Chapter 56: Securing the Ice Spirit Cold Fountain
After leaving the Alchemist Guild, under Au Tuo's guidance, Xiao Se arrived at a strange, secluded building near the southern part of Black Rock City.
"This is the residence of that guy, Gu Te. Although he has decent alchemist talent, he's obsessed with collecting rare materials and treasures. As a result, his alchemist rank has stagnated at Tier 3. It's really hard to understand him.
But speaking of which, he's probably the most likely person in the entire Jia Ma Empire to have the Ice Spirit Cold Fountain. Just a reminder, before you go in, you'd better be prepared to spend a lot of money," Au Tuo said, his mouth twitching as he looked at the strange building, then smiled at Xiao Se.
Hearing this, Xiao Se smiled wryly and nodded. He wasn't sure if Gu Te actually had the Ice Spirit Cold Fountain. If not, he might have to try his luck with Medusa.
Xiao Se vaguely remembered that in the original story, Medusa had collected a large pool of heavenly flames to break through to the Dou Zong rank. Since it was still early by several years, he wasn't sure if Medusa still had it.
Following Au Tuo, as soon as Au Tuo pushed open the door, Xiao Se felt a strong gust of wind carrying white dust.
"Master Au Tuo, get away from the spot," Xiao Se said, frowning at the sudden dust and jumping back while warning Au Tuo.
"Just a little trick!" Au Tuo said, rolling his eyes as if he had seen this many times before. He waved his large sleeve, creating a stronger wind that blew the white dust back.
"Let's go, be careful. This old guy is quite tricky," Au Tuo said with a smile and entered the building. Before he could be happy, the wooden floor suddenly collapsed, revealing a bottomless pit. Au Tuo stepped into thin air and fell directly into the pit with a scream:
"Aaaaah!"
Seeing this, Xiao Se twitched his lips and used his system's X-ray vision. When he saw the pit was filled with dirty water, he sighed with relief. It was disgusting, but Gu Te knew his limits and hadn't crossed the line.
Taking a deep breath, Xiao Se used his X-ray vision to survey the traps throughout Gu Te's building. After deliberately triggering and avoiding several traps, he finally reached the top floor of the building.
"Heh, not bad, kid. You managed to avoid all my traps. Come in, there are no more traps here," an old, strange voice suddenly came from the room at the end of the top floor corridor, sending a chill down Xiao Se's spine.
Xiao Se nodded slightly but remained cautious. After confirming there were no more traps, he entered the room and was greeted by an extremely unpleasant sight: an untidy old man, barefoot, was picking his nose.
Suppressing his disgust, Xiao Se kept his eyes open, and when his gaze inadvertently swept over Gu Te's crotch, his lips twitched again.
Good grief! To hide his items, he actually tied the spatial ring to that thing.
"Senior, I'm here to trade for something," Xiao Se said, bowing slightly.
"Don't give me any of that nonsense. I only let you in because you seemed to understand traps. Want to trade? I have nothing here that interests me, and you don't have anything that would make me tempted," Gu Te said, flicking his messy hair impatiently.
"That's a shame. I even got a bottle of Amethyst Lion Birth Essence from my teacher. Since you don't have it, I'll get it somewhere else," Xiao Se said, pretending to be troubled, and turned to leave.
Amethyst Lion Birth Essence ? Hearing these words, Gu Te seemed to have been injected with adrenaline. He jumped from his dirty seat and appeared in front of Xiao Se in an instant, shocking Xiao Se a little.
"Hehe, little brother, don't be in such a hurry to leave. I just heard you have a Amethyst Lion Birth Essence . Is that true?" Gu Te said with a greedy smile, rubbing his dirty hands.
Seeing Gu Te's reaction, Xiao Se's lips lifted slightly. He feigned caution and said, "It's indeed true, but as you know, the value of the Amethyst Lion Birth Essence is quite high. To trade for it, I need the Ice Spirit Cold Fountain. Do you have it?"
"Who says I don't? Uh!" Before he could finish, Gu Te quickly covered his mouth. After a pause, he scratched his head and said with an embarrassed smile, "Little brother, although I don't have the Ice Spirit Cold Fountain, I have other valuable items. Look at the fire-type Seven Leaf Flower, Blood Crystal Grass, and Blue Rock Heart Stone on the shelves. Each one is a rare treasure!"
"Since Senior doesn't have it, I'll take my leave," Xiao Se said after examining the precious herbs in the room. Though they were rare, he had an ample supply of herbs from his time in the Warcraft Mountains. He had plenty of year-old herbs, including those for Dou Ling Dan and Emperor Grade Dan, with only the magical cores left to find.
