Chapter 10: Returning the Favor in Kind

Wan Donghai now regretted not sending someone to the Medicine Fragrance Pavilion to check on things. The unclear situation left him at a disadvantage. The problem was, he never imagined that Liu An, who had been hidden so deeply, would run into trouble.

"L-Lord... save... save me." Liu An on the ground was already weak and groaned.

Liu An's words seemed to touch a sensitive nerve in Wan Donghai, causing his tightly furrowed brow to tighten even more, almost forming an inverted V.

"Eh, Lord Wan, I feel like this friend seems to know you," Ye Yuan said in surprise, as if discovering a new continent.

He deliberately spoke loudly so that everyone could hear. Others naturally felt nothing, but to Wan Donghai's ears, it carried a different meaning.

Wan Donghai was furious inside but pretended not to care: "My worthy nephew jokes. I have some reputation in the imperial city, and my Drunken Star Pavilion has saved many beast hunters. It's not strange that he knows me."

Ye Yuan suddenly realized: "So that's it! I brought this friend here, but I never said he was a beast hunter. How did Lord Wan recognize him at a glance? Lord Wan has sharp eyes; I am truly impressed."

The onlookers, who were initially confused, now seemed to understand something under Ye Yuan's lead, and the atmosphere turned strange.

Liu An was merely a martial artist at the Eighth Layer of Yuan Qi Realm. It was not strange that he knew Wan Donghai, but it was strange that Wan Donghai recognized him as a beast hunter at a glance.

This is not to say that Wan Donghai couldn't know beast hunters; on the contrary, he knew quite a few. However, at his level, the beast hunters he knew were at least Liquid Realm martial artists, and among the best. How could Wan Donghai know a nobody like Liu An?

Walls have ears. There had always been rumors that the Drunken Star Pavilion sent people to infiltrate beast hunter teams and kill their companions. But no one ever had evidence, and the Drunken Star Pavilion was indeed powerful and had saved many beast hunters, so the rumors remained just rumors.

Ye Yuan's intentional or unintentional contradictions made Wan Donghai's words seem like a cover-up, forcing everyone to think.

Wan Donghai's heart was now racing with ten thousand grass-mud horses, but he could do nothing to Ye Yuan. Ye Yuan had made such a big scene precisely to make Wan Donghai cautious and afraid to act against him.

"Ha... haha, my worthy nephew misunderstands. This man has some skills and is poisoned with a strange toxin. Any discerning eye would see that he is most likely a beast hunter," Wan Donghai said with a forced laugh.

Ye Yuan had achieved his goal and did not dwell on the matter, leaving the rest to everyone's imagination.

"I see. Lord Wan, please don't mind. I was recently poisoned by someone and nearly died, so I'm a bit paranoid. Perhaps I overthought it; those rumors are naturally nonsense. By the way, we've been chatting for a while and almost forgot to save the man. Look at his eyes—he sees Lord Wan as his savior, oh no, his lifeline." Ye Yuan rambled on before finally getting to the point.

Since being disgusting doesn't cost a life, Ye Yuan didn't mind disgusting Wan Donghai a bit more, as a little interest on behalf of his predecessor.

Wan Donghai was now unable to defend himself, and Ye Yuan didn't give him the chance. Frowning at Liu An on the ground, he ordered, "Someone, take this... friend to the back hall. I will diagnose him..."

Before Wan Donghai could finish, Ye Yuan interrupted: "Lord Wan, look at all the friends here today, all eager to witness your alchemical prowess. You can't disappoint everyone! They say you are the best in the imperial city, but few have actually seen you in action. Hearing is not seeing. Lord Wan, show us some skill to let us juniors learn and observe. Don't you all agree?"

The crowd had come for the excitement and naturally didn't want to disperse without a show, so they chimed in agreement.

Wan Donghai was caught in a dilemma. He glared at Ye Yuan, wishing he could tear him into a thousand pieces. After all, he was a master-level figure—how could he be cornered by a junior in front of so many people?

Wasn't it just detoxification? He would show them he could do it! In this Qin State, what poison could he not cure? Let alone one concocted by a junior like Ye Yuan.

Wan Donghai knew Ye Hang well; this was definitely not Ye Hang's doing. That man always prided himself on being upright and honorable. Even if he wanted to challenge the establishment, he wouldn't send his own son. This must be Ye Yuan's own doing.

A mere playboy—could he really turn the world upside down?

Though slapping a junior's face wasn't something to boast about, since he was delivering himself to be slapped, how could he not oblige?

Wan Donghai waved his sleeve and ordered, "Since everyone is so interested, I'll detoxify this friend in front of you all. Men, lay him down properly."

At this, the onlookers surged in like they'd been injected with stimulants. They were eager to see how Ye Yuan, the notorious super-playboy, dared to challenge the master of Drunken Star Pavilion.

By now, even a fool wouldn't believe that Liu An was someone Ye Yuan had met on the road. The poison was most likely concocted by Ye Yuan himself.

As for the poisoned man, even if he wasn't exactly as rumored, he must have some deep connection with Drunken Star Pavilion.

Many of those present were industry insiders. They had already heard about what happened at Fragrant Medicine Pavilion that morning. Connecting it to the current situation, some clever ones guessed that Ye Yuan was here to turn the tables.

……

Wan Donghai looked at the half-dead Liu An, wishing he could slap him to death. This useless failure had brought nothing but trouble. He hadn't accomplished the task and had instead caused so many problems.

Liu An was now in so much pain he was like a pile of mud, twitching occasionally like a dead fish.

With no choice, Wan Donghai, not wanting to ruin his own reputation, had to treat him.

Wan Donghai flipped Liu An's eyelids, felt his pulse, and unbuttoned his shirt to examine him. After fiddling for a long time, his heart gradually sank, and his brow furrowed tighter.

He couldn't find a single clue!

A grand alchemist unable to diagnose what poison a patient had been afflicted with—this was simply baffling. If Liu An weren't already like a dead fish, Wan Donghai might have suspected he was colluding with Ye Yuan to sabotage him.

"Big brother, what's the matter?" Seeing Wan Donghai's worried expression, Wan Dongyang had a bad feeling.

"Go, bring me the high-grade antidote pill I refined." As if making a great decision, Wan Donghai gritted his teeth.

"What? That high-grade antidote pill was something you painstakingly refined to present to His Highness, and now you want to use it on him?" Wan Dongyang exclaimed in surprise.

"Just go when I tell you to! Why so much nonsense?" Wan Donghai had lost his patience and was becoming irritable.