[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-the-treasure-immortal-basin":3,"chapter-the-treasure-immortal-basin-the-treasure-immortal-basin-chapter-18":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","The Treasure Immortal Basin",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2355201,4608,"Chapter 18: Ants and Weeds","the-treasure-immortal-basin-chapter-18",18,"\u003Cp>“Senior Brother Hao!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Senior Brother Hao!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He Pingsheng called out a few more times, then returned to his room with a nervous expression.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What should I do?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His gaze swept across the room, taking in every object inside.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A clay basin!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Two jade vials!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Two books!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Especially those two jade vials and the two books stood out sharply.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He Pingsheng was now growing desperate.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Why?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because Senior Brother Hao hadn’t returned—he was almost certainly in trouble.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Think of Master Yu De’s character—could he possibly have shared a drink with Senior Brother Hao?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Senior Brother Hao was punished to reflect for three days at the teleportation square—why, just as those three days ended, did Master Yu De’s disciples invite him over?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He must be in trouble!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He Pingsheng took a deep breath; he felt his hands trembling.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I must not lose my composure.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If Senior Brother Hao is in trouble, I absolutely cannot afford to be caught too.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He Pingsheng forced himself to calm down, then quickly dug into the ground and pulled out all twenty-four pills one by one, placing them into the jade vials.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Twelve pills in each jade vial.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He sealed the lids.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As expected!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The next moment, the aroma vanished.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The jade vials perfectly mask the medicinal scent of supreme-grade pills.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But keeping the pills in his hands was impossible—he buried the two jade vials and the two books beneath his bed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He covered them with a layer of soil and a stone slab.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He swept away all excess dirt above.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No trace remained.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As for the clay basin, He Pingsheng wasn’t worried at all—it looked like nothing more than an ordinary old basin.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After finishing everything, he took two iron bowls and went to the laborers’ mess hall for food.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even after eating, as the morning sun rose, He Pingsheng saw no sign of Senior Brother Hao Yun.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet, a Daoist who appeared ethereal and venerable had arrived at the alchemy room’s courtyard.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He was tall, clad in a green Daoist robe, with white hair and a jet-black beard.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His complexion looked poor.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Greetings, Master!” He Pingsheng bowed respectfully.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Calling any unknown immortal “Master” was always safe.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The middle-aged cultivator stroked his three strands of green beard with his right hand and said coolly, “I am Yu De.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yu…?” He Pingsheng’s voice trembled. “Master Yu De?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Correct!” Yu De nodded. “You’re the laborer from the laborer squad, aren’t you?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He Pingsheng nodded. “Yes… I’m He Pingsheng.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Hmm!” Yu De said dismissively. “Hao Yun claimed his injuries healed so rapidly because you gave him a supreme-grade Golden Bone Pill. Is that true?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He Pingsheng’s heart nearly stopped.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Senior Brother Hao… he betrayed me?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This is bad… bad…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I’m finished.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My secret will be exposed now.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Losing the Treasure Basin was minor—but if I lose my life, that’s catastrophic.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Speak!” Yu De suddenly roared.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The shout exploded like thunder in He Pingsheng’s ears.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He Pingsheng knew his hesitation had already betrayed half of him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet over the past few days, practicing the 【Basic Breathing and Qi Absorption Method】—though he hadn’t truly drawn spiritual energy into his body—he had begun sensing external spiritual fluctuations, and his mind had sharpened slightly, his reactions quickened.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hearing Yu De’s roar, he stammered, “M-Master… I’ve heard of the Golden Bone Pill… but what exactly is a supreme-grade Golden Bone Pill?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This question caught Yu De off guard.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Right…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>How could a mere laborer possibly know what a supreme-grade item is?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I heard your Luoyu Senior Sister once gave you two Golden Bone Pills?” Yu De fixed his gaze on He Pingsheng.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He Pingsheng said, “Yes… I didn’t know that immortal’s name, but an immortal did give me a porcelain bottle containing two pills.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yu De asked, “Where are the pills?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He Pingsheng said, “I ate one… the other, along with the bottle, was taken by the squad leader, Zhang Da.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As he spoke, his voice grew quieter.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yu De stared at him for over a dozen breaths, then stepped forward and walked directly into He Pingsheng’s room.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He scanned the room, rummaged through everything, found nothing suspicious, then stepped back out.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“He Pingsheng!” Yu De looked up at the sky. “I have a task for you.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yes!” He Pingsheng followed closely behind, bowing respectfully.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yu De said, “Hao Yun is an alchemy room acolyte. Yesterday, I kindly invited him over to heal his injuries—but he quarreled with my disciple Linglong, and in the end, they came to blows. Linglong accidentally…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Accidentally…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Killed Hao Yun.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Boom…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He Pingsheng’s heart shook violently.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His whole body trembled.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Senior Brother Hao…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dead?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just like that?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Don’t grieve,” Yu De said. “All mortals have their destined fate—this was his destined tribulation.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“This is his fate… do you understand?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At that moment, He Pingsheng slumped to the ground, pale with fear and confusion.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A flicker of sorrow rose within him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Senior Brother Hao was such a good man—gone like this?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fate?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Kill someone, then claim they had bad fate?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What kind of nonsense is this?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He Pingsheng burned with rage, wanting to scream—but at the critical moment, he held his tongue.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Why?” He Pingsheng looked up at Yu De. “Couldn’t you have talked? Why kill him?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“He was such a good man!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Sigh…” Yu De sighed. “I too feel sorrow. Linglong committed a grave offense—last night, the Ancestral Master passed judgment upon her.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“This matter is settled. You need not ask further.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“In the eyes of immortals, ants and weeds are beneath notice.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Why pity them?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Boom…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As he spoke, Yu De pulled out clothing from his storage pouch and casually tossed it onto the ground.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was a corpse.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hao Yun.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On Hao Yun’s chest were seven sword wounds.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Each pierced clean through his body.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He Pingsheng stared, trembling—was this an accident?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I checked—Hao Yun had no family or friends. We don’t even know where his kin are.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“But he was your superior. His remains are entrusted to you.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You must find him a fengshui burial site and bury him.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Oh, by the way!” Yu De paused. “Xiuzhu Peak is sacred ground—do not defile it. Find a place outside the outer sect.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With that, Yu De floated away gracefully.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He Pingsheng sat on the ground, utterly lost, motionless as a wooden statue or clay idol.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After a long while, He Pingsheng suddenly moved again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He stood up from the ground and first closed the courtyard gate of the alchemy chamber.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then he closed the door to Hao Yun’s room.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Finally, he walked into his own bedroom.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was time to make a severance.\u003C\u002Fp>",1096,"2026-06-21T04:08:57.694Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","9b34bbcbb8dcd703c692565b5562c6654dcbba54ff14ab35cc77e46930e4140e","the-treasure-immortal-basin-chapter-19","the-treasure-immortal-basin-chapter-17",1000,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fthe-treasure-immortal-basin-cover.jpg"]