The poor Yun Hua was being tormented by her older brother and her father, desperately trying to avoid their hands stroking her small head. Of course, she had no way of getting away from the grip of her father. But they were just joking around and his father let her go. Sensing his grip weakening, she jumped and ran away, hiding behind Cao Yun.
"They both went inane! Mean daddy turned Big Brother inane! Save me!"
For a moment, the little girl wondered whether the Heavens had not struck them down with magical lightning that had fried their brains. This time, all three men looked at each other. Cao Yun had to control himself not to laugh out loud when he saw the dejected look in the eyes of General Yun. Even Yun Ping seemed a bit hurt by the poor pronounced words of his little sister.
As the crowd was laughing even more, General Yun got closer to his son and put his arm on his left shoulder.
"This injury is a symbol of your honor. With the blood that courses through your veins, you'll overcome it easily. In fact, you might even become a better fighter than I am. You probably don't even realize it yet but you've entered the state of Spear Aura during our fight. With a bit more training and honing, you might reach the Spear Intent before you turn thirty. That would be quite an achievement!"
For an instant, General Yun paused. His words were meant for his son but they were loud enough so that everyone could hear them. Then, he specifically turned toward the crowd.
"Thank you all for your visit. I hope that our exhibition was entertaining. As you know, we are living through trying times. And as you just saw our young generation won't be any less than us. Now that all the fights are over, let's enjoy the end of the day with some wine and some meat!"
As he spoke, a few servants brought the food and the wine for all to enjoy. Obviously, the crowd cheered. They had a lot to discuss. Although the Yun family wasn't rich and had even gone through a rough period, they had tried to go all out. However, Cao Yun could tell that the meat and the wine weren't as good as in the Red Realm's Banquet Hall.
Although the event was held by the Yun family, Guai Mo received more praises than anyone else except Yun Ping. Indeed, the relations between the various families and the Yun family were already established and even this show of strength wouldn't change them too much. At best, it would just make some people be more careful. Maybe the families that were rather neutral would distance themselves even more from the Xue family. However, few families had formed good a relation with Guai Mo yet. Of course, those who sided with the Xue family just politely talked to him, but others were trying to curry favors already.
Among the people who came to him, Cao Yun saw Jiahe Ruo. He joked a bit about the great meal they had had together and noted that he had not touched a single peace of meat nor a single cup of wine.
"This might be considered impolite by our hosts..."
"Brother Guai, please stop teasing me."
All the time, the little Yun Hua had stayed behind Cao Yun's leg. Around her family she was very expansive. Around strangers though, she was as shy as Cao Huiying had been. Thus, Cao Yun knew exactly how to take care of her. From a distance, he could feel General Yun's gaze on him. But there was nothing menacing. He could simply sense that he was interested in him. According to Yun Ping, his father had been told almost everything and he seemed to at least be ready to listen to Cao Yun directly. This was a good thing.
Finally, the sun was about to set. At that moment, many guests began to give small gifts of appreciation to General Yun Po. And soon, it was Cao Yun's turn. Everyone wanted their gift to be known as they were used to somewhat indicate their stance between the different influences of Qingyun City. Cao Yun had another idea. His gift was essentially a way to showcase his prowess and to get the right kind of attention.
"General Yun, this Guai Mo presents to you a Merging Minerals and Seas pill. Although it is a mere 5-star Human pill, it has reached the threshold of a Pure pill. I imagine that it could be very useful for someone still recovering from a grievous injury."
Obviously, General Yun wasn't an alchemist but he had learned to discern the quality of a pill. It was a useful skill for a general to have. After all, on the battlefields, using the right pills could save many lives. As soon as he opened the small box Cao Yun had given him, General Yun indeed recognized the scent of a Pure pill. But, as he had never seen this particular pill, he didn't note anything unusual.
This wasn't the case of Jiahe Ruo though. The young man had lived in the Imperial City for quite some time. Despite his absence of talent in alchemy, he was a very good appraiser of art. Thanks to that, he had developed excellent senses. Just by smelling the fragrance of the pill, he noted a small difference with the one he had already experienced before. He had no time to talk though. Another alchemist in the crowd exclaimed first.
"Wait! This isn't a Merging Minerals and Seas pill!"
Suddenly, all the eyes went to Cao Yun.
"Oh? I didn't think any alchemist here would see the difference. You truly have good senses, miss. This Merging Minerals and Seas pill is my creation. I found that the old recipe was just too expensive for most people. You see, I think about the common alchemist we can't afford such ingredients. My version only requires a bit of talent instead of pure money. In fact, the price shouldn't exceed ten taels of gold."
"What?!"
Cao Yun had both complimented and insulted all the alchemists present. However, that wasn't what made them tick. Altering a recipe wasn't that rare, but Guai Mo was still very young. Furthermore, this was a 5-star Human pill and the price had been divided by five. After a moment of shock, most alchemists thought that he had sacrificed the quality of the pill for that. Surely that new pill was less efficient than a true Merging Minerals and Seas pill. It shouldn't even be a 5-star Human pill any longer.
"Would someone doubt the effects of my new recipe? Here, take a look!"
Before anyone could voice their concerns, Cao Yun retrieved a piece of parchment and sent it toward the first woman who had spoken. At first, she read in her head and was immediately silenced. Even though she was a 2-star Heaven alchemist, she had to think over this matter for a long time to determine whether or not that pill would be as effective. However, she could immediately tell that this recipe was the real deal. It wasn't just some random idea by an ambitious alchemist.
