Initially, Ancestor had said that everything found in the ice cave belonged to her.

While clan members could practice inside, they had to exchange spirit stones with Qin Ruqing for any outputs from the cave.

And when it came to outputs from the ice cave, let alone ten-thousand-year Frigid Xuan ice, which was excellent for cultivation, those willing to pay would buy a piece as a meditation aid.

Thus, Qin Ruqing was now solidly rich.

As Qin Ruqing spoke stingily, Luwei had already understood her meaning.

She fell silent for a moment, then put away the small piece of Xuan ice.

The Xuan ice froze her hand; she had to layer it with spiritual energy to avoid frostbite, yet her heart burned with warmth.

Qirong, on the other hand, accepted it directly.

Having tagged along with Qingqing since childhood, he wasn’t as polite with her.

With part of the main material for her spirit weapon found, Qin Ruqing was satisfied.

After inspecting the terrain inside the ice cave and the location of the Qin family’s formations using her magical eye, she turned and headed back to the mansion.

The day passed peacefully, but on the following evening, Qin Deming approached Qin Ruqing with a serious expression and said right away:

“Zhang Li is dead!”

…

The Zhang family was now in turmoil.

Originally, everything seemed fine.

Zhang Li had been brought back and carefully treated by an alchemist with medicine.

Even the alchemists in the clan gave similar diagnoses, stating that the Qin family had used excellent healing elixirs, and the Third Elder’s body was rapidly recovering.

His current unconsciousness was attributed to previous heavy blood loss and the need for rest.

The Second Elder even praised Zhang Xiao, saying, “The Qin family wasn’t lying this time. According to our alchemists, they indeed used top-notch healing elixirs. It seems they were concerned about the Third Elder’s serious injuries… They truly fear our Zhang family from the bottom of their hearts!”

Zhang Xiao was pleased to hear this but still had some concerns.

He asked, “What about Tang Keqing? Has he seen the Third Elder too?”

The Second Elder replied, “Tang Keqing went with the envoy to fetch the Third Elder. I believe he has also examined him.”

Zhang Xiao said, “Bring the envoy here. I want to hear what Tang Keqing has to say.”

When the envoy arrived, he relayed Tang Keqing’s words, which were similar to those of the other alchemists in the clan, except he omitted the phrase “he won’t die in the short term.”

This omission could clearly provoke the clan’s patriarch, and Tang Keqing might be implicated if he said it.

Besides, so many alchemists had examined the Third Elder and confirmed he was fine.

Tang Keqing probably thought his statement wasn’t that important.

Finally relieved, Zhang Xiao ordered people to take good care of the Third Elder and left.

However, the next evening, the guards reported a mishap: the Third Elder… had an accident.

He had been recovering well, with his vitality gradually returning.

Signs of awakening had appeared.

But somehow, his blood started boiling inside him, causing his meridians to rupture one by one.

His condition deteriorated rapidly, as if his body had been struck by some force.

When Zhang Xiao arrived and saw his son bleeding from every orifice, he exclaimed, “Quick, fetch all the alchemists and Tang Keqing!”

Soon, a group gathered in the room.

Zhang Xiao, with a stern face, ordered them to check the pulse.

But things quickly became chaotic.

With so many people, the diagnoses were inconsistent.

Some said it was an old injury that had suddenly flared up, but couldn’t explain why.

Some suggested poisoning but couldn’t identify the toxin.

One even insisted the problem lay with the healing elixir the Qin family had given earlier—a suspicion that matched Zhang Xiao’s own thoughts.

He called for an explanation: What was wrong with the elixir and how could it be countered?

The alchemist had no answer.

Zhang Xiao knew he was lying.

He struck the alchemist on the head, and the promising young man fell silently to the ground.

Silence filled the room.

Zhang Xiao then turned to Tang Keqing, who was dressed in black robes.

Hidden beneath his cloak, no one could discern his expression.

Understanding Whether He Feared or Not

It was evident from his natural actions as he approached Zhang Li to diagnose him.

After a brief pulse check and examining Zhang Li’s eyes and mouth, noticing an abnormal flush on his tongue, the eyes beneath the black robe moved slightly.

“How is he?” Zhang Xiao asked anxiously.

The black-robed figure replied, “He hasn’t died yet.”

Everyone else: … He hasn’t died yet, so you’re really not afraid of death.

Zhang Xiao’s breath quickened, his anger about to erupt, but the black-robed figure continued, “Let me apply a set of acupuncture techniques on him.”

Zhang Xiao’s breath caught in his throat.

After a moment, he squeezed out through gritted teeth, “Do it.”

The black-robed figure indeed had some skill.

With the acupuncture treatment, Zhang Li’s boiling blood and erratic vital energy gradually stabilized.

Zhang Xiao’s eyes lit up with joy. “Elder Tang, is he saved?” He addressed him as Elder Tang again in his relief.

But the black-robed figure shook his head. “He’s beyond saving. My acupuncture can only temporarily clear his consciousness.”

“You…” Zhang Xiao was furious and wanted to strike him down on the spot.

However, faint sounds gradually emanated from the bed, indicating that the acupuncture was indeed working? Zhang Xiao hurried to Zhang Li’s side, grasping his son’s hand. “Son, who harmed you? Was it the Qin family? Was it?”

Whether it was the sound of his father’s voice or the mention of the Qin family, Zhang Li slowly opened his eyes.

Zhang Xiao was overjoyed. “Son, who did this to you?”

Zhang Li’s mouth opened slowly, as if about to say something.

Everyone watched eagerly, except the black-robed alchemist who faintly sensed something stirring inside Zhang Li.

There was another layer of skill! This was an incredibly dangerous defense!

