Daqin arrests alchemists, what does it matter to me as a qi refiner?

Hearing that the Duan family head possessed an extremely pure source of energy, Yang Ling decided to start with this source. Families like theirs should not be given any way out; otherwise, it would be merciful to oneself. Inside the Duan family compound, an elder stood in place, looked around, and then said to his disciple:

"You need to hurry! These are all things the higher-ups want, and we must produce them as soon as possible!" The old man was none other than Duan Tian, ​​the head of the Duan family. Many people were desperately trying to sense the aura emanating from these pills, an aura that was almost unbearable for them. Although they had somewhat anticipated it, they hadn't expected it to be so strong.

Duan Tian remained calm. The pill the Dark Gate had asked him to refine was no ordinary substance. The aroma emanating from it was so potent it could kill, which was why he hadn't refined it himself. Unfortunately, the Dark Gate was pressuring him, leaving him no choice but to let them refine it. He was quite helpless about this; what would become of them if this continued?

Looking at the head of the family, someone suddenly blurted out:
"Patriarch, why should we think so much? The world is in chaos now. Those family members are either surrendering, dead, or wounded. Why don't we capture some people to help us refine pills? These pills are made by absorbing the essence of others!" As he spoke, a ruthless glint flashed in his eyes. Patriarch Duan realized what he meant and was quite satisfied with his suggestion.

In the past, such behavior would have been unacceptable and despised, but now that the world is in chaos, they don't care about such things anymore.

“Since that’s the case, then do as you say. We must arrest a lot of people so that we can have a continuous source of resources!” After saying that, the old man turned and left. This was a strategy he had come up with out of desperation.

Those people stared wide-eyed, their faces full of disbelief. They thought that refining this batch would be enough, so why did they need to refine so many?

"Patriarch, we absolutely cannot continue like this!"

“And if we do that…” Duan Tian interrupted them.

"That's enough. I already said I understand your situation, so I've sent people to try and find a solution!"

"Didn't the Grand Elder come up with a solution? Now he's brought it with him!" As he finished speaking, the Grand Elder walked over with a large group of people.

“These people will become our nourishment in the future. I have already extracted their essence, so you don’t need to worry about any impact on you!” As he spoke, they looked at the essence, which emitted an exceptionally bright light. The others were stunned for a moment, then realized what was about to happen.

"Patriarch, isn't this a bit illogical? Besides, we've never done anything like this before. How is this any different from a murderous fiend?" He sneered.

“Foolish! You’ve been so worried about your own lives that I’ll have to go find someone else’s origin! Unless you want to die, there’s no other way!” The others turned pale.

“But this is not something we should have done. We joined them to save our lives. Besides, we have never done anything like this!” He looked at the other person without saying a word.

The others took a step back, trembling; to be honest, they were terrified.

"Well, that's not what we meant, and what we did before..." He was interrupted again.

"All your words are useless. Besides, if you don't listen to me, you'll all have to use your own essence, or don't blame me for disregarding our past friendship!" With that, he turned and left. The others, to survive, had no choice but to use each other's essence. They smiled; at this point, they were willing to do anything to survive. Moreover, these essences were painstakingly obtained by the Grand Elder, so they didn't even need to lift a finger.

They couldn't refute the Grand Elder. They had already considered this when they joined the Dark Sect. Just then, footsteps sounded outside.

"Patriarch, someone outside just now said they came to see you, and even said they were old acquaintances!" He didn't respond. Duan Tian seemed to be deep in thought. All his former acquaintances had been killed, so where did this old acquaintance come from? His mind was now entirely focused on the Dark Gate. He originally thought he was quite strong, but when facing the Dark Gate, he chose to surrender without hesitation.

Duan Tian thought for a moment and decided to go see him. Just as he was about to go out, he heard footsteps. He looked up and saw a young man.

"You must be Duan Tian, ​​the head of the Duan family!" He exuded a powerful aura, giving off an air of authority without being angry. He could sense the other party's strength.

Duan Tian also noticed it, and the two exchanged a glance.

