7: Chapter 7 The Seven Deadly Poisons

The woman toyed with the cloud-patterned Medicine Cauldron in her hands, her slender fingers gently stroking its surface.

Her movements were slow, as if she were admiring a fine piece of art, or perhaps lost in thought.

"Who are you?" Lin Yi asked calmly, his voice devoid of any panic.

The woman sneered, walked up to Lin Yi, and looked down at him from above.

"Hmph! Telling you won't hurt. My name is Shen Biyao, and I am Xiao Cheng's Dao Companion!"

Her expression was a mix of triumph and anger, and within that anger, there seemed to be a hint of a threat...

Lin Yi was stunned.

Xiao Cheng's Dao Companion?

He had indeed heard Xiao Cheng mention that before entering the Sect, Xiao Cheng had already arranged a marriage with the daughter of a small local cultivation Family named Shen Biyao.

The two were childhood sweethearts with a deep bond.

After Xiao Cheng entered the Sect, although they rarely met, they had always kept in touch.

Lin Yi had never met Shen Biyao; he only knew she was a Disciple of the Alchemy Pavilion and possessed considerable talent in the path of Alchemy.

"So it is Miss Shen..." Lin Yi's tone was flat. He did not panic despite being tied up; after all, panicking was useless.

"May I ask why Miss Shen has invited me here?" He asked calmly, though he quietly swallowed a mouthful of saliva.

"Invited? You think this is an invitation?" Shen Biyao's eyes suddenly turned fierce.

She grabbed Lin Yi's chin, her fingernails digging deep into his skin, forcing him to look up.

"Lin Yi, you caused Xiao Cheng's Dao Heart to shatter, his cultivation to stagnate, and forced him to beg for mercy on the arena, becoming the laughingstock of the entire Sect! How dare you ask me why you are here?"

Her tone grew increasingly vicious.

Lin Yi did not struggle, just looked at her calmly.

However, a bead of cold sweat on his forehead betrayed the subtle anxiety hidden in his heart. This woman's actions were too unexpected; if he didn't handle this well, he might really be done for here!

"Xiao Cheng's Dao Heart shattering is because of his own guilt. What does that have to do with me?" Lin Yi stated firmly.

"Guilt? What does he have to be guilty about? Guilty about being defeated by you? Or guilty about you hypocritically gifting him Secret Manuals and Medicinal Pills?"

Shen Biyao's voice was sharp, like fingernails scraping across an iron plate.

Her eyes turned red, and her voice began to tremble.

"You don't know, he has locked himself in his room for the past few days, neither eating nor drinking, spending all day hugging the things you gave him, staring blankly. He keeps telling me over and over that he has wronged you, that he is unworthy of being your brother, that he deserves to die..."

Shen Biyao took a deep breath, the hatred in her eyes growing stronger.

"He wasn't like this before! He was a Genius, the Disciple most valued by Elder Master Chen Xuan, one of the most promising young people in the entire Xuantian Sect! But now? He has become a waste!"

Lin Yi was silent for a moment.

He couldn't help but retort inwardly, "Damn it, wasn't it your fiancé who plotted to kill me first? If it weren't for the System's mission, I wouldn't have spared this guy's life! Why are you blaming me instead?"

But thinking this, Lin Yi also knew that he now actually needed to ensure Xiao Cheng survived.

Since that was the case, his goal and Shen Biyao's were aligned, so there was no need to become enemies.

Thinking of this, Lin Yi forced a bitter smile and tried to explain.

"Miss Shen, there are some things you don't know!"

"I know enough!" Shen Biyao interrupted him. "I know it was you who made Xiao Cheng turn out like this, and that is enough!"

She pulled a jade bottle from her robes.

The bottle was pitch black as ink, with a red Seal Talisman stuck to its surface. The patterns on the Talisman were complex and obscure, emitting an eerie glow!

Shen Biyao carefully tore off the Seal, and a sweet, cloying scent drifted out from the bottle, filling the entire stone chamber.

