「Above the underwater city!」

The battle between the Mermaid King and the Black Wing King had reached its climax. The surrounding seawater was churning violently.

The Black Wing King summoned his Battle Soul. It was also a humanoid Battle Soul, but it was tens of times larger than the Battle Soul of a Black Wing Guard! It loomed above his head like a mountain.

"Die, old scoundrel!"

With a furious roar from the Black Wing King, the Battle Soul, like a Grim Reaper, struck towards the Mermaid King.

"Hmph!"

The Mermaid King snorted coldly, his hands placed before his chest, swiftly forming seals.

"Ocean King Seal, kill!"

With his low shout, a golden seal burst from between his hands, colliding fiercely with the humanoid Battle Soul.

BANG!

Both were destroyed. The Black Wing King was flung away, his face slightly pale. The Mermaid King, however, spurted blood continually as he was sent flying!

"Heaven truly is unfair!" the Black Wing King roared repeatedly. "We are all Merfolk! Why is it that you Golden Tail Mermaids are the natural successors to the Mermaid King? Why must we, the Black Wing Mermaids and White Wing Mermaids, be subjugated to you?"

"Because our bloodline is purer than yours, and more importantly, we remember and abide by the ancestral teachings!" the Mermaid King steadied his aged body and declared, each word resonant and powerful.

"What a ridiculous ancestral teaching! Mermaid King, if you were at your peak, this King might still fear you. But now, you are on your last legs. Today is destined to be your end!"

The Black Wing King bellowed, once again summoning his Battle Soul. Together, they fiercely charged towards the Mermaid King.

"Even if this king is nearing his end, I am not one you rabble can defy!"

The Mermaid King brimmed with fighting spirit. Despite his disadvantage, he was fearless as he engaged the Black Wing King in a desperate battle.

"Father..." Princess Mermaid watched the old man unblinkingly, her face etched with worry.

"Don't look. Since we have already shown our true colors, today is definitely his end," the White Wing King sneered.

Princess Mermaid retorted sternly, "The Mermaid clan will be ruined by your hands sooner or later!"

"That's none of your concern," the White Wing King said. "By the way, where is Qin Feiyang? My subordinate saw him entering the main hall with his own eyes. So why haven't I seen him?" A murderous glint flashed in the White Wing King's eyes.

Princess Mermaid said, "I advise you not to lay a finger on him, because he is someone you cannot afford to offend."

"Hahaha… Cannot afford to offend? What a joke. Once this King finds him, he will be the first to be killed!" The White Wing King burst into laughter, his face full of contempt.

「Inside the castle!」

"Boss, I've gathered all of them!" Fatty announced, placing the sorted medicinal materials into an empty Qiankun Bag and handing it to Qin Feiyang. "There are five sets in total!"

Lu Hong also stood up and said, shaking her head, "I didn't expect the materials for the Lifespan Extension Pill to be even rarer than those for the Potential Elixir."

"That's natural; life is priceless." Qin Feiyang smiled, grabbed the Qiankun Bag, and walked over to the Elixir Scripture, thoroughly reading the refining method for the Lifespan Extension Pill.

After memorizing all the steps, Qin Feiyang went to the Pill Furnace, controlling the Netherworld Demon Flame to extract the Spiritual Liquid. This was his first time refining a Lifespan Extension Pill, so he had to be especially careful with each step. Even the slightest misjudgment in temperature control could not be tolerated. Failure was not an option now! The Mermaid King, in his current state, could not hold on much longer. Every minute, every second, his life was being consumed!

The pitch-black flames burned fiercely. Inside the Pill Furnace, it was red-hot, the temperature steadily rising. The first medicinal material required twenty percent heat. The second and third medicinal materials required thirty percent heat.

Qin Feiyang gradually discovered that as the grade of the elixir increased, the speed of extracting the Spiritual Liquid decreased. It seems I need to start looking for higher-grade elixir flames and a better Pill Furnace, he thought. Otherwise, my pill refining efficiency will be greatly reduced in the future.

The fourth, fifth, and sixth medicinal materials required fifty percent heat. The final ingredient astonishingly required ninety percent heat!

By the end of the entire process, Qin Feiyang was drenched in sweat, his clothes soaked through.

The next step was the fusion of the Spiritual Liquid! This step absolutely cannot fail! He was extremely careful, even more so than when refining the Potential Elixir.

CRACK!

However, because he was overly cautious, he had become somewhat nervous. When all the Spiritual Liquid fused, it spun out of control, and a crack appeared on the Pill Furnace!

This is bad! Qin Feiyang's expression changed drastically. This was a precursor to the furnace exploding! If it really exploded, it wouldn't just be a failure. He didn't have a spare Pill Furnace; if this one blew, he would have no way to continue refining. And the crisis of the Mermaid clan would naturally be impossible to resolve.

It absolutely cannot explode! He strove to calm himself. Relying on his strong spiritual power and seasoned experience, he finally stabilized the situation. The Pill Furnace didn't explode, but the cracks were spreading rapidly.

Without time to even catch his breath, he directed a strand of spiritual power into a jade bottle on the supply platform and drew out a drop of Solidifying Liquid.

CRACK!

At this moment, a second crack appeared on the Pill Furnace. Nearby, Fatty, Lu Hong, and the Wolf King stared intently at the two cracks, their pupils constricted. They too were drenched in sweat, perhaps even more nervous than Qin Feiyang.

Qin Feiyang took a deep breath and slowly fused the Solidifying Liquid into the Spiritual Liquid. The Spiritual Liquid immediately glowed brightly and rapidly solidified. The Pill Furnace, however, seemed to have reached its limit; a third crack, then a fourth, appeared in quick succession. The harsh, grating sounds echoed within the castle, gripping everyone's hearts.

