Marrow Transformation Pills Secured!

Near the Cui clan's pill furnace room, the atmosphere suddenly grew intensely bizarre. Scores of martial artists eyed Lu Changsheng like hungry beasts, yet none dared step within ten zhang of the room. Meanwhile, Lu Changsheng stood alone outside with his sword, motionless as a statue. Both sides remained dead silent, settling the entire Cui residence into an eerie hush. Time trickled past. One shichen, two shichen, three shichen... More than three shichen passed, and dawn was already approaching, yet neither side had made a single move. Inside the pill furnace room, Li Hongzhuang had been searching for over three shichen. Her eyes were bloodshot, and anxious frustration was etched across her face. Failing to find the Marrow Transformation Pills after more than three shichen weighed heavily on her. After all, outside stood "Thirteen," holding back the entire Cui clan single-handedly with only his sword! Though the pill furnace room was large, three shichen had been more than enough time for Li Hongzhuang to scour every corner. Yet she still had nothing to show for it. *Could the Marrow Transformation Pills not be in the pill furnace room after all?* *No, impossible! The foreign monk wouldn't lie and gamble with his own life.* *Nor would the Three Elders of the Cui Clan guard this room without reason. The pills must be here.* *Could there be a hidden compartment or mechanism?* Li Hongzhuang had inspected nearly every inch of the walls. She had found no hidden compartments or mechanisms. Finally, Li Hongzhuang turned her gaze toward the furnace. Refining pills required a furnace, and a massive one occupied the room. Even now, flames still licked its underside. Li Hongzhuang stepped forward and struck it with her palm. *Thud.* The furnace lid was knocked open, and a wave of scalding heat rushed out. The Marrow Transformation Pills couldn't be inside the furnace. If they were, with the fire burning continuously like this, not even dregs would remain of them. *Wait... It's scorching hot inside, but the outside doesn't feel hot at all.* Li Hongzhuang's eyes lit up. The interior was searing, yet the exterior gave off no heat whatsoever. She searched around the furnace's two handles and finally discovered a mechanism. *Click.* Inside the hollow handles was a hidden latch holding two porcelain bottles. Inside the bottles were thirteen pills emitting an extraordinary fragrance. "Marrow Transformation Pills!" "The Cui clan hasn't even used a single one?" "Oh, Cui clan... Ten years of painstaking labor, all lost in a single day, and now someone else reaps the reward." A wave of immense satisfaction washed over Li Hongzhuang. She had long hated the Cui clan to the bone. While she couldn't wipe them out today, depriving them of every single Marrow Transformation Pill and dealing them such a heavy blow brought her immense joy. "Brother Thirteen!" Li Hongzhuang called out toward the entrance. "Hm?" Lu Changsheng, holding guard outside with his sword, kept the Cui clan at bay. Her call reached his ears. Though she hadn't stated why, he could guess that she had most likely found the pills. He immediately turned and stepped into the pill furnace room. "Miss Li, did you find the Marrow Transformation Pills?" Lu Changsheng asked. Li Hongzhuang's eyes were bloodshot and exhaustion lined her face, but she could not hide the excitement gleaming in her gaze. Producing the two porcelain bottles, she whispered, "I found them. Thirteen in total. The Cui clan hadn't used a single one." Lu Changsheng considered this. Perhaps it wasn't that the Cui clan didn't want to use them, but that they couldn't. To take a Marrow Transformation Pill, one had to cultivate the marrow transformation secret method to perfection. Otherwise, consuming one would be an utter waste. No one in the Cui clan had reached perfection in the secret method, so naturally none had taken the pills—which ultimately worked in favor of Lu Changsheng and Li Hongzhuang. "This bottle holds seven Marrow Transformation Pills. Brother Thirteen contributed the most, so you should receive one more." Li Hongzhuang held out one of the bottles and handed it to Lu Changsheng. Lu Changsheng did not refuse. He unstoppered the bottle and took a light sniff, roughly distinguishing several of the medicinal ingredients within. Satisfied, he put the pills away. "Brother Thirteen, we need to leave quickly. The Cui clan may have sent riders to