Chapter 4810 — No Way Out
The Blossom Guardian · Page 1 of 2
Putting away the Beauty Pill, Leng Rufeng and Yang Qianshuang both nodded their thanks. Only then did Leng Rufeng suddenly react, blurting out in shock, "You said just now that you can refine the Thunder Profound Pill? You're a seventh-grade alchemist?"
It was not only Leng Rufeng who was shocked; even Chen Xinglan beside him wore a look of astonishment. She had known only that Wei Zhao was the consort of West Island, and that he was a disciple of the Sandie Pavilion of North Island, but never once had she known he was a seventh-grade alchemist. My heavens, how old was he?!
"I suppose so." Wei Zhao and Ning Xuefei exchanged a smile. Strictly speaking, alchemy in his hands relied entirely on the Shennong Medicine Cauldron; he himself was merely the one who poured in true qi and lent a hand, and could hardly be counted a bona fide seventh-grade alchemist. Yet to say he was not would also be untrue, for he really could refine the Thunder Profound Pill with ease, at an efficiency far greater than that of an ordinary seventh-grade alchemist...
A chorus of sharp intakes of breath rose unbidden through the private box. Every one of them, Chen Xinglan included, now looked at Wei Zhao as though he were some kind of monster. Half a month of fierce battle had already proven the fellow a monster, but none of them had truly expected that this was only the tip of the iceberg.
Leng Rufeng stared at Wei Zhao in a daze, at a loss for what to say, and could only hurry to drain a cup of wine to steady himself. Truth be told, he still felt a touch of resentment at having lost to Wei Zhao; were anyone else in his position, they could not have accepted it wholly either.
Only, there had been a wager beforehand, and Wei Zhao had of his own accord promised him the Beauty Pill and the Thunder Profound Pill—that was the sole reason Leng Rufeng had been willing to lower himself to serve as his guard. But now he felt something close to genuine reverence. A seventh-grade alchemist so young—there was no second such person under heaven!
"Brother Leng, may I ask you something? Once Miss Yang has fully recovered from her injuries, will you still remain at Xiangyun Academy?" Wei Zhao asked suddenly. Having heard the conspiracy of Ren Zhongyuan and the others, this was the thing he most needed to clarify.
Silence fell over the table at once. Wei Zhao waited quietly for the answer, and it was a long while before Leng Rufeng spoke. "Three months. I will stay here only three months."
"Only three months?" Wei Zhao's brows knit at once. This matched exactly what Ren Zhongyuan and the others had predicted.
"That's right. If you find it unsuitable, you need not give me the Thunder Profound Pill; I will buy the Beauty Pill at market price, and I can serve as your guard for three months. After that, I must beg your pardon, for I have an account in the Profound-Tier Sea Region that I must settle, and no one can stop me." Leng Rufeng's face held a note of apology, but his resolve was absolute.
Wei Zhao regarded him deeply, raised his cup, and did not press further. He had deliberately let the other man know he was a seventh-grade alchemist precisely to elevate his own standing and plant in Leng Rufeng the wish to cultivate his acquaintance, so that he need not worry about Ning Xuefei being left unprotected.
But Leng Rufeng's expression told him plainly that the Profound-Tier Sea Region had likely become an obsession. Had it not been for Yang Qianshuang, he would have had no patience to remain here at all, and no amount of persuasion from Wei Zhao would avail.
In the end, Leng Rufeng had agreed to this condition only because he had lost the duel. The two had been enemies before that, their relationship far from the firmness of friendship. Since Leng Rufeng meant to leave, Wei Zhao had no grounds, by feeling or by reason, to hold him back.