Han Yu’s grip on the jade slip tightened.
The proposal was tempting, but dangerous. He could almost hear the calculations echoing in the back of his mind, weighing risk against benefit.
She must have sensed his hesitation, because the next ssage ca quickly, carrying a sharper hook.
"If that isn’t enough for you, then hear this. I know of a hidden repository. A pill vault, buried within one of the outer complexes we will soon be allowed to enter. Its existence is not widely known. Within it lies not ordinary pills, but rare ones, refined long ago, sealed and preserved."
Han Yu’s breath stilled, his pupils narrowing slightly. A pill repository. His pulse quickened despite himself, and for the first ti since their exchange began, his eyes betrayed a flicker of genuine interest.
His fingers moved across the jade slip with deliberate care.
A hidden pill repository?
That was no small matter. In the world of alchemy, a single ancient repository could contain recipes long thought lost, rare herbs preserved by arcane formations, or even finished pills crafted by experts of eras long past.
For a budding alchemist like him, it was no less than a fortune that could not be bought with re spirit stones.
But Han Yu didn’t answer imdiately.
He held the jade slip loosely in his palm, his gaze lifting toward the barrier where ng Jueyan stood under the faint moonlight. She looked calm, her posture unhurried, as though she were genuinely only here to enjoy the evening air.
Anyone else would have passed her by without a second glance, but Han Yu knew her too well by now. She was dangling bait before him, and she was patient enough to wait for the fish to bite.
He tapped his fingers against the jade slip, composing his reply carefully.
"You expect to believe you would share the location of such a thing?" Han Yu sent back. "If there truly is a repository, why not keep it for yourself?"
The response ca quickly, her words almost carrying a smirk despite being written.
"Because unlike you, I do not have the manpower to raid it safely. The outer complexes are dangerous, and Elder Wei’s people will certainly be after the sa treasures. If I go alone, I risk losing everything.
But with you and your sect’s group, I can leverage the chaos. It’s a fair exchange. You get the lion’s share of whatever alchemical knowledge lies within, and I get an ally who won’t stab in the back... for now."
Han Yu frowned, though his heart beat faster at her words.
She wasn’t wrong. He might not trust her completely, but there was a strange pragmatism in her proposal. He knew she wouldn’t make an offer unless she truly had sothing to gain and unless she genuinely had sothing to give.
ng Jueyan was a snake, yes, but she wasn’t the type to bluff with empty hands.
Still, he needed to test her.
"How do I know you aren’t leading into one of Mist Eye Sect’s traps?" Han Yu wrote.
This ti, there was a pause before the jade slip glowed again.
"You don’t. But think of it this way, if it were a trap, why would I be contacting you here, now, in secret, rather than parading you openly before my rivals? You know Elder Wei’s faction would prefer to see crushed rather than spend ti setting snares for you."
"Besides, we’re both pledged to Elder Yi. I would not sabotage that for sothing like this." ng Jueyan added to cent the fact.
Han Yu let out a slow breath.
That, too, was a valid point. She was walking on thin ice within her own sect’s politics. Aligning with him was dangerous, but perhaps, for her, the potential rewards outweighed the risks.
"What exactly do you know about this repository?" he finally asked.
ng Jueyan’s reply ca swiftly.
"It was recorded in one of the sect’s older scrolls, handed down in my faction. According to the record, during ancient tis, an alchemist of considerable renown hid away his life’s work within a secret place. We only knew what the place looked like from the sketch in the records but didn’t know where it was.
But now that the tomb has appeared, we matched it with the complexs and we know its in the tomb’s outer complexes. There are not just herbs, but experintal pills, prototypes, and theoretical notes in there.
The location is masked by an obscure formation, difficult to detect unless one has the right key. And my faction possesses part of that key."
Han Yu’s grip tightened on the jade slip.
’An ancient alchemist’s life’s work?’
That was exactly the kind of opportunity a rising alchemist like him dread of stumbling upon. Even fragnts of theory could leapfrog his skills forward by years.
But his rational mind pushed against the temptation. He couldn’t throw caution to the wind simply because ng dangled glittering promises before him.
"And you just want help in sabotaging?" he asked to be sure.
Her answer was succinct.
"Indeed. If I provide the key and guidance, you’ll help ensure Elder Wei’s lackeys don’t get there first. Beyond that, I expect nothing more than a share of what we recover."
Han Yu’s eyes flickered with thought. On the surface, the deal seed straightforward, yet he knew nothing was ever simple with ng Jueyan. Still, refusing outright might an losing a chance he would regret forever.
He sent one last ssage.
"I’ll consider it. If what you say is true, then perhaps we can cooperate. But if I sense even the slightest trick, I won’t hesitate to cut ties... and more."
Across the barrier, ng Jueyan’s lips curled into a faint smile as she read the words. Her jade slip glowed one final ti.
"Good. I wouldn’t expect anything less from you, Han Yu."
With that, she slipped away into the darkness, her presence lting into the southern woods as though she had never been there.
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