Chapter 15: Unexpected Erosion
Evil Hao's expression grew increasingly unnatural. Being stared at by Su Xiao and Berjil was truly uncomfortable. He rumbled in a deep voice:
"You two, what's your meaning?"
Su Xiao didn't answer. He simply returned to the mixing table and continued immersing himself in potion brewing. Berjil, on the other hand, chuckled as he stepped forward and began to persuade:
"If this Law Destroyer doesn't continue brewing potions, we'll be the ones in trouble."
"Then I won't 'pre-ordain fate' from the Twin Bed."
"This is for the Empress."
Hearing Berjil's words, Evil Hao's expression twisted violently. But suddenly, as if realizing something, he retorted: "Since it's for the Empress, why don't you go?"
"Huh?"
Berjil was visibly stunned. His main surprise was that Evil Hao had suddenly become so clever, actually throwing back the powerful counterattack of 'why don't you go.'
"I am the Empress's direct subordinate, her most loyal lackey and hound. If I were to pre-ordain fate, the 'price' I pay might implicate the Empress."
By the end, Berjil spoke with righteous indignation. Hearing this, Evil Hao's large hand rubbed his chin, which was nearly spherical from fat. His pitch-black eyes narrowed thoughtfully as he pondered, nodding slightly while muttering:
"Yeah, it might implicate the Empress. That really can't be risked. So it should be me who..."
Evil Hao's eyes suddenly widened a few degrees. His tone turned stern and angry: "No, that's not right! I'm also the Empress's loyal direct lackey."
"No, you're not. I'm more loyal."
"You're full of shit! Clearly, I'm more loyal!"
Evil Hao glared angrily, and Berjil's eyes also turned hostile. Meanwhile, inside the Scorpion Lady's bedchamber, the Scorpion Lady, reclining lazily on her massive bed, watched all this through a soul projection. She was almost speechless, nearly propping her forehead with one hand. Beside her, the Abyss Princess closed her eyes and tilted her head back slightly. From her lips, it was clear she was straining to the limit not to laugh out loud.
"Little girl, go to Ayesha and 'pre-ordain fate.' Try to get a fragment of the Awakening Stele."
The Scorpion Lady's languid words made the Abyss Princess's smile disappear. She shrugged helplessly: "It won't work. We are all children of Mother Bed. I can't make a wish to my little sister."
"Is that so? Then would the fate of a Supreme Strong be enough to fulfill this wish?"
The Abyss Princess didn't answer the question but instead asked: "What is the Awakening Stele?"
"The Law Destroyers' ultimate treasure."
"Then an ordinary Supreme Strong definitely won't do. The Law Destruction faction involves the causal fate of an entire era. Their ultimate treasure would have a terrifying magnitude of causality. To complete this overdraft, perhaps only you Abyss Descendants, by paying a sufficient price, could manage it."
Hearing this, the Scorpion Lady gave the Abyss Princess a meaningful smile for a moment. The Abyss Princess stepped back slightly in fear. Never be deceived by this lady's gentleness; her specialty was inflicting soul-wrenching agony that pushed others to their limits.
"Is that so? Then I'll bear the price this time."
The Scorpion Lady rose gracefully. Hearing this, the Worm Man standing guard silently walked out of the bedchamber.
An hour later, in the Empress City's main district, specifically the 1st District's southern part, Rain Street 809, stood a seemingly ordinary slaughterhouse.
This was a large slaughterhouse with thousands of workers and numerous workshops. At the innermost part of Workshop 6 was an old-fashioned elevator descending a kilometer underground. The elevator was at the bottom, indicating someone had just ventured deep into this underground prison.
This nameless prison had over a dozen cells, each about fifty square meters. The front walls were thirty-centimeter-thick specially crafted transparent crystal layers. The cells were clean, appearing frequently maintained, each equipped with a large bed, bookshelves, and various smart appliances. Aside from losing freedom, the living conditions here seemed decent.
At this moment, Su Xiao, Berjil, and Evil Hao stood before Cell 3. Berjil's expression was resolute as he said:
"The Empress cannot bear the 'fate price,' so I will."
