Chapter 570: Disciplining and Taking Control

Seeing that even Duobao had failed to gain an advantage, Chen Jiyuan stopped wasting his time and turned to leave. The last one remaining, Qiu Tianshui, watched the two depart before stepping forward with a smile:

“Chief Chen, I am the Chief of the Internal Affairs Hall. All of the Pill Hall’s supplies have to pass through me.”

His words carried a hint of a reminder, as well as a threat.

After all, the Pill Hall consumed a vast quantity of Spirit Herbs daily. If he were to withhold a few key materials, twenty to thirty percent of the Hall’s pills couldn’t be refined. He had used this very tactic to blackmail Huang Shiwo in the past, either by shorting his deliveries or intentionally delaying them for two or three days.

Huang Shiwo couldn’t take the pressure and eventually promoted one of Qiu Tianshui’s juniors to the position of Chief Steward.

Now, he was trying the same old trick again.

Chen Che raised an eyebrow, catching the man’s implication. He casually gestured to the disciples in the Hall.

“If the Internal Affairs Hall withholds even a single material from me, I’ll have these disciples do nothing. They’ll all stay right here and sit until the war with the Mist Rain Tower is over.”

“You…”

“Chief Qiu, you’re a smart man. I trust you won’t do anything so foolish.”

Chen Che didn’t spare him another glance, simply lifting his teacup and taking a leisurely sip.

“Of course, of course not.”

‘This man is not to be trifled with! He’s perfectly capable of taking everyone down with him.’

Qiu Tianshui wanted to slap himself. ‘Why did I even think of threatening him with that?’ He had put himself in an impossible position. Forcing a smile, he mumbled an excuse and hurried away.

Chen Che watched the three of them leave, his expression serene.

‘Although collaborating with them would undoubtedly make my life in the Primordial Sect easier, it would be no different than appeasement for personal gain.’

‘If they’re the ones profiting, what’s in it for me?’

‘Besides, you can only take what I’m willing to give. If I don’t give it, you can’t ask for it, and you certainly can’t take it by force!’

Glancing at the stunned disciples of the Hall, Chen Che said in a level voice,

“Continue.”

…

“That ungrateful whelp!”

After leaving the Pill Hall, Duobao could no longer contain his fury as they walked.

In truth, he had come not only to fight for a share of the Pill Hall’s profits but also to discuss the distribution of spoils from the upcoming attack on the Mist Rain Tower. He had even been prepared to negotiate, but the other party had shown no intention of even talking.

Chen Jiyuan’s face was grim. He was equally displeased. “He’s barely taken office and he’s already this tyrannical. I’m afraid the Pill Hall will be completely impenetrable to us from now on. Does he have any idea how many people he’s offending?”

“Hogging all the food for himself… that’s not good, not good at all!”

Qiu Tianshui also shook his head.

Wang Yinhu and his group stood in the distance, at a loss for what to do.

Their patriarch had come out, so they had followed.

The others had done the same.

Their positions as Chief Steward and Stewards had been stripped away. How could they have the face to remain?

“Is there anything we can do?”

Duobao looked up at Chen Jiyuan.

The latter shook his head. “He’s the Chief of the Pill Hall. He has the right to do this. Even if we complain to the Grand Ancestor, we have no chance of winning. Besides, what would we even say? That he’s not sharing the profits with us?”

Hearing this, Duobao turned to Qiu Tianshui. “You’re the Chief of the Internal Affairs Hall. Many of the Pill Hall’s resources have to go through you. Why not block his supplies?”

“That might have worked on Huang Shiwo, but will it work on this kid?”

Qiu Tianshui considered it for a moment but didn’t dare.

‘Huang Shiwo was one of them; they knew him inside and out. Chen Che might be of a similar standing, but he was far too young, and many people already saw him as the next True Master Chixia. To fight to the death with him over the Pill Hall’s profits was simply not worth the risk.’

‘If it really came to mutual destruction, the Internal Affairs Hall would also be held responsible.’

‘Not worth it!’

“Patriarch, is there nothing we can do then?”

Seeing that the Chiefs were at a loss, Wang Yinhu timidly stepped forward. He looked back, pointing toward the Pill Hall. “That kid is so arrogant! He disrespected you in public, Patriarch! In my opinion…”

SLAP!

Before he could finish, a heavy slap landed squarely on Wang Yinhu’s face.

“Useless trash!”

Duobao cursed furiously,

“I told you long ago to learn more Alchemy Skill from Huang Shiwo, and this is all you amount to? You’ve utterly disgraced me! From this day forward, you will return to our clan to guard the mountain forests. You are never to take a single step away for the rest of your life!”

…

After the three Chiefs left, the night passed in a flash.

By now, only seven or eight people were left in the Hall. These were the disciples capable of refining Tier Two High Grade pills.

This was a small number, but it was well within Chen Che’s expectations.

