hidden within his tent, Guo Ran was holding his Voidbreaking Crossbow. There was a round crystal inserted at the top of it. That crystal had runes carved into it, and it allowed Guo Ran to easily look further into the distance. In truth, this was just an ordinary crystal.
Guo Ran had used some of the runes from the golden page to make it. Ever since Long Chen had given him the secrets that had been on the golden page, Guo Ran had become like a rat that had been starved for countless years and had found a bag of rice. He was constantly researching new things.
But Guo Ran was very depressed that most of it was just explaining profound principles and theories, and there weren’t any detailed procedures. At most, Guo Ran could infer that most of the things recorded on the golden page were incomparably profound. As for those few superficial things recorded on it, they were probably just some simple must-have foundational skills that the Forging Masters of the immortal era had had to possess.
Nowadays, the things from the immortal era had long since disappeared. He, someone with essentially no foundation, a dabbler forger, could not possibly understand or research such profound things.
So right now, there was no way for Guo Ran to comprehend what was written on the golden page. All he could do was see if there were some simple things he could copy.
This crystal was one of
those things. Through the runes on that crystal, he was even able to clearly see every blade of grass in the distance. Furthermore, by looking through the crystal, he wouldn’t arouse the alarm of the experts he watched. In other words, this crystal was able to isolate his gaze from being noticed by divine sense.
As long as Guo Ran didn’t hold too much hate for someone and didn’t release killing intent, it was almost impossible for people to realize that he had set his intentions on them. They wouldn’t even realize they had fallen into peril.
Unless they were a peak expert, there was practically no one that could sense his attacks. As for these ordinary experts, by the time they sensed anything, they would already be dead.
Just this small crystal was enough to immensely improve the power of his Voidbreaking Crossbow. This made Guo Ran so excited he almost raised his head and laughed heartily.
It had to be known that this kind of minor thing was just a drop in the ocean compared to the information contained on the golden page. Guo Ran had truly benefited this time.
“Sneak-attacking despicable brat, you really are the scum of the Righteous path!” Another loud curse suddenly rang out. This person was much smarter and had hidden behind a huge boulder thirty meters thick. There was no way those arrows could pierce such a thick boulder.
“A real idiot.” Guo Ran sneered and took out a fiery-red arrow, replacing the one he had put on his crossbow.
“Long Chen, you’re all a bunch of shameful sons of bitches! The entire Righteous path despises you, and you definitely won’t have a good death-!”
BOOM!
A fiery light shot out, looking like a red bolt of lightning. When it struck that boulder, a terrifying qi wave exploded out.
After the explosion, the place that boulder had been had become a crater. The boulder had been turned to dust, and as for that person…
“Fuck, he wasted one of my Explosive Flame Arrows.” Guo Ran spat on the ground, feeling great distress. Creating just one of those Explosive Flame Arrows was very time-consuming.
However, he also felt very refreshed inside. He now truly understood just how vicious Yin Wushuang was. She had actually instigated a bunch of idiots to intentionally slow down their cultivation.
