Chapter 165: The Ash God of July

Opposite them, Ning Gaowu and the others stood dumbfounded, staring fixedly at Zong Bieli. They naturally knew what the Pill of Proving Dao represented. Behind Ye Xin, the bamboo-hatted man in white shifted slightly, seemingly also shaken by this news.

As for Han Sanmei, Shen Wangji, Wang Fang, and Tie Shudeng sitting upon the throne, they all wore looks of sheer incomprehension. The Pill of Proving Dao? Could it be some miraculous elixir obtained from a sect? What was its specific purpose? Why had Zong Bieli's expression suddenly turned so grim?!

"I never imagined... the Young Marshal would also know of the Pill of Proving Dao..." Zong Bieli said, pronouncing each word with deliberate weight.

"What you know, I practically know all of it; what I know, you know nothing of at all. That is the difference between us," Ye Xin said with a sneer. "Furthermore, this pair of eyes of mine is the sharpest. The moment you reveal even the slightest trace of a clue, I can deduce your intentions. Zong Bieli, you actually had numerous ways to manufacture trouble for me—for instance, dispatching your elite generals to the southern front, seeking an opportunity to attack the Righteous Alliance, or simply targeting the Ye family. After all, you operate in the shadows, which is your greatest advantage. Yet you chose to step out into the open, determined to destroy me outright... Hm, you understand your own objective."

"Oh? Perhaps the Young Marshal would care to elaborate," Zong Bieli's eyes flickered. However, he had once again changed his form of address, calling Ye Xin 'Young Marshal,' which signified that in his mind, Ye Xin's weight had risen considerably—to the point where he felt he was losing his grip on the situation.

"My arrogance is well-known throughout the entire Great Wei nation. Ever since I returned to Nine Tripod City, not a single person has dared to provoke my wrath," Ye Xin said slowly. "Yet you chose to reside within the royal palace and destroy me in broad daylight. This is the most effective method, one that would immediately establish your own authority within Great Wei. As for the one sitting upon the throne, neither you nor I have ever taken him seriously. Once you take the first step, and execute it well, it wouldn't take long before you could firmly control the Great Wei nation within the palm of your hand."

Tie Shudeng's complexion turned ashen. Ye Xin's words were an unbearable humiliation to him. However, the atmosphere in the hall was currently exceptionally heavy, with a strange and formidable pressure permeating the air, causing his heart to palpitate violently. He had to drive his vital meridians with all his might just to resist that pressure; he was entirely incapable of opening his mouth to roar in anger at Ye Xin.

"The Young Marshal truly keeps presenting this old man with one pleasant surprise after another," Zong Bieli stared deeply at Ye Xin. "However, what can you possibly do about it? Could it be... that you still expect to walk out of here alive?"

"I don't know if you can understand this, but deep down, your psychology is that of a perfectionist," Ye Xin smiled. "Originally, you believed you had no chance of losing, yet you were unfamiliar with my killing moves. To minimize my lethality and avoid unnecessary casualties, you chose a thoroughly despicable method—poison!"

Little Fuzi's brows twitched slightly, as if he wanted to say something, but he ultimately held his tongue.

"Poison? Does the Young Marshal mean to say there is poison in this food?" Zong Bieli said indifferently.

Ye Xin used his fingers to pick up a radish-like sliver from the vegetable dish. "May Ash-God. Now this is a fine item, immensely beneficial to martial artists of the Pillar-State tier. This herb causes the vital meridians to dilate and drastically accelerates the circulation of vital energy. It is only occasionally seen within the palace or inside the residences of a few high-ranking lords."

"Since it is a fine item, where does the poison the Young Marshal speaks of come in?" Zong Bieli asked.

Ye Xin popped the radish-like sliver into his mouth, chewed it a few times, and swallowed it. Then, he picked out a black leaf from the dish. "May Ash-God is indeed a fine item, but if one simultaneously consumes this Black Spear Leaf, they are in for a world of misfortune. The Black Spear Leaf calms the mind and settles the breath, belonging to the category of miraculous healing medicines. It causes rapidly circulating vital energy to coagulate and even slows down the flow of blood. The moment your vital meridians dilate, your vital energy is instantly frozen. The only possible outcome is severe trauma to your vital meridians! As for the May Ash-God, everyone has it on their table, but the Black Spear Leaf... is exclusive to my table alone!"

Zong Bieli gently sighed. "I never imagined the Young Marshal's learning would be so profound. I am impressed, truly impressed!"

"It's not profound learning; I simply had a friend in the past," Ye Xin said, popping a Black Spear Leaf into his mouth and chewing as he spoke. "He possessed all sorts of bizarre skills, especially when it came to poisons—he could easily be considered the number one in the Nine States. His abilities were... hair-raising! Hahaha... Having skills is naturally a good thing, and calling them 'hair-raising' might not be entirely appropriate, but I truly can't find any other words for it. All of this is what I learned from him."

Ning Gaowu and the others opposite, along with Han Sanmei, Shen Wangji, and Wang Fang, all shifted their gazes to their own tables, and then looked over at Ye Xin's low desk. Sure enough, the dishware on Ye Xin's table had one more plate than theirs.

"Does that mean... the Young Marshal has not been affected at all?" Zong Bieli's tone had turned chillingly sinister.

"Of course I've been poisoned. This poison doesn't recognize family or kin; anyone who eats it is poisoned," Ye Xin smiled. "Not just me—everyone present has been poisoned."

