Starting as a stray dog, I embarked on a journey of cultivation.

The old man was slightly taken aback when he heard the boy's request.

He then threw his head back and burst into loud laughter, his tone tinged with madness.

"Very well! Considering your merit in testing the medicine, I will grant your request!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the old man raised his eyes and coldly swept them over the disciples he had pointed at, then gently raised one hand.

In an instant, several wisps of dense black energy surged and condensed from his side, transforming into several sharp, narrow, pitch-black spikes that hovered silently in mid-air, exuding a chilling killing intent.

The old man gently pointed his finger forward.

The black spike shot through the air in an instant, so fast that only a few afterimages remained.

The next moment, the disciples froze in place.

The black spikes easily pierced their foreheads, their eyes widened, their life force instantly extinguished, and they fell straight to the ground.

The remaining disciples witnessed their companion die on the spot, but their faces showed no pity or fear. Instead, their eyes revealed a hint of excitement and relief.

It seems their deaths were unimportant, or even beneficial.

Hidden in the shadows, Gou An witnessed the entire scene and keenly sensed something amiss.

Immediately afterwards, Gou An saw the surviving disciples hurriedly pour out the pills from the bottle and quickly divide them up evenly.

Without hesitation, they stuffed the food into their mouths, closed their eyes, chewed and swallowed, their faces showing an extreme sense of intoxication and relief.

Gou An had seen that expression elsewhere.

Like in a movie from a past life, a person deeply addicted to drugs suffers endless torment and pain because they can no longer continue.

But one day, he finally got to take a puff of it.

At that moment, all the tension in my body was released, and I felt completely liberated, as if I had been reborn.

His expression was exactly the same as that of the disciples in front of him.

In the blink of an eye, Gou An completely understood the secret behind it.

This old man was cruel and bloodthirsty, unpredictable, and would slaughter his disciples at any time, using ruthless and merciless methods.

Logically speaking, such a tyrannical and ruthless leader could never have his subordinates follow him wholeheartedly; he should have been deserted by everyone long ago.

It turns out that he relied not on kindness and authority, but on this strange, addictive elixir.

The addictive pills bind the bodies and minds of everyone, firmly planting the addiction, thus controlling all disciples.

Those who obey will receive the medicine on time, but those who disobey will have their supply cut off, causing them to suffer the extreme torment of addiction.

Under such dual constraints of body and mind, even though the old man was cruel and bloodthirsty, and treated human life like dirt, these disciples had long since succumbed to depravity and were powerless to betray him.

For that one dose of the elixir that would sustain their lives and relieve their addiction, they had no choice but to willingly become the old man's puppets, serving him faithfully until their deaths.

The old man had already led the boy into the room he had just come out of.

That room, unsurprisingly, was the alchemy room.

Gou An hid in the grass in the corner of the wall, motionless, waiting quietly.

He waited until the disciples who had been taking drugs had all dispersed before slipping out and slowly approaching the alchemy room.

Alchemy!

This is a good thing.

Gou An thought of the golden pill he had swallowed last time and savored the memory.

If I learn how to make pills, I'll have an endless supply of pills.

Even if there's no chance to learn, it wouldn't be bad to steal some pills from that old man.

When Gou An silently crept to the outside of the alchemy room, he could still see the faint flickering flames inside through the cracks in the window.

Inside the alchemy room stood a metal furnace as tall as a person, from which wisps of medicinal pills, mixed with the scents of various herbs and plants, wafted out.

I don't know what they're refining.

It smells very strange.

In addition, there was a wooden shelf in the corner of the alchemy room, on which were placed many bottles and jars.

There were still many untreated grass and plant roots on the ground, in all sorts of colors.

The old man was sitting cross-legged on the futon next to the alchemy furnace.

The boy sat cross-legged beside the old man, his eyes closed.

They appeared to be meditating and gathering their energy.

In particular, there seemed to be a faint aura emanating from the old man's entire body.

"Is this Reiki?"

Gou An narrowed his eyes slightly.

After a moment, the old man opened his eyes first and patted the boy's head.

The boy then opened his eyes, but looked somewhat bewildered.

"Such an effect on the first try of luck!" the old man praised. "Much better than those fools outside."

Upon hearing the old man's praise, the boy quickly cupped his hands in thanks, saying, "It's all thanks to Master's excellent teaching."

It seems the boy has already become the old man's apprentice.

The old man stroked his beard and nodded in satisfaction.

"Don't be modest!"

"From this day forward, you will be my last disciple, Master Fuhai!"

"No one will dare to bully you again!"

Hearing this, the boy's face lit up with joy, and he quickly clasped his hands in thanks: "Thank you, Master! This disciple will certainly study hard!"

"Hmm! Not bad!" The old man, who called himself Master Fuhai, smiled slightly.

Although it's clear he's trying his best to appear more amiable.

But in Gou An's eyes, that smile was truly bizarre.

"Alright!" Master Fuhai pointed to a straw mat nearby and said, "It's late, you should get some rest!"

"At your age, even if you start cultivating, don't stay up late; it's bad for your health!"

"Yes!" The boy nodded, got up, walked to the straw mat, lay down, and fell asleep.

Gou An was momentarily impressed by the child.

He looks to be only about ten years old, yet he has such a mindset.

This old man looks like a ghost, yet he remains remarkably calm even when we're in the same room.

If it were me, Gou An probably wouldn't have been able to do that at all.

Even after the boy fell asleep, Master Fuhai, who was still sitting by the alchemy furnace, never took his eyes off him.

A faint, ambiguous smile remained on his lips.

Especially those eyes, something's really off.

It wasn't the loving care of an elder for a younger generation, nor was it joy or relief.

It's like a starving person who's been hungry for three days suddenly seeing a perfectly moist, just-right-sized, steaming hot solid waste product from the digestive tract after nutrient extraction.

It seems that in the eyes of Master Fuhai, this boy who successfully tested the medicine was not a closed-door disciple.

It's more like his food!

But at that moment, Fukukai Masato, whose gaze had been fixed on the boy, suddenly shifted his attention to the broken window beside him.

"who!"

With a shout, he flashed out and burst through the door.

Extremely fast!

It was completely unlike the reaction one would expect from someone nearing the end of their life.

But when he came outside and looked towards the window he had just been standing in,

There was nothing there.

Master Fuhai's gaze swept around the courtyard again.

Just then, I saw a stray dog ​​crawl out through a hole in the courtyard wall.

"snort!"

Seeing that it was just a stray dog ​​passing by, Fukuhai Zhenren didn't take it seriously and simply turned around and went back to his room.