Chapter 141: Refining Qi and Cleansing the Marrow (Third Errand)

Today, the two Ling brothers had been driven out of Huangfu Huijing and Huangfu Shaoqi's estate twice, and the primary reason for both incidents was Xin Lang.

Originally, the Ling brothers already harbored a deep-seated hatred for Xin Lang, and this latest humiliation added another layer to their animosity. Consequently, Ling Tian summoned the Ling family’s elite assassination squad, the Thirteen Eagles, to intercept and kill Xin Lang.

The Thirteen Eagles were a specialized assassination unit trained by the Ling family, highly proficient in combined combat techniques. Striking without warning, every single one of them aimed directly at Xin Lang’s vital points, and their combined might was comparable to the strike of a Martial Saint.

"Xin Lang, even if you have three heads and six arms, this time you're dead for sure!" Ling Tian sneered from the side.

Facing the fatal onslaught of the Ling family’s Thirteen Eagles, Xin Lang showed not a hint of fear. He took a single step forward, and just as the Thirteen Eagles closed in on him, he suddenly unleashed the Heaven-grade advanced martial technique, the *Seven-Shadow Fist*.

Bang, bang, bang...

Xin Lang’s body instantly dissolved into seven illusory afterimages. The Thirteen Eagles completely lost their target and were sent flying backward in an instant.

The *Seven-Shadow Fist* allowed Xin Lang to project seven illusory clones, which was equivalent to having seven Xin Langs—seven seventh-grade Grandmasters. Xin Lang’s combat power multiplied sevenfold in a flash. How could the Thirteen Eagles possibly be his match?

The members of the Thirteen Eagles tumbled haphazardly in front of the Ling brothers, leaving Ling Tian and Ling Feng with jaws dropping so wide they nearly hit the ground.

"How is this possible? How has he become so many times stronger than he was at the Heaven Dome Gambling Arena!" Ling Tian cried out in shock. Even he lacked the confidence to escape the combined encirclement and killing technique of the Ling family’s Thirteen Eagles, yet Xin Lang had achieved a complete victory using just a single move. What kind of cultivation level was this? Could he be a Martial Saint?

The seven shadows converged, and Xin Lang returned to his true form, walking step by step toward the Ling brothers!

With a wicked smile, Xin Lang said, "I may not have three heads and six arms, but I have seven heads and fourteen arms. I even have a hand to spare for your family's thirteen little birds!"

The smile on Xin Lang’s face now looked utterly terrifying to the Ling brothers. Ling Feng screamed, "X-X-Xin Lang, don't be so arrogant! My eldest uncle is a Martial Saint, and he can crush you to death with a single finger!"

"Kneel down, kowtow, and admit your mistake, and I might consider sparing you," Xin Lang said indifferently, completely disregarding any notion of a Martial Saint.

Though Ling Tian and Ling Feng were terrified, getting them to kowtow and apologize was out of the question.

"Xin Lang, I'll fight you to the death!" Ling Tian unleashed a Heaven-grade martial technique and charged at Xin Lang.

However, Xin Lang was intimately familiar with all of Ling Tian’s Heaven-grade martial techniques. Without even resorting to the Heaven-grade footwork technique, the *Phantom Tracking Steps*, Xin Lang easily evaded Ling Tian’s attack and used the *Life-Extinguishing Finger* to sever his life force.

This time, Xin Lang did not let up. After Ling Tian collapsed to the ground, he stomped fiercely on him a few times, shattering the bones in all four of his limbs.

"A Martial Saint can heal the effects of the *Life-Extinguishing Finger*, but treating these broken bones will require you to lie in bed for at least half a month."

Having crushed Ling Tian's bones, Xin Lang turned his gaze to Ling Feng. "Come on, it's your turn!"

Seeing the wicked smile on Xin Lang’s face, Ling Feng was so frightened that he dropped straight to his knees. "Boss Xin, it was my fault! I shouldn't have gone against you. Please spare me!"

Standing before Ling Feng with his hands clasped behind his back, Xin Lang said calmly, "Just kneeling isn't enough!"