Gu Te's real valuable items were hidden in his spatial ring in his pants. Seeing Xiao Se really about to leave, Gu Te couldn't contain his longing for the Amethyst Lion Birth Essence any longer and called out, "Wait!"
Xiao Se turned around and said calmly, "What's the matter, Senior? Have you found the Ice Spirit Cold Fountain?"
"I want to ask you, do you really have the Amethyst Lion Birth Essence ?" Gu Te was struggling internally. He had only recently acquired the Ice Spirit Cold Fountain and didn't want to trade it away. However, the Amethyst Lion Birth Essence was too rare; even he had never seen it before. Missing this chance might mean a lifetime of regret.
"Naturally, I have it." Xiao Se waved his hand, and a jade bottle emitting a warm aura appeared in his hand.
He opened the bottle, and a wisp of purple mist emerged, raising the temperature in the room slightly.
"This is the Amethyst Lion Birth Essence ? It really is just like that annoying guy described," Gu Te said, his old eyes gleaming with gold as he reached for Xiao Se's bottle.
Xiao Se smiled and covered the bottle, using the first layer of the Misty Step to instantly appear behind Gu Te.
"Hey, Senior Gu Te, you haven't shown me the Ice Spirit Cold Fountain yet. If you don't have it, I'm leaving right away," Xiao Se said without courtesy, preparing to retract the Amethyst Lion Birth Essence .
"Wait... I have it, I have it." Seeing Xiao Se's determination for the Ice Spirit Cold Fountain, Gu Te finally gave in to his desire for the Amethyst Lion Birth Essence and agreed to the exchange.
Gu Te, carefully holding the newly acquired Amethyst Lion Birth Essence , looked at the Ice Spirit Cold Fountain in Xiao Se's hand with great reluctance. He pointed angrily at the door and shouted, "Get out of here with the Ice Spirit Cold Fountain. I never want to see you again."
Xiao Se smiled, said nothing further, and left. His goal had been achieved, and staying any longer would be pointless.
Soon, Xiao Se walked outside the building and saw Au Tuo, who had managed to crawl out of the dirty pit, and smiled, "Master Au Tuo, are you alright?"
"That damned bastard dug the pit right into a cesspool," Au Tuo said, furious and cursing loudly.
Suddenly, curses from the top floor of the strange building echoed down. Au Tuo, slightly stunned, asked in confusion, "Did you really get the Ice Spirit Cold Fountain?"
"Yes, I got it by a stroke of luck," Xiao Se said with a slight nod.
---
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Chapter 57: Chapter 57
The next morning, Xiao Se donned the black robe of a second-tier alchemist that he had received the previous day and headed to the flying transport square in the city center to meet with Au Tuo and Fu Lan Ke.
"Xiao Se, over here, here!" From a distance, Xiao Se heard Lin Fei's lively voice calling out. Smiling and shaking his head, he followed the direction of the sound and walked over. He soon noticed that, besides Au Tuo and Fu Lan Ke, there was another girl standing next to Lin Fei, even more beautiful than the latter.
The girl wore a silver tight-fitting robe, appearing around the same age as Lin Fei, about 17 or 18 years old. She had a tall and slender figure, exquisite facial features, delicate eyebrows, and snow-white skin that contrasted with her silver attire. Her long silver hair cascading down to her waist added to her cold, untouchable beauty.
"Master Au Tuo, Master Fu Lan Ke," Xiao Se greeted the silver-haired girl with a nod of mild surprise and then bowed respectfully to Au Tuo and Fu Lan Ke.
"Hehe, Xiao Se, let me introduce you. This is my disciple, Xue Mei. Though her talent doesn't quite match yours, she's certainly not far behind Lin Fei," Fu Lan Ke chuckled, introducing Xue Mei to Xiao Se.
"Xue Mei, greet him."
"Hello, Mr. Xiao Se," Xue Mei, still a bit shy, nodded at Xiao Se.
"Hello, Miss Xue Mei," Xiao Se responded with a smile.
Fu Lan Ke, noticing that Xiao Se didn't distance himself from Xue Mei like he did with Lin Fei, thought to himself that there might be potential for something there.
Smiling, he took out two crystal objects from his storage ring—one purple and one white, both etched with magic patterns—and said, "Xiao Se, here are the two third-tier magic cores you asked for."
"Thank you, Master Fu Lan Ke." Xiao Se felt a sense of relief as he accepted the magic cores, bowing again in gratitude.
"Hehe, if you truly want to thank us, you can help us achieve a good ranking for Black Rock City in next year's Alchemist Conference. I believe you can do it," Au Tuo said, patting his round belly with a smile.
"I will," Xiao Se nodded firmly. He had no trouble refining third-tier pills at this point, and all he needed was to raise his cultivation level by a few more stars before he could attempt refining fourth-tier pills.
