Chapter 36: Carlo
Mixing a potion isn’t just about one ingredient, even if the Sun’s Gift Fruit is of Dark Purple quality.
Fortunately, Su Xiao had a Philosopher’s Stone certified by Paradise on hand. If other materials were needed, he could substitute with the Philosopher’s Stone.
Su Xiao pondered the ratio method in his mind. There was only one chance, so he had to be cautious.
After ten minutes of deliberation, Su Xiao pulled out a dagger and cut open the Sun’s Gift Fruit.
Upon slicing it open, Su Xiao discovered a core at the center of the fruit.
Examining it closely, Su Xiao was stunned—the core of the Sun’s Gift Fruit was actually the Primordial Seed!
Even now, Su Xiao still didn’t understand the Primordial Seed’s purpose, but one thing he was certain of: the Sun’s Gift Fruit was edible, while the Primordial Seed absolutely was not.
He stripped the flesh from the Sun’s Gift Fruit and began mixing the potion.
Due to the crude conditions, the mixing carried significant risk, but fortunately, the materials were sufficient, so the potion’s quality wouldn’t be compromised.
The crude conditions were unavoidable. The Sun’s Gift Fruit had an extremely short shelf life; he couldn’t wait until after the Survival Trial to mix it.
Light flickered in his hand as Su Xiao focused intently on the mixing. Bubu Wang’s nose twitched, and his gaze shifted to the Primordial Seed.
Bubu Wang let out a gulp, swallowing a large mouthful of saliva. He knew the Primordial Seed wasn’t edible, but the instinctual craving tormented him.
“Gulp.”
Swallow sound ×1.
“Gulp…”
Swallow sound ×2.
Su Xiao stopped his movements and glanced at Bubu Wang, who then quieted down considerably.
Two hours later, a crisp crack came from Su Xiao’s hand, and a wisp of red powder fell from his fingertips. The energy within the Philosopher’s Stone was depleted.
Su Xiao held a test tube filled with a pale golden liquid.
Gurgle, gurgle.
The pale golden liquid churned inside the test tube, yet it had no heat at all. Su Xiao was using his Mana Points to stabilize the changes among the materials, steering them toward a positive outcome.
Sweat dripped from Su Xiao’s chin. His Mana Points drained like flowing water. If he hadn’t had over a thousand Mana Points, he would have collapsed long ago.
After a long while, the potion in the test tube stopped churning, and a peculiar fluctuation emanated from it—a sign that Reincarnation Paradise had certified this enhancement potion.
Su Xiao checked the potion’s attributes.
[Unnamed]
Origin: Survival Trial
Quality: Dark Purple
Type: Enhancement Potion
Effect: After consumption, permanently increases Health Points by +200, Mana Points by +200, Strength +1, Agility +1, Intelligence +1, Fire Resistance +25%, Frost Resistance +25%, Neural Reflex Speed +4%.
Rating: 260+
Description: An advanced product of Alchemical Pharmaceutics, extremely precious.
…
Seeing the potion’s effects, a smile spread across Su Xiao’s face. It was a good thing he hadn’t eaten the Sun’s Gift Fruit directly—he would have missed out big time.
This potion had been certified by Reincarnation Paradise, meaning it could be sold externally.
But no Contractor who obtained this would choose to sell it, and Su Xiao was no exception.
He downed the pale golden potion in one gulp, and a wave of warmth instantly filled his abdominal cavity.
At that moment, a vast expanse of light suddenly appeared before Su Xiao’s eyes, and within the light, a faint figure was visible.
The figure seemed somewhat illusory, like a projection. It wore a golden long dress and appeared to be a woman, with golden ribbons flowing and golden flames burning all over her body.
“Mortal, kneel.”
A cold, clear voice rang out, and Su Xiao’s brow furrowed tightly.
“Kneel!”
The woman spoke again, and in an instant, flames surged around Su Xiao, as if to incinerate him.
The temperature of the flames was extremely high, burning through the air itself. Just as Su Xiao thought he might die, a blue flame erupted from within him.