Needless to say, the few alchemists present at the event all wanted to see the recipe. Before long, they were all mulling over it, unable to decided whether the recipe was effective or not. That in itself was prove enough to all non-alchemists that this pill was the real deal. Maybe it wasn't as effective as the true Merging Minerals and Seas pill. But since it had reached the grade of Pure pill, it was certainly better than the average Merging Minerals and Seas pill most of the lower families could afford.
In order to settle the matter, Yun Po acted.
"Master Guai, we thank you for your generous gift. We do believe it will be best used by Yun Ping. What do you think, son?"
"Certainly, father."
Without thinking twice, Yun Ping took the box and opened it. Then, in front of everyone, he sat cross-legged and meditated for some time. The crowd knew he was preparing himself to better digest the medicinal essence of the pill so they stayed quiet. After the uproar of the alchemists, they all wanted to see how effective this pill truly was.
When he was ready, Yun Ping gulped down the pill without any hesitation. To be honest, Cao Yun had already told him what the gift would be. If he had wanted, Yun Po could have examined the content of the box without opening it. Clearly, he had meant to show everyone what was within the box. If that alchemist had not reacted first, someone else was ready to do so. Thus, Yun Ping was fully prepared to control the medicinal essence of the Merging Minerals and Seas pill. Otherwise, he would have never done so in front of everyone. Taking a 5-star Human pill wasn't a trivial matter. Unless there was an emergency, no one would do so lightly.
All the eyes were still on Yun Ping. Usually, it was impolite to use one's spiritual senses to observe someone. But this time, General Yun allowed them all to do so as long as they didn't disturb his son. It would also be good for his own purposes.
During several minutes, Yun Ping controlled the medicinal essence and directed it to his bones first. They grew sturdier and sturdier. At the same time, he felt that his own blood was getting a tiny bit richer. Then, he directed a part of the essence in the acupoints that had replaced his left Lao Gong. As he was doing so, he sensed his Five Prodigious Gates react to it. Unconsciously, he was cultivating. In fact, his Bai Hui also sucked in some of the medicinal essence.
Even the Mortal Warriors could feel his Wei Qi becoming denser and stronger. On the other hand, the alchemists saw more than that. He had gained in vitality. It was very faint, but they were certain that his prenatal Jing had improved in quality within his kidneys. They could tell because he had a bit more postnatal Jing right now. His body was able to absorb the Jing in the environment with more ease. Even though the air was poor in Jing, Yun Ping had been able to absorb some of it as well.
Just by slightly improving the quality of one's prenatal Jing, even without increasing the quantity which was even more difficult, one's talent would improve. Not only would Yun Ping's natural lifespan increase by a few years, his cultivation would also be slightly faster. None of those effects would be prodigious. But the mere fact that they existed was wonderful. Many people would kill to improve their talent even a tiny bit. The worst enemy of any cultivator was time.
Besides, alchemists were using pills a lot to improve quickly. If they could increase their talent, they might make do with fewer pills and thus fewer toxins in them.
Since Cao Yun had made his recipe public, every alchemist was eager to try it out. In the coming days, they would realize that even though the pill was cheaper, it was as hard to refine as the real one. Furthermore, the recipe was using some techniques which were not too common and required a great control of the flame. Because the Merging Minerals and Seas pill was a difficult pill to refine already, this new recipe seldom produced Pure pills. Unfortunately, even Perfect pills didn't bear the same results as that Pure pill he had given Yun Ping. Moreover, Cao Yun had clearly told him the best way to use it since he knew a lot about blood cultivation.
Anyway, Cao Yun's goal had been reached and so had Yun Po's. Now, not only the strength of his son but also his potential had been recognized by all!
-
Once the event was over, Governor Jiahe went to talk to General Yun in private. Once again, he tried to be a smooth talker. But General Yun was now used to this little Governor. Even the Imperial City was doubting his quality. As loyal as General Yun was, he had no patience for this kind of character. He tried to be as polite as he could knowing that Governor Jiahe's words didn't amount to much. He was just trying to secure his seat.
That idiot had felt threatened by the Yun family. But General Yun had never wanted to go into politics. On the other hand, the Xue were ready to take his position at a moment's notice. By thinking that everyone was as ambitious as he was, Jiahe Lan had made a terrible decision. If he had sided with the Yun family, he would have secured his seat and a lifelong ally.
When this was over as well, General Yun invited Guai Mo in his personal chambers. As soon as he entered, Cao Yun felt several array formations activate all around the room. They weren't as good as the ones beneath the Major Hall. Clearly, they were array formations meant to isolate them so no one could eavesdrop. Since General Yun was a 6th-grade Spirit Warrior and that no one exceeded that grade in Qingyun City, he wasn't too afraid of being spied on. But he was still cautious anyway.
"My son talked a lot about you. Let's cut to the chase! Do you truly think that a demonic cultivator lives in the Xue residence?"
"I am now certain of that, General. There is no doubt in my mind, but I have no tangible proof..."
"What makes you so certain?"
"Xue Rui has a seal in his heart, it was put there by a demonic cultivator. And I have someone on the inside."
"Do you trust me?"
"I trust Yun Ping. And I know that you care deeply about your son and that you are no demonic cultivator."
"Are you Chen Guo, the Young Sect Master of the Wubei Sect? My son didn't tell, but this is the only thing that makes sense to me."
"Indeed, General. I am sorry for deceiving you. But I can't have this demonic cultivator know about my real identity."
"That person you have on the inside, do you trust them?"
"I don't. Not yet anyway. But soon I will know for sure. Either they are my agent within the Xue family or they are my poison in their midst."
General Yun was not losing any time in his questions. He had fired them rather quickly, but then he paused for some time.