Nodding, Elder Xu went through the details of his encounter with Zhang Xuan.
"You are saying that... a Saint 4-dan Otherworldly Demon has appeared in Jingyuan City? Furthermore, Poison Master Sun was the one who saved you? "
Everyone leaped in shock.
The Otherworldly Demons were powerful in their own right, and a Saint 4-dan cultivator was even more fearsome. Yet, the other party had risked his life to save him. That courage was something that they couldn't hope to match up to.
"Not only so, Poison Master Sun also imparted the fundamentals of poison to me on the way here. However, due to the profound nature of his teachings, I wasn't able to remember too much of it. However, what I have memorized is sufficient for me to benefit my entire life if I were to comprehend it..."
Elder Xu said.
"Tell us about it..."
Hearing that the founder was going to impart a lesson to him, the crowd couldn't help but look at him in envy.
Elder Xu didn't hide anything from them, and he began reciting everything that he had memorized.
After hearing his explanation, the faces of the crowd paled in agitation.
Just like what the other party had said, even though it was just the basics, it pointed straight to the very essence of the world. Hearing it, they felt as if they had been enlightened.
"There's no need to guess anymore. That soul is definitely the founder of the Poison Hall... Other than him, I can't think of anyone else who would have such a deep understanding of poison..."
After a moment of discussion, Ruo Qingyuan remarked.
Even though he had believed most of the other party's identity, he still harbored some doubts about it. However, after hearing Elder Xu's explanation, he no longer harbored any doubts.
Only the true founder of the Poison Hall would possess such a deep understanding of poison, being able to decipher even the simplest of cultivation techniques accurately, pointing straight to the profound essence of the Great Dao.
"Alright, have someone repair the damaged buildings as soon as possible. Duan Ren and Mingzhen have offended the founder, so they should be sentenced to death!"
Ruo Qingyuan instructed.
"Yes!"
The crowd nodded in agreement.
Putting aside how Duan Ren and Mingzhen had humiliated themselves, they had even implicated so many people. Their sins were unforgivable.
"That's all for today. Vice Hall Master Xu, wait outside the Compendium Hall. Once Poison Master Sun is done reading, inform me..." Ruo Qingyuan nodded.
"Alright!"
Xu replied. Just as he was about to stand up, a frown suddenly appeared on Hall Master Xu's forehead. He flicked his wrist, and a Communication Jade Token appeared in his hand.
The jade tablet emitted a warm light. Someone had sent a message.
Taking a look, the hall master hurriedly stood up, and his eyes lit up. "Someone from the headquarters has arrived!"
"Someone from the headquarters?"
Everyone was stunned.
"He said that two Seven Star pinnacle poison masters would be arriving soon, and he wants us to welcome them!"
After saying that, the Palace Master hurriedly walked out.
Everyone followed closely behind.
Not too long later, they arrived at the area where Elder Xu and Zhang Xuan had landed on the aerial saint beast. Not too long later, the seal opened, and a massive saint beast slowly flew over.
On the back of the Saint Beast, there were two old men standing proudly. Even before they had arrived, they had already exerted a powerful pressure on those around them.
A Seven Star pinnacle poison master, a Saint 4-dan expert!
"Poisoner White, Poison Master Hai …"
Upon seeing the other party's appearance, Ruo Qingyuan's eyebrows shot up, and he hurriedly clasped his fist and bowed.
Even though the Hongyuan Empire Poison Hall was extremely secretive, it still maintained a close relationship with the headquarters of the upper echelons. Poison Master Bai, Bai Ting, and Poison Master Hai, Hai Mingjin, were reputable figures in the upper echelons.
Poisoner White waved his hand as he leaped down from the back of the saint beast. He glanced at the person before him and frowned. "May I know where your Hall Master Ruo is? Why isn't he here to welcome us? "
"Cough cough … I am Hall Master Ruo Qingyuan!" Ruo Qingyuan replied awkwardly.
He had been pummeled so badly by Zhang Xuan that even his wife and parents might not be able to recognize him, let alone the two of them.
"You …"
Poisoner White glanced at Poison Master Hai as his lips twitched. "Hall Master Ruo, how did you end up in such a state?"
Ruo Qingyuan was a poison master of the same rank as them. Even though his cultivation was beneath theirs, they weren't too far apart. For such an expert to end up in such a state within their own headquarters, what in the world was going on?
Shocked, Ruo Qingyuan quickly turned to look at the other elders, and his eyelids began twitching uncontrollably.
Most of the elders had sustained injuries on their bodies, and only one of them was unharmed.
"This … It's a long story. May I know what the headquarters has in mind for the two of you to come here personally?"
Ruo Qingyuan shook his head with a bitter smile.
It wasn't that he didn't want to talk about it, but it was simply too embarrassing.
Seeing that the other party was unwilling to talk about it, Poisoner White tactfully decided not to probe any further. "Two thousand years ago, did your branch obtain a book from an ancient ruin in Firesource City?"
"Yes!" Ruo Qingyuan nodded.
He had just told Poison Master Sun about the book, so he remembered it well.
"It's good that you have it. The headquarters sent us here to retrieve the book."
Seeing that the other party didn't deny it, Poisoner White heaved a sigh of relief.
"Retrieve the book?"
He didn't expect the headquarters to send two Seven Star pinnacle poison masters over just for a single book. Ruo Qingyuan paused for a moment before continuing. "The book has already been placed in the Mausoleum of Hall Masters. If the two of you aren't in a hurry, you can wait in the guest hall …"
There was no point in leaving the book here anyway. Since the headquarters had sent someone to retrieve it, he would just give it to them.
