First update, asking for subscriptions and monthly votes~~~

...

After being scolded by Qin Fang, Ji Xiang didn't get angry. He knew that what Qin Fang said was all true, and maybe he even saved some face for him.

With his current strength, unless Asakura Ken is heavily injured and not as strong as before, he might have a slight chance.

It's just that this possibility is not very likely. When he left the Assassin's Alliance, it was a peaceful exit, and there was no mention of injuries or anything like that.

"Aren't we in numbers here?"

But Ji Xiang said with a smile, his eyes sweeping over the few people around him, the meaning was quite obvious.

The three of them could hold off a Grandmaster-level Initial Stage Hattori Sanzo before, while four could directly gang up on him, even taking Hattori Sanzo down.

Now, the strength of the four of them has made great progress, plus Hattori Sanzo and Qin Zi, two Grandmaster-level experts, dealing with a peak Grandmaster-level mid-stage Asakura Ken might not be without chance...

Especially since Ji Xiang has seen some of Qin Fang's miraculous methods, he feels that this is an opportunity...

Red Devil Asakura Ken, a very famous predecessor in the Assassin's Alliance, if they can take down such a formidable figure, it would be quite beneficial for their fame in the Assassin's Alliance and the underground world...

In the underground world, strength rules. In such an environment, becoming a top expert indeed brings fame, but it also carries a very heavy mission. One mistake and you might just become a stepping stone for others.

Of course, strong individuals are called strong because they have ascended the podium by stepping on countless others.

Since they can step on others, they must be prepared to be stepped on... No one can be a victor forever, everyone has times of failure!

The reason why Red Devil Asakura Ken faded away is still a mystery to this day! Maybe it was the Sect's requirement, maybe he got tired of that slaughter-filled life, or perhaps it was some other reason... For example, he didn't want to become a stepping stone for some later successor!

In any case, Red Devil Asakura Ken was a successful strong individual, a legendary figure in the underground world. Although he has faded away, there are still many people who want to step on his corpse to rise up.

For instance, Ji Xiang has such intentions now...

Of course, Qin Fang also has such plans in his mind.

However, for now, Qin Fang doesn't consider it.

"Are you planning to hunt down Asakura Ken now, or wait until your strength improves before going? Perhaps... you can directly step into the Grandmaster level!"

Qin Fang didn't argue with Ji Xiang, just dismissed him with a sentence, then continued gnawing on his rabbit meat, as if this matter had nothing to do with him.

"Uh... are you saying..."

Ji Xiang paused for a moment, then fixedly stared at Qin Fang, his lips trembling a bit. Apparently, he thought of something.

However, he swallowed his words that were about to come out, and his eyes inadvertently glanced over at the beautiful Sakura sitting quietly in the corner!

It was clear that although Ji Xiang sometimes spoke without thinking, he was still clear-headed about matters. He wouldn't say something he shouldn't.

Among the seven people here, the four of them were definitely on the same team. There was no problem with Qin Zi either, and even Hattori Sanzo was somewhat reliable. Only Sakura... definitely needed to be guarded against.

Though Sakura now couldn't speak, her abilities were sealed, she could still listen, observe, and write, which could potentially expose the secrets of their group.

"Everyone have a good rest tonight. Tomorrow, the four of us will head out..."

Qin Fang didn't say much more. Ji Xiang understood what he meant, and with a simple reminder, Qin Fang headed back to his tent to sleep after eating his fill.

Ji Xiang and the others followed suit, heading back to their tents after eating as well. After a day of battling, they were indeed quite exhausted and needed rest.

Seeing Qin Fang and the others leave, Hattori Sanzo and his two companions went back to their tents to rest too. To be precise, Sakura went to rest by herself, while Hattori Sanzo also took on the night watch duty.

As for Qin Zi, her initial plan was to jump naked into Qin Fang's bed for warmth, but she eventually gave up on that idea...

She noticed that although Qin Fang had not said anything, she could sense that he seemed quite exhausted and needed a good rest to recover. How could she bear to disturb him?

The night passed without words.

The night was rather peaceful, with no appearance of tigers or wolves on the grassland. With a Grandmaster-level expert like Hattori Sanzo keeping watch, nothing unexpected happened either.

Early in the morning, after a full night's sleep, Qin Fang felt rejuvenated, looking like a whole new person.