After speaking, Berjil glanced at Evil Hao, his eyes practically saying, 'You're not loyal enough to the Empress.'
"Get lost."
Evil Hao shoved Berjil aside. Given Berjil's small, old-man physique, Evil Hao's push sent him crashing with a bang against the transparent crystal wall across the way. Inside this cell, Amu scratched his head in confusion.
As for why Amu was here, his initial teleportation point was the 10th District of Empress City. After using a [Follower Promotion Badge] from Reincarnation Paradise, Amu's combat power had undergone a qualitative transformation. Under such circumstances, when Amu entered his 'Detached State,' he became a true iron-blooded war bull.
A group of strong warriors under the Scorpion Lady had surrounded Amu. Although only one was severely injured, they really couldn't beat this Minotaur. The guy grabbed a secondary clan member, clamped his neck tightly, and then pummeled him with heavy punches.
A classic scene unfolded: a group of secondary clan members surrounded Amu, but Amu ignored everyone else, focusing solely on beating the one he had caught to death. He nearly traumatized that secondary clan member.
In the end, the surrounding secondary clan members realized something was wrong and tried to pull Amu away. But Amu held the unlucky secondary clan member's neck with one hand, opened his mouth wide to bite the guy's head, and stabbed the other hand between the secondary clan member's ribs.
No matter how others attacked Amu, he neither let go nor released his bite. It was said that by the end, the unlucky secondary clan member's pleas for help were tinged with sobs.
Finally, Berjil arrived and put Amu to sleep. During the subsequent torture and interrogation, Amu simply started napping, sleeping soundly. It wasn't that he felt no pain; compared to being severely beaten, torture was a mere drizzle.
Su Xiao had been somewhat surprised by the Scorpion Lady's attitude earlier, but upon seeing Amu, he understood what was happening. With this trump card obtained through luck, plus his prior preparations, he naturally felt confident and composed during negotiations.
One of his objectives had changed: from rescuing Ayesha to both freeing Amu and rescuing Ayesha. He left this task to Baha. After being promoted to Supreme Strong, Baha had been wanting a chance to prove himself.
However, Su Xiao noticed something off about Amu's expression. He kept pressing his hand to his chest and abdomen, as if... suffering from stomach pain?
It was hard to imagine what Amu had eaten to upset his stomach, which could devour heaven and earth. Not to mention other things, Amu had eaten plenty of raw divine flesh. Initially, it was uncomfortable, but later, he got used to it.
Looking at Amu now, there were many black threads in the corners of his eyes. It seemed he had swallowed the flesh and blood of an Abyss creature? Given Amu's Abyss resistance, this was quite dangerous. But unfortunately, they were in enemy territory, and Amu only seemed to have a stomachache. His vital signs were stable, and the mild erosion was overall harmless.
Let Amu suffer. He ate anything when hungry. Previously, it was plates and utensils; later, when hungry, he gnawed on trees. At low to mid ranks, it was often the flesh of various monsters. At high ranks, he had even eaten sashimi from ocean deities.
In short, due to Su Xiao's warnings, as long as it wasn't fully humanoid, Amu would taste it. Consequently, having now swallowed Abyss creature flesh, his stomach could hold out for a few days or even longer.
"What, do you know this bull warrior?"
Berjil's smile was meaningful.
"This is my follower."
Su Xiao's words made Berjil's smile freeze. He coughed dryly and said, "It seems there's some misunderstanding between us."
"No misunderstanding. Release him. In my subsequent potion brewing, his help will increase efficiency by a third."
"This..."
Berjil was left speechless. He had originally intended to subtly warn that if Su Xiao dared to tamper with the potions, this Minotaur would die horribly here. Instead, he was now being held hostage.
Release him? Lose a trump card obtained through luck.
Not release him? Potion production efficiency drops by a third.
Remember, having this Law Destroyer brew potions was unstable. No one knew what changes tomorrow might bring.
Berjil didn't give a direct answer, indicating he couldn't decide this on his own. He needed to report to the Empress and follow her orders.
Evil Hao pressed his hand against the crystal layer ahead. Ripples spread across it like a water curtain, and Evil Hao stepped inside.