Faster, faster! everyone roared internally. The elixir was about to form! If the furnace exploded now, the consequences would be even more dire.

CLANG!

Suddenly, with a deafening blast, the Pill Furnace abruptly exploded. Simultaneously, a beam of emerald light shot out from the furnace. Qin Feiyang snatched it. Right after, the fragments from the exploding furnace blasted him away.

Lu Hong, Fatty, and the Wolf King weren't spared either. Sharp fragments cut their skin; some even embedded themselves in their bodies.

THUD! THUD! THUD!

The three of them and the wolf slammed into the wall behind them almost simultaneously, all of them coughing up blood.

Qin Feiyang hastily checked his injuries. Finding no damage to his heart or Qi Sea, he quickly scrambled to his feet. Disregarding the elixir in his hand, he turned towards the Wolf King and the others, anxiously asking, "Are you guys okay?"

"We won't die."

"No major injuries."

The Wolf King and Lu Hong got up one after another, shaking their heads at him.

Fatty, however, lay motionless on the ground. Blood gushed from his chest, and his eyes were like those of a dead man—dilated and vacant.

Qin Feiyang's complexion changed dramatically. Could his heart have been injured? He quickly squatted beside Fatty and shouted, "Fatty, wake up! If you're not dead, make a sound!"

"He's bleeding from his chest!" Lu Hong grabbed Fatty's clothes and ripped them open, revealing a fragment embedded in his flesh.

It's over, the Wolf King thought, his eyes welling up. Fatty must be dead. That scoundrel… annoying when he was alive, but his death still saddens me…

Why did it have to be like this…? Qin Feiyang wore an expression of disbelief. Though Fatty was lewd and shameless, he was extremely loyal and valued brotherhood. He had never imagined he would inadvertently cause Fatty's death.

It's all my fault… I shouldn't have conducted Alchemy in the castle… Self-reproach filled his heart.

Lu Hong's eyes also reddened, tears welling up.

COUGH, COUGH!

But then, suddenly, Fatty began to cough. His vacant eyes quickly regained their color. When he saw Qin Feiyang and the others, he was momentarily stunned and asked, "What are you all doing?"

"Damn it, you're not dead!"

"You bastard, you faked your death to trick us!"

"Are you looking for a beating?"

The two humans and the wolf erupted in anger.

"Faking my death?" Fatty paused, then abruptly sprang to his feet. He glared at them, pointing to his chest, and roared, "Are you all blind? If it weren't for Master Fatty's extra padding, this fragment would have claimed my life! And you dare accuse Master Fatty of faking death? Do you have any conscience?" Fatty bellowed indignantly, his entire body quivering.

Extra padding? Qin Feiyang, Lu Hong, and the Wolf King exchanged glances. Fatty's layers of fat, it seemed, did serve a purpose. At the very least, they had just saved his life.

"Alright, alright, it was our mistake. Please calm down, sir," Qin Feiyang said with a smile, then turned to Lu Hong. "Could you help him with that?"

"Mm," Lu Hong nodded. She turned, gave Fatty a sidelong glance, and said, "Bear with it!" Then, she reached out and pulled out the fragment.

"OW, OW, OW! Gently!" Fatty howled. "Can't you see Master Fatty is injured?"

"One more word of nonsense, and I won't help you," Lu Hong said, her brow furrowing.

"Fine, Master Fatty will endure! Hey, wait a minute, why are your eyes all teary? Were you worried about Master Fatty? It seems you all do have a shred of conscience after all." Fatty laughed triumphantly, the pain momentarily forgotten.

What a character, Qin Feiyang thought, shaking his head helplessly. He opened his hand, revealing a pellet-sized elixir. The pill was entirely emerald green, exuding a rich life aura. An Elixir Pattern circled it, glowing brilliantly.

Seeing the Elixir Pattern, Qin Feiyang let out a long sigh of relief. Top Grade. Although the furnace had exploded and Fatty had nearly died, the Lifespan Extension Pill, thankfully, was not ruined. However, finding a new Pill Furnace had now become a pressing matter.

"Once you're treated, start cultivating immediately," Qin Feiyang instructed. He then reactivated the Water-Repelling Pearl and the Cold Resistance Pearl and left the castle.

The palace is destroyed? Upon appearing outside, Qin Feiyang was stunned to see the palace reduced to a pile of rubble.

Simultaneously, powerful shockwaves from a battle emanated from above. He looked up, and his expression changed abruptly.

The Mermaid King was completely being suppressed by the Black Wing King! Not only was his golden tail shattered, but his entire right arm was gone, blood gushing out and staining the seawater red. His upper body was also covered in wounds.

Thank goodness the Lifespan Extension Pill didn't fail, Qin Feiyang murmured. Facing the young and vigorous Black Wing King, the Mermaid King truly stood no chance.

"Qin Feiyang, be careful!" Suddenly, Princess Mermaid's panicked cry rang out.

"Little beast, come, come! Let this King witness the strength of someone who possesses the Purple-Gold Dragon Soul!" The White Wing King's bone-chilling voice followed.

"Look at your cultivation level, and then look at mine!" Qin Feiyang retorted, turning to face the White Wing King, immediately launching into a tirade. "Have you no shame saying such things? Do you have any dignity left at all?"

This old scoundrel really deserves a scolding, Qin Feiyang thought. Give me five years… no, not even five, just two or three years, and I'm confident I can ruthlessly crush this shameless old fool under my heel.

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