Suspended Sword Villa to summon Lu Tong. Once Lu Tong arrives at the Cui estate, we'll be in trouble," Li Hongzhuang cautioned. Lu Changsheng nodded, but he walked straight over to the corpse of the Cui clan elder lying inside the room. He crouched down, searched the body swiftly, and found nothing. Li Hongzhuang felt rather helpless. Even at a time like this, "Thirteen" was still thinking about looting bodies? It was obvious "Thirteen" came from humble beginnings; even corpse-looting had become second nature to him. Soon, however, the two of them walked out of the pill furnace room. The Cui Clan Patriarch's heart seized. They were coming out—had they found the Marrow Transformation Pills? Still, he found it hard to believe. The hiding place was so secure; how could it be found so easily? Nevertheless, the Patriarch didn't dare step forward, let alone order his martial artists to advance. Lu Changsheng glanced at the corpses strewn across the ground. The courtyard was covered with bodies. He hadn't moved earlier because he needed to keep watch over the remaining Cui martial artists. Now that the Marrow Transformation Pills were secured, he couldn't help wanting to loot the bodies. In particular, two of the Three Elders of the Cui Clan lay dead just outside the pill furnace room. Seeing that Lu Changsheng seemed intent on looting again, Li Hongzhuang was exasperated and said hurriedly, "Brother Thirteen, we cannot waste time! We have to leave immediately. "This is the Cui estate! Who would carry important valuables on their person while at home?" Lu Changsheng paused. He felt Li Hongzhuang made a good point. This was their own clan's compound; there was no need to carry valuables on their bodies. No wonder the corpses of the Three Elders had nothing on them. Evidently, everything was stored elsewhere in the estate. Besides, more than three shichen had already passed. No one knew when Lu Tong might arrive. Confident as Lu Changsheng was, he was not so conceited as to believe he could take on a martial artist of the Divine Strength Realm. "Let's go!" Lu Changsheng led Li Hongzhuang and strode directly toward the exit. "Fall back!" The Cui Clan Patriarch's face paled in alarm, and he hurried his people far out of the way. He could only watch helplessly as Lu Changsheng and Li Hongzhuang departed. He didn't even dare provoke them again. Only after their figures vanished into the night did the Patriarch enter the pill furnace room alone. Without hesitation, he rushed over to the furnace and triggered the mechanism in its two handles. *Click.* The mechanism opened, but the inside of the handles was completely empty. "Aargh... Damned thieves!" The Patriarch was consumed with fury. This was ten years of the Cui clan's hard labor! Not even the Cui clan had used a single Marrow Transformation Pill, and now all of them were gone! "Investigate!" "Find out who those two thieves are at all costs!" "Search heaven and earth if you must! Once Elder Lu Tong comes down from the mountain, we will wipe them out once and for all!" the Patriarch roared. Deep down, however, he knew that since the thieves' objective had been the Marrow Transformation Pills and they had obtained them, they would surely flee far away. Tracking them down again would be nearly impossible. Even if Lu Tong came down from the mountain, he would be powerless. What was worse, he would have to face Elder Lu Tong's interrogation. The Cui clan had kept the refinement of the Marrow Transformation Pills a secret from Lu Tong. Once Lu Tong found out, the Patriarch would have a massive headache on his hands. "Patriarch, this man can transform his qi and blood into a sword and even project it ten zhang outward. He killed the Three Elders of the Cui Clan single-handedly with his sword. He cannot be a nobody in the pugilistic world. We only need to keep an eye on rumors in the jianghu, and perhaps we can uncover his identity," Monk Kongyan suddenly spoke up. The Patriarch's eyes brightened, and he nodded. "Indeed. Transforming qi and blood into a sword and projecting it ten zhang is not something an ordinary martial artist can do. Hmph! Once we discover his identity, our Cui clan will never let him go!" Afterward, the Cui clan forces began cleaning up the aftermath. The Three Elders were dead, and the Marrow Transformation Pills were gone. Today was undeniably a devastating blow to the Cui clan. They could only lick their wounds and bide their time for revenge.