“Bring me another pot!!”

A young man with messy hair and shabby clothing shouted as he smashed his empty wine pot on the ground, greatly angering the tavern's owner.

“Jin Tianrui!! You better have the spirit stones to pay for that pot and all the wine you’ve been drinking since morning! Do you know what will happen if you don’t pay for all the spiritual wine you emptied today??”

“Fuck off!! Xuan! Just bring me the wine!”

“…You know what? No. That’s enough of you.”

The owner nodded towards the two guards of the tavern who were in the peak of the Qi condensation realm who immediately moved in and tried to push the man called Jin Tianrui out of the establishment.

But, just as they were about to place their hands on the man, he moved with a sudden grace that should not have been possible for a man like him who had been stuck in the Qi condensation realm’s initial stage for the past five years.

With a graceful motion, the man drew his sword and held it against the necks of the two men while still swaying in a drunken state.

Observing all of this happen, I decided to finally intervene before things escalated anymore.

“It’s okay, Xuan Tiejian. I’ll pay for his drinks and the damages.”

“Lord Wei? But-“

I waved my hand with a smile, indicating that I would talk to him later to explain my reasons, a gesture that Xuan Tiejian, the owner of this tavern in the Dark Guild accepted easily thanks to the fact that I had been a regular customer here every time I visit.

Jin Tianrui looked at me with a sneer and pointed his sword at my neck.

“And who the hell are you to take up my tab without my permission??”

“…I am someone that Bai Zhanye asked for a favor in your regards.”

At the reveal of Bai’s name, the hostility in his stance and expression immediately faded before he looked at me with a solemn expression.

“I see. In that case, I apologize for my words. But, please return to Uncle Bai and tell him that I don’t need his help.”

Hmm, he has good skills but he needs to work on controlling that pride and arrogance of his. Not something truly deal breaking through, it could have been worse. At least his morality and personality are pretty good for someone born in this cruel world if my background checks are true.

“Oh! Don’t worry, kid. I am not here to help you out for free. I already received payment from Bai to help you with your problem, it would not be professional of me if I didn’t keep my word after taking the payment. I also have business with you later on, but that can wait.”

“W-what?? Hey!”

I did not wait to listen to his words about pride and other nonsense that I knew were about to come thanks to studying his past and his behavior pattern for the entire day. Of course, all of these details were obtained from a different agent of the Dark Guild I was familiar with without Bai knowing anything about it since I could not trust him to be objective due to his personal stake in this matter.

I grabbed onto his hand and started pulling him towards the edge of the massive cavern where the residential district of the Dark Guild was located. As a location the size of a city, it made sense that the Dark Guild would have its employees and members stay in the cavern for as long as they were a part of the Dark Guild.

Jin Tianrui tried to resist, trying to use his Qi or martial skills to try and break free. Unfortunately, the sheer difference between the might of a Nascent Soul realm cultivator and a Qi Condensation realm practitioner is not something that can be bridged with skill alone.

It did not take me long before we arrived at a house that looked slightly worse for the wear compared to its surroundings but was still much better than any house found in the commoner district above ground.

If there is one thing that sets the Dark Guild apart from any sect of force in the outside world, it is how they treat their people.

Every employee of the Dark Guild who stays with them has a place to call home. These homes and any other luxury, including cultivation resources, are decided by the rank of the person in the Guild. The Ranks themselves are not based on cultivation level but on the merit of the person in question.

A crude but effective meritocracy.

Unfortunately, just like any other system, it is still susceptible to corruption at the hands of its members. To combat this, the Dark Guild has its own forces that make sure to root out any corruption when it is found.

The key words being ‘When it is found’. Most of the time, those who are truly corrupt manage to hide themselves so deep that it becomes nearly impossible to detect it before any serious damage is done to the Dark Guild as a whole.

Thankfully, such cases are few and far between in the long history of the Dark Guild.

