The moment the dark-red pill entered his stomach, a scorching medicinal energy suddenly erupted and surged violently through his body.
Li Jian’s expression changed.
’Damn bitch...! You call this lighter than yesterday?’
The heat was intense, but it was not as chaotic as the previous experimental pill.
Still, the aggressive energy quickly rushed into his meridians, causing a wave of sharp pain to spread through his limbs and chest.
His face instantly turned pale.
A muffled groan escaped from his throat as he staggered half a step back and pressed a hand against his abdomen.
Zheng Qingyao’s purple eyes remained calm as she observed him.
Her expression carried the focused look of an alchemist examining the results of her experiment rather than any concern for his well-being.
"Describe the sensation," she ordered coldly.
Li Jian clenched his teeth, forcing himself to endure the burning pain while speaking in a strained voice.
"The medicinal energy is... overbearing. It is rushing through the meridians... there is a burning sensation... and some conflict near the dantian..."
Hearing all of these, Zheng Qingyao’s eyes flickered slightly.
She lifted one hand and lightly formed a seal, sending a faint thread of spiritual sense into his body to examine the situation more carefully.
After a few moments, she withdrew her spiritual sense and gave a small nod, as if confirming something.
"The conflict is indeed weaker than the previous version," she muttered to herself.
"But the aggressive nature is still too strong for lower-level cultivators..."
While she was analyzing the results, Li Jian silently endured the pain.
At the same time, a familiar voice suddenly echoed in his mind.
[Ding!]
[Detected: Harm caused by Zheng Qingya.]
[Favor Debt from Zheng Qingya: 50 → 130]
Li Jian’s eyes lit up slightly despite the pain.
’Eighty points... Not bad at all.’
He lowered his head slightly, hiding the flicker of excitement in his gaze, while cold sweat continued to form on his forehead from the medicinal backlash.
Zheng Qingyao continued observing him for a while longer, her purple eyes narrowing slightly as she carefully noted every reaction.
Only after the most violent surge of medicinal energy had passed did she finally speak again.
"The improved formula is more stable than the last one, but the burden on the meridians is still too heavy for outer disciples."
She spoke more to herself than to him.
"I will need to adjust the ratio of the Fireheart Grass again."
She then looked at Li Jian and said coldly,
"You, sit down and regulate your breathing. Do not move around carelessly until the medicinal energy settles."
Li Jian obediently sat down cross-legged on the floor, pretending to focus entirely on suppressing the chaotic energy inside his body.
In reality, a large part of his attention was still on the system panel floating in his mind.
[Zheng Qingyao Current Favor Debt: 130 points.]
Still not enough for a that request... but much better than before.
He silently calculated while enduring the lingering burning sensation.
’If I request another recovery pill now, it should only cost around 50 points again. That would leave me with 80 points.’
Then the next experiment...
A faint, almost undetectable smile tugged at the corner of his lips.
Zheng Qingyao, completely unaware of his thoughts, had already turned back toward the table and begun recording something on a jade slip with a focused expression.
To her, Li Jian was simply a useful and relatively durable test subject... nothing more.
_
_
_
After a while, she put down the jade slip and glanced at him again.
"How do you feel now?"
Li Jian opened his eyes and answered in a slightly weak voice,
"The burning sensation has lessened... but my meridians are still sore and unstable, Senior Sister."
Zheng Qingyao frowned lightly, as if this result was within her expectations yet still somewhat unsatisfactory.
"Hmph. At least you didn’t cough up blood this time."
Zheng Qingyao had her back turned to him as she organized several jade bottles on the table.
The refined white-and-purple robe she wore hugged her figure quite well.
As she leaned forward slightly to reach for something, the soft fabric outlined the full, rounded curve of her plump rear.
The high slit of her skirt shifted with the movement, further emphasizing the graceful yet alluring shape of that peach-like backside.
Li Jian’s gaze lowered for a brief moment.
Even while cold sweat continued to form on his forehead from the medicinal backlash, his eyes inevitably followed the gentle sway of that curve.
He gritted his teeth slightly, both from the lingering pain and from the dark thoughts rising in his heart.
’Keep enduring, Li Jian...’
’Once I get my hands on that peach, I will make sure to pay it back a hundredfold.’
His expression remained weak and respectful on the surface, but deep within his eyes, a cold and greedy light quietly flickered.
Zheng Qingyao, completely unaware of the gaze behind her, finished arranging the bottles and turned back around with her usual cold expression.
Just then, she picked up another small jade bottle and weighed it in her hand for a moment before speaking coldly,
"Since your body is still under the influence of the previous pill, this is a good opportunity. There is one more variation I want to test while the medicinal energy has not fully settled."
She walked toward him and tossed the jade bottle over.
"Swallow it."
Li Jian caught the bottle, his heart skipping slightly.
’Another one... so soon?’
He opened it and saw a darker, almost black-red pill inside.
The medicinal scent coming from it was noticeably sharper and more oppressive than the previous one.
After hesitating for a moment, Li Jian gritted his teeth, tilted his head back, and swallowed it.
The moment the pill entered his stomach—
Boom!
A violent surge of scorching energy exploded inside his body like a dormant volcano erupting all at once.
The previously somewhat stabilized medicinal energy was instantly thrown into complete chaos.
Li Jian’s face turned deathly pale.
His body trembled violently as a mouthful of blood forced its way up his throat and spilled from the corner of his lips.
The pain this time was several times more intense than before.
His meridians felt as if they were being forcibly torn apart from the inside.
He collapsed forward slightly, supporting himself with one hand against the floor, cold sweat pouring down his face.
Zheng Qingyao’s eyes lit up with interest rather than concern as she quickly extended her spiritual sense to examine the changes inside his body.
"Oh? The reaction is much stronger than expected..." she muttered, her tone carrying a rare trace of excitement. "The conflicting properties were amplified instead of neutralized. Interesting."
While she was focused on analyzing the results, a series of notifications violently rang out in Li Jian’s mind.
[Ding!]
[Detected: Severe harm caused by Zheng Qingya.]
[Favor Debt from Zheng Qingya: 130 → 310]