Zong Bieli froze. Ning Gaowu and the others froze. Shen Wangji said in a deep voice, "Grand Commandant, what do you mean by this?!"

For Shen Wangji to still address Ye Xin as Grand Commandant at this juncture clearly demonstrated where his loyalties lay.

"This isn't May Ash-God; it's July Ash-God," Ye Xin picked up another Black Spear Leaf and put it in his mouth. "Although they are the exact same herb, their potency differs vastly. Ash-God grass sprouts at the beginning of the month and dies at the end. May Ash-God is already quite rare. As for July Ash-God... it can only be seen in my old camp. The strength of its poison is beyond ordinary imagination. Someone trying to break through the ultimate barrier of the mortal realm and step into the ranks of cultivators should theoretically be able to withstand it, though even then they must not recklessly circulate their vital energy. For an innate martial artist of the Pillar-State tier... it shouldn't prove fatal—well, it *shouldn't*, but they will endure an extremely, extremely arduous trial, and even if they manage to pull through, they will suffer a severe illness."

The hall suddenly fell into a dead silence. No one doubted Ye Xin's words; lying at a moment like this was utterly meaningless and would be exposed instantly.

"In that case, the Black Spear Leaf I am eating right now has instead become the antidote," Ye Xin picked up yet another Black Spear Leaf and placed it in his mouth. "The potency of July Ash-God is simply too strong. While the Black Spear Leaf cannot cause vital energy to freeze completely, it can slow down the speed of its circulation, effectively reducing the July Ash-God back to the potency of May Ash-God. Therefore, I live, while all of you are done for."

In that instant, every pair of eyes locked onto the dishes before Ye Xin.

"That friend of mine had an eccentric disposition. His methods of doing things were far more ruthless than mine, yet he always claimed he was acting on behalf of heaven, and therefore must possess a benevolent heart," Ye Xin laughed heartily. "No matter what trap he laid, he always left a sliver of a path to survival for others. Right now, that path of survival is right here in these dishes. According to his logic, not a single person in this room needs to die. To make you all believe I had already been poisoned, I ate my own share early on, and just now I consumed the portions meant for three other people. That is to say, there are three people here who will not be walking out alive no matter what."

Aside from Ye Xin, everyone else in the hall had turned as stiff as clay figures. They had long since sensed the abnormal stirrings within their vital meridians, but because they all recognized May Ash-God and had used it as a tonic in the past, they hadn't thought much of it. Now, hearing Ye Xin's words, they realized something was terribly wrong. The tremors in their meridians were growing increasingly violent, and the circulation of their vital energy was accelerating rapidly. Based on past experience, the medicinal effects of May Ash-God should have already begun to wane by now.

Zong Bieli slowly turned around, fixing a chilling glare upon Little Fuzi. "Chief Steward Fu, I never would have imagined—not in a million years—that you were a traitor!"

"Tsk tsk..." Little Fuzi clicked his tongue a few times, speaking with a resentful tone. "Was that fun? And to think I was generous enough to call you 'Big Brother'! All the glory of showing off you took for yourself, doing it to the absolute extreme, leaving nothing at all for me. Yet I spent over two bitter years guarding the palace for you, enduring beatings and grievances every single day..."

"I am the commanding general. When it's time to wrap things up and summarize, naturally I must highlight my own personal flair!" Ye Xin said.

"You... fine!" Little Fuzi gnashed his teeth and nodded, then lowered his head to fiddle with his fingers. "What was that gesture you taught me that expresses contempt again? Ah, right!"

Little Fuzi snapped his head up and thrust his index finger directly at Ye Xin.

"The middle finger! It's the middle finger!" Ye Xin slapped a hand to his forehead. "You fellow... sometimes your memory is freakishly good, and other times it turns to absolute mush. If you keep this up, how can I ever feel safe taking your medicine again?!"

"Take it or leave it!" Little Fuzi curled his lip.

The exchange between Ye Xin and Little Fuzi was brief. Some parts were easy to understand, while others were utterly baffling, but this did not prevent the Pillar-State tier powerhouses in the hall from making their judgment regarding the relationship between Ye Xin and Little Fuzi: they were brothers who could entrust their lives to one another!

Ever since Ye Xin's rise to prominence, the factional divisions within the Sin Camp had become the objective of diligent investigations by various aristocratic families. The Ghost, the Two Riders, the Four Fierce Ones, and the Eight Tigers were no longer secrets. As the person Ye Xin trusted most, Mister Ghost ought to be an elderly man with a grim complexion, or at the very least middle-aged; otherwise, how could he dare to call himself "Mister"?

However, the reality greatly exceeded their expectations. Little Fuzi's facial features were actually quite delicate and refined; how could such an appearance ever be associated with the word "Ghost"?

Among all those present, only Ye Xin knew the terrifying nature of Ghost Thirteen. Ghost Thirteen possessed a dual personality. When things were normal and peaceful, he resembled an ordinary, carefree teenage boy from next door; but when faced with pressure, the ruthlessness Ghost Thirteen displayed was enough to make even Ye Xin look at him sideways.

"Little Fuzi, you... you dare..." Tie Shudeng's eyes split wide as he let out a frantic roar. But before he could even finish shouting, a mouthful of fresh blood burst from his mouth.

Among everyone in the hall, Tie Shudeng possessed the weakest cultivation, and naturally suffered the greatest impact from the July Ash-God. By now, his vital meridians had already begun to fracture, coupled with the blazing fury consuming him from within, he finally coughed up blood.