Chapter 37: Chapter 37: The Deceptive Old Taoist _1
After a brief exchange, Ye Ming had completely figured out the other party’s strengths and weaknesses.
He sensed a powerful resentment emanating from Half-immortal Zhang’s body, tightly encompassing him.
If it were a normal person, they would have already been injured by this resentment, and not long after, a bloody disaster would befall them.
But these things were useless against Ye Ming, and not only did they not harm him, but they also brought Ye Ming numerous benefits.
Because within this resentment hid a certain power.
Once Ye Ming activated his Inner True Qi to neutralize it, he had already absorbed this power for his own use.
Half-immortal Zhang gradually realized something was wrong, his face showing a look of shock as he muttered, "How is this possible, how can this be?"
He now found that the resentment he had accumulated over a long time was almost completely gone.
"This guy truly has some evil tricks up his sleeve, better to make a swift escape!" Half-immortal Zhang knew that Ye Ming had seen through his deception and understood that he was facing a tough opponent, so he planned to slip away—the best course of action.
Ye Ming, however, had no intention of letting him succeed and directly blocked his way, seizing the opportunity to reach out and grab the bracelet on Half-immortal Zhang’s hand.
With a squeeze, he intended to shatter the object gathering evil spirits, but to his surprise, the bracelet was incredibly hard.
Half-immortal Zhang let out a cold laugh, saying, "You’re being quite presumptuous; this is no ordinary bracelet but a Magic Artifact. How could it break just by your squeezing?"
"Today, I admit defeat. Don’t be too excessive, leave a line as a person, it’s better to meet another day!"
Half-immortal Zhang lowered his voice, fearing others would overhear, as he still needed such objects to make money in the future. If Ye Ming exposed him, the consequences would be unthinkable.
"Old thing, you harm me with this trinket and still have the face to say I’m being excessive?" Ye Ming was truly angry now, cursing silently in his heart.
If he hadn’t been wary, he could already have been done in by this old man; there was no way he would let him off so easily now.
Ye Ming began to mobilize his Inner True Qi, gathering it in the palm of his hand, and squeezed again.
With a crack sound, the green bracelet immediately shattered into fragments, scattering on the ground.
Half-immortal Zhang’s eyes bulged with pain, as that item, his lifeline and a treasure bought at great expense, was now just broken pieces.
"You bastard!" Half-immortal Zhang, fuming with anger and with his whiskers trembling, threw a punch at Ye Ming.
Ye Ming easily extended his hand to block, feeling that the old man still had some skill.
Not in the habit of bullying the elderly, he said, "Old man, I’m giving you a chance. Leave immediately or else you won’t be able to walk away."
"You..."
Half-immortal Zhang was so angry he couldn’t speak. He couldn’t beat Ye Ming in a fight or outwit him; he had lost thoroughly.
Surrounded by a crowd, Half-immortal Zhang, concerned about preserving his reputation, didn’t dare delay any longer and said fiercely, "Damn kid, just you wait, this isn’t over between us!"
With those words, Half-immortal Zhang left without looking back, even forgetting to say goodbye to Xu Lele.
Xu Lele, puzzled, looked at Ye Ming and asked, "Ye Ming, what were you two doing just now? Why did he leave?"
"Just an old man playing tricks, don’t let him deceive you," Ye Ming said seriously. "If you really want your fortune told, I can do it for you."
"You can tell fortunes too?" Xu Lele asked with a smile blossoming across her face, pressing on, "When did you learn that? Why don’t I know?"
Ye Ming couldn’t reveal the real reason, so he had to make up an excuse, explaining, "Our traditional Chinese medicine and Feng Shui knowledge share similarities, they’re interconnected. Learning one naturally leads to understanding the other."
Xu Lele was filled with admiration, praising him, "You can heal and tell fortunes, Ye Ming, what can’t you do? You’re not omnipotent, are you?"
"You actually believe what he says? Lele, I think he’s probably just pretending," Xia Ningning always had a way of throwing cold water at critical moments, and now was no exception.
But then Xia Ningning thought about it and realized that everything Ye Ming had said turned out to be true.
He said he could heal, and then he healed Xu Lele. He had fighting prowess, cooking skills.
With so many talents, Ye Ming was indeed capable of anything. In fact, it seemed impossible to find any weakness in him.
Xia Ningning mumbled to herself, "Why didn’t he show any of this before, and act like a waste for over twenty years? Could it be that he was intentionally hiding his strength?"
Xia Ningning couldn’t figure it out and decided not to dwell on it. She left Xu Lele behind, saying, "Alright, I don’t want to interrupt your self-entertainment, I’m going home!"
With those words, Xia Ningning turned and left without a moment’s hesitation.
Wearing a smile, Xu Lele cheerfully said, "Ye Ming, that’s just how she is, don’t mind her."
Ye Ming was also somewhat puzzled, he didn’t recall doing anything to offend Xia Ningning, everything was fine just a moment ago, so why did she suddenly get angry?
Soon after, Ye Ming didn’t bother about these things anymore and headed straight for the herbal market. After purchasing several types of herbs, he returned home.
The Wild Mountain Ginseng he had procured was not only ancient and potent, but also a difficult ingredient. To use it for alchemy, it required a combination of many other herbs for assistance.
Otherwise, its full medicinal effect would not be realized.
Back home, Lin Bingqing saw Ye Ming returning with big and small packages and became curious.
Then she saw Ye Ming skillfully placing the herbs into the pot and couldn’t help asking, "Master, you can also concoct medicines?"
Ye Ming smiled and nodded, saying, "I’m making some Herbal Pills to assist in cultivation. I’ll give you some later."
The process of alchemy began, and a strong scent of medicinal herbs filled the villa.
After an afternoon of meticulous brewing, a green-glowing Herbal Pill finally appeared in the cauldron.
Herbs worth over ten million only yielded a palm-sized Herbal Pill, which made Ye Ming wince at the cost—it was too expensive.
Without hesitation, he popped the Herbal Pill into his mouth, and instantly, a powerful force burst forth.
The potency of the medicine was overwhelming, catching Ye Ming off guard, but he quickly reacted, urging his Inner True Qi to start absorbing the medicine’s power.
Before long, he was drenched in sweat, his face flush red, as if he was amidst a sea of flames.
After some time, Ye Ming heard a ’bang’ from within his body.
In an instant, his body was covered in black impurities. He felt lighter, almost as if floating.
Opening his eyes, he felt invigorated with strength. In just moments, he had achieved a breakthrough from Superior Yellow Rank to entering the Lower Mystical Rank.
"This medicine is way too fierce," Ye Ming couldn’t help but exclaim.
