The Hehuan Sect cultivates alchemy; my senior sister helps me refine alchemy throughout the world.

"Nine thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine pure yin women, nine thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine spirit beast cores—is this alchemy or world destruction?"

Shen Yifei cursed, "Is that old bastard Di Yuan out of his mind? What is he trying to do with this stuff?"

Hou Wanshan said in a deep voice, "The Myriad Spirits Return to One Pill is said to allow one to ascend to immortality in one step, directly breaking through the sky of the Spirit Ruins and flying to another world."

"Ascend to immortality in one step?" Shen Yifei scoffed. "He's been stuck at the peak of ascension for thousands of years, obsessed with achieving immortality in one step. But so many innocent people will die while refining this pill, doesn't he feel any pity?"

"In his eyes, those people are nothing more than medicinal herbs." Hou Wanshan shook his head. "Young Master Shen, although I, Hou Wanshan, am not a kind person, and I have done my share of selling female cultivators and handing over spirit beasts, I have never thought of using 9,999 lives to fill a single pill. That's why I have endured for so many years, always wanting to find someone to deal with the Myriad Spirits Palace. Unfortunately, no one in the Spirit Ruins dares to touch Di Yuan."

After hearing Hou Wanshan's words, Shen Yifei realized that even someone like him, who was at the mid-stage of Ascension and had many experts under his command, did not dare to challenge Di Yuan. If he went rashly, it would be tantamount to suicide.

But his mother had fallen into Di Yuan's hands, and he had no choice but to go. He was at a loss for what to do.

Seeing that Shen Yifei's expression was somewhat unpleasant, Hou Wanshan said, "Young Master Shen, why don't we go outside and discuss this further?"

After the two left the secret room, Hou Wanshan had his servants tidy up and then served tea and water to Shen Yifei.

During this time, Shi San also helped out, since he was familiar with this kind of work.

Hou Wanshan looked at Shi San and said to Shen Yifei, "Young Master Shen, has Shi San now acknowledged you as his master?"

Shen Yifei nodded and said, "I think this child is clever and sensible, so I took him in. However, Lord Marquis, please remove the curse you placed on him."

"Gu? Oh...you mean the Soul-Locking Gu in his dantian?"

"My lord, can you cure this Soul-Locking Gu?" Shen Yifei asked.

"It's not difficult to remove the Locking Yuan Gu, the difficulty lies in whether the thing inside his body will cause a backlash after it's removed."

Hou Wanshan looked at Shi San, who was huddled in the corner, with a complicated expression. "I've examined this kid's bloodline several times, and it doesn't seem to belong to either the human or the demon race. It seems more like... the bloodline of an ancient auspicious beast."

"An ancient auspicious beast?" Shen Yifei raised an eyebrow and glanced at Shi San. "My lord, how did you manage to take him in?"

This seemingly unremarkable kid, who is now too terrified to speak because of his cannibalistic act, actually possesses the bloodline of an ancient auspicious beast.

Liu Mengli said his bloodline was extraordinary, so it seems Hou Wanshan's judgment was correct.

Hou Wanshan slowly said, "More than ten years ago, a beast tide broke out outside Beiyuan City. After the tide, the area outside the city was in ruins, with countless dead and wounded. I led my personal guards out of the city to patrol, and under a charred tree, I saw a baby in swaddling clothes. That child was Shi San, who was only a few months old at the time. He was wrapped in an animal skin. When I picked him up, the child smiled at me, and I still remember those eyes."

Shi San squatted in the corner, hunching his shoulders, listening to Hou Wanshan's words as if they were a story that had nothing to do with him.

But that story was clearly about him.

Hou Wanshan continued, "I brought him back to the Hou residence, intending to raise him to adulthood, which would be a good deed. But when he was three years old, I discovered a problem!"

"What's the problem? Is it related to his bloodline?"

Hou Wanshan nodded. "The bloodline within him is becoming increasingly domineering. When ordinary people cultivate, their spiritual roots are planted in their dantian, and their spiritual power flows along their meridians. He's different. It's as if there's a living creature hidden in his bloodline. Once the spiritual power flows through, it will awaken that creature."

"So the Gu poison you used on him was to suppress that living creature?"

"Yes, I put a Qi-locking Gu on him. I bought this Gu from an old Gu master at a high price. It can seal the dantian, suppress qi and blood, and prevent a person from cultivating for their entire life. I've tried it many times, and it's the only way to suppress the living thing inside him. But this Gu also has a downside: it will constantly devour the host's flesh, blood, essence, and luck, so Shi San has been thinner and weaker than his peers since childhood, and his luck has been much worse..."

Upon hearing this, Shi San looked up expectantly: "My lord, why...why didn't you tell me back then?"

"Heh, let me tell you, what can you do? If I didn't suppress your bloodline, you would have exploded and died long ago. How could you still be alive now?"

Shen Yifei walked up to Shi San and looked him up and down several times, making Shi San's scalp tingle.

"My lord... please... please don't look at me like that, I'm not sure what to do..." Shi San shrank his neck and almost knelt down.

"What are you afraid of? Do you think I'd eat you up?" Shen Yifei smiled and patted his shoulder. "Don't worry, since you're with me, I won't treat you badly."

Shi San's legs went weak, and he knelt down with a thud: "My lord, although I am simple-minded and timid, I am still a human being. I beg you, my lord, to help me get rid of the Gu in my body. I will serve you faithfully from now on, without any complaints!"

"Eating grass and producing milk? You're quite the character." Shen Yifei was amused by his remark, both laughing and crying. "Alright, stop kneeling, get up. I'll help you figure out a way to deal with the Gu."

"My lord," Shen Yifei turned to Hou Wanshan, "can you remove the Gu poison from Shi San's body?"

Hou Wanshan pondered for a moment, "Unlocking the Yuan-Locking Gu is not difficult, the difficulty lies in whether the thing inside his body will backfire after it is unlocked."

"With us here, what trouble can it possibly cause?"

"Alas, Young Master Shen, do not be careless! The Locking Yuan Gu has been nurtured in his body for decades and has long since become one with his blood and energy. Once the Gu is released, the power that has been suppressed in his bloodline for many years will probably erupt in an instant."

Hou Wanshan glanced at Shi San and said, "This kid has a mortal body and has never cultivated. If that power were to burst out, at best his meridians would be severed, and at worst his body would explode on the spot."

Hou Wanshan's words make sense.

Shen Yifei also understood that once this bloodline power, which had been suppressed for twenty years, was released, it would be like a flood bursting its banks; it could not be blocked, only channeled.

But Shi San's body was so thin, he had never even cultivated, and his meridians were as thin as a hair. How could he withstand that force?

Hou Wanshan walked up to Shi San, placed his hand on Shi San's dantian, closed his eyes, and carefully felt it for a while.

"The Gu worms are still there, and their activity level is still good. To remove the Gu, we need to first seal all the major acupoints on his body with spiritual power to prevent the Gu worms from running around in a panic. After drawing out the Gu worms, we need to use an even more powerful bloodline to suppress the auspicious beast bloodline within him!"

"My lord, just tell me what to do!"

"Young Master Shen, you possess the inheritance of Lord Wan Shuo. If you use your essence blood, you should be able to suppress it!"

"That's fine! I want to see what this kid is all about!"