Roaring Dragon-Chapter 23: I Have a Brilliant Plan

The scattered conversation from the outer courtyard drifted into the bathhouse.

Lin Wanyi, left hand gripping the Zhenglun Sword, leaned against the bath barrel. Her eyelashes trembled, and then she slowly opened her eyes, dazed and confused.

Why did I fall asleep?

Was the detoxification that draining?

She vaguely recalled dreaming — Xie Jinhuan had been standing in the room, and she... was talking nonsense like someone possessed, even somehow letting him grope her...

Why would I dream about something like that?!

Was it really on my mind during the day, so it haunted me at night...

Full of doubts, Lin Wanyi took a few moments to gather herself, her consciousness gradually returning to clarity.

The noises that had startled her awake became clearer:

"My aunt is in that room? I'll go check..."

"Uh..."

?!

When did Xie Jinhuan come back?!

And why is Zisu here too?!

Looking down and realizing she was stark naked, soaking in the bath, Lin Wanyi panicked — it felt like waking up from fainting only to find herself surrounded by every nosy relative in the clan.

Realizing the situation, she hurriedly called out, scrambling to dress, her face flushing crimson.

Halfway through dressing, she overheard the casual conversation from outside:

"Wow! Meiqiu~ Come here, come here!"

"Goo~"

"So pretty! This thing must weigh six or seven jin. Probably too big for one stew pot!"

"Goo-gee?!"

...

Lin Wanyi’s mind went blank.

After hastily putting on her dress, she forced herself to adopt her usual composed demeanor, gritting her teeth as she opened the door.

Creak—

Outside in the courtyard, Lin Zisu was cuddling Meiqiu, chatting with Xie Jinhuan. Hearing the door open, she turned her head and saw her aunt — skin faintly pink and moist, looking unusually radiant — her expression grew subtly suspicious:

"Auntie, you're done bathing?"

"Mm. Xie Jinhuan went out earlier on official business, so I stayed to rest and freshen up."

Lin Wanyi had no idea how she ended up falling asleep — her heart still full of embarrassment — and quickly changed the subject:

"Zisu, how's your progress refining the Dragon Blood Pill?"

Hearing "refining pills," especially something so important, Lin Zisu immediately perked up. She hugged Meiqiu and skipped over:

"The Dragon Blood Pill is too conservative! It needs a month of soaking and eating to see results — total waste of time. I'm working on a new pill, the ‘Vigorous Dragon Pill’ — one dose, immediate effects, ten times stronger than Dragon Blood Pill!"

"What?!"

Xie Jinhuan, about to fetch chairs for them to sit, froze mid-step, spinning around:

"Seriously?!"

"Don't listen to her nonsense," Lin Wanyi quickly grabbed her troublemaking niece and lectured:

"All medicine has its poison. Dragon Blood Pill has been refined and perfected over generations.

Even a tiny increase in dosage could ruin someone's foundation.

You're talking about ten times the effect with a single dose — you'd dare refine it, and he'd dare take it?"

Why wouldn’t I dare?

Xie Jinhuan was °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° already being hunted all over the city.

If he could boost his cultivation by ten times instantly, he'd either ascend to immortality or at least run away with a ghost girl. Crisis solved!

Of course, "ten times the effect" could also mean "drop dead on the spot"...

Standing by the door, Jia Zheng interjected, worried:

"Miss has outstanding talent in alchemy, but her skills are still immature.

Last time, she made something called ‘Dao Surge Pill,’ claiming it would double someone's power. She even got Vice Principal Li Jing to test it."

"And?"

Xie Jinhuan had heard of Li Jing — vice headmaster of Danyang Academy, a genuine first-rank swordmaster. His eyes widened:

"That powerful?"

Jia Zheng sighed:

"Powerful, yes. But the pill scrambled his mind.

Li Jing went crazy, laughing wildly, screaming 'Mu old dog, die!' and chased after Master Mu with his sword all over the academy.

If not for Master Mu’s higher cultivation slapping him unconscious, he might have destroyed the whole school..."

Lin Zisu, proud of her achievements, explained seriously:

"I think Li Jing always wanted to cut Master Mu. The pill was just an excuse."

"And what about Lord Tie Fengzhang?"