Since that’s the case…

The fingers concealed in the wide sleeves of the black robe moved slightly, loosening the silver needle inserted in Zhang Li’s most vital acupuncture point.

But the acupuncture, once undone, was no longer effective.

Zhang Li passed away quietly, unable to carry on.

At that moment, before his death, Zhang Li wanted to say one last thing: “Little kid.”

“My son!”

Zhang Xiao was filled with rage.

He grabbed the black-robed alchemist by the collar. “What happened? He woke up, didn’t he? Did you do something!?”

The black-robed figure’s life hung by a thread.

A hoarse voice came from beneath the mask, surprisingly steady. “Sir, the Third Elder was beyond saving. My acupuncture only brought him back to consciousness briefly. What you should be investigating now is not who administered the medicine to the Third Elder.”

“Administered medicine?” Zhang Xiao, still retaining his composure, seized upon these two words keenly.

He released the black robe and demanded sternly, “Explain.”

The black-robed figure lowered his head. “The Third Elder wasn’t poisoned this time. He… took the wrong medicine…”

…

“Now chaos reigns within the Zhang clan. They’re not just questioning our Qin family; I hear they’re even suspecting their own people. Alchemists are being accused left and right…” Qin Deming’s voice held a mix of seriousness, surprise, and irony.

He had thought their Qin family would bear the blame—well, maybe not exactly bear the blame—but now they were even suspecting their own people.

What a mess.

“Daughter, did you do something again?” Qin Deming’s immediate suspicion fell on his own daughter’s actions.

Qin Ruqing frowned upon hearing this. “Father, I…”

“What I did or didn’t do, you know very well, and it’s really none of my concern.”

“Is the internal conflict within your Zhang family so severe? This situation doesn’t seem to primarily implicate our Qin family. They’re even turning against each other…”

Qin Ruqing had known since Zhang Li’s death that any hope of reconciliation between the Qin and Zhang families had vanished.

The Qin family had prepared for this, with the Ancestor having sequestered herself days ago to hasten the refinement of the Heart of Frigid Ice, restoring her cultivation.

But now, they were fighting among themselves.

Rubbing her chin, Qin Ruqing pondered, “There must have been some unforeseen development, but it seems to be leaning in favor of our Qin family.”

“The chaos within the Zhang clan will buy us more time.”

“Dad, closely monitor the Zhang family’s movements during this period. Activate our clan’s defensive array immediately, at the highest level, regardless of the cost of spirit stones!”

After Qin Deming left, Qin Ruqing found it hard to calm her mind.

Unable to focus on cultivation and sleepless, she decided to go to the back mountain.

This peak was the highest in Qin territory, overlooking the Qin medicinal garden below and offering a distant view of the recluse’s dwelling.

Since the meeting between the Qin and Zhang families, the Ancestor had closed himself off, and by Qin Ruqing’s estimation, she should be emerging soon.

She had already refined half of the Heart of Frigid Ice, so it wouldn’t take much longer.

With a blade of grass in her mouth, Qin Ruqing lay back on the peak of the mountain.

It was evening, the sun setting behind the clouds, casting a faint layer of rosy purple over the world.

The world seemed peaceful and tranquil.

The grass in Qin Ruqing’s mouth swayed as a breeze passed.

Yes, even the grass knew that storms were brewing. Where was the peace and tranquility?

Qin Ruqing suddenly sat up, contemplating.

She took something out of her storage pouch—it looked like a jade pendant, white jade with nothing particularly special about it, except for a vivid green core that swayed within, hinting at the hues of the outside world.

This detail made the otherwise ordinary pendant extraordinary.

Looking at the pendant, Qin Ruqing burst into laughter. “You know what this is? It’s jade marrow!”

Remembering the clump she had taken while capturing the Heart of Frigid Ice and later dropping into it to lure the Heart of Frigid Ice.

Qin Ruqing, being a stingy little girl, had remembered the “waste” of jade marrow and decided that even if she licked it, she would clean it up.

Qin Ruqing was not kidding.

Later, she really asked the old ancestor for the clump.

The ancestor was speechless at the time.

This girl should now be the richest person in the Qin family, and yet she was still thinking about that drop of jade marrow.

After being silent for a while, She eventually returned the clump to Qin Ruqing.

However, Qin Ruqing’s wish to lick the jade marrow clean was never fulfilled because the jade marrow unexpectedly fused with the perennial ice heart.

The Ancestor was quite astonished by this phenomenon for a while. “Logically, jade marrow and the thousand-year ice heart shouldn’t merge, but here they are combined. It seems you kept the ice heart locked inside for a few days, resulting in this unique item. This is truly unprecedented; it’s unlikely there exists another like it in the world.”

Truly unique indeed.

Jade marrow is rare, thousand-year ice hearts are rare, and by chance, they combined with an adult ice heart, resulting in this unique creation.

Afterward, Qin Ruqing cut out the fused jade marrow from the sphere and polished it into the pendant she now held.

Today, Qin Ruqing held the jade pendant on a black string, letting it catch the light.

Inside, the vibrant green shimmered, seeming almost sentient.

Her mood lifted upon seeing it.

Truly unique—yes, Qin Ruqing was worthy of possessing such a rare item.

She decided to wear the pendant around her neck from now on, resolving to keep it close.

It seemed that wearing the pendant had calmed her mind.

Qin Ruqing’s thoughts began to race again.

Yes, once the ancestor emerged, she would go and confront the Zhang family.

It would be ideal to swallow them up.

After that, she would find a way to obtain the Ice-Fire Dual Grass for the ancestor’s complete recovery, and then seize an opportunity to refine a pill.

By then, the Qin family would truly become a prestigious clan.

Hehehe…