Chapter 593 - 593: Zhao Yuan, I Must Surpass You

Shan Han fell silent. Her expression remained unchanged, but deep down, she was incredibly resentful.

Before meeting Zhao Yuan, Elder Shan had always said she was the most outstanding among the young Pill Masters, a future leader of the Alchemy Dao. But now, she had been outshone by Zhao Yuan.

Shan Han was a proud person. Although she knew that Zhao Yuan's skill in the Alchemy Dao was truly formidable, and that he was indeed stronger than her, she was unwilling to admit defeat just like that!

'Zhao Yuan, I will redouble my efforts and surpass you!'

She clenched her fists and secretly swore an oath, a blazing fighting spirit igniting in her heart!

Although Elder Shan didn't turn around, he was watching Shan Han from the corner of his eye and saw the subtle changes in her expression. The corner of his mouth curved up into a smile.

His earlier words were, of course, from the heart. But at the same time, he also wanted to use them to spur Shan Han on, to make her work even harder!

Previously, because Shan Han was too proud, she never gave her all in her study of the Alchemy Dao. Elder Shan had tried many methods, but none could spark her desire to learn and make her go all out.

But this time, spurred on by Zhao Yuan, Shan Han was finally going to give it her all!

This was exactly what Elder Shan had been hoping for!

'My dear girl, only with a powerful rival to chase can you truly unlock your full potential! Give it your all. The future of the Shan Family rests on your shoulders!'

It just goes to show, age and experience always come out on top.

Even if Shan Han knew this was a trap, she had no choice but to jump into it, no choice but to give her all to study and research!

But to catch up to Zhao Yuan...

That was far easier said than done.

Only after Zhao Yuan's car had disappeared from sight did Elder Shan turn around, cup his hands toward Yue Tianchi, and say, "Fellow Daoist Yue, we should be going as well. Thank you for your hospitality these past two days. When you have time in the future, please come visit my home so that I may properly repay you."

Yue Tianchi quickly returned the gesture, smiling as he said, "Elder Shan, you're too kind. I'm the one who should be thanking you. If you hadn't stepped in to help me deal with the attacking Ant Thieves, I would've either been captured and enslaved or killed by now! In a little while, I'll prepare a proper gift and visit you to express my gratitude for your assistance."

Elder Shan said, "Fellow Daoist Yue, you are too polite. Doesn't the internet say these days, 'Dealing with the Ant Thieves is everyone's responsibility'!"

As they joked, a car drove up, the one sent by the Shan Family to pick up Elder Shan and Shan Han. After another round of goodbyes, the two got in the car and sped away, leaving a cloud of dust in their wake.

After seeing everyone off, Yue Tianchi returned to the villa, immediately packed his things, and left as well.

The villa's location was now known to the Ant Thieves. If he continued to live here, it would undoubtedly be dangerous. Especially when the Ant Thieves discovered that the people they sent to seize the Thousand-Day Wine had not returned, they would definitely send more. At that time, without the help of Zhao Yuan and the others, it would be impossible for him to defeat the attacking Ant Thieves on his own!

So it was better to relocate quickly.

With the Storage Ring, relocating was much more convenient for him. The many jars of fine wine cellared in the villa were all stored in his Storage Ring and taken away, not a single one left behind.

Yue Tianchi not only left himself, but he also dismissed all the servants in the villa. In an instant, the vast villa was deserted and became completely silent.

Zhao Yuan and his group were unaware of these events that transpired after they left.

After a drive of more than four hours, they returned to Rongcheng City.

Even in the car, they were cultivating.

The life-and-death battle from before had drained their energy, which they needed to quickly recover through Cultivation. At the same time, that battle had also made them realize that their strength was still far from that of true masters. Thus, they were desperate to improve their power, and for the past two days, they had seized every available moment to cultivate.

It wasn't until the Bone Woman, who was driving, entered the Rongcheng City Area that Cheng Haoyu was the first to stop cultivating and open his eyes.

It wasn't that he didn't want to continue cultivating, but after entering the city, the stop-and-go traffic made it impossible for him to do so. Moreover, he followed the Dual Cultivation School, and many of its cultivation methods required a female partner. Without a partner for the past two days, he could only perform the most basic Qi Cultivation, and the results were truly unsatisfactory.

However, he had already called his female partners in Shanghai, telling them to hurry and catch a flight to Rongcheng City to help him with his Dual Cultivation.

Cheng Haoyu turned his head, glanced at Zhao Yuan, Hao Li, and Ying Ji, who were still cultivating, and clamored, "Alright, alright, you can cultivate later. Let's talk about something important first—we've got the Thousand-Day Wine, so when are we going to eat the Raccoon Dog Meat?"

"Hey, I'm talking to you, Xiaoyuzi. Just because you can't cultivate properly, you want to stop the rest of us from cultivating too, is that it? You're the worst!" Ying Ji shot him a look and said irritably, but she still stopped cultivating as he suggested.

Hao Li also stopped his cultivation and teased, "I used to be quite envious of your Dual Cultivation Technique, but not anymore. Your Cultivation Technique is too troublesome to practice; you absolutely need a female partner. Hey, I'm just saying, if you were sent to a place with no women, how would you even cultivate?"

Cheng Haoyu glanced at him and said with a wicked grin, "It doesn't have to be a female partner. A male partner works too. You wanna give it a try?"

Hao Li shuddered, and suddenly felt his butthole clench. He quickly crossed his arms over his chest, put on a pitiful expression, and cried out, "No way, absolutely not! Damn, I can't believe it. I thought of you as a friend, but you want to sleep with me! That's just outrageous!"

Cheng Haoyu almost threw up from disgust. With a dark look on his face, he said, "Fatty Hao, can you please stop trying to act cute? When other people act cute, it's adorable. When you do it, it's murder! Now hurry up and answer my question. When can we eat the Raccoon Dog Meat?"

"Do you have to be in such a hurry? You're drooling." After teasing Cheng Haoyu a bit more, Hao Li finally said, "I don't recommend eating it right away. The Raccoon Dog Meat and the Thousand-Day Wine—one is hot, one is cold—are both extremely powerful energetically. In our current physical condition, eating them rashly won't improve our strength. On the contrary, it will cause us to suffer another heavy blow!"

"Fatty Hao is right." Zhao Yuan, sitting in the front passenger seat, turned his head and said, "Our bodies are too weak to handle potent supplements right now. To us, the Raccoon Dog Meat and Thousand-Day Wine aren't great tonics, but deadly poison! Only when we have nursed our bodies back to peak condition can we eat the Raccoon Dog Meat and drink the Thousand-Day Wine and be able to absorb their full effects!"

Cheng Haoyu was still somewhat skeptical of Hao Li's words, but he had complete faith in Zhao Yuan.

After hearing Zhao Yuan's explanation, he immediately said, "So that's how it is. Thanks for the heads-up, Brother Zhao. Otherwise, if we had rashly eaten the Raccoon Dog Meat and drank the Thousand-Day Wine, we would've been in big trouble!"