Ayesha—no, Delona. First of all, Ayesha wouldn't sit on a swing, idly swinging her legs. And now, this body had silver hair and a black dress, whereas Ayesha had black hair, a white dress, and pitch-black eyes.
"Little one, I want to 'pre-ordain' a fragment of a supreme treasure."
Evil Hao looked down at Delona. Given the size difference between them, saying Evil Hao could swallow Delona in one bite wasn't an exaggeration.
"No."
Delona's answer was firm and revealed her dislike for Evil Hao, like stepping on a fat, squishy caterpillar in a park. Her face showed visible disgust.
"Heh~ Then I'll go eat your sister."
Evil Hao crouched down, grinning to reveal a mouthful of thick, flat teeth. Sometimes, compared to sharp fangs, these huge, uniform flat teeth were more terrifying.
"Bad guy."
Delona swung on the swing. She inadvertently turned her head and saw Su Xiao outside the transparent crystal layer. Her expression didn't change, but she was happy inside. Her brother's friend had arrived. She trusted her brother's judgment in people, so she was certain she would leave this place soon.
"You can't hurt my sister. I'll help you 'pre-ordain.'"
At the end, a hint of a devilish smile curled at the corner of Delona's mouth. Seeing this expression, Evil Hao's expression stiffened.
Delona closed her eyes. After a moment, she opened them, now completely pitch black.
"Speak, your, wish."
Delona's voice became dull and mechanical, as if coming from a terrifying entity in an unknown realm.
"I want the Awakening Stele... no, I want a fragment of the Awakening Stele. Preferably the one that's easiest to obtain."
Evil Hao had a rare moment of intelligence. He didn't directly say 'I want a fragment of the Awakening Stele,' because that might bring all the missing fragments, but the 'price' would be many times higher. The final phrase 'preferably the one that's easiest to obtain' was the peak of Evil Hao's wisdom.
"Okay~"
Delona lowered her head. An arm made of pitch-black energy extended from behind her neck. The black arm reached into the air and rapidly elongated. An extremely dense Abyss darkness erupted, making one wonder if this dark arm of Delona's had reached into the Abyss itself.
A few minutes later, the dark arm retracted. When it pulled out of the darkness, it held an apple-sized [Awakening Stele (Fragment)].
The dark arm seemed to have its own independent consciousness. It placed the [Awakening Stele (Fragment)] in Delona's hand, then dissipated. A few seconds later, Delona opened her eyes somewhat dazedly. She looked at the [Awakening Stele (Fragment)] in her hand for a moment, then handed it to Evil Hao.
"That's it?"
Evil Hao touched his obese body. He didn't feel any change. But the next second, he noticed that the girl before him had quietly transformed. Pitch-black hair, a pure white dress, and those completely dark eyes, like dark voids, stared emotionlessly at Evil Hao. It was Ayesha who had arrived.
Ayesha raised her fair hand, extending her index finger forward. Across from her, Evil Hao suddenly felt his body go out of control. His large hand lifted, extending his index finger to touch Ayesha's fingertip.
Boom!
A dull thud came from within Evil Hao. Then, an even more terrifying scene unfolded. It was as if an invisible giant hand was squeezing and twisting Evil Hao, finally cruelly wringing him into a spiral shape. Evil Hao, whose body was extremely tough, screamed as blood spurted from all seven orifices.
When it was all over, Evil Hao had turned into a pile of black rotting flesh on the ground. The black flesh writhed for a long time before reforming into Evil Hao. His originally needle-like short hair was now partly gray. His face was dark and sallow. More importantly, the fate and causality he had lost would have been unbearable for anyone who wasn't an Abyss Descendant.
This was why Su Xiao had never considered using 'Pre-ordained Fate' on Blazing Sun Star.
Evil Hao, holding the [Awakening Stele (Fragment)] in one hand, hunched over and gasped for breath. He looked at Ayesha with extreme hostility, but met only her indifferent, dark eyes.
Evil Hao's gaze turned to Su Xiao. His teeth ground audibly as he said, "What you want is here. What about what we want?"
"According to the amount of potion materials you specified, 15 days."
