7: Exiled to the Spirit Pill Pavilion

The Elder spoke. His voice was not loud, yet it resounded like a great bell, clearly entering everyone's ears. Every word was a gem, containing profound truths of heaven and earth.

"... The Dao produces one, one produces two..." These few short words automatically manifested in Lin Feng's mind, causing the Qi in his Meridians to tremble slightly in response.

Lin Feng's pupils constricted slightly as his gaze swept across the arena.

The circle of Disciples closest to the Elder instantly entered a state of meditation. For a few at the fifth or sixth level of Qi Refining, visible white mist steamed from the tops of their heads, and their aura became unified and complete.

A little further away, a Disciple moved their fingers rapidly across their knees. The faint spiritual light flowing from their fingertips briefly gathered in the air, forming the prototype of a fiery red rune, only to dissipate immediately after.

The long sword at another Disciple's waist was emitting an extremely faint humming sound, and the scabbard trembled gently along with it. Yet, the Disciple themselves kept their eyes tightly closed, completely unaware.

'Opportunity.' Lin Feng's heart raced and his blood accelerated. 'With so many people comprehending at the same time, even if I can only steal a tiny bit, it will be far better than my own bitter cultivation.'

He did not hesitate any longer, immediately focusing all his mental energy to communicate with his Sea of Consciousness, urging those few thin spiritual tendrils to slowly probe outward.

However, the vast and chaotic intent was completely beyond his control, turning the tables and pouring back in along the spiritual tendrils.

"Argh!!"

Lin Feng clutched his head and rolled back and forth on the ground.

A tearing pain came from between his brows, as if his entire head was about to explode.

The tender leaves of the heaven-stealing vine swayed wildly, and the spiritual tendrils instantly stretched to their limit, emitting faint "zzzt" sounds of being overwhelmed.

He struggled desperately, wanting to cut off the connection and retract the spiritual tendrils, but he could not do it.

He opened his mouth and bit down hard on the tip of his tongue.

A sharp pain pierced his brain, forcibly bringing a trace of fleeting clarity.

Relying on this trace of clarity, he let out a silent roar and forcibly severed the connection with the heaven-stealing vine.

The moment the connection was broken, it was as if all his strength had been drained. His body completely lost control, and he threw his head back sharply, the back of his head slamming heavily against the stone wall behind him. His vision went black, blood spilled from the corner of his mouth, and he nearly fainted on the spot.

Although this commotion happened in a corner, it still seemed abrupt in the relatively quiet martial arts arena.

Immediately, a few suppressed sneers came from nearby.

"Tsk, another one who doesn't know their own limits."

"A mere Menial Servant, yet you dare to come and sponge off the Elder's lecture? Truly courting death!"

"A heart higher than the sky, but a life thinner than paper. Isn't it better to just honestly farm? Why insist on coming here to suffer?"

"Look at him; he's probably damaged his Foundation, right? How laughable..."

Lin Feng lay limp in the corner, gasping for air, his clothes completely soaked through with cold sweat, his face pale without a trace of blood.

His eyes were unfocused as he watched all of this with cold indifference.

He understood a little now.

Before his own strength is sufficient and his Divine Sense is strong enough, he must never easily attempt to use it in crowded places.

He struggled to stand up and staggered his way back.

A few days later, Lin Feng gradually recovered and poured all his energy back into the herb fields.

"Lin Feng, right? It's a pity for your planting skills to be buried here." Steward Deng, who looked somewhat kind, stopped by his field for a long time while patrolling the fields that day.

"I have a few acres of Red Essence Rice over there that haven't been growing ideally. Would you be willing to come over and help me look after them? As for the treatment, it will naturally be much better than it is now."

Lin Feng's heart stirred. Red Essence Rice was a type of spirit plants with a higher value than Spiritual Plant. If he could come into contact with it, not only could he earn more Spirit Stone, but perhaps he could also comprehend its growth characteristics through the heaven-stealing vine. It was another path.

