Seeing Bian Yixia so confident, Zou Feng felt much more at ease.
Although Bian Yixia had always been known for her recklessness, her strength was definitely among the top Seventh Grade Experts in all of Yuan Guang County.
After all, if she were weak and still so reckless, the grass on her grave would have been ten feet tall by now.
’So why would that Sun Kai from the Mountain and River Association dare to issue a challenge, knowing full well Bian Yixia is not to be trifled with?’
"Miss, what’s the Mountain and River Association’s beef with us, anyway?"
Logically, the Mountain and River Association currently had the advantage in this conflict. There was really no need for them to make such a high-stakes gamble with a one-on-one duel right now.
"Beef?" Bian Yixia replied casually. "It’s just fighting over territory. We’ve both had casualties."
"I know what you’re getting at, but it doesn’t matter what schemes Sun Kai has. Once I pound him into paste, it’ll all be for nothing!"
Hearing that Bian Yixia had considered this possibility, Zou Feng said no more.
By now, the sky had darkened, so he took his leave and returned to the pharmacy.
Finally, he had a moment to himself to see what was inside the Immortal Treasure Bottle he had acquired.
Although it was a treasure that had practically fallen into his lap, forcing his hand, Zou Feng also realized he could no longer afford to cultivate at his old, leisurely pace.
Today’s encounter had been incredibly dangerous. If the two Gang Qi Realm experts hadn’t been occupied with each other, it was hard to say whether he could have escaped so smoothly.
Originally, as the Medicine Hall Master of the Black Flood Dragon Gang, he was in a support role. Even with the chaos caused by the Ten Directions Sect, he didn’t have to fight to the death on the front lines.
Normally, he spent his time studying the lore of the Poison Dao, sparring with Bian Yixia to gain practical combat experience, and frantically practicing his Evil Skills.
Only when he lacked the necessary resources would he go out to stir up trouble, "go fishing" for targets, or find some high-value mark.
Zou Feng had been quite satisfied with this cultivation pace, allowing him to break through steadily and safely.
But after the recent incident where he was nearly killed, Zou Feng realized he had been a bit too complacent before.
Gang Qi Realm Martial Artists had already appeared in Yuan Guang County, and two of them at that.
On top of that, a chaotic era had begun, and gangs like the Mountain and River Association were becoming aggressive, dead set on taking down the Black Flood Dragon Gang.
’If the Black Flood Dragon Gang is destroyed,’ he thought, ’I’ll lose my comfortable cultivation routine.’
’And once the Black Flood Dragon Gang collapses, I probably won’t be able to stay in Yuan Guang West County. I’ll likely become a stray dog, forced to leave my home and start over somewhere else, somewhere perhaps even more dangerous...’
’Furthermore, High Grade Martial Artists can use Mystical Inference Skills, and I’ve already killed a Seventh Grade from the Celestial Essence Sword Sect.’
’Although the Ten Directions Sect is taking the blame for Su Changqing’s death, what if they decide to reinvestigate the matter after they’re done fighting over the Immortal Treasure...’
This flood of potential troubles sent Zou Feng into a panic.
He truly couldn’t continue cultivating at his old pace. He had to advance to the Seventh Grade as soon as possible.
His Eighth Grade Realm no longer offered him even a shred of security.
Even being an Abnormal Eighth Grade, capable of instantly killing others at the same level, was completely useless now.
Against the Gang Qi Body Protection of a Gang Qi Realm Martial Artist, his attacks would probably feel like little more than a light scratch.
Therefore, Zou Feng had already decided: in the next two days, he would immediately recall the Gu Poison he was cultivating outside, make a few other preparations, and then attempt to break through to the Peak of Perfection realm with his Five Poison Fire Lotus Palm.
If he still couldn’t achieve a breakthrough by then, he wouldn’t wait any longer. With a foundation of three skills at the Refined Skill level, advancing to Seventh Grade should be a natural progression.
And the quality of his breakthrough would be superior as well.
It had to be said that Chen Jingsheng’s death had affected Zou Feng quite a bit.
Chen Jingsheng had died a wrongful death. He hadn’t provoked anyone, but had unwittingly become a courier for an Immortal Treasure, and was then swept up in the conflict between the Ten Directions Sect and the Celestial Essence Sword Sect...
Zou Feng couldn’t help but wonder, ’Do these Major Sects really need one more Immortal Treasure that badly?’
The next moment, Zou Feng took out the small bottle and began to examine it by the moonlight.
The body of the bottle was devoid of any pattern, and its material was unidentifiable.
He gave it a shake. There was no sound. It probably didn’t contain elixirs; it even felt like it might be empty.
After taking proper precautions, Zou Feng opened the stopper.
Instantly, a refreshing and heart-soothing fragrance wafted out.
Zou Feng peered cautiously into the bottle and, just as he’d suspected, saw no elixirs inside.
The bottle contained a viscous-looking liquid.
’What is this?’
Zou Feng frowned. For now, he didn’t dare consume the substance directly.
He knew that currently, the List of Gods only contained a single Poison Cultivator: Li Li.
So if the side effects of consuming this liquid were so great that even Li Li couldn’t handle them and kicked the bucket, Zou Feng would be left without a successor, which would put him in deep trouble.
Besides, his intuition as a Poison Cultivator told him this stuff definitely wasn’t some beneficial Jade Dew.