If he managed to absorb the Green Lotus Core Flame, refining a fourth-tier pill would be within reach.
"Hey, Xiao Se, if you ever pass through Black Rock City again, you have to come and hang out with me!" Lin Fei said, a bit reluctant to see him leave.
"If I have the chance," Xiao Se smiled as he bid farewell to Fu Lan Ke and the others, and under Lin Fei's curious gaze, he boarded the alchemist-exclusive flying magical beast bound for Mo City, located on the eastern border of the Jia Ma Empire.
After being led by the attendants, Xiao Se was assigned to a window-side room.
Once inside, he closed the doors and windows, activated his vast sea cosmic shroud, and took out the third-tier magic cores, Ice Spirit Flame Grass, Blood Lotus Essence, and other ingredients needed to refine the fifth-tier Blood Lotus Pill. His gaze fell on Long Kui, who was now sitting casually at the table, and he smiled, saying, "Long Kui, I'll need your help refining this fifth-tier pill, as it's beyond my current abilities."
"Don't worry, brother. I'm really happy to help you again," Long Kui's eyes sparkled as she smiled softly. She had always wanted to lighten the burden on her brother's shoulders.
"Still, if you feel your soul energy being drained too quickly and it becomes unbearable, stop immediately," Xiao Se reminded her with some concern.
"Understood, brother," Long Kui replied as her graceful figure transformed into a blue light and merged into Xiao Se's body.
In an instant, Xiao Se's pupils glowed blue, and his aura surged dramatically. A vast energy rippled through the air, enveloped in blue light. If not for the protective aura shielding the room, the entire flying magical beast might have been blown apart.
"This power... Dou Huang level!" Xiao Se raised his hands and stared at them in disbelief, feeling the overwhelming strength coursing through his veins.
He never imagined that after barely being able to handle the power of a seven-star Dou Wang at the beginning, he could now, after breaking through the Dou Shi level, handle the strength of a Dou Huang.
"It seems my soul force has also reached the level of a sixth-tier alchemist. This strength... it's truly remarkable," Xiao Se murmured to himself.
He quickly took out his cauldron and began refining the Blood Lotus Pill.
Three days passed in a flash. Thanks to his protective aura concealing his presence, Xiao Se avoided attracting unwanted attention, unlike the original Xiao Yan.
Despite Long Kui's help and his sixth-tier soul force, refining a fifth-tier pill for the first time was still a challenge. Although he succeeded, the quality was lacking. Thankfully, he had requested an extra third-tier magic core from Fu Lan Ke. Learning from the first attempt, his second try went smoothly, and he successfully refined a higher-quality Blood Lotus Pill.
"Ah, from the sixth-tier onward, I'll have to rely on myself to find pill formulas," Xiao Se sighed, gazing at the freshly refined Blood Lotus Pill in the jade bottle.
When Xiao Se received the legacy of Luo Han, a peak sixth-tier alchemist, he not only gained his alchemy knowledge but also his pill formulas. Luo Han's collection of formulas was vast, covering almost everything below the sixth tier, except for a few unique pills like Yao Lao's Foundation Establishment Liquid and Spirit Merging Pill, which can fully heal soul injuries, as well as the Heaven's Break Pill, which requires a Heavenly Flame to refine.
But formulas for the seventh tier and beyond were scarce. The only seventh-tier pill formula he possessed was the Transformation Pill, which was of no use to him, and he still lacked the formula for the Resurrection Pill needed to revive Long Kui.
"Brother, we're almost at our destination," Long Kui's soft voice sounded beside his ear.
"Is that so?" Xiao Se smiled at her joyful face as he stood up and moved to the window. Since acquiring the protective aura, Long Kui no longer had to stay hidden in the demon sword constantly. Whenever they rested, Xiao Se would release the aura so Long Kui could come out, without fear of being seen.
Standing by the window, Xiao Se looked down from the flying magical beast, and the entire Mo City came into view.
As his gaze swept across the landscape, a small, solitary building at the southern edge of Mo City caught his attention. The area was desolate, far from the bustling center, and it seemed rather strange.
"Could that be the shop run by that old guy, Hai Bodong?" Xiao Se wondered, and he began packing up his belongings, saying to Long Kui, "Let's disembark early here."
"Got it, brother," Long Kui replied, her body shimmering before transforming into a blue light and entering the demon sword.
---
To read upto 50 advanced chapters of this fic for just 6$, please visit my patreon. Link is in the description.
CREATORS' THOUGHTS
Bored_reader027
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Thanks for reading !
If you find any mistakes, please let me know about it in paragraph comments and I will correct it as soon as possible
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