Chapter 338: Chapter 338: Charm Array, Refining the Human Puppet _1
Ye Ming’s breathing grew more and more labored, and the green light also gradually wrapped around his body.
Zhang Lingfeng’s brows furrowed slightly as he walked up to Ye Ming and said, "This spell shouldn’t claim your life, take the Elixir I gave you just now!"
Zhang Lingfeng was not stingy at all; he allowed a stranger to consume the Elixir he had painstakingly refined over dozens of years, without feeling any heartache.
Ye Ming was slightly startled, finding it somewhat unbelievable, and he even began to suspect whether the old man’s identity was related to Wanhua Valley outside.
However, by now, Ye Ming could not afford to hesitate.
He pinched a Golden Core and stuffed it directly into his mouth.
Indeed, as soon as the Elixir entered his body, a golden light surrounded him, driving back the encroaching green light.
"Senior, thank you for saving my life!" Ye Ming expressed his gratitude, then slowly sat down on the ground and began to meditate and regulate his breath.
Zhang Lingfeng glanced at Ye Ming with a hint of guilt and said, "My descendants have really disgraced Wanhua Valley. They actually planned to betray and eliminate their own mentor, turning me into a Human Puppet."
Ye Ming’s heart stirred, and he quickly asked, "Old senior, since you are their predecessor, surely you can undo this Formation, right?"
Zhang Lingfeng shook his head, saying with a sense of despair, "I cannot. This Formation was an evil technique I came across many years ago. Because it was too malignant, I discarded it. Yet, Qin Yao, against my wishes, has secretly cultivated it!"
"The Formation before us is not the work of one person, but was laid down by their collective strength. Thus, breaking the Formation has become extremely difficult!"
His face filled with shame, he said, "The only one to blame is myself, for being soft-hearted at that time and not completely destroying the evil technique. It has now become a scourge to the world. I suspect that their Human Puppet technique has reached perfection, and that many people must have fallen victim to it by now."
Ye Ming did not contradict him, replying, "Indeed, according to a rough estimate, probably over a hundred people have perished because of it."
Ye Ming recounted the details of his earlier battle with Wanhua Valley, causing Zhang Lingfeng to feel even more remorseful.
Seeing Zhang Lingfeng like this, Ye Ming grew to understand—the original Wanhua Valley was not like this. It was the current Valley Master, Qin Yao, who had tarnished its reputation.
While the two were talking, outside the room, the Charm Array had become fully operational, its green light growing more and more intense.
Zhang Lingfeng said, "Young man, I have some Great Rejuvenation Pills here that should last you a while. If you have a way, take these Golden Cores with you. If really there’s no other way, these Golden Cores should still allow you to hold on for some time!"
"Old senior, if you give me all these Elixirs, what will you do?" Ye Ming inquired, puzzled.
Zhang Lingfeng sighed once again and said, "Forget about me. The sins were sown by my own hands; I should be the one to atone for them. I will atone with my death."
As he spoke, Zhang Lingfeng’s eyes were filled with a mix of guilt, conveying to Ye Ming the unique sense of pride inherent to the old seniors of the martial world.
Having learned about the current disgraceful reputation of Wanhua Valley, he chose to atone for it with the price of his life.
Ye Ming took a deep breath, his mind racing.
He stepped out of the room, looked around at the surrounding Charm Array, and an idea began to form in his mind.
Now, he simply didn’t have the strength to break through the formation.
But as they say, heaven never seals off all exits; if he wanted to break the formation, it wasn’t without solutions—his best bet was to advance his powers as quickly as possible.
Once he reached the Intermediate Earth Rank, he could easily break through the formation before him.
Hope was still there, and more so because after entering the Alchemy Room, Ye Ming had already gathered enough materials to create a Top Quality Spirit Condensing Elixir.
With this in mind, Ye Ming didn’t dare waste any more time and directly said, "Senior, I have a method to break the formation, but I need some time and the help of your two elixirs to protect me from the formation’s influence."
Zhang Lingfeng was slightly startled and looked curiously at Ye Ming, saying, "Young man, it’s good that you have ideas, but I’m all too familiar with this formation. Unless an Intermediate Earth Rank practitioner fights it, your current level of cultivation surely hasn’t reached that far, has it?"
Ye Ming didn’t deny it and followed the other’s line of thought, saying, "I indeed have not reached it yet, but I have time and the necessary ingredients to help me advance!"
"I need to borrow your alchemy furnace to concoct a Top Quality Spirit Condensing Pill."
"Alchemy?" Zhang Lingfeng heard the word ’alchemy’ and a great interest suddenly lit up on his once despairing face: "I have studied the Great Spirit Condensing Elixir, but have never actually concocted it."
He took inventory of the room’s herbs and then said confidently: "The ingredients are sufficient. Since you need the Great Spirit Condensing Pill, I can help you concoct it!"
Zhang Lingfeng, who had been devoted to alchemy for half his life and had of course achieved some prowess, was not someone Ye Ming dared to underestimate. "Then I must trouble you, senior. I need two Great Spirit Condensing Elixirs; with those, my advancement will be even more secure! How about we each concoct one?"
Zhang Lingfeng nodded his head and began preparations right away.
However, once he had prepared all the ingredients, a sudden realization struck him: "What are the steps to concoct the Great Spirit Condensing Elixir? What is the required flame control?"
"I..."
The man who had been full of confidence suddenly froze, a bewildered expression on his face.
Ye Ming gave a wry smile and said, "If you truly lack the experience, senior, I can take care of it myself."
He had not easily gathered so many ingredients, and now, in this urgent situation, he couldn’t afford any mistakes. Otherwise, they would fall into a predicament with no redemption.
Zhang Lingfeng hurried nodded, ceding his position but showing no displeasure. Instead, he was quite excited, sitting cross-legged beside Ye Ming like a student, watching his every move closely.
Ye Ming methodically arranged the ingredients in front of him, then began to manipulate the Alchemy Room using his Inner True Qi.
He had never used such high-quality alchemy equipment before, and for a moment, he too felt excited.
After a simple activation, he was surprised to find that the Alchemy Room was extremely easy to use; just a little bit of True Qi could control the flame to perfection.
If that was the case, concocting two elixirs was not an issue at all.
With a boom, flames began to churn in the furnace. Ye Ming casually threw the ingredients into the Alchemy Room, then closed his eyes, carefully tuning into the process.
Zhang Lingfeng watched from the side, eyes wide with shock, muttered to himself, "I’ve studied alchemy my entire life and yet I can’t compare to this young man in the slightest. It is truly embarrassing!"