Just as he was about to speak, an oily voice cut in.

"Oh my, Steward Liu, what a coincidence." Steward Wang appeared from nowhere, his face plastered with a fake smile.

"This kid Lin Feng is indeed quick-handed. I already agreed with Steward Han of the Spirit Pill Pavilion a few days ago to transfer him there to help. Steward Han is short of help and is in a rush, so I was just about to take him over."

Steward Liu frowned upon hearing this: "Spirit Pill Pavilion? Under Steward Han?"

He glanced at Lin Feng, a trace of imperceptible sympathy in his eyes, then shook his head, said no more, and turned to leave.

Steward Wang turned his head, and the fake smile on his face instantly vanished: "Kid, did you hear that? Pack your things and follow me to report to the Spirit Pill Pavilion in a while. Steward Han specifically asked for you."

Lin Feng's heart sank.

Spirit Pill Pavilion? Steward Han? He had never heard of them.

After Steward Wang left, a few Menial Servant Disciples who happened to hear and were familiar with him snuck over.

"Senior Brother Lin, you cannot go to that Spirit Pill Pavilion."

"That's right. I heard that Steward Han is famous for having a violent temper."

"None of the Menial Servant under him can last three months. They are either beaten until crippled or tortured until they resign voluntarily."

"The work at the Spirit Pill Pavilion is both exhausting and dangerous. I heard that last time, a Menial Servant was testing pills and was almost poisoned to death..."

Returning to his hut, Lin Feng silently packed his few belongings.

'This Pockmarked Wang is ruthless.' He cursed inwardly.

Ye Yuner stood to the side, her eyes red, her fingers tightly wringing the corner of her clothes.

"Senior Brother Lin... do you really have to go? Can't you beg Steward Wang again..."

Lin Feng stopped what he was doing and felt his heart soften as he looked at her worried and fearful appearance.

He reached out and gently wiped away the tears overflowing from the corners of her eyes: "Yuner, it's okay. Going to the Spirit Pill Pavilion... might not be a bad thing. At least I'll be able to come into contact with Medicinal Pill, and perhaps there will be an opportunity."

He paused: "Take care of yourself and take care of our fields. Once I gain a foothold, I will find a way to bring you over."

He knew this hope was slim, but he had to give her, and himself, something to look forward to.

Ye Yuner nodded vigorously, but her tears fell even harder: "You... you must be careful..."

The Spirit Pill Pavilion was the place in the Sect specifically for Alchemy. It was constantly billowing smoke, and the smell of medicine could be smelled from far away. Disciples were running in and out carrying medicinal materials, busy without a moment to rest.

Lin Feng arrived at the side hall of the Spirit Pill Pavilion. The Steward Han before him was a slightly chubby middle-aged man with deep-set eye sockets and a gloomy complexion.

He swept a glance at Lin Feng: "The new one? Go, clean up the medicine dregs piled over there, and then sort out the waste pills from those three furnaces of Clear Heart Pills. If you inhale too much pill poison, you'll explode and die, so don't blame me for not warning you."

The work at the Spirit Pill Pavilion was suffocatingly heavy. Handling medicine dregs required resisting the erosion of residual impure Qi, and sorting waste pills was even more lethal; a moment of carelessness and inhaling pill poison would cause dizziness.

The other few Menial Servant Disciples were all sallow and emaciated with numb eyes. If their movements were slightly slow, it would invite merciless scolding or even whipping from Steward Han.

Lin Feng worked in silence, watching everything with cold indifference.

He noticed that Steward Han spent most of his time locked in his quiet room. Occasionally when he came out, the air of irritability about him would be a few degrees heavier, and sometimes he would even smash things for no reason.

Until one night, as he passed by Steward Han's quiet room, a completely broken, low roar came from inside:

"Why? Why can't I achieve a Breakthrough? I'm just one pill short, clearly just one pill short!"