"Master Gu Li, please stop!" the servant hastily stopped the angry Gu Li from entering the room Han Shuo and Steiss had entered. Immediately, the door was shut.
"Get that boy out of here. I have to deal with him today! He does not know how to respect his elders. I have to teach him a lesson!" Gu Li was notorious in Mirage City for her bad temper. However, everyone, including the powerful members of society, had always tolerated her because of her excellent skills in refining medicine. This was the first time she had ever been so brutally insulted by a person.
"Excuse me, Mr. Bryan is having a conversation with our owner. If you wish to speak to him, please wait until he comes out of the room," the servant explained with a smile.
"Alright, I will wait for him right here until he comes out of the door!" Gu Li said stubbornly. She stood as still as a mountain in front of the door with an angry face, waiting in silence. She completely ignored what was happening in the banquet hall.
The servant, seeing that she was no longer causing trouble, did nothing with her. He stood face to face with Gu Li, smiling.
Some of the pharmacists in the hall were secretly pleased to see Gu Li humiliated. There were also some who disapproved of Han Shuo's attitude, thinking that Han Shuo did not know how to respect elders at all. All of the pharmacists stopped exchanging their knowledge about medicine and instead started discussing Han Shuo quietly.
The room that Steiss and Han Shuo had entered was a drawing room of about thirty square metres in size, much smaller compared to the banquet hall outside the door. However, the decorations in the room were much more magnificent and splendid. Glass jars of rare medicines emphasised the owner's identity as an apothecary.
Steiss the Dwarf personally served Han Shuo a cup of fine wine after they entered the room. The conversation began with talk of the weather and some recent events in the City of Shadows. Then, when Steiss noticed that Han Shuo seemed a little impatient, he finally started talking about the main point. With a faint smile, he said, "The Celestial Pearl Pharmacy under your leadership has really been in the spotlight these days. Basically, every rich and powerful person in the City of Shadows has been talking about your pharmacy. They are proud to own the medicines you produce. Haha, it is really impressive that you could achieve such a feat at such a young age..."
"Haha... You are flattering me..." Han Shuo replied with a slight smile.
"But..." After a round of praise, Steiss suddenly changed the topic of discussion. "The Celestial Pearl Pharmacy started a little late. If you want the entire Darkness Dominion, or even the Death and Destruction Dominions, to know about your medicines, it will take tens, if not hundreds, of years. However, if you are willing to work with us, we can guarantee that people will learn about your medicines in the shortest possible time. After that, your profits will be even greater," Steiss said seriously.
"Is that so?" Han Shuo smiled brightly. He took a sip of the fine wine and asked, "How exactly will this partnership work?"
"You will share the formula of your medicines with our godswamp. Then we will sell the medicines made from your formula in every branch we have throughout the Darkness Dominion. We will share the profits in the ratio of twenty-eighty. What do you think?" Steiss suggested with a warm smile on his face.
"Twenty-eighty? You take twenty and I get eighty?" Han Shuo thought that this method of sharing was rather generous. However, Han Shuo would still not be willing to share his formulas. At most, he would provide the medicines to Godswamp for them to resell.
"No, no, no, you misunderstood!" the expression on Steiss' face changed slightly. He hastily said, "You get twenty and we take eighty!"
The smile on Han Shuo's face immediately turned stiff. He immediately stood up from his seat, nodded at Steiss and said, "Sorry, there is something I need to take care of. I'm on my way!"
The proposed profit split was unacceptable, if not ridiculous enough for Han Shuo. He was not inclined to talk to someone who was not even sincere about forming a partnership.
"Wait! It's negotiable..." Steiss forced a smile and shouted as Han Shuo immediately got up and headed for the exit.
"There is nothing to negotiate. I have no interest whatsoever in cooperating with your Godswamp Pharmacy. Goodbye!" Han Shuo replied without even turning around and left the room.
"Unruly fellow, I must debate you right here and now! I want to see what is so outstanding about your knowledge of medicine refinement!" Gu Li, who had been guarding the door, immediately and belligerently stepped into Han Shuo's path after seeing him leave the room.
"I have no time for your nonsense!" Han Shuo was in no mood for further discussion, feeling as if he had been tricked by the Godswamp Pharmacy. He coldly shouted at them and pushed them aside. Then, ignoring the stumbling Gu Li, Han Shuo walked across the hall with great strides and headed straight for the exit.
Gu Li had never been treated so roughly. After struggling to keep herself from falling, she discovered that Han Shuo was gone and that the people around her were looking at her as if they were enjoying her pitiful state. She could not be more enraged and screamed loudly, "This is not over, you damned brat!"
After Han Shuo left the room, the door was shut again. Right after that, a side door in the room suddenly opened. An elderly man with white hair and translucent skin walked in with a calm face. He looked at the dwarf and said indifferently, "This young man is extremely ambitious. He will not share his formula for a small piece of profit. It seems that this method won't work."
"Master, what if we eliminate him directly and capture the memory in his soul?" Steiss suggested with a dark face. He was furious that Han Shuo had left him.
