Chapter 45: The Madman

Yunyi let out a loud shout and instantly lunged forward like a flash of lightning toward the Adamantite Crocodile.

Although the blinded Adamantite Crocodile could not see Yunyi, it relied on its instincts to continuously evade his onslaught, causing the majority of Yunyi's strikes to land harmlessly upon its dorsal fins.

Realizing that continuing this way was futile, the Adamantite Crocodile turned and charged toward the lake.

"Old Qian, stop it!"

Shouting a command, Yunyi took the initiative, leaping high and successfully landing right atop the crocodile's head.

At that moment, Qian Mo was somewhat dazed. How on earth was he supposed to stop a ten-meter-long Adamantite Crocodile?

"Keep attacking its eyes!"

Hearing Yunyi's commanding shout, Qian Mo snapped back to his senses. He drew his bow to its absolute limit and loosed another arrow straight into the crocodile's bleeding eye.

"Roar!"

Struck by a surge of intense pain, the Adamantite Crocodile instantly flung its jaws wide open, attempting to snap at Yunyi on its back. Yet Yunyi's positioning was fiercely cunning; no matter how frantically the beast thrashed, he clung to it relentlessly.

Enraged, the Adamantite Crocodile kept snapping its massive jaws.

"Now's the time!"

Yunyi's eyes narrowed into a sharp focus. With a single leap, he plunged directly into the crocodile's open mouth, his longsword dancing as spiritual energy surged wildly, driving a lethal thrust straight toward the roof of the beast's upper jaw.

"Unity in One!"

Yunyi roared, pouring every last ounce of his strength into the blow.

It all happened in the blink of an eye. Before Qian Mo could even let out an exclamation of surprise, and before the Adamantite Crocodile could snap its jaws shut, a deafening explosion ripped through the air.

"Well, I'll be!"

Qian Mo stood frozen in shock.

Right before his eyes, under Yunyi's devastating strike, the massive head of the Adamantite Crocodile instantly blew apart.

Crimson blood and white matter bloomed across the sky like fireworks, raining down a gory drizzle that stained a vast expanse of the lake red.

The spectacle was nothing short of magnificent.

Catching sight of a returning figure, Qian Mo snapped out of his daze and dashed over with joyous relief. "Boss, are you alright?"

Yunyi was not feeling particularly well himself. He had not anticipated that the upper jaw of the Adamantite Crocodile would be quite so tough. Staring at the longsword in his hand, which was now reduced to a mere jagged half, he felt like crying without tears.

"It's about time I upgraded to a better weapon!"

With a lingering sigh, Yunyi walked toward Qian Mo.

"Boss, your sword strike back there was utterly magnificent!"

Qian Mo's eyes shone with unadulterated admiration, playing the part of Yunyi's ultimate fanboy to perfection.

"Hahaha! Old Qian, you were the true MVP of this battle. Your archery is getting more and more precise!"

Yunyi threw an arm around Qian Mo's shoulders, laughing heartily.

"Boss, what about this carcass?"

Pointing at the lifeless body of the Adamantite Crocodile on the ground, Qian Mo asked with a puzzled expression.

"Don't worry, I've recorded the entire thing in a memory jade! This fish meat and fish soup are going to be top-tier nutritional supplements!"

As Yunyi spoke, his eyes lit up with excitement. He was quite curious to taste what crocodile meat actually tasted like.

Without further ado, Yunyi prepared to store the giant carcass inside his spatial ring.

"Fellow Daoist! Spare the fish, I beg of you!"

A sudden voice rang out. Yunyi paused for a fraction of a second, though the speed of his hand moving the spatial ring did not slow down in the slightest.

Having safely stored the corpse, Yunyi raised his head to look at the person approaching them.

It was a disheveled figure wearing a faded academy robe, radiating an overpowering aroma of medicinal herbs.

"And you are?"

Seeing the newcomer's peculiar attire, Qian Mo immediately raised his guard.

"Greetings, fellow Daoists. I am also a disciple of the academy. My name is Qin Fengzi."

Qin Fengzi offered a warm smile as he introduced himself to Yunyi and Qian Mo.

"Wait! You're Madman?!"

Hearing the man state his own moniker, Qian Mo dropped his jaw in astonishment.

"Titles, mere titles, hardly worth mentioning!"

As Qin Fengzi humbly waved it off, Qian Mo leaned over to whisper an explanation to Yunyi. "Boss, he's the client who posted this exact commission! People call him Madman!"

