The Yeluo elder was so incensed by the next generation of Yeluo fighters that he again spat out blood.

"Don't die yet, Elder! We need you to agree to his request!"

"Right, aren't we more important than a recipe?"

"What's the point of hiding the recipe if we're all going to die? This human said that he was going to leave after obtaining the recipe, so won't you give it to him?"

The elder roared, "This isn't a problem about the recipe, but rather about the dignity of the Yeluo!"

"Elder, surely our lives are worth more than this unfathomable dignity?"

The elder spat out even more blood. "Don't you have any pride as Yeluo fighters?!"

Hong Xi murmured, "If you had been willing to talk matters through with us peaceably, it wouldn't have devolved to this extent..."

Given the interaction between the Yeluo elder and the Yeluo fighters, it was obvious to Zhang Lie that this recipe was a secret of the clan, one which none of the regular fighters would have any access to. Otherwise, they would already have handed it over.

Just then, a frightening pillar of genetic energy burst out of the Yeluo settlement, and a figure ascended toward the clouds. 

The dying elder's face was fixed in a rictus. "Haha, the clan head's finally out of secluded cultivation now! You'll pay a steep price for what you've done—just you wait!"

Having said his last, the elder of the Yeluo perished amidst a fit of laughter.

The figure who had risen to the skies swooped toward Zhang Lie so quickly that he released a sonic boom, causing the air all around him to tremble.

"Another flier? [Ninecarp Transformation: Fourth Form]!"

Four runic tablets smashed into the ground, but, surprisingly, this figure managed to withstand the sharply increased force of gravity. Was this the clan head of the Yeluo? Perhaps he did have some skill.

[Fists of the Silent Sea: Dragon's Wrath]! 

A gigantic blood wolf appeared. Zhang Lie pulled back his left claw, and, as dragon scales formed over it, punched forward and summoned a howling black dragon headed right for the figure in the sky.

The terrifying howl of the dragon shook the heavens with such authority that the Yeluo fighters found their legs turned to jelly, and they slumped onto the ground. The black dragon devoured the meteoric figure swooping down from the skies, dispelling the force of his descent with claw and fang. 

Genetic energy billowed in waves from the epicenter of the explosion, and a windstorm shook the entirety of the Yeluo Valley. The ground began to crack. An avalanche occurred on the mountains.

A figure dropped out of the sky. The ten-meter-tall Yeluo clan head, brow dripping with sweat, face a mask of shock, knelt on the ground as he landed. "Head of the Yeluo clan, Ye Hua, thanks this human warrior for his clemency!"

As the clan head knelt, the Yeluo fighters found their rising hope and pride dashed. To them, their clan head had been like a martial god, one who had never suffered defeat. He had defeated even the most illustrious of their elders, and his skill had reached an apex after going into secluded cultivation. Of course they thought he would be able to fend off the frightening human in front of them—but in truth, even the clan head fell to a single blow.

The Yeluo fighters' knees trembled. They could hardly imagine what sort of monster they had provoked. He had forced their clan head to surrender with just one blow, and they, with their foolish pride and arrogance, had mocked him and tried to steal the woman by his side!

Zhang Lie himself seemed a little surprised. "You could sense it?"

The clan head bowed respectfully. "At least a little. If not for your dissipating the remaining energy of that attack at the very end, I would be nothing but a pile of dust."

The disparity in strength between the Yeluo elder and Zhang Lie was so immense that the Yeluo elder didn't know how outmatched he was, but the clan head, who was slightly stronger, did. This was why he had surrendered after just one exchange, because he knew just how much his clan couldn't afford having Zhang Lie as an enemy.

The clan head lowered his head. "Please, honored fighter, my clan will do anything for you. I ask only that you spare our lives!"

The Yeluo fighters gaped.

"Clan head—" one fighter began, wanting to persuade him otherwise, but the clan head stared him into silence.

"If you want to die, I don't care—but don't bring the entire clan down with you!"

Zhang Lie sighed. "All I came here for was the recipe for a potion."

"A potion?"

"Yes, the one that this elder consumed recently."

"The Yeluo augmentation brew? Very well—I'll hand you the recipe as well as whatever supply of the potions we have!"

Zhang Lie's eyes gleamed. Everything would have been so much easier if he had spoken with the clan head from the very beginning! Of course, such a wily clan head wouldn't be willing to remain subservient forever, but no matter how wily he was, Zhang Lie knew a means of controlling the entire clan.

"Very good. Trust me: you'll be proud of this decision that you made in the future! I'll leave the production of the brew to you, since some of the herbs required are native to the Yeluo Valley," Zhang Lie continued.

There were quite a lot of poisonous herbs and insects in the Yeluo Valley. If Zhang Lie were to rely on human labor, the cost of making this potion would increase dramatically. The Yeluo clan naturally had thick bronzed skin and incredible resistance to poison. They were obvious candidates for the task.

The clan head lowered his head. "Being able to serve you is the honor of the Yeluo clan."

"For now, hand me your entire supply."

"Yes, of course. Please understand that we don't have a large stockpile of it—the brewing process is time-consuming and labor-intensive. Furthermore, I'll have to make you a copy of the recipe myself, so there may be some delay. Won't you come rest in our settlement for a little?"

"Very well. Lead the way!"