The old man shook his head and calmly replied, "Although I don't know how he managed to escape from Avery, this boy is obviously not easy. We should only use brute force against him as a last resort. The Godswamp Pharmacy has been operating in the City of Shadows for so many years. Surely we can take care of this little character who's come out of nowhere. Since he didn't appreciate our kindness, we'll show him who's the boss."
"Master, you mean..."
"The same way we took care of Hannah's Pharmacy. First, we tarnish the reputation of his medicine. If people lose faith in his medicine, he won't be able to continue doing business in the City of Shadows. Hmph, those big family clans have been so supportive of him just because of the medicine he produces. But if they find out that there are problems with those medicines, he will surely be kicked out of the city," the elder explained.
"Exactly, you are..." Steiss laughed darkly.
***
"What did you talk about? What did he say to make you so angry?" Andrina asked Han Shuo as soon as he came out of the Godswamp Pharmacy.
Andrina had tactfully retreated to a secluded spot before Han Shuo entered the room to discuss. Since Andrina was just a little girl, no one really paid any attention to her. Then, after Han Shuo left the room, she appeared out of nowhere and followed Han Shuo again.
"This Godswamp Pharmacy wants to rob my pharmacy. Twenty-eight? And I even have to share my medicine formula? Hahaha. They are either daydreaming or they think they can take advantage of me!" Han Shuo said angrily. After storming out of the compound, Han Shuo turned around to look at the tall buildings and thought to himself, "One day, your Godswamp Pharmacy will be kicked out of the City of Shadows! Fuck you!
"Bryan!" Anito hurried over, worried.
"What's going on?" Han Shuo asked hurriedly. Seeing how Anito was in such a hurry, he knew that something bad must have happened.
Anito gasped for breath and replied, "Carmelita has returned to the city, but she is badly injured! She is still unconscious and may not make it. Lord Andre knows that your medicine is miraculous and wants your help!"
Han Shuo's face froze when he heard that Carmelita was injured. He knew that Carmelita had travelled through various fortresses in the City of Shadows looking for him. He immediately blamed himself for Carmelita's injury.
"Let's go!" Han Shuo immediately rushed with Anito in the direction of the House of Sainte. He had a sombre expression on his face.
Although Han Shuo had no romantic feelings for Carmelita, the two of them had gone through enough trials and tribulations together. He also knew that Carmelita had truly taken him as a friend. Now that Carmelita was critically injured, Han Shuo immediately took the attacker, whoever it was, as his own enemy.
Carmelita is immensely powerful. The House of Sainte has overwhelming control over the City of Shadows. Who would attack them? Godhunters? Han Shuo pondered as he travelled to Sainte's residence.
Han Shuo's mind was in disarray as he worried about Carmelita's condition and his speed had unconsciously increased, overtaking Anito. Anito looked at Han Shuo and Andrina's backs in confusion, unable to understand how they could travel at such speeds!
As they were about to reach the Sainte Residence, Andrina suddenly said: "I'll wait for you outside!" and disappeared.
Upon arrival, Han Shuo saw that Andre was waiting for him personally at the front door. At this moment, Andre had a dark purple pupil in his left eye. He was radiating an intense, eerie and sinister aura; completely different from his mild demeanour in the usual days.
Andre clearly had something on his mind. His expression relaxed when he saw Han Shuo arrive and he said hastily, "Come with me!"
They entered a room filled with an intense smell of medicine. There were several medics standing around, their hands glowing with radiation that fell on Carmelita's horribly injured body. She was covered in cuts from head to toe. Her skin was torn and her flesh split. She looked almost inhuman.
In the small room, apart from Carmelita and the medics, were City Lord Wallace and some of the most important members of the Sainte family. Han Shuo only took one look at Carmelita as she lay in a treatment container, knowing how badly she was injured.
"Elder brother, I brought him here!" Andre said quietly to City Lord Wallace after showing Han Shuo into the room.
Wallace nodded and then said to Han Shuo, "She is badly injured and has not yet regained consciousness. We don't know if she'll make it."
"I need everyone to leave the room!" Han Shuo suddenly said in a deep voice.
"Youngster, who do you think you are? You are just a pharmacist, not a medical expert. What exactly can you do in this situation?" The few tending to Carmelita's injuries were the best medics in the City of Shadows. They stared at Han Shuo with anger when he tried to chase them away as soon as he arrived.
Andre, the person who had escorted Han Shuo here, was also shocked. He had not expected Han Shuo to be so bold. Normally, such critical injuries would be treated by professional doctors. Pharmacists would normally be there to provide special medicines. Andre had only brought Han Shuo here to play a supporting role. He had never expected that Han Shuo would want to handle the whole thing himself.
"Let me do it. I am confident that Carmelita will recover completely. I have no intention of talking nonsense or fooling around at such a critical moment," Han Shuo looked at City Lord Wallace and said solemnly.