“Law…”
The golden-flame woman murmured, shaking her head, and an almost imperceptible trace of fear flickered in her eyes.
“Leave my planet. This place doesn’t welcome you Law-Destroying madmen.”
The golden-flame woman’s body began to change, gradually shifting from human form into vines that crept toward Su Xiao.
Boom!
Su Xiao’s eyes snapped open. He looked around—aside from Bubu Wang, there were no other creatures nearby.
Staring at the empty test tube in his hand, Su Xiao guessed he had entered some kind of illusion. The woman covered in golden flames was likely not human but some kind of consciousness.
Yes, a consciousness. Su Xiao had a vague yet clear feeling that he was her nemesis. That consciousness feared him, so it had created an illusion to intimidate him.
Su Xiao checked his personal attributes. The potion’s enhancements had already taken effect. The increase in Health Points couldn’t be verified, but his Mana Points had reached an astonishing 1363.
Strength, Agility, and Intelligence each increased by one point, along with dual resistances to Fire and Ice.
Resistance was a useful ability. For example, Fire Resistance wouldn’t make him immune to fire’s scorching, but it would allow him to survive longer in flames, and future fire-based attacks would cause less severe injuries.
Among all these enhancements, the most valuable was the 4% increase in Neural Reflex Speed. For a melee fighter, Neural Reflex Speed was practically a dream attribute.
Su Xiao lay in the cave, pondering the scene he had witnessed earlier and connecting it with the clues he knew.
More and more clues were emerging, and they all pointed to one thing.
Su Xiao’s head ached. He wasn’t good at deduction. If it were a Contractor with exceptional reasoning skills, they might have already uncovered the truth from the clues.
He had to admit, he didn’t have that talent. He was the combat type.
That wasn’t a major issue. Su Xiao knew there was someone who surely understood the secrets—and he would inevitably come into contact with that person: Old Bal.
To be safe, Su Xiao planned to leave the Red Soil Region before the sixth day of the Survival Trial. Without Old Bal’s compass, he couldn’t leave the Red Soil Region quickly, so meeting him was unavoidable.
He rested in the cave for a night, and the next morning, Su Xiao took Bubu Wang to find Old Bal.
Today was the day the Asaman Tribe went to war with the Void Insect Race. Don’t misunderstand—it wasn’t a decisive battle, just the daily struggle for territory.
The Asaman Tribe had gathered a large number of red-skinned natives. Though their skin color was the same, their attire varied slightly.
The Asaman Tribe wasn’t just one large tribe; there were several smaller tribes around it.
Old Bal was the leader of the Asaman Tribe, commanding the main tribe while also directing the smaller ones.
Inside Old Bal’s stone house, he sat on a fur rug, with over a dozen small tribe leaders seated before him.
“Batganawa… (Unknown Language).”
Old Bal seemed to be announcing something, and the small tribe leaders listened intently.
“Roar!”
All the small tribe leaders let out a loud roar. They had apparently reached some kind of agreement.
Bubu Wang was startled and rolled his eyes, his expression clearly saying: ‘This bunch of jumpy idiots!’
The dozen or so small tribe leaders left the stone house, and Old Bal walked over to Su Xiao.
Today, Old Bal was dressed formally, wearing a feathered headdress and a yellow feather cloak.
“My friend, the time to fulfill our promise has come. Come with me to the insect nest. Help me obtain the ‘Regeneration Egg,’ and the compass is yours.”
Though Old Bal tried to steady his emotions, Su Xiao could still sense his excitement.
Behind Old Bal stood a small tribe leader, a companion for the deep incursion into the insect nest, a decision Old Bal had made on the spot.
This small tribe leader was tall, around thirty years old. What drew attention was that his left cheek was withered, with plant roots growing out of it.
“This is Carlo, my most trusted subordinate. We can communicate.”
Carlo’s expression was dull, and his speech was somewhat slurred.
“Hello, I know a little… of the adventurer’s language.”