64: Chapter 64 Poisoning Expert

Linshan Market, which had been noisy all day, was now, for once, quite peaceful as the fragrance of food filled the air.

The door of the small courtyard was knocked on again, and as before, it was Ning Zuo who came out to open it.

Outside the door, Ma Chi stood, beaming with a large food container in his hand.

"Brother Ning, I've brought you dinner. Why don't I see Mr. Yin?"

Ning Zuo replied indifferently, "Officer Ma, you've worked hard. Mr. Yin is resting; just give the food to me."

"That won't do." Ma Chi waved his hand, smiling suggestively. "Lord Wei heard that Envoy Yin is here and personally arranged a few fine dishes. He specifically instructed me to apologize to Envoy Yin in person. This jar of wine, in particular, is a vintage Lord Wei has cherished for years. Please, brother, ask Mr. Yin to come out and receive it."

Ning Zuo became even more impatient. "Officer Ma, I'd like to ask, does Mr. Yin not even have the right to rest?"

"Brother, what are you saying? Lord Wei gave the order; we errand-runners have no choice."

"If I don't invite him, are you planning to bring people in to break in?"

"Of course not. But brother, you have to give me some face so I can go back and report to Lord Wei, right?"

While the two were arguing, Yin Ying and Ning You had already stepped out of the room again.

"Ning Zuo, Lord Wei has good intentions. What kind of attitude is that?"

Ning Zuo could only retreat to the side with a dark expression.

Ma Chi smiled even more obsequiously. "As expected of someone from the Feng City military, Mr. Yin truly has noble character. Our Lord Wei originally intended to visit personally, but he is simply too tied up with official business. These dishes are just a small token of his sincerity; please, you must accept them. However, he said that as long as he is free tomorrow, he will definitely come to pay a visit."

Yin Ying smiled kindly. "Lord Wei is too kind. The organization of Linshan Market is incomplete, and he has to handle everything inside and out, especially at a time like this. I understand completely. I will accept the meal. Please return and thank Officer Ma on my behalf, and tell him not to neglect his official duties for my sake."

"I will definitely pass that on! Then I shall take my leave!"

Ma Chi smiled, handed the food container to Ning You, and then bowed and scraped as he hurried away.

As soon as the door closed, Ning Zuo immediately changed his expression and cursed, "Dog official, only now thinking of sucking up to us? Too late!"

Ning You also said coldly, "There's less than two hours until dark. It doesn't matter if we don't eat this meal, we should still be careful to avoid any accidents."

But Yin Ying shook his head with a smile. "Red-braised crispy pork, spicy stir-fried tendon, camel blood steamed deer tail, and icy sliced Jiao fish—these are all top-tier culinary masterpieces. They smell just like what you'd find in a high-end restaurant in Feng City. And this jar of wine, at least a twenty-year-old pure grain cellar reserve; this Lord Wei certainly knows how to enjoy life. Since he's gone to the trouble of showing such filial piety, it would be a waste not to eat."

"It's still better to test it, Envoy, please wait a moment."

Ning You carried the food container back into the room and immediately took out a slender, silvery-white tool, testing it in the food and wine several times.

Yin Ying chuckled. "The bone needle in your hand is made from the horn of a Silver Que Beast, right? This thing changes color when it encounters toxins, and the older the Silver Que Beast horn, the more sensitive it is to toxins. Such a long bone needle is quite rare; it seems you are all very cautious people."

Ning You quickly flattered him, "I didn't expect the Envoy to be so knowledgeable."

Yin Ying smiled slightly. "My main job in Feng City is to study toxins. If there were poison, I could smell it from dozens of meters away. Besides, even if it were poisonous, it wouldn't matter. I have tasted basically all the toxins in the entire Dongyu Kingdom; some days I don't feel right if I don't consume a few."

"Sir is actually a poison expert!"

Yin Ying raised his right hand, and his five fingers rapidly changed color, from deep blue to bright cyan, and even his whole hand became mottled with various colors; it was clearly an extremely potent poison.

Ning Zuo and Ning You could not help but show expressions of awe.

Yin Ying flicked his hand again, and within a few seconds, the color returned to normal.

"Eat without worry. Once we've eaten and drunk our fill, we'll send that Lord Wei on his way."

The three of them then sat down to eat and drink. After tasting a few bites of the dishes, they all praised them endlessly.

After drinking a few more cups, they became even more familiar with each other.

"Envoy Yin, is there any concrete intelligence on what exactly happened to Elder Ming and the others? Why would the higher-ups send an elite of your level?"

"Before they died, they all activated their Blasphemy Power, and the time of their deaths was very close. Ming Jian and Huang Han were both Third-Rank Stars; together, they were enough to rival an average Upper Realm expert. Their deaths can only mean the opponent is extremely dangerous, suspected to be of Peak Upper Realm strength. Otherwise, why would the higher-ups send me?"

Ning You frowned deeply. "That's not right. Initial intelligence indicated the target had just entered the realm; later, Elder Ming corrected it to a suspected five to six stages. How has it now become Peak Upper Realm?"

Ning Zuo sneered, "Either that kid trained to the Upper Realm in less than a month, or... the intelligence was wrong from the start."

Yin Ying shot him a glare. "The initial intelligence came from the upper levels of the Feng City branch; it's impossible for it to be wrong. You'd better be careful what you say!"

Ning You quickly mediated, "Envoy, please don't take offense. My brother is just feeling a bit sad; after all, Elder Ming and Mei'er worked with us for many years. We brothers are counting on you for this revenge. I toast you!"

Yin Ying nodded, raised his glass to Ning Zuo as well, and then drank it in one gulp.

"Rest assured, they will not have died in vain. I promise you..."

Before he finished his sentence, his expression suddenly changed, and the hand holding the glass trembled slightly.

Ning Zuo also suddenly shouted, "This wine... something is wrong! My stomach suddenly hurts so much~~"

As he spoke, blood was already spilling from his mouth, accompanied by a scorched smell, and he almost collapsed from his chair.

Ning You quickly caught him. "Brother, what's wrong with you?"

Ning Zuo's expression was extremely painful. "Poi...soned~"

Ning You was even more shocked. "Poisoned? How could it be poisoned? I tested it with my own hands before. This..."

As he said this, he suddenly turned his gaze to Yin Ying, his thoughts self-evident.

Yin Ying couldn't help but curse, "What the hell are you thinking? If I wanted to kill you, would I need to use poison?"

Ning You quickly said, "Sir, you are an expert in this field, can you quickly save my brother?"

Yin Ying's face turned red, and he felt extremely embarrassed.

He had been bragging loudly before, but now... he had also been hit, and he still didn't understand how he had been poisoned, so naturally, there was no way to talk about an antidote.

So he could only say, "It's too late. Leave here first!"

Ning You wanted to say something else, but at this moment, the sound of the door being broken down already came.

Breaking down the door was a five-man squad, and two other squads had also already crossed the front courtyard wall.

When they saw Yin Ying rushing out of the room, they immediately fired arrows at him from the wall.

However, they clearly didn't know who they were facing. Yin Ying was not polite at all; with a wave of his hand, a beam of light energy slashed, and the two people charging at the front were directly cut into four pieces.

The remaining defense team members were terrified, and it wasn't until Yin Ying killed two more that someone screamed out.

"Battle Qi! He is an Upper Realm expert!"

"We can't beat him, retreat quickly!"

"Cowards, get out of the way!"

"I don't care what realm he's in; I only know he's worth 300,000!"

Some retreated and fled in a panic, but others, with bloodshot eyes, were pushing forward.