The main reason was that he had sprung the test on them, forcing the Hall’s disciples to perform Alchemy without any preparation. Furthermore, they only had one chance to succeed, with no room for error. This made the test several times more difficult than their usual refining sessions.

Their true peak ability was likely a tier higher.

However, those who managed to pass under such conditions were undoubtedly disciples with exceptionally strong fundamentals in Alchemy.

What surprised him, however, was that the seemingly destitute middle-aged cultivator had actually managed to refine a Tier Three Elixir. His original rank, after all, was merely that of an ordinary Steward. Chen Che studied the man for a moment, noting a slight resemblance to Huang Shiwo. He asked probingly,

“What is your relationship with the former Chief?”

“Reporting to the Chief, my name is Huang Baishong. The former Chief was my great-granduncle.”

At the mention of Huang Shiwo, a trace of sorrow appeared in the man’s eyes.

‘His ancestor had served the Sect with utmost sincerity, never bending the rules for personal gain, yet he had met with such a dismal end.’

“You will be the Vice Chief of my Pill Hall. The rest of you will be Chief Stewards.”

Chen Che’s mind worked quickly. “I don’t care whose people you were or who you followed before,” he said directly. “I don’t care what backing or factions you have. From this day forward, the only thing that matters here is ability.”

Since he was Huang Shiwo’s descendant, Chen Che was naturally willing to give him a chance.

‘Of course, this was also related to Huang Baishong’s current circumstances. Judging by his demeanor, he had clearly been marginalized from the Pill Hall’s core—a drowning man.’

“Thank you, Chief!”

Chen Che’s casual pronouncement sent a wave of delighted surprise through the remaining disciples. Without any backing, it was nearly impossible for them to ever reach such a position. They couldn’t help but look at Huang Baishong with undisguised envy.

‘He’d just soared to the heavens in a single step!’

“You are all dismissed. You have three days to sort out the Hall’s personnel.”

Chen Che glanced at the new Chief Stewards, then turned to Huang Baishong. “You stay behind.”

“Yes, sir!”

The Chief Stewards accepted their orders and hurried off. The Hall had thirty to forty thousand members; with so many disciples being demoted and so many others promoted, it was a massive undertaking.

“Within the Primordial Sect, I rather admired Huang Shiwo,” Chen Che said, looking at Huang Baishong. “He was completely devoted to the Sect… but unfortunately, in this world, the law-abiding are left blind while murderers and arsonists live to a ripe old age.”

“Thank you for your high praise, Chief.”

Huang Baishong bowed deeply.

His kinsmen all called Huang Shiwo pedantic; he never imagined this new Chief would hold his great-granduncle in such high regard.

“You’re Huang Shiwo’s grandnephew, so you must have worked in the Pill Hall for many years. Tell me about the inner workings of the Hall. Don’t hold anything back; say whatever you know.”

Chen Che rose and walked out of the main hall.

Huang Baishong followed him.

Outside the Hall, there was a great commotion. Chen Che’s move had all but dismantled the Pill Hall’s previous structure. The personnel changes alone couldn’t be sorted out in a moment’s time, and all the subsequent affairs would need to be reorganized from scratch.

“I’m sure you’ve already seen, Chief, that the Pill Hall’s situation is beyond a simple mess. It’s been completely controlled by people like Wang Yinhu, just barely managing to function.”

Huang Baishong sighed and shook his head.

“There are too few capable people in the Hall to shoulder the burden. He had to refine many of the pills himself. He had the will, but not the strength. Those people would even rig the disciple examinations—give them a few gifts, and an Outer Disciple could become a full member. But if you didn’t have Spirit Stones, you’d be held back for a lifetime.”

“As a result, the disciples below learned to deceive their superiors and flatter their way up. No one bothered to study Alchemy anymore. The entire Hall became an utterly foul and corrupt place.”

Chen Che didn’t ask why Huang Shiwo, a Golden Core Chief, had been completely undermined by a few of his own Chief Stewards.

‘This was the way of the Sect.’

‘Interests were a tangled, complex web. Even if you weren’t afraid for yourself, your juniors and disciples could be used against you. Those people weren’t skilled in Alchemy or Cultivation, but they were masters of scheming and manipulation, playing the game of connections and favors to perfection.’

‘Because there were so few people he could rely on, Huang Shiwo often had to do things himself. But his energy was finite, so much so that his own Direct Disciple was literally worked to death.’

‘That was why, at that time, he had welcomed Chen Che’s appointment as a Tributor with open arms.’

Chen Che listened quietly to Huang Baishong’s account, nodding slightly. It was essentially the same information Tang Linli had given him, only in greater detail. This was precisely why he had so unceremoniously purged the Hall of its vermin the moment he arrived.

If he didn’t clean house now, he would sooner or later end up walking the same path as Huang Shiwo.