Unfortunately, one such case happened to be linked to the ‘Problem’ that my potential employee is currently facing, prompting Bai to ask me for help.

As we got closer to the house, Jin Tianrui’s protests became more violent as his struggles increased to full-blown panic. An understandable reaction for someone trying to use whatever strength he had to protect what was important to him from a perceived threat.

‘Looks like I will have to work on improving his rationality under pressure if I decide to hire him.’

‘I still don’t think he is worth all this trouble. Sure, his reputation and previous works are impressive but you could still find someone much more mentally stable and dangerous than him.’

‘I could, but that would cost me nearly ten times more spirit stones than hiring him, not to mention the fact that I would probably win his loyalty for all time if I managed to solve his problem.’

‘….Is that what this is about? Loyalty?’

‘A part of it? Yes, but not entirely. There is also the fact that the kid is genuinely a good person, if flawed in his perspective of the lives of those around him. I could use someone like that in my village. As for his flawed values on life, it is something that can be taught.’

‘Don’t you think you are starting to become a little arrogant? Thinking that you can fix all the problems in the world?’

For a split second, dread flooded me at those words as I remembered Xiang’s old words about the power of the Nascent Soul realm being addictive and detrimental to my morality.

However, I decided to think more on that topic later, when I was not in the middle of something important. I made sure to ask Xiang to remind me to think about this topic in detail and meditate on my perspective and thought process later.

I cannot afford to have my power cause me to lose my values.

Coming back to reality, I ignored the pleas of the young man who was five years younger than me and pushed open the door, revealing a fairly decent home.

But what stood out was the pale and thin figure lying on the bed on the other side of the house being attended by a man in his forties and a little girl that was probably as old as Da Ling.

This was none other than Lan Zhijian. The mother of Jin Tianrui. And the man was Jin Tiejun. The girl was the little sister of Jin Tianrui, Jin Ruiying.

The source of the ‘problem’ that Jin Tianrui is suffering from is, of course, none other than his sick mother who suffered from an assassination attempt made by a high-ranking member of the Dark Guild whose corruption was discovered by Jin Tianrui and reported to the higher-ups.

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Unfortunately, by the time Jin Tianrui arrived with the Executioner teams to capture that corrupt agent, he had already sent an assassin to kill all of Jin Tianrui’s family as revenge.

Thankfully, Jin Tianrui’s mother was a cultivator in the Qi Condensation realm and managed to save her husband and daughter from the worst of it. However, she ended up being poisoned with a strange toxin that the agent got from the Demonic path.

All of this happened more than six months ago, during the same time when I was in Starfall city to take the children of the village to the sect selection.

In the end, the mother lost her cultivation, her body started to get weaker and weaker as time went on with her being on death’s door nowadays. Jin Tianrui tried everything he could to find a cure but failed at every turn since the toxin used was extremely obscure and unconventional even for the Demonic Path. This is what led to his current state where he has completely given up on his duties to the Dark Guild as a Formation Master and wasting away in a tavern to drown his grief with alcohol.

A tragic story with a tragic end, one among millions in this forsaken world.

The moment the door opened, Jin Tiejun looked up from his wife while the sleeping girl, Jin Ruiying slowly got up from the noise.

The moment they spotted me dragging Jin Tianrui inside, they must have assumed the worst since they immediately shielded the woman on the bed with their bodies. Despite them trembling with fear, there was a determination on their face.

I like it. I like it a lot. This is the kind of people I want in my project. Those who would stand by their loved ones through thick and thin.

As my evaluation of this family went up a few notches, I threw the struggling young man to the side gently and spoke out.

“Relax. I am not here to harm anyone. Bai Zhanye sent me to help you guys out. The kid here was being stubborn about it and refused to accept it so I had no choice but to drag him over. Sorry for startling you guys like this.”

