章 60: Divine Flames Family
They continued travelling in this fashion for the next three days, battling against various demon beasts and staying clear of those that Ning'Er sensed were too strong to be worth the risk. On the third day, the rain finally stopped and the sun rose. She remembered that in this realm, the sunlight would only appear for a few short hours before darkness would descend again, and wondered how depressing this must have been for the thirteen clans living here. She would have been completely gloomy in a land filled with so much rain and darkness.
Walking out of the forest which they had been in for days, they were extremely glad to see a sizeable village in front of them with a big sign board at the entrance in bright yellow words showing, Flame Village. This was what Ning'Er had been looking for based on her memory of the map that Nie Li had drawn in the past.
It was the village under the control of the Divine Flames Family, the most righteous family within the Abyss Prison Realm. She remembered the situation that they had encountered in the past, where the Silver Winged Family had kept trying to take over the weaker families. It was the Divine Flames Family which had formed an alliance with four other weaker families simply to resist the Silver Winged Family's tyrannical ambitions.
In fact, the only trading town in the whole realm had been placed under the Divine Flames Family by popular vote because the other families trusted its integrity. This was the clan she would work with in order to accomplish her goals in this realm!
They were stopped at the gates of the village by a formidable group of guards. Ning'Er could perceive that those at captain rank were all at Black Gold! Despite this, they were not cruel and did not deliberately try to intimidate them.
The one in charge that day approached them with polite caution. "I am Captain Zhang. Can I verify your identification and reasons for coming to our humble village?"
Ning'Er had requested for Yang Xin to represent their group since she was the only adult there, and had briefed her on how to approach it. "My name is Yang Xin. I am a Master Alchemist and these are my trainees and apprentices. We have recently found trouble with the Silver Winged Family and we seek to find refuge...and partnership with the Divine Flames Family. There are not many families that can resist the ruthless Silver Winged Family..."
Captain Zhang had taken note of the beauty around him but had deliberately avoided her gaze until she stepped forward to speak. He subtly gulped down some saliva as he heard her slowly speak the word 'partnership', and shook his head imperceptibly to shake out the random thoughts he was thinking.
Alchemists were extremely rare and in high demand in the Abyss Prison Realm and the Divine Flames Family would be extremely grateful if he could bring in genuine alchemists to partner with them. However, it was for this reason that he had to be more careful as well because a family will ill intentions could plant spies or traitors within their midst.
"How do I know that wh-", he began before his words caught in his throat as Yang Xin handed over an open bottle containing a few beautiful, round pills. He could catch the rich medicinal scent from a distance and knew that the elixirs were genuine. Just breathing in the scent relaxed his body in a beneficial way, and made him feel refreshed and full of energy.
"These are for you, Captain Zhang."
He could feel his heart throbbing as he heard her softly addressing his name and title. At the same time, he was ecstatic that he could be in possession of elixirs at a high quality than he had even seen before!
Yang Xin continued, "Here are three Soul Concentrating Pills and two Scarlet Body Enhancing Pills. Consider them a small gift for taking the inconvenience of greeting us with such hospitality today."
Captain Zhang was caught in a dilemma. He was captivated by this beautiful woman in front of him and had received her gifts but he still could did not have the authority to call on those of the noble family for visitors. Fortunately, he saw the teenage young master, Li Heng, walking in the distance, who was a direct descendant of the family. The young master had been friendlier and less concerned about appearances than his older counterparts, and the captain had a good impression of him.
"Young Master Li!" He hurried rushed over and cupped his hands, bowing in respect. "We have an unusual group of visitors today. They claim to be alchemists and want to work together with the Divine Flames Family because of troubles they are facing with the Silver Winged Family."
"Oh?" The young master's eyebrows lifted in surprise. It was not everyday that he met an alchemist in this realm, and they were in extremely high demand. He was even more excited when he sniffed at the bottle that Captain Zhang passed to him. This was good stuff! With a grace and demeanor that was befitting of the training that nobility received, he passed back the bottle to Captain Zhang and confidently walked over to the visitors to the village.
"Alchemist Yang Xin, Captain Zhang has told me of your...predicament. I am impressed with the elixirs you have passed him and can tell that they were relatively freshly made, and not from an old stash. You are lucky that I happened to be passing by today, if not, there would be a lot of red tape to meet the main decision makers of my clan." He smiled as he smoothly delivered these words.
Ning'Er was impressed at the manner in which he conducted himself and in making the guests feel important and welcome.
