Desolate Devouring Art

Chapter 204 - Well Plotted

The hall fell silent as a young man appeared on the battlefield, wielding a blade. His gaze swept over everyone before settling on Jiang Yue.

Lan Ruoyu, upon seeing Liu Wuxie, reacted as if a cat whose tail had been stepped on. It was Liu Wuxie who had caused her expulsion from the Treasure Pill Pavilion.

Now an official alchemist, she still harbored resentment for the past humiliation he had caused her. Her eyes filled with murderous intent at his sight. She was determined that Liu Wuxie, who dared to step into the Cloud Xing Pavilion, would meet his end that day.

“Liu Wuxie, it’s you!” Jiang Yue’s face darkened. He, too, held a grudge against Liu Wuxie for his expulsion from the Treasure Pill Pavilion. He had been preoccupied with refining pills for the Cloud Xing Pavilion and hadn’t had the chance to seek revenge. But now, Liu Wuxie had presented himself.

“I didn’t expect you to become an alchemist of the Cloud Xing Pavilion!” Liu Wuxie retorted coldly, ignoring Geng Ye’s group standing behind him.

“Liu Wuxie, since you dare come to the Cloud Xing Pavilion, you won’t leave here alive!” Xiao Li spat out through gritted teeth. Their hatred for Liu Wuxie was even more profound than Jiang Yue’s.

While Jiang Yue’s expulsion had led to his rise as the chief alchemist in the Cloud Xing Pavilion, others lost their status as alchemists, resulting in a drop in their standing.

“Master Mao, what’s happening?” Liu Wuxie asked, ignoring Xiao Li and turning his attention to Master Mao. Seeing that they were unharmed, he breathed a sigh of relief.

After Master Mao explained the situation in detail, Liu Wuxie finally understood. Master Mao had come to the Cloud Xing Pavilion with the Spiritual Rhyme Pill, intending to expose the truth about the Blood Mirage Pills. Their intentions were noble, but their approach was somewhat misguided.

Telling a drug addict to quit drugs is an uphill battle. The same logic applied here, as these people were already addicted to the Blood Mirage Pills. Therefore, it was no surprise that everyone thought Master Mao’s group was out of their minds for claiming that the Blood Mirage Pills were poisonous.

Indeed, Master Mao’s plan had a significant flaw from the start. To make matters worse, they went directly to the Cloud Xing Pavilion to expose the toxicity of the Blood Mirage Pills. Naturally, the Cloud Xing Pavilion wouldn’t allow anyone to reveal that their pills were poisonous.

“Wuxie, what should we do now? They don’t believe that the Blood Mirage Pills are poisonous!” As long as they could prove that the Blood Mirage Pills were poisonous, the Cloud Xing Pavilion would instantly become the public enemy. Not only would the Treasure Pill Pavilion restore its market share, but it would also be a fatal strike to the Cloud Xing Pavilion.

However, with Liu Wuxie’s appearance, the Cloud Xing Pavilion would be even less likely to let them leave. They would undoubtedly seize this opportunity to eliminate everyone.

“Leave it to me!” With the way things had progressed, Liu Wuxie had no choice but to step forward. He signaled Master Mao’s group of three to remain silent and stand aside.

The Cloud Xing Pavilion didn’t continue to make a move because both sides would suffer enormous casualties if they fought. Liu Wuxie had already intimidated them by ripping apart the formation earlier, causing the fifteen experts to be stunned and standing still in their tracks.

“Ladies and gentlemen, you heard what Master Mao said earlier, right?” Liu Wuxie asked as he swept his gaze around.

“Liu Wuxie, stop spouting nonsense here. There’s no problem with our Blood Mirage Pills!” Jiang Yue took a step forward. He didn’t know whether there was an issue with the Blood Mirage Pills because he was in the high levels of the Marrow Cleansing Realm and didn’t need them.

“We’ll soon find out if we’re spouting nonsense. Don’t tell me that the Cloud Xing Pavilion is afraid to let us prove it.” Liu Wuxie sneered and took the initiative.

It would imply their guilt if the Cloud Xing Pavilion refused to allow him to prove it. However, if they permitted him to prove it, their deceptions and falsehoods would be unveiled.

“Why should we listen to you? You have no right to question whether there’s an issue with the Blood Mirage Pills!” Geng Ye retorted. Geng Ye countered. Regardless of whether there was an issue with the Blood Mirage Pills, Liu Wuxie had no jurisdiction to question it.

Liu Wuxie, maintaining his composure, smiled, “If you’re all so confident that there’s no issue with the Blood Mirage Pills, why are you scared? Could it be that the Blood Mirage Pills are poisonous, and you don’t dare let me prove it on the spot?” His question seemed reasonable. Why would the Cloud Xing Pavilion fear him proving it if there was no issue with the Blood Mirage Pills?

“We’ve been consuming the Blood Mirage Pills for an extended period, and we’ve experienced no adverse effects. The Cloud Xing Pavilion has nothing to fear, so let him prove his point so he can concede.” Numerous cultivators stood by the Cloud Xing Pavilion, convinced that the Blood Mirage Pills were harmless. However, they were unaware that their statements inadvertently aided Liu Wuxie’s strategy.

