Chapter Sixty-Eight Consecutive Visits

That morning, Lin Yi had just arrived downstairs, ready for a walk, when a white BMW pulled up beside him. The car door opened, and out stepped a man and a woman—Feng Yuling and her teacher, Deng Chang, whom he’d previously met in Shan Province.

“Mr. Lin,” they greeted him respectfully.

“Is there something you need?” Lin Yi glanced at them.

Feng Yuling looked at Lin Yi with a complicated expression and said, “Here’s the thing—three years ago, my grandfather failed to break through to Grandmaster. His energy reversed, his mind collapsed, and he has yet to awaken. I hope Mr. Lin would be willing to part with the herb. Our Feng family is willing to offer one billion and three stalks of spiritual herbs in exchange.”

Lin Yi realized then why Feng Yuling had been so eager for the Heart-Cleansing Grass. Unfortunately, he had already refined the Heart-Cleansing Grass into a pill. Moreover, the Feng family’s generous offer of money and herbs was likely also an attempt to curry favor with him.

He shook his head. “The Heart-Cleansing Grass is gone.”

"Gone?" Feng Yuling couldn't tell if Lin Yi was telling the truth or simply toying with her.

“Though I no longer have the Heart-Cleansing Grass, I do have the Heart-Cleansing Pill,” Lin Yi said casually.

“The Heart-Cleansing Pill!” Deng Chang’s eyes widened. As an alchemist, he understood its value perfectly. After all, the Feng family’s purpose in collecting the herb was to refine this very pill. But Heart-Cleansing Grass was a spiritual herb, and the success rate for refining it was extremely low—even Deng Chang himself had little confidence.

Now that Lin Yi already possessed the Heart-Cleansing Pill, it was beyond their expectations.

“That’s right. If you want it, I can trade you one Heart-Cleansing Pill,” Lin Yi said indifferently.

Feng Yuling was visibly excited and nearly agreed on the spot, but Deng Chang interjected first, smiling, “Mr. Lin, would you allow us to see the pill?”

Lin Yi understood what Deng Chang was really asking, but didn’t mind. He casually produced a jade bottle. This scene made both of them flush with envy.

“A storage artifact…”

Artifacts came in many varieties. Most wielded by martial artists today were forged by their predecessors. Besides auxiliary artifacts, the most valuable were storage artifacts. Both types were rare—there might not be more than a few in an entire province.

The Feng family possessed a storage pouch, but the space inside was barely half a cubic meter. Even so, it had cost them billions back then; today, its price would be much higher.

Lin Yi didn’t comment. For others, a storage artifact was a treasure, but to Lin Yi, who possessed the Qi Transformation Art, it was rather redundant.

He poured a jade-green pill from the bottle. Nine intricate patterns wound around its surface—it looked like a finely polished gem.

“This… This is a top-grade Heart-Cleansing Pill,” Deng Chang muttered in disbelief.

Pills, too, were graded. The simplest were formed pills, but their patterns—the so-called pill lines—marked their quality. Each additional line greatly enhanced the pill’s effectiveness.

Though Deng Chang was an alchemist, he could barely manage pill formation, and had never produced a single line. To see a Heart-Cleansing Pill with nine lines was enough to leave him speechless.

“You’re quite perceptive,” Lin Yi remarked with a smile.

Deng Chang became even more deferential. “Mr. Lin, may I ask who refined this pill?”

“I did,” Lin Yi replied.

Deng Chang’s expression froze. Was this a joke? It was already remarkable for Lin Yi to be a young Grandmaster, but to be an alchemist as well—did he want others to live at all?

“Mr. Lin, that’s not a very funny joke,” Deng Chang managed a weak smile, clearly shaken. Feng Yuling was equally stunned.

“Believe it or not, as you wish.” Lin Yi shook his head. “So, which spiritual herb did you bring?”

“Three stalks of Red Ginseng,” Feng Yuling replied mechanically, still reeling from the shock.

Lin Yi nodded. Though Red Ginseng was classified as a spiritual herb, it was the lowest tier. The Purple Ginseng he’d chanced upon at the Benevolence Hall was several times more effective, even among roots of the same age.

Still, Lin Yi didn’t mind. Even the weakest spiritual herb was leagues above ordinary ginseng.

The deal concluded, Feng Yuling and Deng Chang departed.

“One billion and three stalks of Red Ginseng—not bad,” Lin Yi chuckled.

After a short walk, Lin Yi returned home. Doudou was in the kitchen, apron tied, cooking breakfast.

“Lin Yi, I’m planning to go to the provincial capital tomorrow with Xiao Nan. Want to come?” Doudou called out from the kitchen.

“No,” Lin Yi shook his head. The two girls were just going shopping; he’d only be in the way.

“Oh,” Doudou sounded disappointed, but quickly regained her cheer.

After breakfast, the door was suddenly knocked.

Opening it, Lin Yi saw a man and a woman standing straight at the threshold—Mu Hanyu and Kang Wenbin, the two hosts he’d met during the Shan Province Resource Tournament.

