How can anyone survive Third Senior Brother's pills!

Li Nanzhu's fingertips gently brushed the jade bottle. The pink pills inside wobbled slightly, reflecting the shifting light in her eyes.

She looked up at Rong Yuying with a faint, indiscernible smile. "Senior Sister Rong, there are indeed four pills left. However..."

Rong Yuying's round fan paused. A flicker of understanding flashed in her eyes, followed by a touch of helplessness. "Is little Zhuer going to raise the price on the spot?"

"Senior Sister Rong misunderstood." Li Nanzhu shook her head, tapping the bottle lightly. "I only accepted Senior Sister Ling's spirit stones earlier because I was worried the pills might have some issues. It's better for everyone if the transaction is settled fairly." Her gaze swept over the chains emitting a faint, dark glow. "But since we are in danger together now, we should naturally support each other. It's just..."

She deliberately trailed off, her eyes landing on the chains around Rong Yuying's wrists. "It wouldn't be right for me to work for nothing, would it? How about these spirit-siphoning iron chains as my fee?"

The cave fell silent for a moment. Suisui poked its head out from behind Li Nanzhu, its small paws still trying to reach for the jade bottle.

Rong Yuying fanned herself gently and suddenly let out a soft laugh. "I certainly have no objection. Isn't little Zhuer actually saving me money?" She turned to the fellow disciples behind her. "What do you all think?"

Ling Suxin was the first to nod. "That is only right." She picked up the chains that had previously detached from her body, using a stream of water from her technique to rinse them clean before handing them to Li Nanzhu. "Though this spirit-siphoning iron is precious, it was ultimately the shackles binding us."

Li Nanzhu accepted the chains with a beaming smile, her eyes lighting up as her fingertips touched the cold metal.

The purity of this spirit-siphoning iron was even higher than she had expected. Her Third Senior Brother would likely be very interested in this; he might even be able to forge something unexpectedly great with it.

Rong Yuying twirled her fingers and took out an exquisite gilded incense box from her storage bag, its surface adorned with lifelike Hehuan flower patterns. She gently pushed the box toward Li Nanzhu.

"Heart-illusion incense. Consider this an extra thank-you gift. Once a cultivator inhales it, they will fall into hallucinations. While it has limited effect on Golden Core stage cultivators, no one in the Foundation Establishment stage can resist it."

Li Nanzhu's eyes sparkled. She immediately tucked the incense box into the deepest layer of her storage bag and handed over the remaining four pills from the jade bottle.

The female cultivators of the Hehuan Sect took the pills with much more composure than before.

Ling Suxin even had the leisure to observe the pink halo flowing on the pill's surface. She poked a pill with her finger, watching it quiver slightly like a living thing.

"Truly a whimsical creation," she praised softly. Seeing her fellow sisters transform into softies after taking the pills, she couldn't help but burst into laughter.

The crisp clatter of chains hitting the ground echoed one after another.

Nearby, Qinghe and the others picked up the spirit-siphoning iron chains one by one, wiping them clean of any dirt before handing them to Li Nanzhu.

"Little Zhuer," Rong Yuying said, lightly tapping Li Nanzhu's shoulder with her fan. "If you ever get more of these interesting pills in the future..."

Li Nanzhu was busy sorting and storing the chains. Without looking up, she replied, "Don't worry, Senior Sister Rong. I'll definitely think of the Hehuan Sect first." She paused, her lips curving into a cunning arc. "As long as the price is right."

Feng Qingping coughed nearby, and Li Nanzhu immediately straightened up to add, "Of course, if Senior Sister Rong asks personally, the price is naturally negotiable."

"So glib," Rong Yuying said, unfolding her fan, though she couldn't hide the smile in her eyes.

Bursts of laughter suddenly erupted from the other side of the mine.

It turned out the Hehuan Sect women had discovered that after their bodies became soft, they could change their appearance at will. Currently, they were helping each other with face-sculpting. One of the women even bore a face that was seventy percent similar to Rong Yuying's, even mimicking her temperament perfectly.

"Senior Sister~" she said, imitating Rong Yuying's tone while half-hiding her face behind a fan. "How is this?"

