The Great Elder was shocked and quickly investigated the poison inflicted upon the Fifth Elder. To his dismay, he discovered that the poison was gathering in the Fifth Elder's dantian, showing signs of encroaching upon his golden core, which left him quite astonished.
“Is it poison from Lan Xiao?”
“Yes.” The Fifth Elder glanced at the closed door. “They are all inside the Alchemy Hall right now.”
“What exactly do they want to do?”
“The disciples of the Alchemy Hall said they were bullied and demanded that the bullies come out to apologize and show the Alchemy Hall the respect it deserves.” The Fifth Elder ground his teeth ferociously. “Otherwise, they refuse to treat anyone or provide any more pills.”
“They've gone too far!” The Great Elder was already enraged by the death of his grandson at the hands of Xiao Man, and hearing about the Alchemy Hall's actions now made him wish to raze it to the ground. “Is the Third Elder not here?”
“The Third Elder has not been seen. I heard he went out on business. Currently, the ones instigating the Alchemy Hall disciples to rebel are Jin Xu and Lan Xiao.” The Fifth Elder gritted his teeth. This was the first time he had suffered such a significant loss, and yet he was powerless to resist. Filled with both anger and frustration, he coughed up another mouthful of blood.
“Jin Xu, get out here!” the Great Elder roared.
Jin Xu, who was in the courtyard, trembled at the Great Elder's voice and looked at Xiao Man. “Junior Brother, the Great Elder is here. He has the highest cultivation among the elders. Will he, in his rage, raze the Alchemy Hall to the ground?”
“If he had the ability to raze the Alchemy Hall to the ground, he wouldn’t be shouting for you to come out from outside, but would have charged in and beaten us into grandsons,” Xiao Man said slowly.
Upon hearing this, Jin Xu immediately patted his chest. “Then I am relieved. When will Master’s Soft Bone Powder be resolved? It sounds like things are getting more chaotic outside. Will it spiral out of control?”
“Senior Brother, are you afraid?” Xiao Man asked earnestly. Su Dan Novel Network.
“Ridiculous, why would I be afraid?” Jin Xu puffed out his chest and slapped it twice with force. “I’m not afraid of anyone right now!”
Xiao Man looked at the others. “Senior Brothers, are you afraid?”
“Rather than being ordered around like dogs for a lifetime, I’d rather be beaten to death!”
“Good, since Senior Brothers are so courageous, as the Junior Brother, I naturally cannot back down. The effect of the Elder’s Soft Bone Powder will also wear off soon. Once the Elder recovers his mobility, we will have nothing to fear.”
“After the effect of the Elder’s Soft Bone Powder wears off, won’t he surrender?” a disciple asked quietly. After all, the elder was usually the type to avoid trouble if possible. If the effect of the Soft Bone Powder wore off, there was a high possibility he would cower and act submissively.
“I’ll go check on the Elder.” Xiao Man stood up and went into the inner room. The Third Elder was still lying on the bed.
Xiao Man sat down by the Third Elder’s bed. “Elder, the Great Elder has arrived and is asking us to come out.”
The Third Elder opened his eyes, his eyeballs rolling around.
“Elder, do you want us to go out and beg for mercy, call ourselves dogs, and then bark twice to seek forgiveness from the Great Elder and the Fifth Elder?” Xiao Man asked softly.
The expression on the Third Elder’s face froze for a moment, then he fell silent, as if contemplating Xiao Man’s words.
“The effect of the Elder’s Soft Bone Powder will wear off in about half an hour. Elder, have you thought about how to deal with the current situation?” Xiao Man’s tone was unhurried, showing no sense of impending crisis, but instead exuding a sense of calm.
The Third Elder looked at Xiao Man, and after a long while, he asked, “What is happening outside?”
“The Fifth Elder attempted to injure someone, and I used a hidden crossbow, which I obtained from the Forging Hall, to shoot him. It was coated with poison to prevent him from acting recklessly while you were incapacitated. Now the Great Elder has arrived upon hearing the news. Given the Great Elder’s character, he will likely fabricate false charges to frame us, so as to completely trample the Alchemy Hall underfoot. Third Elder, I have implicated you, and I have implicated everyone.”
Xiao Man sighed deeply. “If, during the day, when Senior Brother Jin Quan hit Senior Brother Jin Xu, I had endured and not intervened, Senior Brother Jin Xu would have just taken a beating and it wouldn’t have led to this, with the disciples of the Alchemy Hall afraid to leave their rooms, only to be bullied when they go out.”
“You did nothing wrong.” The Third Elder took a deep breath, feeling the spiritual energy in his body slowly flowing. The effect of the Soft Bone Powder was gradually diminishing, and his body was slowly becoming mobile again. “Nor is it us who are wrong.”
“Third Elder, the Great Elder manages the Martial Arts Hall and is a Nascent Soul expert. We have no ability to resist them.” Xiao Man appeared worried. “If we admit fault, the Alchemy Hall will forever be a weakling that anyone can bully. If we don’t admit fault, the Alchemy Hall may not be able to withstand the Great Elder’s wrath, and perhaps none of us from the Alchemy Hall will see the sunrise tomorrow.”
The Third Elder’s expression grew solemn. He looked at Xiao Man and said, “Let Jin Xu come in.”
Xiao Man immediately called Jin Xu in. As soon as Jin Xu entered, he looked flustered. “Master, what should we do? What should we do? The Great Elder is here with quite a few people, and he’s asking me to come out and accept my death!”
“Nonsense!” The Third Elder’s chest heaved violently with anger. To speak such idiotic words, telling his disciple to go out and accept death! Indeed, his usual good temper had not curbed these people; it had only made them more brazen.
“You leave through the small door behind the alchemy room and go find the Grand Elder immediately.” The Third Elder took a deep breath. “Open the third drawer. Inside, there is a token. Take this token with you.”
“Master, why should I find the Grand Elder?”
“If we don’t find the Grand Elder, who will save us?” the Third Elder roared impatiently. “Your master cannot defeat the Great Elder. Even if I could, are you a match for the disciples of the Martial Arts Hall?”
Jin Xu quickly shook his head. How could they possibly be a match for the disciples of the Martial Arts Hall!
“In that case, why are you still standing here? Are you waiting for me to kick you out?”
“Yes, Master.”
The Great Elder waited outside for a long time, but no one emerged. His face was grim, as if a storm was brewing.
“Jin Xu! If you don’t come out soon, I will flatten this Alchemy Hall!”
“Great Elder, what great authority you wield. Coming to my Alchemy Hall to throw your weight around so late at night, do you truly believe my Alchemy Hall has no one?” The tightly shut door opened, and the Third Elder appeared at the entrance, followed by his senior disciple, Jing Song, and Xiao Man.
“Third Elder!” The Great Elder discovered the Third Elder in the Alchemy Hall, and his expression grew even more somber. “Third Elder, the disciples under your jurisdiction poisoned the Fifth Elder and his disciples, and also killed my grandson, Jin Quan. How do you explain this matter?”
“The disciples of the Alchemy Hall killed your grandson? When?” the Third Elder asked with a look of confusion.
“Tonight!”
“Do you know who the murderer is?” the Third Elder asked calmly. The disciples of the Alchemy Hall had all returned to the Alchemy Hall in the evening. No one had gone out at night. This Great Elder was truly sparing no effort to suppress the Alchemy Hall!