“Ladies and gentlemen, it’s not that we’re not letting them prove their words, but the Cloud Xing Pavilion has its own rules. How can we break our rules because of an outsider’s words?” Li Wuhai, the pavilion master, stepped forward and addressed the crowd. He knew something that others might not—the Blood Mirage Pills had powerful side effects that hadn’t yet surfaced.

After Prince Yongxian’s power was firmly established in the Great Yan Dynasty, no one would be able to do anything to them, even if the side effects of the Blood Mirage Pills surfaced. They had produced a large quantity of Blood Mirage Pills, earning vast resources to purchase ingredients for the Black Shell Pills. All of this was to pave the way for Prince Yongxian.

The words of the Cloud Xing Pavilion’s pavilion master made the questioning voices disappear. The cultivators who had bought the Blood Mirage Pills no longer said a word because what Li Wuhai said was right.

Master Mao’s group of three became anxious, seeing that the little hope they had was quickly extinguished.

“Wuxie, what should we do now?” Sang Yan asked anxiously.

“Wait!” Liu Wuxie interjected. He had already achieved his objective of planting seeds of doubt in the crowd’s minds. Even though Li Wuhai quickly quelled these doubts, this hint of uncertainty would make things easier for Liu Wuxie.

“Liu Wuxie, if you have nothing else to say, you can meet your end now!” Jiang Yue did not want to waste words with Liu Wuxie and planned to personally exact his revenge. The situation reverted to how it was moments ago, except now there was an additional person, and the Cloud Xing Pavilion encircled them.

“The likes of you want to kill me?” Liu Wuxie sneered. Liu Wuxie sneered, showing no fear of Jiang Yue.

“Such arrogance, even when facing death. Let me deal with you!” Geng Ye, eager to kill Liu Wuxie, drew his weapon and charged.

Just then, a roar echoed from outside, “Everyone, stop!”

The voice belonged to Gao Hong, reverberating throughout the main hall like a wave.

“We’ll soon find out whether there’s an issue with the Blood Mirage Pills!” Gao Hong entered the main hall, dragging a large metal box behind him.

When Liu Wuxie was on his way to the Cloud Xing Pavilion, he had instructed Gao Hong and another alchemist to go elsewhere while he went to the main hall to rescue Master Mao’s group.

The iron box, over three meters tall, was dragged into the main hall as it couldn’t be stored in an interspatial pouch.

“What’s that?” The crowd began to murmur, curious about what the Treasure Pill Pavilion was planning to do.

“What’s going on? Why is my heart beating too fast, like I’m facing a predator?” A commotion came from the crowd, with many people clutching their chests, feeling suffocated. It was as if an invisible pressure was weighing on their souls.

“It’s easy to prove if there’s an issue with the Blood Mirage Pills, and the answer lies in this box,” Liu Wuxie said, pointing to the large box.

“Brat, if you dare to spout nonsense again, don’t blame me for being impolite!” Li Wuhai couldn’t restrain himself any longer. He was well aware of what was inside the box. If the box were opened, the Cloud Xing Pavilion’s efforts over the past month would be wasted. If the Blood Mirage Pills lost their market, their plan to rely on it to purchase ingredients for the Blood Shell Pills would be ruined.

“You all are afraid now?” Liu Wuxie wore a harmless smile. Li Wuhai’s reaction only piqued everyone’s interest in the contents of the box.

“Kill them!” Li Wuhai ordered, intending to eliminate Liu Wuxie’s group to prevent the secret of the Blood Mirage Pills from being revealed.

“You want to silence us?” Liu Wuxie wore a mocking smile without a hint of fear.

“That’s right. We want to kill you today!” Li Wuhai looked at Jiang Yue, hinting that he should act immediately and not drag this matter any longer.

Upon receiving the order, Jiang Yue charged Liu Wuxie directly.

“All of you, stop!” Another group entered the main hall, interrupting Jiang Yue.

“Is that... the patriarch of the Qin Clan?” The crowd recognized an elderly man in his seventies who had just entered the main hall. With each step he took, his aura intensified. He was indeed the patriarch of the Qin Clan, one of the five major clans in the Imperial City, and also the father of Qin Biyu.

The Cloud Xing Pavilion had welcomed a mysterious expert that only Mu Yueying could handle. However, since she had left Imperial City, Liu Wuxie had to resort to an alternative solution as he couldn’t deal with that mysterious expert with his current strength.

There weren’t many people he could rely on for help in the Imperial City. That’s when he thought of someone who wasn’t afraid of the Cloud Xing Pavilion, the Qin Clan.

When Liu Wuxie had parted ways with Prince Ruyang and his wife, Qin Biyu had given him a jade pendant as a token of gratitude. She had told him that if he encountered any trouble in the Imperial City, he could seek her father’s help with the jade pendant.

“Patriarch Qin, are you going to get involved in the internal affairs of our Cloud Xing Pavilion?”

Each of the five major clans in the Imperial City had an ancestor in the True Core Realm, and no one could afford to offend them. Evidently, Li Wuhai hadn’t expected the Qin Clan’s patriarch to turn up in the Cloud Xing Pavilion.

“I have no interest in meddling in your affairs. My only concern is whether the Blood Mirage Pills are poisonous, as many disciples from my Qin Clan have been consuming them recently. Therefore, I must investigate this matter!” The words of Patriarch Qin were reasonable, and he even subtly acknowledged Liu Wuxie with a nod. He was already aware of Liu Wuxie’s role in saving Prince Ruyang and his wife.