Chapter 5

0005 Ruthless Slaying

The visitor did not notice that Yun Qingyan’s brows had already furrowed, and he continued to speak on his own: "I came this time to test your strength and see if you have the qualifications to face off with Brother Yang Qing. But let me say this upfront, if you can't last three moves against me, then you will automatically forfeit the duel with Brother Yang Qing."

Yun Qingyan had been calculating the time in his mind, and there were only less than twenty seconds left until the pill was complete. However, it was precisely during these last twenty seconds that he was interrupted.

Yun Qingyan lifted the pill furnace and scanned it with his divine sense, discovering that out of the thirty-three Qi Gathering Pills, seventeen had become dud pills, more than half of the total.

Suddenly, a cold killing intent surged from the depths of his heart.

"You are courting death!"

A fierce look appeared on Yun Qingyan’s face, and he unleashed a powerful punch, which tore through the air with a hissing sound.

"Perfect timing!" The visitor was not alarmed but rather delighted. He was about to test Yun Qingyan’s strength, and it was even better that Yun Qingyan made the first move!

Suddenly, he also unleashed a punch, colliding with Yun Qingyan’s powerful punch.

Boom

A loud explosion shook the air, sending out a shockwave.

"Ahh!" The visitor let out a惨叫, and at the moment of impact, the sound of his arm breaking could be heard. In the next moment, his body was sent flying.

Bang!

Another loud noise echoed as he hit the ground, and the surging qi and blood inside his body caused him to spit out a large mouthful of blood.

"How... How is this possible? Didn’t Yun Qingyan’s cultivation fall to the Third Rank of the Star Realm?" The visitor’s face was full of shock. He had the cultivation of the Fourth Rank of the Star Realm, which was why he dared to provoke Yun Qingyan so confidently.

"Yun... Yun Qingyan, what are you doing?" The visitor immediately became terrified as Yun Qingyan approached him step by step, his face cold.

"Killing you!" Yun Qingyan’s voice was icy.

Actually, Yun Qingyan found it difficult to harbor killing intent against ordinary people now. It was like a giant wouldn’t deliberately step on an ant.

But if the ant was blind and provoked the giant, it would not only be stepped on but also crushed to pieces.

"Yun Qingyan, please... please calm down! My uncle is the Great Elder, if you kill me, my uncle won’t let you off!"

"Then let the Great Elder come at me!" Yun Qingyan said, stepping on the man’s chest, causing a crack as the chest caved in.

"Master Yan" Not far away, Yun Yuanlin, who had just gotten up from the ground with blood still on his lips, was stunned. "Master Yan, did you... did you kill Yun Yue?"

Yun Qingyan nodded slightly, not even glancing at the corpse on the ground. "Such a person, if killed, is just killed. Grandfather Lin, find two servants to deliver Yun Yue’s body to the Great Elder."

After a pause, Yun Qingyan added, "Tell the Great Elder that if he wants to provoke trouble, he should send someone more capable."

"Yes, Master Yan!" The old steward took a deep breath and said. After three years, Yun Qingyan had not only become unfathomable but also more ruthless.

The old steward didn’t know that as one of the Immortal Emperors, although Yun Qingyan wasn’t as cold-blooded as the other nine Immortal Emperors, he was still decisive in his actions. When faced with someone who deserved to die, he would not show the slightest mercy.

"Keep this Qi Gathering Pill!" With a flick of his finger, Yun Qingyan sent a pill flying into the old steward’s hand.

"Thank you, Master Yan!" Feeling the intense medicinal power from the pill, the old steward knelt down in excitement.

The Qi Gathering Pill was extremely precious, and one could sell for at least a thousand taels of silver on the market. As the steward of the Yun family, his annual salary was only a little over two hundred taels.

"Grandfather Lin, if I’m not mistaken, you must have suffered a severe injury in your youth, which is why your cultivation has been stuck at the Third Rank of the Star Realm for many years."

Although Yun Qingyan spoke casually, it was like a thunderbolt to the old steward. No one outside of himself knew about this matter.

Now, Yun Qingyan had revealed it in just a few words.

"I don’t doubt Grandfather Lin’s loyalty, but it’s not enough. If Grandfather Lin performs well from now on, not only will I heal your old injury, but I will also help you achieve the strength you’ve always dreamed of."

The reason Yun Qingyan said it was not enough was that the old steward had not done his best to stop Yun Yue. If the old steward had risked his life to stop Yun Yue, it would have been enough to delay Yun Yue for a few minutes until the Qi Gathering Pills were all completed.

Of course, such loyalty was not something everyone could achieve, so Yun Qingyan did not harshly blame the old steward.

"Yes, Master Yan!" The old steward said with excitement, fully believing Yun Qingyan’s words.

"Dismissed!" Yun Qingyan waved his hand, already used to the old steward’s reaction. As an Immortal Emperor, he naturally had his own way of handling people.

Moreover, what the old steward had received was a promise from Yun Qingyan.

After returning to his room, Yun Qingyan placed the seventeen dud pills back into the furnace. Although the Qi Gathering Pills were duds, they could be transformed into another type of pill through re-refinement.

The Crimson Poison Pill

As the name suggests, the Crimson Poison Pill was a highly toxic pill.

One Crimson Poison Pill, when properly diluted, could poison more than ten thousand adults.

Although Yun Qingyan was an Immortal Emperor, he did not shy away from using poison. In his view, sometimes using poison was more straightforward and decisive than direct force.

An hour later, the dud Qi Gathering Pills had been re-refined into Crimson Poison Pills.

Each pill was vividly red, emitting a faint, refreshing fragrance, making it hard to imagine that it was a highly toxic substance.

Yun Qingyan placed the Crimson Poison Pills into the prepared small bottles.