’Did I take such a huge risk to get this thing, only for it to be completely useless?’
Just as he was hesitating, wondering if he should find some common birds or beasts to test the poison on, a familiar buzzing sound suddenly came from outside his window.
The window was open, so the moment the buzzing started, Zou Feng turned and saw that it was Xiaolv, whom he hadn’t seen for a long time, returning.
The Gu Insect had disappeared after taking the opportunity to devour Su Changqing’s flesh and blood and then falling into a deep sleep.
At the time, Zou Feng had guessed that Xiaolv might have found a hidden place to molt and evolve. Now, it seemed he was right.
Xiaolv’s body was clearly a size larger than before, and its appearance was even more ferocious and terrifying.
Its tail’s Poison Hook was especially strange, now colored half-red and half-green.
Without a doubt, Xiaolv’s toxicity had increased dramatically. He should be able to use its venom to continue cultivating his Five Poison Fire Lotus Palm.
"So you decided to come back, huh?" With that, Zou Feng extended his hand toward Xiaolv.
It was worth noting that ever since he started cultivating the Five Poison Skill, he had completely lost his aversion to all kinds of poisonous insects and creatures.
The more bizarre and venomous an insect looked, the more it gave him an impulse akin to wanting to pet a cat.
However, when Zou Feng reached out this time, he received no response from Xiaolv.
The Gu Insect actually flew around Zou Feng’s hand, heading straight for the small bottle on the table.
It was clearly eager, even trying to stick its head into the bottle to drink the unknown liquid.
Seeing this, Zou Feng’s smile vanished. In a low, slow voice, he said, "Xiaolv..."
"You’d best not touch anything I haven’t given you permission to eat!"
At these words, Xiaolv froze for a moment, then obediently turned and flew onto Zou Feng’s hand.
Zou Feng then picked up the small bottle and waved it in front of Xiaolv.
"Are you sure you want to drink some of this stuff?"
Xiaolv flapped its wings even more furiously.
Seeing this, Zou Feng decided to just let it have a taste.
He knew that these Gu Insects possessed a powerful, almost inexplicable intuition for things that could benefit them.
Slowly tilting the bottle, Zou Feng poured out a single drop of the liquid.
Xiaolv immediately and eagerly opened its mouth and drank it down.
The moment the liquid went down, Xiaolv acted as if it were drunk and plunged toward the floor.
With quick reflexes, Zou Feng caught it.
He initially thought there was a problem, but upon closer inspection, he discovered that Xiaolv had simply fallen into another deep sleep.
At the same time, a third color began to slowly emerge on its Poison Hook.
Soon, its Poison Hook was an interweaving pattern of red, green, and black.
’It can benefit a Gu Insect... could this liquid really be some kind of Exotic Poison?’
’Thinking about it, it’s a good thing I was the one who got this. If it had fallen into anyone else’s hands, even a Ninth or Eighth Grade Martial Artist, the outcome would have likely been fatal.’
’The reason is simple. After opening the stopper, just smelling that heart-soothing fragrance is enough to be considered poisoned.’
’Even a Seventh Grade would be in great danger. Take someone like Chen Jingsheng, a Seventh Grade who already had many hidden issues in his body—if he were to smell this stuff...’
’Only a being like myself, who is practically a walking embodiment of poison, could ignore its fragrance.’
So, while these things were indeed treasures, for a Low Grade Martial Artist without sufficient knowledge, a treasure could turn into a deadly weapon at any moment.
Zou Feng couldn’t help but think of the various bladed weapons that had flown out at the time.
’Could those weapon-type "Immortal Treasures" have something like an Artifact Spirit that could, in turn, control their wielder...’
’Luckily, my luck is pretty good. Getting this bottled Exotic Poison is a perfect match for my specialization.’
’With this, my chances of breaking through to the Peak Realm with my Five Poison Fire Lotus Palm should be even greater!’
「Two days later.」
There was still no news of Chen Jingsheng, and the Everlasting Lamp in the gang’s hall, lit with his Essence Blood, had already gone out.
This was clear confirmation that Chen Jingsheng had been killed.
With a Hall Master lost, the Black Flood Dragon Gang naturally launched a full investigation, but as expected, they found nothing.
Only Wang Xingjian and Zou Feng knew the real reason, but the two of them couldn’t make it public.
As for the outcome of the fierce battle between the Celestial Essence Sword Sect and the Ten Directions Sect, no one knew besides those who were present and survived.
Although he still had many worries about the future, Zou Feng was greatly relieved that no new names had appeared on the List of Gods—especially not the names of the two Gang Qi Realm experts he had heard, Fang Jingchuan and Shen Xuan.
But he had a nagging feeling that something big was about to happen, so he abandoned his step-by-step cultivation routine and began to recall the Gu Poison he had been cultivating.
These Gu People were all degenerates he had vetted beforehand, so he felt no burden in "reclaiming" what he had cultivated from them.
However, after "harvesting" them, Zou Feng didn’t kill the scoundrels immediately. Instead, he tied them up and took them to the depths of a stinking ditch outside Yuan Guang County Town.
He recalled coming here often to capture poisonous creatures back when he was still a household slave.
A dozen or so people were thrown into a natural pit next to the ditch, while Zou Feng stood outside, mixing the venom he would use for his cultivation.
The reason he hadn’t killed them yet—and had deliberately revealed his identity to them—was, of course, to get them all on the list and make use of their final moments.