His Yuan Qi didn’t travel far as a sudden chill, caused by the yin power, broke his contact, and a thin layer of ice crystals formed on his hand.
Zhuo Fan was in shock.
This didn’t come as a result of the terrible chill, since it belonged to the yin power of the moon. What startled him so was the poison the scourge woman was housing in her body.
There were seven types of poison twisted inside, and each one of them was enough to leave a person dead as a doornail. As opposed to miraculous medicines, this was a certain death poison. With how the seven poison were twisted among each other, even a Radiant Stage expert would be in endless torment before dying.
He didn’t know anyone so vile and malicious that would administer such poison, but one thing he did know, the poison was far too strong to be suppressed by the moon’s yin power alone.
And there was one more thing Zhuo Fan found inside her body fighting off the seven poisons, a medicine; the Bodhi Jade Sap!
With his eyes wide, Zhuo Fan’s heart was in exultation.
Bodhi Jade Sap was a miraculous medicine capable of reviving someone from an inch of death, a 7th, if not 8th-grade medicine. One drop was enough to save a mortally wounded person.
And this was what Zhuo Fan’s aim all along!
Now, he was apathetic to the scourge woman’s plight, only having eyes for the Bodhi Jade Sap to restore the Thunder Skylark egg.
All that was left was to figure out how to get it out of her. This miraculous treasure wasn’t a common topic he could discuss with her, it breached one’s lifeline.
“What are you doing?!”
Zhuo Fan’s act was instantaneous and only now did she pull her dainty hand away and glared in fury.
His eyes darting around, Zhuo Fan put on a sappy face, rubbing his hands in worry, “Sister Chuchu, your hand is so cold, let me warm you up!”
“Don’t play with me!”
Chuchu stared at him filled with doubt, “Say it, why did you search me with Yuan Qi?”
Zhuo Fan sighed, “I noticed sister Chuchu’s unwell complexion and since my clan is an alchemist clan, I thought of helping you. I didn’t expect sister to doubt me…”
Zhuo Fan now sported a face filled with injustice, and even sniffed to drive the point in. It had the obvious effect and Chuchu’s heart softened and her eyes no longer glared.
“My injury isn’t something a third rate clan can help with. But thank you.”
“Who says that?”
Zhuo Fan raised his head, like an indignant child, “My Song clan from Nightrain City have been alchemists for generations. My dad is a 3rd-grade alchemist and passed his teachings onto me. If you don’t believe it, come and see my skills!”
Zhuo Fan grabbed Chuchu’s soft hand and went outside. Chuchu was so stunned she forgot to fight back.
No matter what she was thinking, she didn’t seem to want to cut at this big boy’s enthusiasm.
Zhuo Fan led Chuchu through some broken-down houses, to the fright of the new locals. Of course, most of them were in fear of the scourge woman while only one man felt dread from Zhuo Fan.
He was the stocky man who witnessed Zhuo Fan’s vicious methods!
The pair arrived at the tavern where Dong Tianba stayed. In his rush before, he even left the Song carriage here. It contained the ingredients the Song clan readied for the meeting.
“Bro!”
He ran right into the Dong siblings. Dong Tianba was in glee while Dong Xiaowan gave a bashful nod, “Big brother Song!”
Yet, Dong Xiaowan felt something strange as she caught his hand holding Chuchu’s wrist.
Dong Tianba noticed this also and felt awkward, “Bro, who is she?”
“Sister Chuchu, a new friend!” Zhuo Fan smiled.
At his words, Dong Tianba dragged him to the side with a raised eyebrow, “Wait to go, bro! You got one just as you arrived!”
“Ha-ha-ha, it’s all thanks to brother Dong!”
Zhuo Fan’s words came from his heart. You’d think a cultivation maniac like him would know how to get close to Chuchu if not for yesterday’s long chat with this prodigal son?
Stealing a glance at Chuchu, Dong Tianba gave a lustful grin, “Bro, is she hot? I can’t tell from her clothes. But she should be hiding something amazing.”
“Uh, I’m not sure since I never saw her body!”
“What?” Dong Tianba cried out, “Not even her face? And you want to bed her?”
Zhuo Fan shrugged, “Don’t be like that. I don’t look at her like that anyway.”
Zhuo Fan brushed passed him, letting him stand dumbstruck, his brows furrowed in deep confusion, [If a man isn’t after a woman for her body, then is it for love? When did my dear bro change so much?]
