Chapter 2977 — Zhao Qiwu Presents His Treasures

"Yes, I feel the same. Old Tan really does seem like a different person from the one in the legends—he's been almost too good to us!" Zhao Qilei nodded. "But the way he made Qibing and the Dark Night Palace elder kneel and confess their faults, and then broke off one of Qibing's arms—from that, he's clearly a very domineering man. Now I'm a little conflicted!"

"Never mind, those things are all quite distant from us. Palace Master Bing and Young Master Tan are both too far removed from our world. Let's think instead about how we can help Leader Wei Zhao recover!" Yu Bing waved a hand, declining to discuss such far-off matters.

"First, we find a way to repair the leader's meridians and dantian, then we search for two Qi-Gathering Pills to help him break through to the Heaven Rank. That way, the poison's restriction will be solved as well." Zhao Qilei said, "It's easy to say, but a thousand times harder to do! For one thing, two Qi-Gathering Pills won't be easy to find!"

"Hm? Young Master Tan, I don't have any Qi-Gathering Pills, but I do have a few Mid-Grade Qi-Gathering Pills. Do you think Leader Wei Zhao could use them?" Zhao Qiwu had heard the news of Wei Zhao's crippling earlier and in his worry had never gotten the chance to tell Zhao Qilei the good news about the pills he had saved up. Now that Qi-Gathering Pills had come up, he quickly asked.

"Mid-Grade Qi-Gathering Pills? What are those?" Zhao Qilei asked, taken aback.

"They're a kind of pill whose effects rank below Qi-Gathering Pills. Though their potency doesn't match Qi-Gathering Pills, they can still raise one's strength, and they lack that flaw of Qi-Gathering Pills where once you take them, you can never cultivate again." Zhao Qiwu said, "This time I was meaning to present them to you anyway, Young Master Tan, but because I was worried about Leader Wei Zhao, I never had the chance to mention it."

As he spoke, Zhao Qiwu brought out a delicate wooden box from a pouch at his waist, as if presenting a treasure, and set it before Zhao Qilei. "Young Master Tan, inside are one Low-Grade Qi-Gathering Pill and three Mid-Grade Qi-Gathering Pills!"

"Oh? These three Mid-Grade Qi-Gathering Pills—can they match two Qi-Gathering Pills?" Zhao Qilei asked hurriedly. "But why haven't you taken them? Weren't you saying you'd already taken one and could attempt a breakthrough to the Heaven Rank?"

"If I had taken them, I definitely could attempt the Heaven Rank!" Zhao Qiwu said. "But I didn't. I'm not a man of great ambitions—if you're happy, Young Master Tan, then I'm happy, so I kept them, planning to give them to you. Even so, I'm about to break through to the Earth Rank myself. This Low-Grade Qi-Gathering Pill can help you, Young Master Tan, break through to the Earth Rank in the future, and these three Mid-Grade Qi-Gathering Pills can carry you all the way to the peak of the late Earth Rank. Though if you give them to Leader Wei Zhao to take, their potency certainly won't equal two Qi-Gathering Pills—but breaking through to the Heaven Rank should be no problem!"

"Oh? How so?" Zhao Qilei was briefly stunned, then asked in urgent surprise and delight.

"You just said it yourself, Young Master Tan—Leader Wei Zhao is now a late Earth Rank expert, and a single Mid-Grade Qi-Gathering Pill can raise him to the peak of the late Earth Rank! Of course, in truth, an expert at the peak of the mid Earth Rank who takes one Mid-Grade Qi-Gathering Pill can also surge to the peak of the late Earth Rank, so in that sense, half the pill's efficacy is left over. Add the other two Mid-Grade Qi-Gathering Pills, and breaking through to the early Heaven Rank is no problem at all! Because one Qi-Gathering Pill is worth a little more than two Mid-Grade Qi-Gathering Pills, these three will be more than enough!"

"Oh? So you're saying he might even break through to the peak of the early Heaven Rank?" Zhao Qilei asked, suddenly delighted.

"That, no." Zhao Qiwu shook his head. "Breaking through a major rank barrier is different from ordinary circumstances. For example, at the peak of the late Earth Rank, even if you took three Qi-Gathering Pills, after breaking through you would still be at the early Heaven Rank. When a major-rank cultivation base hasn't yet stabilized, taking pills is useless—the meridians and dantian haven't adapted to the new major rank and can't refine so much medicinal power, so taking them is simply waste."

"So that's how it is." Zhao Qilei sounded a little disappointed. "But even so, the leader's pill problem is solved. What remains is repairing his dantian and meridians."

"Yes, this is all I can help with. Young Master Tan, my abilities are limited—repairing Leader Wei Zhao's dantian and meridians will have to be something you figure out yourself. I'm a nobody in the Ice Palace; if not for Sister Xiaoxiao, I wouldn't even have gotten these pills!" Zhao Qiwu said.

He was a man who understood how things stood, knowing who had given him everything he had today, and he had not lost himself—so offering these pills to Wei Zhao did not pain him in the least.

"By the way, Old Master Zhao wrote you a family letter." Zhao Qilei had already changed how he addressed Old Master Zhao, because he felt such a man no longer deserved to be called his grandfather.

Zhao Qiwu knew what had happened to Zhao Qilei, and he naturally thought little of Old Master Zhao. Taking the letter from Zhao Qilei's hand, he glanced through it roughly, then tossed it aside with a sneer. "Young Master Tan, how do you want me to reply?"

"We've already fallen out. When I go back this time, I'm going straight to join Leader Wei Zhao. A reply? Reply my ass!" Zhao Qilei laughed. "I just respect your choice and wanted to know whether you plan to stay hidden in the Zhao family and work your way to a post like Old Bi's."

"I've already said it—I'm not an ambitious man. My choice is to follow you, Young Master Tan. As for Old Master Zhao, he's your enemy, and that makes him my enemy too." Zhao Qiwu said.

Zhao Qilei patted Zhao Qiwu's shoulder with satisfaction. Though he had long been certain Zhao Qiwu would never betray him, hearing the man say it himself still made him very happy. "Heh, your choice is the right one. I think following Leader Wei Zhao has far more prospects than following the Zhao family. Leader Wei Zhao's followers are already spread throughout the Ancient Plane. Old Master Zhao's vision is far too limited—I don't know what goes on in that head of his. Following Wei Zhao, the hidden Zhao family could become far more than just the hidden Zhao family!"

"In the future, Young Master Tan, you could found an Ancient Zhao family of your own," Zhao Qiwu said with a nod.

"That's still rather far off. We'll see what the leader thinks first." Zhao Qilei said with a smile. "By the way, will you two be able to see Sister Xiaoxiao?"