Is It Wrong to Bully the Novice Village for System Rewards?

Chapter 224: Who Can’t Brag?

Misinterpreting her terrifying, icy silence, Situ Yun assumed his boss was simply dissatisfied with his level of violent commitment. Desperate to prove his worth, he hurriedly doubled down.

“From this moment on, this subordinate swears a blood oath! I am irreconcilably opposed to that bastard Big Qi! I vow to slaughter him and make him regret ever being born into this world!”

Before the words even finished leaving his mouth, a murderous intent so thick it was practically solid slammed down on his shoulders, crushing him against the floor and firmly locking him in place.

On the throne, Situ Yan slowly stood up. Her face was an emotionless, terrifying mask as she stared down at him.

“Clan Brother,” she whispered, her voice colder than the deepest abyss. “It seems you haven’t taken my instructions to heart at all… Tell me, what was the specific task I assigned you?”

Hearing this, Situ Yun’s heart violently seized. The blood completely drained from his face. He stammered in absolute terror, “E-Eldest Young Lady… y-you told me to find a way to win over Big Qi… to recruit him to serve our Situ Clan… n-no, wait! This subordinate merely misspoke a moment ago! Please, do not misunderstand!”

Even if he had the intellect of a rock, he realized he had just catastrophically stepped on a landmine. He wanted nothing more than to slap himself unconscious on the spot.

I just blindly threatened the target she wanted to recruit without understanding the situation! I’m dead!

Situ Yan’s phoenix eyes narrowed into deadly slits. Her tone was bone-chillingly calm. “Oh? So Clan Brother didn’t just have a poor memory… you directly defied my orders on purpose. Good. Very good!”

Sensing the suffocating, freezing aura in her words, sweat poured down Situ Yun’s forehead. “Eldest Young Lady, please quell your anger! This subordinate knows his crime! I swear I will never dare do it again!”

Situ Yan’s face darkened, a terrifyingly sinister aura twisting the space between her brows.

“Keeping a useless, blundering fool like you anywhere near Big Qi will only ruin my grand plans.”

She stared down at him with absolute disgust. “It just so happens the clan recently discovered an unstable, completely uncharted spatial fragment. You are hereby reassigned to the Vanguard Exploration Team. You will pioneer that fragment. You are forbidden from returning for ten years. If you attempt to flee, you will face execution by clan law.”

Hearing his sentence, Situ Yun violently shuddered, his expression crumbling into utter despair.

Serving on a Vanguard Exploration Team was a literal death sentence. Not only were you worked like a dog on the bleeding edge of the frontier, but the uncharted spatial fragments were packed with unpredictable, horrific dangers. The slightest misstep meant being erased from existence.

The only benefit was that the hazard pay was astronomical, and survivors got a hefty commission on any unearthed treasures—perfect for a bankrupt degenerate like him. But that hardly mattered if he was dead.

He opened his mouth, desperately wanting to beg for mercy, but looking into Situ Yan’s murderous eyes, his courage evaporated. Defeated, he slumped his head and choked out, “This subordinate obeys.”

The Next Day.

The Ji Clan Ancestral Land.

Having disguised himself using his “Pangolin” persona, Qi Yuan threw on a heavy black robe and pulled the hood low over his face. He swaggered confidently toward the fortified gates of the Ji Clan Ancestral Land.

Almost immediately, a squad of heavily armed guards intercepted him, their hands resting on their weapons as they interrogated him with fierce vigilance.

“Halt! Who are you? State your business! Why are you trespassing on private clan territory?!”

Qi Yuan offered a calm, polite smile. He reached into his robes and produced the jade token Linghu Gao had given him during their previous transaction. Holding it up, he said, “I am a medicinal herb merchant. I have come specifically to deliver a shipment of rare alchemy materials to your clan’s Alchemist Retainer, Senior Linghu Gao. I hope you can accommodate me.”

Linghu Gao’s status within the Ji Clan was clearly much higher than Qi Yuan had initially estimated. The moment the guards saw the token, the hostility vanished from their faces.

The squad captain inspected Qi Yuan up and down, his tone shifting to one of respectful caution. “Ah, you are here to see Retainer Linghu. Please, follow us.”

It seemed the guards operated under strict standing orders regarding the Heaven-rank Alchemist. Unwilling to show the slightest disrespect, the entire squad abandoned their patrol route to personally escort Qi Yuan inside.

A short while later, Qi Yuan was led into a sprawling, breathtakingly luxurious manor where he once again came face-to-face with Linghu Gao.

The Heaven-rank Alchemist was currently busy processing a batch of glowing spirit herbs in his alchemy lab. Spotting Qi Yuan, he paused, a look of genuine delight spreading across his face.

“Young Master Qi! Tell me, have the materials I requested been fully gathered?!”

Qi Yuan offered a modest smile, his tone perfectly calm. “The materials Senior requested are exceptionally rare. This Junior exhausted every connection he had to barely scrape together a batch. I am afraid there are still one or two items I simply could not track down.”

“However, to avoid delaying Senior’s alchemy schedule, this Junior took the liberty of delivering what I have secured thus far. I hope Senior won’t find the shipment lacking.”