That scent entered his nostrils, and Lin Yi immediately felt a wave of dizziness.

"This is the Seven Absolutes Powder I spent three years refining!" Shen Biyao's voice turned icy, and then a chilling sneer curled the corners of her mouth.

"This stuff is colorless and odorless. Those who are poisoned will have their spirit power dissipate, their Meridians shatter inch by inch, and after seven days, they will turn into a pool of pus and blood!"

She crouched down, meeting Lin Yi's gaze, her eyes full of madness.

"I want you to experience for yourself the pain Xiao Cheng has suffered these past few days!"

Lin Yi's pupils constricted violently.

Seven Absolutes Powder!

He had seen this name in the Alchemy knowledge imparted by the System.

It was an extremely vicious poison; its refining method was complex, and the required medicinal herbs were extremely precious, each one worth a fortune!

Just collecting these herbs would likely take several years...

And the terrifying thing about this poison was that it didn't kill immediately.

The toxin would erode the Meridians bit by bit, starting from the extremities of the limbs and slowly spreading toward the heart.

This process lasted for seven days, with the pain each day more intense than the last.

The most terrifying part was that the victim's consciousness remained clear, watching their own body rot and disintegrate bit by bit, until finally turning into a pool of pus and blood!

Lin Yi said in a deep voice, "Are you crazy? The Sect strictly forbids the use of poison between Disciples. If the Elders discover this, you will also be expelled from the Sect!"

"Discover?" Shen Biyao laughed, her smile filled with madness.

"This is my secret Alchemy room in the Alchemy Pavilion. I have set up sound-isolation and Spirit-sealing arrays outside; no one will know!"

She pried open Lin Yi's mouth and poured the liquid from the jade bottle into it.

The cold liquid slid down his throat into his stomach, carrying an eerie sweetness.

Lin Yi struggled desperately, but the spirit-iron chains bound his hands and feet, and his spirit power could not circulate normally, so he could only watch helplessly as the poison entered his mouth.

The liquid entered his stomach.

At first, he felt nothing, just like drinking a mouthful of cold water.

But only three breaths later.

A searing, excruciating pain rose from his lower abdomen, as if a ball of fire were burning within his internal organs!

"Ah!"

Lin Yi couldn't help but scream out, his body trembling violently, veins bulging on his forehead.

That ball of fire rampaged through his body, and wherever it passed, his Meridians felt as if they had been scorched by a branding iron, emitting a hissing sound.

His spirit power began to run wild uncontrollably!

Some Meridians were swollen and on the verge of bursting from the spirit power, while others were withered and blackened by the toxins.

Two forces engaged in a tug-of-war inside him, and the battlefield was his own body!

Shen Biyao stood up and stepped back two paces!

At first, she was still a bit afraid, clearly nervous, but she quickly returned to her cold, detached expression.

Finally, her expression was calm, even carrying a trace of satisfaction.

"This is just the beginning; enjoy it properly! Hehe!"

At this moment, Lin Yi gritted his teeth, his teeth making a grinding sound.

His consciousness gradually blurred in the excruciating pain, his body feeling as if it were about to be torn to shreds!

But he did not give up, desperately driving the spirit power in his body, attempting to force the toxins out!

Inside Lin Yi's body, the Nine Cauldrons Spirit Refining Technique began to operate automatically.

This Cultivation Technique was a high-level one imparted by the System, far surpassing any Mind-Cultivation Technique in the Xuantian Sect!

Its strength lay in the fact that once the cultivator encountered danger, the technique would automatically activate to protect its master.

The spirit power in his Dantian surged crazily, turning into streams of warmth that flowed to his limbs and bones, engaging in a tug-of-war with the toxins.

Now, Lin Yi had no other choice but to pin his hopes on the System's divine technique exerting its power once more!

All he could do was grit his teeth and endure, bearing this inhuman pain!