Minglong

Chapter 362 Seven Emotions Pill

Rumble~
The roar of fire magic and the whistling of swords emanated from the underground cavern teeming with snakes and insects.

The cultivators who were originally searching in the desolate mountains and wilderness immediately rushed to the source of the noise. They had only gone halfway when they saw the ground explode with fire and a figure burst out from the ground, rushing towards Dragon Ridge with murderous intent.

"Lu Yan is there! Go after him!"

"You old Taoist priest, you still want to run away..."

……

Upon spotting their target, Zhang Jiwu and the others, as if injected with adrenaline, charged towards Lü Yan, who was dressed in a black and yellow Taoist robe.

Lu Yan was furious that the evil sorceress had openly robbed him with her divine weapons, and that he was surrounded and attacked as soon as he showed his face.
"You see, I have some good fortune?! I escaped from the Hundred Flowers Forest and headed towards the exit of the Snake King Cave..."

"Stop making excuses. You, the second-in-command of the Taoist sect and a respected elder of the righteous path, would be bewitched by a seductive vixen and hand over your opportunity?"

"you……?"

Lu Yan opened his mouth, thinking that this was a compliment, and suppressed his anger, saying:
"Can't you keep track of time? If I had taken advantage of you, would I be arguing with you like this? This vixen has a sword. If we don't chase after her now, and Xie the brat strikes first, you won't even get a whiff of her..."

Many sect leaders and elders present noticed Xie Jinhuan's arrival and, upon hearing his voice, temporarily believed Lü Yan's words, and sped towards Dragon Ridge.

Lu Yan had just given up the opportunity simply because he was worried about the family heirloom magic weapon being damaged by the black sword; he hadn't completely given up on it.

Since he couldn't seize the initiative, the best option at present was to let others fight first while he stayed out of it to preserve his strength and wait for an opportunity to strike. For this reason, Lü Yan seemed to be furious and rushed forward the fastest, but in just a moment, he was overtaken by Zhang Jiwu and other top martial artists.

In such treasure-hunting situations, everyone is cunning and resourceful, and there are far more than just one person with this idea.

Above Dragon Ridge, Empress Dowager Guo and the sisters from Qingming Sword Manor remained hidden and motionless, watching as a large number of troops rushed towards the main peak of Dragon Ridge.

Mo Yuan and Fang Qingxuan searched for Xie Jinhuan's whereabouts amidst the dense aftershocks of energy.

Meanwhile, Xie Jinhuan had returned to the former residence of Master Qixia, leaning against the rock wall and examining the ancient book in his hand by the light of lightning.

The ancient book is just a fragment, without a title. It contains some principles of magic, mainly related to the earth element of the Five Elements. Because it is too ancient and written in text, it is quite obscure and not as intuitive as a martial arts manual. Ordinary people may find it no different from reading a book from heaven.

However, thanks to his childhood experience as the King of Scrolls, plus the explanations from the ghosts, Xie Jinhuan was able to understand the general idea. But the ancient techniques were no longer applicable to the modern environment. If he wanted to adapt them for his own use, he would have to rely on his comprehension to explore and innovate.

Ye Yunchi leaned against the side to avoid the rain. Although he was also interested in the ancestral scriptures of the Daoist sect, the tense situation down the mountain was clearly more captivating. Observing the commotion, he asked:

When are we going down?

"There are too many people now. Whoever takes it will be surrounded and attacked. That big snake should also be lurking. We haven't figured out where it is yet. Let's wait and see."

Ye Yunchi nodded slightly.

Xie Jinhuan continued to examine the cultivation technique, and after waiting for a while, the ghost beside him suddenly asked in surprise:

“The people who snatched Lü Yan are quite capable. They've almost finished handling the opportunity and they're taking a back road. These people shouldn't be able to catch up. If you don't go, I won't be able to find him later.”

Ye Hongshang locked onto the target's location through the spiritual energy emanating from the heavens and earth, but because the conflict had just occurred underground and Xie Jinhuan was on her way, it was still unclear who had taken the item from Lü Yan and the others.

Once an opportunity is fully refined and incorporated into the body, it becomes part of the cultivator and will no longer emit spiritual energy from heaven and earth.

Upon realizing that the fellow cultivator who had seized this opportunity was not following the usual path, Xie Jinhuan, worried that things might go too far, withdrew his cultivation technique and looked towards a hill that the ghost had pointed to...
-
stomping on...

Snake King Cave has a complex terrain and is full of poisonous insects, making it difficult for ordinary people to find their way.

However, Madam Han had been collecting snake venom here for many years, and walking here was like coming home. After getting rid of Lü Yan, she turned into a hidden side path, which led to an underground river and then emerged from a lake outside Dragon Ridge. It can be said that no one else in the world knew this path.

Upon discovering that all the commotion on the surface was heading towards the main peak, Madam Han naturally breathed a sigh of relief. She tucked her sword under her skirt, held the cyan sphere shimmering with lightning in both hands, and began to peel away the Yang Lightning to continue the work that Lü Yan had not finished.

However, just as the project was about to be completed, Madam Han frowned and suddenly stopped in her tracks inside the cave.

bang~
wow~
The next instant, the top of the cave not far away was broken open, and thunder and rain poured down at the same time.

Wow…

A figure then descended from above, blocking the only path.

Madam Han's expression changed drastically. She quickly pulled out a black sword from under her skirt and retreated, only to hear a collapse sound behind her.

