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The doors swung open, and a procession of people filed in.

Aside from Zhang Xuan and a few other disciples, there were two other individuals, both of whom were beautiful women, who looked nearly identical, likely the wife and daughter of Qiu Xuan.

If Han Li had seen them elsewhere, he would have thought they were twin sisters, both in the flower of their youth, beautiful and delicate, one seeming vulnerable and endearing, the other pure and flawless.

Even by Han Li’s standards, the mother and daughter’s beauty scored over ninety points; they were certainly worth taking care of.

Han Li wasn’t the type to be unable to walk straight at the sight of a woman. He simply glanced at the two women and said, “Brother Qiu passed away peacefully and entrusted me with the care of both you, his wife and daughter, on his deathbed, and of course, these disciples are also within my care.”

“Condolences to you in your time of change.”

Having said his piece, Han Li stepped back, observing the actions of everyone, with his gaze primarily focused on the two women. He was particularly interested in knowing whether Qiu Xuan’s wife would choose to follow her husband in death.

If she chose to commit suicide, Han Li would not stop her. He would simply follow Qiu Xuan’s last wishes. If she didn’t wish to do so, Han Li would take on the reluctant duty of looking after the mother and daughter—cough cough—he most certainly didn’t have intentions of playing the villain Cao Cao.

Zhang Xuan and other disciples knelt behind her, not rising, their expressions filled with sorrow. Their master Qiu Xuan’s death had dealt them no small blow.

In front of the disciples were Qiu Xuan’s wife and daughter. At this moment, Qiu Xuan’s daughter, pale with grief and tears streaming down her face, knelt powerlessly on the ground, her lovely face marred by sorrow and sadness, her slightly open mouth uttering something.

By comparison, the bearing of Qiu Xuan’s wife left Han Li with a newfound respect. Despite her delicate widowhood and husband’s recent passing, her face was ashen and her eyes brimmed with tears, yet she did not seem overly aggrieved, as if a decision had long been made.

She leaned down to whisper to her daughter, murmuring words of comfort, then rose to her feet and addressed Han Li, “Your Excellency, I have a request that is difficult to voice… ”

Han Li nodded and said, “Go ahead.”

Han Li still held respect for the kind of courageous and loyal woman who dared to follow in her husband’s death.

He would not stop her from doing so because of her beauty, nor would he take advantage of her special status to sate his own desires by taking her as a concubine.

“My dear husband, I’m coming to join you.”

With Han Li’s assent, she smiled sadly, then flung herself headlong into a pillar, her head bursting and blood gushing as her body slid lifelessly down.

“No!!”

It was only then that her daughter, recovering from her overwhelming grief, cried out in agony, wanting to stop her, yet unable to do so.

She was stunned, kneeling in place, somewhat at a loss. Her mother had just said she would live on with her—why had things taken such a turn?

She looked at her father’s corpse, then at her mother’s, and swallowing hard, she gathered her resolve to follow her mother’s lead…

“Stop her quickly…” Zhang Xuan and the others exclaimed in horror. Before they could even call “junior sister,” they saw her being restrained.

Han Li’s figure flashed, and he was immediately beside her, his hand clasping her fair wrist to prevent her from seeking death.

“Let go of me!” Qiu Xuan’s daughter struggled incessantly.

Han Li shook his head and sighed, “Your father had anticipated that your mother would seek death, instructing me not to stop her. However, he did not say you should seek death as well.”

He guessed Qiu Xuan’s thoughts. Qiu Xuan did not wish to leave behind a dishonored name after his death. Entrusting his daughter to Han Li’s care meant that even if Han Li took her as a concubine, out of respect for him, she would be well-treated and able to survive well in this harsh world. Otherwise, how could a vulnerable woman survive alone?

“Father…”

Before she knew it, Qiu Yueyao’s face, innocent and tear-streaked, was a picture of pear blossoms bathed in rain, causing Han Li to feel an urge…

Han Li shook his head.

In the following days, Han Li took care of the Qiu Family’s affairs, burying Qiu Xuan and his wife together, casually killing off some of the little flies that had their eyes on the Qiu Family’s inheritance.

As Qiu Yueyao kept the vigil, Han Li opened the space ring Qiu Xuan had left for him and found a wealth of assets.

