Chapter 39: Choice
Moments later, the light left Ying Tong’s body and took the form of an old man, who clasped his hands together and said to her, “I have met the young lake master; this humble deity pays my respects. Were your words just now true?”
“Naturally.”
The phantom of the Medicine God nodded again and said, “Then I must trouble you.”
After speaking, the phantom transformed back into a ball of light.
Immediately afterward, countless beams of green light were released from the tree, merging into the ball of light.
As the tree, which displayed different seasons, continued to lose its power, it gradually began to wither.
When all the light had completely gathered, a wooden plaque, exuding an ancient aura, slowly fell into Ying Tong’s hand.
The plaque emitted a faint medicinal fragrance.
“Is this the inheritance of the Medicine God?” Lan Feng looked at the wooden plaque, curiosity filling her eyes.
“Of course not. This is just a key; the true inheritance of the Medicine God is in another place.”
How could a god’s inheritance possibly be carelessly left in such a spot?
She glanced at Lin Xian’er, who was unconscious on the ground.
Considering her help in guiding the way, Ying Tong decided not to hold a grudge against her hidden motives.
“Take her back and erase her memories of tonight,” Ying Tong instructed.
Lan Feng lifted her off the ground as if she were a little chick and said, “Understood. Should I leave someone behind to monitor?”
“No need.”
Lin Xian’er had not committed any heinous acts; she had merely been deceived by a scumbag in her past life, leading to her tragic death. Now, she wanted to change men in her second chance at life. If she hadn’t set her sights on Ying Shaoan, she would not have paid any attention to this person.
As for the inheritance of the Medicine God, it was entirely an unexpected joy.
After all, opportunities were meant for those with fate; to put it more specifically, they were meant for the strong.
If one’s strength was insufficient, even if they obtained something, they could not protect it.
…
A few days later, the sect master of Lingxiao Sect and others successfully obtained the antidote.
After Ying Shaoan took the antidote, a look of pain appeared on his face, and soon afterward, a foul-smelling black substance was continuously expelled from his body.
Seeing this, Ying Tong cast a cleaning spell to clear away the impurities that Ying Shaoan had expelled.
As the toxins were removed, Ying Shaoan’s talent gradually manifested, and a wisp of ethereal Pill Intent swirled around him like a thin veil.
Witnessing this scene, the sect master of Lingxiao Sect and the others widened their eyes, shock evident in their expressions.
“This… this is innate Pill Intent.”
It was known that even a wisp of Pill Intent was something alchemists dreamed of.
These old fellows had studied pills for so many years, yet they had barely managed to cultivate one or two wisps.
However, this was not the end.
As more toxins were expelled, and with the influence of those toxins removed, Ying Shaoan’s talent completely awakened. The previous wisp of Pill Intent was merely an appetizer.
As more and more Pill Intent appeared around Ying Shaoan, the sect master of Lingxiao Sect, along with various peak masters and elders, went from shock to numbness and finally to deep regret.
If they had known that this person possessed innate Pill Intent, they would have kept him tightly under wraps, ensuring that no one found out.
Even if his identity were to be exposed later and the Ying family came to demand him, as long as Ying Shaoan did not agree, could they really forcefully take him away?
But it was too late to say anything now.
Although they had cured Ying Shaoan, because Ying Tong and Ying Xuechen were present, they did not allow other disciples to get close to him. Even they had only seen him once during the consultation and exchanged a few simple words.
In these few days, Ying Xuechen had always stayed by Ying Shaoan’s side.
“What a frightening talent,” one of the peak masters or elders muttered from the crowd.
Indeed, it was a frightening talent. The last time they saw such a level of talent was when… the sect master of Lingxiao Sect looked at Ying Tong beside him.
The last time he had witnessed such terrifying talent was in a bird, and Ying Shaoan’s Pill Intent was even greater in number than that bird’s.
That bird had obviously been cultivating for some time, and not all the Pill Intent around it was innate. But Ying Shaoan was different; he had just entered the Qi Refining stage and already possessed such formidable Pill Intent, making his potential limitless.
However, whether it was a bird or a person, they belonged to the Ying family, and had nothing to do with Lingxiao Sect, which made the sect master very unwilling.
Watching an unparalleled genius slip away was already painful enough, but now two had escaped, and both had gone to the same place in the end.
“Are you willing to take me as your master?”
Even knowing the chance was slim, the sect master of Lingxiao decided to give it a try.
Such a terrifying talent was hard to come by, whether in a thousand years or ten thousand years; it would be difficult to find someone to match him.
Just after Ying Shaoan had finished clearing the toxins from his body, he was a bit dazed when he heard the sect master of Lingxiao Sect’s words.
The others looked at the sect master with expressions of admiration.
Impressive, daring to snatch someone in front of Venerable Yunhuang. Isn’t that like pulling teeth from a tiger?
The crowd observed quietly, eyes downcast, and silently prayed for their sect master.
However, Ying Tong was not as angry as they imagined; she wore a faint smile, as if she were an outsider to the situation.
Even Ying Xuechen did not express any opinion, seemingly having not heard the sect master’s words.
Seeing that Ying Tong had no intention of pursuing the matter, the sect master of Lingxiao gathered his courage and continued, “Your talent is extraordinary. If you are willing to take me as your master, you can freely choose any alchemy fire you desire. Lingxiao Sect will do everything possible to nurture you, and you will become the next sect master.”
The sect master knew he only had one chance, so he offered the most generous conditions.
The others, seeing this, chimed in, “As long as you are willing to be my disciple, I guarantee that within twenty years, you will surely become a renowned master of alchemy.”
“Kid, don’t listen to him; twenty years is too long. I only need fifteen years.”
Since Venerable Yunhuang did not intervene, they just needed to convince Ying Shaoan, and he was very likely to stay.
Although the Ying family had a depth in alchemy that did not belong to Lingxiao Sect, what if Ying Shaoan was unaware of it?
“Venerable…”
Ying Shaoan was somewhat frightened by their fervent gazes and looked to Ying Tong for help.
“You can make your own decision,” Ying Tong said.
“Then I want to follow the Venerable,” Ying Shaoan replied.
Hearing Ying Shaoan’s response, although the sect master and others had anticipated it, disappointment still showed on their faces.
At this moment, Ying Xuechen added, “Although Lingxiao Sect is powerful, the Ying family’s Divine Medicine Peak is not just a name.”