Then a woman wearing a veiled hat also fell into the cave, forming a pincer movement. Upon seeing the sword in her hand, they paused again.

Then the deep cave fell silent, with only the sound of sand and rain sliding down.

*Swish swish swish…* Xie Jinhuan, who was still striking a pose, was quite surprised to find that the fellow Daoist trapped in the rat tunnel was the flamboyantly dressed Madam Han.

"Could Madam Han really snatch something from Lü Yan?"

Ye Yunchi stared at the black sword in Madam Han's hand, his voice serious:
"Give me the sword back!"

Madam Han breathed a sigh of relief upon recognizing an acquaintance. Holding the sphere of remaining lightning in her hands, she looked it over from all angles.
"We're all family, there's no need for us to kill each other, right?"

Ye Yunchi stepped forward slowly, sword in hand:
"When you come out to seize treasure, you are responsible for your own life and death according to the rules. But considering that we have some connection with our elders, I will not hurt you. However, you should also know your place. This sword is not yours, and you cannot grasp this opportunity."

"Ha~"

Madam Han took out a jade pipe from behind her waist, twirled it twice between her fingers, and brought it to her lips, teasingly saying:

"Having a man backing you up makes all the difference; you even speak to your senior sister with more confidence than before..."

劈~
Before he could finish speaking, a twisted arc of electricity as thick as a finger joint struck the white jade pipe with perfect accuracy.

Madam Han's expression changed drastically. She quickly turned to the side, keeping an eye on the two men, while glancing at Xie Jinhuan in the distance.

“It’s not exactly honorable for a righteous young hero to ambush a woman from behind.”

Xie Jinhuan said calmly, "Don't misunderstand, I was just helping Madam Han light her cigarette."

Looking at the smoking pipe, Mrs. Han knew that this was indeed the professional demeanor of a top male model.

However, Xie Jinhuan, a martial artist who knew thunder magic, did not make any summons at the start, which was also a reminder for her to pay attention to the situation.

If the palm lightning were any more powerful and had been thrown directly onto her back, and Ye Yunchi had attacked at the same time, she would have been in dire straits.

Ye Yunchi walked closer and said earnestly:
“He and I only met by chance. If he can find you, he can take the opportunity. The fact that he didn’t attack you directly is already giving us face. You need to understand the situation. As for the sword, it originally belonged to my mother. If you’re carrying it, give it back to me. I don’t want to break ties with you.”

Madam Han naturally understood that being blocked by Xie Jinhuan and not letting go would only make things difficult, but she did not immediately hand it over. Instead, she held her pipe in her mouth and exhaled white smoke from her mouth and nose.

"If you and I join forces, he shouldn't be able to stop us. We have some history together. I can accept giving it to my own junior sister, but I really can't accept giving it to an outsider. Are you sure you want to side with outsiders?"

Ye Yunchi calmly replied, "I only want to get back my mother's belongings on this trip. As for the opportunity, he gave me a divine gift from Erling Guang in the Dragon Emperor Cave, which I should repay. However, there is indeed a connection between our elders, so I can only stay out of it. If you really can't bear to part with it, you can discuss it with him yourself. No matter what the outcome, I will not stand by and watch you die."

"Ha~"

Madam Han shook her head slightly:
"I can even give you a divine opportunity, no wonder you're so obsessed. Given the situation, I'm willing to accept my defeat, and I won't trouble Young Master Xie to destroy this beauty. However, if you want to take this sword, you have to agree to one condition."

"What conditions?"

“Back then, it was Baihualin that adopted your mother, and your mother eventually regarded Baihualin as her mother’s home. You feel that our paths are different and you don’t want to return to Baihualin as the sect leader. I won’t force you, but I don’t want you to be deceived by men and end up like your mother.”

At this point, Madam Han gestured to Xie Jinhuan behind her:

"You know how valuable this sword is. If you become possessed and use it to repay a man, I, your senior sister, won't even have a chance to seek justice for you in the future..."

Ye Yunchi frowned: "This sword is my mother's heirloom. How could I give it to an outsider?"

"When a woman loses her mind, she's capable of anything. You didn't even fight for a divine opportunity, so what's the point of giving her a sword?"

As Madam Han spoke, she took out a small medicine bottle from her sleeve, opened the cap, took one pill herself, and then handed it to Ye Yunchi:
"This is the 'Seven Emotions Pill,' a pill used by the sect to test its disciples. If you truly believe that you and he were just strangers who met by chance and that your actions were merely reciprocal, then I believe you can protect this sword, and I won't mind giving it to you."

"But if you've already fallen in love, then this sword can only be left in the Hundred Flowers Forest. When you finally come to your senses after being hurt by love, at least you can still get some support from your parents' home, so you won't be cheated out of your money and your life by a man."

?

Ye Yunchi frowned, showing some hesitation.

After all, the Seven Emotions Pill, as its name suggests, is a pill that arouses a person's seven emotions and six desires. Its main ingredient is the gall of the leper snake. As long as one harbors feelings of love, no one can suppress their natural instincts.

The Hundred Flowers Forest follows the path of ruthlessness. The most important thing is not to develop genuine feelings for the prey. Only those who can consume this pill without any emotional reaction are qualified to become the sect leader.

After taking the pill, Madam Han's expression and demeanor remained unchanged. She even exhaled smoke, which showed how clear her Daoist mind was.

Ye Yunchi had always been wary of the venom of the lycoperdon, but now, after meeting Ah Huan...

……

(End of this chapter)