The atmosphere was deathly still, and the numerous high-ranking members remained silent.
"It's been so many days, and there's still no news about that madman, Drake. I think I don't need to say it for everyone here to understand what's happened, do I?"
Yuan Feihe, the head of the Yuan family, spoke coldly.
"Undoubtedly, the Zhang family is protecting him!"
A middle-tier martial master spoke in a low voice.
"Not only that, but the protection is exceptionally strong… Drake's assassination skills are far from weak. Even if he couldn't win, he shouldn't have lost his life!"
"It must have been the intervention of a intermediate martial master!"
Another Yuan family executive analyzed.
The others nodded silently in agreement. Indeed, no one would have thought that the famed assassin, Madman Drake, would be killed by a mere advanced quasi-warrior!
Naturally, suspicion fell on the Zhang family.
"The Zhang family's guest expert was supposed to protect the Zhang family, yet now the Zhang family is protecting them… This clearly shows that the rumors are true. This guest expert must be a genius among geniuses!"
"Currently, the Zhang family has completely sealed off all information, leaving not even a hint of news. Initially, I thought we could get a third party involved to resolve this issue and keep the Yuan family out of it… But judging by the current situation, the Yuan family no longer has a choice!"
Murderous intent flickered in Yuan Feihe's eyes. "Yuan Qi!"
An intermediate martial master stood up.
"From now on, conduct a covert search in Base 18 for anyone surnamed Su who is seventeen years old!"
"If there's any trace of spiritual energy fluctuations on them, kill them on the spot!"
Yuan Feihe's voice was icy.
"Understood, Master!" The intermediate martial master nodded and accepted the order.
Everyone present felt an inexplicable chill and an air of deadly seriousness. The master was serious this time!
They all knew this highly talented young individual was utterly doomed!
On the other side, Su Xiaobai was completely unaware that the Yuan family had begun an earnest search for him.
However, to be cautious, Su Xiaobai, while purchasing the ingredients needed for fourth-grade pills, ran around Base 18 wearing a face covering, visiting several places. He spent nearly one million spiritual coins before finally gathering all the materials!
"System, I want to refine pills!"
Back at home, Su Xiaobai immediately gave the command. ᴜᴘᴅᴀᴛᴇ ꜰʀᴏᴍ novel-fire.ɴet
"Host, please place the materials for pill refining and select the type of pill you wish to refine!"
Following the system's instructions, Su Xiaobai put all the materials into place.
"Scanning the host's brain. The formula for the 'Golden Crow Meridian-Protection Pill' has been detected!"
"Materials automatically placed!"
"Refining in progress…"
As the system's notification sounded, all the materials were placed into the pill furnace, the lid closed, and a multicolored progress bar appeared.
It seemed that regardless of the grade of the pill, the time needed was always the same.
From this alone, the one-click alchemy function was enough to drive countless alchemists crazy!
The higher the grade of a pill, the longer it usually took to refine.
Some alchemists even spent an entire month, without sleep or rest, to refine a high-grade pill. This was not uncommon!
Yet even so, there was no guarantee that the pill would be perfectly refined.
No need to sit for a month.
No need to worry about failure.
Just patiently wait for five minutes, and then—
"Ding! Successfully refined pills: Golden Crow Meridian-Protection Pill x3!"
Hearing this heavenly sound of success, Su Xiaobai's eyes lit up instantly.
With a single thought, three warm pills, emitting faint golden-yellow smoke and resembling golden pearls, appeared in his palm.
Fourth-grade Golden Crow Meridian-Protection Pills.
As the name suggests, their purpose is to protect the meridians!
They are highly coveted by many… advanced warriors, beginner martial masters, intermediate martial masters, and even advanced martial masters rely on them for support!
As everyone knows, for warriors to advance, they need to calm their minds, repeatedly break through barriers, and only after succeeding can they move to a higher level.
During this process, spiritual energy within the body is mobilized to continuously cleanse and impact the meridians to break through barriers.
This process is risky.
If things go wrong, the meridians might be damaged!
In minor cases, the result is vomiting blood and needing 10 days to half a month of recovery.
In severe cases, serious internal injuries could permanently hinder future advancements!
This is why some warriors remain stuck at their current level for life.
Similarly, this is why warriors are willing to spend a fortune on these pills—because their future is far more valuable than spiritual coins!
"A single fourth-grade Golden Crow Meridian-Protection Pill is said to be worth at least 15 million spiritual coins, and it's not easy to find one even if you have the money!"
"And now, I suddenly have three, worth 45 million!"
"If I can sell them, this business is far more lucrative than farming monsters automatically!"
Su Xiaobai's excitement surged.
I simply spent a day running around the city to gather materials, then waited for five minutes, and now I am holding 45 million in profits… Such an unbelievable stroke of luck!
The only challenge now is how to turn these three pills into cash.
"When I was buying materials today, the shopkeeper mentioned that Pill Treasure Pavilion is a massive chain specializing in selling and auctioning pills… Maybe I can try consigning them there!"
Su Xiaobai thought to himself.
The larger the venue, the less likely they'd pull any tricks.
It was only in smaller places that one had to worry about deceit.
"But just to be safe, I should still prepare thoroughly!"
A figure dressed in a black cloak, wearing a black mask and gloves, with less than 1% of their skin exposed, appeared at the entrance of Pill Treasure Pavilion.
Who else could it be but Su Xiaobai?
Initially, Su Xiaobai thought his outfit was a bit conspicuous—dressed entirely in black and so thoroughly concealed. Wasn't it obvious he had something to hide?
But upon arriving at Pill Treasure Pavilion, Su Xiaobai realized he wasn't the only one doing this; many others were too!
Some wore full-face coverings.
Some even wore headgear to the extreme!
No surprise, since pills were valuable.
If someone targeted you, what then?
Seeing this, Su Xiaobai breathed a sigh of relief and walked to the consignment counter.
"I want to consign pills!"