"Who exactly are you? It's one thing to barge in like this, but to be so arrogant! Now that you know my name, why don't you surrender immediately!" He spoke each word clearly, his eyes filled with unprecedented determination. Yang Ling, upon hearing this, felt as if he had heard the biggest joke in the world.

"Duan Tian, ​​you are utterly shameless! You used someone else's essence to do such a heinous thing, don't you find it absurd? Didn't you realize it at all?" His words were full of contempt and disdain.

Duan Tian found it all too noisy; what exactly did Yang Ling want to say?
"What brings you here? Are you just here for a casual chat?" He was furious. This Yang Ling was truly ignorant and arrogant; did he intend to attack him? If he didn't know Yang Ling's extraordinary strength, he would have already made his move. After all, Yang Ling's strength at such a young age was indeed remarkable, and most importantly, he had never seen this person before.

He had met all the powerful people in the world, so who was this person? Yang Ling sighed softly.

"You dared to abuse someone else's life force, commit arson, murder, and robbery, and then shamelessly beg for mercy! Today, I'll act on behalf of Heaven!" Upon hearing this, Duan Tian instantly realized that Yang Ling was there to cause him trouble. Seeing this, the others all took a step back, realizing the insurmountable gap between themselves and Yang Ling. Duan Tian sneered. Was Yang Ling joking with him?
“Now that all the experts have been killed by the Dark Sect, our surrender is only for self-preservation. Besides, do we have the strength to do so?” As he spoke, a ball of white light appeared in his palm.

"Today I'll show you what it means to be outmatched. I'll see just how capable you are!" Yang Ling didn't respond, but instead released his aura. This aura instantly suppressed Duan Tian's, making the outcome immediately clear. The others were dumbfounded. Their strengths should have been roughly equal, so why was Yang Ling so powerful? They couldn't discern what techniques he had used.

"This person's strength is so formidable. I wonder who is stronger, the patriarch or him?" "It should be the patriarch. I think no one can surpass him except the patriarch!" Although they said this, they could sense that Yang Ling seemed to be stronger. The Grand Elder hadn't expected such a formidable opponent to appear out of nowhere, someone even more powerful than Duan Tian.

He was always adept at changing his stance depending on the situation, and seeing this, he didn't choose to stay. Instead, he quietly left, intending to inform the people of the Dark Gate about the matter. If the patriarch was truly no match for him, he would defect to the Dark Gate, and perhaps they would even be grateful to him. Yang Ling could sense the man's departure and sneered. Since he wanted to leave, let him go.

Moreover, he could sense that there were no stronger individuals nearby, so no one could rival him. With that in mind, Yang Ling had no more reservations. After a moment's thought, he engaged Duan Tian in battle. Duan Tian roared and pounced towards Yang Ling.

Yang Ling easily dodged the attack and counterattacked. Duan Tian was somewhat bewildered. His strength had always been formidable when facing others; even those of the same cultivation level were no match for him. How could Yang Ling, so much younger than him, be so powerful?

In the next few rounds, he couldn't even touch Yang Ling's body, as if he was being completely suppressed by Yang Ling, a total crushing defeat, without even a chance to exchange blows. He was completely dumbfounded, but at the crucial moment, Yang Ling struck him with a palm.

His body felt as if it had been struck by a heavy blow, leaving him utterly powerless to resist. Such overwhelming strength shocked everyone present. The disciples exchanged bewildered glances, their eyes filled with confusion.

"Who exactly is this young man? I have never seen such a powerful person before. Who is he? How can he be so strong?"

"That's right, his strength is incredible! Didn't you see that the patriarch was no match for him? You can sense that this young man is much stronger than we imagined!"

"Who exactly is he? We've never encountered him before!" Duan Tian stared intently at Yang Ling, finding it hard to believe that he was no match for Yang Ling, and even more so that Yang Ling's strength was so overwhelming. This was completely different from what he had imagined.

"How can your strength be so overbearing? This is impossible! Where does your strength come from? I don't understand!" He glared at Yang Ling, who remained calm, as if he had just heard a joke.

"Who says I'm weaker than you? Besides, you've done something utterly unforgivable, I don't need to go easy on you! Since you've acted this way, just wait to regret it!" He clenched his fist, eager to fight. Yang Ling remained expressionless; his words made everyone realize that what they had done was indeed unforgivable.

