Scourge Messenger

Chapter 398 The Second Foundation Establishment Pill
"Don't underestimate Ying Le. Not only has Ying Le achieved Foundation Establishment in ten years, but he is also a member of the Qi royal family and possesses a token inherited from the Divine Martial Sect."

Ying Rushi said softly, "Besides the 'heart of the masses,' she also has the 'eyes of the mortal world'... She will only use the 'eyes of the mortal world' more skillfully and viciously than I do."

"She hasn't gone out these past few days, and the entire city of Nevernight is under lockdown. I wonder what she's plotting. The fact that the three great powers of Qi are under her control is no ordinary thing."

Yan Qing knew that Ying Ru was deliberately trying to dampen her spirits, but the fear Ying Le instilled in her was too deep. Whenever Ying Le was involved, Ying Ru found it difficult to treat the situation with a calm mind.

He suddenly reached out and poked Ying Rushi's nose. Ying Rushi was startled and realized that she had entered a dreamlike state again.

“If Ying Le is really stronger than we think, I’ll just lock her up like this, and then we’ll swagger out of Nightless City,” Yan Qing said. “At worst, we can abandon the Thieves’ Family, and come back to kill Ying Le’s whole family when we’ve all reached the fourth, fifth, or sixth level of cultivation. How about that?”

Ying Rushi's lips twitched at his words—she seemed to be Ying Le's only family now.

"Don't worry, the reason I dare to carry out this mission is because I have a foolproof plan. I'm the one who asked Jin Feisheng to take the throne; I value my life more than any of you." Yan Qing said slowly, "But valuing life doesn't equal cowardice, and I don't believe..."

The dark clouds swept in again, and the four phases sprouted at Yan Qing's feet. The red spider lilies bloomed, the ancient trees withered and flourished, the roses were dark blue, and the violets spread everywhere. Yan Qing turned her head to look at them, and the earrings on her ears jingled, the sound so jarring that it was startling.

"...I am not as good as Ying Le now."

Armed with a sharp blade, the murderous intention arises.

Although he had not yet figured out the inner vision effect of the Four Phases Dao Foundation of Heavenly Calamity, the Dao Foundation's supernatural power "Life and Death Together" had far exceeded Yan Qing's imagination. It was indeed a product of the fusion of the First Heavenly Gang, the First Earthly Fiend, and the Karmic Power of Heavenly Calamity. Yan Qing even felt that he could hardly control this power, just like a novice driver who had just passed his driving test trying to drive a race car... But at the same time, he couldn't help but feel excited!
As the saying goes, everything looks like a nail when you have a hammer. Once the build is complete, you'll naturally want to go on a killing spree. Yan Qing needs a war to test his capabilities, and perhaps Ying Le is qualified to be his stepping stone!
He took out a golden robe from his storage ring and put it on. It was the "Double Brightness Robe", a rare and precious defensive item of the fourth rank!
He took out another eyeball, which burned with the flames of candle tears and whose outline radiated an orange glow. It was the legendary fourth-tier artifact, "Double Bright Eye"!
However, Yan Qing was slightly puzzled about how to equip the Double Bright Eyes. He couldn't very well gouge out his own eyes and then put them back on, could he? He wasn't a hot-swappable Uchiha. He channeled some spiritual energy into the Double Bright Eyes and suddenly realized what was going on. He pressed the Double Bright Eyes against his forehead, and the eyeballs immediately squeezed into his forehead, turning into two candle-red flame patterns.

It looks like an eye drawn with flames.

His divine sense permeated every corner of the tokens without any hindrance, and in an instant, Yan Qing fully understood how to use them. This was a completely different experience. If using tokens at the mortal stage was merely using tools, then using tokens at the Foundation Establishment stage was practically like gaining an extra organ!
Few Foundation Establishment cultivators in the world can start as high as him: a perfect Dao Foundation, dual supernatural powers, a fourth-tier legendary status, and a fourth-tier rare treasure. If he doesn't go out and have some fun, and doesn't shock his enemies, make his peers jealous, and make the world admire him, wouldn't he have wasted his time playing this game?

Yan Qing was still carefully sensing the power of the Chongming Eye when Shang Xinlei suddenly leaned close to him, scrutinizing his face and saying, "You're actually not that ugly..."

Yan Qing was startled, only then realizing that the bandages had been undone at some point. He instinctively wanted to wrap them up again but then let go. Since he was already exposed, there was no need to continue hiding. As long as he could stay in the Thieves' Den, even if the whole world knew what he looked like, they couldn't do anything to him.

However, Shang Xinlei blinked and asked, "Why don't you wrap your face in bandages?"

"You've all seen it, are you still going to pester me?"

"We see it as a matter of course, but others don't see it as acceptable!"

"Why not? I don't go out much anyway—"

"It just won't work!"

“I also think that won’t work.” The pharmacist nodded seriously: “After all, you’re the only one who hasn’t shown your face outside yet, so you should try to maintain that advantage.”

“They have a point,” Ying Rushi echoed. “Even though you’re not out and about now, what about later? What if you break your mask during a mission and have to go out again?”

Yan Qing was indifferent to this matter to begin with, but since they insisted, he rewrapped the bandages. However, because of the double pupils on his forehead, he could only wrap them above his nose. After looking in the mirror, Yan Qing was quite satisfied. If he looked like Shishio Makoto before, he now looked more like Kurosaki Ichigo after he activated Mugetsu—he just liked this aesthetic of bandages.

