"Everything is gone, all gone. How did it come to this?" His legs felt weak, and he sank to the ground.
These herbs in the secret room were all the hidden treasures of the Qingyu Daoist temple, and now they had been ruined because of him.
Soon, Mu Feng walked back into the secret room. He took out a brown pill and threw it to the old Daoist.
The old Daoist instinctively caught the pill and frowned, "What is this?"
"Take it!" Mu Feng offered no explanation, nor did he feel like it.
"What do you want to do? Why should I take it?" The old Daoist, besides being confused, was also filled with rage.
Mu Feng chuckled, "Don't you want to save your own life? If you take this poison, you can save your life!"
"Are you kidding me? If I eat it like this, I will..." The old Daoist was so angry he almost vomited blood.
He realized that this young man in front of him seemed to have no intention of letting him live; he was toying with him.
Mu Feng snorted, "If you don't eat it, you will surely die. If you eat it, you can at least linger on!"
He paused and continued, "This poison will not erupt immediately, but its efficacy will remain in your internal organs, acting up once a year. Every year, you can come to me, and I will give you an antidote. As for whether you can get the antidote, that will depend on your performance!"
The old Daoist's heart sank. He understood that once he swallowed this pill, his life would no longer be his own.
His life would be firmly in the hands of others, and he would lose all initiative.
"What's the difference between this and killing me? I... I will absolutely not eat it!"
The old Daoist braced himself and angrily turned his head aside.
Mu Feng said with a faint smile, "If you don't eat it, I'll be in a difficult position. After all, after obtaining so many aged medicinal herbs from you, I'm really reluctant to kill you!"
"You!" Blood dripped from the corner of the old Daoist's mouth in anger.
He suddenly put away his smile, "However, I don't like disobedient people. Prepare to meet your maker!"
Mu Feng took out a dagger and pressed it directly against the old Daoist's neck.
A powerful pressure was released, locking onto his life force. The old Daoist was so terrified by this pressure that he couldn't even lift his head.
"No! I'll eat it, I'll eat it, alright?"
The old Daoist, thoroughly scared, quickly snatched the pill and swallowed it with great reluctance.
Mu Feng put away the dagger and nodded with satisfaction, "Isn't this better? Why go through so much suffering?"
After taking the pill, the old Daoist felt a burning sensation in his chest. It was clearly a potent poison.
A sharp pain caused him to collapse to the ground, letting out a roar.
The pain, from his marrow to his flesh, was unlike anything the old Daoist had ever experienced.
If not for his strong willpower, an ordinary person would have fainted from the pain alone.
"Why does it hurt so much? Why?"
"I feel like I'm dying, dying!"
The old Daoist rolled around frantically on the ground, knocking over the herb racks in the secret room.
Mu Feng watched it all with narrowed eyes. He did not offer the antidote, intending to break the old Daoist's spirit.
At this moment, the old Daoist could no longer endure it and scrambled to Mu Feng's feet.
He abandoned his haughty demeanor and began to kowtow repeatedly, "Give me the antidote, give me the antidote!"
"You are nothing but my dog now. You know what a dog should do, don't you!" Mu Feng kicked him aside.
The old Daoist's face turned red. He cast aside his pride and crawled back like a dog.
"Please spare me, master. This old servant will serve you wholeheartedly in the future!"
Mu Feng took out a small pill and tossed it on the ground, "This is the antidote. Remember, you will feel this every year when it acts up. I hope you will take care of yourself!"
The old Daoist treated it like a treasure and quickly stuffed the pill into his mouth without a second thought.
After a minute, he gradually regained his senses. He never wanted to experience that agonizing pain again.
"Now, tell me what other good things your Daoist temple has. If you miss even one, there will be no more antidotes in the future!"
Mu Feng played with a small porcelain bottle in his hand, which was filled with antidotes.
The old Daoist swallowed hard, no longer daring to hide anything. He quickly said, "Actually, actually, where our ancestor is in seclusion, there are more aged medicinal herbs. These are the truly good things. The reason our ancestor has lived for so long is because of these herbs!"
Mu Feng lamented, "Alas, it's not good to take so many good herbs from others!"
The old Daoist changed the subject, "What are you saying? These should rightfully belong to you, master. After all, I lost the gamble with you before, and all the herbs in the Qingyu Daoist temple already belong to you."
This was indeed true. As the master of the Qingyu Daoist temple, the old Daoist's gamble with him was convincing. These herbs rightfully belonged to him.
Mu Feng nodded with satisfaction, "I just don't know if your ancestor will agree!"
However, the old Daoist had his own ulterior motives; he planned to use a borrowed knife to kill someone.
After seeing the small porcelain bottle filled with antidotes in Mu Feng's hand, he realized that as long as he took one pill each year, he could live well.
These antidotes were enough for him to live a lifetime. At this moment, he began to have wicked thoughts again.
"He has no choice but to agree. If your methods are clever, how can that old geezer be your match..."
Mu Feng's smile froze. Anyone with discerning eyes could see that the old Daoist was instigating him, trying to make him rush headlong into a hornet's nest.
"I say, people like you are truly detestable. You're so eager, when your own life has been saved, you still have other ideas?"
The old Daoist trembled in fear and explained, "No, master, you must believe me. In my opinion, that old geezer is no match for you!"
Mu Feng shook his head, "Forget it. These herbs belong to someone else, and that person has not offended me. Why should I snatch away his life-saving items?"
Although Mu Feng was tempted, he still had principles in his actions.
What was rightfully his, must be his. What was not his, he would not take even a bit.
The old Daoist's heart was filled with hatred, his teeth itching. If Mu Feng didn't stir up trouble, how could he get revenge?
The old Daoist was very confident in his ancestor's strength, but he did not dare to disturb him.
After all, when he was young, a previous master of the temple had disturbed the ancestor's seclusion and was immediately killed on the spot.
The gruesome scene was still vivid in the old Daoist's eyes.