More than five thousand lower grade spirit stones, several Yellow Rank pills suitable for those in the Pihai Realm, more than a dozen mortal-level cultivation techniques and martial skills, and four Yellow Rank cultivation techniques and martial skills…

There was also a large pile of bottles and jars, which seemed to be elixirs for use by those below the Innate Realm, likely prepared for his several disciples.

Han Li meticulously took stock, setting aside the Spirit Stones, Yellow Rank Pills, and the Yellow Rank weapons used by Zhang Xuan, grouping the rest together.

“Eh? This is…”

Upon spotting this item, a glint flashed in Han Li’s eyes, and he immediately knew what it was—the treasure that had caused Zhang Xuan’s near-fatal injury.

“It’s actually a Pill Formula for improving cultivation talent!”

Han Li was shocked, not knowing how Zhang Xuan had acquired it or how the news had leaked out, attracting two assassins from the Pihai Realm.

Clutching the Pill Formula tightly in his right hand, Han Li’s expression wavered.

Compared to this Pill Formula, the other items in the Space Ring were worthless rubbish!

This was a Pill Formula for improving cultivation talent, how precious could that be? A priceless treasure!

This single Pill Formula, if its value were truly to be measured, could be worth half of the entire Daqian Empire.

The formula was named the Rebirth Pill, and although the materials required were quite rare, they could all be found. One Rebirth Pill could raise a person’s talent by one grade, up to a maximum of five grades.

Grade five talent, that was the potential of a Hollow Realm Master, a genius!

The Daqian Empire’s territory was vast, ruling over hundreds of billions of citizens, but how many Hollow Realm Masters were there?

Not even two hundred!

If a major sect got their hands on this Pill Formula and mass-produced the Rebirth Pills, they could create a production line of grade five talents. With vigorous cultivation, they could have the power to overturn the Daqian Empire within three hundred years.

Though the Daqian Empire was powerful, with several Grandmaster Wanxiang standing guard, and it was even rumored to have hidden True Martial Realm Kings known as Emperor Wu with lifespans of two thousand years.

However, it had many external worries. It was a sworn enemy of the northern Da Jing Empire; to the south, the demon sects’ top faction, the Yinyang Sect, had their eyes on it, constantly infiltrating, with the Hehuan Sect in Leizhou being one of its branches.

To the west lay the Buddhist Sect’s top faction, the Kurong Sect, a branch of the Buddha Domain, which had always wanted to spread its teachings within the Daqian Empire.

The previous Emperor Qian was extremely domineering, launching a campaign within the Daqian Empire to exterminate the Buddhist sects, nearly completely clearing them out of the empire. The few lucky survivors fled in panic to the Kurong Sect’s territory.

Should there be widespread internal strife within the Daqian Empire, Da Jing, the Yinyang Sect, and the Kurong Sect would all take advantage of the chaos to invade.

It could be said that this Pill Formula had the power to alter the major trends of the Xuan Domain. If the Daqian Empire obtained it and focused on development for several centuries, they could leap to become the foremost in the Xuan Domain.

The more precious the Pill Formula, the greater the risks that came with it!

Han Li’s hand holding the formula trembled as he wrestled within his mind.

“Zhang Xuan, oh Zhang Xuan, you’ve truly put me in a difficult position,” Han Li said with a wry smile, making his decision.

The risks of this Pill Formula were too great, so great that once exposed, Han Li would be completely incapable of bearing them.

All he could do was pray that only Zhang Xuan and those two from the Pihai Realm knew about it, and now that all three were dead, as long as he didn’t speak of it himself, no one else should know.

After all, Zhang Xuan obtained the Pill Formula a year ago; if anyone else knew, they would have made their move long before now and wouldn’t have left it in Zhang Xuan’s hands still.

As for where Zhang Xuan acquired the Pill Formula, Han Li did not want to know at all, even if that place might still contain other treasures.

Handing it over was out of the question—no matter the benefits it brought, Han Li wasn’t a fool.

Once handed over, they would silence him first, ensuring that no one else knew of the Pill Formula. Han Li wouldn’t even prepare to leak the slightest hint of information.

He had already decided to return to Lingjun City as soon as possible, to attend the grand birthday celebration, then to focus on developing securely for a decade or two. As long as no one came looking, he would be safe.

Then he could slowly collect the various precious medicinal ingredients listed in the formula, forge the Rebirth Pills, and improve the talents of himself, his concubines, and capable descendants.