And I really did feel guilty for startling them like this. I know better than anyone what it feels like to be a cornered beast besieged on all sides. However, I have already spent more time in this place than I intended and I need to get back to the village quickly to start working on the project if I want it completed within any reasonable amount of time. Especially now that the war that should have begun a few months ago was nowhere to be seen, becoming a sword hanging over my head with the uncertainty of whether it was going to happen or not.

At my words, the husband and the daughter calmed down considerably before the girl immediately ran towards her brother and helped him sit up.

“I see, in that case, I greet the Master. I am Jin Tiejun, and that is my daughter, Jin Ruiying. This is my wife, Lan Zhijian.”

The man turned to me with a mix of nervousness and hope.

“Can the master really cure my wife?”

“I do not know, I will have to take a look first.”

The man nodded and moved aside while his drunk son immediately started to protest. Unfortunately, he was no longer out in the open and in the presence of family. This meant that he no longer had the freedom to speak and act as he wanted.

The moment he started to get up and start protesting, his father and sister were on him, guilt-tripping him with their words and pushing him down to stay put despite being mortals with no cultivation.

With the assurance that I would not be disturbed, I kneeled down beside the unconscious woman and placed my hand on her wrist, slowly spreading threads made of my Qi into her body.

I silently observed and took note as my Qi passed through her body slowly, rejuvenating and revitalizing everything they came in contact with.

‘Did you know this was going to happen?’

‘I had a hunch. Remember what happened at Mother’s grave? That gave me the idea to try this. Worst case scenario, nothing would have happened and I would have used the artifact I prepared beforehand for this task.’

‘Seriously, kid. ‘Abnormal’ doesn't even begin to describe your strangeness. Where the hell do you even find a type of Qi without any elemental affinity that can also heal with just a touch? And in such an exaggerated manner as well?’

‘You are asking me, who should I ask? It's not like I knew this would happen when I started integrating Pure Qi into my body all those years ago with my self-harming technique.’

‘You are an Inscription master capable of making bizarre and powerful inscriptions at Heaven grade. You are an Alchemist at the Master rank. You are a cultivator in the Nascent Soul realm with enough Qi to outpace even a hundred peak Nascent Soul masters. You have Primal Qi that can heal, rejuvenate, and speed up the growth of plants as far as we know. At this point, what can’t you do?’

‘Well, I can't manipulate the elements.’

‘For now. Once you reach the Soul Transformation realm and form your own domain, I have no doubt that you can start manipulating the elements in another heaven-breaking way given your track record so far.’

‘Don’t Jinx it.’

I watched through my senses as my Qi slowly spread from her wrist to the rest of her body, slowly healing every single cell it came in contact with.

However, things suddenly worsened when a sudden pulse of toxic Qi rose from within her heart and started attacking the cells that had just healed with my Qi.

‘Ah! I see now. This is the handiwork of the Crimson Serpent Sect. This is their specialty, the Hidden Serpent Venom. A special kind of poison that hides within the heart of the victim and attacks every healthy part and cultivation of the body slowly over time. Worse yet, the poison is partially sentient since it is cultivated through the poisonous Qi of the Crimson Serpent, the demonic beast associated with their sect, and the fragments of an unfortunate soul from a mortal. It is capable of hiding itself within the very flesh of the heart, making it nearly impossible to get rid of.’

‘And how do I get rid of it?’

‘You will need Qi with extreme Yang aspect, like your disciple, to flood the body of the victim and destroy the Poison’s sentience that is derived from the tortured soul fragment. Then, you get rid of it just like you would with any other poison, by cycling your Qi through her body. Either that or you can use a medicinal pill with extreme Yang aspect mixed in with it.’

‘Either way, I can’t cure her right now then? I guess I will have to use the artifact after all.’

Before the poison could completely destroy her body again, I took out a bracelet made of common metal and placed it onto her hand.

The inscriptions first converted the Pure Qi from the atmosphere into water Qi which was then flooded throughout her bloodstream. Then, it enveloped all of the internal organs and other parts of the body in the same Qi, protecting them from any harm. Once that part was done, the bracelet immediately sapped away all the heat from her body while inducing cryogenic temperatures, freezing her solid.

