Spirit Vessel

Feiyun became curious and had to ask: "Where did you get so many rare grasses? Any of them would fetch a sky-high price, even the sect masters of the last generation would go crazy for them."

"At the White Cloud Marsh, of course!" Bi Ningshuai was still searching.

However, Feiyun's expression was no longer calm: "I only told you to take the Draconic Knotweed and the Serpent Flower, how many more did you take?"

"How the fuck am I going to know which is the Draconic Knotweed or Serpent Flower? So I got them all."

Bi Ningshuai took everything out and placed them on the ground, quite an incredible spectacle. The thick scent of energy and medicinal fragrance made flowers and grass bloom from all the crevices. Mists and fogs began to form in the area with red clouds.

"All…." Feiyun looked at more than ten precious ingredients on the ground and took a deep breath.

These were the most precious materials stored by the Grand Tutor. It wasn't easy to find them, not to mention the hundreds of years of cultivating. All were taken away now; he can only imagine how furious the Grand Tutor would be after finding out.

During the day, he came to ask about them and at night, all were stolen? Everyone would blame it on him.

Calm down, calm down!

'No one saw me doing it, so I just need to deny it till death, who is going to do anything to me?' Feiyun quickly put away all the ingredients. They were truly amazing, some could bring people back on the verge of death, increase longevity, refine the bones and flesh - making them stronger by tenfold.

"Hey Feng Feiyun, aren't you being too unreasonable. Your father risked his life to dig out these materials but now you're taking all of them? At least leave me two. You're the one who gave the info but I was the one who took them." Ningshuai wanted to take them back.

Feiyun said seriously: "This is evidence; once people see it, we'll really get it then. Do you even know where you were last night?"

"No…" Ningshuai scratched his head.

"The Grand Tutor's Mansion and you got the materials he hid for several hundred years, no different from taking off his limbs. If he were to find out, he'll definitely refine you in a cauldron for forty-nine days."

Ningshuai rushed backward and shouted: "Feng Feiyun you tricked me into stealing from that faction, goddamn it, I was wondering why there were so many ingredients there. Shit, it's over now, the Grand Tutor is going to flay me."

He quickly took out another eighteen pouches, completely filled, and threw them over at Feng Feiyun: "You take all of these too, all yours now!"

"What are they?" Feiyun spoke with a confused expression before opening one of them.

A massive green glow and extremely dense medicinal fragrance oozed out. There were several thousand second-ranked pills dropping out, the finest of their grade.

These were useless for Giants but still quite rare for first to fifth-level Heaven's Mandate. Some were as big as a thumb with a jade-like surface and a green glow, resembling pearls.

Ningshuai was sweating profusely while feeling a muscle cramp in his legs: "After taking the materials last night, I still had plenty of time so I did a round and accidentally walked in a storage room for pills. I saw them just lying around so I might as well just grab a handful, ten pouches worth…"

A pill storage in that mansion certainly got experts guarding, he definitely didn't just accidentally walk in…

"How much did you take?" Feiyun was sweating on his forehead too.

"Everything above second but there wasn't any fourth-ranked pill."

"Obviously, fourth-ranked pills are the most precious and rare, the Grand Tutor certainly carries them with him."

"You motherfucking didn't tell me that it was the Grand Tutor's mansion, you said that it was a courtyard of a hidden master with no guards, it would be so easy. If I had known otherwise, I would have never come there."

Ningshuai was very afraid because the Grand Tutor was influential and possessed an incredible cultivation: "How… how about I go put them back right now?"

"It's too late." Feiyun shook his head: "That mansion must be on lock-down right now, the tutor's nine disciples are quite strong, some are Giants too. You'll only be going to your death."

"Then what do we do?" The thief dropped down on his butts, thinking that Feiyun had screwed them.

Feiyun gathered the pills and tied up the pouches: "Just leave them to me, I have methods of hiding their presence. Even if the Grand Tutor knows how to seer and calculate, he won't figure out that it was us."

Ningshuai nodded: "If you want to take them all for yourself, don't rat me out when he finds out and capture you."

Feiyun smiled: "Riches come with danger, I know, I know."

"And about the Heavenly Core Pills?"

"Of course I'm still giving some to you." Feiyun put away the pouches into his spatial stone and used the Minor Change Art to hide them.

Ningshuai then left the mansion and began re-tracing his route in order to destroy all shreds of evidence.

***

Feiyun had ten out of the eighteen leading ingredients now on top of finding suitable replacements. The thirty-six supplementary materials have been bought as well, plenty to use.

There was a way in his mansion leading to the dragon vein underground. Only the Divine Kings were aware of this path.

His cultivation right now was not enough to create a fifth-ranked pill. He needed to borrow the power of the vein.

He continued on through this dimmed and winding path down beneath.

'Someone has been here.' He found traces of people within the last ten days.

Who the hell? To be able to find this secret path and entering it.

He mustered his courage while hiding his presence, treading with prudence. To be able to force this path open required an amazing cultivation. Perhaps this person was still down here.

'Oh, it's her.' Feiyun saw the Evil Woman meditating near the vein.

No wonder why she didn't want to leave the mansion. She found out about this secret path so she could steal its power undetected.

She floated one foot above the water with her black hair draping down, a striking contrast to her fair and holy complexion. Her starry-eyes were closed right now; lips not red but white at this moment.

"Splash." A drop of blood flowed down her hair, resulting in a concentrated red pool right beneath her.

This blood was filled with a horrifying evil affinity and nearly had the grimace of a devil.

The smell was actually quite refreshing and pure, like an oasis of water found in the desert by a thirsty traveler.

Feiyun took one step forward but his evil and demonic blood got awakened. His veins and meridians began to expand - a state of turning into a demon. His mind was overwhelmed with desire, wanting to drink that entire pool of blood.

"It's evil blood…" Feiyun gritted his teeth and tried his best to regain self-control. He backed off more than ten meters away and became sane again with the help of the spirit vessel.

He closed his eyes, waiting for his blood to calm down before looking at the Evil Woman again: "She wants the power of the vein to refine the evil blood in her body, removing it entirely. Lose the evil shell to transcend into holiness."

"Becoming an immortal or a devil is all within a single thought. She has finished gathering all three forms now, it is time to remove the evil of this Three Corpses To Slay The Dao art. Once doing so, she could easily finish the fifth transformation, quite possible for her to become an immortal."

"But, even after severing this evil dao, would she be able to rid herself of murderous thoughts?"

The Evil Woman was too strong and had a protective barrier even while cultivating. If Feiyun got close with his current cultivation, that barrier would crush him to death.

He retreated even farther away now.

'Can't mess with her, gotta run now.' He was quite decent at pill refinement, not a master but still better than the Grand Tutor.

Heavenly Core was at the very top of the fifth-ranked pills. Of course, the effectiveness would be different depending on the alchemist, not to mention gathering all the necessary materials.

Feiyun wasn't able to craft it to its highest potential, but just creating a weaker version was enough to help him break through.

"Boom!" He gathered the golden spirit energy in the vein and condensed them into a physical cauldron with nine legs, standing at twelve feet tall and had a bright glow.