As he spoke, he waved his hand over his storage bracelet, transferring over a dozen pristine jade boxes onto Linghu Gao’s workbench.

Naturally, Qi Yuan wasn’t an actual herb merchant; he had essentially subcontracted the gathering process to Xu Qingquan. Posing as a merchant was merely the perfect cover to infiltrate the Ji Clan and approach Linghu Gao without raising any red flags.

Since he now knew the Ji Clan was desperately trying to artificially inflate their Ancestor’s lifespan, the presence of a Heaven-rank Alchemist was the critical linchpin to his plan. To play it safe, Qi Yuan intentionally kept Ji Chan’er out of the loop for now.

Hearing Qi Yuan’s explanation, Linghu Gao beamed with joy. He eagerly scooped up the jade boxes, his hands trembling slightly with excitement.

“Lacking?! Not at all! Young Master Qi is truly a man of his word!” Linghu Gao laughed heartily. “Do not worry, I will absolutely not let you take a loss on this! I will purchase every single item here. As for the price… shall we calculate it at twenty percent above the current market rate?”

Qi Yuan nodded with a satisfied smile and cupped his hands. “Senior is truly benevolent and righteous. This Junior will respectfully comply. These materials are guaranteed to be of the highest quality and full weight; please, inspect them at your leisure.”

“I have complete faith in Young Master Qi’s character!” Linghu Gao waved a hand dismissively. “Please, wait here for a moment. I will have my assistants take inventory, and I assure you, you won’t be shorted a single Spirit Stone.”

Just as the two men were laughing and cementing their lucrative business relationship, Qi Yuan leaned in, a mysterious, conspiratorial smile touching his lips. He lowered his voice.

“Senior Linghu, besides fulfilling our contract today, this Junior actually has another, highly sensitive matter I was hoping to discuss with you.”

Linghu Gao blinked in surprise. “Oh? What matter? Please, Young Master Qi, speak freely.”

Qi Yuan’s expression turned dead serious. “As the esteemed Alchemist Retainer for a supreme clan, you must regularly interact with young masters and misses who have infinitely deep pockets, correct?”

“To be perfectly frank, this Junior has recently acquired a bottle of the absolute highest-tier Foundation Consolidation Pills in existence. I wish to sell them, but I lack the connections to find a buyer with sufficient capital. If Senior could kindly act as a broker and make an introduction, this Junior will ensure you receive a very generous commission.”

“Foundation Consolidation Pills?”

Linghu Gao’s enthusiastic smile instantly vanished. He lost all interest on the spot.

Foundation Consolidation Pills were the absolute bottom of the barrel—cheap, entry-level garbage pills that only worked on Foundation Building cultivators. Even if they were flawlessly crafted “Top Grade” pills, they were practically worthless in the grand scheme of things.

Given his exalted status as a Heaven-rank Alchemist, involving himself in the peddling of Foundation Consolidation Pills was frankly insulting.

Seeing the sheer disdain radiating from Linghu Gao, Qi Yuan didn’t waste another second. He immediately pulled a small, unassuming jade bottle from his robes.

“Senior, this Junior’s Foundation Consolidation Pills are fundamentally different from the trash sold on the market. Their medicinal efficacy is more than ten times that of an ordinary pill, and they possess absolutely zero pill toxins.”

“If a cultivator consumes just one of these during their Core Formation tribulation, their breakthrough success rate will instantly increase by a staggering twenty percent.”

“If presented to a buyer who truly understands their worth, selling a single bottle for eighty to a hundred thousand High Grade Spirit Stones wouldn’t be a problem at all!”

Hearing this utterly absurd sales pitch, Linghu Gao felt a wave of profound disdain, almost bordering on secondhand embarrassment.

Who can’t brag?! Only an absolute brain-dead fool would take those numbers seriously!

Efficacy ten times higher than normal? Zero pill toxins? Boosting Core Formation success by twenty percent?! Is he selling a Foundation Consolidation Pill or a literal Immortal Pill?!

He had been refining pills for centuries! He had personally concocted thousands of batches of Foundation Consolidation Pills, including countless Top Grade ones! But a pill with those apocalyptic stats? He hadn’t even heard rumors of such a thing existing in ancient myths, let alone seen one in person!

Even if the legendary Pill Sage Zu Chengzhi descended from the heavens and fired up a cauldron himself, he couldn’t forge a Foundation Consolidation Pill with those completely exaggerated effects!

Listen here, boy. This Master loves Spirit Stones as much as the next guy, but I have my professional integrity! You want me to help you scam the foolish, deep-pocketed young masters of the Ji Clan with this snake oil? Not a chance in hell!

Linghu Gao opened his mouth to deliver a scathing rejection.

But as Qi Yuan popped the cork on the jade bottle, a faint, incredibly pure medicinal fragrance wafted into the air.

Linghu Gao’s expression instantly froze. His breath hitched in his throat, his eyes locking onto the small jade bottle in Qi Yuan’s hand as if it were the most terrifying thing he had ever seen…