Su Xiao's words made Evil Hao snort coldly. He pointed at Amu in the cell across the way: "10 days. You said he can help you increase efficiency by a third."
"Agreed."
With that, Su Xiao walked out of the underground prison. This time, Baha's objective had changed from rescuing both Amu and Delona to only rescuing Delona.
When Su Xiao returned to the potion workshop, it was already evening that day. The reason for delaying until now was to buy time for Kaisa. He checked the team channel. Kaisa had already posted a message with the content 'Success,' indicating that Su Xiao's potion brewing could officially begin.
"Moo."
On the small bed behind, Amu lay half-dead, occasionally burping. Before seeing Su Xiao, even if Amu was in unbearable pain, he showed no expression. But after seeing Su Xiao, he was like a 1850-kilogram child who had come home wronged, utterly pitiful.
Su Xiao glanced at Amu. This stupid cow, who ate everything, was sometimes even dumber than Bubu Wang. But when entering the Detached State, he was indeed fierce. He had bitten off a large chunk of flesh from some Abyss creature, very much in the style of the Dawn Team's ferocity.
After completing the catalysis of the medicinal materials, Su Xiao began brewing. Soon, he produced a large jar of potion. He had Amu drink a few big gulps every half hour. This would be enough for a few days.
Normally, the Abyss energy in Amu's body should be removed. The problem was that Amu's stomach had such strong digestive power that it was trying to digest the Abyss energy. Naturally, the Abyss energy couldn't be digested by Amu's current stomach, leading to deeper erosion, so deep that it was impossible to remove.
Su Xiao's plan was to let Amu's stomach continue to be eroded by the Abyss energy. When it reached a certain level, it would enter a stage of violent erosion, causing the other Abyss energy that had eroded most of Amu's body to rapidly converge on his stomach, resulting in a complete, aggregated erosion.
At that point, he could remove the source of the Abyss energy erosion by excising Amu's stomach. Then, removing the remaining Abyss energy and darkness wouldn't be too difficult.
The potion Su Xiao brewed for Amu was a secret medicine that greatly enhanced cell activity, ensuring Amu's stomach kept growing and wouldn't become woody before being completely eroded.
Su Xiao had Amu drink a few big gulps every half hour or whenever his stomach ached severely. But in less than five minutes, Amu had already chugged over a dozen gulps. This secret medicine clearly wouldn't last a few days. Since materials were so abundant and he didn't have to buy them himself, Su Xiao brewed several more large jars.
Evil Hao, who was responsible for watching Su Xiao, naturally noticed that this wasn't 'Star Spirit Liquid.' He was about to question it when his nose twitched. He walked over to a jar of super-active potion, picked it up, and took a big gulp. This caused his graying hair to turn red-black again, stiff as wild boar bristles.
Evil Hao chugged a few more big gulps, his eyes brightening. The discomfort throughout his body from paying the 'price' was clearly alleviated. He simply pretended not to see the matter of using potion materials to brew other secret medicines. After all, it wasn't using much material.
After meditating for a moment to find his brewing state, Su Xiao began brewing 'Star Spirit Liquid.' Unconsciously, he immersed himself in potion brewing. After brewing several hundred bottles, he still felt unsatisfied. Time slipped away like this.
When Su Xiao reached for another batch of materials, he grabbed empty air. He found that the mountain of potion materials in the workshop had been completely consumed. The few remaining types weren't enough to make another batch of 'Star Spirit Liquid.'
Evil Hao was sitting there, head drooping, snoring loudly. Amu was holding a metal jar, occasionally taking big gulps. It could only be said that only a potion master's follower could be so extravagant.
Su Xiao summoned a servant. Soon, the servant brought Berjil.
"The materials are insufficient."
"No rush, no rush. Why don't you rest for a day? You've been brewing for three days. The materials are temporarily used up. Next, we need to switch to another secret medicine. This secret medicine is quite challenging, and we hope you can improve it."
Berjil's smile was heartfelt. Over these three days, he had sold batches of 'Permanent Enhancement Secret Medicine' to the Goblin Merchant Guild, acquiring batches of universal currency. They were nearly halfway to the Empress's expected goal. If not for the Empress's prior orders to kill this Law Destroyer upon completion, Berjil would really want to keep such a potion master long-term.