Li Heng continued, "In fact, I have a meeting today with my father to discuss something. I will forgo what I had planned and will use that session for you to present your case."
Yang Xin bowed deeply in gratitude and Li Heng held his breath as he resisted the temptation to look at the valley between her large breasts that he had accidentally caught a glimpse of. Although she no longer wore revealing clothes, even normal clothing could not completely hide her substantial curves in certain positions. "Thank you so much."
She handed over another small glass flask to him. "Here are ten Soul Tempering pills. They are for your troubles and also if your father needs to see evidence of our sincerity."
He had initially begun lifting his hand to reject the gift but when he heard the words 'Soul Tempering pills', his heart almost leaped out of his chest. These were elixirs that had gone extinct in the Abyss Prison Realm for a very long time but he had read about these high-tier cultivation resources, and the amazing results they were able to achieve. He found himself using the very same hand that was meant to turn it down to gently receive the glass flask.
"Thank you for your generosity," he murmured as he uncorked the flask and smelled the deep scent overflowing with vigorous energy. "I will show this to my father."
Two hours later, they sat in a lavish hall a little stunned as they tentatively glanced at the man seated at the head of the table. They had not realised that when Young Master Li Heng had nonchalantly mentioned his father, that he had meant the Patriarch of the Divine Flames Family, Li Xiao!
"Welcome to our village!" Patriarch Li Xiao's voice boomed out with a boisterous, friendly tone. Underneath that friendly exterior, Ning'Er could sense a deep power and aura in the Patriarch's presence, which allowed him to be at the head of one of the three major families of this realm. "My son gave me the privilege of seeing an elixir I didn't think I would ever see in my lifetime. What freshness, what a miraculous medicinal energy, I'm in complete awe!!"
His voice lowered as though he were whispering something conspiratorial, "What's this I hear about trouble with the Silver Winged Family? Anything I can do to go against them is my pleasure! How can I help you?"
Yang Xin steadily looked at the Patriarch as she moved into the next stage of the plan. "Patriarch Li Xiao, the truth is, I wasn't entirely honest to Captain Zhang for reasons you will understand in a moment."
She saw his eyes narrow in serious consideration and continued, "We come from a different realm through a portal we discovered. Although the world we come from is relatively richer in resources than this realm, most of humanity has been destroyed by the demon beast horde. I come representing our world to form important alliances with this realm in order to have mutually beneficial sharing of resources and manpower. Through our research, the Divine Flames Family is the most righteous of the clans here and that is why we have sought this meeting today."
Next to the Patriarch, Li Heng's eyes had almost popped out its sockets and his mouth had dropped open as he looked towards his father for a sign to confirm that these people with their outlandish stories were just a joke. He was stunned as his father's face stayed completely serious, taking many long moments to study the faces of the group of visitors.
Patriarch Li Xiao finally responded, "I had guessed you were from the realm from which our thirteen clans escaped from. No one who has the ability to produce Soul Tempering elixirs would find trouble with any family here. Any clan leader would have bent over backwards to secure such formidable alchemists."
He breathed in deeply and let out a big sigh, blowing out all the air in his lungs in one go. "Finally, we have a way to travel back to our home world. The ancestors spoke of an incredible world filled with lush forests and beautiful mountains. Not like our dark, cold, rainy land over here. I'm sure my excitable son would love to see it for himself."
He looked over at Li Heng, chuckling loudly at his son, who still had his mouth open, unable to process all this information that was being presented. "Sometimes I've wondered whether there's been any point to maintain our righteous principles and values in this savage, lawless land. I guess the gods are fair if it has truly brought you to our doorstep on this auspicious day."
Yang Xin smiled widely in genuine relief, "It seems like I didn't have to explain too much after all. Patriarch Li Xiao is truly wise and sharp to see the big picture immediately."
"You are too kind, Yang Xin. I currently can only see a tiny glimpse at the full picture. I still don't know whether those you represent are truly righteous but can assume that since you contacted us first, you share similar values. I also don't know whether your world with its richer resources will simply send an army to this realm to control everything." Li Xiao was completely forthright with his thoughts. "So let's get down to business. How can I help you?"
Yang Xin appreciated men who were able to be so direct and fair in their dealings. How she wished there were more like him in the Alchemist Association that she could work with. Maybe she wouldn't still be single today!
She gave a small approving nod to him as she began to go into the details of their working relationship.
クリエイターの想い 
AerynSun
AerynSun I always wished MadSnail would spend more time writing about the different locations. This chapter was fun because I could imagine up some details about the Abyss Prison Realm. :)
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