"He's also one of the elite core disciples of our academy, and a tier-two alchemist to boot!"

Hearing this revelation from Qian Mo, Yunyi could not help but feel genuinely surprised.

The person standing before him looked even younger than himself, yet he was already a tier-two alchemist. What shocked him even more was that this eccentric was the infamous Madman!

Yunyi had heard quite a few legends about Madman—a fellow who only ever brewed bizarre, unorthodox pills.

While other alchemists practically jumped at any odd job to rake in spirit stones, this guy exclusively accepted commissions for pills with strange and questionable functions, such as aphrodisiac pills and berserk pills.

Rumor had it that a certain academy disciple once took a dislike to Madman and tried to pick a fight with him. Relying solely on a single unorthodox pill, Madman rendered the challenger unconscious in an instant. His punishment? Being force-fed an aphrodisiac pill by Madman and tossed straight into a wild boar pen, with a fate too gruesome to imagine...

"Greetings! I am Yunyi, and this is Qian Mo."

Yunyi greeted the eccentric alchemist with a friendly smile.

"Uhm... would it be possible for you to return my Berserk Adamantite Crocodile to me?"

Qin Fengzi scratched his head awkwardly. To be fair, he had only specified that whoever killed the crocodile could keep the commission, though he hadn't anticipated anyone actually planning to eat his experimental subject.

"I am willing to trade for it!"

Seeing the thoughtful look in Yunyi's eyes, Qin Fengzi quickly added. That Adamantite Crocodile was the byproduct of a specific pill he was developing, and it was crucial for his future research.

"I believe fellow Daoist Qin has misunderstood. We can return the crocodile's corpse to you free of charge!"

With a wave of his hand, Yunyi retrieved the carcass and released it back onto the ground.

"No conditions attached?"

Qin Fengzi looked genuinely taken aback, knowing full well that an Adamantite Crocodile corpse held a hefty monetary value.

"Hahaha, we simply wish to make a friend out of fellow Daoist Qin!"

Yunyi laughed softly. He knew better than anyone that having one more friend was vastly preferable to making another enemy!

"Friends? Alright then!"

At those words, a spark of light ignited in Qin Fengzi's eyes. It had been a very, very long time since anyone had offered to be his friend.

Because of his eccentric hobbies and his obsessive passion for researching bizarre, unorthodox things—particularly pills—he had always been ostracized.

"Fellow Daoist Qin, we must take our leave now!"

Knowing it was time to depart, Yunyi signaled Qian Mo, turned around, and walked toward their Cyan Rock Vulture.

"See you around, Brother Madman!"

Qian Mo shouted over his shoulder before hurrying to catch up with Yunyi.

"Hold on a moment, Brother Yun, Brother Qian!"

Hearing Qin Fengzi call out, Yunyi stopped in his tracks, turned around, and looked at him in confusion.

"Would you two care to visit my research laboratory?"

"Lead the way!"

Meeting Qin Fengzi's clear, earnest gaze, Yunyi readily accepted the invitation. He was genuinely curious to see what the workshop of someone driven mad by alchemy looked like.

Moments later, two Cyan Rock Vultures soared up into the sea of clouds, heading straight toward the destination of Insight Academy.

......

"Master! My brother... he is dead!"

Staring at the shattered soul tablet before him, Wei Xing wore an expression of sheer disbelief.

He simply could not comprehend it. With Cao Xin personally dispatched to handle things, why had his eldest brother still perished? It defied all reason.

"Xing'er, I share your grief over Huzi's death, but that Yunyi has powerful experts supporting him from the shadows!"

The old man standing behind Wei Xing made a quick calculation with his fingers, let out a soft sigh, and continued, "Focus on your cultivation and drop any thoughts of vengeance against him!"

With those parting words, the old man sighed and walked away, unable to pierce through the fog of fate surrounding Yunyi.

"He killed my eldest brother, yet you forbid me from retaliating?! Old man, if you lack the nerve to do what must be done, I will do it myself!"

Wei Xing's face twisted in a ferocious, distorted grimace.

"I refuse to believe that you can withstand the might of the Cao Clan of the Eastern Domain!"

The eyes of Wei Xing were completely bloodshot, burning with unquenchable hatred.

Academy, Courtyard Nine.

"Welcome to my sanctuary of research!"

With a face glowing with excitement, Qin Fengzi pushed open the heavy doors leading to his secret laboratory.