Lin Wanyi, sighing, pushed her down into a chair:

"Lord Tie was stressed and irritable from work.

The academy asked you to prescribe something to ease his liver.

You gave him ‘Ever-Smile Powder.’

He ended up grinning idiotically for three days straight — the great iron-faced executioner of the Prince's army became 'Big Dummy Zhang'..."

Still rubbing Meiqiu, Lin Zisu defended herself:

"He never smiled all year long. His liver had to be stagnant! And besides, the medicine worked, didn’t it?"

Neither could argue against that.

If the side effects weren’t outrageous, she would’ve been called 'Deadly Poison Milk' instead of 'Poison-Handed Medicine Girl.'

Zisu’s philosophy of alchemy was simple: fix the problem no matter the consequences — if you survived the cure, you were blessed.

Despite knowing this girl was dangerous, Xie Jinhuan was desperate enough to ask:

"About that Vigorous Dragon Pill — any side effects?"

Scooting her stool closer, Lin Zisu explained excitedly:

"Dragon Blood Pill, Solid Vein Pill, even Demon Transformation Pills — they all strengthen the body in similar ways.

The difference lies in ingredients and dosage.

"The Dragon Blood Pill is conservative — safe but limited.

"Meanwhile, demonic cultivators — why are they half a realm stronger than others?

Because they push everything to the extreme — no restraint, no concern for side effects!"

Xie Jinhuan thought aloud:

"So demonic cultivators just take bigger risks?"

"Exactly."

Lin Zisu continued like a little professor:

"Whether it's Daoists, warriors, monks — or demonic cultists — they all start from the same materials: herbs and minerals of this world.

The fundamental difference is how much risk they tolerate.

"Normal cultivators worry about damaging their minds, twisting their bodies, leaving permanent hidden wounds.

Demonic cultivators don’t care.

Demon Transformation Pills force the body to mutate — succeed and you gain beast-like power, fail and you turn into a monster."

Hearing all this, Xie Jinhuan nodded thoughtfully:

"So your 'Vigorous Dragon Pill' is basically a Demon Transformation Pill?"

Lin Zisu quickly shook her head:

"Of course not!"

"Good..."

"My formula is even more extreme!"

"...?"

So basically an upgraded Demon Transformation Pill?!

Xie Jinhuan inhaled deeply. Given his current desperate situation, he cautiously asked:

"So what's the cost?"

Lin Wanyi, combing her still-wet hair with a wooden comb, answered calmly:

"If it fails, you'll either explode into dust or mutate into a monster.

At your current level, you'd probably end up as a first- or second-rank demon."

Jia Zheng nodded gravely:

"Based on Miss’s track record, it fails ten times out of ten."

Lin Zisu protested:

"That's because the academy’s ingredients are too ordinary!

With better materials, success is guaranteed!"

"You never said that before," Lin Wanyi scolded.

"Every time you swore it was safe."

"I had to swear! Otherwise, the academy wouldn’t give me rare herbs!"

Hearing this, Lin Zisu started coaxing Xie Jinhuan:

"Young Master Xie, if you could sneak me a single Jiazi Lotus — the one nurtured at Zihui Mountain for over six hundred years —

I could refine a pill with guaranteed success! Ten times effect, immediate breakthrough!"

"..."

Xie Jinhuan desperately needed a miracle to survive.

But committing suicide didn’t sound smart either.

One wrong move and he could turn green, grow fangs, and spend the rest of his life marrying monster girls.

Still, that "Dao Surge Pill" that caused uncontrollable rampage?

Might come in handy if the whole world turned against him...

Thinking hard, he asked:

"Miss Zisu, how much silver for a Dao Surge Pill?"

Blinking innocently, Lin Zisu said:

"Auntie won’t let me sell them. She’s afraid it’ll cause chaos in the martial world.

But if you really want one..."

Seeing Xie Jinhuan seriously considering it, Lin Wanyi hurriedly dragged Zisu to her feet:

"Don’t listen to her! If something happens, who will take responsibility?

It’s getting late. I’ll prepare your Dragon Blood Pill instead. Let’s go."

Lin Zisu pouted but got up, though before leaving, she sneakily held up one finger behind her back...