But before he could finish his words, Elder Xu and the others suddenly noticed an awkward look on their faces. Unable to hold it in any longer, one of the elders whispered to Ruo Qingyuan.
"Hall master … the guest hall has already been destroyed …"
Of the many buildings that had collapsed during the battle, the guest hall was one of them.
Now that it was a wasteland, it would be too embarrassing to bring two guests from the headquarters there.
"Ah …" Hearing those words, Ruo Qingyuan suddenly recalled something, and he hurriedly said, "Allow me to bring the two of you to my residence to rest."
"Your residence?" Poison Master Bai and Poison Master Hai frowned.
If they were here as guests, it would be understandable for them to head to Ruo Qingyuan's residence. However, they were here as representatives of the headquarters, so they had to be treated as esteemed guests. How could they bring them to his residence instead of the guest hall?
"The two of you might not know …"
Noticing the peculiar expressions on their faces, Ruo Qingyuan shook his head bitterly and said, "You will find out on the way …"
To be honest, he had no idea how he should explain it.
Soon, the two poison masters from the headquarters saw the rubble and the half-collapsed city, and they glanced at one another in bewilderment.
"This …"
Poison Master Hai couldn't help but point to the rubble.
This was the Poison Temple, and they were surrounded by their own people. How could it have ended up in such a state?
"Sigh … This matter is truly a humiliation to our Hongyuan Poison Temple …" Ruo Qingyuan sighed deeply.
As powerful as the two poison masters were, he was a Seven Star poison master as well. It was truly embarrassing for him to fail in this matter.
If he hadn't been so rash back then, he wouldn't have been reduced to rubble and become a laughingstock in front of the headquarters.
"What happened?"
Looking at the bruised faces of the elders and hall masters before him, as well as the rubble, Poisoner White couldn't help but ask.
"It's like this …"
Knowing that the other party would ask him more questions if he didn't reveal the truth, Ruo Qingyuan hesitated for a moment before recounting everything that had happened.
"What did you say? The soul of the founding ancestor is residing in the body of a person named Sun Qiang? "
Hearing those words, Poisoner White frowned. "That's impossible! The founding ancestor of our Poison Temple is known as the [Poison Eminence], but in truth, there are records in the headquarters that state that she is a female, and she calls herself the Poison Fairy. How could she possibly speak with a male voice? Not to mention, she fought with someone back then and her soul dissipated, leaving nothing behind. How could she possibly be residing in the Seven Hearts Lotus? There's no doubt about it! "
"The founding ancestor … is a female?"
Ruo Qingyuan was taken aback.
Even though he knew quite a bit about the founding ancestor, he wasn't too sure if the founding ancestor was a male or female.
"Indeed. Even though I haven't read the records regarding the founding ancestor, I heard from an 8-star poison master that there's a sculpture of her disciple in the headquarters … Possessing a male body and speaking with a male voice … Without a doubt, it's fake!"
Poison Master Hai shook his head.
"But … the Emerald Serenity Poison is really useless against him! Furthermore, he's also impervious to poison … "
One of the elders couldn't help but exclaim.
"The Emerald Serenity Poison is indeed formidable, but there are many ways to neutralize it! I have a [Heavenly Fragrance Antidote] here that an 8-star poison master forged. As long as one consumes it, even a Seven Star pinnacle poison won't be able to harm one in the slightest … "
Seeing that Ruo Qingyuan was doubtful, Poisoner White explained, "Even if it isn't the Saint Antidote, there are still some unique herbs that possess the ability to neutralize poison as well. Putting everything aside, there is a Saint Bodhi Tree in the Hongyuan Empire royal family. If a Saint 4-dan Primordial Spirit cultivator were to nourish this tree, the Bodhi Fruit that it bears would be able to neutralize all kinds of poison, including Seven Star poison. In fact, it wouldn't even pose a threat to poison that could kill one's soul!"
"This …"
Ruo Qingyuan was taken aback.
Even though he was also a Seven Star poison master, the two of them were still from the headquarters. Regardless of whether it was in terms of knowledge or experience, they were still far beyond him.
"You mean to say that … there's a good chance that he's a fraud?"
The elder who had asked the question previously frowned.
"That's not it. I just find it a little weird. The other party wields strength that even you are unable to defeat despite being a Nascent Saint cultivator. Yet, not only did your beetle bite him, it even ended up being poisoned to death … Even I am unable to do such a thing. Unless … he's an 8-star poison master! However, there's no need for someone of that caliber to pull such a prank … "
Poisoner White shook his head.
Even though he felt that there was something off about the possession of the founder that 'Sun Qiang' spoke of, he couldn't really put a finger on it.
What was even more bizarre was that the other party didn't seem to have any other requests. If the other party was truly up to something, he would have surely demanded something more than just a few books.
"How about this? Is the Sun Qiang that you spoke of still in the Compendium Hall?"
Poisoner White pondered for a moment, but he was still unable to come up with an answer. Thus, he turned to Ruo Qingyuan and said, "Why don't I test the other party to see how capable he is? If he's a fake, I'll make a move personally to kill him …"
"This …"
Ruo Qingyuan hesitated for a moment before nodding. "Alright!"
(Third Update! I would like to recommend Platinum God Regen's new book, 'Looking Back at the Present'. Everyone, feel free to take a look at it. I remember that I was so moved by 'The Ambition of Jiangshan Beauty' back then that I ended up using a lot of tissues. Lastly, I would like to request for monthly votes. Everyone has a guaranteed monthly vote at the start of the month, so please vote for me. Thank you!)
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