He also understood why major forces treated potion masters as honored guests. The potion business was simply too profitable.
"..."
Su Xiao stood up and walked out of the potion workshop. Amu followed. As soon as he left the workshop, Su Xiao felt a dizzying spin. He hadn't realized three days had passed; it felt like only a dozen hours. Wearing the [Peak Work] title while brewing potions was indeed an enjoyable experience.
Under the servant's guidance, Su Xiao arrived at a nearby three-story building. The environment was quiet. There was even the sound of frogs croaking in the courtyard's small pond, a rare sight in this world.
Going up to the second floor, although his body smelled of potions, Su Xiao only wanted to sleep. With Amu guarding nearby, he quickly fell asleep. A few minutes later, Bubu Wang arrived nearby. Blending into the environment, Bubu Wang lost his usual cheerfulness and playfulness. His gaze calmly surveyed the surroundings. Although he occasionally yawned, he was still quite serious.
When Su Xiao woke up, it was already 4 AM the next day. He sat up in bed and immediately opened the notification list. Yesterday, he had brewed potions until his head was dizzy and only wanted to sleep.
As for whether there was any danger during this time, this was Empress City. Before Kaisa sent intelligence, who would dare to attack Su Xiao? All the strong warriors in Empress City would swarm to fight to the death. Even if it was an 'Experience Card,' it was a 'Potion Master Experience Card.' Before the card expired, anyone showing hostility would die.
Su Xiao checked the notifications:
[Notification: Peak Work Title Effect 2: Surpass Self (Passive) has been triggered.]
[Your Alchemy level has increased to Lv.96.]
[Your Alchemy level has increased to Lv.97.]
Alchemy had increased by two levels. That seemed somewhat exaggerated, but the problem was that over these three days, Su Xiao had brewed a total of over 10,000 bottles of 'Star Spirit Liquid,' causing the price of the main material for 'Star Spirit Liquid' to triple.
Each time he successfully brewed an Eternal-grade 'Peak' quality potion, there was a 6.85% chance of permanently increasing Alchemy by Lv.1. But Su Xiao felt that this probability was more like 0.685%. Otherwise, how could it be that after over 10,000 attempts, it only triggered twice?
When Su Xiao returned to the potion workshop, Berjil had been waiting for a long time.
"Mr. Holy Flame, this is the new potion formula. Please take a look..."
Su Xiao took the potion formula. It was a permanent enhancement potion called 'Water God's Blessing.' Its effect was that after drinking it, over the following year, it would slowly but steadily increase health points, body strength, True Strength attribute, and True Stamina attribute.
The characteristic of this potion was its long effect cycle but strong results. Su Xiao didn't improve this secret medicine. The person who developed this formula was definitely a potion master, and it had undergone several subsequent improvements. Trying to improve it again would take years.
Although he couldn't improve the formula, Su Xiao could brew a 'Peak grade' 'Water God's Blessing,' which would additionally enhance its effects by 95%. This was also an incredibly powerful enhancement.
Su Xiao once again immersed himself in potion brewing. Time passed unconsciously. This time, he brewed continuously for five days. He got up to rest at his temporary residence, leaving about one-fifth of the materials.
Berjil's meaning was that this batch of potions was urgently needed by buyers, so he asked Su Xiao to finish brewing as soon as possible. The main materials for the next potion formula had already been purchased in bulk from the Goblin Merchant Guild.
Su Xiao knew this was nonsense. He was certain that when he finished brewing all the 'Water God's Blessing,' the Scorpion Lady would lead her subordinates to surround and kill him. So he needed to ensure that after brewing the last batch of 'Water God's Blessing,' he was in good condition.
Returning to the bedroom, Su Xiao quickly fell asleep again. When he woke up, he checked the notifications.
[Your Alchemy level has increased to Lv.98.]
[Your Alchemy level has increased to Lv.99.]
It seemed simple, but it really wasn't too difficult. Su Xiao had been immersed in potion brewing. Alchemy was different from Blade Grandmastery; it required a process of insight and accumulation. Alchemy was about repeated peak-level brewing, leading to a deeper understanding of the art.
