The night the banquet ended, news spread like wildfire through the prefecture city.
For most factions, while they paid considerable attention, they didn't overtly fret over it.
However, the next day, when the young master Song Mingze of the Song family, while casually chatting with a few friends, revealed the names and effects of three types of elixirs, many found themselves unable to sit still.
If in the morning, there were only sporadic visits to the residence where Ji Yuan and his companions stayed, then shortly after noon, the area was swarming, making it impossible to count the number of factions that had converged, all submitting their visiting cards.
This situation persisted for several days, yet not a single faction managed to meet Ji Yuan, each being turned away with the excuse of him being in seclusion.
As one to two months passed, the crowd outside the residence gradually thinned, though a considerable number still remained.
It was on one of these days that a figure suddenly appeared on the street.
This person, appearing to be no more than a youth, already possessed a full head of white hair and exuded an intensely concentrated aura of malevolence.
"It's Lin Xiran!"
Upon seeing this person, someone from a faction waiting outside the residence couldn't help but exclaim.
As soon as his voice sounded, the surrounding cultivators' gazes sharpened, their hearts growing uneasy.
Lin Xiran, the former scion of the Lin family, now its patriarch.
In his youth, during an outing with his parents, they were ambushed by ruthless assassins. Including maids and servants, all thirty-seven people perished.
Young Lin Xiran, only eleven or twelve years old, fell into the great river and by sheer luck, managed to survive.
It was rumored that the river god had intervened, secretly saving the Lin family's only son.
Afterward, it was unknown how this young man acquired a copy of the Seventy-Two Earthly Fiend Sword Scripture. At the cost of his lifespan, he forcefully achieved enlightenment and advanced relentlessly, shattering every bottleneck before him.
In just over a decade, he had ascended into the Three Realms, his combat prowess unmatched, and though not a sword cultivator, he was no less formidable.
Along his path, Lin Xiran had slain countless foes. Coupled with his cultivation technique, his malevolent aura instilled deep fear in people's hearts.
After uncovering the truth of the massacre from years ago, he had executed all the relatives involved in the incident.
Several years prior, in a battle within the Lin family mansion in the prefecture city, Lin Xiran had slain nineteen blood relatives and over a hundred associated individuals, including three cultivators in the early to mid-Dao Manifestation realm.
In the subsequent years, although he did not take over the Lin family's enterprises or the personnel left behind by his parents, he refused to allow any other faction to lay claim to them.
Countless individuals, blinded by greed, were eventually slain by his hand.
Because of this, Lin Xiran was considered a veritable harbinger of misfortune in the eyes of the various factions in the city. His actions were swift and decisive; once his mind was made up, he would draw his sword without hesitation, and no one could sway his resolve.
Seeing his arrival, some factions quietly retreated. The powerful figures behind them had once attempted to covet the Lin family's assets, only to have their outstretched claws severed one by one.
"Lin family, Lin Xiran, requests an audience with the master of this residence."
The white-haired youth arrived outside the mansion and bowed to the two cultivators guarding the entrance.
Although they had been instructed within the residence to deny all visitors with the excuse that the master was in seclusion, under Lin Xiran's calm gaze, the two felt as though they were about to be drowned by an endless malevolent aura. They quickly turned and hurried inside to relay the message.
Not long after, Huo Shenyi arrived with several disciples. However, even he, who had once been in charge of the sect's punishments and regulations, nearly lost his composure under the oppressive aura.
After some deliberation, he could only invite the visitor into the residence and escort him to the main reception hall.
About half an hour later, Ji Yuan, having been informed, approached the main hall and could already feel a dense malevolent aura.
He had no doubt that this aura alone was sufficient to severely injure or even kill a cultivator of the Two Realms.
"I am Daoist Lingyu, the Master of the Xuan Tian Temple. May I ask your distinguished name, fellow cultivator?"
Ji Yuan entered the main hall, his gaze falling upon the white-haired youth before him.
Upon hearing this, Lin Xiran rose and announced his name once more.
"I have come seeking one Nine Dragon Spirit Nurturing Pill and one Five Qi Yuan Cultivation Pill."
He stated his intentions without concealment.
In truth, even if Lin Xiran hadn't spoken, Ji Yuan had already guessed his purpose. Those who came to visit at this time were basically all after the three types of elixirs he possessed.
Furthermore, with his alchemical mastery, he could tell at a glance that although the visitor was enveloped in a powerful malevolent aura and possessed an incredibly robust presence, his inner being was extremely depleted. His true essence and lifespan had been so drained that only a sliver remained. Despite being in his prime, he had at most only a few years left.
Ji Yuan had also heard of Lin Xiran's reputation, and the name of his cultivation technique was naturally among the intelligence he had gathered.
If his guess was correct, the Seventy-Two Earthly Fiend Sword Scripture, while allowing him to advance his cultivation at an astonishing rate, making breakthroughs as easy as eating and drinking, and granting him extraordinary combat power, had come at the price of constantly depleting his potential, true essence, and lifespan.
"If you wish to replenish your depleted true essence, one Five Qi Yuan Cultivation Pill is far from enough."
Since the other party was direct, Ji Yuan saw no reason to be evasive.
He stated plainly, "Given your current condition, you would need at least twenty to thirty Five Qi Yuan Cultivation Pills to mend the depleted true essence within your body."
"And if you do not change your cultivation technique, you will have to frequently consume this pill, or other spirit materials that replenish true essence, in the future."
Upon hearing this, Lin Xiran's eyes dimmed, and he then said, "I have tried other spirit materials. While they had some effect, it was difficult to sustain."
Spirit materials capable of replenishing true essence were exceedingly rare in the world, and those that remained effective for cultivators in the Three Realms were even more elusive. Even in the prefecture city, one could hardly find many.
And due to the nature of his cultivation technique, he needed to consume them continuously, thus he had been unable to find a method to support such consumption.
It wasn't that there were no restorative elixirs in the city, but most were not potent enough, and for him, they were like a drop in the ocean.
"How much per pill?"
After a period of contemplation, he asked.
"Ten spirit coins."
Ji Yuan raised an eyebrow and said with a half-smile.
As soon as he finished speaking, Lin Xiran showed a troubled expression, something Ji Yuan had anticipated.
Based on the intelligence gathered previously, though not exhaustive, it was understood that this individual, whom many factions dared not confront, was in dire financial straits.
After all, he had no consistent source of income. After avenging his great wrong, he had no interest in further cultivation or managing anything.