“Mr. Lin,” they greeted with respect.

From their demeanor, Lin Yi could guess their purpose.

“Let’s talk outside,” he said, gesturing downstairs. Doudou was still at home, and he didn’t want her exposed to certain matters too early.

“Well, Lin Yi, you sure have a lot of shady friends,” came a sharp, sarcastic voice—Su Honglan.

Lin Yi ignored the shrew, saying to the other two, “Let’s go. She’s just a shrew.”

Su Honglan’s face flushed scarlet; this poor student dared call her a shrew!

“Lin, you stand right there! How dare you insult me!” Su Honglan shrieked.

Before Lin Yi could reply, Mu Hanyu’s brows knitted. She strode over and slapped Su Honglan hard across the face.

The crack echoed. Su Honglan spun twice from the blow, half her face swelling instantly.

Mu Hanyu said coldly, “Mr. Lin is magnanimous enough to ignore your rudeness, but you still dare to push your luck.”

Su Honglan regained her senses, baring her teeth and claws as she lunged at Mu Hanyu. Mu Hanyu sneered, raised her right hand, and slapped the other side of Su Honglan’s face.

Again, the sound rang out, and the other cheek swelled rapidly.

The pain nearly drove Su Honglan mad. When had she ever been so humiliated?

“You just wait! You little tramp, I’ll skin you alive and sell you to a film crew!” Su Honglan threatened, eyes bloodshot.

A flicker of deadly intent passed through Mu Hanyu’s eyes. She, too, was a half-step Grandmaster, and had her pride. To be insulted by a rural shrew was intolerable.

Mu Hanyu gripped Su Honglan’s throat, her gaze icy cold.

“All right, then. Let’s see if you survive till tomorrow,” she said in a chilling tone. With a slight effort, she lifted Su Honglan like a chicken.

Lin Yi made no move to stop her. Some people bring disaster with their mouths, thinking no one dares to teach them a lesson.

“Let… go…” Su Honglan gasped, her face flushed red, struggling for breath.

Mu Hanyu remained silent, tightening her grip.

At that moment, true terror seized Su Honglan. Her instincts told her this beautiful woman really would kill her.

She didn’t want to die.

The more she thought about it, the more terrified she became—so much so, she lost control and wet herself.

Mu Hanyu frowned and tossed Su Honglan aside in disgust. “Useless. I thought you had as much courage as you had volume.”

Su Honglan hung her head, panting, not daring to utter another word.

After dealing with Su Honglan, Mu Hanyu said, “Mr. Lin, shall we go?”

Downstairs, Kang Wenbin produced a file from his briefcase. “Mr. Lin, the Shan Province Martial Arts Association sincerely invites you to join us.”

“And what are the benefits?” Lin Yi didn’t refuse outright.

“There are many,” Kang Wenbin said confidently, opening the file. “We will pay you an annual salary of one hundred million, and you may choose any villa in Shan Province.”

“In addition, our Association employs three alchemists and one artifact forger. Every month, you may receive three pills, and our forger will craft you a magic weapon worth up to half a billion, free of charge.”

Kang Wenbin finished, self-assured. “Mr. Lin, what do you think?”

Such terms would entice many Grandmasters. In their eyes, Lin Yi was still a young man—a Grandmaster, yes, but still susceptible to the lures of power and desire.

Lin Yi’s face remained impassive. “Not much. We’ve talked, you’ve made your offer—isn’t it time for you to leave?”

Kang Wenbin grew anxious. “Please, Mr. Lin, if you find the offer insufficient, we can add more.”

“I prefer to act alone,” Lin Yi replied.

Mu Hanyu chimed in, “Mr. Lin, the Association is very free. Except for an annual task, your time is your own.”

After all, every genius recruited meant substantial rewards for them. Lin Yi was only in his twenties and already a Grandmaster—he might one day ascend to the rank of Spirit Sovereign. If they could bring him in, the rewards would be enormous.

But Lin Yi’s gaze was calm. “I understand. That’s enough—I have things to do and can’t accompany you further.”

He was clearly sending them away.

Kang Wenbin and Mu Hanyu exchanged glances, both sighing inwardly. They hadn’t expected Lin Yi to be so unmoved by such generous terms.

Still, they weren’t ready to give up.

Mu Hanyu said, “Then we won’t disturb you further, Mr. Lin. We hope to visit again.”

“No need,” Lin Yi replied with a faint smile. “If I have time, I’ll pay a visit to your Martial Arts Association myself.”

Their expressions froze. The message was clear: if they dared come again, he’d cause a commotion at their headquarters.

Considering how easily Lin Yi had defeated Qiao Weiliang, there was likely no one in the entire province capable of restraining him.

Mu Hanyu and Kang Wenbin left, their faces filled with reluctance and resentment.

Lin Yi, however, was unconcerned. Martial Arts Associations, power struggles—none of it held meaning for him.