Wallace had been wearing a dark face but his eyes suddenly lit up after hearing Han Shuo's words. He raised his hand to stop the medics' protest and said in a deep voice, "Everyone out"
He was the most powerful man in the City of Shadows. The prestige he had built up over so many years was certainly not something these medics would dare defy. Obeying his command, they put down the medical equipment in their hands and left the small medical room.
"And you too, get out!" Wallace glanced at the few members of the Sainte family in the room and gave the order.
They too bowed their heads and left. But as they walked out, they all looked at Han Shuo with dismissive glances as if to tell him, "Young man, if anything bad happens to Carmelita, you will not leave here alive!"
"Do your best. We're counting on you!" Wallace gently encouraged as he patted Han Shuo's back before turning to Andre and saying, "Brother, let's leave the room as well." With those words out of his mouth, both Wallace and Andre walked out of the medical room.
"Elder brother, do you trust Bryan?" Andre hesitated for a moment and asked after they had left the medical room.
"I don't know, but it's worth a try. Those medics have spent half the day, but Carmelita has shown no signs of improvement. I don't think you can count on them. This young man, however, has a very bright sparkle in his eyes - something I haven't seen in any of the discouraged medics. That's why I think it's worth giving him a chance," Wallace said in a deep voice.
"You mean... confidence!" Andre stared blankly for a moment and answered.
"That's right, it's confidence. That confidence in his eyes made me feel that Carmelita could still be saved! But those medics, they were all nervous and frightened, and they kept telling us how powerless they felt. How can I count on them?" said Wallace.
Andre thought for a moment and nodded in agreement. But soon he sighed and said quietly, "I hope she makes it.
"Have you found any clues or evidence?" Wallace asked after taking a deep breath. His face was frighteningly malevolent. He looked like a wild beast, ready to tear apart any person that came within his sight.
"We are still investigating. It will take some time," Andre replied. He felt a shiver run down his spine.
"When you find the attacker, no matter who he is, kill him! This is a direct provocation against our House of Sainte. Perhaps we have been too silent for too many years that people have begun to forget what our family name means!" Sainte Wallace said, his right hand shaking subconsciously.
Andre did not reply in words, but nodded his head heavily.
Inside the medical room, both Carmelita and Han Shuo were sitting cross-legged with Han Shuo's two hands pressed against Carmelita's back. A faint dark smoke hung around their bodies. Strands of thick black smoke waved around the room. The scene looked evil and sinister. Someone who didn't know better might even think that some sort of dark ceremony was taking place.
Carmelita's body contained the divine energies of death, darkness and destruction that didn't belong to her. These energies had penetrated deep into the cells and bones of her body, almost completely destroying her vitality. It was obvious that several people had joined forces to end her life!
Most of the destructive divine energy that belonged to Carmelita had been depleted. What was left in her body was not enough to withstand the onslaught of these foreign energies. Since she was in a coma, her divine soul was unable to understand or react to the terrible state of her body.
Han Shuo's bold claim that he could save Carmelita was not unfounded. His confidence was based on the miraculous nature of demonic arts. Demonic Yuan could be described as one of the most miraculous energies in the universe. By using Demonic Yuan, Han Shuo was able to gain a clear and complete understanding of Carmelita's condition. He immediately realised that the most threatening power in her body was a large amount of Dark Divine Energy. Han Shuo had no way of eliminating this powerful darkness energy with demonic yuan, and could only eliminate the divine energies of destruction and death.
The Destruction and Death Divine Energies that were constantly inflicting injuries on her body didn't belong to Carmelita. The characteristics of this divine energy had been changed, and it could only cause harm. After Han Shuo had sucked it out with demonic arts, he immediately purged it into the ground. This type of divine energy could not be absorbed by his avatars - it would only cause them harm.
After using some of his Demonic Yuan, Han Shuo was able to remove the foreign divine energies of destruction and death from her bodies. As for the dark divine energy, which was the most powerful energy within her, even Han Shuo was powerless against it.
After increasing the power of his consciousness tenfold with the Cauldron Spirit's energy, Han Shuo carefully infiltrated Carmelita's divine soul. Then he left an unyielding thought in her half-conscious soul - to resist the dark energy in her body with all her might.
Carmelita was, after all, a Highgod. Although she had not yet awakened, thanks to the resolute thought Han Shuo had left in her divine soul, she began to reassemble the destructive divine energy in her body. After that, Han Shuo fed Carmelita some medicine pellets. When Han Shuo discovered that the destructive divine energy in her body had begun to slowly rebuild, Han Shuo finally heaved a sigh of relief.
After resting for a while, Han Shuo erased all traces of the demonic arts he had used and opened the door with a tired face.
Wallace and the others were waiting outside. As soon as Han Shuo came out of the door, Wallace hurriedly asked, "How is she?"
"She is out of danger. But she will need a very long time to fully recover." Han Shuo wiped the sweat from his brow and continued, "There were a number of divine energies in her body. The most powerful was a dark divine energy. The attacker must be a Highgod . Also, this divine energy feels familiar somehow."
Andre's left eye suddenly turned dark purple. His face became murderous.