In effect, I created a Cryogenic bracelet that used Qi to freeze its wielder and used water Qi to protect the internal parts from getting damaged and also to stop ice crystals from forming within the blood.

The reaction to this event was instant as Jin Tianrui directly attacked me with his sword while his father and sister were too shocked at the scene of the woman freezing solid to do anything.

Of course, the attack failed even to make a scratch on my neck as he glared at me with rage that I was very familiar with.

“What did you do?? You bastard!!”

“Calm down kid. All I did was preserve her current state so that she does not die before I am done treating her.”

That stopped him in his tracks as he gave me a cautious and confused look.

“What do you mean? How can freezing her like a block of ice save her life??”

“Look, I won’t go deep into explaining the concept to you, but just know that she is alive and will stay that way as long as she is wearing that bracelet.”

Suddenly, the little girl ran between her brother and me and looked at me with a hopeful look.

“You said that you were going to keep my mother in this state until you cure her. Does that mean you have a cure for the poison?”

I smiled at her and nodded.

“Yes. I know what poison is eating away at your mother and I know how to cure it. However, it is going to take me time to make the pill needed to heal her. Somewhere around a week, including the time needed to travel back to my home where my alchemy cauldron and ingredients are.”

“What ingredients do you need? I can ask Uncle Bai to send them over along with a cauldron-“

“Jin Tianrui. Don’t forget that your uncle already paid for my help, including the cost of the resources needed to achieve a positive result. How can you ask for more when he has already paid a steep price for treating your mother? Don’t take advantage of his kindness.”

At those words, he immediately fell silent and clenched his fists in helplessness while his father looked down guiltily, probably blaming himself for some imagined reason.

‘Why don’t you have them pack up and follow you back to the village? It would be much simpler.’

‘But I haven’t even discussed the terms with Jin Tianrui yet and neither have I informed him about my interest in hiring him.’

‘You could do that right now.’

‘That would be manipulative of me. To take advantage of his helplessness to get my way. I am not that kind of a man and I refuse to do such a thing.’

‘Then, what are you going to do? your cauldron and the ingredients for the pill are back home. While you can buy them here, they will be well below our standard given that you made that cauldron yourself, and the ingredients you have are top quality stuff that you found in the forest through our heaven-defying Luck.’

‘The subpar stuff will have to do for now. It doesn’t look like I will be able to conclude my business with this guy otherwise.’

“Look. Stay here, I’ll go and get the cauldron and the necessary materials to make the pill. We can discuss our business once she is healed.”

That was enough to make the entire family brighten up considerably.

Then, Jin Tianrui did the unthinkable and directly kneeled in front of me with his head touching the ground.

‘Shit!!’

Before I could do anything, he spoke the words that I dreaded the most in this world.

“If the master can heal my mother, this Jin Tianrui swears upon the heavens to follow your every word until death. No matter what you demand of me, I will do it willingly. No matter the cost!”

Suddenly, despite being underground, we heard the distant boom of thunder and I felt a strange sensation engulf the both of us before disappearing.

‘…Well. There goes any chance I had of having a proper employee instead of a slave in all but name.’

‘You should consider this a blessing in disguise. Now, you don’t have to worry about his loyalty anymore.’

‘Shut it! I did not want to earn his loyalty by preying on his weakness like this!! I wanted to befriend him and earn his loyalty the proper way!! Now, I am no different than the bastards of this world!’

‘Whatever. Just get on with it. The kid looks like he is going to kill himself if you don’t accept his vow.’

I sighed in resignation and motioned Jin Tianrui to get up.

"First of all, that was completely unnecessary. Second of all, I really need to start hammering things into that thick skull of yours about proper phrasing and the hidden meanings behind the words you so recklessly speak out. Starting with just how dangerous it is to make an oath to the heavens with such a vague way of speaking."

I really can’t catch a break, can I?