Shocking the Nine Heavens With My Sword-Chapter 715 - 692: Deciding on a Plan (3/3)

All the members of the Lian Family who had previously coveted Ying Mengfan and her two companions had been slaughtered, so this branch of the Lian Family had no idea they were now being targeted by an ominous star. They were cheerfully proposing various conditions to Zhou Heng, hoping to recruit the young pharmacist.

——"To be a Five Stars Pharmacist at such a young age, his prospects are limitless!"

Zhou Heng naturally saw the Lian Family in a "different light," politely declining other families’ recruitment offers, but left a hint of interest with the Lian Family, creating in them an illusion full of hopeful expectations.

Whether he joined them or not, flattering a Five Stars Pharmacist was a must, and Zhou Heng’s room was piled with gifts from various major families. If not for his possession of a Space Artifact, there would have been no room to store them all.

And as Zhou Heng’s status rose abruptly, the Heavenly Treasure Pavilion paid him more attention. They soon sent word that the Immortal Residence Zhou Heng had been looking for was now in stock.

This was something Zhou Heng had been searching for a long time as a replacement for the Nine Mystic Trial Tower. Hearing the news, he was overjoyed, but the price also made him grimace painfully.

It was as high as eight hundred thousand Upper Grade Immortal Stones!

"Young Master Zhou, the space inside this Immortal Residence is vast. In fact, according to its true value, we start the bidding at eight hundred thousand Upper Grade Immortal Stones during our auctions!" said the elder from Heavenly Treasure Pavilion.

This was a gaunt old man, a high-tier Sunshine Emperor named Liu Qibian. Although his cultivation realm was much higher than Zhou Heng’s, Zhou Heng’s even more dazzling identity as a Five Stars Pharmacist meant Liu Qibian had to address him respectfully as Young Master Zhou.

Pharmacists were among the few whose status wasn’t determined by their cultivation realm.

Zhou Heng couldn’t help but smile wryly, saying, "Eight hundred thousand Upper Grade Immortal Stones, even if you killed me, I couldn’t produce such an amount!"

He had struck it rich before, but eight hundred thousand Upper Grade Immortal Stones was still a terrifying fortune in North Wu City. Although it wouldn’t necessarily bankrupt most of the wealthy clans, it would definitely make them hurt for thousands or even tens of thousands of years!

"Haha, how could I dare to push Young Master Zhou to death!" Liu Qibian laughed heartily, then suddenly turned serious and said, "Actually, we can extend credit for this Immortal Residence to Young Master Zhou, just as long as you provide us with a batch of Pills!"

What a ruthless plan!

Generally speaking, a Five Stars Pharmacist could only concoct Fifth Grade Pills—at least if they were able to concoct higher, wouldn’t they be Six Stars or Seven Stars Pharmacists? Even the top-grade goods among Fifth Grade Pills sold for at most thirty to forty thousand Upper Grade Immortal Stones at auction!

Given the Pill Success Rate of a Five Stars Pharmacist, after deducting the cost of materials and such, how long would it take to pay back eight hundred thousand Upper Grade Immortal Stones?

At least a hundred years!

Thus, this was equivalent to tying Zhou Heng down to the Heavenly Treasure Pavilion here, and a hundred years was enough time for Heavenly Treasure Pavilion to find new treasures to tempt Zhou Heng, continuing to make him owe more Immortal Stones until he willingly, or by force of circumstance, had to dedicate his life to the Heavenly Treasure Pavilion!

Zhou Heng smiled slightly, with a strange look as he gazed at Liu Qibian. Such tactics could only be used on ordinary Five Stars Pharmacists, but who was he? Reincarnation of the Medicine Venerate, he never needed to worry about Pill Success Rates.

"Young fellow, you’re so shameless, you’ve stolen all my credit!" grumbled the Fire Divine Furnace from within the Dantian.

"You’re my Treasure Artifact; what’s yours is mine!" responded Zhou Heng with his Divine Sense.

Liu Qibian, being of a higher realm than Zhou Heng, could sense the fluctuations in Zhou Heng’s Divine Sense, but he thought Zhou Heng was just pondering the pros and cons and didn’t take it to heart. Why did his smile seem so peculiar, though?

