Sixty years of blacksmithing, a single hammer blow forging a celestial being.

"Very well, fellow Daoist is indeed straightforward. May I ask your esteemed name?"

The pavilion master's beautiful eyes swept over Li Ping'an, sizing him up from head to toe.

Li Ping'an bowed respectfully and said...

"His Buddhist name is Qingyangzi. He is a wandering cultivator who travels around. Recently, he has been working as a guest elder in a sect nearby. He occasionally comes down the mountain to gather some things and practice alchemy."

"Oh, I see."

The pavilion master didn't ask any further questions, took out a piece of paper from his pocket, handed it to Li Ping'an, and said...

"Since I find this formula agreeable to you, I'll sell it to you for eight hundred spirit stones."

It actually costs eight hundred spirit stones!

Li Ping'an was taken aback.

Then he realized that this was a recipe for a third-tier elixir.

If the other party didn't see the possibility of me refining a third-tier pill, they probably wouldn't even sell it to me.

So Li Ping pretended to be calm and said...

"Oh, then thank you for selling it to me so cheaply, fellow Daoist."

Then, without changing his expression, he took out eight hundred spirit stones and handed them to Zhao Tiezhu, the shop assistant standing next to him.

When Zhao Tiezhu saw this scene, his eyes lit up.

The old man really is a big shot; he's certainly rich. He casually pulled out eight hundred spirit stones. You really can't do that without real power.

......

"Oh shit!"

"How come Li Ping'an is alright again?"

In the miscellaneous servants' office, Steward Wang crouched on the ground, trembling with fear, not daring to speak.

Senior Brother Zhang Lu was smashing things in the management office, venting his anger.

How could he not be furious?

He himself was the chief disciple of the inner sect of the Tongtian Sword Sect, with profound cultivation and unparalleled power.

Apart from the elders of the inner sect, who wouldn't treat him with utmost respect?

Who wouldn't immediately give up something they want?

But it just so happens that Li Ping'an is such a lowly servant; all I wanted was to take his life.

Why can't I succeed even after trying three or four times?

This infuriated him, who always held himself in high esteem and insisted on achieving his goals.

Even though Li Ping'an himself did not pose any threat to him, nor did he do anything to offend him.

But as long as Li Ping'an was alive, he felt a lump in his throat, a great humiliation.

"Manager Wang, I don't care! I'm giving you this final ultimatum!"

"No matter what method you use, if Li Ping'an is still alive within three days, you can bring me your head!"

In his final act of venting, he directly assigned this incredibly stressful task and set a deadline.

This really worried Steward Wang.

He thought to himself, "My goodness, Li Ping'an has not offended you, why are you so fixated on him?"

You clearly have great skills, but you refuse to do it yourself and insist on making us lowly underlings do the dirty and tiring work for you.

He was resentful, but he kept nodding and agreeing.

"Senior Brother Zhang, don't worry, I will definitely send this old bastard to his death within three days."

"good!"

Zhang Lu gradually calmed down and said...

"Don't let me down. If you succeed in this matter, I will report to my master and promote you to the inner sect."

Manager Wang was overjoyed upon hearing this.

It's important to understand that there's a world of difference between the outer and inner sects.

The inner circle has more resources and more acquaintances.

If he goes to the inner sect, he might be able to become an apprentice of an elder, thus shedding his servant status and becoming a true inner sect disciple.

They have their own cave dwellings and abundant resources to support them.

Upon thinking of this, Manager Wang's earlier displeasure vanished completely.

He immediately patted his chest and guaranteed it.

"Senior brother, don't worry, leave this to me, I will do my best."

"OK!"

Senior Brother Zhang nodded and said.

"But remember, there can't be any clues, and you absolutely can't implicate me, understand?"

Don't worry.

Manager Wang pounded his chest loudly.

"This matter has absolutely nothing to do with you. It's simply that I don't like Li Ping'an and want to kill him!"

"Good, very good!"

Senior Brother Zhang was quite satisfied with Steward Wang.

This guy was extremely loyal to me. Although he wasn't very good at getting things done, he was still a decent lackey.

"Alright, I'm leaving now. Here, take this and keep it safe, in case you run into any trouble later."

Before leaving, Zhang Lu took something out of her pocket and tossed it to Steward Wang.

When Manager Wang took a look, he was overjoyed.

It was a small, long nail that looked like a small, black knife.

But Manager Wang knew that this was a famous assassination weapon in the cultivation world.

Soul-Piercing Nail!

As long as you infuse it with spiritual power and throw it at the opponent, the Soul-Piercing Nail will automatically lock onto the opponent's aura.

They won't stop until they've pierced the opponent's flesh.

And once unleashed, even ordinary Foundation Establishment cultivators might not be able to withstand it.

Therefore, this kind of thing is extremely sought after in the cultivation world, and it sells for thousands of spirit stones on the market.

Senior Brother Zhang was so generous, casually giving me the Soul-Piercing Nail.

This will make killing Li Ping'an even easier.

Manager Wang even started to have his own calculations, thinking that he might not even need the Soul-Piercing Nail to kill Li Ping'an.

If we kill Li Ping'an then, wouldn't we have gained a Soul-Piercing Nail for free?

Thinking of this, Steward Wang was overjoyed.

"Alright, Li Ping'an, now we're just waiting for you."

Manager Wang muttered to himself, his eyes filled with murderous intent.

......

Inside the abandoned hall, the disciples had just finished a day's work.

They were all covered in grime and were sitting on the steps, chatting idly.

But at that moment, the door was pushed open.

A middle-aged man dressed in a brocade robe stepped into the abandoned hall.

This middle-aged man had a thick beard and slanted eyes.

He always looks down at people, with his mouth turned down, giving people the impression that he is difficult to get along with.

Everyone looked at the middle-aged man as he entered, and couldn't help but feel a little puzzled.

Because none of them knew who he was.

However, after the middle-aged man entered, he swept his sharp gaze across the entire room, a hint of disdain on his lips.

"Is this how the disciples of your abandoned hall usually behave?"

Suddenly, the middle-aged man spoke up.

The voice was shrill and harsh, making it very unpleasant to listen to.

"Who are you?"

A tall, burly disciple of the abandoned hall stood up and questioned him.

He noticed the middle-aged man as soon as he entered, and was very annoyed by his arrogant attitude, so he immediately stood up and questioned him.

"who I am?"

The middle-aged man stared at the servant disciple and sneered.

Suddenly, he raised his hand and struck the burly disciple with a palm strike from a distance.

A surge of spiritual energy condensed from his palm and struck the burly disciple's chest.

"puff!"

With a muffled thud, the burly disciple spat out a mouthful of blood and flew backward, falling to the ground and unable to get up.

"Ouch, ouch..."

The disciple groaned in pain.

Upon seeing this, everyone jumped to their feet.

His face was full of wariness and shock.

No one expected that this middle-aged man would suddenly launch an attack.

Moreover, judging from the strength he displayed, his cultivation level was at least 50% of the Qi Refining stage.

"You! You..."

A slightly older handyman disciple said in a trembling voice,

"What do you mean by this?"

"snort!"

The middle-aged man shook his hand and coldly glanced at the burly man lying on the ground groaning in pain.

He said in a cold voice, "I am your new manager, Xu Yan."