"Y-Y-Yes, I'll kowtow!" Ling Feng thought to himself: *Kowtowing twice is still better than having my bones shattered.*

Thud, thud, thud... Ling Feng began violently slamming his head against the ground, causing blood to stream down and dust to swirl into the air.

By the time Ling Feng finished kowtowing, dizzy and disoriented, he looked up to find that Xin Lang had vanished without a trace.

***

Back at the Princess's Estate, Xin Lang had promised Huangfu Huijing and Huangfu Shaoqi that he would refine Saint-grade health-preservation pills for them. He had purchased a large quantity of raw medicinal ingredients at the Jishi Hall, costing over a million gold coins in total. Aside from using some of these ingredients to refine the "Qi-Transforming Pills" for Fatty Gu and the others, Xin Lang kept the rest as a reserve for future needs.

Therefore, refining some extra health-preservation pills would be no problem at all.

Two days later, Xin Lang retrieved the purchased medicinal herbs from the Jishi Hall and began refining the *Qi-Transforming Pills* and the *Marrow-Cleansing Pills*.

The *Qi-Transforming Pills* were prepared for Fatty Gu and the other two, while the *Marrow-Cleansing Pills* were for Huangfu Huijing and Huangfu Shaoqi.

Before his rebirth, Xin Lang had been a ninth-grade Apothecary Grandmaster, and his apothecary rank had not increased in this lifetime, meaning he could only refine ninth-grade precious-tier medicinal pills.

Even so, a ninth-grade Apothecary Grandmaster was a peerless and utterly unique existence in the Great Xia Dynasty. Aside from Xin Lang, no one else possessed the ability to refine ninth-grade precious-tier pills.

Fatty Gu, Qian Baidu, and Hong Jingang stood guard at the entrance of Xin Lang's dormitory, acting as his guardians to ensure no one disturbed him.

Xin Lang was currently just an ordinary student at the Martial Academy and did not enjoy the lofty status of a ninth-grade Apothecary Grandmaster, nor did he have the prince-like retinue of his past life. Thus, he had to rely on Fatty Gu and the other two to stand guard.

Refining ninth-grade precious-tier pills did not take an exceptionally long time, but it required absolute concentration. Distractions were strictly forbidden, and external interference could not be tolerated under any circumstances. Before beginning the refinement, Xin Lang had explicitly instructed the trio that absolutely no one was to step foot inside Dormitory 2012, no matter who they were.

Xin Lang spent a large portion of the day on preparations before finally entering the final refinement stage.

Because of the "bed-warming" incident a few days prior, Murong Yueyin had blushed for two whole days and nights. Today, she finally mustered the courage to come and purchase Saint-grade pills from Xin Lang once again, only to be blocked by Fatty Gu and the other two.

Murong Yueyin said to Fatty Gu, "Tell your boss I have something to discuss with him!"

"Eldest Sister-in-law, Boss is refining pills right now, and it's a critical moment. You can't disturb him!" Fatty Gu smiled ambiguously at Murong Yueyin and added, "Boss said that if you and Eldest Sister-in-law Qingqing want to come warm his bed, you should come back tomorrow!"

Hearing Fatty Gu refer to her as "Sister-in-law" and mention "warming the bed," Murong Yueyin blushed furiously. Embarrassed and angry, she snapped, "Don't talk nonsense! I am not your sister-in-law. If he wants someone to warm his bed, he can go find that vixen Hu Qingqing."

"Oh my... Sister Murong, why are you acting like this when you clearly want to admit it? We're all family here, what are you being shy about?" Just as Murong Yueyin was speaking with Fatty Gu, Hu Qingqing also arrived at the men's dormitory 2012.

Hu Qingqing was holding a small wooden box, which she handed to Fatty Gu as she said, "You younger brothers haven't had dinner yet, have you? Here, these are meals personally prepared by your Sister-in-law Qingqing. Eat them while they're hot. I'll help you stand guard and make sure no idle busybodies get in!"

Seeing that Hu Qingqing had arrived as well, Fatty Gu chuckled and said, "You two sisters-in-law chat away, the three of us are going to eat first!"

Unwilling to get caught in the middle of the invisible war between Murong Yueyin and Hu Qingqing, Fatty Gu grabbed the food box and retreated to the side with Qian Baidu and Hong Jingang to have their meal.