Strongest Scammer: Scamming The World, One Death At A Time-Chapter 685: The Desperate Patriarch

Han Yu walked a few steps, thinking deeply.

"This scroll is old," he said. "And it is incomplete in places. The formation diagrams are blurred, and some steps are described vaguely. This means it has either been copied poorly, or deliberately damaged."

"That is true," the Patriarch admitted. "We found it in a ruin many years ago. Several parts were already damaged. We spent decades repairing what we could, but we are not of your sect. Some things we simply could not restore."

Han Yu looked at him. "And yet you still prepared the materials."

"Yes."

"What materials have you gathered?" Han Yu asked.

The Patriarch listed them one by one. Each name made Han Yu’s brows twitch slightly.

Soul-binding blood crystal.

Heart marrow of a Nascent Soul realm beast.

Seven Yin Moon Grass.

Three strands of Heaven-sundered bone thread.

And finally, a basin of living blood refined through secret methods.

Han Yu could already tell how terrifying the cost was.

"You were not lying when you said you paid dearly," Han Yu said.

The Patriarch smiled bitterly. "Half my clan’s hidden wealth is already gone."

Han Yu nodded. "Then answer me this. Why not bring this to my sect directly. Even if you fear their greed, at least your life would be more secure."

The Patriarch looked into Han Yu’s eyes. "Because sects think in terms of profit and power. You think in terms of choice. I am betting not on your sect, but on you." 𝒻𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝘯𝘰𝑣ℯ𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝘮

Han Yu was silent for a long time.

Finally he spoke. "You are either very wise, or very desperate."

The Patriarch smiled. "I am both."

Han Yu stood up. "I will not promise you success. But I will promise you this. I will not cheat you, and I will not sell you to my sect unless you force my hand."

The Patriarch slowly stood up with effort and bowed deeply. "That is enough for me."

Han Yu looked at Zhushen. "If you take the second pill, your life will never be simple again. You will carry not only your own fate, but his."

Zhushen met his gaze. "If I cannot carry my father’s fate, then I am not worthy of being his son."

Han Yu finally nodded.

"Prepare everything," he said. "From this moment on, your lives are tied to the success of a single refinement."

Han Yu did not waste time with polite words.

"What other reference documents do you have?" he asked the Patriarch. "Not just this scroll. Anything related to soul repair, blood refinement, cursed pills, dual-linked pills, or Nascent Soul injuries."

The Patriarch nodded. "We gathered everything even remotely connected. Some are ancient copies. Some are fragments. Some are merely notes from wandering alchemists. All of them are stored in the clan’s true library."

Han Yu turned slightly. "And the refinement chamber?"

"It is already prepared," the Patriarch replied. "The formations have been tested three times. The assisting alchemists are also ready. They have begun practicing the steps that do not require Moon Blood Qi."

"Good," Han Yu said. "I will not touch the furnace until I am fully certain of the method."

The Patriarch gestured to Zhushen. "Take him."

Zhushen bowed and led Han Yu away.

They did not go toward the surface. Instead, they passed behind the main hall, through a narrow stone corridor, and down a long spiral staircase carved directly into the bedrock beneath the clan.

The air grew colder and drier as they descended.

"This is the real foundation of the Fatui Clan," Zhushen said quietly. "Everything above is replaceable. This is not."

Han Yu could already feel it.

Layers of formations pressed against his spirit sense, hiding, protecting, confusing, and sealing. Some were for defense. Some were for concealment. Some were for destruction. He recognized a few, but most were unfamiliar, which only confirmed how much wealth and effort had been poured into this place.

At the bottom of the stairs, a wide stone door opened silently.

Beyond it was a hall so large that Han Yu stopped for a moment.

The ceiling was high and arched. Rows upon rows of shelves stretched into the distance, filled with jade slips, scrolls, books bound in leather, metal plates engraved with text, and even beast skins etched with runes. Soft light came from dozens of spirit lamps set into the walls, making the entire place glow gently.

"This hall alone is larger than your entire outer courtyard," Han Yu said.

Zhushen nodded. "Nearly a hundred shelves. Each one reinforced with preservation formations. Even fire and water will not easily damage them."

At the very center of the hall stood a massive stone table, wide enough for several people to work around. On it were already piled dozens upon dozens of books, scrolls, and slips.

"These are the ones related to your task," Zhushen said. "Everything we could find that might help reconstruct the method."

Han Yu stepped forward and saw just how many there were.

Nearly a hundred texts lay there.

Some were thin. Some were thick. Some were cracked with age. Some were clearly recent copies. There were records of herbs, records of beast materials, records of soul injuries, records of cursed pills, and records of blood refinement techniques.

But as he began skimming through them, one thing became clear.

None of them mentioned the Soul Blood Mending Cursed Pill directly.

"These are all fragments," Han Yu said. "You rebuilt the method by comparing hundreds of incomplete sources."

"Yes," Zhushen replied. "It took decades."

Han Yu nodded. "I believe you."

Then he sat down.

From that moment on, the outside world stopped existing for him.

Day after day, Han Yu read.

He read about herbs that could bind the soul.

He read about beast marrows that could nourish Nascent Souls.

He read about pills that could transfer cultivation.

He read about cursed pills that repaired one thing while destroying another.

He read about ancient blood sect techniques that no longer existed in his own sect.

Some of the knowledge shocked him.