It was as if Zhou Heng was the real hunter, and he was the prey that had just stepped into a trap!

Strange, why did he feel this way?

"Elder Liu, what Pills do I need to concoct and how many of each?" Zhou Heng was determined to obtain the Immortal Residence, so he knowingly stepped into the trap, convinced that the trap wouldn’t work on him, thereby making the Heavenly Treasure Pavilion shed some blood for once.

"Fire Star Pills, ten units; True Wolf Pills, twenty units; Essence Blood Pills, ten units..." Liu Sanbian listed off a long string of Pills, "We will provide the materials, but we require at least a 40% Pill Success Rate for each batch of materials, otherwise, Young Master Zhou will have to pay for the extra materials!"

How truly ruthless!

The total amount of these Pills was approaching five hundred. If they were all of one kind, Zhou Heng would naturally improve with practice, increasing his Pill Success Rate. But with a variety like this, there was no chance for proficiency—this was purely a test of raw ability!

How could a newly minted Five Stars Pharmacist possibly have the skill to concoct whatever Pill he wished?

Thus, with Zhou Heng’s failures mounting up, not to mention paying off debt, he would end up owing more and more!

And when the debts piled up, aside from joining the Heavenly Treasure Pavilion, what other choice would he have?

However, at least the Heavenly Treasure Pavilion was aboveboard, giving one the choice not to step into it from the start.

"Okay!" Zhou Heng agreed without hesitation.

"Ha——" Now it was Liu Qibian’s turn to be taken aback. He had initially offered a price expecting plenty room for negotiation and was prepared to cut it by half. However, he never imagined that Zhou Heng would agree so readily.

But he was a businessman, and after his moment of surprise, he promptly smiled broadly and said, "Young Master Zhou is truly a decisive man, it’s a deal!" Fearing that Zhou Heng might change his mind, he quickly added, "I will arrange for the materials to be delivered immediately!"

Then he slipped away, not giving Zhou Heng a chance to retract his word.

The old rascal!

Zhou Heng couldn’t help but laugh. When it came to Alchemy, who did he fear?

"Young one, your old Furnace here is going to suffer again!" lamented the Fire Divine Furnace.

"Exotic Fire!" Zhou Heng said just one sentence.

"Hard work is nothing. I eat your food, use your stuff, play with your things, and help you out—it should be only right. Kid, I’m warning you, don’t you dare mention ’Exotic Fire’ again. We’re like brothers, aren’t we? Mention Exotic Fire one more time, and I’ll have it out with you!" The Fire Divine Furnace immediately went off the charts with its obnoxious attitude.

Zhou Heng’s mouth twitched slightly, unable to determine whether the Fire Divine Furnace or the Black Donkey was more shameless.

Before long, Heavenly Treasure Pavilion did indeed send over a large batch of materials, and of course, a special Space Artifact—the Immortal Residence!

Upon inspecting the Immortal Residence with his Divine Sense, Zhou Heng was shocked to find that the space inside was as big as a small town! No wonder it was priced at eight hundred thousand Upper Grade Immortal Stones. Liu Qibian hadn’t lied to him; it was truly worth it!

He began Alchemy, and in less than half a day turned all the materials into Pills, totaling an astonishing one thousand nine hundred!

Liu Qibian had provided the materials based on a forty percent Pill Success Rate, but the Fire Divine Furnace’s Pill Success Rate had exceeded one hundred percent—It could only be said that the current level of Alchemy was too poor, so the requirements for a hundred percent success rate had greatly decreased.

In other words, not only did Heavenly Treasure Pavilion not cheat him, but they had also given him nearly one thousand five hundred Fifth Grade Pills for free!

The value of these extra Pills did not include the cost of the materials, so their value far exceeded three times eight hundred thousand Immortal Stones! Roughly calculating, they were worth at least five million Upper Grade Immortal Stones! Heavenly Treasure Pavilion is full of good people! He praised inwardly.

—If Liu Qibian knew the true facts, he would surely have spit out blood in frustration!

Zhou Heng handed over exactly five hundred Pills to Liu Qibian. After the Pharmacist had counted and verified them on the spot, the transaction was completed.