The key was the [Peak Work] title plus the massive number of brewing attempts. Raising this title to 'Limit Refinement: Four Times' was the biggest obstacle to improving Alchemy. Having already achieved this, Su Xiao's progress was now natural.
A more intuitive analogy was that other potion masters might have one 'Peak quality' experience per month, while Su Xiao, wearing [Peak Work], had a 'Peak quality' experience every time.
As for wanting to raise Alchemy to Lv.100, Su Xiao was certain that even if he brewed tens of thousands more bottles, he couldn't achieve this. He needed an extremely special and complex potion formula and to brew it successfully. More precisely, it was a sublimation of the Alchemy knowledge he had already mastered.
Su Xiao could only think of one major force that would have such a potion formula: the Alchemy Civilization of the Second Era. For now, he could only go to the Soul Library and ask the Ancient One.
Returning to the potion workshop, Su Xiao began brewing the last few batches of 'Water God's Blessing.' A day later, he placed the last bottle of 'Water God's Blessing' into the potion cooling device. Berjil, who had been waiting nearby, respectfully stepped forward and handed over a potion formula:
"Mr. Holy Flame, this is the next potion's formula. Please see if there's room for improvement."
"There is."
"Then I'll trouble you."
Berjil smiled even more submissively.
"Give me a quiet environment."
Su Xiao casually picked up a piece of parchment. Seeing this, Berjil glanced at Evil Hao and walked out of the potion workshop. Evil Hao still sat there, yawning boredly. Everything seemed normal, but they were already prepared to act. Otherwise, this time, they couldn't explain to that old undying Council Chairman, since this Law Destroyer had killed the Beast Lord.
Su Xiao's index finger tapped the blank parchment repeatedly. Over the past few days, Bubu Wang had mapped out the locations of several heavily guarded treasure vaults in Empress City. However, Su Xiao knew that the Scorpion Lady hadn't placed the resources obtained this time in any treasure vault. Those vaults were all empty.
This time, the Scorpion Lady had adopted an extremely safe method. Using the identity certified by the Void Tree that she had obtained years ago, she stored all the resources obtained this time in a personal storage device certified by the Void Tree. This way, even if Su Xiao and Kaisa joined forces, they couldn't 'shop' from the Scorpion Lady's faction store.
Those resources weren't in a semi-public faction store; they were in the Scorpion Lady's own personal storage device.
This clearly showed that she knew about the Beast Lord faction's treasure vault being looted. Also, regarding the 'Star Realm Casino,' the Scorpion Lady had shares. Before kidnapping Su Xiao, she had already learned about this Law Destroyer's lethality against treasure vaults or gold vaults and had taken precautions.
However, what the Scorpion Lady could never dream of was that the problem would come from her partner of several hundred years, the Goblin Merchant Guild's representative sent to this world, one of the Goblin general managers, Jinguwo.
More precisely, the current Jinguwo was no longer the Goblin general manager from a few days ago. If the Scorpion Lady, under other circumstances, had stored her assets in a personal storage vault certified by the Void Tree, Su Xiao and Kaisa would indeed have no way. But her partner was the Goblin Merchant Guild. The word 'Goblin' itself was the biggest flaw.
Ask, what was Kaisa's background? Kaisa was one-third human bloodline, one-third Goblin bloodline, one-third Dwarf bloodline. Later, becoming a Worker, he was now the current human, wretched little old man image.
With one-third Goblin bloodline, Kaisa was quite professionally suited to dealing with Goblins.
Back then, even the chairman of the Goblin Merchant Guild had been tricked by Kaisa to the point of losing his underwear. This time, dealing with Jinguwo, Kaisa, out of racial camaraderie, simply put him into the [Abyssal Jar], then forcefully put the [Abyssal Jar] over his own head, covering it completely, and became Goblin General Manager Jinguwo.
Were all of the Scorpion Lady's assets safe in the Void Tree's personal vault? Don't forget that over the past few days, these assets... had all passed through Kaisa's hands. It was time to start a new operation.