Rong Yuying arched an eyebrow and suddenly reached out to stretch the other woman's nose. "Still missing a bit of finesse."

Watching this harmonious scene, Li Nanzhu suddenly felt that the spirit-siphoning iron wasn't as exciting anymore. However, their discovery gave her some new ideas. Perhaps the effects of the softie pill weren't limited to this?

Currently, her alchemy skills weren't high enough to refine a softie pill, but fortunately, she knew the recipe. It wouldn't be too late to study it later.

As Li Nanzhu was happily counting her spirit-siphoning iron chains while holding Suisui, she suddenly heard the familiar clink of porcelain bottles behind her.

She turned around to see Feng Qingping taking out a small, dark-green bottle from her sleeve. The bottle's patterns were ancient and vaguely exuded a sinister aura.

Li Nanzhu: "...?"

Why did this bottle look so familiar?

Before she could react, Feng Qingping had already poured out a pitch-black pill. Its surface shimmered with an eerie purple light and emitted a strange scent.

Li Nanzhu's pupils shrank—wasn't this her Third Senior Brother's handiwork?!

However, Feng Qingping didn't hesitate for a second. She pried open Feng Weilan's jaw and shoved the pill inside.

Li Nanzhu: "!!!"

She instinctively took half a step back, bracing herself to see her Sixth Senior Brother vomit on the spot. However—

Feng Weilan didn't change his expression. His throat moved as the pill went down, and he didn't even knit his brows.

Li Nanzhu: "...?"

Seriously?!

She looked at Feng Qingping in disbelief, only to find her expression normal. Feng Qingping even took the time to pat Feng Weilan on the shoulder. "The recovery is going well. A quarter of an hour faster than last time."

Feng Weilan gave a faint "Mm" and closed his eyes to regulate his breathing. The spiritual energy around him circulated steadily without any sign of discomfort.

Li Nanzhu: "..."

How is this logical?!

She stared intently at Feng Weilan, trying to find a trace of pain on his face. However, her Sixth Senior Brother remained calm, as if he had just eaten a sugar bean pill. Could it be a fake pill? But that terrifying appearance was not something a fake could imitate.

Li Nanzhu fell silent.

—Could it be... that Sixth Senior Brother has been fed these so many times he's developed a tolerance?

As soon as this thought surfaced, Li Nanzhu's gaze became complicated. She couldn't help but imagine how many times her Sixth Senior Brother must have been ravaged by their Third Senior Brother's pills in the past to develop such a powerful resistance.

Feng Qingping seemed to notice her shock, and a smile flashed in her eyes. "Although Third Senior Brother's pills have a unique taste, their effects are unmatched by ordinary pills. You'll get used to it."

Saying that, she looked at Feng Weilan, who had just opened his eyes. "Another one?"

Feng Weilan silently accepted it. This time, Li Nanzhu clearly saw his throat hesitate for an imperceptible moment as he swallowed.

Li Nanzhu: "..."

How are you supposed to get used to that?!

She silently withdrew her gaze, her mind already calculating—if Third Senior Brother ever tried to force a pill on her in the future, could she just pass it to her Sixth Senior Brother?

He was fine eating them anyway, so she could avoid the suffering herself.

A moment later, Feng Weilan finally finished his meditation. When he opened his eyes, they met Li Nanzhu's complicated gaze.

Feng Weilan: "?"

Li Nanzhu hesitated before finally whispering, "Sixth Senior Brother... don't you think... Third Senior Brother's pills..."

Feng Weilan was silent for a moment before saying faintly, "I'm used to it."

Li Nanzhu: "..."

Just as I thought!

She couldn't help but test the waters in a whisper. "Sixth Senior Brother... the first time you ate one..."

Feng Weilan's gaze drifted as if he were recalling some human tragedy. Finally, he managed to squeeze out two words: "...I vomited."

Li Nanzhu: "..."

There's no way "I vomited" covers the whole story!

She suddenly felt a surge of deep respect for her Sixth Senior Brother. To survive the devastation of Third Senior Brother's pills and continue eating them without flinching—how powerful must his willpower be?