Duan Tian went all out, fighting Yang Ling with all his might. As a result, he was directly struck by Yang Ling and staggered back a step. He quickly realized that Yang Ling's strength was indeed formidable.

"Impossible! What you just said is absolutely false! You're so powerful, you must have done it on purpose, right!" he questioned Yang Ling, who didn't deny it. Actually, he hadn't told the truth; Duan Tian had foolishly thought it was his fault. But you can't blame him, right? This wasn't what he expected.

"This is probably not my fault. Besides, I've already tried to help you, but you still insist on this, so I have no choice but to send you on your way!" Yang Ling said, drawing his sword again. Yang Ling's aura filled the air, and Duan Tian was truly afraid this time. He had never seen anyone like Yang Ling. The others also knew they couldn't escape; even if they did, Yang Ling would catch up.

"We can talk this out! Why do you insist on killing me? I have no grudge against you, what good will it do you to kill me?" Yang Ling pretended to suddenly understand after hearing this. Indeed, it seemed like there was no benefit. But so what? He could kill me if he wanted to; there were no excuses or justifications.

"I can kill whenever I want, without reason or excuse. So, I don't need to explain, do I?" Hearing Yang Ling's words, Duan was so angry he almost vomited blood. What kind of demon was Yang Ling? How could he say such things, and even say he could kill whenever he wanted?

"How are you any different from a demon?!"

As his words faded, Yang Ling's eyes darted around.

"What does this mean? Aren't you all demons too?"

"You're using other people's essence to refine your things, aren't you even more outrageous than me?" he said, emphasizing each word. After saying this, Yang Ling thought, why waste so much breath on him? Wouldn't it be better to just attack?

Duan Tian couldn't understand it at all. Was the other party really so inflexible? He had always been high and mighty; when had he ever suffered such an insult? It was utterly shameless. Filled with resentment, Yang Ling attacked him again, and Duan Tian tried to escape but found himself completely unable to move.

Facing Yang Ling's attack, he gritted his teeth, but couldn't dodge it. Just then, a voice rang out:
"Enough! How dare you be so insolent in front of us? What do you take us, the Dark Sect, for?" The others breathed a sigh of relief. This powerful force swept around, clearly indicating they were members of the Dark Sect. Faced with this unexpected attack, Yang Ling didn't hesitate to strike. Before Yang Ling's strength, the man was utterly powerless and was defeated instantly.

Yang Ling moved swiftly, a smile on his face. He accepted Duan Tian's treasures, including Duan Tian's source energy. Then, the man from the Dark Gate approached Yang Ling, thinking to himself, "Yang Ling is too arrogant, daring to attack me in front of me. Who is this person? How dare he so blatantly trespass on my territory?" However, he still acknowledged the man's strength; after all, he was indeed quite formidable…

Moreover, Duan Tian had helped them refine many things. Now that Duan Tian had been defeated by Yang Ling, didn't that mean they would have one less way to improve their cultivation level? Thinking of this, he was furious and planned to finish Yang Ling off in one move. Facing his attack, Yang Ling was unfazed and directly counterattacked.

A cold smile curled at the corner of the man's lips. Yang Ling was suicidal. His aura contained a power imperceptible to ordinary people; anyone who encountered it would likely die. This man clearly didn't know how powerful he was. Seeing Yang Ling about to perish, he burst into laughter.

"I can sense your immense strength, and your origin power is unprecedented. Today, I will surely finish you off!" Yang Ling's strength was undoubtedly the best "elixir" for them. He could almost see Yang Ling dying miserably at his hands. However, just as he was feeling smug, his expression suddenly turned ugly, because he felt a power rapidly suppressing him, as if everyone was being controlled by Yang Ling.

He simply couldn't fathom what was going on. Yang Ling sneered; this man was utterly ignorant and arrogant, thinking he could deal with him—a complete fool. He moved swiftly, and the man roared, retreating rapidly. From beginning to end, Yang Ling hadn't uttered a single wasted word; every attack he launched was precisely aimed at his opponent, and he felt as if everything he did was under Yang Ling's control. (End of Chapter)