"Old man, take care of them during the day…"

After greeting Hattori Sanzo, Qin Fang left the campsite with Ji Xiang, Monk Wukong, and Song Qingshan.

Even though Qin Zi wanted to follow Qin Fang, seeing that he had important matters to attend to and that she received a task from him, she naturally gave up on that idea and stayed behind.

Moreover, Qin Zi's strength had soared significantly, but very few people knew about it. Aside from Qin Fang, only Monk Wukong knew a bit about it. Ji Xiang and Song Qingshan were vaguely aware, but Hattori Sanzo and Sakura were clearly unaware…

This was a hidden move Qin Fang had set up, and when it would come into play depended on future needs.

With Hattori Sanzo's Grandmaster-level Initial Stage cultivation, unless extremely unfortunate to encounter a stronger expert—someone like Red Devil Asakura Ken, who had also entered this prairie—basically no one could do anything to him, nor could anyone harm the two beauties he protected.

Not to mention, if they did encounter Asakura Ken, Hattori Sanzo could still hold him off for a while… Qin Zi might have to step in if necessary.

Two Grandmaster-level experts, defeating a legendary assassin like Asakura Ken might be troublesome, but self-preservation wouldn't be an issue, and they could even overpower his men…

Given that, Qin Fang was naturally very at ease.

…

Actually, they didn't go far; they just returned to Lake Heart Island.

This time, however, Qin Fang didn't enter that secret place again. Firstly, breaking the formation wasn't easy, and secondly, the secret place always made him feel uneasy.

Perhaps it was the terrifyingly powerful Supreme-level fierce beast hidden in the Dark Chamber, or other potential threats…

But for safety's sake, Qin Fang felt it was relatively safer on Lake Heart Island. The Island-guarding Great Array protected the secret place and also cut off communication inside and out.

No matter how many powerful beings were inside, they were sealed by this formation and couldn't come out…

"Brothers, I'm about to start alchemy, and I can't be disturbed, so please act as my protectors…"

Lake Heart Island wasn't very large and could be surveyed at a glance, but they couldn't ensure no one would cross the lake to get there.

The lake was just this big; Lake Heart Island was the only one. If someone came, they would easily be spotted, which might cause some disturbance.

"Don't worry, with us guarding here, no one will get close."

Ji Xiang immediately assured while pounding his chest, almost vowing not to even let a mosquito through.

After that, Ji Xiang and the others went to three different positions on Lake Heart Island, each watching one direction, allowing them to monitor the entire lake. If someone approached, they could immediately spot them.

Qin Fang remained in the center of the island, right by the Island-guarding Great Array, and began his alchemy task.

Although it's called alchemy, it's really about refining medicine.

With all the medicinal ingredients ready, Qin Fang first extracted the basic essence from each one, a meticulous task that took quite a bit of time.

Extracting the essence from these few herbs took Qin Fang over an hour, and after completing it, he could finally stretch his back and let out a long sigh, "Finally, I can refine pills!"

The process of alchemy itself was much simpler, although extremely monotonous and mechanical. He just needed to combine the medicinal essences according to the pill formula's proportion and choose to refine.

The progress bar started from zero and read until it was finished, marking the end.

"Refinement successful, received Cultivating Yuan Pill +1, Skill Proficiency +50."

When the progress bar completed and Qin Fang received this notification, it meant the refinement was successful, and his Props Box automatically gained an additional pill.

"Refinement failed, received Abandoned Pills +1, Skill Proficiency +10."

If the notification read this way, it meant the refinement failed. Qin Fang still received a pill, but not the Cultivating Yuan Pill he needed; it was an Abandoned Pill.

Abandoned Pills are defective products obtained from failed alchemy attempts. Although they appear like pills, they should not be consumed carelessly.

Ingesting such a pill would typically cause drug poisoning. If luck is on your side, you may only suffer from a stomach upset.

If you're unlucky, the effect of an Abandoned Pill could be more terrifying than the most potent poison, causing blood to flow from all seven orifices and leading to death.

Of course, the specific harm an Abandoned Pill might cause is generally unknown to most, only detectable by someone like Qin Fang with a Scouting Skill.

Alchemists don't easily try Abandoned Pills themselves and usually discard them, but Qin Fang decided to keep them… (to be continued. If you enjoy this work, please visit Qidian (qidian.com) to cast your recommendation votes and monthly votes. Your support is my greatest motivation.)