Mo Ming explained, "A Grandmaster possesses the ability of Entering the Divine State. They can detect even the slightest foreign substance or poison entering their body, making them almost immune to all poisons."

"Moreover, something like Drunken Eight Immortals cannot even be considered a poison. When a Grandmaster drinks it, they can expel the toxins precipitated from the eight medicinal stones with a mere thought, treating it as nothing more than a fine wine."

Shen Zhiyuan said, "But they can still sense something, right?"

"They might notice something unusual, but even a Grandmaster might not identify the secrets within Drunken Eight Immortals."

Mo Ming said, "Unless one is thoroughly knowledgeable in medicine and has read some ancient texts, not to mention Drunken Eight Immortals, even if Five Stone Powder reappeared in the world, it would be hard for a Grandmaster to recognize it."

"After all, Five Stone Powder has been lost for too long and the older generation has passed. I only learned about it because my master mentioned it to me once."

Chen Tang asked, "What happened next?"

Shen Zhiyuan continued, "When Elder Mo discovered the secret of Drunken Eight Immortals, I realized the seriousness of the matter, fearing it had already endangered the Martial World."

"Moreover, Elder Mo’s situation was extremely perilous, so I thought of taking him away from here. During this time, hermits from the Dongyi Race had already infiltrated the Medical Hidden Hall and launched assassinations."

At this point, Shen Zhiyuan sighed.

Su Li said softly, "There were one hundred and eight people in the Medical Hidden Hall, and except for the three of us, everyone else is dead."

Chen Tang was silent.

No wonder he hadn’t seen any trace of others after arriving here.

Shen Zhiyuan said, "The Dongyi Race hermits used varied assassination techniques that were hard to guard against, and with their numbers, I couldn’t hold them off. Initially, we relied on Elder Mo’s poisonous miasma set up at the entrance to block their attack, holding out for a day."

"Seeing that the torrential rain was overwhelming the poisonous miasma, Elder Mo then burned Dragon Saliva Fragrance to summon poisonous insects from all directions to encircle this place."

Su Li said softly, "It’s rumored that Drunken Eight Immortals was brewed by the Drunken Elder. Could it be that he..."

In truth, over these past days, Mo Ming, Shen Zhiyuan, and Su Li had all thought of this possibility.

However, due to the Drunken Elder’s high status and reputation in the Great Xia Martial World, known for his generosity and friendship through wine, they were reluctant and dared not believe he would brew something so harmful.

If this wine was truly made by the Drunken Elder, the appearance of the Dongyi Race hermits would not be a coincidence.

Could the Drunken Elder be colluding with the Dongyi Race?

Mo Ming hesitated, then said, "There may be some misunderstanding here."

Chen Tang thought for a moment and said, "I came over from the Three Eastern Sea States, and I do know some insider information."

He revealed the secrets he’d learned from Ming Yue Wanderer.

Shen Zhiyuan and the others were shocked upon hearing this.

The three, being wise, understood the gravity of the situation.

By now, it was beyond what they could handle.

Only with the intervention of the Sword Sect could the situation potentially be managed.

Ming Yue Wanderer had told Chen Tang that the Dongyi Race had a highly secret mission in Great Xia.

This mission now revealed just the tip of the iceberg!

In recent years, multiple sect leaders had been assassinated in the Great Xia Martial World, all actually the work of Dongyi Race hermits.

If the Drunken Elder wanted to become the Martial Arts Alliance Leader, he needed the recognition of the majority of the martial forces and major sects in the Jianghu, with probably three methods.

The first was to make connections and allies.

The second method was using Drunken Eight Immortals to make the sect leaders addicted.

To have more Drunken Eight Immortals to drink, these leaders could only comply and follow the Drunken Elder’s arrangements.

The third was employing Dongyi Race hermits to assassinate the leaders of the major sects.

First, this could spark the fury of the major sects, fueling hatred.

Second, it could naturally replace the sect leaders.

By doing so with these three approaches, if the Drunken Elder were willing to step forward, he could justifiably and rightly become the Martial Arts Alliance Leader with the major martial forces’ support!

At that point, with the Drunken Elder unifying the Martial World, he would command a force strong enough to rival imperial power and Gate Valves.

No matter which side he leaned toward, it would break the balance among the three, changing Great Xia’s destiny.

The Profound Celestial Sect was also involved in this.

After Great Xia’s southward migration, it had continued for a hundred years, and by now, the court had long been corrupt and crumbling.

But in this chaotic situation, Great Xia could collapse and disintegrate at any moment!

Chen Tang said, "Stop overthinking, let’s leave this place first."

Boom!

Just as he finished speaking, a tremendous explosion suddenly resounded from the valley outside, shaking the heavens and the earth!

The room where the three were shook slightly.

"What sound is that?"

Su Li was startled, looking confused.

Shen Zhiyuan frowned slightly, listening intently.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Three more loud explosions came from afar, causing the ground to shake and the mountains to tremble!

The shrill cries of the poisonous insects could be heard outside.

Shen Zhiyuan quickly realized what it was and his face changed, "It’s gunpowder, the Thunder Hall people have come!"

Once Mo Ming discovered the secret of Drunken Eight Immortals, it was no longer just the Dongyi Race hermits wanting them dead.

It was the Drunken Elder wanting them dead! 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝔀𝓮𝒃𝙣𝓸𝒗𝒆𝒍.𝙘𝒐𝒎

With the Drunken Elder’s status in the Jianghu, he had the power to drive Thunder Hall to come.

The torrential rain outside prevented a fire assault but didn’t hinder Thunder Hall’s many firearms from attacking.

Chen Tang had heard of the Jiangnan Thunder Hall during his time in Qian Country.

On par with Qian Country’s Vermilion Bird Bureau, it was most skilled in firearm-type hidden weapons, with hundreds of years of experience, wealthy enough to rival nations.

These venomous insects, sprawling across the mountains and skies, were unable to hold under the onslaught of Thunder Hall’s firearms, blasted apart, shrieking miserably.

Outside the valley.

A young man in his twenties, dressed in a black suit embroidered with a Thunder Totem, stood with over a hundred Martial Artists surrounding him. Someone held an umbrella to block the rain for him while he stood beneath it, satisfied and overjoyed, clutching a command flag and directing.

Wherever the command flag pointed, firearms launched, landing among the army of poisonous insects, causing a series of deafening explosions.

Everywhere one looked, there was blood and gore, like a purgatory on earth.

"Hahahaha!"

The young man laughed to the sky, thrilled and elated at the scene.

Lei Xiaotian, Young Master of Thunder Hall, Inner Core Realm.

For the Lei Family’s resources, Lei Xiaotian at his age being only in the Inner Core Realm meant his cultivation speed was not fast.

For him, with weapons as powerful and lethal as firearms, why spend so much time and effort cultivating?

Only, usually, whether at Lei Family Castle or in the Jianghu, his father forbade him from easily using these firearms.

Saying the power was too great and could easily harm the innocents.

This wasn’t exhilarating enough for Lei Xiaotian!

Although at home, releasing firearms for the thrill of witnessing their power firsthand.

But nowhere compared to this bloody, explosive thrill now.

"This is exhilarating, blow it up for me! Haha!"

Lei Xiaotian became increasingly excited.