He then took out the remaining fifteen Qi Gathering Pills and swallowed them all at once.

If it were an ordinary Third Rank of the Star Realm, swallowing so many Qi Gathering Pills at once would have burst their bodies.

But for the Immortal Emperor Yun Qingyan, fifteen Qi Gathering Pills were far from reaching even a fraction of his physical limit.

After the pills entered his body, Yun Qingyan sat in meditation in his room.

However, he only sat in meditation and did not deliberately digest the effects of the Qi Gathering Pills.

The fifteen Qi Gathering Pills entered his abdomen and were automatically decomposed at a rapid speed. The intense medicinal effects flowed orderly into his spirit sea.

Three minutes later.

The effects of the fifteen Qi Gathering Pills were completely digested.

Yun Qingyan’s cultivation, which had been at the Third Rank of the Star Realm, had recovered to the Fourth Rank of the Star Realm.

"Brother is here!" Yun Qingyan’s gaze suddenly turned to the outside of the courtyard, and a few seconds later, Yun Xuan came running in hurriedly.

"Brother Yan, I heard you killed Yun Yue!" Yun Xuan said, his face showing a hint of anxiety.

"Brother Yan, you were too impulsive. Although Yun Yue is not a member of our Yun family, he is the Great Elder’s..."

"Brother, don’t worry!" Yun Qingyan interrupted Yun Xuan, speaking casually. "As long as the Great Elder isn’t foolish, he won’t stand up for Yun Yue."

Yun Yue’s real name was Chen Yue, a relative of the Great Elder’s wife, but because he grew up in the Yun family, he changed his surname to Yun.

But even with the surname Yun, it could not change the fact that he was not a member of the Yun family.

The Yun family had its own rules. Even if there were severe internal conflicts among those with the surname Yun, they would unite against outsiders.

Yun Qingyan’s duel with Yun Yangqing was a private matter of the Yun family. Even if it was a life-or-death situation, it had nothing to do with Yun Yue.

What kind of person was he to meddle in this?

"Alright, I overreacted!" Yun Xuan thought about it and realized that the Great Elder wouldn’t stand up for Yun Yue if he wasn’t foolish.

"However, Brother Yan, are you really going to duel with Yun Yangqing in four days?" Yun Xuan’s face showed concern again.

Three days had already passed since Yun Qingyan and Yun Yangqing’s seven-day duel agreement.

"Of course! Although I’m not particularly interested in the position of successor, there are reasons I must take it." Yun Qingyan nodded, a glint of killing intent flashing in his eyes.

"Is it for me?" Yun Xuan took a deep breath.

"Uh-huh!" Yun Qingyan looked at Yun Xuan, who lowered his head, not daring to meet his gaze.

"Brother Yan, the reason I didn’t tell you about that matter was for your own good!" After a few seconds of silence, Yun Xuan sighed, his eyes showing both sorrow and deep-seated hatred.

"I know, so I plan to ask you about it after I become the successor." Yun Qingyan said.

From Yun Xuan’s and Uncle’s reactions, as well as the old steward’s fragmented words, Yun Qingyan had already deduced that the person who crippled Yun Xuan either had very strong cultivation, a deep background, or both.

Becoming the successor of the Yun family would allow Yun Qingyan to use the family’s power.

The reason Uncle Yun Han couldn’t use the family’s power to avenge Yun Xuan was largely due to the constraints of the four elders.

But Yun Qingyan was different. With his abilities, once he became the successor, he could eliminate all obstacles.

Of course, with Yun Qingyan’s capabilities, he might not even need to rely on the family’s power.

Less than half an hour later, the old steward delivered Yun Yue’s body to the Great Elder’s residence.

The Great Elder and a beautiful woman, upon seeing Yun Yue’s body, both had their faces change drastically. The woman immediately burst into tears.

"Yun Yuanlin, who killed Yun Yue?" The Great Elder looked at the old steward with a stern face.

"Reporting to the Great Elder, it was Master Yan who killed Yun Yue." The old steward did not hide anything and recounted the events of Yun Yue’s visit to Yun Qingyan.

However, he omitted the part about Yun Qingyan refining the pills.

"Great Elder, this is how it happened. Master Yan also asked me to convey a message to you: if you want to provoke trouble, send someone more capable."

After saying this, the old steward turned and left.

The Great Elder’s face remained stern, but he did not stop the old steward, allowing him to leave.

The beautiful woman beside him shouted, "Yun Qingyan, you beast, you dare to kill my nephew! I, Chen Li, swear I will make you pay with your life!"

Slap!

The Great Elder suddenly slapped the beautiful woman, "Wench, was it you who sent Yun Yue to Yun Qingyan?"

The beautiful woman was stunned by the slap and took a while to recover, stammering, "Yun Qingyan is about to duel with our son, so... so I sent Yun Yue to test his cultivation."

"You... you foolish woman!" The Great Elder, after hearing this, stomped his feet in anger and slapped the beautiful woman again.

"Someone, lock this foolish woman up! No one is to release her until Yangqing returns!" The Great Elder’s face was full of rage as he ordered the woman to be locked up.

Only after the woman was taken away did the Great Elder’s anger gradually subside.

As the Great Elder, he was well aware of the Yun family’s rules. Internal conflicts, no matter how fierce, were still family matters. But if an outsider meddled, it would violate the rules!

Even the Great Elder dared not break these rules!

The Great Elder walked over to Yun Yue’s body and began examining his injuries, "There are only two wounds on his body, one is a broken arm, and the other is a caved-in chest."

The Great Elder’s brows furrowed heavily.

He had already deduced the cause of death from the injuries: first, a defeat in one move, breaking the arm, and then being crushed to death with no resistance.