Liu Qibian’s face looked as if he had swallowed a dead fly, but his eyes looking at Zhou Heng were now filled with even greater fervor!

To produce five hundred Pills of over thirty varieties in just half a day was incredible! This was not something a Five Stars Pharmacist could do; it had to be at least a Six Stars... no, a Six Stars Pharmacist couldn’t manage either, it would take at least a Seven Stars, or even Eight Stars Pharmacist!

Such a talent must be recruited by Heavenly Treasure Pavilion!

Liu Qibian thought to himself, determined to enlist Zhou Heng no matter the cost. This was a rising star, bright and dazzling, enough to illuminate the entire Immortal Realm!

Leaving Heavenly Treasure Pavilion, Zhou Heng let the ladies and the Black Donkey enter the Immortal Residence before heading to Three Swords Mountain. His goal was to destroy this source of evil and, incidentally, to search for Bone Dissolving Grass.

However, even after four days of searching Three Swords Mountain, he found nothing unusual, nor any trace of Bone Dissolving Grass.

Zhou Heng was not discouraged. The Lian Family would certainly hide their Mysterious Yin Physiques very well. If they had been easy to find, wouldn’t their secret have been exposed hundreds or thousands of years ago?

Therefore, it was time to draw the snake out of its hole!

Ying Mengfan, Han Yiyao, and Han Yulian drew lots, with the winner acting as the bait, deliberately allowing the Lian Family to capture her and thus revealing their lair. Ying Mengfan was the one who drew the lot.

"You need to act convincingly. Tonight you’ll come with me to a banquet held by the Lian Family. I believe someone will recognize your Mysterious Yin Physique for sure. Then, tomorrow, find some excuse to go out alone," Zhou Heng considered before instructing her.

"Mm!" Ying Mengfan nodded, her eyes sultry, and she rubbed her body against Zhou Heng like a snake, cooing, "The Emperor can’t neglect feeding his soldiers!"

...

The Immortal Residence was spacious, and it was already furnished with a grand mansion; there was plenty of room for each lady to have her own space, and there was still room to spare. Moreover, now that Huo Tian could control her strength, she could finally move into the Immortal Residence as well.

That night, Zhou Heng and Ying Mengfan set out to visit the Lian Family, while the ladies and the Black Donkey stayed within the Immortal Residence.

The visit from a Five Stars Pharmacist naturally caused a flurry of activity in the Lian Family; they could not wait to treat Zhou Heng as if he were an ancestor.

The dinner went incredibly smooth, only concluding late into the night. The Lian Family eagerly invited Zhou Heng to stay overnight, which he agreed to, but mentioned he would still have to accompany Ying Mengfan shopping the next day.

But he had drunk too much and couldn’t wake up the next day; frustrated, Ying Mengfan left alone.

...

"Old Ancestor, that is a Mysterious Yin Physique, and her talent is unmatched! I can sense that nature’s spiritual energy gravitates toward her, continuously flowing into her body. With every passing moment, she is improving!" said an elder of the Lian Family.

"Given time, this woman might very well become the Sublimation Emperor, or even the Creation King!"

"Such a Crucible is sought after once in a billion years!"

"Although Five Stars Pharmacists are rare, our Lian Family doesn’t have as great a need for Pills as other families. Compared to the Mysterious Yin Physique, Five Stars Pharmacists are not worth mentioning!"

"So to avoid future trouble—" freewebnσvel.cѳm

"Kill Zhou Heng, and seize that Mysterious Yin Physique!"

"No, we must seize the Mysterious Yin Physique, but also recruit the Five Stars Pharmacist! Lian Kang, make sure to handle this cleanly, without leaving behind any trace. If Zhou Heng loses a beloved wife, we can use the beauties from our family to win him over. With some pillow talk, we can surely make him willing to join us!"

"A brilliant strategy, Old Ancestor!"

(This content has been modified due to word count constraints. As the original word count has been set, the modifications had to exceed this count. Sorry for any inconvenience!) (This content has been modified due to word count constraints. As the original word count has been set, the modifications had to exceed this count. Sorry for any inconvenience!) To be continued. If you enjoy this work, feel free to vote with recommendation tickets and monthly tickets on Qidian (qidian.com). Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users can read on m.qidian.com.