“Now that I have established my foundation, then…” Yan Qing took out another jade box: “It’s your turn.”

Inside the jade box lay a rare Foundation Establishment Pill, the culmination of Yan Qing's trading efforts over the past three days. He had gradually increased the price, finally exchanging three "Palm Thunder Pearls" and a large number of rare tokens for this rare Foundation Establishment Pill today. The price of the rare Foundation Establishment Pill was far higher than he had imagined. Of course, it was possible that someone was deliberately driving up the price, but that was unlikely, because Yan Qing's trade orders were open to all sellers. Unless all sellers formed an alliance, anyone who was interested would rush to complete the transaction.

This is one of the advantages of Jubaoge: online transactions greatly increase the difficulty of monopolizing the market.

However, Yan Qing was already satisfied with being able to buy the rare Foundation Establishment Pill. Just two days ago, he thought that no one in this world could refine Foundation Establishment Pills, which would greatly affect the leveling plans of the thief and his alt accounts. The fact that someone was selling Foundation Establishment Pills at least showed that alchemists and other professions still existed in this world.

Compared to the locals selling at high prices, he is more afraid that the locals are so poor that they can't even afford to make a living or start a business, and that they will have to train their own small-scale manual skills to do anything they want in the future.

He still has two "Palm Thunder Pearls," which might be able to be exchanged for a rare Foundation Establishment Pill. However, if the rare Foundation Establishment Pill is used on them, even if they survive, it's likely to fail if it fails; using it on a lower-level character wouldn't be life-threatening, but there's still a possibility of failure.

Only the rare Foundation Building Pill is the most reliable.

If Yan Qing didn't have the [Epitaph], or if his Four Phases Dao Foundation and Dao Foundation Divine Power weren't strong enough, he would probably have exchanged for a rare Foundation Establishment Pill, whether to gamble on them or his alt account, to maximize his combat power. But with the [Epitaph], no matter how many people were on the other side, Yan Qing could always maintain a numerical advantage, and two Foundation Establishment cultivators would definitely be enough to handle any situation.

Looking at the jade box containing the rare Foundation Establishment Pill, none of the three reached out, even the most carefree Shang Xinlei became serious.

This is not just an opportunity to establish one's foundation; it also represents the heavy responsibility that comes with it. Those who take the Foundation Establishment Pill must be able to keep up with Yan Qing's pace and face the Foundation Establishment True Persons who will appear in the fourth mission!

If they take the medicine but it doesn't produce the expected results, it would be a failure to meet everyone's expectations. Therefore, no one dares to make any promises rashly. Even though their foundation in the Dao has been determined, their supernatural abilities are still random, and they don't know if their supernatural abilities will be useful.

"Don't worry," Yan Qing said. "Foundation Establishment is just a matter of time. This mission might even yield rare or legendary Foundation Establishment Pills, so there's no need to take it too seriously. For us, Foundation Establishment is just a necessary step, not some insurmountable obstacle."

"If the Foundation Establishment Pill really is included as a reward, do we even have the right to compete for it?" The pharmacist clenched his fist: "What's meant to be yours is yours. I can't be that shameless."

"I need your help even for the Heavenly Gang and Earthly Fiends." Ying Ru said with a wry smile, "And that's not even mentioning the Demon Gathering Grounds... I'm not qualified to take the rewards for this mission."

Shang Xinlei hesitated, wanting to speak but holding back. "You all have such strong pride," she thought, "I can't bring myself to say something like 'clinging to someone's coattails' without feeling guilty." It wasn't that she wasn't proud; she was meticulous with her family, even her brother and father. But taking advantage of Yan Qing felt no pressure whatsoever. After all, he would be hers in the future, and the consequences were far from over.

Yan Qing could understand their thoughts. It was like when you were playing a game and suddenly found that your teammates had reached a high rank, you would feel embarrassed to team up with them for ranked matches. If you lost, you would be the one dragging the team down, and if you won, you would be the one who got carried to victory.

Moreover, they are different from Yan Qing. Yan Qing knew from the beginning that she was weak and had no talent, so she felt at ease relying on them. But they have been the pride of heaven since childhood, and they have always been the ones who carried others. Now, Yan Qing is dragging them to a battlefield that they are not qualified to participate in. They inevitably feel a sense of loss.

"I'll only say three things." Yan Qing held up three fingers: "First, I wasn't capable enough for the first two cases, and I basically relied on you guys to complete the missions. It wasn't until the third case that I was able to fight alongside you. Now that I'm leading the way in the fourth case, it's only natural that I should lend you a hand. That's only fair."

"Secondly, the rewards from the Thieves' House are always generous, and the Foundation Establishment Pill is probably not the best reward. If you obtain the Foundation Establishment Pill and your strength increases, we will be able to obtain better rewards in the future, which is advantageous."

“Third, the secret realm can never be conquered by one person alone. I will not lack resources in the future, but I will lack teammates who can keep up with me. You may think that I can find other people, but the Thieves’ House has connected us. We are natural teammates, and more importantly…” Yan Qing looked at them and said, “…I also want to team up with you for life. This is a matter of friendship.”

"I've finished speaking." Yan Qing stood up. "I'll go back and study my Dao Foundation and Supernatural Powers first."

As Yan Qing returned to his room, everyone's attention returned to the jade box containing the Foundation Establishment Pill. Some time passed, and just as a long, slender hand reached out, a delicate hand pressed down on the jade box first.

-

Starting today, both updates will be at noon. That's all!

(End of this chapter)