156: Chapter 156 Cui Ruiyuan's Choice

"Very well, you may withdraw," Yuwen Kuang said indifferently, turning his back once more.

"Yes," the burly man replied with a bow, before re-entering the cabin.

Yuwen Kuang stood on the deck, the cool sea breeze gently blowing through his messy hair.

Yet his gaze remained firmly locked on the island ahead, a flicker of killing intent flashing in his eyes from time to time.

...

Wuyang City.

Inside a Pill Refining Room at the Pei Clan Estate.

An old man, roughly seventy years of age, dressed in dark gold robes with cloud patterns, was focused intently on refining a Medicinal Pill.

Every time he circulated his Qi and blood, he had to recite a mantra silently. Under his control, the pale blue flame within the Pill Furnace remained in a constant state.

However.

Just as the old man added more medicinal herbs, the pale blue flame, which had previously appeared constant, suddenly surged in size.

The next moment, the Pill Furnace began to churn violently.

Accompanied by a wisp of black smoke rising from the top of the Pill Furnace, a burnt smell permeated the air.

"Not good." The old man's expression changed drastically, and he attempted to control the state of the flame through other means.

Under his precise control, the flame returned to a constant state, and the commotion within the Pill Furnace gradually subsided.

An incense stick's time later, the flame gradually extinguished.

Only then did the old man heave a long sigh of relief and gently open the Pill Furnace. What met his eyes were several round Medicinal Pills that were half-black and half-red.

Seeing this, a look of regret flickered in the old man's eyes. "Still just a little short."

The old man was none other than Pei Qingyun.

By this time, a month had passed since he returned to Wuyang City.

Half a month ago, Pei Qingyun received news from Pei Yongyi that Pei Sixing's talent for Alchemy was simply too high.

In just four months, Pei Sixing had basically mastered the fundamental refining methods for a Tier 1 Medicinal Pill.

Upon receiving this news, Pei Qingyun was left somewhat speechless.

Since when was being too much of a Genius a mistake?

A First-Rank Alchemist needs to master the refining methods for three types of Tier 1 Medicinal Pills.

Judging by the current situation, with Pei Sixing's talent for Alchemy, it was highly likely that he would become a First-Rank Alchemist within another year.

Pei Qingyun had promised back then: if Pei Sixing became a First-Rank Alchemist, he would teach him personally.

At this moment, Pei Qingyun truly regretted his past words. Now, the trouble had fallen on his own head.

Stepping out of the Pill Refining Room, Pei Qingyun stretched his old back and muttered to himself, "Alchemy really is a grueling task. I've spent nearly half a month refining a blood-replenishing pill, and I still haven't succeeded. Looking at the situation, I'm afraid I'll need to practice for a few more days."

During this past half-month, besides his normal Cultivation, Pei Qingyun had spent almost all his spare time refining the blood-replenishing pill.

Even for the simplest Tier 1 blood-replenishing pill, he had spent a full half-month. Yet even so, he was still one step away from successfully refining it.

Of course, his ability to improve his refinement of the blood-replenishing pill to this degree in such a short time was inseparable from the consumption of resources. In this half-month alone, the basic consumption for Alchemy had reached nearly ten thousand taels.

Ten thousand taels was not considered much for the Pei Clan nowadays. But considering that just this one Tier 1 Medicinal Pill required ten thousand taels...

...if Pei Qingyun wanted to master the refining methods for all Tier 1 Medicinal Pills, it would cost at least one hundred thousand taels.

And this was with him having a high vantage point, being a Six Viscera Realm Grandmaster, and possessing decent talent for Alchemy. Even with so many favorable conditions, it still required such a huge cost.

Of course, other First-Rank Alchemists did not necessarily need to know how to refine all the Tier 1 Medicinal Pills on the market.

Just like the First-Rank Alchemist of the Wuyang Pei Clan, Pei Yongyi, who was the most ordinary type; he only knew how to refine three types of Tier 1 Medicinal Pills.

The reason for this was not that Pei Yongyi's talent for Alchemy was so low that he could not master the refining methods for a fourth type of Tier 1 Medicinal Pill.

Rather, it was because these three types of Tier 1 Medicinal Pills were the best-sellers on the market. Another reason was that the Pei Clan had already paid a huge price for Pei Yongyi to become a First-Rank Alchemist.

At this point, naturally, they had to recover the costs. They could not just keep investing without making a profit.

From this, one could see that a highly profitable profession like an Alchemist was built by burning through massive amounts of money.

This also made Pei Qingyun think of the technological research and development in his past life, which also involved burning through tens of billions at a time.

Pei Qingyun sighed, "Forget it, forget it."

After resting for a short while, Pei Qingyun dove back into the Pill Refining Room. He was a dignified Six Viscera Grandmaster; he could not possibly lose at Alchemy to a junior.

Compared to Pei Qingyun's busy and fulfilling life, the Heyuan Cui Clan had gradually fallen into a desperate situation.

A month and a half ago, Cui Ruiyuan had been forced to suspend the transport of merchant ships.

As a result, in less than two months, the drawbacks became apparent. Since maritime transport was the Heyuan Cui Clan's only business, suddenly stopping this operation left the Cui Clan without any income.

Furthermore, the clients who had placed orders half a year ago were now demanding compensation because the Cui Clan had failed to deliver the goods on time.

This made the Cui Clan's situation even worse.

The Cui Clan's treasury was also nearly exhausted from these various compensations.

The Cui Clan's direct line, immediate Family, collateral branches, plus some servants and miscellaneous personnel, added up to nearly a thousand people.

With so many people, every month was a huge expense.

For this reason, Cui Ruiyuan wanted to cut expenses. But even so, it had very little impact on the big picture.

Some Elders even blocked the implementation of this policy.

This caused him to lose his temper at a Family Elder meeting. Yet, a portion of the Family Elders remained completely unfazed, like dead pigs not fearing boiling water.

As long as their interests were involved, they would not yield even a tiny bit.

After ending the Family meeting, Cui Ruiyuan returned to his study.

At this moment, his expression was terrifyingly gloomy.

Suddenly, he slammed his hand onto the table, and the previously intact solid wood square table instantly snapped into two pieces.

"This is outrageous! Aside from flaunting their seniority, what else can these old guys do!" Cui Ruiyuan raged, his entire face contorted, no longer possessing his gentle and refined demeanor.

Instead, he gave off a menacing feeling.

Cui Ruihao stood silently to the side, not making a sound.

For so many years, this was the first time he had seen Cui Ruiyuan like this.

After a long while, the anger on Cui Ruiyuan's face gradually subsided.

At this moment, Cui Ruihao spoke, "Big Brother, what should we do?"

Cui Ruiyuan's gaze was icy, his eyes revealing traces of killing intent. "The Family has reached a life-or-death moment, yet these old guys still disregard the Family's interests. Since these old guys do not support me as the Clan Chief, then do not blame me for being heartless."

Having said this, Cui Ruiyuan looked at Cui Ruihao to the side and said, "Ruihao, write a letter for me and send it to the Wuyang Pei Clan. Tell them that I agree to Pei Qingyun's conditions."

"Big Brother, are you really going to agree to Pei Qingyun's conditions? Fifty percent of the profits—this would shake the very foundation of the Family; the other Elders won't agree to it. Besides, even if Pei Qingyun is willing to act, I'm afraid it will be very difficult to resolve the Family's current predicament," Cui Ruihao said.