“Brother Dong, where’s my carriage?” Dong Tianba recovered only after he heard Zhuo Fan’s yell. He replied, “In the back of the tavern. Come with me.”
Dong Tianba led them out back and Zhuo Fan went right inside the carriage, beginning to take out all the glittering and odd ingredients.
He didn’t look at all serious, instead, he was as pure as a child.
Chuchu found it normal, but the Dong siblings were startled. Where did the vicious and sinister Zhuo Fan of yesterday go?
Dong Tianba then realized, [It seems that love can make a man go crazy. Bro, you are caught in a love trap!]
Not minding the looks he got, Zhuo Fan met Chuchu’s eyes and spoke with a boyish smile, “Sister Chuchu, watch closely!”
His hand now held a scarlet Yuan Qi flame, throwing dozens of ingredients inside. Yet it was amazing how the ingredients didn’t mix.
“What precise control!” Dong Tianba exclaimed.
A 3rd-grade alchemist could, at best, handle nine ingredients at once. But Zhuo Fan made light work of dozens. His skill went beyond the 4th grade, perhaps even 5th.
4th-grade alchemists were seen only in second rate clans, 5th grade in first rate clans. As for those above, they were talents raised in the seven houses.
Dong Tianba just couldn’t believe it. When he met Song Yu again in this city, he discovered that not only did his power soared, but even his alchemy ability jumped.
[If he had one iota of skill he shows today at the start, the Clan Head wouldn’t have refused him.] Dong Xiaowan was watching him with an even more amazed expression.
Chuchu nodded faintly, her eyes evoking praise. His skill at his age made Zhuo Fan a diamond in the rough!
But Zhuo Fan wasn’t going for just praise, he wanted shock. Only shock was enough to assure Chuchu of his alchemy ability and let him have the Bodhi Jade Sap.
[Then, he-he-he…]
Zhuo Fan’s eyes narrowed and gripped the scarlet flame containing the ingredients, putting it out. Only a weak trail of smoke was left behind.
“What are you doing?!”
Dong Tianba cried, “I thought this guy improved but why does he suddenly lack common sense? If you forge all the ingredients together and put out the flame, you’ll ruin them.”
Chuchu shook her head with a light smile. [He is still a child. How can you refine with an unsteady heart?]
Then, among the pitying gazes, Zhuo Fan smirked mysteriously, “As an alchemist, how can I not know when my pill is ruined? I don’t need you to remind me!”
With a smug smile, Zhuo Fan opened his hand.
A piercing red light flashed and left behind a round red and glossy pill.
“H-how is this possible?”
Dong Tianba was beyond shocked, not daring to even believe this was real. It went against all alchemical common sense.
From the gloss and the fragrance, it denoted it as a 2nd-grade pill, but of top quality. It had a far greater value than any pill of the same grade.
An apt description would be, a pill that jumped grades!
Chuchu narrowed her eyes in shock. This was her first time witnessing such a skill.
Zhuo Fan snickered inside. This refining method was called Universe Palm, taken from the Nine Serenities Secret Records. It preserved the ingredients’ effects and even boosted the pill to top quality.
It was no wonder those in the mortal domain were oblivious to it since not even the Sacred Domain was aware of its existence.
How could mortals even begin to understand the secret methods of the ancients? It was all for the sake of getting that Bodhi Jade Sap, or Zhuo Fan wouldn’t have revealed such a technique.
To common folk, this secret art meant nothing, but to alchemists, they would rave over it. He’d be inviting disaster if they knew of it.
But these potential issues were for him to deal with in the future. All that mattered now was gaining Chuchu’s trust.
Zhuo Fan grinned as he brought the glossy red pill before Chuchu, “Sister Chuchu, I felt your hand freezing, so this Yang Pill is for you.”
Chuchu raised her eyebrow, but mocked instead, “I appreciate your kindness, but Yang Pill is a 2nd-grade pill. It has no effect on me!”
“How can you be certain if you haven’t tried it yet?”
Zhuo Fan’s cryptic smile left Chuchu in doubt, but she also knew this pill wasn’t ordinary thanks to the special method he employed in refining it. She chose to take it after some muttering.
Chuchu suddenly felt her body shivering, her eyes filled with shock. She had an expression that no one could decipher…